Living in the Spirit
October 27, 2022
Scripture Reading:
2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,
To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
We must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith during all your persecutions and the afflictions that you are enduring. To this end we always pray for you, asking that our God will make you worthy of his call and will fulfill by his power every good resolve and work of faith, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
We are, indeed, called to love one another, and it seems that the principalities and powers feel a great threat from that thought. Greed is not compatible with love. Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely. No one’s worth is established by being better than anybody else. Hot-button issues are designed to distract from the real problems of our times. Love is the ultimate vision for living.
The ads sponsored by dark money during this election season illustrate the fear of those principalities and powers that we the people might actually live the calling of love through all aspects of our lives including our civic responsibilities. The ads include just enough truth to bring out our worst fears but never tell the whole story. They were used to driving us away from voting here in Oklahoma for the last several years. That is not the answer. We have one of the lowest voting rates in the country. All eligible people need to vote.
The purpose of government is to provide for the Common Good. Take the time to consider what that means to you. For me, that includes the availability of quality affordable healthcare for all, quality public education for all children from birth to entry into a career that pays a living wage, restorative justice, and a totally revamped immigration system that protects from crime while fulfilling our call to welcome the stranger, and dependable infrastructure (roads, bridges, water, broadband access), safety protection (policing, criminal and civil justice, fire protection, safe available water, climate change, international relationships, and the military). I judge the candidates I vote for by their potential to deliver these goals as they relate to the office they want to fill for attaining the Common Good. What represents the Common Good for you? What candidates have the most potential for achieving the Common Good? Vote for them.
Prayer: Lord, lift us to higher ground so that your love can spread across our land and protect us from the evil that is around us. 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.