Happy Endings

We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. (Romans 6:9-13 ESV). I enjoy true stories with happy endings. The following is such a story. A middle-aged woman named Norma expressed that she felt like the walls of the church would crumble when she took the first steps to know Jesus Christ in the summer of 1995. At one time, Norma was steeped in a life of drinking, drugs, sexual immorality and confusion. Today, 'Miss Norma' (as she likes to be called) is sober and has a totally different outlook on life. "God has just gotten into my heart," she states. What's more, she is now a staunch supporter of the pro-life movement. What makes this last statement significant is that most people may better know Miss Norma as "Jane Roe," the former plaintiff in the 1973 Supreme Court ruling of "Roe V Wade" on abortion. What is most inspiring about this 49 year old woman's story is that her conversion to Christianity is viable proof of how Christ can so completely turn around a life when there is true repentance and a desire to do what is acceptable in the sight of God. The Scripture in our reading today relays that "whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." The Apostle Paul also teaches us that the Lord is rich in mercy to those who call upon Him (Cf. Ephesians 2:4-5). Like billions of others who have barely escaped eternal damnation in Hell, Miss Norma's initial apprehension when entering church was due to the realization that she, like all of us, are sinners, and that it is only through God's grace that we may be saved. It is not an easy task to admit that we have failed God. Thankfully, God is not there to condemn those who cry out to Him, but to rejoice and tenderly guide us into His loving arms. When there is genuine remorse for transgressions of the past, there is a desire for a better way, a way that is pure and acceptable in God's eyes. And like Miss Norma's dramatic turn-around, the Bible declares that "if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." (Cf. 2 Corinthians 5:17). What a truly great and loving Father we have! Will your story have a happy ending?

Possibilities and Hope

In the days when the judges ruled there was a famine in the land, and a man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his wife Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They went into the country of Moab and remained there. But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she was left with her two sons. These took Moabite wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. They lived there about ten years, and both Mahlon and Chilion died, so that the woman was left without her two sons and her husband. Then she arose with her daughters-in-law to return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the fields of Moab that the LORD had visited his people and given them food. So she set out from the place where she was with her two daughters-in-law, and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. (Ruth 1:1-7 ESV). The English poet Alexander Pope wrote, “Hope springs eternal in the human breast: Man never is, but always to be blest.” But where does man turn when hope dries up? The director of a medical clinic told of a terminally ill young man who came in for his usual treatment. A new doctor who was on duty said to him casually and cruelly, “You know, don’t you, that you won’t live out the year?” As the young man left, he stopped by the director’s desk and wept. “That man took away my hope,” he blurted out. “I guess he did,” replied the director. “Maybe it’s time to find a new one.” Commenting on this incident, Lewis Smedes wrote, “Is there a hope when hope is taken away? Is there hope when the situation is hopeless? That question leads us to Christian hope, for in the Bible, hope is no longer a passion for the possible. It becomes a passion for the promise.” The book of Ruth in the Old Testament of the Bible tells the story of a young lady who lost her husband, her brother-in-law, and her father-in law. Was there the possibility of a better life for Ruth? Could her sorrowing mother-in-law, Naomi, also find a new beginning? These ladies traveled back to Bethlehem, their hometown. Being poor, Ruth picked grain left by reapers in the harvest field. The Bible says Ruth happened into the field of a relative of Naomi by the name of Boaz. As the story unfolds, Boaz helps Ruth and Naomi with food. Boaz also takes the legal steps necessary to return the family farm to Naomi. In the process, he and Ruth are married. This is a charming story of possibilities, hope, love, and new beginnings. But these two women, who lost everything, would never have experienced a new start in life by sitting around and sulking. The same is true with you and me. We can bemoan our poverty, ill health, or lack of education. And we can wallow in self-pity. Or we can place ourselves in the position where the unexpected can happen. As this is true on a physical plane, it is true on the spiritual level. When we place ourselves under the promise of God found in the Scripture, we may now see and experience the possibilities that hope brings. Perhaps it is time for you to return to Judah!

