Here we are now, partway through November, almost at the end of the church year and at the verge of Advent--which begins November 27. Advent has often been called a mini-Lent, and for good reason, as it focuses on repentance and getting prepared for the coming of Jesus Christ. Likewise, seeing as repentance, or a right frame of heart and mind, is a primary emphasis on today's Scripture reading and meditation, is perhaps a good call-up to our Advent season. I hope you enjoy it.

Just has a rather remarkable and discomforting way of calling us up short at times. Rather than simply being baptized and confirmed, rather than simply being church members and doing our part to further the work of the church, He calls us to be His disciples--that is, to learn from Him and follow Him and obey Him. And that means putting every other attachment, every other priority, to one side--and sometimes, to give them up entirely--in order to do as He says. And certainly that means being true to who we are in Him, even when all sorts of pressures and enticements would prompt us to do otherwise. Fortunately, in all this, we have His presence, and His grace, to help us.

I hope that this morning finds you safe and well and in good spirits. Our meditation for today reminds us that our loving Lord and Saviour, like the true friend that He is, never gives up on us, no matter who we are, what we do, or in what circumstances we find ourselves. To me, that is good news of the 'highest order' and one that I will forever cling to and rely upon.

Today, you will notice something rather unusual, namely two meditations, both given today's date. That is because I misread the Forward Day by Day devotional booklet for today, thinking that it was the passage from Ecclesiasticus that was chosen. Instead, it was the one from Revelation.

However, by the time I realized this error I had already spent a while meditating of that first passage. Then, afterwards, I went back to Revelation and meditating on it as well, so this time you are getting two passages 'for the price of one'. I hope you enjoy them and find them helpful and inspiring.

One other thing: yesterday in my attached note I made a mistake. When describing the stance of the Anglican Church (and others) toward the book of Ecclesiasticus, I should have said 'this book isn't counted as canonical'. Instead, I said 'is', which is incorrect.

You might find yourselves a wee bit bewildered today. The reading is from the book of Ecclesiasticus, which isn't in many of our Bibles (though it is in Roman Catholic Bibles)--rather than the familiar Ecclesiastes. This book is counted as canonical by Anglicans and many Protestant churches, that is, binding for doctrine, but is counted as useful for inspiration and manner of life. Today's passage waxed eloquent--to use a frequent phrase of mine--about why we should praise God, which isn't a bad message, not matter where it comes from. Indeed, all of us should praise Him more, and should do so, in every opportunity that presents itself.

In times past--before detracted driving became a 'thing'--I used to have a hymn book in my car, laid open on the passenger seat to a favourite hymn. I'd glance at the opening line and then sing the rest off by heart--or at least, as far as I could remember. It was a rather spontaneous and joyful time of praise. I wouldn't suggest this tactic anymore, however. Perhaps a better route is to have a music tape of familiar hymns that you can play in the car and sing along with wild abandon. Anyway, I find having familiar words an easier way to offer up praises to God rather than having to make up something on my own. That's my route.

As you read today's passage, especially its opening section, chapter 1 verses 1-4, one could easily think that Habakkuk was living in our present-day world, with all its issues and problems. His words seem so timely and so relevant, that they could so easily be our words. (Indeed, I think that they can--and should be.)

But therein there is a difference to how we often voice our complaints. So often we address them to our leaders, to governments either here or elsewhere, and expect them to fix the problem. We expect that to correct injustice and violence and see that right and goodness prevail. And certainly, they do have a part to play in this.

However, in reality, the problem is bigger than any of them. The problem lies in the human heart and no earthly person or group can correct that. None of them qualifies as a saviour. Only Jesus does.

And so, Habakkuk's remedy, His avenue of complaint, is entirely right: He goes first and foremost to the Lord, and asks, no demands, to know what God is going to do about it. And God does hear him and answer him. So, that is what we should be doing as well: yes, hold our leaders and governments accountable and dedicated to the task, but then not expecting them to perform miracles or to complete the task. That is something that only our Lord can do--and will do, 'in His own sweet time.'

