Life on the Pasture

As some of you know, I have a rather eclectic musical palette. This afternoon was a jazz day. One of the songs I heard was “Conflicting Advice” by a band named Cinque. The song was nothing special to me, but the title definitely caught my attention. I thought it fit our current pandemic situation perfectly, for there is plenty of conflicting advice even in the scientific and medical worlds as far as the best way to deal with the crisis. Perhaps the most well-known is Sweden’s decision not to fight the spread of the virus through strict lockdowns, but rather to build “herd immunity.”

Social media services are taking it upon themselves to help users avoid bad advice. According to a May 11 article on vox.com, “Covid-19 tweets that are considered misleading will get labels designed to offer more context about the information therein. Tweets making potentially harmful claims disputed by experts will now come with a more direct warning message.”

But with all the information so accessible to us, somewhere along the line we must all make personal decisions as far as what advice we are going to follow and, along with that, accept whatever consequences there may be. For instance, if I accept the advice that even though the posted speed limit is 65 I can still go 80, I will have to accept the consequence of a speeding ticket. Or if I reject the advice of my doctor to take medication to reduce cholesterol, I will have to accept the health consequences that may result.

Of greater importance is the matter of what we do with God’s advice. We may pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” but not necessarily follow what He wants us to do, sometimes because, quite frankly, we’ve never bothered to ask what His will is regarding a particular situation. We might justify it by saying that God doesn’t give specific answers in His Word regarding what we should or should not do in every situation, so why bother. But He does have a way of guiding us and giving us peace in our decision making.

There is an interesting verse in Mark’s Gospel account: “And from then on no one dared ask [Jesus] any more questions.” (Mark 12:34b) The context is Holy Week, and some of the experts are trying to trip up Jesus with questions they thought too challenging for Him. Jesus always amazed them with His answers. Yet instead of actually asking Him legitimate questions concerning God’s will for them and His plan of salvation, they chose to stop the conversation.

Our Lord never forces us to talk with Him and ask for His guidance and leading. Yet there is so much peace and comfort to be had, such freedom from worry and anxiety to enjoy, for His advice never fails.

And so the offer continues to be given: “Come to Me.” A beautiful response to the invitation is offered by David: “Show me Your ways, Lord, teach me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long. Remember, Lord, Your great mercy and love,

for they are from of old. Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to Your love remember me, for You, Lord, are good. Good and upright is the Lord; therefore He instructs sinners in His ways. He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them His way.” (Psalm 25:4–9, NIV)

– Pastor Schmidt