The choice is always ours to make. Our heart determines which choice we pick. The humble heart listens to God and makes course corrections along the way. The proud heart stands firm, refusing to change. Amaziah, a priest of Bethel, sends word to the king about Amos. He accuses Amos
God’s perspective is always true. As the visions from the prior verses indicate, He invites conversation about it. God is willing to relent or postpone or even forgive. Even so, He is always right. God comes before Amos in another vision. Amos sees a wall and some means of
In our prayers, God knows our heart. This can be true in collective prayer, but it is especially true in our individual prayer. When we lift our eyes to heaven and bear our soul to Him, our heart is on display. In those moments, not only does God know our
Nothing can break our relationship with God. He might get frustrated at our choices and be angry when we sin, but He promises to forgive. He might shake his head when do something thoughtless, but He knows we cannot see the future. He might wonder what we are thinking, but
Because of the elite, all Israel faces God’s judgment. We do not live in a vacuum. Decisions I make impact the lives of others. Decisions others make impact me. It reminds me of Locard’s Exchange Principle: Every contact leaves a trace. They say pride goes before the fall.
Those of us who are entrusted with power have an obligation to care about those who are underneath our supervision. Anyone can use power to their own advantage. That is human nature. True leaders take power they have been granted and apply that power to the benefit of the people
If a community claiming to follow God’s ways treats its people the same way as a community not practicing God’s ways, what message is sent? Jesus says the world will know His disciples by our love. If the world doesn’t see anything different in those who follow
God knows if our heart is wrong, our actions don’t really matter. Ever get a gift from an unwilling giver? Ever receive an apology from someone who doesn’t mean it? Such actions are empty. An uncaring gift or an ungrateful apology are hollow. They accomplish the necessary goal
Before God can bring us into glory, God needs to take care of our heart. This is why we talk about repentance. God wants relationship with us. He wants to dwell with us forever. Yet we sin, preventing us from attaining that reality. God needs to take care of our
God will come among us and evaluate what He finds. He did not create the world so He could stand off at a distance and study what we do with it. He wants us to become more like Him as we live. He wants us to see His characteristics in
God is the cure for our broken societies. He is the only one who can hold onto power and refrain from corruption. He is the only one who can weigh the needs of the many against the needs of the one. He alone can see into our hearts and know
If we are God’s people, then our governance should illustrate God’s character, not oppress those around us. That doesn’t mean we give everyone what they want. God does not give us what we want. God gives us what is good, which is a characteristic determined by Him.