Grains of Sand

Charlottetown, PEI “ But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth ” (Exodus 9:16). This was part of a message that Moses was to deliver to Pharaoh. It caught my attention. With all the current horror, or glee, with which we greet those who come into authority over us, there is an overriding truth we need to remember. The Scripture is clear as to Who does the final choosing of those who, for better or worse, are handed the mandate of command over our affairs. Daniel prays this prayer: “ Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he sets up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things, he knows what lies in darkness and light dwells with him ” (Daniel 2:20-22). Jesus reminded Pilate that his power was limited: “ Jesus answered, ‘You would have no power over me if i...

Pixabay It would be safe to say that our friends to the south are feeling some anxiety as November approaches. I don't blame them. How do you choose when there appears to be no choice? And we in the north have our problems too when it comes to those in political and economic authority who have lost contact with the real world of their constituents—if they were ever connected at all! Well, Isaiah has an observation for all of us who are feeling a little, or a lot, overwhelmed. " Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told to you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the earth was founded? He [God] sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,  and spreads them out like a tent to live in. He brings princes to nought and reduces rulers of this world to nothing. No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner do they take root in the groun...

A little frog in a huge pond surrounded by multitudes of bigger and louder frogs doesn't seem to stand a chance of having his wee croak heard above the clamor. So why bother to croak at all? Can a frog not croak even when it seems no one can hear him? Perhaps on the fringes of the pond, far away from our little frog, his voice will not be heard. Then again, there are those other frogs close by who will surely hear our froggie's voice. Perhaps they will listen and believe his words. Perhaps their croaks will change in pitch, delivering a different sound to the frogs that sit in crowded solitude around them. In turn those others might believe  and pass the word until at last, the sound of one little frog's voice reaches the outer fringes of the big pond. So I ask the question again: Why bother to croak at all? If the frog is focused on reaching the fringes with his tiny voice, he might become discouraged and not croak at all, his ardor dampened by the impossibilitie...