STABILITY

…he will be the stability of your times…  Isaiah 33:6  ( ESV)

When we were children, Papa decided it was time to find a larger house for his growing family.  We settled in a beautiful new home, and Papa’s diligent gardening made our lawn the envy of the neighborhood.  It wasn’t long, however, when hairline cracks began to appear in the walls of our dream house, and Papa announced that we’d be moving again.

This time Papa didn’t trust a ready-built house for his family.  Not at all.  He and Momo found a one-acre lot in a suburban neighborhood, and Papa and a friend built our forever home from the ground up.  When it came time to put in the landscaping, it was clear why Papa had chosen this particular neighborhood:  under the few inches of topsoil, there was solid rock.  The house is still standing, and when last I was inside, there still wasn’t a crack.

2020 was a year none of us will forget.  Perhaps, with me, you celebrated New Year’s Day with anticipation of a better year—a new vaccine for the dreaded Covid and the opportunity for our country to return to work and to life as we know it.  Perhaps we might even look forward to planning a family trip or a reunion with loved ones we haven’t seen since shut down.

Just barely into January we saw that relief would not be coming soon.  From any quarter around us.  UNLESS we look to the Rock.  Isaiah (51:1-3) from of old exhorts us to:

 ” Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the LORD:  Look to the rock from which you were cut, and to the quarry from which you were hewn…  For the LORD will comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins; He will make her wilderness like Eden and her desert like the garden of the LORD.  Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and melodious song.”

The foundation of our lives, the Rock on which we are built is the only stability that will see us through these stormy times.   And he is sufficient.  He IS the stability of our times; he will not be shaken; he will not be broken; he will not disappear.  Anchored to him, we can weather the tempests, and when they are over, we will still be standing.

              My hope is built on nothing less
              Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness
              I dare not trust the sweetest frame
              But wholly lean on Jesus’ name

              On Christ the solid rock I stand
              All other ground is sinking sand
              All other ground is sinking sand.  (Robert Critchley)

Father, save us from ourselves and the false notion of self-reliance.  We stand in you.  In Jesus, our Lord.  AMEN.

COMFORT

 

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Psalm 137:3

 

One of my favorite Advent traditions is to play Messiah as I prepare my house and myself for Christmas. After the orchestra’s overture, Handel immediately assigns the task of setting the scene to the tenor who sings,

“Comfort ye,
comfort ye My people,
saith your God.
Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem,
and cry unto her,
that her warfare is accomplished,
that her iniquity is pardoned.

The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness
Prepare ye the way of the Lord.
Make straight in the desert a highway
For our God.” (Isaiah 40:1-3)

 

The Children of Israel had experienced a long history of disobedience that finally resulted in exile away from the land of Promise. They were broken-hearted and could no longer sing the songs of Zion. Their sin had cut them off from God. But God in his love and compassion forgave and spoke hope and renewal to them. Their warfare was accomplished, and their iniquity was pardoned. And Messiah will come.

 

Our nation has been suffering greatly this year with unexpected deaths, suicides of young people, the opioid crisis, fires, anguish on our border, disunity, and foreign perils. Like Israel, we desperately need the comfort that only God can bring. We need forgiveness; we need healing; and we need renewal.

 

Messiah stirs us with the suffering that was inflicted on the Lamb of God. As we listen, we are drawn into the anguish that brought about our peace and salvation while there is always the reminder that redemption is near. The underlying motif continues to remind us that God’s salvation plan has been in place from time’s beginning, and Part 2 ends with the glorious Hallelujah Chorus. As we listen reverently to Part 3, the triumphant notes remind us that our Redeemer lives, death has been conquered, and he who is worthy reigns.

 

If you haven’t yet sat down in your easy chair by the fireside and listened to Messiah for this season, stop now and prepare yourself for a fresh encounter with the King of Kings. Hallelujah.

 
Father, thank you for the comfort we have with the coming of our Lord. May we rejoice and be glad in him. AMEN.

