Thought for February 13

 History:

• 1633: Galileo arrives in Rome to be tried for asserting that the earth revolves around the sun
• 1826: American Temperance Society forms
• 1866: Jesse James robs his first bank--Liberty Missouri
• 1917: Mata Hari arrested
• 1920: National Negro Baseball League organized
• 1935: Bruno Hauptmann found guilty in Lindbergh kidnapping
• 1957: SCLC forms in New Orleans with Matin Luther King as President
• 1971: Spiro Agnew hits tee shots into crowd injuring 2
• 1976: Dorothy Hamill wins Olympic Gold
• 1980: Lake Placid Olympics open--Do you believe in Miracles?
• 2000: Last Peanuts comic strip [Charles Schulz died on February 12]
• Born: Thomas Malthus [population will exceed food supply so population control is necessary]; Bess Truman, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Eddie Robinson, Kim Novak, George Seagal, Jerry Springer, Mike Krzyzewski, Peter Gabriel,  Randy Moss
• Died: Catherine Howard, Richard Wagner, David Janssen, Waylon Jennings, Antonin Scalia

Thought:

Reading in Micah 6 this morning, particularly 6-8. Have you ever struggled with how to worship the Lord? What should I do to show my love, reverence, fear? When I was a child, my parents told me that I must always wear my Sunday best to go to church for that showed my love and respect for the Lord. And some taught me that if I really wanted to worship correctly and completely, I needed to attend on Sunday morning, Sunday night and Wednesday night. This became really important to me. And then the church provided our envelopes for Sunday morning where we were asked to mark/grade ourselves--attendance, on time, Bible brought, attending worship, lesson prepared, giving? If you checked all the boxes you got 100% just like in school. When I was about 12, I got an award for perfect attendance and a perfect score every week for a year. WOW! Strange how many of those things I was taught  influence how I view my standing with the Lord and how I judge how good a Christian others are--do they dress right, do they come regularly, do they give a tithe, do they know the Bible. 

Now I turn to Micah 6:6-8. What shall I bring to the Lord in worship? Should I bow? Do I need some offering to bring? Is God checking on my attendance, my giving, how much I know? Notice, the writer asks what shall I bring to the Lord. What does the Lord need that I have that will impress Him, satisfy Him, please Him? Now look at what the Lord "requires." Larry, do you want to worship in a way that pleases God? Do you want to demonstrate your love and devotion? Here is what the Lord requires--

• Do justice. Do the right thing. This is Right with a capital "R". It is right as Jesus sees right. And Larry, it says "do" justice. Maybe James read this and thought--you talk about your faith, I demonstrate my faith by what I do. 
• Love kindness/mercy. Look up the antonyms for mercy--selfishness, cruelty, intolerance, meanness, disdain. Now consider the synonyms--forgiveness, pity, sympathy, gentleness, tenderness, generosity. 
• Walk humbly with God. What does it mean to walk humbly--I recognize who I am and who He is. Knowing this, I now look at and consider others. Sounds like the great commandments--love God, love others. 

Now I don’t mean I should not join others in worship and service, tithe, study, pray. I mean that without a transformed heart, they are empty. 

What does God want for Christmas? What does He want for the Sabbath? What does He want everyday and every moment--do justice, love mercy, walk humbly. Lord, help me truly understand what you require. 

Blessings

Larry