Helping One Another

Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. (Hebrews 13:15-16 ESV). There are some wonderful modern parables. The following story, written by George Downs, is one of those: A mouse looked through a crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife opening a package; what food might it contain? He was aghast to discover that it was a mousetrap! Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning, "There is a mouse trap in the house, there is a mouse trap in the house." The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell you this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me; I cannot be bothered by it." The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mouse trap in the house." "I am so very sorry Mr. Mouse," sympathized the pig, "but there is nothing I can do about it but pray; be assured that you are in my prayers." The mouse turned to the cow, who replied, "Like wow, Mr. Mouse, a mouse trap; am I in grave danger, Duh?" So the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected to face the farmer's mousetrap alone. That very night a sound was heard throughout the house, like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see that it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital. She returned home with a fever. Now everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient. His wife's sickness continued so that friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig. The farmer's wife did not get well, in fact, she died, and so many people came for her funeral the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide meat for all of them to eat. The moral to this story is very easy to see. We really are all “in this together”! The next time you hear that someone is facing a problem and think that it does not concern you, remember that when the least of us is threatened, we are all at risk. Doing good to all people certainly means that we concern ourselves with helping others with their problems. Sympathy and understanding are two of the qualities that make a true friend. How “friendly” are you really?

The Parable of the Stonecutter

Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God. (Ecclesiastes 5:19 ESV). Whenever I am gone for a few days the emails really pile up in my inbox. I normally glance at them all and read every one of those that are identified with a name I recognize. One of those contained the following modern parable. I couldn’t help but think how contemporary the thought is. It was about a stonecutter who was dissatisfied with himself and with his position in life. One day the stonecutter passed a wealthy merchant's house. Through the open gateway, he saw many fine possessions and important visitors. "How powerful that merchant must be!" thought the stonecutter. He became very envious and wished that he could be like the merchant. To his great surprise, he suddenly became the merchant, enjoying more luxuries and power than he had ever imagined, but envied and detested by those less wealthy than himself. Soon a high official passed by, carried in a sedan chair, accompanied by attendants and escorted by soldiers beating gongs. Everyone, no matter how wealthy, had to bow low before the procession. "How powerful that official is!" he thought. "I wish that I could be a high official!" Then he became the high official, carried everywhere in his embroidered sedan chair, feared and hated by the people all around. It was a hot summer day, so the official felt very uncomfortable in the sticky sedan chair. He looked up at the sun. It shone proudly in the sky, unaffected by his presence. "How powerful the sun is!" he thought. "I wish that I could be the sun!" Then he became the sun, shining fiercely down on everyone, scorching the fields, cursed by the farmers and laborers. But a huge black cloud moved between him and the earth, so that his light could no longer shine on everything below. "How powerful that storm cloud is!" he thought. "I wish that I could be a cloud!" Then he became the cloud, flooding the fields and villages, shouted at by everyone. But soon he found that he was being pushed away by some great force, and realized that it was the wind. "How powerful it is!" he thought. "I wish that I could be the wind!" Then he became the wind, blowing tiles off the roofs of houses, uprooting trees, feared and hated by all below him. But after a while, he ran up against something that would not move, no matter how forcefully he blew against it - a huge, towering rock. "How powerful that rock is!" he thought. "I wish that I could be a rock!" Then he became the rock, more powerful than anything else on earth. But as he stood there, he heard the sound of a hammer pounding a chisel into the hard surface, and felt himself being changed. "What could be more powerful than I, the rock?" he thought. He looked down and saw far below him the figure of a stonecutter. It is a sad truth that so many people cannot overcome the “greener grass syndrome.” The lesson from Ecclesiastes certainly encourages us to learn contentment with our present. Ask God to strengthen your sense of contentment today. The way to happiness is rarely through change of your circumstances, it is through changing of yourself!

Primed and Ready

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:30-32 ESV). Melvin McDonald served in the Canadian Navy during World War II. One Monday, the 79-year-old McDonald and his wife showed up at the front desk at police headquarters in Winnipeg. His opening line to the police officer that offered to assist him was, "I got a grenade." He wasn't making a threat, mind you, just stating a fact. With that, he took a hand grenade out of a brown paper bag and gave it to the officer. The shocked constable kept his head. He did, however, call the bomb squad immediately. Then things really started to happen. Most of the main floor of the Public Safety Building was evacuated, the fire department was put on alert, and the bomb squad showed up with all its sophisticated paraphernalia. The grenade was still primed and ready with explosive. Its fuse was intact. "I've had it in the house all these years," the veteran said. "I used to have it on a stand." His nephew had suggested it ought to be turned over to the police. An embarrassed McDonald apologized for all the commotion he caused. It was only a keepsake from a training exercise in Scotland in the early 1940’s. Many people today are carrying around a “grenade” which is primed and ready also. It’s not a physical explosive, but one just as deadly. That explosive would be unresolved conflict and anger. One of the unhealthiest ways to live is by burying and denying unresolved anger, hurts, or bitterness from the past. These are the supercharged, repressed, negative emotions that, like an old live hand grenade, when triggered can cause an emotional explosion and severely damage or destroy close relationships. On the other hand, if these emotions stay buried and get triggered, they can cause an implosion and destroy a person's health and well being. Like all of God's directives, it is not without good reason that the Bible advises us to get rid of these destructive emotions. And we don't get rid of them by burying them and denying their existence. It is imperative that they are recognized, expressed in creative rather than destructive ways, and resolved. The apostle Paul has a solution to getting rid of such conflict in our reading this morning. He uses three words. We are to be kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving. Kindness is a graciousness that is rooted in a tender heart, someone who may truly empathize with another’s plight. These two lead us to forgiveness. Give it a try.

