Ouch!

A Bible study I'm leading on Sunday nights have come to the point of experiencing the prophets of the 8th century before the birth of Jesus. In Israel and Judah, prophets were persons who spoke on God's behalf. Specifically, they warned God's people of the consequences of failing to keep their covenant with God to be a people set apart for the purpose of bringing God's light to all nations. To the chagrin of kings, leaders, and priests among the descendants of Abraham, prophets brazenly would point out examples of unrighteousness and injustice, covered over with a thin veneer of religiosity.

Last night we looked at the prophet Amos, who ministered in Israel at a time when there were rampant inequities and injustices, while the comfortable in the land went through the motions of practicing religion. Assuming that they were favored by God, Amos told them otherwise. Probably the most noteworthy section in Amos' words are found in Chapter 5, verses 21-24. Sight unseen, we read it from The Message, a current paraphrase of the Bible. God is speaking through Amos. He speaks as follows:

"I can't stand your religious meetings.
I'm fed up with your conferences and conventions.
I want nothing to do with your religion projects,
your pretentious slogans and goals.
I'm sick of your fund-raising schemes,
your public relations and image making.
I've had all I can take of your noisy ego-music.
When was the last time you sang to me?
Do you know what I want?
I want justice - oceans of it.
I want fairness - rivers of it.
That's what I want. That's all I want."

Ouch! Does that sting anyone else besides our little Bible study group last night?

Sometimes the river is rough. Sometimes it takes that to get us back in the mainstream. I'll see you around the next bend in the river.

A Trustworthy Mainstream

Okay...I'm finally paddled enough to catch up. My wife's health situation continues to improve. My thanks to all who have offered prayers and encouragement; you have been the channels of God's healing power. If you're interested in specifics about her present condition, e-mail us at poseg8@sbcglobal.net.

We're been through the kind of circumstance over the past few weeks that reminds us all of how precarious and unpredictable life can be. Some of us in our culture live with a dangerous illusion about how much control we think we have over our circumstances. In fact, we manage and maintain less than we think.

That's scary to those of us who are control freaks. Or, in an odd kind of way, it can be a freeing thing. I think back to the image with which I started this blog months ago - the image of floating an Ozark stream. A canoe trip on a river has risk associated with it. Obstacles in the water can be hidden until hit. Rapids can take us right into dangerous circumstances. An upright canoe can become a tipped trap in a heartbeat. Snakes dropping out of overhanging branches...well, you get the idea. The river has a power and a force of its own. We don't control it, it controls us.

However, the mainstream is trustworthy. The mainstream of a river moves resolutely downstream and ultimate to another river, then to an ocean somewhere. It will achieve its goal. If we stay with it, we will travel where we need to and want to go.

God is not necessarily a safety net, protecting us from the tips, turns, and bumps in life. God is the mainstream, carrying us through the hazards and the hits, moving us toward the mainstream's destiny - as individual followers of Jesus, as congregations, and as the whole Body of Christ.

Sounds good in theory...sometimes tough to buy into it when the waters get rough and the boat is battered. What do you think. It's good to be back with you. I'll see you around the next bend in the river.