Download In the World for September 17 here.
NO RESPITE FROM BAD NEWS
For weeks, we’ve heard news of 100 or so wildfires burning throughout the West, taking lives and property with them. Then an 8.2 magnitude earthquake struck southern Mexico, accompanied by eerie lights in the sky and killing scores of people. Hurricane Harvey created disaster in Houston and spawned tornados as it moved inland. After Harvey came Irma, which decimated numerous Caribbean islands before coming ashore in Florida last weekend. The parade of natural disasters is starting to seem never-ending! The prospect of unabated bad news tests the human spirit.
SO WHERE’S THE GOOD NEWS?
It seems as if there’s no respite from bad news, but the millennia-old Sabbath command still stands as good news, helping us weather the storms of life. On a week-by-week basis, a day of rest brings refreshment and restoration to both body and spirit, allowing us time to reflect on God’s care for us. Our Maker knows about the storms we face. He also knows that our fallen human nature will fear that crises will come unabated. A weekly day of rest strengthens our bodies and renews our faith.
- From your perspective, how does an overwhelming spate of bad news affect the human spirit? How do fears of “more to come” compound the problem?
- In what way does Sabbath-keeping help us whether storms, both real and imagined?
- How do you practice the Sabbath principle? Have you had a bad experience from failing to keep a Sabbath? Explain.
- Some people use Bible passages such as Mark 13:7, 8 and Luke 21:25, 26 to support a view that the recent events mentioned above are signs of the end times. How can you tell whether such interpretations are legitimate and which are just another example of “the sky is falling” fear of the future?
—Charles R. Boatman
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