Uplook - April 1, 2023

Happy April 1st.
 
According to History.com, April Fools’ Day has been celebrated for several centuries by different cultures but its exact origins remain a mystery.  Some suggest that it dates back to 1582, when France switched from the Julian calendar (which began with the spring equinox near April 1) to the Gregorian calendar which begins January 1. People slow to get the news or failing to recognize the new year date change we called “April fools” and became the recipients of pranks and jokes.
Traditions of playing small hoaxes or practical jokes and shouting April Fools at the end mostly bring smiles.  The issue of being foolish from a Biblical perspective isn’t anything to joke about. The Psalmist states,
The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: There is none that doeth good. Psalm 53:1
The wise author of Proverbs adds,
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: But fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:7
In and among the fun of pranks and jokes may we not lose sight of the seriousness of acknowledging and honoring God in all we do.  May we also embrace wisdom and instruction that we also may be wise and not foolish.   Jesus declared that if we heard his words and ignored them we would be foolish and our houses would not endure the storms of life.
 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: Matthew 7:26 
I am reminded of a quote taken from a journal of Christian missionary Jim Elliott who was martyred in Ecuador in 1956.   He said, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”
This Holy Week may we all hold our lives loosely knowing it is not foolishness to surrender them fully to the Lord.  Jesus gave His life for us and now we have the opportunity to return our lives to him in love, worship, and willing service.  God bless you all.
BB
Rev. William E. McKibben
Senior Pastor