A GOD FOR EVERY DAY

For in him we live, and move, and have our being… Acts 17:28

I’ve just returned from a delightful trip to our nation’s capitol with my daughter-in-law Brooks and grandchildren William and Caroline. We landed and hit the ground running, making the Air and Space Museum our first destination. I marveled at the progress made from the Wright Brothers’ first flying machine to the tiny space capsule housing our brave astronauts and remembered that the first “meal” taken in outer space was the holy Eucharist. And then watching the stars and planets and all the various systems fly at us at breathtaking speeds in the planetarium: “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?” (Psalm 8:3, 4)
Walking back and forth between museums and our hotel was a visual reminder of our nation’s place in this global society. Restaurants offered dishes from many countries while unfamiliar languages swirled about us. We met people from everywhere, and our drivers all had different homelands. One of our drivers had Jesus stickers all over her dash and told us she was a Christian from Ethiopia. Everyone had a story. “After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.” (Revelation 7:9)
In the Museum of Natural History, the array of animal life, its variety, size, and color called for appreciation of a Creator not only with great imagination but also a wonderful sense of design, color, and humor. Who else but God would give mama kangaroos pockets for their babies? (That might have been helpful for the mother who forgot her baby in the airport’s waiting room last week.) Or the fish who live in the deep sea and are almost transparent for safety’s sake? Think of giraffes whose long necks allow them to nibble on the tree tops… “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this.” ( Job 12:7-9)
Just at the point of our being totally exhausted, eight-year-old Caroline would run ahead of us with a huge toothy grin and twirl and spin her way down the sidewalk, bringing laughter and smiles. Reminding us of why we were there and the joy of being. “…a little child shall lead them.” (Isaiah 11:6)

 

The Museum of American History evidenced divine protection against overwhelming odds as this nation was created. Our forefathers battled enemies stronger, better equipped, and better trained. But their reliance was on God. At Valley Forge, Isaac Potts discovered General Washington praying in the woods, entreating God’s mercy when all seemed to be lost: “Such a prayer I never heard from the lips of man. I left him alone praying.” “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” (Jeremiah 33:3)
Such stories were repeated multiple times: In the War of 1812, the British Navy bombarded Ft. McHenry, and yet only one life was lost after the battle. Throughout our history, people have prayed for this nation. Lincoln issued nine calls for prayer and fasting during his time in office, and on it goes. We know of the Miracle of Dunkirk, and I remember the prayers we all prayed for our boys (and my brother) in Vietnam. “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.” (Psalms 91:1, 2)
Even the monuments reflect God’s sovereignty. At the top of the Washington Monument are the words, “Laus Deo” (“Praise be to God”). Throughout the Capitol there are references to God and faith, and the nation’s motto, “In God We Trust,” is engraved on a plaque on the wall. President Lincoln’s second inaugural speech is carved into his Memorial in which Lincoln mentions God fourteen times and quotes the Bible twice. The Jefferson Memorial is filled with Jefferson’s references to God. The Supreme Court has images of Moses with the Ten Commandments while all sessions of the Court open with the “Courts Marshal announcing: God save the United States and this honorable court.” “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.” (Psalms 33:12)
Our visit to Mt. Vernon, Washington’s beautiful country estate was initially chaotic as hundreds (if not thousands) of school children descended on the gates about the time we arrived. After the initial onslaught of students, we discovered that farm demonstrations were limited to small groups. (Whenever we felt overwhelmed, God brought quiet and respite.) We learned of our first president’s humility, ingenuity, and remarkable leadership skills. There is debate about his religious inclinations, but his practices certainly demonstrated a man of great integrity and charity. “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8)
At the close of each day, we unanimously agreed that the day had been wonderful. And then we awoke to the news that our flights had been cancelled due to the grounding of certain aircraft. But even then, our God who strengthened our nation’s founders and guided them in creating this unique experiment in democracy, remembered us and made provision. Brooks and the children got a bonus day in D.C., and I returned in time to host a missionary brunch in my home the following morning. “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19)
I love knowing our heavenly Father is with us every single moment for every single occasion, not just the good times. He’s a God for every day.
Thank you, Father, for reminders of you wherever we go.

