Week 45 2013 Thanksgiving

Our worship leader got on his soap box at our last practice, giving a mini-sermon on Thanksgiving.  I am so thankful for this young man and the heart he has for Jesus and family.

Going from there, I wonder how many things for which I am thankful?
1.  Of course, I am most thankful for the Lord.  Psalm 106:1
2.  My wife is the single greatest blessing God has given me.  Ecclesiastes 9:9
3.  I have been blessed with three of the most wonderful children.  Psalm 127:3
4.  Our daughters have provided five fantastic grandchildren.  Proverbs 17:6
5.  From our first church family to the many we share today, our fellow Christians.  1 John 5:1-3
6.  Many wonderful and cherished friends.  Proverbs 18:24
7.  An education that has been pursued throughout life and is ongoing.  2 Timothy 2:15
8.  The opportunity to provide for my family.  1 Timothy 5:8
9.  The physical provisions God has supplied.  Matthew 6:25-34
10. A place to share in worship with other Christians.  Hebrews 10:25
11. Living in a nation where we are free to worship as we choose.  Romans 13:1-7
12. For those who devote themselves to our protection.  Matthew 5:9
13. Those who have lived before me and share their experience.  Job 12:12
14. The pleasure of being able to sing.  Psalm 100:2
15. Joy in witnessing those who can and do dance.  Psalm 150:4
16. The wonders of nature.  Colossians 1:16-17
17. Ad infinitum.  James 1:17

In each of these listed I could break them down to several individual blessings, thus making my list inexhaustible.  It is my conviction that nearly all of us could say the same thing.  So, let me encourage everyone to be thankful, not just on the appointed day but every day.

Week 44 2013 Persistence

I have been watching a documentary on Diana Nyad and her swimming from Cuba to Miami.  She has lived a life of persistence.  From failing to swim around Manhattan to her latest conquest, she has always persevered, not giving up until she has accomplished her goal.  As such, she has been successful.  Instead of giving up when she has failed, she comes back again and again until she succeeds.  She learns to overcome the obstacles, persists in her attempts, and finally enjoys success.

I once heard read that a baby will fall 600 times before finally learning to walk.  They don’t seem to know failure.  They just keep getting up, pulling themselves to a standing position, and trying again to make that first step, followed by the second, and then the third, until they are walking.  And, as we all know from experience, they always succeed.  Failure is not an option.

And then, of course, we’ve all heard how many failures Thomas Edison experienced before finally basking in the light of his first sustainable light bulb.  Aren’t we glad that he didn’t give up?  Because of his perseverance we enjoy light in the darkness, not to mention all of the advances that have come on the back of the electric light bulb.  It is the grand-daddy of the television, stereo, microwave oven, ad infinitum.

Given these successes, one might wonder why any of us ever give up on a goal.  But, the sad truth is that we very often give up with just a few attempts.  In fact, many of defeat ourselves before we even try.  We tend to look at all the obstacles, instead of looking at the ways those obstacles are overcome.  Truth is, there are very few things we cannot accomplish if we have enough faith.  Jesus said that if we have the faith of grain of a mustard seed we could move mountains.  Some have taken this to heart and accomplished amazing feats, while others go throughout their lives never realizing any of their hopes and dreams without ever trying.

Week 43 2013 Doing Laundry

My wife is diligent in her pursuit to keep us in clean clothing.  I often find it alarming how much dirty laundry the two of us produce, as long as how often it needs attention.  Even though our motorhome has hookups for a washer and dryer, we have chosen to utilize that space for inside storage, a commodity in short supply when living in a recreational vehicle.  Thus, she carries our dirty clothes to the Laundromat located in the RV park where we stay.  This also involves the use of several quarters obtained in various locations under many different circumstances.  She has a special container for quarters.  Even though I save change, quarters are off limits with all of them going into her quarter jar.

What does this have to do with anything?  Aside from my deep appreciation, her pursuit of cleanliness is a clear picture of what each of us should be engaged in with our lives.  Instead of cleaning up our lives and the messes we make, we often look for ways to cover it up or we continue to revel in the filth, much like putting clean clothes over dirty ones, or simple wearing the dirty ones over and over again.  Most civilized people would not dream of wearing dirty clothing or covering it up with clean clothing, unless there was no other choice.  Fortunately, there is another option.  We can clean up our act.  The choice is ours, live dirty or live clean.  If we choose the clean option, it will take diligence.  When we discover filth, it will take work to remove it.  However, the end result is worth the work.  And, we must be aware that, just as my wife will sometimes need to wash a piece of clothing more than once to get it clean, we may to work harder on some stains in our lives.  Furthermore, it may take a lot of preparation, sorting through the various aspects and dealing with each accordingly.  Much like our laundry, this process never ends.  If we are honest, we will always find areas of our lives that need cleansing.

