The Plumbline

Christmas is behind us again and a new year is off to a start for each of us.  We may not know what the days ahead will hold, but we do know this...we don't have to worry about them because the one who holds the future also holds us in his hands and will walk us through them with all the grace and goodness he provides.  As we consider who walks with us through this year, I could not help but turn to a very "traditional" Christmas passage found in Isaiah.  It begins with the words, " Hope of all hopes, dream of our dreams,  a child is born,  sweet-breathed;  a son is given to us:  a living gift.   And even now, with tiny features and dewy hair,  He is great. The power of leadership, and the weight of authority, will rest on His shoulders.  His name?...." His name we’ll know in many ways—He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Dear Father everlasting, ever-present never-failing, Master of Wholeness, Prince of Peace. (Isaia...

As a child, did you ever do that thing most kids do where someone asks you what you want to "be" when you grow up and you declare something like astronaut, fireman, nurse, doctor, or the like?  The "what do you want to be" question haunts us for about 18+ years into our college years when we somehow are expected to know what it is we want to do with the rest of our lives.  I know many a college student who "goes to" college or university, only to take a good two years of studies just as a way of trying to again "figure out" what whey are going to be when they "grow up".  It is sort of like "going" will somehow create this excitement in you that will settle the question.  The truth is, we often pursue things we think will bring us fulfillment in life without any real assurance they will.  I know many a person who invested a great deal of money and time into pursuing one career only to find it wasn't really what they wanted...