My wife has a niece who for several years worked as one of the demonstrators at Williamsburg, Va.  She played the role of someone who lived in the 17^th – 19^th centuries.  She left that position this summer and suffered the uncertainty of being between jobs.   She applied at various places and was told she was over-qualified.

One day she posted a confession and a confession of faith on Facebook. “Glad my pal reminded me to leave it in God’s hands: worries and insecurities during this process.  I may stink at it sometimes, but that’s what faith is all about.”

After taking a couple of part time jobs, she landed a position at Jamestown, the early 17^th century settlement on the James River.

In psalm 146 we read: “Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in Yahweh…”   As my wife’s niece wrote, “That’s what faith is all about.”  Leave it in God’s hands.  We may stink at it sometimes, but our God is the one who made heaven and earth and “raises up those who are bowed down.”

No one was more bowed down than Lazarus in the Gospel lesson, lying at the rich man’s gate covered with sores hoping for scraps from the rich man’s table.  His only attendants were the roaming dogs who licked his oozing sores.  But he was the one whom the angels carried to Abraham’s side.

Prayer: God of glory and power, happy indeed are those who have put their trust in you.  Shine the brightness of your light upon us, that we may love you always with a pure heart and praise you forever; through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.