THINK

Deuteronomy 10:12-22; Psalm 147 Praise the lord, Jerusalem; Matthew 17:22-27

As we continue to read Moses' farewell address in the book of Deuteronomy, it is important to remember that Moses is trying to instill in their hearts and minds the beauty of what God has done for them. He is trying to get them to remember, to recall, to let the past events soak in to their hearts and minds so that as they move forward they do so with courage and fidelity.

HE does this in a large part because many of those who experienced the saving power of God were no longer with them. The generation that witness God's saving help had perished in the desert and the new generation was unschooled in God's ways.

Moses is trying to instill in these young hearts and young minds who God is and what he expects and how to live a life of honor.

This is the context of the words of Deuteronomy. Moses the great teacher is trying to pass on the knowledge and the faith, the reality of God who is alive.

Thus, we encounter these words today, "And now Israel what does the Lord, your God, ask of you but to fear the Lord, your God and follow his ways exactly, to love and serve the Lord, your God with all your heart and all your soul, to keep the commandments and statues of the Lord which I enjoin on you today for your own good? Think! The heavens, even the highest heavens, belong to the Lord, your God,a s well as the earth and everything on it. Yet in his love for your fathers the Lord was so attached to them as to choose you, their descendants, in preference to all other peoples, as indeed he has now done...."


Direct your attention to one little word in the above saying of Moses: THINK!

Think! What a novel idea. In other words, Moses invites them to let reality direct their lives. Life must be about what is real. It is an invitation to keep it real. Reality is about being chosen by God. This is where life becomes abundant.

In my previous assignment, the principal of the school had a sign on her desk. Every time anyone would sit in the desk they would be faced with this little acronym: T.H.I.N.K.

T->Is it true
H->is it helpful
I->is it inspiring
N->is it necessary
K->is it kind

The first part determines the rest. IS it true. Is it real. Only then can life begin to flourish.

This is why Moses invites the new generation to THINK!

IT is certainly not a bad place for us to start as well. When we lose sight of reality then we are lost in insanity. Moses wants them to remain sane and what is sanity but God's election and God's love.

So today, stop and THINK! Be BLessed.

St. Dominic pray for us.