LOVE ONE ANOTHER*

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.  John 15:12  (NIV)

 

Sermons are all around us—if we have eyes to see and ears to hear.  The totality of Jesus’ life was a seismic paradigm shift from the letter to the spirit of the law.  When he said, “Love one another,” he was pointing toward an internal work of the Spirit that would carry believers beyond the obligatory going the first mile and perfunctory forgiveness into abandoned display of God’s love through us.

That’s what we saw that twilight in Uganda.  I had asked our guide if we could please see some lions, a lion?  We traveled through miles of dusty roads cut through the game preserve, and then we stopped.  Just in front of our van was a gorgeous male lion at the side of the road under a bush only yards from us.  His tail politely, but effectively, stretched across the path blocking our further approach.  In his golden aura, he quietly surveyed us and his kingdom.

Momentarily, a second lion, as splendid as the first, arrived, and the lions embraced.  Their greeting was warm, full of affection, and deeply moving.  Not the National Geographic attack that we’d been programmed to see.

Four years ago when the first lion was found by park rangers, his leg had been caught in a poacher’s trap, and infection had already gone to the bone.  The resident vet determined that the leg had to be amputated to save the lion’s life.  And so it was that the king of the jungle was no longer able to hunt or protect himself.  But his brother appeared, and for four years the brother has walked with him and guarded him, and the females have brought him food.

We watched in silence.  Loving one another.  That’s what we saw.

 

Father, you’ve told us that the animals will teach us.  Help us to love the weak, the marginalized, the needy, and all those you’ve put in our lives—just as you love us.  In Jesus our Lord.  AMEN.

SWEET JOSEPHINE

But ask the animals, and they will teach you…that the hand of the Lord has done this?
In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.  Job 12:7, 9, 10

Today I came across a picture of Josephine.  It evoked nostalgia and reminded me of my adventure with her and the bond we formed in months of working in the capital of Uganda, Kampala.  Being away from home so long, I was missing Albert and Victoria and the companionship that came with their unconditional love.

 

 

The night was rainy, one of those times when the skies seemed to be falling and the rain drops stung when they hit you.  It was impossible to sleep.  In the middle of that thunderous monsoon, I heard a sound of desperate crying coming from somewhere near.  I wanted to pretend I hadn’t heard that piercing sound and tried to go back to sleep.  But the moans wouldn’t stop.

Finally, I put on my robe, picked up my umbrella and my torch (flashlight), and headed out the door to locate the source of the cries.  Louder and louder they came as I approached the huge rubbish pit in the banana trees just below my terrace.  I shined my light all around the bottom of the hole, and about fourteen feet down, I saw a terrified dog who had fallen in during her nightly quest for food.  I called to her, but there was nothing I could do until the household woke up, and I could get a ladder.

Several hours later, the house lights came on, so I knocked on the back door and explained the dilemma and need for help.  Gilbert and Jackson put on their rain slickers, got a ladder, and followed me.  The three of us were eventually able to subdue and get the frightened animal out of the hole.  As soon as she reached the top, she sped to a place near the back of the compound where we discovered she had four newborn babies.  (Later, in the morning we discovered two more babies who had fallen into the nearby latrine and needed rescuing.)

Josephine (so named because we had pulled her out of the pit) became my constant companion anytime I left my apartment on the compound.  We gave the babies biblical names (Joseph, Daniel, Jeremiah, etc.) referring to those who had also had “pit” experiences.  The house boys helped with feeding Josephine—the neighboring guest house saved us all their scraps—Josephine didn’t like commercial dog food.  And various neighbors eventually adopted all the babies.

Whenever I needed a little reminder of home, Josephine was there.  She and the babies ran to greet me anytime I was within viewing distance of their little makeshift home.  She changed the entire culture of the compound in a place that wasn’t accustomed to having animals as pets.  And she shared that same unconditional love with all our visitors.

The day came for me to pack up and begin my twenty-seven hour trip home.  I couldn’t bear to tell Josephine I was leaving, but somehow she knew and came up to my apartment to haunt the doorway all day long.  Then she disappeared.  When my driver appeared to take me to the airport that night, I saw a movement in the bushes.  It was Josephine.  She had come out to say goodbye.  And then she was gone.

In all my later visits back to my temporary home in Kampala, Josephine remembered me and was always as happy to see me as I her.  The boys kept their promise and watched over and loved her.  This past year I got a message that Josephine was sick, and the vet was called (an amazing occurrence).  Josephine was loved and buried within the compound.

