Yes America, there is a Thanksgiving Day

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Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. Psalm 118:29 (NIV)

 

Turkey dinner…Pumpkin Pie…Naps…More turkey…Football Games…Parades! These are words that foster memories and create anticipation of Thanksgiving. BTW: It is easy to forget but Thanksgiving is an official, though often overshadowed, holiday between Halloween and Christmas. This one holiday has transcended the generations and is woven into the very fabric of our national identity from that very first gathering of colonists and Wampanoag Indians. They shared a harvest celebration together and since then Thanksgiving has been a day to stop and give thanks.  We celebrate the abundance and blessings within our lives and pause for a moment to give God thanks.

“Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor—and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me “to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.”

President George Washington proclaimed on October 3, 1789, a day of Thanksgiving. Historians debate whether this was the first proclamation or executive order issued by the new President George Washington. However, he recognized that this young nation needed to stop and express thankfulness.

Thanksgiving is truly a unique holiday that has only one purpose: to give thanks. There have been lots of changes in the United States since that first proclamation was issued but one thing hasn’t or shouldn’t change: the need to give thanks!

You may be facing unbelievable challenges and find it hard to be thankful. Maybe it would be helpful during the days leading up to this Thanksgiving Holiday to take some time to meditate upon thankfulness. Allow God to reveal those things in your life for which you can express thanksgiving. What can you be thankful for this year?  Allow your response to be a conversation starter around the table.

If 2022 has been a challenging year for thanksgiving, imagine writing your thoughts from a dark, dingy prison cell. Paul did as he wrote to the church in Colosse, “We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ when we pray for you.” Paul, writing with a chain around his leg, was still able to give thanks for the Colossians.

Paul should have been worried and stressed out but he tells the church to “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful….” singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

I can’t help but imagine that if Paul were writing to the church in 2022, he would still write the same closing encouraging words.  “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” Instead of stressing over the unrelenting wave of negative news, spend time praying for others and yourself. Instead of being downcast, constantly look for things you are thankful for. Instead of focusing on what has been lost in 2022, find those things that you are thankful for, like family, health, and life itself.

Thanksgiving is a lot more than turkey, football, and parades. By all means enjoy the festivities, get ready for Black Friday and savor the amazing foods, yet during the chaos of the holiday, slow down long enough to reflect upon those things for which you are truly thankful for, no matter the circumstances. Billy Graham said of the thankful heart, “A spirit of thankfulness is one of the most distinctive marks of a Christian whose heart is attuned to the Lord.”

Dear God,

Thank you for your amazing power and work in our lives, thank you for your goodness and for your blessings over us. Thank you that you are able to bring hope through even the toughest times, strengthening us for your purposes…Forgive us for when we don’t thank you enough, for who you are, for all that you do, for all that you’ve given. Help us to set our eyes and our hearts on you afresh. Renew our spirits, fill us with your peace and joy. We love you and we need you, this day and every day…In Jesus’ Name, Amen. –Rachel Dawson

Thank you for being part of this weekly Prayer Safari. I so appreciate you subscribing and I trust you find nuggets occasionally that encourage you on your safari. I pray you will have a blessed and wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday.

Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD. Let us shout our praises to our Protector who delivers us. Let us enter his presence with thanksgiving. Let us shout out to him in celebration. –Psalm 95:1-2 (NET)

God is great!

Tomorrow is promised but the Location is not

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I have asked the LORD for one thing—this is what I desire! I want to live in the LORD’s house all the days of my life, so I can gaze at the splendor of the LORD and contemplate in his temple. Psalm 27:4 (NET)

There are moments of time that will be forever embedded into my memory. They include hearing Mr. Conover’s voice coming over the loudspeaker at school announcing that Pres Kennedy had been assassinated, being awakened out of deep sleep that our pastor and his family had been killed, sitting in my Nairobi office, hearing a massive explosion, finding out later that it was the United States Embassy bombing and standing in the kitchen of our Johannesburg home getting a call that my grandmother had died.

Jesus told a parable in Luke 12 about the landowner who enjoyed a bumper harvest from his land one year. The yield was so great he couldn’t find enough barns so he set about building larger and more elaborate storage facilities that could easily handle his storage problem. Then he sat back and said to himself, “You have plenty of goods stored up for many years; relax, eat, drink, celebrate!” He forgot one important step in his plans, he didn’t control his life. “But God said to him, ‘you fool! This very night your life will be demanded back from you, but who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

King Solomon understood a few things about planning yet reminds us in Proverbs, “do not boast about tomorrow; for you do not know what a day may bring forth.” (27:1)

James understood the intoxicating lure of pride and power so he could warn his readers, “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into this or that town and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.” You do not know about tomorrow. What is your life like? For you are a puff of smoke that appears for a short time and then vanishes. You ought to say instead, “If the Lord is willing, then we will live and o this or that.” (4:13-15)

Paul understood future hope in face of uncertainty, writing “For our momentary, light suffering is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison because we are not looking at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen. For what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.” (2 Cor 4:17-18)

Jesus reminded his followers “do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Today has enough trouble of its own.” (Matt 6:34)

As followers of Jesus, we do have the certainty of tomorrow, what we don’t know is the location. Jesus knew his followers didn’t need to fret over the tomorrows of life because he would be preparing a much better home for them. “There are many dwelling places in my Father’s house. Otherwise, I would have told you, because I am going away to make ready a place for you.” (Luke 14:2)

Dietrich Bonhoeffer prayed just before he was hanged by the Nazis soldiers, “Oh, God, this is the end; but for me it is just the beginning.” Bonhoeffer’s tomorrow came but he found himself in a different location. “What we call the beginning is often the end and to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.” –T.S. Eliot

Augustine wrote, “We have not lost our dear ones who have departed from this life, but have merely sent them ahead of us, so we also shall depart and shall come to that life where they will be more than ever dear as they will be better known to us, and where we shall love them without fear of parting.”

