I’m continuing to enjoy spending time with my dear Russian family in Perth, Australia. It’s a beautiful place stretching along the western coast, looking out over the Indian Ocean.
It’s so peaceful strolling along through the parks with wild, colorful parrots flying about, or walking along the beach keeping watch for dolphins. That peace was slightly interrupted the other day when, as we were walking about, a group of children run by, one of them shouting, “That’s not fair!”
I smiled at the children and thought to myself, we’re not unlike them as adults. How often have situations come into our lives, and we have thought, that’s not fair. Sadly, even Christians can let their minds be filled with resentment toward God for not doing as they thought best. Inwardly they shout at God, “That’s not fair!”
There are lots of things that happen to us that’s just not fair. It wasn’t fair that Gods only Son paid the price for our sin. It wasn’t fair that Jesus died a cruel death for things He never did. It’s not fair that God blesses us with His goodness though we forget all about Him time and time again.
The next time something unfair takes place in our personal world, perhaps we can take a moment to ponder the love of God shown to us even though we don’t deserve it. Remember, too, His way of doing things is beyond our understanding, but His ways are perfect.
“He gives His sunlight to both the evil and the good, and He sends rain on the just and the unjust alike.” Matthew 5:45
Life may not be fair; God always is, and He will be your everything to get you through anything.
I’m in Australia enjoying a sweet reunion with dear Russian friends who immigrated from Kyrgyzstan six years ago. They’ve shown me beautiful sights in their new homeland. I’ve seen a variety of trees I’ve never seen before. I’ve seen parrots of brilliant colors, and today I saw my first kangaroo in the wild!
All of these things are wonderful, but for my blog this week, those of you who know me well, won’t be surprised that my topic was inspired by a dog named Jessie. This little black and white terrier belongs to Ivan and Galina who I am staying with while in Perth.
Jessie was happy enough to meet me but had a reserve about her. However, a gift of a squeaky rabbit, endless time tossing a ball, and several energetic walks later, and Jessie counts me as one of the family.
This trust and joy in my company has thrilled me. As I have thought about the joy shared between us, I realize it has come about as a result of time spent together. It’s not unlike the joy that grows with time spent in the presence of God. He gives us good gifts, walks and talks with us, and is always pleased when we come to Him.
It’s the “coming to Him” where many of us fail. We convince ourselves that we’re useless, unworthy, failures on a regular basis, etc. Such feelings can rob us of tremendous joy.
What can we do? We can begin by remembering what is written in Lamentations 3:22-23, “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed. His compassionate never fail. They are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.”
Try to always remember that our Lord loves you to come to Him. Come with your concerns or come with your joy or come to worship, but come. He is always there, waiting with a longing that you will come and enjoy Him.
Leave yesterday in the past. Every morning offers you a new day.
This past Sunday, many churches celebrated Pentecost — the day that Jesus told His followers they would be baptized with the Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:5) Jesus told them all in Acts 1:8, “But when the Holy Spirit is come upon you, you will receive power, and will tell people about me everywhere — in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
But wait, I’m getting ahead of myself. Do you recall Jesus’ disciples? What a motley crew. A rough and tough band of fisherman. These were the ones Jesus chose, to train them up, to take His message of love and hope throughout the world. If these same men were to enter any type of leadership training program today, they would be shown the door. They had no skills, no training, and showed no natural abilities of leadership of any kind.
Remember Peter? Loud mouthed, a bit of a braggart, very opinionated, and when it really counted, He proved himself to be a coward. He was sorry enough after his cowardly deed; he wept bitterly, but the deed was done. At this point, Peter was not a shining example of success in Christian living.
Now, let’s get back to the part where Jesus promised that after He returned to His Father in heaven, He would send the Holy Spirit to be their comforter and teacher. The Holy Spirit would remind them of the things Jesus taught them, and He would empower them to make a difference in the world in the name of Christ. Even Peter? I’m happy to say — even Peter.
Peter was used mightily of God. In fact, just as soon as the Holy Spirit came on the day of Pentecost, it was Peter who led the way out into the streets to share the Good News of Jesus. I love the verse in Acts 2:14, “Then Peter stepped forward…” Gone was the former fear. Cowardice was nowhere to be found within him. The rest of this chapter in Acts records a most powerful sermon, and it was given by Peter. How could this be? He was empowered by the Holy Spirit. What happened? 3000 people came to accept Jesus as their Savior that day.
