Daily Office Readings for Thursday of the 4th Week of Easter: Year 1
Morning, Psalm 50; Evening, Psalm [59 and 60] or 114 and 115:
Wisdom 5:9 to 23; Colossians 2:8 to 23; Luke 6:39 to 49:
“But the righteous live forever, and their reward is with the Lord; the Most High takes care of them.” (Wisdom 5: 15)
In the writings of Wisdom, the writer has shown how the unrighteous are so temporary. They vanish and are remembered no more. The writer uses a ship through water and an arrow through the air as metaphor for how the unrighteous have their time but are soon forgotten as they leave no lasting goodness behind them.
I can remember times while serving in the Marines our aircraft squadron would visit various air bases of other services. Often we would be put up in old, and seldom used barracks. Without fail, our Sergeant Major would have us clean and restore the facility in addition to flying the missions we were there for. He said that we would leave this barracks in better condition than we found it. I am surprised that this word didn’t get out to the whole country and we were “invited” to visit even more bases as a way to renovate old buildings; (just kidding).
The point could be made that if we create and maintain goodness we could be allowed to dwell in that goodness for all eternity. Such goodness applies to human relationships as well as the care of the earth. “But the righteous live forever!” God is righteousness. And God is eternal. To be righteous then, is to be godly, as best we can. We are visitors here on this earth our fragile and temporary home. And we should strive to leave it better than we found it. In this way we are “invited” into a permanent home, not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. Our reward is with the Lord who will take care of us for all eternity.
As we listen to what the Spirit of God is saying to us, let us live to love and to serve, and to teach others to love and to serve, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John
Let us pray:
O Most Holy Spirit of the living God, as you make all things and provide for the same, help us, created in Your Image, to also assist You in caring for one another and all creation. Help us to be a righteous people in Your sight in order that we may dwell with You in Your heavenly abode for ever and forever; Amen.
onewhoponders 