Thought for Today
2 Kings 17:34 To this day they continue to practice their former customs. They do not worship the LORD and they do not follow the statutes or the ordinances or the law or the commandment that the LORD commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel.
Psalm 119:132 Turn to me and be gracious to me, as is your custom toward those who love your name.
Luke 4:16 When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read,
Luke 22:39 He came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples followed him.
This morning, Greta called out to me, “Did you remember to do . . . Saturday?” I had not remembered. Horrifyingly, I deviated from my routine Saturday morning and completely forgot one of my chores. Thankfully, I was able to take care of that chore this morning, with very little disruption to the chore or to our lives.
I have previously mentioned my own proclivity for routines. I find routines, regular practices, the best way for me to deal with the chaos of daily life. I was amazed this morning when I used my Bible app to search for the words ‘routine’ and ‘routines’ in the Bible and did not find its use in any of the 7 different versions I have set that app to reference. Routines are such a ubiquitous part of my daily living, I cannot imagine being able to get through a day without them.
As I was trained to do in high school, I proceeded to consult my thesaurus for alternative words conveying the same meaning. I was greatly mollified by finding those verses above, resting more comfortably in the sure knowledge that both God and our ancestors-in-the-faith did have regular routines, practices, customs, etc.
Maybe it is only a significant issue to mathematicians, engineers and similar minded folk, but the immutability of the universe is important. I still marvel that 2 + 2 always equals 4! No matter the time of day, the season of the year, irrespective of which party controls which house of Congress or the White House, 2 + 2 always equals 4. Some things are more than ‘mere’ customs or routines. Thankfully, there is a fixed order to Creation.
The psalmist understood, “Turn to me and be gracious to me, as is your custom toward those who love your name.” Where would we be were it not God’s ‘custom’ to be gracious to those who love God’s name? More than a routine, God’s very nature is love.
I often reference John 3:16 and Ephesians 2:7. I do have regular routines to help me through the day and the week, I regulate my life by assigning particular activities to specific hours and days. But, those 2 verses remind me that God loves God’s Creation and that my faith in God’s Son, Jesus the Christ, is the basis for my salvation. The God of Genesis is the God of Revelation. God is immutable. Just as 2 + 2 is always 4, God’s grace will always assure God’s children will be gifted with salvation.
It is not how well we organize and/or accomplish our tasks throughout each day. It is not by our checking items off on some sort of Salvation Checklist. To put it into what I think of as theospeak (the language of theologians and seminaries), there is no salvific value to my routines, my habits or my customs. Important as those coping mechanisms might be to me in successfully navigating my daily life, they have no salvific efficacy for my life in eternity except to the extent that they reinforce my faith in God’s Son.
There are routines which do reinforce my faith. Certainly regular worship with our family of faith is critical for me. So too is this practice I have enjoyed of sharing my Thoughts with all of you. I find setting aside time each day to read devotional guides, to looking at the wonders of God’s Creation out the windows of our sunroom or from our patio all help remind me and do strengthen my faith. Maybe most importantly, however, is setting aside times to talk to God in prayer.
That chore I forgot to do on Saturday was completed this morning. There was minimal disruption to our lives. Forgetting my devotionals or forgetting to pray would definitely be disrupting to my own life. Forgetting to practice my faith customs, failing to worship the LORD, not following the statutes or the ordinances or the law or the commandment that the LORD commanded the children of Jacob, would be disastrous. Those are all important as long as I remember that my salvation is a gift by the grace of the LORD through my faith in God’s Son.
Stay safe, be faith-filled, trust God,
Pastor Ray