“Daniel’s Hope in God” Daniel 6: 6-27

Daniel and the Lion’s Den. How many times have we seen this story portrayed? It’s been made into animated movies and told by Veggie Tales. It has action figures that you can find to act the story out. Yet, how many times do we gloss over big swaths of the story, in particular what takes place prior to Daniel finding himself in the den. 

The book of Daniel is fascinating. It tells the story of this man who sees visions from God over the course of three different kings - Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius. What makes Daniel so vital during this time is his deep connection with God. He prayers to God constantly. He will not violate the law of God, even when he knows that it would be a lot easier to go with the crowd. He is simply devoted to lifting up the name of the God of Israel. And in return, Daniel is blessed with divine wisdom. 

However, that wisdom that he has and shares has gotten him into some hot water by the point of chapter six and some folks want to get Daniel out of the way.  So, the presidents and satraps come before Darius, the King during this time, with a plan they have devised. If only the King could make a law that they know that Daniel is bound to break, they could have him punished by death. They come and have a law all ready to hand over to the King - no one can worship anyone or anything for the next 30 days other than King Darius. 

We aren’t quite sure why the King agreed to this. Maybe it was to establish his own power in the land. Maybe he just liked having his ego stroked, but he readily agrees. A plan that had been hatched in deceit and jealousy simply used him as a pawn. 

But there is a key part of this story that we sometimes overlook. In the law of the Medes and the Persians no one could revoke a law once it is passed. Not even the one who passed it in the first place. Not even the King. 

Think back to the story of Esther. There was a similar statement made about edicts in that book as well. Esther 8:8 states, You may write as you please with regard to the Jews, in the name of the king, and seal it with the king’s ring; for an edict written in the name of the king and sealed with the king’s ring cannot be revoked.”

If you have it with the King’s seal it is law. And Darius signed this law into effect for the next thirty days.

Daniel knew what had happened. He knew what the new law was. But it did not change his pattern of devotion and prayer in any way, shape, or form. He would still pray daily, facing the city of Jerusalem, and the folks who laid the trap for him with this law just watched and waited. After Daniel had broken the law by praying to God they ran to the King to tell on Daniel. Only even that was done in a sneaky way. They didn’t come right out and excuse Daniel at first. Instead, they asked the King about the law that he had signed, then they said that it was Daniel who had broken it. 

And the King was heart-broken. The blindness that came through flattery and power, a dangerous combination, had caused him to sign this law that he was now afraid was going to lead to Daniel’s death. He realized he was wrong, and as Daniel was brought before him to be thrown into the pit or cave with the lions, Darius utters this statement that stands as a confession of sorts - “May your God, whom you faithfully serve, deliver you!” He knew that he had done wrong. He knew that he couldn’t change what had passed. But maybe just maybe Daniel’s God could intervene and save him now. 

Then we get to the part of the story folks may be more familiar with. Dawn came and with it the stone was rolled away from the mouth of the pit and Daniel was alive! He bore witness to the fact that angels had intervened to save his life. And those who had set Daniel up were thrown into the pit. 

Because of this experience Darius wrote a new decree about the God of Israel, who he referred to as the God of Daniel, to proclaim God’s greatness.

Whenever we tell this story or act it out, we automatically assume that we would all be Daniel. If we were faced with an impossible situation, of course we would be as steadfast as Daniel. Of course, we would trust God even in the face of death. 

And maybe that’s true.

But I think it’s equally true that sometimes we are like Darius. We get so swept up in people singing our praises that we get deceived into acting in ways that are contrary to the way of God. We let stocking up our own name and power get the better of us, and before we know it we are swept under by sin. 

And other times we are like those who conspired against Daniel. We spend so much time living in the jealousy of our hearts that we find ourselves thinking that if we only we were like that person then our lives would be so much better. 

That makes the story a little more uncomfortable, does it not?

Of course the call of the story of Daniel is about seeking first the righteousness of God. It’s about the freedom that comes from living our lives for God. Freedom from the constraints of this world - for God’s future does not depend on our current circumstances of the present. It is about finding our hope in God alone and letting our trust rest in that. 

However, it is equally a call to examine our hearts. To search out those places where jealous is killing us and our own self-image keeps us from following the way and will of God. 

It also asks us some hard questions - like how many of us are so deeply connected to God through our prayer and devotional life that we would never give it up, no matter what? How many of us often let our prayer time go by without a second thought, even if there is no law stopping us from praying?

