Day 267

Isaiah 57:14-59:21, Ephesians 3:1-21, Psalm 111:1-10

There is a story about a minister who went to one of his churches and preached the same sermon as he had done the last time he was there. An old chap sat at the back noticed this but decided to keep quiet. The next time that the minister was at that church he preached the same sermon again, this time the old chap decided he had to say something.
“Now then Lad,” he says, “that’s the third time you’ve preached that sermon”.
”Aye” says the minister, “and I’ll keep preaching it until you start listening!”

This is the umpteenth time that we have heard the call to start living lives of justice and mercy (remember Micah 6:8). Like the minister in the story above, God is having to say the same thing over and over because the people aren’t listening and they aren’t being just and merciful.

Note this time that, instead of worship and sacrifice, Isaiah (58:6) links it to fasting and this immediately made me think of Lent. So often we give something up because that is what you do during Lent. People outside the church even give something up for lent. But how about next lent, we actually take up the plight of the oppressed and the hungry, rather than giving up gravy on your cornflakes just for the sake of giving up something!

In fact, have a look at v7 and see the parallels with Jesus words in Matthew 25:34-40. Jesus doesn’t just call us to reach out to the hungry, naked and oppressed for 40 days of the year, he calls us to do it the whole year round. So why not start now and also start thinking how you can go the extra mile next lent!

Despite all of that, I can’t ignore Ephesians 3:16-21. read this small bit again and just spend a bit of time thinking about being strengthened by God, being rooted in His love and being filled with the fulness of God.

The Lord is ready to do more than you could possibly imagine in your life, so allow Him to work within you and give Him the glory!