Cornerstone

Exodus 17:9-16 (15)

Navy officer, Lt. Commander Mike Christian was one of the brave but unfortunate POW’s during the Vietnam war. One day he began to gather pieces of red and white cloth. He used a piece of bamboo to make a needle and laboriously sewed a United States flag on the inside of his blue prison shirt.

Each night the naval officer would take his shirt off and hang it on the wall. The prisoners would all stand proudly before it, salute and say the pledge of allegiance.

One day the guards happened to come into the prison cell as the prisoners recited the pledge. The flag was torn from the wall. The man without a shirt was the obvious culprit. Mike Christian was dragged from the cell and was beaten for hours.

Later after the prisoners were asleep, Mike set under the lone light bulb in the cell. Around him were the scraps of white and red cloth. He was again sewing an American flag into his shirt.

Following the battle against the Amalekites, Moses built an altar of allegiance. He named it Jehovah Nissi which means God is my banner. The altar symbolized his allegiance but in reality we need no artificial remembrance. God alone is our banner. It is under His standard that we live and move and have our being.

Dr. Gayle Woods

Psalm 72:17-19 (17)

The knight kneeling before his lord is a picture that brings feelings of nobleness to our mind. The person of Asian decent bowing the head and stooping to those to whom he wishes to show respect causes us to have feelings of admiration and appreciation. The European man kneeling on one knee and taking the hand of the one he loves brings feelings of romance to mind.

In other cultures to kneel before a superior, someone you love, or someone you respect is expected protocol. It is something that is demanded be all. It is something that is ingrained into the training of the person.

In the American individualistic culture, kneeling has not taken on the significance that it has carried in other parts of the world. No American citizen would ever think to kneel before the President of the United States let alone before their landlord. Could this be why some do not like to kneel in prayer to God?

The Psalmist spoke of blessing the Lord. The Hebrew word he used indicates the act of kneeling in an act of reverence. This is the attitude of heart that is expressed in the life of all who love Him. We bless God. We worship Him in our humble submission. It is a time when we express that we recognize who He is and who we are.

Dr. Gayle Woods