Category: Morning Musings

Morning Musing: Amos 9:14-15

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“I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel. They will rebuild and occupy ruined cities, plant vineyards and drink their wine, make gardens and eat their produce. I will plant them on their land, and they will never again be uprooted from the land I have given them. The Lord your God has spoken.”‬‬ (CSB – Read the chapter)

If you’ve been reading along with me for very long, you know that I’m a big nerd. This is actually a bit of a culture-wide trend. As millions of comic nerds have grown up big studios have started making movies out of their favorite stories. Marvel Studios have done this better than anyone else in my humble opinion. One of the things they’ve done that have kept audiences returning from one film to the next is that they’ve mastered the post-credit scene (scenes actually). As each movie ends, there’s a little hint that the story isn’t over. God’s story works the same way.

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Morning Musing: Amos 9:2-3

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“If they dig down to Sheol, from there my hand will take them; if they climb up to heaven, from there I will bring them down. If they hide on the top of Carmel, from there I will track them down and seize them; if they conceal themselves from my sight on the sea floor, from there I will command the sea serpent to bite them.”‬‬ (CSB – Read the chapter)

Have you ever tried to get along with someone who was set in his ways? In those types of situations, as long as you are willing to do things their way, you’re not going to have any problems with them. If, on the other hand, you try to introduce some variety to their routine…well…you’re probably asking for trouble. Just for fun don’t ask my wife and kids if I’m right about that. As someone who might be able to speak to this with…firsthand knowledge…I prefer to think of being set in ones ways as having a consistent character just like God does. Yeah, that’s it. I’ll go with that. And the thing about dealing with someone who has a consistent character is that it’s great if you operate consistently with it. If you don’t…things can get a bit messier.

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Morning Musing: Amos 5:14

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“Pursue good and not evil so that you may live, and the Lord, the God of Armies, will be with you as you have claimed.”‬‬ (CSB – Read the chapter)

One of my favorite things to do growing up was read the newspaper comics. The top of my list were always Calvin and Hobbes and The Far Side. I even purchased the complete boxed set of each of them when they became available. Once they retired, though, I had to move on to others. On my second tier, Non Sequitur was always one of my favorites. Let me explain what this has to do with what Amos is saying here.

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Morning Musing: Amos 5:10-12

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“They hate the one who convicts the guilty at the city gate, and they despise the one who speaks with integrity. Therefore, because you trample on the poor and exact a grain tax from him, you will never live in the houses of cut stone you have built; you will never drink the wine from the lush vineyards you have planted. For I know your crimes are many and your sins innumerable. They oppress the righteous, take a bribe, and deprive the poor of justice at the city gates.”
— ‭‭Amos‬ ‭5:10-12‬‬ (CSB – Read the chapter)

What is it that gets you the most worked up? What is it that when you see it happen, you get all fired up and take a while to calm down? What makes you angry? Whatever this thing is, it’s a clue to what’s most important to you. Now, if this thing is something pretty trivial, it may be an indicator that you’ve got some priorities in need of straightening out. Knowing what is most important to you matters, though, because it allows you to set some direction for your life. What we get in these three verses from Amos is a picture of one of the things that is most important to God.

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Morning Musing: Amos 5:4-5

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“For the Lord says to the house of Israel: Seek me and live! Do not seek Bethel or go to Gilgal or journey to Beer-sheba, for Gilgal will certainly go into exile, and Bethel will come to nothing.”‬‬ (CSB – Read the chapter)

Have you ever been really angry with someone you loved deeply? Maybe that’s something you’ve experienced recently. I have three elementary-age boys. Sometimes it feels like that’s an almost daily exercise in our house. But when love is the foundation of a relationship, a little anger—or even a lot of anger—poses no existential threat to it. In fact, even when the anger and frustration are at their peak point, there is a gnawing desire to move past the anger and restore the joy of the relationship. In His own amazing love for us, God feels the same way.

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