Living in the Spirit
June 3, 2020
Scripture Reading:
Psalm 104:24-34, 35b
O Lord, how manifold are your works!
In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
Yonder is the sea, great and wide,
creeping things innumerable are there,
living things both small and great.
There go the ships,
and Leviathan that you formed to sport in it. –Psalm 104:24-26
I am entering week three of critter control at my home. One lone squirrel remains in my attic. I think it entered the trap set last night. Hopefully, this squirrel will be returned to the wild today. The critters are here because of urban sprawl. Workers accidentally knocked open the door to my crawl space, welcoming hungry raccoons, possums, and at least one squirrel into the outer bounds of my house. The company removing the critters is very humane and uses exit cages on openings that let the animals leave but not return. When they examined my house, they discovered other possible entries that have now been sealed. The gateway out from my crawl space remains, but apparently, my squirrel friend is not aware that the exit exists. Yesterday the trap was set.
The moral of this story is that God created an interdependent world where all on earth must work in harmony to thrive. Whenever we allow our quest for wealth or privilege or power overcome our commitment to accepting our roles in an interdependent society that society is thrown off balance in varied destructive ways from the results of climate change to racism.
God also populated the earth with a diversity of people who together possess the skills and talents needed to sustain life and grow in wisdom and truth. For our world to work at the most fundamental level, we must work together, each making his or her contribution to society. God’s world is designed to function optimally when we love our neighbors as we love ourselves—all our neighbors all the time. Our wellbeing is based on the wellbeing of others. I think that is precisely what God intended.
Prayer: Lord, help us grow in wisdom and truth as we change our way of being to reflect your plan for a world fueled by love. Amen.
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.