Grains of Sand

Pixabay They are referred to, and not always very kindly, as "ambulance-chasers"—you know, the lawyers who offer to get you a big payout when you  feel you have been mistreated, or misrepresented, in some way.  "Sue" is a three-letter word that lights up the eyes of lawyers, raises the hopes of victims, real or imaginary, and is a thorn in the flesh to those on its receiving end. Peter weighs in on victimology, specifically in the case of those who work for others, in 1 Peter 2:18-23. In his day that meant "slaves"—those who were obligated to work without compensation and often under harsh conditions. Many modern-day employees, rightly or wrongly, think of themselves in the same terms as the real slaves of Peter's day would have thought of themselves.—underpaid, overworked, abused, unappreciated, overlooked. For the believers to whom Peter is addressing his letter there might have been another item added to that list—persecuted for the...

Pixabay I have a news app on  my iPad. This morning, like many other mornings, I took a peek at the headlines and shut-down the app. I don’t want to know. The world is too ugly a place for this bright sunny morning with its fresh fall of brilliant white snow on the ground. Evil is overwhelming. Whether it happens on the streets of Rainbow Village, in the remote regions of the Far North, in the back halls of power, in the quiet backyards of suburbia, or in some third-world rocked by perpetual conflict, it’s just too much. Enough, already. How do you stand firm when the ground underneath is shaking? I remember a few nasty tremors of the earthquake variety. Their arrival was a reminder of just how insecure our hold on anything is, no matter what the venue may be. Psalm 11 is made up of only seven verses, but they powerfully address the issue of rocking foundations. " In the Lord I take refuge. How then can you say to me: 'flee like a bird to your mountain. For look, the wicke...

“ I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens, for every animal in the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are mine ” —Psalm 50:9-11, NIV. These verses come in the middle of a psalm by Asaph. He writes as though the parties were being called to court to stand before the Judge of the universe to give account of how they have carried out the covenant that they made with the Lord, a covenant they renew constantly through their sacrifices (vss. 4-6). As the accused stand before the court, the Lord reminds them that the issue is not their sacrifices (vss. 7, 8). The Almighty, through Asaph, reminds those who stand in the dock that they are not doing him a favour by making those sacrifices. He doesn’t need their bulls or goats since everything in creation belongs to him (vss. 9-13). He reminds His people that it is important that they keep the vows they have made to follow the ...

2 Samuel 13-15 Amnon deceived her, used her, and then threw her away like last week's garbage. Tamar was ruined, raped by her half-brother and condemned to a life of disgrace. Such was the society of King David's day. Even her father did nothing to right the wrong done to her. " When King David heard all this, he was furious " —2 Samuel 13:21. Sorry, David, fury doesn't cut it. But David's reaction, and lack of action, is typical. We often get angry at injustice, but never get beyond the anger to the action, to righting the wrongs. The Scriptures tell us that Tamar's brother, Absalom, finally took matters into his hands and killed Amnon. That wasn't exactly the right solution to the problem and could have been avoided if David had done his duty on behalf of his daughter. So the children with the hollow eyes and the swollen bellies in some faraway land, die. So the homeless freeze to death on the cold, wintery streets of our cities. So we ...