Wandering around in my memories

 

Tomorrow I will be 65 years of age! That seems really OLD to me. If you are 30, that seems ancient. If you are 88, it is relatively youthful. For me it means Medicare, thinking about 403(b) accounts, and reflecting on the past more often. Yes, 65 definitely feels ‘old.’  I do not generally make much of a deal about birthdays. I do make them an occasion to remember the life I’ve lived. In 2011, when my Mom was living with us in her final days, my birthday arrived and she wanted to talk.  I sat on the edge of her bed and she told me about my birth, her first born.

She married my Dad on May 28, 1954, the day after she graduated from high school. Three months later she found out she was pregnant. With a wry laugh that day, she told me that she was not at all happy that she was going to become a Mom. She choked up as she recounted how hard it was to accept the responsibility of having a baby, how she struggled to grow up so fast. Finding out that my arrival was not an occasion for celebration was both funny and a bit unsettling on my 56^th birthday. By the way, she was a good Mom … not just to me, but eventually to 13 of us; 10 adopted in the second half of her life.

My early childhood was a beautiful one, full of love, warmth, and security. Some might even say idyllic. Life centered on family and church. It took a jarring turn at age 9 when Dad entered full-time Christian ministry in New York City and we left the Iowa farm and family behind for a tiny lot in a Staten Island development. When that chapter closed we moved to NJ. Something like the life I’d known before returned.  I was just 19 when I fell in love and a few months later married the lovely girl who was my partner in parenting and ministry for 41 years before her own untimely death 4 years ago. My richest blessings are the 4 beautiful children that God gave to us and the privilege of serving Him in His Church as a pastor to God’s people. From the age of 16, I knew that my calling was Christian ministry.

Now, when I face the future, I do so knowing that I am, once again, on the cusp of major shifts in life. It will be time to retire in the blink of an eye, what then? Only God knows, truly.

My meditation today took me to the words of Ecclesiastes. Solomon wrote these words near the end of his life. He started well, lived a life full of opportunity, took a long detour from serving God in mid-life. His words are full of cynicism and regret, but he closes with wisdom for us all.  "However many years a man may live, let him enjoy them all. But let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many. Everything to come is meaningless. Be happy, young man, while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment. So then, banish anxiety from your heart and cast off the troubles of your body, for youth and vigor are meaningless. Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, “I find no pleasure in them”—" (Ecclesiastes 11:8-12:1, NIV)

Here's how I sum it up.

Enjoy life, it’s short.

There will be some dark days.

Keep in mind, while you’re young, that God will ask an accounting.

Days will come when aches and pains steal the joy.

So, serve God whole-heartedly.

Got it, Solomon!

Thanks letting me wander around in my memories today. I’ll be taking a break tomorrow.

Lord-willing, Coffeebreak Reflection will be back on Wednesday.

Have a blessed week. Here is a word from the Word.

"Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil." (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, NIV)

___________

This song has become, for me, a source of great assurance in this turbulent 2020.

Spend a few moments focused on the One who is the Way Maker, our Promise Keeper!

Way Maker

You are here moving in our midst

I worship You I worship You

You are here working in this place

I worship You I worship You

Way Maker, Miracle Worker, Promise Keeper,

Light in the darkness, my God that is who You are

You are here touching ev'ry heart

I worship You I worship You

You are here healing ev'ry heart

I worship You I worship You

You are here turning lives around

I worship You I worship You

You are here mending ev'ry heart

I worship You yeah I worship You Lord

That is who You are

That is who You are

That is who You are

That is who You are

Even when I don't see it You're working

Even when I don't feel it You're working

You never stop You never stop working

You never stop You never stop working

Osinachi Kalu Okoro Egbu

© 2016 Integrity Music Europe (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing (Integrity Music [DC Cook]))

CCLI License # 810055

Thoughts for the 4th

 

The Declaration of Independence, the document drafted and circulated in the colonies, sparked a revolution.  In our turbulent time we should remember that 1776 saw the people divided, those rebelling against the Crown of England in conflict with their neighbors who remained Loyalists. This document was radical. It re-defined the way people thought about government, rejecting the authority of the king and insisting that government’s legitimacy comes  “from the consent of the governed.”  The Declaration opens and closes with references to God and Providence. Thomas Jefferson and those who assisted him in drafting it, understood that the world belonged to God and was ultimately shaped by His will. (By the way, they were not devout evangelical Christians in spite of the myths you have been told!) Knowing that the revolution would be costly and unlikely to succeed without the help of God, the authors looked upwards as they wrote of their “firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence.”

Two centuries later America is a world power, a wealthy nation, and a broken society. We are in desperate need of the protection of Divine Providence!  We may have assumed, not all that long ago, that our treasured freedoms and democracy were beyond collapse, that America would always be envied among the nation.  How wrong that assumption was. Life and liberty are at risk from those who would rewrite our social contract. Our government is big, corrupt, and tramples our individual freedoms with ever more invasions of our lives. Our prosperity has become a curse, deceiving us to think we do not need God.

America has lost her way spiritually. Whatever devotion to Christian ideals might have existed is evaporating. Moral rot eats at the heart of the nation!  Our justice system imprisons millions. Corporations buy politicians who worship party over national good. Media outlets are largely outlets of propaganda. Our churches are weak, their message a whimper of niceness. Because we do not fear the Lord we are incapable of naming sin or calling people to the Gospel of Christ and spiritual renewal. Individually, we have turned to Self, relegating God to the edge of our consciousness.