Making Your Mark

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. (1 Corinthians 9:24-25 ESV). Many years ago as I was walking through a park, I noticed a bench beside the path. It was made of wood. It looked quite old and had served as the repository of a history of the people who had passed that way. Some folks merely marked the moment of their passing by carving their names in the bench. I suppose it was their way of “leaving their mark.” I began to do some thinking about that and realized that most people I know DO want to somehow let the world know that they were here. I am not saying that carving your initials in a bench will accomplish that. There are many other ways to do that effectively. Some people may accomplish this by doing something wonderful for mankind, as discovering a helpful vaccine, or contributing a great collection of art, while others may draw attention to them self by committing an evil, such as in how Adolf Hitler is now remembered for his attempt to exterminate all the Jews of the world. Of course there are less impactful things to do that will leave our mark on society too. Our time here on this earth is so short, isn't it? Being a dad to three young men I tend to reminisce quite often. One evening last week when we had a fellowship at our home, Faith and Logan came around the corner of the house. Kyle was with them and I began to think that it seemed like just yesterday when I was holding him in my lap. Time seems to slip by so quickly. Today I am especially reminded of that fact since it is my 64th birthday! Well, my hope is that I have left a mark on my family and others that will produce positive things. There really can be no better way to leave a legacy. All of my sons have made me so proud to be their dad. In spite of the mistakes I may have made along the way, they have been able to develop truth and character in their lives. When people remark how much we look alike, I am very proud. But, when people say that we act alike, I am sobered in thinking that I had such an influence in their lives. What about you? What type of mark will others remember you for? It is never too late to turn your life around, and it is never too soon to reach out to God for direction. Begin to make your positive mark today!

CHECK ENGINE LIGHT

The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD's throne is in heaven; his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man. The LORD tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence. (Psalm 11:4-5 ESV). It's a small rectangle hidden among the gauges clustered on the instrument panel behind the steering wheel. It flashes briefly when you turn the ignition on, along with other system checks like anti-lock brakes, to let you know the system is ready to perform its prescribed job. After briefly flashing at start-up indicating all is well, it is blank and dormant as you drive happily on your way. What happens, however when inexplicably, it glows yellow and warns, "Check Engine?” What do you check and why? The engine shows no obvious signs of anything except running down the road in good condition. The Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board established regulations requiring on-board diagnostics systems on cars and light-duty trucks (pickups, vans and SUVs) beginning with the 1994 model year. All '96 and newer cars and trucks have a powerful computer which uses second-generation on-board diagnostics, or OBDII, technology. The purpose of the OBDII system is to ensure proper emission-control system operation for the vehicle's lifetime by monitoring emission related components and systems for deterioration and malfunction. When the OBDII system determines that an emission problem exists, the computer illuminates the dashboard light indicating "Service Engine Soon" or "Check Engine" or displays an engine symbol. This light, usually yellow in color, serves to inform the driver that a problem has been detected and vehicle service is needed. The system is also continuously checking information from the engine and transmission sensors against data stored in its memory. When one of hundreds of faults is found, the check engine light comes on and stays on. This can mean many things, from an oxygen sensor malfunction to a fouled spark plug. It may be no more than a gas cap not fully tightened. The continuous light tells the driver that something is amiss, and to bring the vehicle in for service. This is usually not an emergency situation and it isn't necessary to immediately bring the car to the dealership. However, you shouldn’t drive for more than a few days with the light on. Wouldn’t it be nice if we had a “Check Engine Light” installed in our bodies? We do have a powerful “on-board computer.” The Holy Spirit’s presence within us is the voice of reason in our lives. Sometimes it is merely a small voice of warning, while at other times it is a blaring siren. Tragically, there are those who have come to ignore the warnings and merely “drive on.” Perhaps you’re doing that now. Take a few moments and listen to the voice of God directing you. Confess your sin. Ask for the power to change your life. It will amaze you how much better you will feel.