Thought for Today

Deuteronomy 33:29  Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord, the shield of your help, and the sword of your triumph!  

Psalm 98:4  Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises.  

Luke 2:10  But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for see-- I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people:  

Luke 19:5  When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today." 6  So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him.

fun - Fun is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as "light-hearted pleasure, enjoyment, or amusement; boisterous joviality or merrymaking; entertainment". (en.wikipedia.org)

Interestingly, the word ‘fun’ is not found in most translations of the Bible! Religion has historically had a troubled relationship with that word and with the whole idea of fun. Why is it that some of us, Christians, feel guilty at times for having fun?

I did not hear the whole segment, but, on the television show Today this morning there was a report about children and social media. Toward the end of the segment, the group was talking about the need children and youths have for making time in their lives for fun. In truth, all of us need to make time in our lives for fun, for play, for relishing the joy of just being alive. We all need time to laugh, to be joyous, to enjoy the wonderful gift our God has given us in life itself.

Yesterday, I read and heard about a lawsuit filed against social media providers by several states. The allegation is that the social media platforms have been deliberately designed to be addictive. Addiction is a very serious issue, not to ever be taken lightly. The idea that social media can be truly addictive in the same sense that drugs or other substances we ingest are addictive is surprising to me. Having once been a smoker, I am keenly aware of addiction and the difficulty of overcoming addiction. I was lucky. I had great motivation, we wanted to start a family and putting my life at risk was unconscionable. I had help. Greta helped me through the struggle of breaking that addiction. Evidently, social media can (allegedly) be equally addictive and can so dominate lives that no room is left for fun, for play, for the simple joy of being alive.

For most of my life, I have been a Presbyterian. I was ordained by the Presbytery of Boston. Sadly, Presbyterians are often referred to as “God’s frozen chosen.” It is true that predestination and election are import elements of our theology. It is equally true that we far too often forget to smile and be joyous about our theology.

I love the hymn I Come with Joy, especially the first verse, “I come with joy, a child of God, forgiven, loved, and free, The life of Jesus to recall, in love laid down for me, in love laid down for me.” That hymn is often sung in association with communion. That hymn captures in song a great truth of our faith. It was not an accidental choice of words when that angel said, "Do not be afraid; for see-- I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people.”

Children, young adults, people of all ages should joyously sing songs of praise to the God who so loved us that God sent God’s Son among us to ensure our salvation. The birth of that Son was and still is a time for excitement and joy. Every time Christians meet together in fellowship or worship should equally be times for excitement and joy.

Certainly, worship is a time for serious consideration of what we are about. It is a time of thanksgiving to our Creator God for Creation itself. It is a time of adoration and praise for God, for the omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent Creator of all Creation. It is a time to acknowledge the words of the psalmist, “8:3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; 4 what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? 5 Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor.”

If that is not something about which we should be joyful, if that is not a joy we should relish with "light-hearted pleasure, enjoyment, or amusement; boisterous joviality or merrymaking; entertainment" I don’t know what is. Our faith is far too serious to be taken lightly or with excessive solemnity. Worship should be joy-filled.

Stay safe, do not let your worship be ‘frozen’, trust God,

Pastor Ray