Clay in the Hands

My reading this morning was out of Isaiah 43.  In this poetic discourse from the prophet, he reminded Israel – and us – that we are important to God.  He spoke God’s words, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.”

Isaiah reminds us that God knows us personally – he calls us by name.  And he cares about us.  He not only knows our needs, he actually cares about them.  Isaiah goes on to say, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;  when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.  For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.”

God promises to be with us through all that life hurls our way – why?  Isaiah records the words of God saying, “Because you are precious in my sight, and honored, and I love you.”

Let these words sink in for a moment.

Whatever Monday has brought your way – remember – God has promised to see you through it.  If you are wondering why God would be with you or how God could possibly care for a person like you, remember – God offers his redemption and salvation to each of us because we are precious to him – he loves you.

Live as one loved by God today!

Yesterday, I awoke to discover we had been burglarized – always a great way to start a Monday (or any other day for that matter).  Somehow, our garage door was opened and the burglars made off  with some fishing gear and two sets of golf clubs (they really knew how to hurt a guy).

So the morning was spent making phone calls – to the police, to neighbors and to the insurance company – and the evening was spent visiting local pawn shops.

This is not the first time this has happened to us – and the feelings are the same each time – frustration, anger, vulnerability.  We like to think we are safe and that what we work for is secure.  But then something like this happens and we are reminded that we are always susceptible.  We lose faith in our security.  We lose faith in mankind.

But I was reminded of at least two other things yesterday through this process.  The first is that we will never find security in this world apart from God.  We are aliens in a foreign land – this is not our home.  So we would be foolish to put our trust in things.  All our possessions and even our own physical well being can be taken from us but our relationship with the Father cannot be touched.  As long as our trust is in God we will be secure.

The second thing that I was reminded of is that there are still good people in the world.  From the neighbors to my long time friend and insurance agent to the police officer that was dispatched to our home, God has put good people in our lives.  So even though the temptation would be to give up on the human race, the reality is there are a lot of good people out there.  In fact, I believe there is more good than bad in the world – it is just the bad that gets the press.

Take heart – God is at work!

We are making our way through the Gospel of Mark on Wednesday nights in our chapel Bible study.  It is a formative study in which we are looking directly at what was and is important to Jesus as witnessed by his followers.  So often we read what others have said and thought about what Jesus said – and that is a good thing to do – but it is always important and refreshing to read what Jesus actually said.

Last night we took a close look at Jesus’ lesson on the importance of the Sabbath and the fact that the Sabbath was created for us and not the other way around.  Jesus took several opportunities to teach this lesson to people who did not want to hear it.  We will be talking about Sabbath this Sunday morning.

But this morning, what is fresh on my mind is something we see in Mark 3:5.  As Jesus was preparing to heal a man with a withered hand, he was confronted with the disapproval of the Pharisees that were in the synagogue.  Those who were against the healing never said a word but Jesus saw it in their faces and based on previous experience, he knew what they were thinking.  They were caught up in keeping the law to the point they had lost sight of the intent behind the law.

The description of Jesus’ approach should not be glossed over.  The text says Jesus was “angry” and “deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts.”  I have not been able to shake that sentence in 3:5.  What I see here is that stubborn, unwilling hearts do not please Jesus.  Now it is easy to look at the description of the teachers of the law and the Pharisees and cast judgement – to look down on them as ignorant and think to ourselves, “How could they have been so blind!”  But before we rush to judgement, how pliable are our hearts?

Am I ever guilty of stubbornness or being closed-minded?  Are you?

We learn many things about Jesus and what is important to him in this story.  He had compassion on the hurting.  He wanted to guide people into a better understanding of God and God’s desires for us.  He used common everyday opportunities to teach.  But don’t miss the fact that we also learn that Jesus had little patience for those who were not willing to be taught.

May our hearts be teachable today!