Scripture

Our verse for today comes from 1 Samuel 6:11, ” And they set the ark of the Lord on the cart, and the chest with the gold rats and the images of their tumors. ” 

Background

In the summer before my eighth grade year, my mom and dad separated yet again, and this time my mom moved out, taking me with her as she went to live with her daughter in South Carolina. The months that followed were some of the lowest I have known as I began life anew as a thirteen year-old outsider. At school, I was initially placed in the remedial classes before I was finally rescued by a teacher who realized that I was mind-numbingly bored with the simple assignments she gave in class. After I was switched to the advanced classes, a teacher wrongly accused me of throwing spit balls, saying that we don’t behave up here like they do down in the other building. And when I suggested to my science teacher that perhaps she and my sister would have some things in common, she embarrassed me in front of the others with a response that suggested I had proffered some lesbian affair. But rock bottom came at Christmas. I had received a package from my dad and brothers, and it was the first one I opened Christmas morn. But what a disappointment I had when I ripped open the box to find a new shirt inside. My beloved family, who I had not seen in months, had sent this lonely boy a shirt. 

Application

My mom and I moved back home a couple months later, before my folks eventually got divorced the following year. But I never asked about my gift and what led them to send me a shirt. I’m not sure what I had expected to receive, but I was broken-hearted over what I got. When we speak or give or act, the importance and meaning of our actions can differ greatly from how the recipient interprets them. Your casual comment might rankle instead of amuse. Your statement of fact might resound with condemnation. And your half-hearted worship might look like rats and tumors to the God you think you’re worshipping. It’s not always easy, and it takes some extra time, but viewing things from another’s perspective can mend many a wound before the blow ever strikes. And it can turn a golden rat into a love offering. 

Charge

As we seek Him today, think ahead of yourself and outside of the box and from someone else’s shoes, and leave behind a lasting image of Christ.

Salvation – Eternal Life in Less Than 150 Words