Which Path Will I Take?

   I had breakfast this morning with a friend of mine. He and his wife had had an interesting experience the previous weekend, an hour conversation with the Speaker of the House of Representatives and his wife. They all happened to be in the same place at the same time and were thrown together for this period of time.

   As our conversation continued over breakfast, this friend related what the prominent Republican representative had talked about and how their conversation went. Now my friend is not a political person, any more than I am, but had a chance to share his feelings and frustrations about politics in general and what is going on in our country.

   After he and I had talked about all of this, our conversation turned to how we felt our country was headed and some of the things happening right now that had us concerned over the future that our children and grandchildren would be living in. We talked of problems, people, politicians and possibilities.

   All of that carried over into my readings for today. The Psalmist also was lamenting the state of the country he lived in. He went over the common scenario of the Israelite people, from blessing to a fallen state, then repenting, being forgiven by God and then beginning the same sequence all over again. His words in Psalm 78:

   " In spite of all this, they still sinned;
despite his wonders, they did not believe.
So he made their days vanish like a breath,
and their years in terror.
When he killed them, they sought him;
they repented and sought God earnestly.
They remembered that God was their rock,
the Most High God their redeemer.
But they flattered him with their mouths;
they lied to him with their tongues.
Their heart was not steadfast toward him;
they were not faithful to his covenant."

   It is like "woe is me, here we go all over again. Will we ever learn?"

   Then another reading in my time today. This one in the Book of Nehemiah, in chapters 2 and 3:

   "Then I said to them, “You see the bad situation we are in, that Jerusalem is desolate and its gates burned by fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem so that we will no longer be a reproach.” I told them how the hand of my God had been favorable to me and also about the king’s words which he had spoken to me. Then they said, “Let us arise and build.” So they put their hands to the good work."

   The contrast of the two peoples was striking. On the one hand, the people accepted the blessings of God, but then soon forgot, went back to their old ways, rebelled, were punished for their disobedience, and began their cycle of life all over again.

   The people of Jerusalem, the remnant in the land from the captivity, heard what the prophet said, realized that they heard truth, and got to work.

   Will I be a part of the perceived problems that I see in our country today, or be a part of a solution?

   "If My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land."