I remember the devotion of your youth,
your love as a bride,
how you followed me in the wilderness,
in a land not sown.
Israel was holy to the Lord,
the first fruits of his harvest.
All who ate of it were held guilty;
disaster came upon them,
says the Lord.
Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel. Thus says the Lord:
What wrong did your ancestors find in me
that they went far from me,
and went after worthless things, and became worthless themselves?
They did not say, ‘Where is the Lord
who brought us up from the land of Egypt,
who led us in the wilderness,
in a land of deserts and pits,
in a land of drought and deep darkness,
in a land that no one passes through,
where no one lives?’
I brought you into a plentiful land
to eat its fruits and its good things.
But when you entered you defiled my land,
and made my heritage an abomination.
The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’
Those who handle the law did not know me;
the rulers transgressed against me;
the prophets prophesied by Baal,
and went after things that do not profit.
Therefore once more I accuse you,
says the Lord,
and I accuse your children’s children.
Cross to the coasts of Cyprus and look,
send to Kedar and examine with care;
see if there has ever been such a thing.
Has a nation changed its gods,
even though they are no gods?
But my people have changed their glory
for something that does not profit.
Be appalled, O heavens, at this,
be shocked, be utterly desolate,
says the Lord,
for my people have committed two evils:
they have forsaken me,
the fountain of living water,
and dug out cisterns for themselves,
cracked cisterns
that can hold no water. (Jeremiah 2: 1-13)
Perseverance
is not usually one of our strong suites. We allow youthful enthusiasm to evolve
into mature cynicism. Life beats us down and eventually we abandon our first
love. After beginning well, we gradually we get off track. It is hard to keep
swimming upstream. Stroke by stroke we grow weary of being 'the odd man out'.
Having been worn down, we stop fighting the tug of the current and abandon
ourselves to the flow. Once we stop striving against the draw of secular
thought and begin to immerse ourselves in the tide of acceptable social mores,
we shall stop journeying for the 'other shore'. When we get tired, let us not
take the easy way out, of giving in to the movement of the stream. Rather, let
us hold fast to the anchor of our profession. It is essential that we cling to
Christ Who alone can bring us safely home.
Gospel
hope is our anchor in the storms of this world. It is sure and steadfast, or it
could not keep us so. The free grace of God, the merits and mediation of
Christ, and the powerful influences of his Spirit, are the grounds of this
hope, and so it is a steadfast hope. Christ is the object and ground of the
believer's hope. Let us set our affections on things above, and wait patiently
for his appearance, when we shall certainly appear with him in glory. Those who
love souls must be willing to bear the consequences of their faithfulness. Maintaining
a strong faith in God requires steadfast courage and unwavering hope in the
face of our complex world situation. We have to admit, it was much easier to
believe when we were young. The ‘slings and arrows of outrageous fortune’ have
caused us to doubt God’s love, to question other people’s sincerity and to deny
our personal worth. It seems we have lost the sure and trustworthy anchor of
our souls (Cf. Heb. 6: 19).
Popular
opinion does not change or alter eternal truth. Contrary to our democratic way
of looking at things, God does not need our permission to exist. God does not
depend on our approval ratings to be Master of the Universe. As the Master of
the Universe, He exercises dominion over all that He has created. Because God
is unchanged and unchangeable, He is the ground and foundation that holds us firm in the
face of all life’s challenges. He remains faithful to His Word, even though we
are unfaithful. He always acknowledges the work of His hands. As the Psalmist
wrote: “He made us, we belong to Him” (Ps. 100:3). There is comfort in knowing
that it is He who made us and has a plan for us. This plan cannot be undone by
our unfaithfulness. Unlike secular society, God never tires of forgiving us
when we wander from the fold. In Him we live and move and have our being. In
Him we saved from our sins and recreated in light and grace. Because of the
victory of the Cross, we belong to Him and are not our own. May we make it our
business to give Him glory and praise to the latest day and hour of our lives.
--Fr. Jerome Machar, OSCO
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