Prayer: O God, give us insight and wisdom to help us understand what is truth. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Diversity, not isolation
(Adapted from Christ in Our Home – daily devotions)
9 Therefore it was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth, and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.
As I remember when I was a child, the story of the Tower of Babel and that everyone spoke the same language. I was shocked with the thinking of the builders that they would be so bold as to build a tower that would reach heaven. If they did, I understood that they would be able to reach God and have greater favor than anyone else. But God did not want them to be so selfish so He caused them to have different languages so they could no longer understand each other and abandon the construction. Therefore, God created diversity and it caused the people to disburse around the world. God does not want us to be isolated.
Diversity is a word that has become a secular “catch word” that the church has bought into. A word now I think misused and now used to divide us and not to bring us together. By focusing on our “differences” are we not pushing us apart? If we want to come together to reach common goals should we not celebrate what we have in common? If we come together would we then have the danger of again talking with one language and begin to think that we could build our own “tower to God?” I believe that in a secular world that this would be a possibility when we begin to think that we can do better than a god.
Our God, however, wants us to have differences because with our differences we have to depend upon God to help us get along. In our differences, we must have love that goes beyond our differences. In these relationships we then learn from our differences and perhaps gain greater insight into God’s will in our own lives. Then we can work to care for one another, not force change upon each other.
Prayer: “Gracious God, I welcome silence to clearly hear your call so I may follow your desire for my life. Amen.”
Genesis 11:1-9
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Tower of Babel
11 Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. 2 And as they migrated from the east, they came upon a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. 3 And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and fire them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone and bitumen for mortar. 4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” 5 The Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which mortals had built. 6 And the Lord said, “Look, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do; nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. 7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language there, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.” 8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. 9 Therefore it was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth, and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.
Gary's Devotion Comments 