For a strong and positive working relationship between President Obama and Congress
How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!
�Psalm 133:1(NIV)
Holy and awesome God, three in One! I praise and exalt You today for the kindness and love You show to all You have made. Thank You for Your love and compassion, Your mercy and Your sovereign will as you bring it to pass in our world. I thank You that You communicate with us in such a great variety of ways, and You make your will, Your heart and Your desires known, as You see fit.
Today I bring before You President Barack Obama, asking that You guide him with Your wisdom and grace as he continues to work with members of Congress from both parties and both houses. As he considers each opportunity to communicate with members of Congress, let him turn to You and seek Your will, Your words and Your ways, Father. May there be a good and pleasant spirit of unity as these contacts are made and words and thoughts are exchanged. I ask this in Your holy name, amen.
For I have kept the ways of the LORD, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
For all his rules were before me, and his statutes I did not put away from me.
I was blameless before him, and I kept myself from my guilt.
So the LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.
"Whoever, therefore, would desire to persevere in uprightness and integrity of life, let them learn to exercise themselves daily in the study of the word of God; for, whenever a man despises or neglects instruction, he easily falls into carelessness and stupidity, and all fear of God vanishes from his mind."
(Commentary from Heart Aflame: Daily Readings from Calvin on the Psalms)
Hebrews 13:5-9
First of all, I think Mr. Peterson departs from the real meaning of this passage in a couple of places. In verse 5, he begins by translating, "Don't be obsessed with getting more material things." The ESV translates this line, "Keep your life free from love of money." There is a big difference between the two. Folks who suffer from the love of money are not so much into actually spending it. Personally, I'm more into getting more stuff (mostly books, unfortunately). But those who have a love for money are placing their security in finances.
Heh. These people are having a most difficult go of it in these times.
The second place that is significantly different is the last line of verse 9. Peterson translates, "Products named after Christ don't seem to do much for those who buy them."
What??
The ESV says, "not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them."
This is not even close. In fact, I'm not sure where Peterson came up with that at all. I don't disagree with the sentiment, mind you. I'm not one to go running after "products named after Christ." I have long been a critic of what I call "Jesus junk." However, I would implore translators to not try to get little jabs at pop culture in their translations of Scripture. Let's try to be a little more pure, k?
All that being said, I want to look at the passage, now. The writer of Hebrews seems to be making a connection between the love of money and the idea that God would leave or forsake us. In fact, the reason he gives for not have a love of money is that God has said that he will never leave or forsake us.
I think it all comes down to, who are you trusting? Jesus talked about this when he said, "You can't serve God and mammon" (often translated "money"). And it's true. Either we trust God or we trust something else. I'm guessing that the number of people trusting money is dropping rapidly right now. But God has given us a promise. The Hebrews writer even quotes from Psalm 118:6. "What can man do to me?" That's a great question. What can man do to me? Man can take my stuff away from me. So what? It's just stuff. Man could possibly take my physical life, but what would that accomplish? It would send me home! Right?
Grace and peace, friends.