Of GOD and gods … and the IRS.

Here’s a crude but-not-inaccurate definition of a god (small “g”) – anything that holds great power over us.

And here’s an interesting thought experiment, using that definition – what are the first things that come to your mind?

We’ll wait.

….

Waiting …

… listening to “The Girl of Ipanema” (you imagine your elevator music, we’ll imagine ours).

How’d you do?

We’ll go first.  Here’s our list, in no particular order:

The IRS, the IRS, the IRS, the IRS, and the IRS.  And these days, the FBI and CIA.  And Homeland Insecurity. 

Did we mention the IRS?

Ok, we have a few other items on our list.

Going back aways, moving out of Chicago was a god – “We won’t be happy until we figure a way to get out of the city” – that sort of thing.  It was OK to want to move to a better environment to raise our daughters; it was not OK to have our happiness and peace-of-mind contingent on that.

More recently, obsessing over the scheming of globalist whackos.  Essentially letting the likes of George Soros and Bill Gates rob our peace.

And then there are the little gods of life – as in, “the only thing good about today will be the happy hour.”   Really anything that involves thoughts like, “I will only be happy if __________,” or, “today is a lost cause because of ___________,” or, “this is almost as bad as the IRS.”  You get the idea.

Where’s all this going?

This Sunday’s Gospel brings us Jesus asking that all-important question – “who do you say that I am?”

As we know, He poses that question to each of us – individually.  And He is paying attention to our answer.  And so, we do our best to answer like Peter, “You are the Son of the living God” – which is to say, “You are God” – which is to say, “You are MY God.”

But you know, there’s a photo-negative of that question that is just as important – Jesus could just as well be asking us, “what else do you say is god?”  

And that’s what we’ll look at this week (and in tomorrow’s video) – those pesky things that are crowding into our life where Jesus ought to be – with, perhaps, some surprising observations.

Blessings on your journey with Christ –

Steve and Karen Smith

Postscript:  “Who do you say that I AM?”  Mt 16:13-20

Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?"

They replied, "Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"

Simon Peter said in reply, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

Jesus said to him in reply, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.  For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.  And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.  I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.  Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

Then he strictly ordered his disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.