There's Some Good in the World

From LOTR--Samwise to Frodo--“It's like in the great stories Mr. Frodo, the ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were, and sometimes you didn't want to know the end because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end it's only a passing thing, this shadow, even darkness must pass. A new day will come, and when the sun shines it'll shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you, that meant something even if you were too small to understand why. But I think Mr. Frodo, I do understand; I know now folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going because they were holding on to something. That there's some good in the world....and it's worth fighting for"…are we fighting for good today?

How Sweet the Sound

Sound...a simple word. What's it mean in the context of this new release? Bono sings the word repeatedly on No Line. In "Get On Your Boots," Bono sings again and again: "Let me in the sound" and "Meet me in the sound." OK. What's the sound? We hear him sing the word again in "Breathe:" "We are people borne of sound." Then, near the end of "Breathe," Bono sings: "I’ve found grace inside a sound / I found grace, it’s all that I found." I'm reminded of the most popular hymn in the world...Amazing Grace. The first line is familiar to many: "Amazing Grace, how sweet the SOUND...that saved a wretch like me." Of course, another line in that hymn is "I once was lost, but now I'm FOUND." I'm reminded that as a Christian I am borne of that sound of grace...I'm FOUND by grace...I didn't really find it...and as a result of grace...like Bono, I can breathe now. There's a great scene in In The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, J. R. R. Tolkien portrays the classic conflict between good and evil, set in a mythical land called Middle Earth. In the middle of the film, the evil wizard Saruman has spellbound Theoden, King of Rohan. He sits on his throne pale and decrepit as his kingdom falls apart around him. Then Gandalf, a good wizard, arrives. Theoden's evil advisor whispers lies into the king's ear about Gandalf, but Gandalf rebukes him: "Be silent! Keep your forked tongue behind your teeth." Then Gandalf says, "Theoden, too long have you sat in the shadows. I release you from the spell." Theoden shakes momentarily and then laughs mockingly, "You have no power here, Gandalf!"
But then Gandalf reveals his full power. He rises up and speaks directly to the evil wizard within Theoden: "I will draw you, Saruman, as poison is drawn from a wound." Saruman cries out through Theoden, "If I go, Theoden dies. Rohan is mine!" Gandalf replies, "You did not kill me, and you will not kill him. Be gone!"
At that, King Theoden is released. Suddenly his face regains its color and youth, and he is fully himself again. And Gandalf speaks the words, "Breathe the free air, again, my friend." That's what being in the amazing SOUND of grace does...it enables us to BREATHE...to BREATHE the FREE AIR...for the first time in our lives.

In "Crazy" we hear Bono sing, "The sweetest melody is the one we haven't heard." Have you heard the sound? Can we meet in the sound? Will we find grace inside the sound and breathe?

Marley and...My God

Marley and Me is the most popular film in America right now. A great movie about a couple (and then a family) and their dog. What do you think God thinks about the movie? On one level, I believe He approves. Hollywood actually wrote a script where a married couple works through relational struggles and stays committed to the marriage! But there is another level besides that where God is pleased with the movie...God loves dogs! Well, He loves more than dogs...He loves cats, guinea pigs, lizards, parakeets, hamsters, cows, zebras, horses and whatever other animal you can think of! In Genesis 8:1, in the midst of the Great Flood that covered the earth, we read that "God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the livestock that were with him in the ark." What an interesting verse. We can understand God remembering Noah...why not just leave it at that? But no, the inspired text specifically adds, "and all the beasts and all the livestock." God's heart is so big and so tender that he remembers even the animals. This is revealed elsewhere as well. In Proverbs 12:10 we read that "whoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast." In Jonah 4:11, God makes his case for showing compassion for wicked Ninevah by telling Jonah that there are many children there, as well as many "cattle." God spared the city, not only because of people, but because of animals! Then, of course, there are the words of Jesus, which leads me to the whole point of this devotional...in Luke 12:5-6, Christ tells the disciples to consider sparrows. Birds of such little worth in the world's eyes that five are sold for two pennies. Yet the fact is not one of them is forgotten by the Father. "Fear not, you are of more value than many sparrows. God cares about animals and has regard for their welfare. How much more will He care for you today! Amazing, all this from Marley and Me...the Gospel is being preached everywhere! Listen to the music.