Friends, I do not ask these questions to make us feel badly about selves. Instead, I ask them as a mirror to hold up our hearts. For that is what the story of Daniel is at its core. It is a mirror that we read and then say, how do I see myself in this story? Right here and right now. And is that who I want to be?

Let us enter into a time of reflection by friends, asking God to reveal to us our hearts. Amen. 

“God Promises a New Covenant” Jeremiah 36:1-8, 21-23, 27-28; then 31:31-34

For one of my recent doctoral classes we had to talk about something that we enjoy. And I could only think of one thing - words. I love words. I love to read. By my count, I read over 150 books in 2019, and that inhaling of books started quite early.  Some of my first memories are of climbing up beside my parents and having them read to me. Never just one books, but lots of books. Two of my nieces have inherited this love for words, and we have learned that unwinding and reading for bedtime never involves anything less than five books for them, which they will drag over as a pile at your feet. 

But here’s the thing about words - they weren’t always written down in books. Our scripture from Jeremiah today starts off by stating that a word came to Jeremiah from the Lord. What do you think that it means to say a word came from the Lord to a prophet? Did it come in the mail? Or from something written down on a scroll? No. It came in a way that was clear to the prophet. Sometimes as voice. Sometimes as a movement of the Spirit. And the result is that Jeremiah knew exactly what he was supposed to do - write down for Israel all the ways that they have strayed from God and usher a call to repentance. 

Ouch. 

Not as easy task at all. 

Yet, Jeremiah was faithful to the word of the Lord, and he took those words given to him and had them written down on scrolls for the people. Then those words were read in people’s hearing so that they could sink into them. 

But it didn’t stop there. Those words found their way to the King, and they were read again in his presence. Only the King cut them up into little pieces and destroyed them. But God’s word would not be stopped simply because the King had burned it up. Instead the Word of the Lord came to Jeremiah again and told him to have it all written down again. 

If you know the story of the prophet Jeremiah and the things leading up to these passage as well as what comes next, you know that it is a hard story to hear. It was even harder for Jeremiah to live through as a prophet. But shortly after this whole incident with the King - that same King is going to be taken away in chains. The temple is going to be destroyed. And the people are going to feel like God abandoned them, because they didn’t let that Word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah, that Word that Jeremiah had written down and proclaimed. This Word of the Lord was written during a time of Israel’s disobedience.

And all of a sudden, the Israelites, the people of God go into a tailspin. They start to think that God must be unfaithful - not realizing that it isn’t God who broke faith, but them. God didn’t fail - they had. 

Now you may have noticed that I read the scripture a different way today. It doesn’t happen often, but sometimes the lectionary, or the group of readings that we use on Sundays, come with special instructions. That was true this week. After the scriptures from Jeremiah 36 comes these words then Jeremiah 31: 31. 

Odd. Why do you think that is? Because Jeremiah 31 talks about a different type of writing. A different place where words are placed - on the heart. But we can’t understand why we need words to be written on our hearts if we can’t understand where the hearts of the people are in the first place- which Jeremiah 36 shows us.

Jeremiah 31 is trying to tell the people of Israel that a time is coming when the covenant that they had been bound by, the covenant of the law, would have to change. Why? Because the people cannot live into it. Sure, they had tried. But they had failed because we cannot heal ourselves of the sin in our lives and we have zero, hear me friends, zero chance of being perfect on our own. Hear that from me, a recovering perfectionist. 

God is deeply disappointed in the people, yet God says that a new way, a new covenant is coming. One that isn’t based on the people’s ability to keep the law or their own goodness, but rather solely on the grace of God. And that is where hope resides. 

So what does it mean to have the law written on our hearts? Well let’s start with that word heart. It’s not about having the law memorized. It’s not about having all of the head knowledge in the world - its about letting it sink into us. The heart in the ancient world was thought to be the place where emotions and spirit resided. What made us who we are. So if the law is written on the people’s hearts, its about having that law be so deeply a part of who they are that it is lived out in their lives. 

Another way to say this is that it isn’t about knowing about God, its about knowing God. Friends, there are a lot of people who know about God, but if is only about knowing about and not about loving then we’ve missed the point. 

Take for example the King - he knew about God. In fact, he was believed to be appointed by God to lead the people. Yet, by cutting up the words and burning them in the fire he showed that he had no respect or love for God. 

