Friday – September 25, 2020

Scripture

Psalm 58 3:5 The wicked go astray from the womb; they err from their birth, speaking lies. They have venom like the venom of a serpent, like the deaf adder that stops its ear, so that it does not hear the voice of charmers or of the cunning enchanter.

Words of Hope

When I was a child, I would often want to stay outside and play even though my mother called me inside. I pretended I didn’t hear her. When I finally came in, she would remark, “are you deaf as an adder? I called you half an hour ago!”

I figured that for some reason mathematicians were prone to hearing problems, but the allusion she was making was to a passage in the Psalm. It does not refer to people actually having hearing disabilities, but to a willful disregard for God’s voice.

It seems a lot of people in our country are suffering the same malady. They have let hatred, fear, and greed guide them instead of listening to the charmer’s tune. Unlike the wicked in the Psalm, these people were not born speaking lies from birth. They were carefully taught their wickedness by people suffering the same sickness.

There is a song in the musical South Pacific that addresses this.

You’ve got to be taught To hate And fear You’ve got to be taught From year To year Its got to Be drummed in your dear little ear You’ve got to Be carefully Taught

I wonder what it would take to get them to uncover their ears? To hear the soothing tune of the “charmer” and find love in their hearts instead of fear and hatred?

Maybe the answer is to “unteach” them. Show them a new way that moves in harmony with God’s love. Set examples for those who hate by lovingly showing them a better way. Jesus taught that way and apparently it was good enough to reform tax collectors and others who had been intentionally deaf as an adder.

Prayer

God, let my life show your love in every word and act, that I might give encouragement to those who cannot hear your voice. Let me bring the music of your way to their ears. Amen

Devotion Author

Hardy Habermam