Tiny Devotional for Friday, 10-29-2021

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, ham and cheese omelet, with salsa. 

The king gives stability to the land by justice,
But a person who takes bribes ruins it.
Proverbs 29:4, NASB


In the US, there are laws forbidding bribes to officials, and severe sanctions for violators. This is not the case elsewhere; two of my (many) drop-dead-gorgeous daughters experienced this personally, when they visited another continent. Their car was stopped by the police, until the driver  paid the correct bribe amount. How did he know the correct amount? He asked the cop, “What do you want?”

Low-level bribery might exist there, but high-level bribery couldn’t happen here, right?

Wrong.

In my lifetime, a sitting Vice-President resigned when it was discovered he had taken kickbacks while in office. 

Never happen again, right?

Wrong.

Consulting/speaking fees; book deals; corporate directorships: these are all LEGAL ways wealth is transferred to those with political influence.  Sometimes the office holder is the recipient,  sometimes a family member or friend, BUT: these are investments with an expectation of returns.

So: have bribes ruined our country, made it unstable? That is NOT an easy question to answer! On the surface, it looks bad, as in: 

IT’S GONNA BLOW!!!!

It was gonna blow 50 years ago, too; the five years between 1966-1971 (Ball of Confusion) were MUCH worse than 2016-2021.

I can’t detail my reasoning (300 words!), because I must say this:

  • Do not lose heart! 
  • If necessary, it’s okay to disconnect from news. Remember: “if it bleeds, it leads;” the media ONLY reports disasters.
  • Finally, here’s how we are to live: 
    • Do justice, 
    • Love mercy, and 
    • Walk humbly with your God.

Peace be on your household.

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