“If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world. You will experience all these blessings if you obey the Lord your God:” Deuteronomy 28:1-2
“But if you refuse to listen to the Lord your God and do not obey all the commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overwhelm you:” Deuteronomy 28:15
Leap year is a funny way of keeping the calendar in sync with the seasons. We tack on an extra day every four years so that summer, fall, winter, and spring stay within the months we are accustomed to. The earth completes a full circle around the sun in precisely 31,556,952 seconds, which equates to 365.2425 days. If we didn’t do a leap year every four years, in a few hundred years the seasons would be flip-flopped, summer for winter, fall for spring. We must do a “course correction” in order to keep planting in the spring months and harvesting in the fall. Now imagine if human society didn’t have an accurate calendar or clock, just provincial guidelines, and unstandardized measures. It would lead to chaos and the result would be confusion, disorder, and suffering.
God doesn’t want us to live any part of our lives confused, in fear, or in pain. In Genesis, all Adam and Eve had to do was stay away from one tree to remain in God’s Eden of no suffering or death, but they didn’t. And in Deuteronomy God’s people are about to enter a promised land of milk and honey led by Moses who has been their guide and God’s mouthpiece in directing them thus far. But before they make the Jordan River crossing, God wants them to know what will allow them to remain and prosper in the land, and what will get them tossed out and suffer. He spells out clearly what the benefits will be if they follow God’s plan, and what the consequences will be if they choose their own way. Spoiler alert – they went their own way and experienced the curses spelled out. And even then, God didn’t abandon his people.
When any of us go our own way or the way of the world, God’s love, mercy, and faithfulness are greater than any confusion, pain, or terror that happens. In fact, God so loved the world, that he sent his one and only son Jesus (John 3:16), to take our waywardness that results in pain, suffering, and death, and cancels it. Thereby allowing us to remain within God’s everlasting benefits. Jesus is our ultimate course correction. That’s why when Jesus was talking to his disciples, he clearly states, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can be made right again with God except by what God does through me. So get to know me, trust me, and follow me!” (John 14:6) Make this leap year a leap of faith year in the only one who can keep you on course forever.
Questions for reflection:
- What are the experiences and/or patterns of behavior in my life that keep me from placing my full trust in God?
- Do I know how much God really loves me and can I invite Jesus to show me where I need a course correction?
God, help me be aware of any hurts, fears, resentments, and sadnesses that pull me off your way for me. Then gather them and shape them into wisdom, trust, compassion, and joy. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.