Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments were stationed to praise the Lord with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, according to the directions of King David of Israel.”
NL Daily Devotion for Monday, December 18, 2023
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
What a ground-breaking ceremony this must have been! At last, after the destruction of Solomon’s temple, the Israelites were allowed to rebuild this central symbol of their entire identity. I don’t think there is any single building in my country that could equate. The instructions for the building of this holy house were given by God in the laws of Moses in excruciating detail, every iota carrying weight and meaning. When that first shovel went into the ground, the trumpets and cymbals erupted with joyful noise, a proclamation of an identity reclaimed.
I think that every time I wander away from God and find myself trying to run the universe again, it’s a mini-Babylonian exile—a loss of my center, and a risk of losing my identity. Then, when I catch myself and once again let go of control and return to God, I imagine there’s quite a fanfare in God’s heart. And well their should be in mine, as I once again dig deep into who I am and whose I am, and know that I am loved.
What different foundations have I laid in my life over the years? How have they supported me in my journey of faith?
