The Fool Says ...
Scripture Reading — Psalm 14
The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
—Psalm 14:1
Some time ago someone who was raised in a Christian family told me that she no longer believed in God. She had just come home from a funeral, and what she had heard there clinched it for her. Her teenage son, standing next to her, said that he no longer believed in God either.
The question: How does it happen that someone brought up in a Christian home could come to that conclusion?
A recent news article reported on a group of some 400 baby boomers who came together to sing some of the psalms and hymns they had been taught as children. They came not because they believed in what the songs said, but simply to remember their past. The article stated that these singers had been raised in Christian homes but had given up on the faith of their parents. One person was quoted as saying that some of the lyrics they were singing were sheer nonsense.
How sad! How arrogant! How foolish! Sad, because they chose to go through life without God’s nearness. Arrogant, because they refused to accept what God has revealed to us in the Bible and in creation. And foolish, because without God people have no hope.
Pray for all who refuse to believe in the Lord. Take every opportunity to tell them about the living God, who reaches out in love through his Son, the Lord Jesus. Show through your life that God is alive!
Lord, give us the faith to believe, and help us to show others that you are alive in our lives. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
About the author — Arthur J. Schoonveld
Rev. Art Schoonveld is a retired minister in the Christian Reformed Church. Before retiring in 2001, he served churches in California, Illinois, and Michigan. Since his retirement he has worked part-time for the denomination and has served as an interim pastor. Art and his wife, Anita, have four children and nine grandchildren.
Start your day with quick daily devotions.
See God's love, power, presence, and purpose in your life every day!