Be heavy on my heart and mind tonight, Father, as I sit before You. May I communicate what is important to You, not me. Amen.

Luke 9:1-6 (<<click to read the passage)

As we continue through this time of global pandemic, it is shocking to see the number of people who have a total disregard for the dangerousness of it all.

At one point yesterday, as we ventured out for much-needed supplies, we had just gotten out of the van and a couple of young men had met up to get groceries themselves. One was wearing gloves and the other piped off with an air of flippancy, “Afraid you’re going to catch it?” The other guy basically expressed a better-safe-than-sorry response and offered his friend a pair of gloves. He refused, acting like it was a waste of time.

COVID-19 could be a death toll for many but not all. But every single one of us has an unescapable death sentence hanging over our heads. At some point, we will die. Hebrews 9:27 (NLT) declares,

And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment…

We cannot escape it. We can’t talk our way out of it. We can’t bargain our way out of it. We can’t buy or earn or bribe or cry our way out of it. Death is inevitable.

But…and this is a very big BUT…death is not the end. Yes, it’s the end of our earthly bodies but our souls are eternal and for those who have given themselves over to Jesus, glorified bodies will be had by all!

At the end of Jesus’ directions for His disciples’ ministry, He said,

“…as for all those who do not welcome you, when you leave that city, shake the dust off your feet [breaking all ties with them] as a testimony against them [that they rejected My message].”

Shaking the dust of certain towns from their feet had deep cultural implications. Pious Jews would do this after passing through Gentile cities to show their separation from Gentile practices. If the disciples were to shake the dust of a Jewish town from their feet, it would show their separation from Jews who rejected their Messiah. This action also would show that the disciples were not responsible for how the people responded to their message. Neither are we responsible if we have carefully and truthfully presented Christ but our message is rejected. Like the disciples, we must move on to others whom God desires to reach. *

As I have said before, we can’t take it personally if people reject our message of hope. But we must certainly not stop passing through those “cities”, on a regular basis if need be, for seeds will be planted by our obedience and we never know when one will take root. The Apostle Paul assures us in 1 Corinthians 3:7 (NLT),

It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow.

Shake the dust off but don’t hesitate to let the dust collect again!

*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation

Apr 1, 2020, Wed, 7:54 pm