Before the Holy Spirit took charge of Peter, he was the most unlikely candidate for “Hero of the Faith.” Do you ever feel that way? Have you really blown it? Has the Lord put in your heart to do something, or to share His truth with someone, but you got so scared you backed away? Like Peter, have you been so sorry you wept bitterly in misery and self loathing?
If that’s you, take heart from the example of Peter. What a failure he was — before surrendering all of himself to the molding and empowering of the Holy Spirit. Then — what a success he became, used mightily of God to bring literally thousands into the Kingdom of Heaven. If God could take a loud mouthed coward like Peter, and turn him into one of the Bible’s greatest success stories — can’t God do the same with you? After all, He is “the same yesterday, today, and forever.” Hebrews 13:5
Don’t waste time beating yourself up for failures. That’s what Satan wants you to do. Instead, spend time soaking in the Word of God. Then, like Peter, step forward in the power of the Holy Spirit. Turn the impossibilities about your life into everything possible through Jesus Christ.
I’m back in England again, and today I have the joy of keeping one of my friend’s dogs — Trixie. A few years ago, in her chasing squirrels mode, Trixie fell down a ravine and broke her back. She went through surgery and many months of recovery. Slowly, but surely, she regained the use of her back legs. To see her trotting about now, one would not easily know she had ever been hurt. There is definitely a weakness there, and care must be taken with her. She still goes for massage therapy on a regular basis.
My apartment is on the second floor. Can Trixie do the stairs? Yes, but I don’t like to think of her going up and down them several times a day, which she will need to do as I live upstairs. Such continual effort as that would cause her pain. Is there a solution? Yes, I will carry her. Trixie is very light. It’s no trouble at all to simply pick her up and carry her up and down the stairs. Besides that, I think Trixie likes the attention and comfort of arms she trusts, holding her close, and a voice she knows, speaking joyfully to her, “We’re going for a walk, Trixie!” or “It’s time to go up for dinner now, Trixie!” or “Let’s go up and give you a massage, Trixie!” She’s safe and happy in my arms.
Thinking of this made me think of you and me. We have areas of our lives where we are weak. Sometimes we are in difficult situations that scare us. Sometimes we don’t know how we will get through a particular something. What is the answer? Let our Father hold you. Let Him be your strength where you are weak. Listen as He speaks His words of joy and comfort into your heart. The strong arm of the Lord can do anything! We know that because of Psalm 118:16, “The strong right arm of the Lord is raised in triumph. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things!”
Try not to worry when the things of life around you seem unsurmountable. God’s arms can carry you through, and don’t forget — He loves to hold you close, speaking words of comfort and joy to you. If I love to hold close, and care for Trixie, how much more does our heavenly Father love to do the same thing for us?
This past week I visited an orphanage just outside the capital city of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. I had never been to this particular orphanage. We arrived unannounced. One gets a better picture of conditions when the staff don’t know you’re coming. I was delightfully surprised to see that this orphanage was different than many I have seen throughout Kyrgyzstan.
The staff greeted us happily, accepting gifts we had brought for the children. They showed us where the children sleep. There were about 30 beds all lined up, each one neatly made; all the linen and blankets appearing fresh and clean. In the play room, there were a variety of toys, all in good condition. The dining room and the school room were the same; clean and cheerful with bright paintings on the walls.
The children were intrigued with our visit and expressed uninhibited joy at our being there. Detecting my accent, one child asked me where I am from. “America,” I answered. This created great excitement as they then asked, “Oh, have you come to be our mother? Will you take us with you?” My heart strings were pulled. I wanted to answer that, yes, I will take you all! Of course, I could not.
I explained we were there to visit them, bring some gifts, and hopefully would be able to come again in the future. This seemed to satisfy them. Their attention turned to clambering into our laps, holding our hands, and arms. The staff were wonderful with the children, and one easily saw that the children loved them, too. Even so, the staff can’t give one on one attention to all of them when they need it.
So, I spent quite a bit of time holding the children, tickling them, asking them their names, etc. At one point a little fight broke out between two of the boys. I’m not exactly certain what happened, but while one boy stalked off in a huff, the other boy just sat with quiet tears forming in his eyes. He glanced up and saw me looking at him. Instinctively, I held my hands out to him, motioning him to come. Warmth filled my heart when he did just that — he came with no hesitation to my waiting arms. He came close and let me soothe him with gentle words, stroking his hair, tears disappearing as the hurt in his heart was replaced with receiving the love I offered him.
