The Plumbline

Elisha said, “I wonder how I can be of help. Tell me, what do you have in your house?” “Nothing,” she said. “ Well, I do have a little oil.” (2 Kings 4:2) A widow woman facing a debt she cannot repay. She is worried that she will lose her two sons - simply because they would become the "means" of repaying her debt as they would be forced to become the slaves to the debtor if she could not repay the debt. Her husband has been a prophet - a godly man. I imagine she wonders why this catastrophe is upon her since she likely has lived a "set apart" lifestyle for a good many years. She comes to Elisha - one of the major prophets of the Old Testament - seeking his help. She implores him to consider her plight. In response, he begins to wonder what he might be able to do to assist. In those days, prophets were rarely wealthy men or women - they lived by the standards of the day, occupying their time with the normal pursuits of the day such as farming, tending the ani...

It is that time of year when kids everywhere begin to write out their wish lists for Christmas. At first, the new bike or gaming system is all they want, then the list begins to grow and grow and grow. We actually encourage our kids to 'complete' this wish list task by writing a letter to Santa. As the list grows, so does the discontent - the more we want the more discontent we become with what we have. Discontent can produce positive outcomes in life - such as when we are no longer content just barely being able to button our jeans and we begin a concerted effort to avoid the cookies and put in a little more exercise everyday. Discontent can also have a very negative outcome when it drives us to compare what we have with what another has, then begin to complain about what we don't have in this life. What makes the difference between the positive and negative outcome with discontentment? I believe it is where we turn with our discontent - turn in the right direction toward ...

Nothing more...nothing less. Have you ever heard that saying and wondered what caused the first person who uttered those words to actually have to say them? Nothing more suggests someone could try to 'add to' whatever one is considering - because it isn't complete the way it is. Nothing less might just indicate someone would try to 'take away from' what was there because they thought they could be a little crafty or devious in their dealings. Nothing more...nothing less. When it comes to what we know about God, there is no 'adding to' the truth - truth is truth and it cannot be 'added to'. When it comes to what God does for us, there is 'nothing less' than his perfection that is offered - nothing can be added to it, nothing can be taken away from it and have the same impact on our lives. This mystery has been kept in the dark for a long time, but now it’s out in the open. God wanted everyone, not just Jews, to know this rich and glorious sec...