Our reservations are the damnations of our consecrations.
~ William Booth (1829-1912)
You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give yourself that you truly give.
~ Kahlil Gibran (1883-1931)
The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes ‘Awww!’
~Narrator, Jack Kerouac’s On the Road
For from the rising of the sun to its setting
My name will be great among the nations,
and in every place incense will be offered to My name,
and a pure offering.
For My name will be great among the nations,
says the LORD of hosts.
But you profane it
when you say that the Lord’s table is polluted,
and its fruit, that is, its food may be despised.
But you say, ‘What a weariness this is,’
and you snort at it, says the LORD of hosts.
You bring what has been taken by violence
or is lame or sick, and this you bring as your offering!
Shall I accept that from your hand? says the LORD.
Cursed be the cheat who has a male in his flock,
and vows it,
and yet sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished.
For I am a great King, says the LORD of hosts,
and my name will be feared among the nations.
~ Malachi 1:11-14
Beloved, let’s be clear about something… The G_d we serve is The LORD of hosts. He is The Captain of our faith. We are talking about not just The King of the universe… He, rather, is Power Itself. Existence and authority flows from the substance of this One who was, is, and is to come. All glory, honor, and power to Him, amen.
This One knows us intimately, though, and in His mercy, He pities us. He knows that we are dust. He knows that any of our sincerest efforts will be but clumsy, childlike approximations of service to Him. This truth is eminently comforting though. When we grasp it, we realize that there is really nothing we can do for G_d that is of any worth. We come to see that we have no righteousness of our own.
In all this, we are simply to present all of the hot, juicy mess that we are to Him – for His purpose and glory. It is the only reasonable response in our relationship with Him.
But make no mistake friends, G_d will not accept a half-hearted, double-minded, mail-it-in attitude in our approach to Him. We may be nothing but dust. But He wants all of the dry, dusty pile that we are. He does not want only that which we consider “disposable.” He wants every particle.
Yet, still, some us think we can bring some weak, pitiful portion of that which is already weak and pitiful – yet still make Him happy with our ‘sacrifice’ to Him. Could we, perhaps for one moment, have some clarity?
Yet, still, some us think we can bring some weak, pitiful portion of that which is already weak and pitiful – yet still make Him happy with our ‘sacrifice’ to Him. Could we, perhaps for one moment, have some clarity?
And now, O priests, this command is for you.
If you will not listen,
if you will not take it to heart
to give honor to My name,
says the LORD of hosts,
then I will send the curse upon you
and I will curse your blessings.
Indeed, I have already cursed them,
because you do not lay it to heart.
Behold, I will rebuke your offspring,
and spread dung on your faces,
the dung of your offerings,
and you shall be taken away with it.
~ Malachi 2:1-3
~ Malachi 2:1-3
The G_d we serve is this: He is G_d. He is high and lifted up. He is worthy of all praise. He is glorious. He is to be feared. He is to be honored.
So, the next time we fall short in our efforts to serve Him properly. Don’t sweat it one drop. This L_RD of hosts is well-aware of our shortcomings!
But – using a little sports-lingo – the next time we think we can bring Him just some weak move “into the paint,” be prepared to have that move fully rejected, and stuffed back in our face, with Authority.
Do not be deceived.