I have that little boy’s face etched in my memory. I think of him now everyday. I pray for him to be given a good home. I pray for him to come to know about Jesus.
I have thought, too, about Jesus and what He said about children in Matthew 19:13-15, “Some children were brought to Jesus so He could lay hands on them and pray for them. The disciples told them not to bother Him. But Jesus said, ‘Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these.’ And He put His hands on their heads and blessed them before he left.”
Reading this I thought again of the little boy who did not hesitate to come to me when I held my arms out, offering comfort and words of love to his hurting heart. It’s the same with Jesus, and you and me, isn’t it? We hurt in this world for all sorts of reasons. There is Jesus, holding His arms out to us, ready and longing to offer us comfort, and words of love to heal the wounds of our hearts. But so often, we don’t come into His arms. Like the second little boy, we stalk away in a huff. It’s so much better to receive love, than to run away from all Jesus offers to us — don’t you think so?
Jesus said when He was with the children, “The Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these” That’s right. To receive everything Jesus has for us, like children, we must trust Him, we must choose to go to Him. He will not force us, but He is always hoping and waiting. Are you hurting today? Will you go to Jesus? His arms are open wide.
Yesterday an unusual cold snap hit Kyrgyzstan for this time of year. The middle of May is nearly always very warm — not so yesterday. My friend Sofia, also chilly, said, “Let’s have some cocoa!” I readily agreed. Hot chocolate is always especially good on a cold day.
She prepared the hot milk on the stove and added the cocoa and sugar. Then she poured the steaming liquid into our waiting mugs. Ummm, delicious from the first sip. I said to Sofia, “I have a friend who likes to put a sprinkle of red pepper in her hot chocolate.” Immediately Sofia stood to go and get the red pepper. She was anxious to try something new.
We each took a pinch of the pepper between our thumb and forefinger, dropped it into our chocolate, and stirred. Did it change the taste? Yes, there was the slightest taste of the hot spice. It was only the smallest pinch but it had made a difference.
Do you know what came to my mind? I thought about what Paul said in his letter to the churches in Galatia. He was trying to warn them to be very careful concerning their faith. Faith is a fragile thing and must be cared for and nurtured in order for it to grow and stay strong. In Galations 5:9, Paul addresses the issue of who we spend our time with and who we listen to, taking their words to heart. He says this, “But it takes only one wrong person among you to infect all the others — a little yeast spreads quickly through the whole batch of dough!” How true! Like red pepper changed the taste of our chocolate, yeast completely changes the consistency of flour. Likewise, false words, bitter words, gossiping words, negative words, these can all infect us, zapping away our joy in the Lord, and weakening our faith.
Whenever I have opportunity, I especially like to warn young people to be careful who you chose for your friends. By that, I mean those with whom you share your heart and from whom you would take advice, and value their opinions. Make certain it is someone likeminded in the Lord as you are; someone who desires to grow in the things of Jesus as you do. If you add someone who is not walking godly into your intimate circle, the Scripture warns, you are in danger of being infected in your inner spirit. It just takes a few negative words to sow bitterness. It takes just a few words of gossip to cause us to think less of someone than we ought to.
One bad apple really can make the whole bunch rot. Be careful. Guard your faith. Guard your hearts as it says in Proverbs 4:23, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it affects everything you do.”
The little toe of anyone’s foot seems a rather insignificant thing. We barely give it notice and not often is it even thought about. For me, that changed in a moment just last week. There I was with my mind on something else — certainly not my little toe — when the phone rings. I go to answer it and on the way my little toe gets rammed into the metal leg of my desk. Oh, wow! Suddenly, every fiber of my being was concentrated on that little, aching, seemingly, insignificant toe.
I hobbled and puffed in pain to the nearest chair. I drew my foot up to the edge of the chair to get a better look. It was already swelling. Quickly I got my ever-ready ice pack from the freezer and held it there for some time. It wasn’t just the toe itself that was swelling, but the whole top area of my foot near the toes. The next thing I did was to wrap the little toe and the one next to it together.
The next morning the swelling was still there but now colors of green and blue were appearing. With the writing of this blog, the color has changed to shades of deep purple. I couldn’t put full weight down on the foot so, with my apartment being carpeted, I sort of slid my way around.