Am I romanticizing to think that God sent her just to bring me companionship at a lonely time?  That she stayed to demonstrate unconditional love to the other family members in the compound?  And that Josephine changed a tiny piece of culture?

 

Father, I am so grateful for all those demonstrations of love you shower on us.  Thank you especially for Albert and Victoria, for Edward and Frances, and for sweet Josephine.  They have been wonderful blessings from you who created all things.  AMEN.

LITTLE THINGS

For who hath despised the day of small things? Zechariah 4:10 (KJV)

Every morning at the same time, Frances and Edward (my mismatched dogs) and I leave our house through the wooden gate at the drive. We cross the road and head for the nearby nature preserve—but that’s not the goal of our walk. We make a right onto Crescent. The traffic is still light, and the sun hasn’t yet peeped over the trees. Soon we approach a tall white Frank Lloyd Wright-ish home that’s set in the woods, and we pause so the puppies can have a little drink at the pond—but that’s not the goal of our walk. Further on, I see the fairy-like playscape that a young family has created for their children after pulling down a century-old three-story home—but that’s not the goal of our walk.

We slow our pace as we get closer to the path that crosses the preserve, and we walk back and forth. It will not be long now. And within minutes I hear a vehicle coming around the curve, slowing as it approaches. This is what I’ve been waiting for.

My son and two small grandchildren take this route to school every day, and if I leave at a certain time, our paths intersect. The windows of the car roll down, and I see three sets of hands waving, two very small and one larger. Greetings and smiles are exchanged. And then we part. It’s only a moment of time. It’s just a small thing. But it’s intentional sharing and reinforcing love.

How little effort it takes for lives to be touched with God’s love. Being present. Offering a smile. Giving a hug. Pouring out and giving away the joy he pours into us with abandon. Little things that bring great joy.

Father of all creation, you shower us with so many precious little things that brighten each day.  We all have something to give.  Help us, who have so freely received from you, freely give. In Jesus’ name. AMEN.

THOUGHTS ABOUT ANIMALS

But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you… Job 12:7 (NIV)
As an animal lover, I’ve always been intrigued by the many references to animals in the Bible. From the time my brother and I were small we had turtles, birds, fish, dogs, and cats, and my children had many of the same varieties including white mice. Now my daily companions are two sweet mismatched dogs.
A donkey was used to deliver God’s message to a stubborn prophet (Numbers 22); every species was saved during the Flood (Genesis 6:19); cows were a sign of the times to Pharaoh (Genesis 41); another donkey carried Jesus into Jerusalem (Mark 11); doves were symbolic throughout the Bible; a big fish transported Jonah (1:17); and the lamb portrays our loving Savior in many passages. In fact, nearly 100 different animals (including fish, birds, land creatures, and insects) are mentioned in God’s Word.
In the United States 65% of American households have pets, and the majority of those people consider their pets family members. (My vet told me that most of his clients refer to themselves as Mom and Dad when speaking of their animals.) If we are not among the 65%, we can still understand why, in our fractured society, people here enjoy pets. In fact, pets have become so necessary to us that we spend over $1 billion every year caring for them, feeding, and entertaining them. And then we grieve for them when they leave us.
After the deaths of two of my well-loved pets, Victoria and Albert, I began researching to learn what the Bible says about animals. Apparently, animals can teach us a thing or two (see Job 12:7 above), as most pet owners will attest. For example, I’ve learned a lot about loyalty, attentiveness, and unconditional love from my pets. But the really hard part about loving pets (and people) is when they leave.
Along with my research, I began doing interviews: Do you think pets go to heaven? I asked numbers of people. My favorite answer came from my clergy friend David. David asked me a simple question, Do pets sin? I did some pondering, and then David told me, If pets didn’t sin in the garden or throughout history, they lived under grace and didn’t need a Savior. Therefore, they will have a home in heaven. Really thought provoking.
And I’ve looked at all the ways God used animals throughout the Bible: doves, dogs, bears, bees, camels, flies, frogs, goats, gnats, etc. They certainly have been his instruments for millennia. I am not a theologian, but David has given me something to think about. In the meantime, I’m grateful for all the loving animals God has given me.
Father, every good gift comes from you. Thank you for all the sweet animals that have enriched my life. And thank you for the way you teach us through those special messengers. I am grateful. AMEN.