John 2:12-25, James 3:13-18, Ecclesiastes 5, Jeremiah 14-15

Reading:
John 2:12-25, James 3:13-18, Ecclesiastes 5, Jeremiah 14-15
Recall:
Then GOD said of these people:
“Since they loved to wander this way and that,
never giving a thought to where they were going,
I will now have nothing more to do with them—
except to note their guilt and punish their sins.” Jeremiah 14:10

Therefore thus says the Lord:
If you turn back, I will take you back,
and you shall stand before me.
If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless,
you shall serve as my mouth. Jeremiah 15:19

Reflect:
Sometimes I get so caught up in (and irritated with) the anthropomorphised God language of the prophets that I miss the wisdom in them. The words from Jeremiah jumped out at me: "...they loved to wander this way and that, never giving a thought to where they were going..." What an apt description of many in our culture. What an apt description {cringe} of my life sometimes.

Does God have nothing more to do with me when I get off track? Of course not. That is just how the ancients saw it. But it is a good description. It feels like God has "nothing more to do with me--except to note my guilt and punish my sins."

When I "turn back," when I turn toward God, if I meditate upon and utter what is precious--surprise, surprise--God seems to "take me back."

Respond:
"Born to wander, Lord I feel it, born to leave the God I love." Train my wandering heart, O God. Sharpen my focus. I long to live and operate and parent and minister in your power and strength. I want to love with your love. I want to lead with your authority.

I sound like a broken record sometimes. Consistency is rewarded. Well, maybe rewarded is the wrong word. Consistency produces results. The time I spend, on a consistent basis, in scripture, meditation, prayer, physical exercise, etc. produces results and produces a change in perspective. That extra hour at the beginning of the day is really tough to eek out, but it's absolutely necessary for effectiveness.