Gratification

He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. — Hebrews 11:26

When Moses held to his identity in Egypt, he exchanged the trappings of the temporal for the riches of eternal life. Eternal life was, is, and is to come because God was, is, and is to come. Coming to know God is its own reward. I look ahead to the reward of knowing him more.

Come Closer

From space, Earth appears as a serene blue marble, reflecting the sunlight. So pleasant and inviting. Come closer, though, to find wars, hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, and mudslides. Social Media. From an arm's length away, we can imagine a neat and tidy world. But come closer to witness complexity: tradeoffs, unintended consequences, winners and losers, oppressors and the oppressed, the secure and the vulnerable, those we help and those we ignore. May we have the courage to let Reality invade our personal space. It's okay to feel discomfort and uncertainty. It's a cost of caring and being more genuinely helpful.

Climate

Relative Humidity requires interpretation. The amount of moisture in saturated (100% relative humidity) warm air is significantly greater than in saturated cold air. We need context. Sweater or swelter? The same is true of Scripture. Paul's efforts to leaven culture in the first century and elevate low-caste people could be misinterpreted with 21st-century eyes as the opposite, an endorsement of structural entitlement. We need to discern the climate.