Psalm 23
How is this year going for you?
We are already near the end of February and into Lent, with Easter just around the corner.
Because of two catastrophic events, namely the end of the pandemic and the terrible war in the Ukraine, we are now having to deal with another crisis - the dramatic rise in the cost of living. It was announced last week that inflation is 10.1% and the average shopping bill has gone up more than £650 a year.
We have had freezing temperatures this winter and many people all over the country are facing the unpleasant choice between eating a decent meal or staying warm in their homes.
These significant price rises have turned basic everyday items - food, light and heat - into luxuries we must choose between. This cost of living crisis is causing us to re-consider our values in a way we never have before, we’re being forced to make sacrifices and consider what’s really worth the cost and what we can do without.
The fact is everything in life costs something. If we want to be fit and healthy, we must pay for it by exercising and eating well. If we want to excel in our careers, we have to work hard. If we want to teach our children well, we have to give up our free time. Whatever we choose to do will cause us to sacrifice in one way or another, and our sacrifices reveal our values.
This made me wonder about God. What does he value?
Did it cost God anything to create the Universe or weave a moral conscience into our human hearts? No. There is only one thing he sacrificed for: Us.
God sent his one and only Son, Jesus, from Heavens glory to suffer the agonies, the guilt and shame, of a torturous death because He wanted to bring us to Himself. Yes, God wants us.
I have no idea why Gods loves such a fallen rebellious people, but he does, more than we could ever imagine.
In the Old Testament, David went through his own seasons of loss, heartache, and tough choices. David proclaimed “The Lord is my Shepherd I lack nothing.” David didn’t write this because of what God could do for him, but simply because being with God was enough. David understood that the most valuable thing he had was his Lord.
This can be the same for us today, simply knowing we are in the presence of the one who sacrificed His only Son for us can transform our darkest seasons. We can live in hope, like David, who went on to say, “even though I walk through the darkest valleys I will fear no evil for you are with me.”
Living wholeheartedly for God does not come cheaply, there will be sacrifices, we may lose our leisure time, our earthly treasures or reputation, but we are the richest people on earth if we can say, like David, the Lord is my Shepherd.
It’s true we may still miss a meal or shiver our way through winter, and face the same tragedies as anyone else, but hope is found in the shepherd who walks along side us. He will not abandon or forsake us.
We may have to sacrifice many things during the coming months, but let our closeness with God not be one of them. Our season of darkness can become a season of hope, when we affirm, “You are with me.”
Julie Burnett
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