Kendall the Fire

It must run in my blood… I like to rummage around. My dad used to like to walk along the road and look for stuff. He said it was for exercise, but he always came back with something that he had found. My grandpa liked to dumpster dive. He came from very little (materially speaking) and couldn’t believe the kind of things people would throw away. Seldom a week would go by that he didn’t discover some “prize” that someone else had discarded.

These days, my rummaging is limited to thrift stores. I like to find good pairs of shoes on the cheap, suitcoats that some one has outgrown or decided no longer fits their style… the occasional book, or piece of glassware. Who knows what I will find–and I guess that is part of the fun of it. With very little money invested and a bit of time, I can discover a treasure. At least, a treasure to me. You know what they say: “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”

I’m glad that the Lord likes to rummage, too. Oh, you didn’t know? He does! The Psalmist David confirms it in the Bible. Psalm 103 says, “Praise the LORD, O my soul, and do not forget all His kind deeds—who redeems your life from the Pit and crowns you with loving devotion and compassion.”

My understanding from those who are far better Hebrew scholars than me is that the word “pit” used here is more than just a hole in the ground, it is the pit “of death” or “the grave.” One could even say “hades” or “hell.” When I was growing up, there was a burn pit on the farm. It was well away from the house. It was stinky and gross. Ironically, there was a rattlesnake den near the pit. I guess snakes (serpents?) and pits go together! One thing was for sure, you certainly didn’t want to go down into the pit.

From his home in heaven, Jesus saw us–all of us–in a pit that was inescapable. We couldn’t possibly get out of the trap into which our sins and disobedience had placed us. What did he do? He dove right in. He entered the filth of humanity and took our grimy sins upon himself by dying on the cross. Thankfully, God did not leave him in “the Pit.” God raised him up to life again and crowned him “Lord of all.” Having entered the pit himself, Jesus raised us out of it WITH HIM! Look at the end of verse 4 in Psalm 103, the Lord “crowns you with loving devotion and compassion.” By simply exercising a little faith we can be not only cleaned up, but crowned… made to be kings and priests–joint heirs with Jesus. I hope a day doesn’t go by that I fail to remember from where the Lord had has rescued me… the pit, the dumpster, the prospect of hell. Thank you, Jesus!