August 27, 2008

I. Readings
Psalms 65, 91, 125
Job 6:1, 7:1-21
Acts 10:1-16
John 7:1-13

II. Selections
Psalm 125:2
As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the LORD surrounds his people,
from this time on and forevermore.

Job 7:3-4
" ...so I am allotted months of emptiness,
and nights of misery are apportioned to me.
When I lie down, I say, 'When shall I rise?'
But the night is long,
and I am full of tossing until dawn. ... "
[ Job to God]

Acts 10:2
[ Cornelius] was a devout man who feared God with all his household; he gave alms generously to the people and prayed constantly to God.

John 7:12
And there was considerable complaining about [ Jesus] among the crowds. While some were saying, "He is a good man," others were saying, "No, he is deceiving the crowd."

III. Meditation: As mountains surround Jerusalem

Your compassionate care is not in question, but our response to it is.
As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so you surround your people;
but many in the crowds thought Jesus was too good to be true.

Cornelius was devout-he feared you, gave to the poor, and prayed.
Job fit the same description; yet he was empty, a miserable insomniac.
(In Job's story, even your compassionate care is not evident.)