What keeps us from telling the truth? Most often it is fear of what others will think, fear of rejection. These things come from a deep seated insecurity.
When I left university after discarding my goal of becoming a journalist, I had no idea what to do or where to go. I wandered for a long time, travelling to Canada’s far north, believing that living day by day was the best way to go
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We elect leaders who may embarrass and disappoint us. When Toronto’s mayor makes Time magazine’s list of “Top 10 Apologies of 2013,” voter cynicism can’t be far behind. We aren’t unlike the early Israelites in this regard.
The people of ancient Israel lived in a time much like ours, rife with great fear and conflict.
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What did you do when you were in a trouble as a child? Or what did you do when you were accused of something that you had actually done but were imputed motives that were not true or intent that was not present. I went to the closet in my bedroom. I do not know why but for some reason it felt like a safe space to me. Maybe everything would settle down or at least the immediacy would be tempered.
Read More innocence, security, guilt, refugeThe towers we are most familiar with are office buildings that soar much higher than any biblical writer could have imagined – and are not, as we have seen to our sorrow, strongholds of safety.
But dotted here and there along the St. Lawrence River and the eastern seaboard of Canada and the United States are a handful of squat, round military towers made of stone.
Read More security, money, safetyA friend was telling me recently about the new security systems on his car. Lane change detecter, detecter to tell him if he is approaching the car in front too quickly, integrated Bluetooth system, and he was telling me that some manufacturers are talking about incorporating a device that will detect if he drops off to sleep. All that to protect us, to ensure our safety, and to keep us in the right lane, at the right speed, and without going to sleep. These technological efforts are completely admirable, and perhaps they help us realize that our spiritual protection is just as important.
Read More protection, security, straying
‘We have nothing to fear but fear itself,’ is how Franklin D. Roosevelt put it when marshaling his nation for the hardships of the Second World War.
Roosevelt understood that the battle is not only out there in the world, but inside, in a deeper place in the individual spirit. If the battle can be won ‘in here,’ it can then be won in the trenches and skies and waters of ‘out there.’
Read More fear, authority, security, confidenceIt isn’t often that I tell myself or others, ‘I am confident that I am walking in the centre of God’s will for my life.’ Usually I am struggling to navigate the dead ends, the crossroads and the painfully long stretches of road with no street markers whatsoever. Most of my prayers could be summarized as, ‘Lord, could you be a little clearer?’
Read More listening, security, guidanceAfter walking us through the deep valley of God’s judgment in the form of the destruction of Jerusalem and the ensuing captivity, in today’s reading, Isaiah returns us to the mountaintop of God’s grace and favour.
The survivors of the LORD’s fiery judgment will experience the fullness of his presence and blessing.
Read More protection, security, shelter, cloudWhat do we value the most? Answers will vary from one person to another, but sometimes our good words do not match our actions. Are we willing to take a possibly uncomfortable test? Let us take a look around our homes. What do we most noticeably spend our money on? It will tell us what we really value. If there are three expensive cars in the garage, that fact communicates.
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With the image of a forest fire, taking on a life of its own, Isaiah zeroed in on the specific behaviour of Israel’s leaders which made God so angry. While he had wanted them to live lives that would reflect his love to his people, they were utterly absorbed with their own comfort and luxury, passing laws to enrich themselves at the expense of the powerless – the poor, widows and fatherless, and oblivious to the disaster which was about to strike.
Read More judgment, security, the underprivileged