Bailout

With the American economy in the toilet (and, honestly, a good portion of the global economy), I reached into my file of "Random Things That I Probably Should Have Thrown Away A Long Time Ago" to share with you some thoughts I had last time we had a government bailout. There are lots of strong opinions floating around on the CARES Act, and there are also lot of strong opinions on whether there will (or should) be a second round of stimulus checks. This post is indifferent to the political nature of any bailout. Just have some fun with my theology. What else do we have to do these days?

Reason Why Jesus is Better than Any Bailout

• The bailout is meant, largely, to preserve personal wealth and our global economy. But God gives us "an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you" (1 Peter 1:4).
• Some say that the bailouts represent a fundamental shift in the way the U.S. economy works. Fortunately, we're taught, that "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8).
• The "Bush Bailout" was supposed to fix our problems, and didn't. The "Obama Bailout" was supposed to fix our problems. The first bailout under Trump didn't either.  It leaves Average Joe asking how many bailouts will it take? But Scripture tells us Jesus saved us the first time: "For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God" (1 Peter 3:18).
• Everything our government is discussing is only conjecture because we have never before had an economy like we are experiencing now, but our Savior is the same One who created the universe. He has told us: " 'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future' " (Jeremiah 29:11, NIV).

And there you have it.

My goodness, I need to get out of my house for a while.  And soon...

Meaningless

Pandemic boredom has struck me hard this week.

I keep a pretty clean house, so I didn't have a lot of "catch up" work to do, and any I had was finished the first week we stayed home. I have been doing homework, reading, writing, and doing daily devotions more consistently. But like I said, pandemic boredom has struck me hard. So I looked for other projects:

I washed all my doors, inside and out.
I brushed the dog.
I washed all my baseboards.
I washed the walls in my bathroom.
I cleaned my kitchen cupboard doors.
I washed my ceiling fans.
I erased 4,000 emails in one sitting.
I hand polished my hardwood floors.
I cleaned my closet and one son's closet.
I trimmed two trees in my backyard.
I organized my cassette tapes, matching mixed tapes with covers.

It's all feels meaningless. On a day when it feels like there is not point to anything you do, sit down with twelve chapters of wisdom from a king who calls himself Preacher. Yes, today is a day for Ecclesiastes. Certainly if a king feels his actions are meaningless, I am allowed to feel the same. Wisdom, pleasure, possessions, labor, riches, and even life itself are all called foolish. That just about covers it all. I can imagine the Goodreads reviews if it were published today: Three stars. It had some good parts, but the Preacher needs prozac!

So what's the point?

Let's hear from the preacher himself: "The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person.  For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil" (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, NASB).

I am reminded of another part of the Bible that says, "Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve" (Colossians 3:23-24, NASB).

Even though it's all meaningless, it matters because we choose to follow or disobey God through it. We will be judged according to how our faith plays out in our actions. So, whether this time of sheltering in place is filled with busyness or boredom, I pray my actions bless the Lord.