Cut the Grass Behind the Shed

When I was a young teenager I had the responsibility of mowing the lawn. My chore, and it was a chore to be sure, also included trimming the yard.

 

We did not have a weed-wacker, but rather, hand held grass clippers. It was a real burden to get on my hands and knees to trim the grass along the fence, the trees, the house, the rocks, the ….

 

You probably never would have guessed, but I hated the trimming part of my job.

 

Fortunately for me, there was an area behind the shed that was rarely visited by my parents. I figured out that this area did not need to be trimmed each week. Or even every second week. Or every month….

 

The front yard and the rest of the back yard looked great!

 

Eventually my laziness and lack of integrity was uncovered by my parents. I was told to, "Cut the grass behind the shed."

 

Today’s verses are Isaiah 58:1-12. The prophet Isaiah is talking about fasting. Fasting is a spiritual exercise that helps us focus on God. Israel’s leaders, on the other hand, practiced fasting was a way to demonstrate their piousness to their subjects. Public fasting was a great way to show how they followed the laws of the priests.

 

God, through Isaiah, is telling us that fasting is not an end. It is merely a means to an end. Fasting in public may help us look pious to the world, but it is not a demonstration of our faith. True fasting, Isaiah continues, is to care for people. He explains that we show our faith when we feed the hungry, shelter the wanderer and clothe the naked.

 

When we do these things, then we show our faith.

 

Israel’s leaders were like me as a teenager. I was interested in perception. I was not interested in doing everything that was required of me.

 

Many of us probably are not doing everything that God asks of us. Perhaps we sometimes do God’s work merely to look good. I know that I am sometimes guilty of this as an adult.

 

Perhaps we need to remember to trim the grass behind the shed.