"Office of Trust"

[From 6/25/13]

"All these, who were chosen as gatekeepers at the thresholds, were 212.  They were enrolled by genealogies in their villages.  David & the seer Samuel established them in their office of trust.  So they and their descendants were in charge of the gates of the house of the LORD, that is, the house of the tent, as guards."

(1 Chronicles 9:22-23)

"And Judah was taken into exile in Babylon because of their unfaithfulness."  1 Chronicles 9 is very clear about the theological implications of the exile.  But it also marks the return of God's people to Judah.  This chapter might seem, at first glance, to be "boring."  It lists genealogies & tasks.  Period.

But they are the folks who were the first to return home, and the tasks which were entrusted to them: priests, Levites, gatekeepers, utensil crew (misc. helpers with utensils, furniture, spices, and other worship supplies), and the singers.  Each had an important job to do surrounding the worship of God.

I love the phrase the Chronicler used for the gatekeepers.  He says David & Samuel had established them in their "office of trust."  Of course, that was many, many years before the exile.  But their calling stayed.  Their role in the community's worship transcended time & sinfulness.

May we (may I!) take my role seriously - whatever it is that God has called me to do/be.  Especially those of us who have a role to play in worship... we've been given an office of trust.  May we (I) live up to that calling, even after I've let God down.