Psalm 106:43-45 - "Many times he delivered them, but they were rebellious in their purposes and were brought low through their iniquity. Nevertheless, [God] looked upon their distress, when he heard their cry. For their sake he remembered his covenant, and relented according to the abundance of his steadfast love."
Nevertheless!
Though we stumble over ourselves, God loves us. Nevertheless!
As the weather here in Birmingham, Alabama has warmed a little, it actually makes me think of snow and one of our little neighbor girls in her driveway next door during a snow we had a couple years ago.
Ya see, she was helping her daddy move the extremely large snow drifts in front of their garage. I mean, they must've been at least three inches high.
So, she gets out daddy's big ol' garden shovel. And she carefully cuts across the top inch of the snow drift, lifts the shovel, and just as carefully pours the snow on another spot.
On the driveway.
At this rate, she should have all the snow removed at about, uh, let's say, the time it melts.
Sometimes, we children of God do things in a way that, well, let's just say we don't make much progress. Today's Bible verse starts with "Many times he delivered them;" that's because the people kept doing things in a way that, well, let's just say they didn't make much progress. God describes our doings as follows: "they were rebellious in their purposes and were brought low through their iniquity."
But then comes the great encouragement: "Nevertheless!" "Nevertheless, [God] looked upon their distress, when he heard their cry. For their sake he remembered his covenant, and relented according to the abundance of his steadfast love."
Y'all, if you think you get frustrated sometimes with yourself and a lot more with others because things aren't progressing too well, just think how frustrated God is!!!
Nevertheless, God keeps being God, the God who keeps getting it done: meeting us, loving us, skooching us along, moving some snow.
Off the driveway.
Making a way for us to move on.
Praise God!
Pastor Chris
"The gospel is the story of Jesus [what God's only Son has done for us that we can't do for ourselves], spoken as a promise." - Robert Jenson
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