There is one major difference in these two scenarios.  My wife works alone and really does an amazing job.  On the other hand, when attempting to clean up and cleanse my life, I know that I cannot do it alone.  The job is too big.  I need help.  Fortunately, help is available!  I am surrounded by friends and family, as well as my Christian family.  These are all useful and generally quite willing to help.  But the greatest asset any of us can possibly have in cleaning up our act is the One who is responsible for our existence.  God provides aide in this most important part of our lives.  In fact, there are stains that only He can handle.  Welcome to laundry day!

Week 42 2013 Hats

One of my best friends recently conducted an interesting experiment at a mens retreat.  He carried fourteen different baseball caps to the retreat in his luggage.  Then, beginning Friday afternoon, he would wear a different hat periodically throughout the rest of the day and the rest of the weekend until someone noticed that he was wearing a different hat than he had been just a short time before.  It finally happened Saturday afternoon.  He was wearing a 49er hat, a young man commented on it, my friend went to his barracks, changed to a Raiders hat, went to play volleyball, and the same young man said, “Weren’t you wearing a different hat?”  My friend awarded him with a handmade pen.  He enjoyed his little game, as well as the giving of the pen.

Just how observant are we?  My wife will often ask me about someone at church or some other activity with friends and she is amazed at how little I know about what they were wearing or some other physical characteristic.  I have wondered if there is something wrong with my memory.  Then I ask her about something that I’m sure she will remember only to discover that she doesn’t.  Just about the time we begin to think old age is catching up with us, we ask our grandchildren about a recent event and discover that they don’t remember salient details that we think are so obvious anyone would be able to recall them.

Other than the few savants who are able to recall every detail of everything their five senses have taken in, most of us simply remember scattered details.  We seem to prioritize.  This is not a bad thing.  It is just a reality.  It actually speaks to our individuality.  God has made each one of us to be unique.  Which means we are all different and quite diverse.  It also means that we should never judge another based upon our own personal experience, because we will nearly always be wrong.  Let’s celebrate our diversity while learning from others’ observations and sharing our own for their edification.

Week 41 2013 Mom and Dad

At what age do we finally come to the realization that Mom and Dad actually do know something?  I don’t have the answer.  It has been my experience that it is different for everyone.  Some of us come to appreciate our parents at an early age, while others either never figure it out, discover it at mid-life, or receive the message after their parents are in the grave.  That is extremely unfortunate.  Much is lost through not learning this truth at a young age.  For some reason we don’t get it that experience has served to teach our parents lessons that can only come with age, unless we decide to learn from their experience.  Instead, we often insist on learning through our own hard knocks.

As a small child our parents are super human.  They can do anything, and they know everything.  Mom and Dad have the greatest impact on our development.  Our provision is dependent on them and we give little thought to the cost, because they are only doing what comes natural.  We offer them our complete, unadulterated love and devotion, regardless of their flaws and imperfections.  However, for many of us those times are short-lived.  As we grow into our puberty, many of us decide that we know more than anyone else, including our parents.  Our parents are no longer the super humans they once were.  In fact, for some, they are actually seen in a completely opposite light.  They know nothing, and they could learn a great deal from us.  For years they had made us the center of their universe, and now we become the center of our own universe.

The lyrics to an old song offer this bit of wisdom: “I was so much older then, I’m younger than that now.”  Most of us come to a point in our maturity when we realize that our parents, although not perfect, actually do know some things that would be of benefit in our lives.  Through our own process of learning through experience it suddenly dawns on us that our parents have even more experience from which to have gained knowledge.  Once again, we begin to revere them and dread the day of their departure from this world, our world.  Unfortunately, some don’t come to this realization until it is too late.  Dad and/or Mom have already died and they are missed.  For those who are in this position, the grief is greater.  Praise God if you are among those who are able to discover your parents wisdom before they are gone.

Proverbs 1:8-9

Week 40 2013 Brian's Song

My friend and brother in the Lord, Brian E. Kessler, “graduated” from this life into his eternal reward last Saturday.  Brian lived the last twenty years of his short fifty-nine years of life with multiple sclerosis.  From the beginning of his end, Brian demonstrated how to die well.  His faith throughout this ordeal has left a lasting testament to God’s grace and love.  The profound affect he had on others could easily be seen in the many people who attended his memorial.  Una and I had a wonderful time sharing memories with many of them.  Phil Booe, a young man the Lord used me with his conversion about twenty-five years ago, shared that he would visit with Brian and read to him.  The last time he was there he told Brian that he had just went through a shift change at work, to which Brian responded in his wonderful wit, “Well, at least you’re not shiftless.”

