The Plumbline

I want to explore a miracle from the Bible today, but from a little bit of a different perspective - that of the crowd. We could look at the miracle of Jesus raising Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha, seeing the wonder of a man dead and buried for four days coming forth from the tomb completely bound in graveclothes, face muffled in a swath cloth. Unwrapped, free, alive and fully restored - now that is a miracle of astronomical proportions, is it not? I imagine Lazarus 'stood out' a little bit, as he had been to heaven and was now alive to talk about it. Yet, there were some in the crowd that day that stand out just a little bit themselves. The Jewish leaders - men of learning and intense study of the Law of Moses. Their response to this miracle? Some believed and some ran to the Pharisee religious leaders to 'tattle on Jesus'. And so, at last many of the Jewish leaders who were with Mary and saw it happen, finally believed on him. But some went away to the Phari...

The new always happens against the overwhelming odds of statistical laws and their probability, which for all practical, everyday purposes amounts to certainty; the new therefore always appears in the guise of a miracle. (Johanna Hannah Arendt)  I would like us to consider the words of this Jewish-American theorist today because her thoughts here are quite telling. Many of us are looking for the "new" - we hope for something just a little different than what we have, or perhaps a totally new "make over" so the old is out and the new is in. Yet, if we stop to consider how the new comes, we might just be surprised by the realization of the new coming because somehow the odds stacked against it ever coming to fruition were overcome! I have hibiscus plants in the back yard. Those flowers don't last long, but they open into magnificently large orange, red, and yellow flowers, providing much folly for the hummingbirds who feed upon them and enjoyment for the ones ...

Every word you give me is a miracle word— how could I help but obey?   Break open your words, let the light shine out,  let ordinary people see the meaning.   Mouth open and panting,  I wanted your commands more than anything.  (Psalm 119:129-131 The Message) As the New Year has started, I find myself recommitting to my eating plan.  I made the determination last summer to really commit to eating in a manner that honored God with my choices.  My continual struggle to keep weight off is something I have had to deal with since just about every hormone producing "organ" in my body has been surgically removed!  Now, I must eat well, exercise often, and just not be as "selfish" in my choices as I would like to be.   Yesterday, a friend and I both sat there just craving something sweet - - but the desire was for chocolate, not an apple!  You could almost liken us to "panting" for chocolate!   Why were we at that ...