For Reading and Meditation:
Jeremiah 9:17-24
A minister speaking at a recent conference of a well-known denomination said: "The reason why there is so much depletion of spiritual energy in people nowadays is due to the rush of modern-day life." But is this really true? If it is then it puts the blame for our condition outside of us rather than inside us - the place (in my opinion) where the fault really lies. No, the real reason for the spiritual dullness in so many lives is that we have lost our sense of priority. One of my favorite poets is Wordsworth, and I simply love the lines that go thus: The world is too much with us; late and soon Getting and spending we lay waste our powers; Little we see in Nature that is ours; We have given our hearts away – The world is too much with us! Therein lies our problem. Other things, other issues, other problems, other priorities have been allowed to press in upon us, and the consequence of all this is that God has become marginalized. If we were to pay as much attention to the things that pertain to God as we do to the things that pertain to the world then the spiritual health of the Church (generally speaking) would not be such a cause for concern. Through the prophet Jeremiah God speaks to us and shows us that His greatest desire is that we should come to know Him. When we lose God we lose touch with reality, for reality, as one great Christian put it, is Jesus' other Name.
O God, forgive me that so often my desires are at cross-purposes with Your desires. My desire is to know more about me; Your desire is for me to know more about You. Help me bring my desires in line with Your desires. In Jesus' Name. Amen.