Bulls, Baal and the Children of God

Moses ascended Mt. Sinai where God gave him the ten commandments, but while he was gone, derision grew in the camps of the children of Israel, so they collected all the gold from everyone and fashioned themselves a golden bull calf.

Without the presence of Moses, the children of Israel quickly forgot about God and returned to the worship of Baal.  Baal, or "Lord", whose symbol was that of a bull, and the Israelites had become very familiar with the worship of it as a deity. Baal represented prosperity, therefore the calf was made of gold.

After receiving the law, Moses descended from the mountain and his anger was aroused.  In Exodus 32:19, it is recorded that "When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned, and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain."

Some see that there is a template set by God where the United States is like that of ancient Israel.  The United States has deep roots in the God of the Bible and in its infancy, George Washington, after being sworn in as the first president, effectively said that if America ever turned away from God and His eternal laws, its blessings would be removed.

In the late 20th century, we began to see the laws of God being systematically removed.  No longer were the Ten Commandment allowed on government property, and slowly became less important in our private lives and business.  The very mention of it or Jesus Christ brings hatred, anger, and vitriol, stirring up those who think that we ourselves are the creators and not the creation.

After the stock market crash of 1987, an Italian sculptor, Arturo Modica illegally placed a 7,100 pound symbol of prosperity and financial optimism, the charging bull, outside the New York Stock Exchange which was removed to a small park on Bowling Green later that day.

Today, Charging Bull figurines are seen on the desks or walls of virtually every financial office in the United States.  Our financial system now is worshiping Baal and awaits another Moses to descend to New York and the financial district to smash our ten commandments or the constitution.  

It will not be pretty.  Who or what will be the instrument of our destruction?

Job, God and me

For the past few years, I have awakened and spoke with God virtually every day, just a brief, "Mornin', Lord. Thanks for seeing me through the night."  I am not sure if it can be called praying, worshiping, or praising but either way the communication is there.  No, He's not spoken to me in a thunderous voice and there have been no flashes of lightening but just the same, sometimes I feel as if He is everywhere in the room.

My next step is brewing up a cup of coffee, sitting in my chair and spending a few minutes reading in His word and contemplating what I've just read.

Sounds pretty holy, doesn't it?  Well, if that's what I wanted, then that's my reward. That would be fine as long as the winds and turbulence of the world isn't distracting me.  Will my little daily devotions walk me through the gauntlet of challenges ahead?

I recall the story of Job.  God said there was none like him but Satan argued that it Job's faith and love for Him was because he'd been blessed with wealth, family and friends and that if those things were gone,  Job wouldn't be so lovey-dovey with the Lord then.  What would happen if all those things were suddenly removed?

The challenge was on so the Lord gave Satan permission to afflict Job with all sorts of problems but under the condition that he could not take his life.  As the story heats up, messengers come with the news that a great storm came, blew down the dwelling with all his children in it and no one survived.  Also, there as a fireball that came down and consumed all his livestock and all was gone.  Job, ripped his garments, pile ashes on his head and cried out, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return there; the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord."

It's one thing to lose possessions.  You can deal with that by adjusting yourself to a new normal but when he became afflicted with sores on his body, things now had gone from economics to a very personal physical way.  His own wife just even said to him, "Job, just curse God and die!", yet he did not sin against God.  Now, the last of his family had now turned on him.  What about his friends?

Along came three of his friends and a younger guy who sat with him a while.  Each of them reviled him and strongly hinted that he was not the man of God he pretended to be. Job refuted each of them, sending them into a tizzy,  and still proclaimed the holiness and his everlasting faith him Him.  Job still had not sinned.

Eventually, God restored Job's wealth and family and Job lived a ripe old age.

In a way, if we isolate ourselves from the world, perhaps we can wrap up in a spiritual cocoon and ignore those things of the world and be oblivious to it all, but that's not how most of us are built.  We have to continually deal with both physical happenings as well as emotional challenges such the afflictions of those near to us as well as our own.  How then do we continually overcome and still hold fast to Him who made us?

There are some things to avoid in wrapping ourselves in that spiritual cocoon. Both in Christianity and religions of the world, some would cloister themselves as monks high on a mountain or lock themselves in a man-made retreat of brick and mortar devoting themselves to becoming deeper with God.  But, that's not how He created us.  He designed us to procreate, to live and to worship with one another and to enjoy the life he gave us.  Sure, He called special people out to be His voice on earth for the purpose of vocalizing his will but they too, ate, drank and breathed the air which he created for us.

I've had a few trials but none like that of Job.  Right now, there is a calmness to my sea of life but storms will come and I pray that my faith will not sink in the high waves.   He put me here for a purpose as he did for all.  Our job is to walk in his ways, love one another, forgive one another, and have compassion.  Compassion on those near and dear to you, compassion on the stranger, and yes, compassion on those who seemingly despise you.

All these things I can do while enjoying that second cup of coffee, watching my children and grandchildren accomplish things with the talents he gave them, while knowing that it was God, who gave us all these things.

lying on the rear window back ledge

Lying there against the rear window on the back ledge of the car, objects moved from large to small to infinity and were constantly replenished as breeze whipped around from the downed windows while the car sped along at 60 mph. To an eight-year-old kid back in the 50s, it was almost a universally accepted thing to do. It was not illegal, and it was done often. Of course there were no seat belts or any constraints and a padded dash was sometimes added as a safety measure for the ones in the front seats.

The diminishing signs, poles and trees was like watching creation in reverse, I could not see what was coming from the front and every few seconds, something new would become the past then be replaced by future past objects. Having ultimate trust in my Dad to take care of what was coming up on the road, I never had a worry for what was out front. The occasional bump in the road or the tight curve did not unnerve me, and all I had to do was enjoy the ride. Whoa!...there goes a cow on the side of the road!

Sometimes I let the events of my life load up on me, and now I try to see the future, only to realize my hindsight is much better than my foresight and that only God knows the future and not me.

Recently, my wife and I were handling an intense life event and I spent a lot of time mapping out in my mind how things should or would play out. As was pointed out, I was often in a twitch when it looked like things were not becoming a reality in the fashion I had envisioned. I began to understand my limitations, so with my wife's advice, I began to talk with God (at length) and confess that I had no power and that He was the one driving the process and I should be that eight-year-old kid again and place that ultimate trust in God to map, guide and walk me through the process.

Wanting to display strength, leadership and confidence, we often hide our fears and dwell on worst case scenarios. I should have been taking Psalm 56:3-4 to heart. "When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me?"

Psalm 37:5 tells us, "Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act." I've seen that work recently and if only I could put myself in that position for the rest of my life, and be totally dependent on God to handle the bumps, drive me around the curves and steer me around the random heifer on the side of the road. He also says in Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."

That's where I want to be, for it is written (Mark 11:24), "Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."

My job is to learn to trust in Him. He already knows His job.