One of the things that I collect as a lover of words is letters. When ever someone takes the time to write me a letter, I treasure them. I cannot bring myself to throw them out. God wrote the people of Israel and their leader a letter and he destroyed - he destroyed the word of the Lord because it wasn’t what he wanted to hear or receive. 

This new law, this new covenant, that is going to be written on the heart - its the law of love. Not just any love, but love of God and love of neighbor. But here’s the thing about love - we cannot trick ourselves into loving God by simply knowing facts about God. We cannot make ourselves love our neighbor just by knowing facts about them either. Love is more than that. Love is meant not to be believed, its meant to be lived. 

So Jeremiah is essentially offering the people a new way of living. A new way marked by love. A way that they desperately needed. A way that we would eventually see embodied in Jesus Christ and his love for us that drove him the whole way to the cross. But love doesn’t stay there, Church. We, as the hands and feet of Christ, live into that law of love today. 

For the past several months I have been working on a discipleship project - deeply diving into God’s Word with a group of ladies, talking every month around questions like this: Lord, who do you want me to love today? And Lord, how can I love you today? And what has struck me during that whole process is the thought - what would be different in our lives and in the world if we let God’s love lead us? If we prayed for God to give us opportunities to love others? What could have been different in the lives of the people during Jeremiah’s time? And what could be different in our world today?

I started this sermon by telling you that I am a lover of words, but no more so my friends than I love the Word. The Word made flesh. The one who I have given my life to. The one who has captured my heart. If we hold Jesus in our hearts, how are we sharing that love with our lives? Amen.

“God Calls Isaiah” Isaiah 6:1-8

“Here I am Lord. Is it I Lord? I have heard you calling in the night. I will go Lord. If you lead me. I will hold your people in my heart.” The first time I remember hearing this song was on an old cassette tape in my parent’s minivan. I remember thinking that it was a beautiful song. But it took on a whole new meaning for me the first year I attended Annual Conference, then at Messiah College. After watching people who had responded to God’s call in their life be commissioned and ordained to serve God both in the local church and beyond, the giant organ started to play this hymn, echoing throughout the gymnasium. And the Bishop told anyone who was sensing any sort of God to come forward and be prayed over. And friends people came forward. Some with resolute steps. Overs with tears streaming down their faces. People responded to the call of God, and have every single year during this service at Annual Conference. The Spirit of God is on the move, calling people. 

As we see in today’s text, God is the God of call. Isaiah 6 starts out, “In the year that King Uzziah died.” We hear about Uzziah’s story of ascending to Kingship in 2 Cronicles, chapter 26. A young boy who the people of Judah made king at the age of sixteen. And he started out right - we are told that he sought after the Lord and he feared the Lord as the prophet Zechariah had told him to. But then he grew proud and it was his downfall. He had some amazing success in battles and thought that he had brought it around all on his own, instead of being a servant of the Lord. 

In one particularly bold moment of pride, he went to the temple to make a sacrafice - an act of worship that was to be done in a particular way, and next thing you know he was making the sacrafice himself instead of calling for the priests. This was a no-no during the time - for the priests were appointed by God to lead the people as well. When the priests tried to call him out he got angry. As punishment God struck him with a condition of the skin and he died. 

It is the background of all that prideful leadership that God is looking for a different type of leader. Not a King - Uzziah’s son had ascended to the throne by this point. But a prophet to lead the people in right paths. 

So Isaiah finds himself having a vision of being before the throne of God. Seraphs are all around the throne of the Lord singing praises and all Isaiah could do was fall on his face. He knows that he is not worthy to be in the presence of such a holy and wondrous God. He is a man of unclean lips - in other words he isn’t holy enough - and he lives among people who he knows to be just as unholy. 

But then this amazing thing happens. One of the seraphs that had been worshipping God brought a hot, burning coal and touched Isaiah’s mouth with it as a sign of cleaning. And God asked “Whom shall I send?” And Isaiah responded send me. 

In contrast to Uzziah who seemed to have forgotten that he was an earthly ruler, here is Isaiah who realizes that it is not by his own strength or gifts that he is called - but only by the grace of God. 

Now if all we take away from Isaiah is his particular call, I think we are missing the point. For not all call stories are going to happen like Isaiah. In fact, I’ve heard hundreds of call stories over the years and I have never heard two that sound exactly the same. Even those folks who come forward at Annual Conference, they would each tell the story of God meeting them and calling them differently. For God speaks to our hearts in different ways. 