Brian planned out his own memorial right up to the last detail, understanding that there would be a lunch following, he had ordered a “graduation cake” with the words: “ Welcome to my graduation. – Brian.”  I have asked his wife, Sheila, permission to share Brian’s words from that memorial.  So, I am letting Brian write this blog entry.

The gift that God gave is almost too good to be true. Knowing you and I and our sinfulness, God gave his son to pay for our sins. He took our sin and believers received Christ’s righteousness. What a trade. Glory to God.

Believers have been made perfect in God's sight. Believers have been made righteous. Believers have been justified. Believers have been forgiven. And believers have received every thing else that God has promised us. Like I was, in yourself you might be dirtier than a dog, but in Christ we believers are both made righteous and thus saved.

Certainly other folks can legitimately find fault, but in God 's sight we are perfect. Regardless of their stripe, we should strive to see those who declare belief in Christ as made right, as forgiven. We should try to see fellow believers as God says he sees them. We who are in Christ are all forgiven and thus are all saved. We have all been made perfect. In Christ we have been made sinless. We should strive to see others that way.

The study of the subject of "righteousness" was absolutely astounding to me. I was amazed. I found that Jesus Christ had left his dimension of being beyond time, and entered my dimension, our dimension of time. He lived for me. He died for me. He lived for you. He died for you. It amazed me when I found that the Bible told that I could be righteous. It taught that I, as sinful as I had been, could be righteous before God. This was a great relief to me. After all, I knew I could not be good enough. I had to have forgiveness for the sins that I had committed and was prone to commit. Thank God he provided that. Understand that you can be righteous too. Maybe you already are. Regardless, let us all rejoice in the promise of Christ. For he has lived and died for you and me.

We who have named Christ, we who are Christians gain life, both here and eternally. We gain hopefully better life here, and eternal life beyond time, where I am. Even if someone does not get a better life here, they can look forward to having eternal life, being with God, and being perfect in every way.

It amazed me when I found that the Bible told that I could be righteous. As sinful as I had been, I could be righteous before God. This was a great relief to me. It made me happy. It was good news. After all, I knew I could not be good enough. I had to have forgiveness for the sins I had committed. Not only that but I learned that forgiveness would continue throughout my life, and continual forgiveness would be desperately needed. Understand that you can be righteous too. Maybe you already are. Regardless, let all rejoice in the promise of Christ. For he has died for us. Unlike me, who owed payment, Christ could afford to pay the price for all believers freedom, and he did. Not only did he pay the price, he traded his perfection from my and our imperfection.’ "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” This is the good news in a nutshell.

"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith’." This Bible passage said that I could somehow be innocent before God. It was really good news for me. It is really good news for you.

The letter to the Roman believers by Paul, regarding the righteousness that comes by belief, was great news to me. It said "The words ‘it was credited to him’ were written not for him (Abraham) alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness -for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification."

"This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood." (Romans 3:22-25).

Now suppose I am wrong? Then I’m gone and have not lost a thing. But if one who does not believe is wrong then they lose everything. I do not believe I am, but what if I’m wrong? What do I lose? Would doing more evil have provided more fun? No. For me and others it would have made life a miserable thing, or made life a failure. As it was, I have had a really good life. My children have all been true to Christ. My wife has been true to Christ. All of us have hope. I have had physical pleasures. Beyond that I have had absolute spiritual assurance. So in life I lost nothing. In Christ I have gained everything. Wonderfully I have gained Christ’s righteousness. In Christ I gained the promise of eternal life. I have lost nothing in life, and nothing beyond time. God has given me everything. We who have named Christ, we Christians gain life, both here and eternally. We gain hopefully better life here, and eternal life beyond time, where I am.

I will see you later.

When I (Brian) was in my late 20s, I had opportunity to sing to an old lady. She was 93. We sang regularly. The last time I sang with her she asked that I sing the song, "Till We Meet." She graduated from this life after we sang. She was holding my hand when she graduated. I believe I have met her again. After all, I doubt that time as we know it is relevant to those who are beyond time with God, which is where I am. What I ask of you, still in time, is that you sing this song with my family, and sing the last verse with me in mind. This is our closing song. From your time perspective, I hope to see you "soon." Maybe from my perspective we are together, since I am convinced that God's present includes all of history. But you are still in time. Tell others about his Good News. I love you Sheila. I love you Edwin I love you Matthew. I love you Nathan. I love all here. Thanks for coming. I look forward to seeing you. --Brian

Whether or not you have known Brian, it is my, and his, sincere desire that you would give heed to his wonderfully wise words, and that you would keep his family in your prayers as they learn to deal with the void.