God’s Tasty Morsels.
It is that time of year when sights and smells mean so much to the context of our yearly journeys. A friend handed me a lightly toasted sphere of carefully crafted material, sprinkled with tree bark and pulverized seeds. What was I to do with it? I ate it. My response depended on his offer as well as the circular object’s content and its context: it was a Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodle. The contents were a blend of pumpkin, flour, sugar and eggs dusted with cinnamon and nutmeg. The context is autumn and the approach of Thanksgiving fare.
What is the content and context of our human journey today? Content and context are part and parcel for understanding our mortal existence. We are surrounded by systems, genetic and environmental influences, relationships, forces that propel and reject us. All these shape the internal self - our content. How are we to comprehend and make sense of the landscape of our human existence - context? Our world is propelling ahead at astronomical speed, with changes to the environment, the political realm, health and nutrition, economics, etc.
The year 2020 was a bombshell for alignment with abrupt cultural, health related and political modifications. Our human context drastically shifted. What does this do to the intricate balance of the human physical, emotional and spiritual frame? Media and social frenzy reveal an increasing demand for explanations which can prop up our daily walk. Humanity yearns for a strong presence of the eternal to promenade alongside our human cadre as the economy is more tenuous, our culture is more explosive, people move away from God-directed agility and relationship ethics. Mental health is declining and our world is more in need of help with seemingly not enough properly equipped relief-enabling systems in place.
What if our God, the Creator of nebulas and single-celled creatures, designer of crocodiles and kittens . . . what if ;) He was really the answer for times like this? Psalm 91 offers us a place to take shelter in good times and troubled times:
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say to the LORD, ‘My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.’
3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence”
(Psalm 91:1-3 ESV).
When humanity collectively addresses the inventory of all that is happening in our world, a question surfaces about why life is not working as it should. Properly trained Christians, who daily and weekly absorb the eternal Truth of the Eternal God, are equipped to walk alongside this world’s fellow travelers and assist them to see, hear, ask questions about this Truth. Men and women are complex beings (body, soul and spirit - or - physical, spiritual, and emotional) and since we are fearfully and wonderfully made, it is so very helpful to understand the workings of the human mind and heart and how to counsel people toward areas of less fear and more resilience, less anxiety and more peace, less frustration and more tools for equipping a resilient life.
Our Context is framed by the Eternal God:
He made us - origin
He designed us - we have purpose; we are here to glorify Him
He leads us in right living - morality
And He has our destiny set - forever WITH HIM in Heaven
The Content of who we are gets shaped by this Eternal, loving God and His powerful message!
Psalm 91 has more to say, which many of you have discovered this week. Here are a few more verses to ponder:
“He will cover you with his pinions,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
5 You will not fear the terror of the night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
nor the destruction that wastes at noonday”
(Psalm 91:4-6).
May you rest in the shelter of the MOST HIGH God!