Tuesday, September 21, 2010

The Importance of Community

Scripture Verse that Caught my attention today: Daniel 8:27 So I, Daniel, was overcome and lay sick for some days; then I arose and went about the king’s business. But I was dismayed by the vision and did not understand it.

Observation: Daniel, the great interpreter of dreams and visions, had difficulty figuring out his own vision.

Application: One of the things I’ve noticed over the years is that I tend to be reasonably good at helping other people find some clarity in their respective situations but it’s not always particularly easy to find clarity my own situations. In reading today’s passages I’m struck by the thought that perhaps even Daniel had similar issues.

The next logical question is whether or not this condition (the ability to assist others in diagnosing their own situations while struggling to diagnose our own) is wide-spread. I suspect that it wide-spread…and that lends credence to the Biblical concept of community.

Although individuals in the Bible are sometimes set ‘apart’ for particular kinds of ministry, they are not usually separated from the community.

This, it seems to me, is as it should be.

Prayer: thanks for the various ‘communities’ of which we are a part. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Scripture Readings today included: Daniel 7-8, Psalm 137, and Luke 4)

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