Shaken… But Not Stirred! …Hello Hump Day readers…and no, this is not about devotion on James Bond although one of these days I just may make a good martini and have it!! Today I have a devotion that I think fits right into this Lenten Season. Why? Because Jesus’ ministry had really started shaking the status quo and little by little those whose happy lives and authority were also shaken.

As we get closer to Jesus’ trial and subsequent crucifixion, the Pharisees are at work. They are buzzing with ways to get rid of this beloved teacher; they were planning their own type of insurrection (it probably wasn’t on January 6—but who knows?) They were also trying their best to try and ruin the good name of Jesus and debunk his miracles and even worse, try every bait to catch him in a lie or breaking some idiot rules. And you know what—it worked!

Casting doubt so you can remain in power and authority is nothing new. Even nature lets us know that we can try to tame it but we never will. Ask the folks in the paths of wildfires; or the pilot suddenly stuck in shear winds and ice; or the captain of the ship who is face-to-face with an iceberg. There’s a lot of shakin’ going on indeed.

Back in the 60’s, the world’s largest earthquake called Valdivia occurred in Chile. Many small villages were shaken apart and millions of people scampered to find shelter. Sadly, the death toll was stammering and the earth in that area looked like scorched wood. Little was left. When the shaking finally subsided, those who were kept safe in shelters hesitated to come out; little by little they began to emerge and see the devastation.

However, in one of the smallest villages those who survived ventured out to find one of the oldest women of the village sitting on what was left of a huge tree, smiling contently, with her hands raised in the air and her voice humming a song of—joy—yes, joy! This woman was revered for her wisdom and faith, especially by the elders. One of the younger men looked at her and blurted out in almost indignation, “Village Mother, why aren’t you afraid? How can you sing and be so happy? There is nothing to be happy about!!” The small gathering of people were upset as the young man was speaking with no honor to this beloved elder. “Shhh, don’t speak to her like this” they told him.

Ignoring their scolding he again shouted, “Mother, please answer me!!” Now the crowd was completely quiet, their heads bowed. Then Village Mother stood, and said, “I am not afraid, young man.” Perplexed he said “Why? Look around you, everything is ruined.” She came up to him and put her hand on his shoulder so he could calm down and take a breath. Then she replied, “My son, I rejoice to know that I have a God who can shake the world and in the next second stop it. I rejoice that I have a God who holds me in his hands and nothing—not even an earthquake—can snatch me out of his hands.”

We are not told the rest of the story of this young man but I think we can assume her calm and loving presence and words of strength and promise was just what he and the survivors needed! Are we not often like this young man? Our lives get shaken, sometimes to the point of being broken and torn apart, yet if we truly look, we’ll see that we are still being held in God’s mighty hands.

The writer of Hebrews 12:28 (Message) reminds us: “Do you see what we’ve got? An unshakable kingdom! And do you see how thankful we must be? Not only thankful, but brimming with worship, deeply reverent before God.”

Charles Spurgeon once said, “the truth is that there is nothing stable beneath these rolling skies.” How true, yet how often do we put stock in so many things in life that can be destroyed in an instant? For instance: Wenden—a little agricultural town west of Phoenix AZ, has been wiped out 4 times by floods. FEMA gives them new homes and instructions to take care of the huge and powerful Centennial Wash by keeping it cleaned from salt tamarisk, weeds and garbage as this keeps it from deadly flooding, but they refuse to do the work. So, after the 4th flood, no more Federal dollars were coming, they were on their own. What did they do? Most of the town moved…downstream.

God shakes things when they need to be shaken and we see that throughout the Bible and especially in Jesus’ ministry. How do we respond? Some just keep “moving downstream” into danger, but others see the power of God who can shake the world and yet keep them upright because of their faith. They are not stirred with doubt and fear. Just think of Good Friday many centuries ago…the ground indeed shook and people came out of their graves! I still try to imagine what those in the crowd must have thought at the sight of it all!!

There is no doubt God is shaking this complacent and increasingly faithless world. Yet, as children of God, we have this promise of a firm foundation and no circumstance can rob us from being secure in God’s hands. When your life is being shaken, don’t fret, instead be encouraged like Village Mother–she knew that ‘the One who formed the foundations of the earth held her firmly in his strong hands’. Like her, go ahead and smile with content, then raise your hands and your voice with praise to the God of grace, mercy, hope and love…AMEN!