Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“He took the gold from them, formed it in a mold, and cast an image of a calf; and they said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!’”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, October 6, 2024
by Pr. Sara Gorman, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: Sometimes even God needs to be reminded how important second chances are.
When someone hurts me in a way that is deeply personal or in a way that hits close to home, it is very hard for me to put that behind me and move on. I think that’s part of what being human is like. We can’t always let go, even though we know it’s for the best or what we should do. In every future interaction with that same person, my mind flashes back to those moments of hurt, of frustration, of betrayal, and that is the lens through which I view the relationship.
God had a relationship with Aaron and the Israelites. After all, God had led them to the promised land and cared for them deeply. But then Aaron and the Israelites did something that was kind of dumb. They took matters into their own hands because God was taking too long.
It is understandable for God to be jealous and angry at Aaron and the Israelites. After all, they created their own God and started sacrificing to it. And God is ready to snap, likely how we feel in these situations too. But, before that can happen Moses reminds God of the positives, of the good things that are these people. Of the people God created. And that lens is quickly changed.
Just like those of us today struggle with second chances, here we see God did too. But, it’s in the second chances that a new relationship can be formed. That new groundwork can be laid. And that second chances can lead to good things.
Their descendants were made as numerous as the stars. What could happen when we give someone a second chance, even when we really don’t want to? Could we learn and grow in the process? Could not only a relationship be restored, but end up being something we cherish? We won’t know if we don’t try.
