There was a time when “How to” books were the rage. They instructed you in how to be successful, popular, admired because of your skills, your complexion, etc. The goal, of course, was to make us look good in the eyes of our friends and the “important” people of the world. The scripture readings for this weekend are strongly suggesting that there is really only one “How to” book to which we really need to pay close attention. The first passage from The Book (Dt 4: 1-2, 6-8) tells us that if we want to become a “great nation” (or a great person because that is what makes up a great nation) then we need to know and follow the statutes and decrees that our God has given us. If we “observe them carefully,” we will be recognized as a wise and intelligent people. The trouble is: we have so many messages from the news and social media bombarding us and telling us something different. They tell us what to wear, where to “hang out,” what to think, what kind of lifestyle to live. Jesus in the Gospel (Matthew 7: ff) is chastising the Pharisees because they have replaced God’s commandments with mere “human traditions.” He says that they “honor me (God) with their lips but their hearts are far from me (God)…teaching as doctrines human precepts.” It is a wise and intelligent person who, hearing the priorities of the world, evaluates them using the wisdom, the statutes, and the decrees that God has given us. A suggestion: Why don’t we begin to evaluate the words, the promises of those running for office in the coming months using the standards that God has given us in His Word. I can’t think of a better rule of measurement to be used to evaluate them. In this way, we will demonstrate that we are “a wise and intelligent people” and, oh yes… we will know how to vote in the next election!                   -Deacon David