January 5

(Posted on behalf of Jon Lanuza)
Saturday, January 5, 2013
Beginnings, Resets and Restarts

Genesis 11:1-13:4
Matthew 5:1-26
Psalm 5:1-12
Proverbs 1:24-27

Today's readings to me seemed rife with new beginnings, with resets, with
control-alt-deletes. Fresh on the heels of a global reboot, God once again
resets things for a people bent on self-glorification, by confusing their
language and scattering them across the face of the earth. He orders Abram,
who has moved to Harran with his wife and his father's family, to pack up
and leave what was, presumably, a life that had grown comfortable, and start
afresh somewhere else. And Jesus tells the disciples that their
interpretation of the law is wrong, and He teaches them a completely
different way of living, oriented not towards their own self-enrichment and
self-glorification - instead, oriented around the humbling truth of God's
existence and supremacy. And He teaches them the requirements for salvation
are seemingly higher than the already stringent standards the lives of the
Pharisees seem to illustrate - standards they cannot hope to meet living as
they had been.

Consider: whereas they thought judgment for murder required one actually
kill another human being, Jesus now taught them all they had to do was think
"Raca", and they would be answerable. And where previously they thought the
courts the right place to settle disputes, now they are told to settle
things before the judges get involved. And they - we! - are told to be meek,
to be merciful, to be peacemakers.

I am not very good with beginnings. Twenty three years ago, I left my family
in the Catholic, English speaking, right-side-of-the-road driving country of
my youth to move to a nation ninety five percent Muslim, where few spoke
English and I had to learn to drive right hand drive stick. I struggled with
the change for almost the entire 3 years I was there. But this change God
imposed on the people at Babel, the change He asked of Abram, and the change
in our lives Jesus says is necessary for salvation - these are far greater,
demanding of us transformation each day, transformation we cannot hope to
accomplish by ourselves. To whom then do we turn?

How wonderful that today's Psalm gives us the answer, for when "in reverence
I bow down toward your holy temple", we can ask "Lead me, Lord, in your
righteousness...make your way straight before me". We can cry out to God for
help with the journey He has planned for us - "Listen to my words,
Lord...head my cry for help...in the morning I lay my requests before you
and wait expectantly."

Let us not be like the people described in today's proverb...let us not
"refuse to listen when I (Wisdom) call". Let us pay attention when He
stretches out His hand.

We are five days into the new year. If we haven't yet, it is not too late to
step back, and to ask God what changes He asks of us. I know Christmas is
over, but that list - the list of ways in which He wants us to be
transformed - that would be a list worth making, worth checking twice.