I Wonder--May 10

As I prepare for worship on this upcoming Sunday, I want to share with you some words from Dr. M. Craig Barnes, the President of Princeton Seminary. They spoke to my soul and challenged me. These words helped me to frame what I am thinking about as I consider Sunday's text from Acts.

I hope they will speak to your heart as well as you continue to seek to live faithfully in your local community.  

In his book, Searching for Home: Spirituality for the Restless Soul, he wrote: 

"Today the serpent whispers in our ears that we have a right--one of our favorite words in contemporary society--to live without loneliness, yearning, or confusion about the future. "Take control," it hisses in our ears. "You won't get kicked out of the garden or end up like your parents." The lie always appeals to our deepest anxiety, and it's too appealing to resist."

As God's children, I believe that there is something deep in our very beings, our essence, that calls out to the Creator. Even if are completely and fully estranged from God, I believe that being made in God's "image and likeness" means that we are reaching out for communion with our Creator--seeking to live in harmony as God lives in harmony in heaven with the Persons of the Trinity. 

But there is the great lie that draws us away. 

It makes us wonder about being a little less faithful; a little less committed to the Word. We sacrifice just a little bit of what we know to be true so that we can fit in and not be alone. The serpent reminds us that this choice is fine and it won't come with consequences.

I wonder how being in union with God, if seeking and living faithfully, can help us? I wonder if you can locate in your life some area, some part of your life practices, that could be drawn back to God? What would that look like and how might it help you address the great lie the serpent hisses at you?