Reflections from April 16, 2010

Our reading in Matthew today gives us Matthew 10:19-20 which says, "...do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak, for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of the Father who speaks in you."

I think this is one of the ways we see evidence of the Father acting in our life today. When ever I have spoken to a group of people, be it a religious gathering or not, the Holy Spirit has always given me what I need to be able to do this. They say that public speaking is one of the most feared tasks in the world; in fact, some people are more afraid of public speaking than of death! However, when we turn over this fear and rely on God to speak through us, we'll do fine. This conjures up the vision of Moses who essentially had the same fear in going before the Pharaoh in Egypt. Moses had his doubts about being able to speak in a manner befitting the situation, and God told him in Exodus 4:11 and 12, "Who had made man's mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing or the blind? Have not I, the LORD? Now therefore, go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall say." So when Jesus says this to His apostles, He says it with authority because He and the Father have already done this and the apostles know that He is speaking the truth.
So today, we can also be assured that God will do the same for us. Remember, especially when we're speaking on behalf of God and righteousness, God does not want anyone to misspeak about Him. He will make sure without a doubt that what we say is the truth.

A notable verse is from Proverbs 16:18 which reads, "Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall."

Solomon is telling us that when we have pride in our character, not as a result of an action, it can lead to lots of problems in our life. The definition of "haughty" is "blatantly and disdainfully proud" (see http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/haughty). This blatant pride is not the result of what you may feel when your daughter wins first place in a competition, or what you may feel when you've accomplished a goal in your career. This is an arrogance that one has that results in a showing of superiority over inferiors, or feeling that one is much more important than they really are. Just as surely as that starts in your mind, your downfall begins.

From Proverbs 17:5 we read, "He who mocks the poor reproaches his Maker; He who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished."

Rather than being smug about the poor and downtrodden that are with us, or attempting to rationalize our attitude about them as "they'll always be with us so why bother?", God expects us to have mercy toward them. God identifies with the poor so much that by mocking them, we insult God. Some ways that we may mock the poor include: laughing at their condition; jumping to conclusions as to why they are poor; taunting them with words; looking past them as if they are invisible; having a pious attitude, "There but for the grace of God go I."

Jesus reminded us that there will always be poor people. But we serve Jesus by serving the poor. But if we close our eyes and ears to their plight, then God warns us that we will not be noticed when we fall on hard times.

Blessings to all