BUMMER

When people are brought low and you say, ‘Lift them up!’ then he will save the downcast. Job 22:29

 

It was one of those days—just like Alexander’s “Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.”* Everything that could have gone wrong did. All my morning plans had fallen apart. And then, in returning from the library with my grandson, we were caught in a horrendous traffic jam due to a break in the water main. We got out as quickly as we could—thirty minutes later—only to find ourselves in another jam with people escaping the first. While we waited, I got distracted and rolled into the utility truck ahead of me. (Oh, yes, we were fine and the driver and police officer were both lovely.) When all the reports were filed, and we finally got home, I discovered that I had missed an important appointment that I’d tried to schedule four months earlier. Yes, it was a “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.” And the biggest annoyance was me.
When I was finally alone that evening and reflecting on the overload of stresses, I was still reeling from an overdose of my own stupidity. But even so, God hadn’t lost his joy, his sovereignty wasn’t affected, his love hadn’t disappeared, his presence hadn’t vanished, his mercy hadn’t failed, and his power wasn’t reduced. In fact, his grace was much more prominent in my weakness, and his reassurance brought comfort even as I remained frustrated.
With thanksgiving I rejoiced that circumstances and my humanity hadn’t confounded God. He is the same yesterday and today and forever and knows completely the dust from which I’m made. He is never surprised at my snafus or silly mistakes. In fact, he reminds me that I live in a world where all creation cries out for redemption, and bumps and “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day[s]” happen. I am to live gratefully through those times, too, knowing that “joy comes.” I am to be still…
God never has bad days.

 

Father, thank you for keeping us in days that are not our best and for staying with us as we recover from emotional roller coasters. Help us not to think too highly of ourselves and to lean more and more on you in total and absolute dependence. In Jesus’ name. AMEN.

*Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst is a children’s classic describing Alexander’s thoughts when his day goes amiss.

DESPERATION

Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.  Jeremiah 33:3  (NIV)

 

How blessed we are in the United States to have access to fine education, outstanding healthcare, comfortable housing (including indoor plumbing and electricity), adequate to excellent infrastructure, and blessings many other people only dream about.  Of course, these things are not free, but our fathers taught us that hard work and a good attitude would take us a long way.

And so that’s the mindset most of us grow up with in our country.  Try hard enough, work hard enough, and you’ll succeed at getting what you want.  Until we don’t.  When our circumstances become difficult beyond our abilities to solve (or beyond our ability to buy solutions), we become desperate.  And I’m talking about Christians.  In many instances, we behave just like pagans when we’re pushed to the wall.

I watch while desperation pushes us to every imaginable answer available and even beyond.  We try this and then that.  We read this author and that one.  We pray this prayer and then that one.  I used to (pridefully) be confident of God’s answers to my prayers (emphasis on my will).  It took years before I sincerely embraced “thy will be done” (the prayer that is always answered).  I believed that doing all the right things—tithing,  sacrificial giving, good deeds, right living, going to church and Bible studies, even the extremes of fasting and self denial—was like making deposits in a heavenly account. These were all enriching my standing in heaven so that when I prayed, my will was done.

Desperation, our friend, eventually depletes that “account” and brings us right to the foot of the cross where we say, “Nothing in my hand I bring; simply to the cross I cling.”  The stark reality of our total dependence on God’s grace and mercy becomes true for us.  As we sink into the stormy waves, we are ready to abandon all pretense and cry out to Jesus, “Lord save me,” and we discover that he is waiting for us.  Jesus lifts us up to himself, and nothing else matters.

It’s in him that we find his security, his healing, his peace, his comfort, everything we will ever want or need.  When at the very central heart of our lives we begin abiding in him, everything else comes into perspective.  Everything is measured by eternity, and God is enough.

Are we willing to be stripped of everything but Jesus?  Desperation can do that.

 

Father, thank you for gently and patiently moving us along in our journey so that the excess baggage no longer matters—we can discard its unnecessary weight.  Thank you that you allow us to become desperate as we weigh temporal things against your Kingdom.  Please keep up the process.  The results are heavenly.  AMEN.

REAL LIFE

 

Whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord:  whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.  Romans 14:8

 

I’ve just returned from northern Kenya and a Marriage and Ministry conference that we were asked to conduct for pastors and their wives.  Having worked with this group of believers in the past, I looked forward to renewing acquaintances.

Sure enough, Moses was there.  I first met him years ago just as he was coming in from an evangelistic outreach.  I had heard about the persecution coming from animists and other religious groups.  To my astonishment, Moses and his friends were laughing and actually rejoicing that they had been counted worthy to be shot at and to suffer for Jesus, just as the early Church rejoiced in their hardships.  This trip, I asked Moses if he’d ever had the bullets removed from his leg.  With a big smile, he said they were too close to some nerves to risk removal.