That accident happened on a Thursday night. I knew I was to go to the airport to catch a needed flight on Monday. Would I be able to walk? Would the pain be gone? I had no idea so what did I do? I put out a major request for prayer. My little, insignificant toe was suddenly all important and it needed help and hopefully, quick healing.
As I hobbled through each day I couldn’t help but think of the verses in I Corinthians 12:18-21, 26-27: “But God made our bodies with many parts, and He has put each part just where He wants it. What a strange thing a body would be if it had only one part. Yes, there are many parts, but only one body. The eye can never say to the hand, ‘I don’t need you,’ and the head can never say to the feet, ‘I don’t need you.’ If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad. Now all of you together are Christ’s body, and each one of you is a separate and necessary part.”
Do you ever feel insignificant, overlooked? Please take heart in reminding yourself that God has made each one of us completely significant and needed. He has a plan just for you and no one else. He has laid out your destiny from his own heart. You are a part of God’s overall plan for His church. He desires to use you to help fulfill that plan of sharing His love and the truth of Jesus with everyone.
Still feeling insignificant? Go ahead and ask Father to fill you with that sweet sense of His presence. Ask Him to show you His plan for you today. Ask Him to give you opportunities to show His love to someone else. He will gladly do so, because to your Heavenly Father, you might be a little toe, but if you are hurting, He will rush to comfort and ease your pain. You are indeed vital to your Heavenly Father. He loves you more than you could ever know for His love is immeasurable. Choose today to walk tall and joyful in the knowledge of His love and care for you. Don’t concentrate on being a little toe — concentrate of being chosen by Almighty God Himself to have a part in His Kingdom. What an honor! Walk on! Walk happy! Walk in great joy and thanksgiving!
I heard the mailman at my door this morning so I went to see what had arrived. There was an advertisement for pizza, another advertisement for a sale at a furniture store, and a white envelope. I turned the envelope over and was just about to open it when I noticed something that stopped me — it wasn’t my name written on the front. It was one of my neighbor’s names on the envelope. The mailman has made a mistake and put someone else’s letter in with my mail. No problem. Mistakes happen. I just walked over and put it through the letter slot of my neighbor’s door.
I kept thinking about the name written down that wasn’t mine. I couldn’t claim the letter because my name, which would have identified me as the appointed one to receive the letter, wasn’t anywhere to be seen. It was nothing to do with me. The only claim on that white envelope belonged to my neighbor because it was her name written down — not mine.
That’s when I could feel my lips stretching into a big smile. I got my Bible and searched for the verse I knew was in the book of Revelation. Flipping through the pages, my smile grew even bigger when I found it: Revelation 3:5 reads, “…I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce before my Father and His angels that they are mine.”
Isn’t that absolutely fantastic? What a wonderful promise to those of us who have received Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Our names are written in God’s own Book of Life and He will never erase our names — never! What does that mean exactly? It means that every person whose name is written down has eternal access to all the glories of heaven; if one’s name is written there, that person has permission to look upon the very face of Jesus. If someone’s name is written in the Book of Life, that person has claim upon an eternity of perfect joy; a place where there are no more tears, no more pain, and no more death.
What relief, joy, excitement, and an immeasurable thankfulness to Jesus for what He did, making it absolutely possible to live with Him forever. If your name is written in the Book of Life, then heaven is your destination. One day you and I will be granted entrance. It’s a certainty, like one’s name on a letter — the promise belongs to us. Jesus wrote it down Himself! No one can take it away.
I close with one more glorious promise to each one whose name is written down in God’s Book of Life: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him.” I Corinthians 2:9
I did something earlier in the week that I had, at one time, told myself I would never do again. I watched a Lassie movie. I knew what it would do to me. Yes, floods of tears as dear Lassie was lost from her family. Oh, the perils she undertook to try and get back home.
This Lassie movie was set in England. An out-of-work miner sells Lassie out of desperate need to feed his family. The little boy, who loved Lassie, was heart broken. Lassie wasn’t pleased with the new arrangement either. Taken hundreds of miles from the home she knew, Lassie escapes and begins a journey to the place she knows is home. Over mountains, through rivers, breaking free from the dog catcher, and finally trudging through snow and frigid temperatures, Lassie makes it home. It’s against all odds. How could she have made it through such hardship and difficulty? Going home to the little boy she loved was her motivation. He would be waiting for her and all would be well.
