Rend the Heavens

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Sometimes, people are not grateful when you do something nice for them. Of course, there are the tongue-in-cheek anecdotes about the New York City greeting being an expletive. But sometimes it is more clear even than that.

Have you ever changed a baby's poopy diaper? You walk into the nursery to find a child screaming for attention, and you pick him up, and the odor coming from his backside is unmistakeable. So you set him down on the changing table, undo his clothes, and he starts squirming. You undo his diaper and he starts crying. You start wiping away the muck, and he tries to crawl away, jump off the table, or anything other than lie there and let you clean his bottom. Then, when you have him cleaned up, re-diapered, and re-dressed, he screams because you changed him instead of feeding him.

"Blessed Is He"

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“Oh, that You would rend the heavens and come down... that the nations might tremble at Your presence!” (Isaiah 64:1, 2). Oh, that the Lord would indeed come! The whole earth groans in travail as it awaits the coming of the Lord of Hosts. Would that He come quickly, come now, and come to us! O Lord, we need you now more than ever!

Sometimes it seems like this is the extent of the world's prayers to whatever god might hear. When things are off track, when people are depressed, when money is short, there is a god for that. Everyone wants a savior, whether you want to put it that way or not. Just look around you today.

For the lack of, or suppression of, talk about God and religion in American politics and culture, there sure is a great deal of desire and talk about the need for a savior. But from what do you want to be saved? College students and recent graduates want to be saved from their student debt. Those in troubled marriages want to be saved either from divorce or from the stupid choices they made. The poor want to be saved from homelessness and starvation. The sick want to be saved from sickness and death. The rich want to be saved from taxes. Christians want to be saved from Islam. Muslims want to be saved from Christianity.

Savior of the Nations, Come!

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“Be not so terribly angry, O Lord, and remember not iniquity forever. Behold, please look, we are all your people.” O God, do not be angry with us because of our sins! If You kept a record of wrongs, O Lord, who could stand? Remember not our iniquity forever! On account of our sins, we rightly deserve only Your righteous condemnation and all-consuming wrath. Because You are the God of all the living, do not look upon us in judgment!