Sunday, June 20, 2021
God’s Light
Brightens Even an Old Stump
As It Falls Apart
Isaiah 55:6
Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near.
Colossians 2:9
For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.
Words of Grace For Today
God is never too far.
Too often we know that God is near, nearer than we are comfortable acknowledging since we would like to think we are getting off scott-free for the sins we commit, the evil we perpetrate on others, and for all the lack of kindness and absence of goodness we share with others.
God is here. More than near, God walks with us, always.
There is something to ‘seeking’ God, for if we do not open our eyes to notice, like so much of God’s goodness and Grace that is all around us each day, we will miss the best in life.
Sometimes it is easier to think of God as some far off, great and powerful, disinterested deity. God is no such thing. God comes a Jesus, lives as one of us, eats and cries like one of us, laughs and prays like one of us, and dies like one of us … well, hopefully dies like no one need ever again die, innocent yet falsely convicted by those ‘righteous ones’ in power, who fear for their own survival if the truth is told far and wide. God could not be nearer.
God is fully embodied in the same life we live.
God desires that we live as well as Jesus did, that we not scapegoat anyone (Jesus was the scapegoat to demonstrate that God does not need more scapegoats, or any other false, sacrificial sacrifices), and that we learn to serve others (all others) just as Jesus did.
That’s a tough road to navigate when the expectation is that we must prove ourselves, either so pure and good that God will accept us, or so evilly successful in this life that we need not care about God’s blessings. God accepts neither option for us, and instead forgives us once again each day, and sets us off in a renewed life, able to serve others … so that more and more people will enjoy an abundant life.
It’s a challenge, more than seeking God, it’s a challenge of finding ways to give life to other people, many who do not want anything to do with God or a healthy, abundant life.
Everyone gets to choose, to turn away from God, or to acknowledge that God is right here with us.
The sun shines long these days. God’s Light shines brighter, longer each day, and through each dark night. Seeking is less required or helpful, than being alert, noticing, and giving God thanks.