Monday Devotional: August 15, 2022

Scripture: Hebrews 12:18-29

I remember the day vividly. I was sitting in my office when the building began to rattle. At first, I simply thought a large truck was passing by, but after a few moments, I realized I was experiencing an earthquake. Since earthquakes are relatively rare in Washington, DC, this was quite an event for the region. The news stations reported damage to a few homes, construction sites, and even some historic monuments. The earthquake brought no serious damage and awakened many to the impermanence of life and its comforts.

This text lays before us the fact that the created order, the original heavens and earth, is temporary, capable of being shaken, and intended from the beginning to give way to something better: the unshakeable, transcendent order of the everlasting realm. Sometimes the shaking up of our world allows God to establish the unshakeable in our midst. Our relationships get shaken in order to establish the unshakeable values of trust, honesty, and loyalty; our material possessions are shaken loose from our grasp to establish an unshakable dependence on God; our political systems are shaken by change to make possible the establishment of shared power, ethical leadership, and community interests. And while the “shake-ups” in our lives may disorient and frustrate, we can be thankful for that which is unshakeable now and in the world to come.

We express our thanksgiving for the hope of the future through worship, where we encounter God, hear God’s voice, and are transformed. True worship does not leave us as we are, at ease with illusions of our own power and significance. Rather, it makes us aware of the fleeting nature of life and institutions as we bow in awe before the permanence, might, and splendor of our God.

Prayer

Christ our Savior, establish within us your unshakeable kingdom by shaking loose all that distance us from you. Amen.

By Erin M. Hawkins, Upper Room Disciplines 2013, p. 282..