Repeat

 

Thursday, July 9, 2020

Psalm 119:105-112

Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.  I’ve promised it once, and I’ll promise it again:  I will obey your righteous regulations.  I have suffered much, O Lord; restore my life again as you promised.  Lord, accept my offering of praise, and teach me your regulations.  My life constantly hangs in the balance, but I will not stop obeying your instructions.  The wicked have set their traps for me, but I will not turn from your commandments.  Your laws are my treasure; they are my heart’s delight.  I am determined to keep your decrees to the very end.

There is an expression most of us have used when we recognize a truth we have learned and relearned, and want to share:  I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again!  The Psalmist’s companion to that is I’ve promised it once, and I’ll promise it again….

One of the chief slams against “church” is the repetitive nature of worship.  Songs, prayers, and all sorts of rituals are repeated.  Even sermons (oh my!) are repeated.  But, as always, when you examine the reason behind the practice, you once again must conclude differently than first glance…the repetition works!  Consider the athelete who gets up early every morning to hit the track, the gym, the road, the punching bag, the batting cage, the tee box.  In every sport, business, human habit, or relationship, what we have done before helps memory help us do it again…and better (hopefully).

Now, I’ve said this before, so I have the memory bytes to say it again, what is true in the physical realm, is often reality in the spiritual realm.  That is certainly not a stretch when comparing creating the memory of a good golf swing, so you can repeat it the next time.  The goal in golf is to have the same swing, so you achieve a dependable, desired result.  The boxer slamming his fists into the workout dummy is teaching his body how to use maximum force to damage his opponent.  If it’s true that practice makes perfect, we understand the reason why school is important, and many hours in a flight simulator is important, and why the discipline of a strong devotional life is important…even listening to sermons.

Check that out in the Psalmist’s life:

          ·       He Promised:  I will obey your righteous regulations.  

          ·       He Prayed:  I have suffered much, O Lord; restore my life again as you promised.  

          ·       He Praised:  Lord, accept my offering of praise,

          ·       He Prepared:  teach me your regulations.  

          ·       He Prospered:  Your laws are my treasure; they are my heart’s delight.  

And here’s the bottom line – in all the repetition of the Scriptures, even in the monotony of the begets, where you learn the unpronouncable names of obscure, ancient families, there is deep wisdom to be had.  But, as James says, if you just glance at it, and never do the reps of committing it to memory, as well as putting it in practice in your life by obeying the Word, it will pass through your mind, and slip away like a fading mist.

But don’t just listen to God’s word.  You must do what it says.  Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.  For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror.  You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like.  James 1:22-24

God’s Word is like shampoo in that sense; if you want it to do any good at all you’ve got to grab the bottle, pour it out, lather it in good, rinse off anything leftover, and, (do I need to say it?)…repeat!

Let’s Pray Together:

Father, when we get a little too bored with worship, help us to remember this image that our worship, study, and obedience, even in the small things, are like shampooing regularly; it may be tedious, but our lives will shine.

For You Today

I’m still in love with what I heard the African American preacher tell us preachers at a conference about how he goes about helping the repeat/learning skills of his congregation:

When I preach a sermon, I preach it three times:

·       I tell ‘em what I’m gonna tell ‘em…then…

·       I tell ‘em…then…

·       I tell ‘em what I tol’ ‘em!

Got it? …. or should I repeat?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.  Have a blessed day!

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Title Image:  Pixabay.com  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

For other posts on Psalm 119 see God's Word; Light for My Path - Lamp for My Feet and                              The Light On My Path

The Monster in the Closet

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Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine.  Test yourselves.  Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.  2 Corinthians 13:5^(NLT)

Most parents have had to deal with “monsters” in the closet.  As a parent of pre-school children I had to dispatch a number of the critters.  But how do you teach a concept of a fearful mind to children that young?

I read of a minister who dealt with the subject in a children’s time at church.  The children were all gathered around and the minister held up a paper bag and proclaimed to the children, I caught him; I finally got that monster in the closet.  Do you all want to see?  Every child was nervously eager to see, and, one-by-one she let them look inside, and what each one silently saw was his or her own reflection in a mirror. 

Sometimes the best teacher is silence, a simple face-to-face encounter with our fears, and an honest evaluation of what part we must claim as our own for creating the mess with which we live. 

There has been much said (myself included) about the present miserable state of American politics, lamenting over how in the world we ever got down to choosing between two candidates who are (arguably) the least likely to win the title of Miss Congeniality in this pageant we call a presidential campaign.  If we had time, I’d like to sit down with each citizen of our country and invite a peek in the mirror bag.

Do you recall Walt Kelly’s Pogo^© comic strip.  The possum’s saying is what most people would have to admit when looking in the monster bag’s mirror:  we have met the enemy and he is us!

At the risk of appearing like just another know-it-all-windbag, the problem with American politics is not the two candidates that make us want to hold our nose when we get in the voting booth, rather it is decades of voters choosing leaders who promise prosperity and an easier life, when we should be choosing leaders of exemplary character and integrity. 

When we choose empty promises over a moral backbone we tend to reinforce the idea that what we really want in a leader is empty promises.  And we always wind up living with those choices in which we place our faith!

So, what’s the fix?  How do we change?

It will not be easy, nor will it be quick, but the only way to change is to deal with the monster in the bag.  God gives each of us faith to follow His Word and the pathway of righteousness.  We must begin choosing in public life leaders who will be role models of making ethical and morally consistent decisions for the next generation. 

For You Today

A mirror can only reflect what stands before it, and is no use unless the beholder acts on what he sees, so faith is of no consequence without action. 

But don’t just listen to God’s word.  You must do what it says.  Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.  For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror.  You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like.   James 1:22-24^(NLT)

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road…have a blessed day!

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NOTES

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[i] Title Images: unknown source