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Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace. Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you? You want something and do not have it; so you commit murder. And you covetsomething and cannot obtain it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (James 3: 13 - 4:3, 7-8a)
Happy and Blessed Tuesday, Friend! This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it! What a wonderful verse to get our day full charged and ready to do God's will!
If I had to choose just a verse or two of this passage, it would be 7-8, or the very last two; but to do justice to the passage recommended for this coming Sunday as the Epistle reading (Letters), let's see what it says. At first reading I thought back to my 7th grade year. It started quite dramatic. I was living in Kingsville and I came down with pneumonia. In those ancient days that required a lengthy hospital stay and I was sent to a hospital in Corpus Christi. I spent two weeks there and I missed the beginning of my junior high school experience! I knew that since I had been in band since 5th grade, and I had the same band director in elementary school as I would in junior high, I had to try out. Not only would I have to try out and be assigned a "chair," I would have to learn how to march; which in South Texas is very important part of being in band. One does not join the band to simply sit and play; we entertain half-time shows with our marching skill and precision. And one does not learn to march from a hospital bed. When the ordeal of blood draws and constant injections and breathing exercises, I was sent home. I went to school about a week or two late. My agreement with the band director had been that if I gave up playing the cornet, and took up the baritone, I would be allowed to be in the band. So, I was in. But since I had missed marching practice, I would have to sit in the bleachers while my band marched. I was the third chair. Don't get excited, there were only three baritone players. Joaquin, a 9th grader was first chair and he was awesome. Some red-headed Chicano kid was second-chair and he was the epitome of an angry runner-up. He despised me for having come into his band without trying out. And he would taunt me daily; "Oh, you're Mr. B's favorite, better watch out Joaquin, you're on your way out, wonder boy here is going to take your place." Sigh. Joaquin was the living version of a calm and peaceful young man, truly one who showed "by (his) good life that (his) works were done with gentleness born of wisdom." Red was the next verse incarnate; "Bitter envy and selfish ambition." I was trying to be more like Joaquin; I liked making friends not picking fights.
I left not long afterwards to Houston. I never learned how to march, but I was in a junior high band that played in the Astrodome the very year it opened! Our debut was the night of what was for a long time, the longest game on record; 24 or 25 innings, Astros versus the New York Mets. The catcher for the Mets that night would later become a church member of mine and still a dear friend, Mr. Jerry Grote, who inspired the spring camp that 1969 would be their year, and it was; World Series Champs! Jerry is another verse one person.
The passage ends with some powerful words that we can apply to our lives. First, rid ourselves of the bitter envy and selfish ambitions we might have; nothing is truly gained from living that sort of a life. We are called to rise above that, to be peaceful, gentle, merciful souls, full of fruits or evidence of the indwelling Holy Spirit of God that produces a rich harvest of good and righteousness in our midst. And if we feel we don't have it, we ask for it, and God will give it to us. And the clincher: Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from us. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to us. Cleanse your hands (actions), purify your hearts, and solely think on God and God's righteousness and we will be just fine. The Message version says, "Yell a loud no to the devil and he will run. Whisper a quiet yes and God will come closer to us." Amen.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, we are in Your hands. We need You. We need You to mold us and make us to be like You. We want to be gentle and wise; we want bitter envy and selfish ambitions to be driven out of us. We want this prayer to be todays' invitation for You to draw near to us; and while we're at it, let me say NO to he who seeks to derail my life; Devil, you have no business in my life or in the life of my loved ones, so get! This I pray in Christ Jesus' strong name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Live a life that says Yes to God and No to you-know-who.
Eradio Valverde
Prayer Requests: Please pray for David Bivins’ dad Jerry. Jerry fell and is at the hospital where they’re running some tests. Please pray for healing and that he is able to regain his strength. Please pray for Gonzales High School Coach Kyle Alexander, his wife Caitrin and their daughter Embree who is still on hospice and getting close to her home in Heaven. Please pray for Stanley Hahn, Jr. who will be starting chemo and radiation this week for tongue cancer. For the family of Ben Del Pozo, who died yesterday after 37 years as a quadriplegic. He saw his son married in his hospital room the day prior to his death. Pray for one another; pray for yourselves.
