Living in the Spirit

October 26, 2021

Scripture Reading:

Deuteronomy 6:1-9

Now this is the commandment—the statutes and the ordinances—that the Lord your God charged me to teach you to observe in the land that you are about to cross into and occupy, so that you and your children and your children’s children may fear the Lord your God all the days of your life, and keep all his decrees and his commandments that I am commanding you, so that your days may be long. Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe them diligently, so that it may go well with you, and so that you may multiply greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has promised you.

Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

I have a deep sense that our world is on the cusp of imploding, collapsing inward from the external pressure of greed. We seem willing to die or kill our future and the future of our descendants in exchange for amassing wealth. We use our talents and skills clinging to fossil fuels rather than seeking ways to replace them while retaining the economic impact they create. Jobs are crucial amassing wealth is not.  I am reminded of these words from the song, Circle, on Barbra Streisand’s CD Higher Ground:

When it comes to thinking of tomorrow
We must protect our fragile destiny
In this precious life there is no time to borrow
The time has come to be a family

Of course, we may not need to save the earth if we kill off all its inhabitants via starvation, pandemics, and terrorism. Are we climbing the Tower of Babel or perhaps swimming to grab the last seat on Noah’s Ark? Are we really willing to fall as Israel and Judah did, followed by their captors Assyria and Babylon? Can we not see ourselves in our history? Oh, but I forget we are now outlawing the teaching of history—finding ways to learn from our mistakes.

The good thing about a cusp is it marks a point of transition. We do hold our fragile destiny in our hands. Do we follow the ways of greed and lust for power, or do we listen to the path set forth by Micah 6:8?

He has told you, O mortal, what is good;
   and what does the Lord require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
   and to walk humbly with your God?

Prayer: Lord, save us from self-destruction. Turn us around and help us learn the wonder of living a life of 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.