Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. They laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.”
NL Daily Devotion for Wednesday, April 14, 2021
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
SOCIALISM! IT’S SOCIALISM!!! Sorry. Did I just yell that? Look, I’m not going to get into a political debate here (besides, you can’t have a debate with just one person talking—that’s called a speech.) I will just leave it at this. When the early Christians lived together, they made sure that everyone had what they needed. Maybe instead of holding this up as some kind of pie-in-the-sky ideal (that some scholars question if it ever actually happened this way) we might challenge ourselves to determine how we as modern Christians might go about seeing to the needs of our communities, beginning in our church communities. There are a lot more needs that simply financial, and we can support and love one another in lots of ways. And if we can’t support one another financially in direct ways, how can we support actions that reduce poverty? Or keep medical costs from bankrupting people? Or remove policies that prevent people from supporting themselves? Can we bring before God an offering of ourselves—our time, energy, and resources—to distribute to others as they have need? It doesn’t have to be all or nothing all at once, of course. God will accept an use anything we have to give for the benefit of God’s beloved children.
What can I lay at God’s feet for the well-being of my neighbors?
![1 Kings 17:1-16 [17-24], God’s Care for the Widow](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56b39b61ab48de92d991a40a/bf37035e-33d5-439f-a0d6-a68b02d0f1bc/24-11-03.jpg)