But what we can glean from Isaiah’s call is that worship is the setting of call. Now I know that simply saying the word worship conjures up all sorts of images for us of being in a certain place and doing certain things. But we worship when we are fully present and pour our hearts out to God. When we are open to the movement of the Holy Spirit. So we may be in the Church building, but not really be worshipping God. Or we may be somewhere we have never been before, praising God, and that can be a moment of worship. 

Certainly Isaiah had a profound experience of worshipping God that sounds similar to that which we read throughout the book of Revelation. When we worship God we remember that God is holy and we are not. But here’s the thing about when we truly worship God, opening up our spirits - God changes us. Friends, we do not have the power to change on our own. It is only the work and power of the Holy Spirit in our lives that can do that. But it is also a lot easier for God to change us when we are open to being changed, or in Isaiah’s case, cleansed. Does that mean that God does not ever meet those who are resistent? By no means. But Isaiah recognized that he was unworthy and had a moment where God changed him and called him because of the posture of his heart. 

In fact, Isaiah teaches us a lot about what worship can look like. For him he had this time of confession - crying out that he had unclean lips. He received forgiveness - symbolized here by the burning coal. And then he is commissioned - or sent out to the people.

Sounds a lot like our worship does it not? That we bring our confessions before God - we cry out for the times we have not chosen God, when we have sinned. We seek forgiveness and then we are sent. And here’s the thing friends - we are always sent. If we have been changed by Christ, we are his disciples. And disciples have a mission from God. How we live into that mission - our specific call - may be different. But we are all sent to be proclaimers of the Gospel. 

That’s part of the great mystery of call. The most holy God calls even the likes of you and me, despite our unworthiness, to serve the Kingdom. It still boggles my mind. And it can be so hard to understand. But God is the God of call. The question is how are we going to respond?

Something that has been on my heart this week is the following question - what if Isaiah would have said no? Of course, we know that Isaiah said ‘ yes’ to the call of God. But how would the history of the people of Israel been different if he would have walked away? Or if he would have not responded to the forgiveness of God? 

I wonder that, because I think sometimes we get so caught up in imagining all of the details that come with saying ‘yes’ that we talk ourselves into saying ‘no’. But those ‘no’s may just be a ‘no’ to someone hearing the Good News and having their chance to respond. Or that ‘no’ may have more consequences then we can ever wrap our minds around. 

I want to take time this morning to pray. To pray over each of us about hearing and responding to the call of God. I don’t know the specifics of what God may be calling you to my friends, but I do know this - our God is the God of call. Are we willing to respond “send me”?

“Jonah and God’s Mercy” Jonah 1:1-17; 3:1-10

For the last several weeks we have been exploring some fo the stories from the Hebrew Scriptures, the Old Testament. Some were probably familiar, and some may be less so. Today we are looking at the story of Jonah, but in a different way. The last time we studied the book of Jonah together as a congregation, we did it over four weeks, a chapter per Sunday worship. We are only going to be looking at Jonah for one Sunday this time, and combing chapters one and three. 

Jonah is part of what we call the minor prophets in the Old Testament. That certainly does not mean that they had a minor impact, rather it reflects more the length of their writing. When we look at the twelve minor prophets, each wrote what has become one to twelve chapters of our Bible, between the 8th and 5th century BCE. 

But out of the twelve, Jonah and Amos stand as unique. Usually the prophets had a word for their own people in their own region. But Jonah and Amos were called to travel - to go to a different place in order to share their prophecy from God. Amos went to the Northern Kingdom. Jonah to Assyria, where Ninevah was the capitol. 

What was not unique about Jonah was his hesitancy surrounding the call from God. While Jonah turned from the call is a spectacular fashion, there were many that came before him that said no at first, or hesitated when God called them.

Think of Moses when God came to him in the burning bush, giving him the call to go to Egypt and set the Israelites free. What was Moses’s first response - surely not me God, I’m not a very good speaker. Or Elijah, at one point during his time of prophesy told God that it was simply getting to be to much, he didn’t have enough support to be listened to. Or Jeremiah, who straight up told God that this message was going to get him killed and he was too young to die. 

But where other’s hesitated - Jonah fled. Jonah. The word of God came to Jonah, telling him to go to Ninevah and cry out against it - in other words take them a prophesy from God that they are not going to be too happy about and he boarded a boat for Tarshish instead. Ninevah was the capitol of Assyria. Tarshish was thought to be around where Spain is located. So Jonah went as far as possible in the opposite direction.

Why did Jonah flee? We don’t know for sure. But we can certainly assume that he didn’t want to be part of the call that God was placing on his life. 

