“Trust in the Lord with ALL your heart.” (Prov.3:5)
Whoever primarily trusts in man—fragile flesh, bones, and blood, ramping down their trust in the Lord from a 10 to a 2, is like a desert shrub—tumbleweed blown about by every wind and whim; a cactus with many barbs—living defensively, not redemptively. Such a person has no hope, they live by hype. Fear, not faith, fills their heart and horizon. Left to themselves, their dwelling will be the parched wilderness—in an arid, lonely salt flat. (My paraphrase of Jeremiah 17:5-6)
Dear Jesus, I judge no one this morning. I’m just looking at two mirrors. The mirror of your Word—which alone shows things as they really are; and the mirror in my bathroom, which is only a reflection of externals, not a revelation of the eternal.
What am I feeling today? Grateful you are Lord, and I am not. Convicted, at how easily I can get swayed by the hoopla and hula-hoops of world politics, national agendas, and the foolishness of my own heart. But Jesus, only you are worthy of whole-heart trust, worship, and love.
But here we are again… just like the time Israel was so faithless, impatient, and desperate for a king, you gave them a very “man-ish Saul. Just like the time a crowd was so impressed with your miracles, they wanted to force you to be their king without the cross (John 6:14-15). Just like the time an amazed crowd called the Apostle Paul, Hermes, and Barnabas, Zeus—bringing sacrifices to worship the messengers, instead of you, the Master (Acts 14:11-13). I, we, us… Jesus, it’s too easy to look beyond you, in addition to you, or to some version of you that is shaped by our personal druthers, not your eternal glory. Forgive us, forgive me, Jesus. So Very Amen.
