May the mumbling commence!

Do we view the worship of the Lord as an excuse to do as we please?  Or do we faithfully remain attentive to what would please the Lord?  Isaiah 58 looks at the practices of fasting and Sabbath keeping.  Read these portions of this chapter:

            “Why have we fasted,' they say,

                      'and you have not seen it?

            Why have we humbled ourselves,

                      and you have not noticed?'

            Yet on the day of your fasting,

                     you do as you please and exploit all your workers. 

            Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,

                     and in striking each other with wicked fists.

            You cannot fast as you do today

                     and expect your voice to be heard on high. 

            Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,

                    only a day for a man to humble himself?

            Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed

                    and for lying on sackcloth and ashes?

            Is that what you call a fast,

                    a day acceptable to the Lord? 

            Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:

            to loose the chains of injustice

                    and untie the cords of the yoke,

            to set the oppressed free

                   and break every yoke? 

            Is it not to share your food with the hungry

                   and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter –

            when you see the naked, to clothe him,

                  and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 

            Then your light will break forth like the dawn,

                  and your healing will quickly appear;

            then your righteousness will go before you,

                  and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. 

            Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;

                  you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.” (Verses 3-9a)

            "If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath

                   and from doing as you please on my holy day,

            if you call the Sabbath a delight

                   and the Lord's holy day honorable,

            and if you honor it by not going your own way

                   and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, 

            then you will find your joy in the Lord,

                   and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land

                  and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob."

            The mouth of the Lord has spoken. (Verses 13-14)

Doing as we please and defining our relationship with the Lord and others as we please will get us into a heap of trouble.  Though we, as a whole, in the United States, are unfamiliar with the concept of fasting; we are at least aware of the concept of Sabbath keeping.  So, how do we define Sabbath keeping? 

Like many others, I would define Sabbath keeping as a day of rest.  Resting would be quite a witness to the 24/7 world around us.  Resting and worshiping – they best define my concept of Sabbath keeping.  But, to be truthful, I would also define Sabbath keeping as having some “me time.”  Because of the rat race and all of my many roles and responsibilities, is it too much to ask for some “me time?”  I could spend some time doing what I please to do. 

Then I read this passage from Isaiah 58.  Ouch!  Let’s think a little bit deeper.  Sabbath is not about honoring me; it is about honoring the Lord.  Rest is good – but not at the expense of our relationship with the Lord and others.  Does my rest include going out to eat or shopping?  If it does, then I am asking others to work when I refuse to.  I am speaking idle words and doing as I please. 

And, sometimes, my “me time” gets in the way of participating in worship – even when I am physically there but mentally thinking about what else I will do later in the day.  I take time to ask the Lord: What would you have me do on Your Sabbath day?

And what about this fasting?  When we think of fasting in relationship to food, we may think of the myriad of fast food restaurants and microwave meals – FAST FOOD.  With this mindset, we read about Israel’s concept of fasting; and we think it is pretty pious.  Fasting is to humble ourselves before the Lord.  But when the road to fasting creates strife and exploitation, it is empty. 

What does God ask of us in fasting?  We fast as a vehicle to obtain justice for everyone – to set the prisoners and oppressed people free, to feed the hungry, to provide shelter for the homeless, to clothe the naked.  We fast to save money that we give freely in our worship during the Sabbath – money and action to obtain a tangible justice for the most vulnerable. 

Forgive us, O Lord, for our empty practices of worship.  May we seek to honor You not ourselves. 

Enough mumbling for now… 

Peace Out