Today's passage and meditation are typical of God and His word generally. How we approach them and what we take of them is entirely up to us and up to our frame of mind. When I was at seminary, I ran into profs (not from my own college thankfully) who could run circles around all of us in terms of knowledge and a grasp of the Bible, but who seemingly ingested and took to heart none of it. For all their wide and profound knowledge, their belief and their faith in Jesus Christ seemed woefully inadequate--and it showed! And so, what matters is what we do with it, that is, how we apply it, and never is this truer than with today's passage. Hope you enjoy it, and the meditation therein.

Here, today, is a message that is bound to be totally uncomfortable for almost everyone--me included. Jesus talks about those hated Him, and, by extension, those who will also hate us. And, He does so in the earlier context of the Sermon on the Mount, where He told us to love everyone, even our enemies. Yes, even those we can't get along with, disagree with and can't stand. Here I think of those who hold anyone who disagrees with their stance at Synod with unadulterated disgust, rejection and hatred. (Yes, I have seen that). Or what about those who simply cannot have a rational and even-tempered discussion over race or immigration or vaccination or conspiracy theories? Or what about people who have a well-developed sense of entitlement and who feel that everyone, the church included, owes them one? Or what about people who are malicious and abusive and don't have any bones or apologies about it? Or, as I once encountered, what about a person who was fervently anti-Christ (I think that he was a Satanist), who likewise could not even allow for an intelligent conversation over our beliefs? So, I am supposed to love even the likes of these? Yes, that's the idea. I know that God loves them anyway, but I have trouble with it. So, my prayer can only be: "Lord, help!"

I'm probably finding many of you in the same boat. Good luck.

Much is said in the Scriptures about the 'fear of the Lord'--for instance, 'the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom', and sadly, unfortunately, some take this as meaning a cringing, avoidance kind of fear, rather than being a healthy respect and reverence. But perhaps even better than all of this is to think of it in terms of love and a love relationship. In a healthy, loving relationship the last thing you want to do is to wrong the other person or hurt him or her, or cause some sort of division or barrier to exist between the two of you. Those are the things you want to avoid at all costs. And so, I like to think of our 'fear of the Lord' as wanting to avoid anything that hurts or wounds Him or impairs the love between the two of us. Anyway, there's something to chew over, and think about, for today.

As usual elsewhere in Psalm 119, the psalmist in today's passage has waxed eloquent about the need to be rooted in God's law and commandments, to know and understand them properly--and then, as a natural consequence, to be firmly resolved in keeping them and obeying, and of course, to be consistent in keeping them. In light of that, what more can I say? It is a challenge, but one that can well be expected by us as followers and disciples of Christ. So, keep up the good work.

One of the things that Jesus reiterates over and over again is the necessity of sight, of seeing properly. And He does so by connecting it up with hearing--and of course, with responding and obeying. Somehow, in His eyes, all of these belong together. So this, to be at least, begs two questions. First of all, in this age of conflicting messages and opinions, are we seeing and hearing correctly, and in light of this, obeying exactly what our Lord wants? And then secondly, are we helping others to likewise see, hear and obey? These, it would seem, are two of the most pressing questions for this age and place.

An old gospel hymn talks about 'the old, old story' and that is indeed what we have received and what God has called us to live out and share with others in word and deed. It's not something that we need to newly invent, even though the way we phrase it or explain it may vary according to the times, places and person. And incredibly, it does not require anything by way of an expert. We don't have to be perfect or exemplary in any way. Each of us is to be a living witness, or as Paul says, a living letter not made with words. We are witnesses of Christ and His Good News simply by virtue of who we are--and if our words can explain and back up our actions, our visible witness and example, all the better. So all that we need is to be yielded to Him to do and act as He says, and let Him do the rest.

Years ago I took part in a clergy retreat led by our Primate at the time, Michael Peers, I think. He suggested that we might find ourselves giving Jesus a new title, or at least, a new focus, when it came to our thinking and our prayers. He suggested that while in times past we thought of Jesus primarily as Lord or Saviour, we might now start to think of Him more consciously and consistently as 'friend'. And indeed, in John's Gospel (John 15:13-25), Jesus refers to us as His friends. And surely, this is reciprocated. Surely, He is our friend as well as we being His. It is that friendship that the apostle Paul refers to in today's Scripture reading, a friend that has always been there for him and that he has always been able to count on. And, as it was for him, so can it be for each of us as well.