Editor’s Note: The AMI QT Devotionals from October 18-25 are provided by Kate Moon who serves as a missionary in E. Asia.
Food for Thought for the Weekend
Ezra 10:9-13: 9 “Within the three days, all the men of Judah and Benjamin had gathered in Jerusalem. And on the twentieth day of the ninth month, all the people were sitting in the square before the house of God, greatly distressed by the occasion and because of the rain. 10 Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, ‘You have been unfaithful; you have married foreign women, adding to Israel’s guilt. 11 Now honor the Lord, the God of your ancestors, and do his will. Separate yourselves from the peoples around you and from your foreign wives.’ 12 The whole assembly responded with a loud voice: ‘You are right! We must do as you say. 13 But there are many people here and it is the rainy season . . .’”
In church growing up, I often found it strange when a pastor or the person making the announcements would thank or praise the people for coming out on a Sunday even though it was raining. To me, church was like school or work or even plans to go watch a movie – if it was a pre-planned indoor activity, it would never cross my mind to cancel, just because it was raining. Not being willing to go through rain seemed kind of silly to me. And then I moved to Asia.
Of the many things that clicked for me after moving here, all the things that I’d never quite understood (like why do Asian older people always seem to be so concerned about whether I’ve eaten or not?) but have since moving here, were cultural (“Have you eaten yet?” is a greeting not meant to be taken literally)—and rainy days was one of them. At first, I was surprised by how easily people cancelled plans on a rainy day; now I, too, take it in as a factor for whether or not I want to go out (or still ask someone to come out to meet me) on a given day.
On first reading about how the gathered Israelites were “distressed by the occasion and because of the rain,” as if the two were of equal importance, it seems almost comical. But on further reflection, it is a touching detail that the historian chose to record, an acknowledgment of human frailty and vulnerability to the inclemencies of weather. That the leaders took the people’s emotional state, affected by their physical discomfort and threat of illness, into account is touching as well.
The way the leaders and people interacted showed a healthy mutual respect. The leaders had come up with the “what” they needed to do, the people responded with the “how” with suggestions for adjustments to the original plan—and the leaders listened. The leaders could have taken the people’s suggestions the wrong way, misinterpreting their not wanting to deal with the problem right then and there as their not taking the matter seriously; it is to the leaders’ credit that they were able to see the people’s heart was to do the right thing. A good example to take to heart today.
Prayer
Lord, when interacting with others today, help me to put the person first, trusting their intentions, taking into consideration their concerns. Help me to be loving. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Bible Reading for Today: Zephaniah 1
Broken families are never a good thing. Though the main point of this passage is that the people are turning back to God and wanting to align their lives according to His will, which is laudable, we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that it came at such a cost. We should also understand that God’s law was not to blame for these families having to be torn apart, but it was the people’s sin that led them into unsustainable relationships, ones that they couldn’t take full responsibility for to the end.
I remember the first time someone told me their favorite T.V. show was “Modern Family.” They were describing it to me, and it just sounded so sad that this was what was being promoted as being definitive of what families are today. Then I watched it, and I understood the point the show was trying to make, appreciating its depictions of warm moments between family members. And I found myself trying to minimize what had been disturbing to me at first so that I could just enjoy the show for what it was. At the same time, I also found myself wondering if this was the new standard to which I had to become desensitized in order to enjoy any kind of entertainment these days—and whether this was worth it.
If the church is the Bride of Christ, Sunday worship is the bride’s date time with her bridegroom.
I love how honest Ezra is about his reasons for proclaiming the fast, how human he shows himself to be. Often, when we think about Bible characters declaring faith in God before people who believe in other gods, we think of bold stances taken: Elijah who challenged the prophets of Baal, having full confidence that God would come through; or Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who told King Nebuchadnezzar they believed God could rescue them from the fiery furnace, but even if He didn’t, He would still be God to them.
Recently, in my free time, I’ve been working on putting together a set of MP3s (in the olden days called “making a mix”) to give as a gift to my sisters this Christmas (shhh, it’s a surprise). There were these songs that we used to hear on the radio when we were little – we never fully caught or understood the lyrics; all we knew was that we thought they were hilarious – and we would sing along, dance around, and laugh and laugh: “Fernando” by ABBA (we liked the name), “Abracadabra” by Steve Miller Band (“I wanna reach out and grab ya” was the rhyming line), and “Sandy” from the Grease soundtrack (“Why-ay-ay-ay…”).
Why do we pray for people when they travel? Statistics say that a person is more likely to die in a car accident than in a plane crash; they also say that a majority of car accidents happen closer to home rather than farther away. This seems to suggest that we’re in more danger when living our everyday lives than when we travel; yet still we pray, for our loved ones, for traveling mercies, because traveling is hard.
I love dedications. As a little girl in church, I’d see parents parade their small bundle of joy, covered in white lacey frills, to the front of the sanctuary for pastors and congregation to pray for their newborn baby. I remember buildings being completed and huge celebrations ensuing with church leaders showing off all the new amenities that the generous fundraising campaign made possible (as some of our AMI churches are experiencing right now!). We’d gather together and praise God for the life He created and the house of worship He established.
One of my favorite words in Scripture is that God “is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think according to the power at work within us…” (Ephesians 3:20). After reading the passage above, I’m sure Israel was blown away by God’s provision for them!
“God shapes the world by prayer. The more praying there is in the world the better the world will be, the mightier the forces against evil…” (E.M. Bounds)