And then I met Matthew, one of the praise musicians who comes from another African country.  As a security officer, he was ordered to shoot peaceful protesters and refused.  Government officers shot Matthew in the head, and he was taken to the hospital.  He lost sight in one eye but was on the way to recovery when he was warned that some men were en route to the hospital to finish him off.  Meanwhile, the military went to Matthew’s house and killed his wife.  Matthew escaped and took three of his children with him to Kenya.  Since coming to Kenya, two of Matthew’s children have been kidnapped by his country’s government, but Matthew continues to praise and trust God.

My friend Toch, director of the ministry, has been stoned and ambushed numbers of times—three times the pistol placed to his head didn’t fire.  Toch lives to talk about Jesus and to witness to his saving grace.  He and his band of merry disciples work throughout the north of Kenya bringing hope where there is despair and demonstrating Christ’s love and life through their words and deeds.

I see the Church as Christ meant it to be when I am with these Christian brothers and sisters—joyous and counting each day precious.  They understand the Kingdom of God and life in the Kingdom.  I watch members of warring tribes embrace and support one another when they share the same Father.  I follow these disciples into slum areas to share food and Bible stories with prostitutes as they walk together bringing new life.

I stand humbly listening to their stories and cannot help comparing them with my own privileged, secure, comfortable life.  And I am overwhelmed that they find something in me that they ask me to share with them.  You see, our circumstances may be different, but we are children of the same Father having different mothers.

I always return knowing that real life is Christ, and real living is in him.

 

Father, be with my Kenyan friends who count their lives as nothing for the sake of the Gospel.  Keep them safe as they go.  Keep me faithful in my circumstances knowing always that I, too, bear your name.  In Jesus’ name.  AMEN.

FAIRY TALES

…weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.  Psalm 30:5  (KJV)

 

 

She was tall, blonde, beautiful, and with all the proportions of a runway model—our new staff member.  She was charming, naïve, and newly married.  Carrie reminded us of the thrill of new beginnings and the dreams of great accomplishments.  She was visionary, and she caught us up in thinking that fairy tales just might come true.

The school year rocked along through the fall, and then we enjoyed the camaraderie of the Christmas holidays with numerous festivities.  Valentines brought a plethora of love notes and an abundance of sweets.  And then the honeymoon was over.  As Carrie moved into life as we know it, she came to my room and said with wide eyes, “I really believed the Cinderella story.  I thought all I had to do was make some promises, and I would live happily ever after…”

And that’s what many of us do in our lives as believers.  We get the heartbreak/rescue/ ever after business, but somehow we miss the classes that prepare us for the intensity of life following the rescue segment.  We look at rescue (salvation) to mean “immunization” –from worry, struggle, cares, hardship, pain, suffering, unpleasantness, heartbreak, and so on.  In actuality, rescue means access.

As God’s children, we can now access his grace in difficulty, his peace in suffering, his joy in heartbreak, his strength for struggles, his comfort in pain, and every single thing we need for life and godliness (II Peter 1:3).  We no longer have to merely “make it through” hard times; we discover the ability to be more than conquerors—being strengthened by virtue of the struggle (Ro. 8:37).

Dear little Cinderella needs her prince to rescue, provide, and care for her.  We have a constant, unfailing (Josh. 23:14) Father who sets a course for us that goes through stresses and storms while all the while ensuring that his Son is with us navigating the winds and waves (Matt. 8:23-27) and bringing us through to safety.  Our trust is strengthened, our confidence renewed, and we are better prepared for the next challenge of the voyage.

We have not been rescued to be put on a shelf and admired.  We have been and are over and over rescued as a testament of God’s grace, his power in our weakness, and his faithfulness to his promises.  Hebrews 12:12, 13 (NLT) invokes us to “take a new grip with [our] tired hands and strengthen [our] weak knees. Mark out a straight path for [our] feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong.”

We have more than a Prince (or Princess) Charming.  We have access to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  AND we can live happily ever after.

 

Father, how blessed we are to be walking with you every day of our lives.  We don’t have to wait for eternity for our joy.  We have YOU.  Amen.

PEACE ON EARTH

 

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  Isaiah 9:6

 

 

It’s that time of the year.  Our family has had a Christmas play for almost fifty years, and this year will be no exception.  With great imagination that only comes from the minds of little ones, we typically retell the story of Jesus’ birth or some Christmas miracle story connected with his birth.  This year we are indulging my youngest grandson’s obsession with history.

