Pit Digging - August 29, 2010

Daily Lectionary for August 29, 2010
Psalm 7
Job 11:1-9, 13-20
Revelation 5:1-14
Matthew 5:1-12

Psalm 7
Has a bit about what God will do to those who don't repent, but am drawn to v. 15-16.  "They make a pit, digging it out, and fall into the hole that they have made.  Their mischief returns upon their own heads, and on their own heads violence descends."  This sounds less to me like God punishing and more like people living with the consequences of their choices.  If my choices are not in step with God's will, and if I'm making these choices willfully and rebelliously I am digging a pit so I can fall into it.

Matthew 5:1-12
Reading the Beatitudes through the lens of the two verses from Psalm 7 mentioned above.  Just as behavior that is out of step with God's will distances us from experiencing God in growth producing ways and creates difficulties (dig a hole and fall in), so behavior that is in step with God's will draws us closer to experiencing God in growth producing ways and results in mutliple blessings.

So...a good question to keep before us - are we doing more pit digging or are we moving towards being more in sync with God's will?