Wednesday of week 20 in Ordinary Time (Year I)
Judges 9:6-15 | Psalm 20(21):2-7 | Matthew 20:1-16
It’s quite obvious by now that my daily commitment to writing about each day’s scripture has fallen by the wayside. I draw a blank on most nights in recent memory, so I set the task aside till the dawn, whereupon I either end up busying myself with something else, or sit down and draw another blank. Blanks are really no fun to draw.
Do I feel like I’m letting God down? Kinda.
Do I feel like a failure? Oh yes.
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Then last evening, as I was shopping for groceries, an odd sight nearly made me laugh out loud:
The price of failure?!?!
Just a simple electronic price tag, with a mocking message:
You arrogant fool! You think you’re a great failure? I’ve got news for you: everybody fails! So you missed a few days’ scriptural blogging, well big whoop! Keep on keepin’ on, I say!
(That was actually all in my head, but you get the idea…)
It’s a timely reminder to keep my eyes firmly fixed on the God who’s both far in the distance and right in front of me.
The God who knows I’ve failed, but also knows I’m willing to keep coming back.
The God who loves me enough to send me very unusual messages.
As long as I keep my eyes firmly fixed on Him, I can more-or-less avoid the grievous error of the Shechem elders in today’s scripture, who in electing Abimelech king would later regret their terrible choice.
Lord God, You are King of my heart. Let me never turn away from You, even in my direst moments, and especially not in the times of great success. May I always look to You in joy and in sorrow, in trial and in ease, salve for the wounded present and hope for the glorious future. For in You alone do I live, and move, and have my being. Amen.
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And as the lights go out at the basement supermarket, a forlorn voice is heard:
OK, message sent. Now can someone please fix me?
Anyone?
Hello?