Sunday, March 30, 2025  

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Today's Scripture
Habakkuk 3:3; 2:1–4

God came from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise.

I will stand at my watch-post,
and station myself on the rampart;
I will keep watch to see what he will say to me,
and what he will answer concerning my complaint.
Then the Lord answered me and said:
Write the vision;
make it plain on tablets,
so that a runner may read it.
For there is still a vision for the appointed time;
it speaks of the end, and does not lie.
If it seems to tarry, wait for it;
it will surely come, it will not delay.
Look at the proud!
Their spirit is not right in them,
but the righteous live by their faith. (NRSV)

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Reflection

I love the musical Hamilton. I made it my default album on iTunes and memorized the opening song:

How does a bastard, orphan, son of a whore
and a Scotsman, dropped in the middle of
a forgotten spot in the Caribbean by providence,
impoverished, in squalor,
grow up to be a hero and a scholar?

Of course, there is something strange — and my wife and sons do not hesitate to tell me — when a middle-aged white man raps aloud.

While I admire many of Alexander Hamilton’s qualities, I especially love how he constantly wrote. “How do you write like tomorrow won’t arrive?” sings the chorus at the end of Act I. “How do you write like you need it to survive?”

Hamilton wrote nonstop correspondence on behalf of General Washington during the Revolutionary War; he drafted much of the Federalist Papers, which argued for the colonists to adopt the Constitution; and, of course, he wrote frequent notes to nemesis Aaron Burr.

Words, words, words! Hamilton knew it was words that enabled our American founders’ democratic vision to become reality.

The prophet Habakkuk, who lived in the seventh century BC, also learned about the importance of words. In this book of the Bible, Habakkuk has a dialogue with God: In chapter 1, Habakkuk complains to God, and in chapter 2, God responds: “Write the vision; make it plain ... so that a runner may read it.” Words — God’s words — matter.

May each of us heed God’s advice to Habakkuk and not only be God’s heart and hands in this world but also God’s pen.

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Prayer
Dear God, may I use plain and clear words to share your glory, praise, and love with others. Amen.

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Written by Phil Calian, Member of Fourth Presbyterian Church

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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