Good morning, everyone.
Our verse for today comes from Acts 3:17, “Yet now, brothers, I know that you did it in ignorance, as did also your rulers.”
I spent a few minutes outside a local gas station yesterday as I was waiting for an attendant to swap out my empty propane tank for a fresh one. While I stood there, I was able to enjoy the sights and sounds of the numerous folks that came and went. Sounds like booming music that I would never choose to listen to myself. And sounds of language that is far more colorful than I tend to use. And sounds of a conversation being carried on by yelling across the lot. The sights included guys proudly displaying their particular mode of transportation, and others proudly showing off the results of time spent in the gym. Some shared their smoky habit, while many just went about their business without fanfare or show. Later, I wondered what the reaction of some of those whom I witnessed would be if they stood around some place where I might ordinarily spend some time and soaked up what they saw. What would their thoughts be if they hung out in my office building, where every face stares at a computer all day, and we all breathe the same recycled air that keeps us a little too cold or not quite cool enough? What would they think about people sitting around a meeting table talking about why this did or didn’t happen, or discussing how to increase gross profit in a shrinking market?
Or, what if they sat near one of us in church and heard speakers talking about someone named Jesus, realizing that we consistently give up several hours every Sunday to hear about a man who lived 2,000 years ago? Would they notice any inconsistencies during the times when the speaker spoke and when we spoke amongst ourselves? Would it be obvious that we were there because we needed something, even more desperately than those at the station pumping gas or buying drinks? Would they see in our eyes a focus on something far bigger than the temperature of the room or the style of the song? I challenge you to treat yourself like an outsider and see if anything makes you different. Or, maybe discover that some things need to be different about you.
As we seek Him today, do not let the familiar and the comfortable mislead you into thinking that you are something that you are not.
Have a delightful weekend.
#4 Rich Holt
Dad of Ripken, Koy, TrishaJean, Samantha, Kakie Holiday and Raleigh
Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them.