 

 

In December 1944 during the brutal Battle of the Bulge three young American soldiers strayed from their unit and were lost several days in the Ardennes Forest.  Snow was thick on the ground, and there were no markings to guide them on that Christmas Eve.  One of the boys was wounded, and they desperately needed shelter.  As they trudged through the woods, they came upon a small, isolated cabin.  Two of the soldiers marched up to the door and knocked.

Elisabeth Vincken and her son Fritz had been forced away from their bombed-out home in the city and hidden in the little cabin by Elisabeth’s husband who would visit from time to time.  Elisabeth and Fritz were expecting him to return in time for Christmas Eve and eagerly went to the door.  To their surprise and awe, three American soldiers greeted them.  Elisabeth knew the penalty for harboring the enemy was execution, but the boys had kindly knocked on the door and looked so young.  She ushered them into the cabin, and she and Fritz helped the wounded soldier into bed, covering him with blankets.  Elisabeth went back to her preparation for the Christmas Eve meal and was again interrupted with a knock at the door.  Fritz ran to open the door thinking it could be other Americans.

As the door opened, Elisabeth saw, to her horror, that it was German soldiers, four of them, and they were armed.  They were cold and wanted to come in.  With great boldness, Elisabeth said they were welcome as long as they accepted her other guests.  Furthermore, they had to put their weapons in the shed first.  At first the Germans were hesitant, but the warmth and light drew them.  They deposited their weapons while Elisabeth also took the weapons of the Americans.

Fear and tension were strong in the little cabin for a while, but the smell of the meal baking in the oven, the relative comfort, and Elisabeth and Fritz’s hospitality ushered in a sense of peace.  One of the German soldiers, a medical student, inquired about the wounded GI and bandaged his injuries.  By the time everyone sat down to eat, a miracle had occurred.  Elisabeth said grace asking God to bring his peace and to end all wars.  When she finished, everyone was in tears.

After eating, the soldiers lay down to sleep together and arose early in the morning to return to their own units.  The Germans fashioned a stretcher for the wounded American, and one pointed on the Americans’ map to indicate the direction back to their troops.  He even provided them with a compass.  The Americans and the Germans shook hands—these men who had been shooting at each other only days before—and they left on different routes after having experienced the wonder of a holy, silent, peaceful night.

 

Prince of Peace, in you we find peace no matter what our circumstance.  Move in all our hearts around the world that we may truly experience that peace of which we all dream.  AMEN.

 

 

(This story was retold in 1995 on the television program “Unsolved Mysteries.”  Grown- up Fritz was able to contact two of the Americans he had met that Christmas Eve who told him that his mother had saved their lives.)

COMFORT ZONES

Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.  Isaiah 40:1  (KJV)

 

I’ve just returned from a mission trip to Uganda and am chuckling over the many ways “newbies” confess to being pushed beyond their comfort zones:  eating grasshoppers as a seasonal delicacy; participating in vibrant church services exceeding four hours; navigating treacherous Kampala (the capital) traffic with thousands of vehicles and few road rules; sweating through days of work with no air conditioning; and extravagant demonstrations of Christian faithfulness.  These “comfort zones” are usually defined with possessives: my, mine or our.

Yes, more and more we identify comfort as a state of personal entitlement and are disenchanted with those who make us uncomfortable.  Think of college campuses where students must have safe zones and where topics that trigger angst among fragile students are to be avoided at all costs.  Even in public discourse, we tend to shy away from anything that challenges our status quo or that would cause us to entertain new or unpleasant viewpoints.  Political correctness is the order of the day with the exception that PC goes only one way; dissenters are labeled with phobias or worse.  So much for comfort…

A cursory glance at a Bible concordance listing God’s view of comfort mostly flips our selfish comfort on its head.  God speaks of comfort residing in him (Isa. 61:2), in his forgiveness (Isa. 40:2), in his touch (Luke 8:48), in the ministry of the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:31), in the Word (Romans 15:4), and so on. It’s all about him.   Comfort resides in being surrendered to the lordship of Jesus Christ, his will, and his glory.  It’s not about us.

What an excellent opportunity we have during the holidays to enjoy the comfort of our Father as he guides us through the minefields of difficult relations, command performances, mandatory attendance, last-minute shopping, and all the other aspects of Western Christmas traditions.  Will we retreat to the need for safe spaces rather than moving into God’s grace as we encounter people and events that are not of our choosing?  Will we avoid those annoyances that typically ruffle our feathers or will we see how God’s comfort can stretch us to move in his love and Spirit and out of our egocentricity?

