Question. “Do you care about what God cares about?”
In the Noah Saga, God declares a covenant, not only with Noah & all human beings, but every living creature! If God’s concern is every living creature, it must be our concern.
What do you care about? In Lent we are use to “Giving up” what we care about. Perhaps this will help ….
GIVE UP grumbling! Instead, "In everything give thanks." Constructive criticism is OK, but "moaning, groaning, & complaining" are not Christian. GIVE UP 10 to 15 minutes in bed! Instead, use that time in prayer, Bible study & personal devotion. A few minutes in prayer WILL keep you focused.
GIVE UP looking at other people's worst attributes. Instead concentrate on their best points. We all have faults. It’s a lot easier to have people overlook our shortcomings when we overlook theirs first. GIVE UP speaking unkindly. Instead, let your speech be generous & understanding. It costs so little to say something kind & uplifting or to offer a smile. Why not check that sharp tongue at the door? GIVE UP your hatred of anyone or anything! Instead, learn the discipline of love. "Love covers a multitude of sins." GIVE UP your worries & anxieties! They're too heavy for you to carry anyway. Instead, trust God with them. Anxiety is spending emotional energy on something we can do nothing about: like tomorrow! Live today & let God's grace be sufficient. GIVE UP TV one evening a week! Instead, visit someone who's lonely or sick. There are those who are isolated by illness or age. Why isolate yourself in front of the "tube?" Give someone a precious gift: your time! GIVE UP buying anything but essentials for yourself! Instead, give the money to God. The money you would spend on the luxuries could help someone meet basic needs. We're called to be stewards of God's riches, not consumers. GIVE UP judging others by appearances & by the standard of the world! Instead, learn to give up yourself to God. There is only one who has the right to judge, Jesus Christ. (Source: eSermons.com/Strayhorn, Cross Eyed: Focus)
How are your choices coming along ….
Recently I was looking at some of my many files under my "quotes" folder. One such quote is called, "The Road to Holiness." A seeker after truth came to a saint for guidance."Tell me, wise one, how did you become holy?"
"Two words." … "And what are they, please?""Right choices."
2 The seeker was fascinated. "How does one learn to choose rightly?"
"One word." … "One word! … May I have it, please?" the seeker asked.
"Growth." … The seeker was thrilled. … "How does one grow?"
"Two words." …"What are they, pray tell?"
"Wrong choices!" …. Perhaps God's purpose when we are making choices, is to help us grow & to show us that we have the faith & the ability to stand up to the testing so that we will trust God in difficult times, to strengthen our faith & character.
(Source: The Road to Holiness/Stoffregen, Exegetical Notes)
But let me point out something we almost always fail to notice. We sin only because we think it will make us happy! Temptations are always about “good” things, or we could not be tempted: in the gospel they are about “bread,” “Scripture,” & “kingdoms in their magnificence.” Most of our daily ethical choices are not between total good & totals evil, but between various shades of good.
These are what get us into trouble.
The Spirit drives, not invites, Jesus into the desert. The desert, a place to face not only physical survival, but a place to discover the character of your soul. What were the temptations? .… selfishness, materialism (bread alone), ordinariness vs. wanting to be extraordinary/a celebrity (jumping off a roof); the desire to dominate & control vs. trusting in God’s control (all the kingdoms of the world)….Are these yours too?
In the End, Jesus showed that one human being could live an ordinary life divinely. Jesus turned to God’s sense of value, to care for nature & humanity. So, Jesus turned from the desert & began his ordinary, humble, everyday life of simply doing his Father’s will.
Jesus is the master of spiritual discernment here, which is always much more subtle & particular than mere obedience to external laws. In other gospels Jesus responds to the temptations not by quoting moral commandments, but the wisdom texts from Deuteronomy. Likewise, we need to approach all situations as Jesus did: with patience, forgiveness, empathy, & the kind of service that genuinely cares for the individual. Scripture is not a “rule book” but a “recipe book” … providing us with the ingredient of discernment/the themes of life … that remain relevant in every age/culture as we evolve.
God’s Love for Creation is the underlying theme & motivation of Jesus.
At this Lenten Liturgy of Renewal, we must ask ourselves a question that Jesus asked himself in the desert,
… “Do I care about what God cares about?”