8 Hilkiah the high priest told Shaphan the court secretary, “I have found the book of the law in the LORD’s temple,” and he gave the book to Shaphan, who read it. … 10 Then Shaphan the court secretary told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book,” and Shaphan read it in the presence of the king. … 2 Kings 22:8, 10
Companions,
This is not a bible passage that we see printed on a plaque or on a list of favorite verses; but the Bible records real time and history and tells it like it was – and is. The Book of the Law had been lost for many decades and had been found amongst the rubble of the Temple while doing some restoration. It is easy to put something aside and then reap the phrase, “out of sight, out of mind”. We have a much better phrase Companions, “Attend at the Altar”. Each meeting we open the Bible as our great and guiding light to help us keep God’s holy precepts from being lost amongst the rubble of our minds. Ritual is not just for show but the way our fraternity has planned to persevere in the Word of God as the rule and guide of our conduct as men.
O Lord, may our faith be firmly grounded in your word, our understanding divinely inspired, our desires pure and our hearts ever fixed on you. Amen.
Jack A. Holloway
I. Associate Grand Chaplain