As I wiped the tears of joy from my face at the sight of this family reunion with their beloved pet, my thoughts took a sudden turn. You and I are a lot like Lassie, far away from home. None of us are exempt from traveling life’s journey without difficult times. Sometimes we may find ourselves wondering how we will get through some particular calamity. Tears come, hearts break, grief takes hold — the list could go on. Even so, we press on. As Christians, we know the hardships of this present world are temporary. There will most certainly come a time when earth’s journey is over; we will finally make it home. Jesus will be waiting with open arms. Everything we have endured on our long journey home will be worth it all when we see His face, look into His eyes, and feel the warmth of pure love wash over us.
Are you going through a hard time? Are the mountains of challenge too steep? Rivers of possibility too deep to fathom? Just keep walking forward; stay focused on the point of the journey. Never lose sight of your heavenly destination. You and I will, of a certainty, get home; what a wondrous day that will be.
“May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father, who has enabled you to share the inheritance that belongs to God’s holy people, who live in the light. For He has rescued us from the one who rules in the kingdom of darkness, and he has brought us into the Kingdom of His dear Son.” Colossians 1:11-13
Today is the start of the Easter week-end. It’s a time of great reflection for the Christian as one recalls just what Jesus did for each of us on the the cross over 2000 years ago. For me, as I recall what Jesus did, my mind also thinks upon the disciples. I try to imagine what they must have felt as events unfolded before them. You and I know the story well — we know what comes next. The disciples didn’t have a clue.
Imagine the triumphal entry into Jerusalem. There was Jesus riding on a donkey with throngs of happy people shouting out their praises to Him. Can’t you imagine how proud and happy the disciples were, too? Their faces must have been aching with the smiles that accompanied their glad hearts.
Then events take a sudden and unexpected turn. They all meet with Jesus to celebrate the Passover meal together. Jesus begins talking of one who will betray Him. What? Surely not. Then Judas leaves the meal. What’s going on? The others assure Jesus that they would never betray Him. Then, of all things, Jesus turns to Peter and accuses him! Jesus tells Peter that before daybreak, before the rooster crows, Peter will already have denied he ever knew Jesus, not once, but three times! What? Preposterous! They had had such a joyful day with the people cheering Jesus on. Everyone was in high spirits. Why was Jesus now putting such damper on the occasion?
Then Jesus asks them to accompany Him across the Kidron valley. They enter a grove of olive trees and Jesus begins to pray. He wants them to pray with him but surely Jesus can understand — they’ve had a highly emotional day. They’re exhausted. Why can’t Jesus understand that it’s better to sleep for now? Why couldn’t Jesus stay within the spirit of the great joy they have all experienced?
Suddenly, coming out of the blackness of night, a band of soldiers come, arrest Jesus and take Him away. What? How could this be? What was happening? Wait! Maybe Jesus was going to set up His kingdom now. Yes! That was it! He’s going to overthrow the Roman government and set them all free from its tyranny!
But, no. What was happening? Jesus whipped unmercifully. Men and women mulling about chattering incessantly about what was taking place. The joy of Jesus’ triumphal entry was now replaced with abject terror. Peter denied he knew Jesus. The rooster crowed. Jesus enters carrying a ruggedly hewn cross on his bleeding back.
The disciples watch Him suffer in agony and they watch Him die. That’s it then. The end of their hopes and dreams. There would be no new kingdom. There would be nothing at all. Jesus was dead. Can you picture and imagine their anguish?
Can you then imagine their immeasurable joy when it turns out that Jesus is alive? The stone to His tomb has been rolled away. He isn’t there! He has conquered death! He has risen from the dead!
Have you ever felt like the disciples must have felt in the situation of that week-end when tragedy struck unexpectedly? Have you ever felt let down by the promises of Jesus that haven’t yet come true? Have you endured the pain of hopes and dreams slipping away? The despair that fills your mind when you have no new plan to follow?
May I encourage you this week-end to take heart — choose to trust Jesus for the bigger picture. Remember, you and I can only see today, while Jesus knows the beginning from the end. He holds time in His hands. He does all things well — always.
Have your dreams died? Hope gone? Are you drowning in despair? Look to Jesus and watch Him roll the stone of desolation away. Watch Him revive lost hope. Walk with Him as He fulfills His promises to you in just the right time. He is never too early — He is never too late. The plans for your life and mine unfold at exactly the right moment.
As you celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, may you also celebrate His joy that comes after tragedy and despair. It’s a promise. “…weeping may go on all night, but joy comes with the morning.” Psalm 30:5
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