May God’s Spirit constantly provoke us each time we begin to say, “I’m not comfortable with…” or “I’m only comfortable when…”   Seems like a great gift this Christmas time would be to get us all out of our comfort zones and into God’s comfort.

 

Father, thank you for your infinite patience with us.  Grace us to trust you in all circumstances.  In Jesus’ name.  AMEN.

DECISIONS, DECISIONS

 

But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.  James 1:5

 

My grandmother was critically ill in the hospital.  Mother’s two brothers had entrusted her with decision-making for their mother, and they had all agreed that there would be no life-support systems used at the end.  Day after day Grandma clung to life with Mother faithfully attending her.

Then came the day the doctor approached Mother with a suggestion.  He deemed that a blood transfusion would make Grandma more comfortable, and he strongly advocated for the treatment.  Exactly the quandary our mother feared.  Her brothers had given her their trust, and now she had to make an awful choice:  Should she allow the transfusion that might prolong Grandma’s life while violating his brothers’ wishes or should she tell the doctor “no”?  Would the brothers consider a transfusion “life-support”?

In her simple, straightforward faith, Mother reasoned with the Lord.  I don’t know the right decision.  I don’t want to go against my brothers, and I don’t want Mother to suffer.  Father, I will go with the doctor’s suggestion and ask that you be sovereign and overrule it if it’s not for the best.  The medical staff proceeded with the transfusion, and my Grandma passed away shortly afterward.  And my mother was at peace.

Was this God’s wisdom?  Did God take a hard thing and resolve the dilemma?  I’m sure Mother played out all scenarios and felt herself to be in a no-win situation, but she followed the direction of her heart and ended in a place of peace that satisfied everyone.

When we ask for wisdom in a difficult situation, do we sometimes fail to hear God’s voice because we expect something complex and profound?  Think of Jesus’ resolutions throughout his ministry:  No food?  Use what you’ve got and feed thousands.  You touched me even though the doctors didn’t help for years?  Be healed.   No tax money?  Go fishing.  You’re blind?  Let me put mud in your eyes.  And so on…

God is able to give us exactly what we need for every circumstance.  We just have to learn to be simple and to expect him, to believe him to give us wisdom, and then to thank him for his gift.

 

Father, you are God, and we are not.  We need you every moment of every day.  Help us to be like little children and to trust you to guide us to make good decisions.  In Jesus’ name.  AMEN.

GOD’S VOICE

 

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”  Isaiah 30:21  (NIV)

 

Yesterday was Scott’s turn to teach our adult Sunday school class.  The topic from the Believe series was Peaceful.  The lesson was structured around three points:  peace with God, peace with others, and peace within ourselves.  As he addressed the foundational issue, peace with God, Scott gave us a list that contrasted God’s voice and the voice of our arch-enemy, Satan.

 

God’s Voice	Satan’s Voice
Still	Rushing
Leading	Pushing/restraining
Reassuring	Frightening
Enlightening	Confusing
Encouraging	Discouraging
Comforting	Worrying/distressing
Calming	Obsessing
Convicting	Condemning

 

We all have voices in our heads—sometimes they’re our own thoughts, and sometimes God is speaking to us.  But often Satan injects thoughts that are destructive, negative, or in some way detrimental to our spiritual life.  They rob us of our peace and produce distress in its stead.

 

My mom had an interesting method for identifying the voices in her head.  She said, “Always listen to the pronouns.  You can detect the source if the voice says, ‘He or him.’  God always say, ‘I.’” 

 

Jesus told us that we will know his voice if we’re his sheep.  I speak with my two grown children almost every day.  Never do they call and identify themselves; they just begin the conversation as soon as I say hello.  I know their voices, and they know mine.  I’m convinced that frequent conversations with our Lord will make us more and more familiar with his voice, and we’ll at some time be able to recognize him the moment he speaks.

 

We have all these and many more wonderful tools for walking in peace with Jesus:  discernment of the intent of the message, listening to the pronouns, and recognizing the voice.  There’s no need for us to ever be in confusion.

 

Father, thank you for all the wonderful teachers you’ve given us to grow us in our relationship with you.  Keep us in your peace as we listen to you and follow you.  In Jesus’ name.  AMEN.