Jesus’ Ministry
February 12, 2019
Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 17:5-10
Blessed are those who trust in the Lord,
whose trust is the Lord.
They shall be like a tree planted by water,
sending out its roots by the stream.
It shall not fear when heat comes,
and its leaves shall stay green;
in the year of drought it is not anxious,
and it does not cease to bear fruit. –Jeremiah 17:7-8
We are suffering a drought of seeking the Common Good in the United States of America. We no longer are a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. We are a government for sale to the highest bidder. As soon as officials are elected, their main job becomes raising enough money for their next election. Term limits has not helped. They only limit the time the winners must pay back their financial supporters making then more stubbornly resistant to search for common ground requiring negotiation and compromise as they practice obstructive maneuvers which usually result in stalemate that gets nothing done. Often the result is that a few people benefit greatly.
Governments come and go and people suffer the consequences of their failures. People of faith, however, are called to follow a different ideal. We are called to live into the Common Good. Called to desire the very best for all God’s children and while we are never called to force our faith on anyone else via government or any other practice, surely our faith quest for the Common Good should spill over into those who represent us in government. When it does not we need to make our message loud and clear because whether we own it or not, we in the United States of American are the government and right now I do not like what I am seeing in the mirror.
Prayer: Lord, give us the strength and courage to elect people who care about the Common Good for all and are willing to do the hard work of learning what that is and how to make it happen. Amen.