Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Asa did what was good and right in the sight of the Lord his God. He took away the foreign altars and the high places, broke down the pillars, hewed down the sacred poles, and commanded Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and to keep the law and the commandment. He also removed from all the cities of Judah the high places and the incense altars. And the kingdom had rest under him.”
NL Daily Devotion for Thursday, September 7, 2023
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Everyone experiences strife. Inevitably, we come into conflict with those around us, whether for good and just reasons or for minor, self-serving ones. The Kingdom of Israel was in almost constant strife—kings chasing after the gods of neighboring kingdoms, forgetting about God, engaging in warfare. Kings and Chronicles are basically a long list of all the ways Israel’s and Judah’s kings screwed up again and again, punctuated with the occasional king like Asa, who “did what was good and right in the sight of the Lord his God.”
What was “good and right” was removing the sources of conflict and returning to a state of surrender to God. This is our call, as well. We can go a long way toward lessening the strife in our lives by letting go of our need to be right; to control people, places, and situations. Our attempts to take control are the same as having idols—the pillars and sacred poles and incense altars. These need to be broken and hewed down and removed in order for us to be open to accept the freedom from strife God wills for us. It takes work, of course. But the results are worth it.
What idols do I need to remove from my life in order to be free from strife?
