Wednesday, August 8, 2012

A New Covenant

"But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD. I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts; I will be their God, and they shall be my people." Jer 31:33

God cannot simply give up on us. Though the Israelites broke the Covenant he made with them, God promises Jeremiah that he will make a new covenant with his people, one not written on stone tablets, but on the hearts of those he loves. This new covenant will assure everyone that God's covenant is not simply a set of rules or regulations to which we must respond, but an act of love, a gift that though we will never fully appreciate it, will keep us close to God in every circumstance.

Though it may not be as full or fulsome as God's covenant, most of us have experienced the blessing of a covenant with others. The married, of course, but also those of us who have been promised the free love of another for the asking. Surely, those of us who went as pilgrims to Africa recently, knew this gift. Often, I felt surrounded by all those who were praying and thinking of us.

The free gift of those who accompanied us in Spirit reminded me of my father's question to me as a boy whenever he was able to come to one of my baseball games. He never asked if we won the game, but only if I had fun. While I did not realize it at the time, my father was helping me understand more deeply that life was not all about winning and losing, but enjoying and celebrating each moment of life. In many ways, God asks nothing more of us, only that we celebrate life at every juncture and realize that He is never far.

Today, be grateful for the Covenant God makes with us in Jesus.

Who has assured you that despite your faults, they will never abandon you?


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