Today’s scripture: Genesis 10 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Jeff Miner):
Welcome to Genesis chapter 10! — a long list of names tracing the ancestral lines of the sons of Noah, which eventually lead us to Abraham (next chapter). What could God possibly want to say to us from a mere list of names?
Notice verse 8, which mentions Nimrod. Before plunging ahead with other names, the text offers a brief aside, summarizing Nimrod’s life in a single sentence. “He was the first on earth to become a mighty warrior.” The sentence is so stark. There are no editorial comments saying whether Nimrod’s distinction as earth’s first mighty warrior was good or bad. The statement just sits there, allowing each of us to make up our own mind.
Suppose your life were to be summarized in a single sentence. What would it say? What would you want it to say?
I recently saw a devotional written by Father Glenn McDonald asking this same question. He tells how, in the year 1962, Claire Boothe Luce (the first American woman to serve as a foreign ambassador) was worried that President John F. Kennedy’s presidency was trying to accomplish too many things at once and in danger of losing focus. She warned Kennedy, “A great man [or woman] is a sentence,” by which she meant: a life well-lived should be able to be summarized in a single sentence.
McDonald goes on to quote sociologist Daniel Pink, who says: “Maybe [your sentence] is:
“He raised four kids who became happy and healthy adults.”
“She invented a device that made people’s lives easier.”
“He cared for every person who walked into his office regardless of whether that person could pay.”
“She taught two generations of children how to read.”
Thought for the day: Take a moment to write down a sentence that would best describe your life so far. Are you happy with that sentence or do you have some changes to make?
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.