Wow. It is hard to believe we are in May already. NCFCA is now in the Regional mode, and Stoa students are prepping for NITOC. Graduation Ceremonies are on the horizon, and these students will be looking to their next calling, whether heading to college, tech school, marriage and family, a gap year to figure things out, jumping into the job market, or even working on starting a business. It seems the options are varied and many. And this can consume your mind and can give rise to some anxiety for both students and parents.
But one thing remains the same. God is faithful. He is still active in the world (btw, He never stopped being active), and He still speaks according to Hebrews 1. In fact He upholds the Universe by the power of His word. The Greek language has two words that are translated “word.” One is logos, which means the overall plan and working out of that plan. It is what is used in John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Logos…” the other word translated to “word” is rema which means to speak, to command using the spoken word. Hebrews says He upholds all things by the rema of His power. And the way it is written is that this is a continuous action. Since creation, God has upheld the world by His rema, and He still does it, and He will continue to do this.
So what? If God is always speaking, the problem comes from us not listening. And that has always been the problem. I’m going through Jeremiah now, and the theme throughout that book is that the people of Israel and Judah stopped paying attention to God and His Word, and they developed the habit of doing their own thing. This was passed on from generation to generation to the point that the way the people conducted worship was so contrary to what God commanded, He said that they did things that didn’t even enter into His mind as a way to worship Him.
They could still speak the words of worship, but their actions were so abhorrent that God banned them from His Temple and sent them into captivity. The people, God said, didn’t even know how to blush anymore as they had no shame. Again, this didn’t happen over night, but was a long process of neglect that was passed down from the father to their families. And it came to the point where Jeremiah said in 12:2, “you are near in their mouth and far from their heart.” They speak the words, but God is far from their heart.
I pray that this can never be said of me, or of any of you who name Jesus as Lord. And the way to mitigate this is to be in God’s Word regularly. To read it and to believe it and to trust in what it says. This is true Faith, Knowledge, Belief, and Trust. You must know God, Believe God, and Trust Him in all things. The Israelites of the Old Testament knew the words, and may have even believed them to some extent, but they did not trust in the Lord with their hearts.
I think we will all go through times like this, where we are sure about this God, but the more we are in His Word, the fewer these times will infect our hearts and minds.
And God, who loves His kids, will kick you back on the path when you stray. Sometimes it is a pretty stiff kick, and that hurts, but He, God, will never let you fall from His hands. He will never leave you or forsake you. And we can take comfort in that. Get to know this God who loves you this much. Read His Word.
Amen
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