Just before I sat down to read today’s scriptures, I made the mistake of reading the news.
I scrolled past the political pieces and landed on an article about a Good Samaritan being murdered because someone felt slighted by her good deeds. Three American soldiers died in a roadside bombing in Afghanistan. There’s a blurry picture of a massive blackhole, and I wondered if God was going to just let it suck us out of creation and straight into oblivion.
I needed the reminder that God’s faithful love is everlasting.
I needed the reminder that God’s covenant stands.
I needed the reminder that God desires peace.
We may shake our world with bombs and bully pulpits, but God’s promises stand. Our lives may quake with the burden of our sins and corruption, but God’s love will never shift.
When I think about how pure and perfect God’s love is, I can let go of some the fear this world creates in my heart. Anxiety that makes me feel like I need to cling to what I have, to protect it with gritted teeth, to shove those who might destroy it away. But, when I dwell on God’s promises, that anxiety fades away and I can see those same people I feared more clearly.
Usually, I am a little surprised to see that they, too, are Children of God. And I hope they can see me as one as well.
What are your fears? Who do you wish to protect yourself against? What are you afraid of losing? How does focusing on God’s eternal promises remove those fears? How might trust in God’s promises give us the courage to reach out to the people who causes us the most discomfort?
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