Ask


"Later Johanan had a private conference with Gedaliah and volunteered to kill Ishmael secretly. 'Why should we let him come and murder you?' Johanan asked. 'What will happen then to the Judeans who have returned? Why should the few of us who are still left be scattered and lost?' But Gedaliah said to Johanan. 'I forbid you to do any such thing, for you are lying about Ishmael.' ... But in midautumn, Ishmael ...and his ten men suddenly drew their swords and killed Gedaliah ..." Jeremiah 40:15-41:3

On more occasions than I can count, I've searched in vain for any number of items around the house that I just knew "had to be here somewhere." I've emptied drawers, emptied closets, climbed into attics, and rummaged through the garage and shed with vigorous intensity only to unearth frustration. It's at this point where my wife asks, "What are you looking for?" I tell her. She says, "O, it's right here." Ask. All I needed to do was ask.

In our story for the day, Gedaliah rejected the warning of someone he believed wasn't being truthful. He assumed ulterior motives of some kind and rejected his plan. In so doing, he signed his own death certificate. It struck me, with Jeremiah the prophet within reach, he failed to simply inquire of him to see what God had to say about the situation. A deadly mistake that was totally avoidable.

While I was mulling over this major blunder of Gedaliah, it occurred to me that his mistake is one that I far too often stumble into myself. We're all making decisions on a regular basis. We are so confident in ourselves that we often bypass both the wisdom of scripture and the wisdom of others. A bad decision today may not cost us our lives, but it will exact a price that we could have avoided. Simply, ask. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tested

"He was testing Philip, for he already knew what he was going to do." John 6:1-13 Test day. I remember all too well the feelings of discomfort connected to that expression from my school days. I was so thankful the last time I had to take one. Tests felt so much like a cruel game of, "Guess What I'm Thinking?" with the author of the test. During one particularly grueling test, I noticed one of my classmates cheating like there was no tomorrow. Predictably, he aced it and I let's just say, didn't. It occurred to me later that I was actually being tested in two different ways that day. By God's grace alone, I passed them both. Philip was in the hot seat that day. Jesus, out of the twelve disciples, decided to single him out for testing. From all appearances, there was a massive resource shortage. Five thousand men plus women and children all hungry up against whatever money Judas had in the money bag. Philip was apparently incredulous as he emphaticall
Read more

Nothing Left

"'What do you mean what's the matter?' Micah replied. 'You've taken away all the gods I have made, and my priest, and I have nothing left!" Judges 17, 18 Unaware of some purchases that my wife had made earlier in the day, I didn't even hesitate to use my debit card at the checkout line. However, our bank was fully aware of all those purchases as well as the one I was attempting to make at the present moment. Clearly, the math didn't add up. Something from nothing is something less than nothing and that, as it turns, is frowned upon by our aforementioned bank. In short, the bank told the merchant there was nothing left and the merchant told me, "Declined." Micah was one panicked individual. His personal little self-directed and self-centered religion was coming apart at the seams. He had idols. He had priests. He had a shrine and even a sacred ephod (a priestly garment). All this, he thought, secured the LORD's blessing. When the warri
Read more

Who is Jesus?

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:15, 16 NIV) What are your thoughts about Jesus? Every major religion on earth has an opinion on who he was. Mostly they say that he was a good man, a powerful teacher, and a peacemaker. All of that is true. But what about him being the Son of God? Peter, after being with Jesus non-stop for 4 years was confident of his identity. He was assured that Jesus was God in the flesh, the Messiah that was to come. You essentially have three options when it comes to what you believe about Jesus: 1) He was a Liar 2) He was a Lunatic (out of his mind) 3) Or that He was Lord If he was, and is, Lord, then he deserves our worship and our entire lives. If Jesus is Lord, it is true that we have access to God by His sacrifice on the cross. Join us Friday night at 7, as we reflect on Jesus going to the cross for the sins of the entire world (Good Frida
Read more