It's A Mess

Our world is a mess. Let’s take that a little closer to ourselves… our nation is a mess. We can go closer than that, our state is a mess… do we agree? Are we still on the same page? How about this? Our city is a mess… how about now still got agreement? Our neighborhood is a mess. Do you agree? Our families are a mess… wait now pastor now you’re getting too personal… well how about this? We are a mess. Yes I am including myself in that statement because we are all a mess. "Pastor how are you going to say that about me?" You might be saying to yourself… "You don’t know me that well." You’re right. I don’t know you that well, that is part of what makes us a mess isn’t it?

I saw some very disturbing pictures this week and unfortunately, it is something that is causing quite a stir, and even is being laughed about… or exploited into being something it is not… take a look at this. “Share a Coke with Isis”? Really, are we so quick to judge that we don’t research anything for ourselves anymore? It took me all of 3 seconds to find information as to why this picture exists and I will share it with you. Although the name "Isis" does not appear on Coca-Cola product labels shown on the United States' "Share a Coke" page, this photograph is indeed real. A company spokesperson told Snopes in an email that the "Share A Coke With Isis" cans were available in the Netherlands during the 2014 campaign: This is not one of the 1,000 Share a Coke names available in the U.S. It is a popular name in the Netherlands and was used in their 2014 campaign among 2,500 of the most common Dutch names. It is unfortunate that it took on another meaning while the campaign was in market. The name is no longer available in the Netherlands.

It should also be noted that the word "Isis" depicted on the bottle is written with an initial capital letter followed by lower-case letters, while the terrorist organization's name is an acronym (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) and thus is rendered in all capital letters. Since the picture displayed shows it as "Isis" with lower case letters, they reference a person named Isis (similar to the Egyptian goddess) and not a militant Islamic group. But just think of the buzz this one picture started on Facebook and other forms of social media.

This is something we are publishing and people are joking about it, or are threatening boycotts about it…

how about this “Caitlyn Jenner.” How do we celebrate this and fill the news and social media about this when there are so many other things we should be talking about?

What about Josh Duggar? That story has been in the headlines for a while as well.

How did we get here? Why do we focus on such drama, when it is such a mess?

I have my theory and of course I am going to share it with you because that’s what I do!

God is on time all the time… In our reading through the Bible plan this week, on Monday as a matter of fact, I was reading through the first four chapters of Hosea. In Hosea chapter 4, I ran across this text in verses 1-10…

“Listen to the word of the LORD, O sons of Israel, For the LORD has a case against the inhabitants of the land, Because there is no faithfulness or kindness Or knowledge of God in the land. There is swearing, deception, murder, stealing and adultery. They employ violence, so that bloodshed follows bloodshed. Therefore the land mourns, And everyone who lives in it languishes Along with the beasts of the field and the birds of the sky, And also the fish of the sea disappear. Yet let no one find fault, and let none offer reproof; For your people are like those who contend with the priest. So you will stumble by day, And the prophet also will stumble with you by night; And I will destroy your mother. My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children. The more they multiplied, the more they sinned against Me; I will change their glory into shame. They feed on the sin of My people And direct their desire toward their iniquity. And it will be, like people, like priest; So I will punish them for their ways And repay them for their deeds. They will eat, but not have enough; They will play the harlot, but not increase, Because they have stopped giving heed to the LORD.”