Zephaniah 3:10-13 (New International Version)

  ¹⁰ From beyond the rivers of Cush my worshipers, my scattered people, will bring me offerings.

 ¹¹ On that day you will not be put to shame for all the wrongs you have done to me,
       because I will remove from this city those who rejoice in their pride.
       Never again will you be haughty on my holy hill.

 ¹² But I will leave within you the meek and humble,
       who trust in the name of the LORD.

 ¹³ The remnant of Israel will do no wrong; they will speak no lies, nor will deceit be found in their mouths. They will eat and lie down and no one will make them afraid.”

I’m stuck on verses this week!  Believing and understanding are two very different things.  A person may well believe that something greater than themselves exists out in the great beyond, but they may not understand it.  Belief with understanding implies that one has finally employed that one great tool in their arsenal called faith.  I’m guessing that many people walk around each day without fully understanding what is being preached to them at church or what they are reading in their Bibles or other religious materials.  This doesn’t stop us from going through the motions of going to church or from declaring that we are in fact, followers of a certain religion.  What we need to make sure of is that we are employing that faith and that we aren’t content with simply looking like we know what we are doing. 

I liken having faith to being a member of a large choir and singing at every performance without actually knowing all of the words.  We are mouthing them, but not really expressing the feeling behind them because we aren’t terribly sure of what we are saying.  Bear with me, it’s early and I’m only about halfway through my first cup of coffee.  The point I’m trying to make is that there is something deeper that we are supposed to feel when we pray or otherwise connect with our Higher Power.  If we are only going through the motions, we can’t fault Him for not hearing us when we call to Him.  He is watching, but what He sees isn’t something that concerns Him greatly because going through the motions of prayer isn’t the same as actually meaning it.  Okay, okay, so what does this have to do with the verses from Zephaniah?  Well, for me, worship is so much more difficult when I feel that I am not doing it correctly.  Sometimes I sit in church and when I look around, it seems that other people look so much more connected than I am.  On many occasions, this has caused me to wonder if I really, truly have faith.  I’m one of the “meek and humble” who sit behind everyone else and pray and hope that I’m tuned in to the right wavelength and that He is hearing me.  I have to remind myself that God sees past the facade of those who are simply doing and saying what they believe they are expected to do and say.  He knows which of His choir members are truly singing the words and which of us are just blending in with the noise.  He will deliver those who both believe and understand, for we have faith.  He knows our hearts and He knows the degree of our faith whether we are good at showing this or not.

Have a wonderful day today!

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