Daily Lesson for December 7, 2017

Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Psalm 18 verses 8 through 15:

7 The earth trembled and quaked,

    and the foundations of the mountains shook;

    they trembled because he was angry.

8 Smoke rose from his nostrils;

    consuming fire came from his mouth,

    burning coals blazed out of it.

9 He parted the heavens and came down;

    dark clouds were under his feet.

10 He mounted the cherubim and flew;

    he soared on the wings of the wind.

11 He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him—

    the dark rain clouds of the sky.

12 Out of the brightness of his presence clouds advanced,

    with hailstones and bolts of lightning.

13 The Lord thundered from heaven;

    the voice of the Most High resounded.

14 He shot his arrows and scattered the enemy,

    with great bolts of lightning he routed them.

15 The valleys of the sea were exposed

    and the foundations of the earth laid bare

at your rebuke, Lord,

    at the blast of breath from your nostrils.

There is now a great shaking of the foundations.

Congressmen stepping down, entertainment stars fired in disgrace, the integrity of governmental agencies being called into question.

It is indeed a fearful time. But we are not to be dismayed.

The LORD is purifying our nation and testing our integrity. A great purging is taking place, a mighty cleansing. The foundations of our society, our values as a people, and our national constitution are all being put on trial. It is an act of God. 

Things may get worse before they get better. There may be more uncertainty and foreboding. There may even be greater crisis. It’s hard to know what God is doing in the darkness. 

But we are to hold fast.  We are to keep trusting that the foundations of our democracy are true and noble and will stand the test.

I have been thinking of what Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings said after the police shootings in Dallas last summer. We are a people of “Faith, Hope, and Love” —having faith in the integrity of our institutions, hoping that we can endure all things, and choosing to love our neighbors and also even our enemies. 

Those are strong and steadying words for unsettling times.