| Good morning everyone, Our theme for this month: “Knowing God” Our Bible verse for today: “Mankind, he has told each of you what is good and what it is the Lord requires of you: to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8 (CSB) Our thought for today: “God’s expectations are not unreasonable” I think we often misunderstand what it is that God expects of us. We think of God as being much more demanding than He really is, and we make living the Christian life much harder and more complicated than it needs to be. In the Old Testament passage from Micah 6:8 quoted above, God made it clear that He simply wants us to be good people who live within Biblical boundaries; people who demonstrate love and faithfulness for Him and for others; and people who are humble in spirit, not obnoxious, boastful, or prideful. It’s a fairly simple life that’s being described. The expectations are not hard or unreasonable. All of the other things we strive for in life and which we spend so much of our time and energy working for – such as educational achievements, career advancement, financial security – they’re fine when kept in their proper places, but what God is looking for from us is far simpler. I mentioned yesterday that I’m currently reading a book called, “Pilgrimage into the Last Third of Life” by Jane Thibault and Richard Morgan. Richard is eighty-three and lives in an assisted living center. He spent his life as a minister, professor, writer, and counselor. Once he moved into the assisted living center, he became their de facto chaplain and the unofficial onsite counselor. He knows he’s in the last years of his own life and so he sometimes reflects on his life and on the legacy he is leaving. Here’s what he wrote about that: “I believe my legacy shines forth in the countless number of people I have helped, standing with them and embracing them with God’s unconditional love. As I replay my life, I remember young and old, whose lives I touched and helped to find God’s grace … I worked all my life for the poorest, sickest, and the oldest of our society … My legacy will be my children and grandchildren whom I have loved all my life and whom I have tried to keep aware of my love and support.” Notice he said nothing about college degrees, awards, high status, big homes, or big bank accounts. His legacy centers around people and blessings. That’s exactly what Micah was teaching and it’s what God is most interested in with us. The great poet Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote this advice about how to live, “To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” God’s expectations of us are pretty simple. Just honor Him, bless others, and enjoy your life. God bless, Pastor Jim |
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