Blue Light Special

How often we look upon God as our last and feeblest resource! We go to him because we have nowhere else to go. And then we learn that the storms of life have driven us, not upon the rocks, but into the desired haven.  George Macdonald

When I was a kid we would often go to the nearest large town with my Mom to shop.  This is often the case when you live in a small town.  We didn’t have much to choose from besides the Piggly Wiggly or Weingarten’s and there was always the TG&Y which is similar to a five and dime.  The local five and dime wasn’t really a good name for the store because by the time I shopped there, nothing in the store cost a nickel or a dime. 

Anyway, we would go to the nearest large town that had a Kmart.  If you are near my age you may remember the “Blue Light Special” at the local Kmart.  The way it worked was there was a blue light on top of a pole.  The light looked like one of those lights on top of a 1970’s police car.  You could see the blue light from anywhere in the store, but to make sure you didn’t miss out on the special they would also get on the overhead speaker and announce the “Blue Light Special”. 

The “Blue Light Special” would be something like buying 2 for 1 or you could get their deli sandwiches for a bargain price.  Although the only thing I remember about their sandwiches were the bread was soggy from sitting in the deli case all day. Anyway the store used this to grab customer’s attention and you could get a bargain at the same time. 

As a kid I always thought the blue light was cool.  I mean it flashed and the light circled and blinked in different directions all in an effort to grab your attention. 

This started me thinking about how God tries to get our attention.  Sometimes he pursues us with great fanfare.  If we read the Bible we find that there is nothing that happens in this world that hasn’t passed through God’s hands first.  Job is the best example I know of where God allowed things to happen to Job through Satan.  How would we have handled the things Job went through if we were in his place?  Loss of our family, possessions, sores covering our body.  Job talks about how he felt abandoned by God during these trying times.  God has a purpose for everything under the sun.  He loves His children and wants what is best for them.  He wants to draw us back to Him.  Sometimes our “Blue Light Special” may be an illness, or a horrible storm that devastates lives.  We live in a fallen world where tragedy will happen.  How we react to the tragedy is what is important.  Will it draw us closer to Him who loves us or push us further away.  The choice is up to us.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, there have been some terrible tragedies in our world and they continue to happen on a daily basis.  I pray for those who have lost loved ones and entire communities to storms or who have lost children to a gunman’s hand.  We live in a fallen world and that means sin has entered our presence.  I praise you for the tragedies in my life that helped to draw me closer to You.  I look forward to the day when You return to make things new again.  Pain and sorrow will pass away one day and I look forward to that will great joy.                     

Scripture: Job: Man’s Frailty and God’s Majesty

But Job answered and said: “How have you helped him who is without power? How have you saved the arm that has no strength? How have you counseled one who has no wisdom? And how have you declared sound advice to many? To whom have you uttered words? And whose spirit came from you? “The dead tremble, those under the waters and those inhabiting them. Sheol is naked before Him, and Destruction has no covering. He stretches out the north over empty space; He hangs the earth on nothing. He binds up the water in His thick clouds, yet the clouds are not broken under it. He covers the face of His throne, and  spreads His cloud over it.  He drew a circular horizon on the face of the waters, at the boundary of light and darkness. The pillars of heaven tremble, and are astonished at His rebuke. He stirs up the sea with His power, and by His understanding He breaks up the storm. By His Spirit He adorned the heavens; His hand pierced the fleeing serpent.  Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways, and how small a whisper we hear of Him! But the thunder of His power who can understand?”  Job 26:1-14