October 4
1The Lord said to me, “Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.” (Hosea 3:1)
Good morning Family! I hope you all had a great weekend. Mine was busy working, trying to catch/find stolen vehicles, getting heartbreaking news that our Kids Ministry leader was leaving her position, and trying to be a positive influence on a small group of kids in the hopes they do not grow up and do dangerous things like steal cars and flee police with reckless abandon and complete disregard to life or property. I do not think I need to remind you all of the chaos the streets of America are falling into. If you are unaware of how bad dangerous crime is growing, you can click here to read all about it. Mankind has always struggled with following laws and order. It is apparent in the verse above, when the Israelites, despite all that God had done for them, continue to worship false gods and lift up raisin cakes to a point they consider them sacred. Ironically, I just ate two slices of raisin bread for breakfast. I guess I better atone for my sins.
Well, luckly, Jesus has taught us that it’s not about what you eat-what you put in your mouth and body-it’s about what comes out of your mouth, as in the words you speak, the prayers you say, and the respect you show to others. So I’m good eating my raisin bread, which I love, and the Israelis would have been good eating their raisin cakes if they had not put so much importance in that snack. Here is an interesting blog post on these sacred raisin cakes.
America has fallen into a culture of lifting up our own “raisin cakes.” We worship celebrities (“Free Britney”), politicians (“Trump Train”), we even hold our nationality above our true citizenship (“America First” instead of living a Heaven focused agenda). Need I go on? I can. But I feel like I beat up on American culture enough last year. It’s just frustrating to see how we are still racing in the wrong direction. Not all of us, but enough to affect many. This is a great month to be reading my favorite New Testament book, the Book of James, who hangs his hat on the fact that faith without works and actions is no faith at all. In fact, James states, boldly, without action our faith is dead. We claim to be a mighty Christian nation, but we have a lot of work to do to truly, truly walk in that calling.
I’m still blasting Red Rocks Worship and Bethel’s new albums on repeat, but managed to squeeze in previewing the new music released. A handful of new albums were dropped, which I will share in the next few days. For new singles, this one by Jimi Cravity is one of my favorites.
Reading plan: James 2:14-24
Deeper reading plan: Hosea 4
Common Sense Reborn 