The Plumbline

Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning. (Albert Einstein) History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new. Sometimes people say, “Here is something new!” But actually it is old; nothing is ever truly new. We don’t remember what happened in the past, and in future generations, no one will remember what we are doing now. (Ecclesiastes 1:9-11) History merely repeats itself. If we are honest here, the 'history' of our own lives is kind of repetitive - at least until we ask Jesus to help us stop repeating the same mistakes! Einstein was right - we never should stop questioning - in the questioning, we often discover something we have been believing or doing that really isn't all that good for us. When we question where we are with taking the steps God asks us to take, we are merely asking God if we are moving in the right direction. There is nothing wrong with a little...

Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. (Philippians 2:14-15) As I start a new year, I always try to find a passage of scripture that I might hold onto for the year that will give me direction for what lies ahead. I claim today's passage for this year - looking forward to being a shining light in a world that seems to only get more and more perverse. We will face uncertainty - will Christ be our anchor? We will encounter hardships - will Jesus be our trusted companion as we walk through them? We will find many things we could criticize - will God's will be the choice we make when faced with compromise all around? Do everything without complaining or arguing - we certainly live in a time when controversy is amplified by media, groups take up issues in protest of this or that, and a sense of unease can kick off violent...