2 Kings 6:1-7:20; Acts 15:36-16:15; Psalm 142:1-7;
Proverbs 17:24-25
Do you realize we're almost halfway through our One-Year Bible?
Yay, us! Keep reading, catch up if you can, start anew if you've
fallen off the pace.
Our Old Testament reading today is such a series of
far-reaching extraordinary moments, some extraordinarily good, some
extraordinarily awful, some just extraordinarily extraordinary. Consider
the floating of the iron axe head or the tremendous fortune of the lepers in the Aramean
camp. Consider the bloodthirstiness of the king of Israel ("Shall I kill
them, my father? Shall I kill them?" [2 Ki. 6:21]) or the absolute
horror of the two women's cannibalism. Consider the "hills full of
horses and chariots of fire all around" (vs. 17) or the incredible 24-hour
reversal from siege to abundance.
Our New Testament reading is also full of extraordinary moments,
but they are near-reaching extraordinary moments in the lives of individual people.
Consider Timothy's willingness to be circumcised in adulthood, or Paul's
vision of the pleading Macedonian, or Lydia's conversion to Christianity.
Each of these men and women hears and then responds to the call of God.
Not only do men
and women hear God and then respond, but God hears men and women and then
responds. The psalmist is dependent upon that premise today. There's an honesty and dependence in Psalm 142. God must
hear him, for "no one [else] is concerned for [him]. [He has] no refuge; no
one cares for [his] life" (Ps. 142:4). He needs rescue; he needs to
be set free (vs. 6). And so he cries to the Lord, sure that eventually
refuge (vs. 5) and goodness (vs. 7) will result.
Lord, let us turn toward you as a refuge in the ordinary moments
of our lives, whether they be moments of pain or of joy or mundanity. Help
us to "[keep] wisdom in view," not letting our "eyes wander to
the ends of the earth" (Pr. 17:24). Teach us to live
faithfully, that we might be attentive to the extraordinary moments you may
place before us. Amen.
- Sarah Marsh
How did God speak to you in Scripture today? Click here to share your reflections on God's word or read past posts. We'd love to hear from you.
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