Locke Blog

Based on Romans 7 & 8

I was once bound by the law. I knew the law, I knew what I should and should not do. But, I did what I should not do. As a child, if I was told not to do something…

Have you ever started down one path, then you go deeper – until you end up back where you started?  We did this once on a youth camping trip.  We put all of our packs on with tents, food, etc. and left the parking lot and headed down the path. We trusted our leader to get us to our destination.  After about 50 mins of hiking down and up various hills…we noticed a disturbing site – we saw the parking lot that we had just left!!! Some of our first timers were ready to pack up and go home, but we started again and took the correct turn and ended up at the right site and had a great weekend together.

I started thinking about Sin and Forgiveness. I know what sin is: It is more than just right & wrong.  It is anything that separates us from God. But, for some reason I went down the rabbit hole on various sins.  You can search for yourself and find all sorts of answers: 667 sins with references, 500 Old Testament sins, 7 Deadly sins, root of all

Romans 13: 1-7

This reading in Romans was my devotion for this morning (written Mar 4, 2025).  I was a little surprised to read it, especially in light of what is going on in our political landscape at this time.  With the president’s address tonight, I thought I would share a couple of thoughts on this.

First, Paul was familiar with Roman authority and their prisons. We know he had been arrested prior to this letter to Rome.  Yet, here he is talking about being subject to government authorities.  Read it when you get a chance, it outlines why it is our responsibility to support our government.

Second, I do not always agree with the direction of a president’s choosing.  We have had some very corrupt ones in the past and probably will in the future. BUT, as Christians – we are to pray for our president and support them. 

My hope is that we will all pray and support and guide our leaders.  We will not always agree with them, but we have faith that God will work through them!  If we as Christians can display this love and respect, maybe the world will take notice and we will see a change in our political differences!!!

Read and study this a little – it will be eye opening…