But, I am not without hope. God has always preserved for Himself a ‘remnant.’  In times of spiritual decline, when God allowed judgment to fall on His people, there were always  the faithful. They were not numerous, often hidden from public view, but they relied on the Lord, a faithful remnant. Paul says "So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace." (Romans 11:5, NIV)  No, I do not mean to imply that America is guaranteed revival and restoration because of the prayers of the few. She may be, or she may find herself, like a thousand societies before her, on history’s trash pile. But, God’s Church will survive to bear His Name before the world.

I do love my country. I pray for her to truly become what she has aspired to be – a place where there is liberty and justice for all.  I pray earnestly for true repentance to come from humility before Him, that our minds and hearts would take this counsel of the Lord to humbly consider our ways, to turn from our sins, to seek Him. And this I know, that it is the nation who trusts in the Lord that finds the blessings of God.  On the 4^th of July, would you find a time to pray?  Pray with me that the Spirit of God will preserve a remnant of the righteous, that they will faithfully bear witness to His Gospel and goodness.

• Pray for individual Christians to live the kind of godly lives (Oh, Lord, start with my heart!) that causes others to desire to know Jesus Christ.
• Pray for Churches to become powerful catalysts of genuine spiritual transformation, places where God’s truth is loved and ALL people find grace and acceptance.
• Pray for those who govern, that they will recognize - like the writers of the Declaration - the need for reliance on the protection of Divine Providence and humble themselves to seek Him.

A word from the Word -  "Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance. From heaven the LORD looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth— he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do. No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength. A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save. But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine." (Psalm 33:12-19, NIV)

__________

America The Beautiful

(Ray Charles does it right!)

O beautiful for spacious skies

For amber waves of grain

For purple mountain majesties

Above the fruited plain

America, America God shed His grace on thee

And crown thy good with brotherhood

From sea to shining sea

O beautiful for pilgrim feet

Whose stern impassioned stress

A thoroughfare for freedom beat

Across the wilderness

America, America God mend thine ev'ry flaw

Confirm thy soul in self control

Thy liberty in law

O beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife

Who more than self their country loved

And mercy more than life

America, America may God thy gold refine

Till all success be nobleness

And ev'ry gain divine

Katharine Lee Bates © Words: Public Domain

You Owe Me

 

Do you think that the world owes you something regardless of your effort or abilities? The prosperity of the late 20^th century gave many parents the notion that they should make sure that their children never had to struggle in the way that previous generations did. What grew out of a well-intentioned impulse to make life easier actually led to a steep increase in entitlement. Reward was disconnected from effort and replaced with a new mantra: “You owe me. … my cell phone, a nice car, a high-paying job.”  Entitlement has worked into every part of our society, among young and old, rich and poor.

Those are most enmeshed in entitlement are extremely protective of their personal happiness. They feel an exaggerated sense of self-importance often believing themselves more talented or qualified than they really are. They lack an ability to compromise and work towards shared solutions because it is next to impossible to let go of what they consider a basic human right of self-expression. Thinking that they should be admired and respected they are quickly offended by that person who suggests that they are, in fact, ordinary human beings who need to earn their place in the world.

Christian, is your Christianity marred by a sense of entitlement?

When you pray, is it to commune with God, to become wise in His ways,

or do you mostly pray “bless me, Jesus” prayers for a better life?

Entitled Christians are not able to recognize the goodness of God. They are almost completely incapable of true worship or sincere thanks.

And there is this - ingratitude is a fertile soil that nourishes spiritual rebellion!  In the first chapter of Romans, the desperate state of depraved humanity is outlined with an ugly recital of sin. Where does it all begin? "For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened." (Romans 1:21, NIV)  Mistakenly thinking, God owes me happiness, He owes me a life without struggle, turns me into an entitled people who demands more. Ungratefulness makes me more and more Self-centered, increases my doubt about the goodness of the Lord, and eventually twists me into a bitter cynic. In that place, I lose out on the life-enriching fellowship with the Holy Spirit.

Christian, this short phrase is more than a slogan; it’s a life principle. "In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." (1 Thessalonians 5:18, NKJV)  Thankfulness expands our capacity to love – both God and others. Let me ask a hard question – are you humble enough to be grateful?  God owes us nothing yet provides, in His love, all things for our good. He loves us while we are ignoring Him. He entered a broken world to die for us on the Cross when we were full of Self. He pursues us when we go our own way.  Confronting our pride and entitlement, the truth of Scripture reminds us that "God saved you by his special favor when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." (Ephesians 2:8-10, NLT)

Let’s invite the Spirit to show us where we are acting as if God owes us and repent. Peter teaches us the way of the humble. "All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time." (1 Peter 5:5-6, NIV)  In that humility we learn to accept the good gifts of the Lord. We learn to be steady in faith when times are bad. And, we enjoy the best gifts of the Lord rather than those we think He should provide for us.

Let’s cultivate real gratitude.  If we wait for it to just ‘show up’ in our lives, we will die feeling God and the world owes us more!  But, if we humble ourselves, take note of His faithfulness often as well as the goodness of others, we to give and receive from hearts made noble by the Lord’s work in us.

Here’s a word from the Word. "Be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Ephesians 5:18-20, NIV)

"Thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves. He poured great draughts of water down parched throats; the starved and hungry got plenty to eat. " (Psalm 107:8-9, The Message)

__________________

Give thanks

With a grateful heart

Give thanks to the Holy One

Give thanks because He's given

Jesus Christ His Son

And now let the weak say

I am strong

Let the poor say

I am rich

Because of what

The Lord has done for us

Give thanks

Henry Smith

© 1978 Integrity's Hosanna! Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)

CCLI License # 810055