A Church with a Heart for our Community

April 16th Thursday

Greetings in the name of THE Crucified and Risen Saviour – Jesus Christ, the Word of God made flesh. It is a good Spring day and God made it just for us to enjoy and experience and be thankful for. I trust that all is as it should be in your world and that you are savouring life with all of its ingredients. Today I will be praying for you, asking Father to gently draw you aside so that He can affirm his love to you…and so you can respond.

I’ll provide them an honored place in my family and within my city, even more honored than that of sons and daughters. I’ll confer permanent honors on them that will never be revoked.  Isaiah 56:5  The Message. This verse is central to this day on the Jewish calendar. Last night at sundown “Yom HaShoah” – day of remembrance began to “honor” the six million Jewish lives – men, women, children – that were taken during the holocaust. This morning in Jerusalem at 10:00 am an air raid siren sounded and the city fell silent for two minutes to remember. I watched a video taken on a major highway in the Jerusalem area, taken in 2014, and at 10:00 am this artery came to a standstill as the siren sounded. Cars, trucks, buses, and motorcycles stopped and people got out and stood to remember.

This week I watched two very different presentations surrounding the Jewish people of that time and the hatred that was expressed to a nationality. One was a movie called – Woman In Gold – about the art and precious possessions stolen from Jewish families. There were depictions of the treatment and betrayal of people. In another venue, I watched a television drama that depicted Britain and it was quite challenging to see how people treated each other. In addition, I read remarks that a prominent political leader made in reference to Jewish Americans.

I admit that I do not understand all the complexities of the issues relating to the treatment of people who are different from others, and I am sure there are hundreds of arguments to be made from varied positions. However, there is one perspective that transcends all peoples, nations, and viewpoints — and that be God’s. Over and over again, God declares that He has a plan and a purpose and a path and a program…and then he leaves the choice up to us: His way or ours. In fact, He gets rather specific: I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now chose…”  Deuteronomy 30:19b NIV. I am making a choice today, based on a recent devotion: I choose love…I choose joy…I choose peace…I choose patience…I choose kindness…I choose goodness…I choose faithfulness…I choose gentleness…I choose self-control…for there is no law against those choices and they will bless my life and the lives of others – they will give “life” to my living!(Galatians 5:22-23).

Be blessed…and be a blessing!