Jonah often gets a lot of flack for fleeing, but my friends, how many of us have done the same? I have had the privilege of hearing countless call stories over the years, and as part of almost every single one of them, there is a point where folks told God no. Or asked God if he was sure. 

I know in my own call story - at first, I really didn’t want to be a pastor. I settled for thinking that I could be a lay speaker or lay minister and still go into psychology - what I was passionate about at the time. But God had other plans. 

And it isn’t just prophets and clergy who run away in some way, shape or form. It’s many of us gathered here today. We, like Jonah, make up a list of reasons to go as far away from what God is calling us to. It’s too much time. It’s too much money. I’m still raising kids at home. I’m too old. I’m too young. I simple don’t want to do that, God. 

Jonah must have taken a deep breath when he boarded the boat for Tarshish. Surely God will catch on that this isn’t what Jonah wants to do. Surely God will call someone else now that he is heading to what was believed to be the opposite end of the world. 

But when God calls, God is persistent. So God brings up this epic storm. One where seasoned sailors aren’t even sure what to do. But this captain, finding Jonah asleep somehow in the midst of all of this, tells him to get up and prayer to his god, saying “Perhaps the god will spare us.”

Here is a man who didn’t believe in the God if Israel. For all intents and purposes he would have been classified as a pagan, yet he has more trust in Jonah’s God than Jonah. With that one word, “perhaps”, we see non-believers being open to the work and way and will of God. 

Eventually the sailors find out that they need to throw Jonah overboard and he is swallowed by a big fish, where he does not die but has several days to contemplate life and call and his behavior. 

But the story does not end there. If we skip forward to chapter three, after Jonah has been spit up on dry land, the call of God comes to Jonah again. I’m not sure what Jonah thought was going to happen, but it certainly wasn’t that. Maybe he thought since he learned his lesson that God would give up. But here’s the thing - the call wasn’t really about Jonah in the first place. Jonah was a vessel to get a needed message to the people of Ninevah. So the call of God came to him again. 

We get into dangerous territory when we think that the call is all about us. When its about what we want or wish will happen. Friends, the call of God is always first and foremost about God. About God’s will be done. We are simply privileged enough to participate, even if Jonah did not feel that it was a privilege at the time. 

We need hearts that turn away from self-will and towards God’s will. We need to stop asking “do I really want to do this?” And start asking “God how can you be so good and loving to call me to participate in your Kingdom?”

This time Jonah did go to Ninevah, and for forty days he went around the area saying that they will be overthrown. Jonah saw this as simply doing what God asked him to do, but for God it was a grace-period that resulted in the conversion and repentance of the people of Ninevah. The people not only felt bad about their past behavior, but they acted on their new beliefs, putting on sack cloth and ashes and crying out to God. 

We sometimes get tricked into thinking that the book of Jonah is about the prophet Jonah, but really church, just like the rest of scripture its truly about God. Our God who showed mercy to Jonah in the belly of that fish and showed him grace to go again and live into this call. God who showed mercy and grace to the people of Ninevah. God who shows mercy and grace to each and every one of us as well. 

All over this text we see God’s care and compassion. For people who thought they were close to God and ran away and people who were far from God but turned their hearts and lives around. 

What about us? As the people of God are we sharing the Good News of God’s compassion and care? Or are we running away from people who aren’t like us? Are we proclaiming God’s mercy and grace that changed our lives? Or are we holding all of that in, like its a secret? Let us be the people who share the love of God in all we do and say so that God’s Kingdom may be made known! Amen and Amen!

“God’s Care for the Widow” 1 Kings 17: 1-16

Whenever we think of stories that we have learned from Scripture, usually those that come most readily to mind are from the New Testament, specifically the Gospels as we think of the stories of Jesus. In the Old Testament, or Hebrew Scriptures, we make think of the stories from Genesis or Exodus, but often after that folks are quite as familiar with the stories of old. 

Today’s scripture comes from 1 Kings. A little background up to this point in 1 Kings before we jump in. If you remember back to the time of Judges, the people were looking around at the other nations and decided that they wanted someone to lead them, someone to rule them. When they had a judge, who was usually both a military leader and a person of some wisdom, things went well. But when that judged died, Israel would revert back to the place where everyone did their own thing, and would stray from God. 

