Loving Jesus Most….. There need be no poor people among you. The members asked why their church was buying a steeple. Was this the best use of God’s resources? What about feeding the poor? The pastor replied that the funds came from donors and needed to be spent as they wished. “Besides,” he quoted Jesus, “you will always have the poor among you” (John 12:8). The pastor quickly apologized for his flippant, out-of-context remark, which led me to wonder, What was Jesus’ context? Six days before His death, a woman anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive perfume. The disciples were disgusted. Why wasn’t this perfume sold to help the poor? Jesus replied by quoting Deuteronomy 15:11: “You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me” (John 12:8). Jesus often cited Deuteronomy, so He knew what was written a few sentences earlier: “There need be no poor people among you, for in the land the Lord your God is giving you . . . , he will richly bless you, if only you fully obey the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 15:4-5). Perhaps this was another reason for Jesus’ rebuke. Poor people existed only because Israel hadn’t obeyed God’s instructions. Now the poor were being used to distract from Jesus—the true Israelite who would fully obey to the end. We need not choose between Jesus and the poor. We love people best by loving Him most, and loving Him most inspires us to love others best. Dear Jesus, You’re beautiful and worthy of all my praise. Amen 🙏 (fb)

Digging for Meaning…… They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water. Jeremiah 2:13 We have a new puppy, Winston. He bites. Sleeps. Eats. (Does one or two other things.) Oh, and he digs. Winston doesn’t dig casually. He tunnels. Like he’s escaping from prison. It’s compulsive, ferocious, and filthy. Why does that dog dig so much? I wondered recently. Then it hit me: I’m a digger too—prone to “digging” into myriad things I hope will make me happy. They’re not always even bad things. But when I fixate on finding satisfaction in something apart from God, I become a digger. Digging for meaning apart from God leaves me covered in dirt and longing for something more. Jeremiah rebuked Israel for being diggers: “They have forsaken me,” God said through the prophet, “and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water” (Jeremiah 2:13). God disciplined His people for neglecting to seek Him. They’d dug their own wells in an attempt to quench their deepest thirst. But God reminded them that He alone is the “spring of living water” (v. 13). In John 4, Jesus offered this living water to the woman at the well, who’d also done her share of digging elsewhere (vv. 10-26). We’re all diggers sometimes. But God graciously offers to replace our fruitless digging with vital fulfillment with His water, which alone satisfies the deep thirst of our souls. Where do you tend to dig in search of meaning, hope, or satisfaction? How can you entrust this area of your life to God? Father, please help me taste and see that You’re what my soul longs for, and to put my shovel down as I rest in You. Amen 🙏 (fb)