Intro:As you take some time off of work, it is a good time to reflect and be thankful that you have work. It is also a good time to reflect on those that have lost work.
We are in unusual times where what was certain is now in question. Many have lost their retirement. Some have lost their jobs and are wondering where they are going to get enough money to meet their obligations. Some have lost their homes.
Might this be a good time to question our cultural gods? Might this be a time to see if money is not really what America worships? I do not want to be insensitive on this point but it does strike me that we lean heavily on our own ability to bring in money on a regular basis and when this is challenged we show what we are trusting in.
I cannot shake the image of the CFO from Fannie Mae. Here is this super successful guy that commits suicide due to financial pressure. I think he was between 37-40 years old with a young family and a home most of us would die to own. Yet when he chips are down he takes the chicken road out. What's that about?
My dad used to quote a poem to us kids about this. Learn from the life of Richard Cory!
WHENEVER Richard Cory went down town,
We people on the pavement looked at him:
He was a gentleman from sole to crown,
Clean favored, and imperially slim.
And he was always quietly arrayed,
And he was always human when he talked;
But still he fluttered pulses when he said,
"Good-morning," and he glittered when he walked.
And he was rich—yes, richer than a king,
And admirably schooled in every grace:
In fine, we thought that he was everything
To make us wish that we were in his place.
So on we worked, and waited for the light,
And went without the meat, and cursed the bread;
And Richard Cory, one calm summer night,
Went home and put a bullet through his head.
Edwin Arlington Robinson, 1897
Read:Psalm 90
1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place
throughout all generations.
2 Before the mountains were born
or you brought forth the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3 You turn men back to dust,
saying, "Return to dust, O sons of men."
4 For a thousand years in your sight
are like a day that has just gone by,
or like a watch in the night.
5 You sweep men away in the sleep of death;
they are like the new grass of the morning-
6 though in the morning it springs up new,
by evening it is dry and withered.
7 We are consumed by your anger
and terrified by your indignation.
8 You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.
9 All our days pass away under your wrath;
we finish our years with a moan.
10 The length of our days is seventy years—
or eighty, if we have the strength;
yet their span is but trouble and sorrow,
for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
11 Who knows the power of your anger?
For your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.
12 Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
13 Relent, O LORD! How long will it be?
Have compassion on your servants.
14 Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
for as many years as we have seen trouble.
16 May your deeds be shown to your servants,
your splendor to their children.
17 May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us;
establish the work of our hands for us—
yes, establish the work of our hands.
Think:
1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place
throughout all generations.
2 Before the mountains were born
or you brought forth the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3 You turn men back to dust,
saying, "Return to dust, O sons of men."
4 For a thousand years in your sight
are like a day that has just gone by,
or like a watch in the night.
5 You sweep men away in the sleep of death;
they are like the new grass of the morning-
6 though in the morning it springs up new,
by evening it is dry and withered.
7 We are consumed by your anger
and terrified by your indignation.
8 You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.
9 All our days pass away under your wrath;
we finish our years with a moan.
10 The length of our days is seventy years—
or eighty, if we have the strength;
yet their span is but trouble and sorrow,
for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
11 Who knows the power of your anger?
For your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.
12 Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
13 Relent, O LORD! How long will it be?
Have compassion on your servants.
14 Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
for as many years as we have seen trouble.
16 May your deeds be shown to your servants,
your splendor to their children.
17 May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us;
establish the work of our hands for us—
yes, establish the work of our hands.
Think:
We are going to think on this through the weekend. We will do a series on dying to live next week.
This is the only recorded psalm of Moses. Meditate on portions of it this weekend and Monday. I have highlighted things for you to meditate on.
For our theme today, pay attention to the last verse. As Moses reflected on the work that was required to develop a nation he asks for 2 things: favor & foundation. We need the same things. We need God's favor in our work. We also need him to build a foundation that will outlast the external conditions.
Do:
Pray this prayer for yourself. Ask the Lord to give you favor and foundation in your work efforts.
Reflect on your work. Are you thankful that you have work? Would you be thankful if you lost your job? Where is your trust center?
In the DevoLink Worship Center is an old Simon and Garfunkel song, Richard Cory. It might be worth listening to. Not a worship song but thoughtful nonetheless.
DevoLink: Devotions to help you Link with God.
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