Eventually the people started to demand a King as a ruler. Now, the truth is that God should have been their King, but they were looking around at the other nations and decided that they wanted a ruler that looked liked everyone else’s (even if they were not like everyone else). So God granted them a King. Or rather many kings over the years, that had varying degrees of faithfulness and success. 

By the time we get to 1 Kings, Kings were often accompanied by prophets, which was a bit of an uncomfortable situation for the prophets. They were supposed to be giving these prophetic words, which lets be honest, could put them in a position where they were going against the King. So it was with the prophet Elijah, who served during the time of King Ahab. Right before we get in chapter 17, we find Elijah telling Ahab that this massive drought that Israel was experiencing was his fault. Caused by his actions. And then he ran into the wilderness. 

What is beautiful about chapter 17 is that in twenty-four short verses, there are three profound miracles. In contrast to Ahab who was unfaithful, God was always faithful. Faithful to the prophet. Faithful to the people. 

First, God, even in the wilderness, provides for Elijah’s hunger and thirst. God has ravens come and bring bread and meat to the prophet. Elijah is instructed to drink form the wadi, until the wadi dried up and God told Elijah to continue to move on. 

Stop and think about that for a moment. God commanded even the birds to come and minister to Elijah’s most basic needs. God would not leave Elijah’s side, even in the wasteland. Jehovah Jirah - the great provided. 

Then Elijah followed the command of God and went to Zarephath. When he arrived he sees this widow gathering sticks, presumably to build some sort of fire. We don’t exactly know why, but Elijah calls out to her for hospitality - for a bit of water and bread. Once again to quench his hunger and thirst. 

But the woman didn’t even have enough supplies to make a little bit of bread. She continues saying that all she has is meal and enough oil to make something small for herself and her son, so they could eat it and then die.

This woman’s situation was desperate. If you remember, all throughout the Hebrew Scriptures people are commanded to take care of the orphan, the widow, and the stranger. Why? Because they were the most vulnerable in society. In a society that were wealth and land and provision were passed down from male to male, without a man in their lives to provide, they were truly on their own. Dependent upon the hospitality and compassion of other people. This woman is so, so vulnerable, and in her statement we can see that the others around her have failed to take care of her and her son. Now here she is, just waiting to die.

Elijah, this complete stranger, who just stepped out of the wilderness, however, tells her not to be afraid, but to make a little cake for him as well as her and her son. This woman must be thinking to herself if he even heard her. There isn’t even enough for her and her son together, let alone a whole other cake for this man. But Elijah tells her not to be afraid, that she will be provided for. 

And she is! In a mighty way. This woman who was hungry for hope and thirsty for provisions experienced the second miracle in this text, as her meal and oil did not run out.

If you want to know about the third miracle in this text, I would encourage you to continue to read on, for it truly shows the might and power of God’s hand. 

But, if we stick with the text before us, I keep wondering a few things. First, what are we hungering and thirsting, brothers and sisters. What is the deepest longing of your heart where you are just in need of a miracle. For Elijah and this woman, part of their hungering and thirsting was for actual food and drink, in the midst of a drought and lack of care from the community around them. But its also so much more than that. They are hungering to be found in the midst of feeling lost. Hungering to have hope in the midst of what looks like a hopeless situation. Hungering for justice and hospitality when it seems like the world around them has forgotten them. They stand in need and God meets their desires in ways beyond their expectations.

So, what are we in need of today? And are we letting ourselves be ministered to by God, even in the most unexpected of ways?

Second, how might God be calling you to be the answer to someone else’s longing. Here is a woman who is the poorest of the poor who had just resigned to give up, but because of her experience with Elijah that day, she was able to carry on. Her dignity was restored. When no one in her family or her community abided by the command to care for the orphan and the widow, this stranger did. And her life was changed because of it. 

How are we in solidarity with people like this widow? How is God just waiting to use us to touch the lives of others in ways that restore their dignity and give them a future with hope? Are we attuned enough to the voice of God and the movement of the Spirit, like Elijah, to be obedient?

All of the miracles in chapter 17 show up the character and fingerprints of God. For they are all miracles of compassion. Miracles that show God’s tender concern for others. The problem we run into, friends, is when we are not people of compassion. When we think only about our own needs and are just like everyone else who ignored the widow, the orphan and the stranger. When we make sure that we are number one and disregard everyone else, even if that isn’t the intention of our hearts. 

Who are we going to be when we leave this place? Are we going to be a people of compassion who reach out to those who are hungering and thirsting? Or are we going to be those who ignore others who God has put right before us? Who are we going to be as the people of God? Amen.