Realtors understand fully that it is all about “location, location, location” when selling property. A house in the middle of Manhattan will bring a king’s ransom compared to a much larger house in my hometown of Rush Springs, Oklahoma. Location is everything.  Judah Smith writes that “Jesus encourages us to think and live and pray about this earth from the perspective of “as it is in heaven.” Like Jesus, our lives should be dramatically impacted by the reality of eternity and heaven, because that is our ultimate home. This earthly existence is but for a moment. Heaven is eternal. We are to live our lives preoccupied by eternity.”

We have an amazing hope in knowing we always have a tomorrow. Yes, it can be a little disconcerting at times not knowing when we will experience this change of address. It is unbelievably hard on our family and friends when we move to our new location. However, what an overwhelming assurance to know our final destination has been prepared by Jesus himself. David ended the beautiful and comforting Psalm 23 by boldly saying, “I will live in the LORD’s house for the rest of my life.”

In his book, Heaven, Randy Alcorn writes, “We shouldn’t glorify or romanticize death—Jesus didn’t. He wept over it…. Death is painful, and it’s an enemy. But for those who know Jesus, death is the final pain and the last enemy…For the Christian, death is not the end of adventure but a doorway from a world where dreams and adventures shrink, to a world where dreams and adventures forever expand.”

Tomorrow is promised but the location is not. Tomorrow may be “This is the day the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Ps 118:24) Enjoy the day in all its fullness, living and seeking to do God’s will “on earth, as it is in heaven.”

Tomorrow is promised but the location is not. Tomorrow may be “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth…. I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End” (Rev 21)

“Can you hear the sighing in the wind? Can you feel the heavy silence in the mountains? Can you sense the restless longing in the sea? Can you see it in the woeful eyes of an animal? Something’s coming…Something better. –Joni Eareckson Tada

Lord, thank you for our tomorrows wherever the location. You are the giver of life, both on earth and in heaven. “Our new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God.”

God is great!

 

Pray then Vote. Vote then Pray.

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First of all, then, I urge that requests, prayers, intercessions, and thanks be offered on behalf of all people, even for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. Such prayer for all is good and welcomed before God our Savior, since he wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. –I Timothy 2:14

Can you believe anyone loves elections? I did at one point in my life. I enjoyed the debates, the campaigning, and listening for the winner as the reports came in that night. Granted, part of that nostalgia was because my Mother was an active campaigner for local politicians running for office. They would hire my mother to hand out campaign cards for them and she took it seriously. She would drive from one house to the next handing out cards and talking to people. Then on election day, she would go back and pick up older women who couldn’t drive and take them to vote. As soon as I was old enough to register to vote, I did. The first election that I voted in was for a county commissioner race where a fellow church member was running.

Watching the vicious and demeaning campaign ads over the last couple of weeks, I can’t help but think I have fallen victim to the Mandela Effect. I must have a faulty memory of wonderful, civil elections.

The Mandela effect is a phenomenon “when many different people incorrectly remember the same thing.” (Medical News Today). The term is named after South African Nelson Mandela after the widespread false memory that he died in prison in the 1980s, instead of being elected President of South Africa in 1994. Over the last few years, there has been a growing impact of the Mandela effect around the world, whether in politics, marketing, or lifestyle. Is it Cheez-It or Cheez-Itz or Cheez-Its? (BTW: It is Cheez-It)

What is real and what we remember as real creates major clashes and often major divisions. What I may perceive as reality is often the core of someone else’s conspiracy. There is a major divide in the United States according to a recent poll on whether voting is a fundamental right or a privilege with responsibilities. In Germany, France, and the UK, citizens are required to register to vote. Worldwide there are 27 countries that have compulsory voting laws. For my readers in the United States, if you chose to register and choose to vote, tomorrow is election day!  Whether a right, privilege, or responsibility to vote, Walter Cronkite said it well, “There is no such thing as a little freedom. Either you are all free, or you are not free.”

I admit I will be glad when this election is over, at least the campaigning part. Somehow the warm, fuzzy memories of yesteryear campaigning have faded, yet my responsibility to pray and seek good for the nation has not. Chuck Colson, a former aide to President Nixon understood a few things about impacting elections. However, once he came to faith he came to realize that “Christians who understand biblical truth and have the courage to live it out can indeed redeem a culture, or even create one.”

We are not living in a unique time in history where evil seems to be overwhelming every aspect of life. God looked at the culture of Israel and told Ezekiel that “the house of Israel has become slag to me” because of every conceivable sin within the land. “the people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery. They have wronged the poor and needy; they have oppressed the resident foreigner and denied them justice.” Finally, God said to Ezekiel, “I looked for a man from among them who would repair the wall and stand in the gap before me on behalf of the land, so that I would not destroy it, but I found no one.” (Ezekiel 22)

The whole of scripture from Matthew to Revelation was written in the shadow of a cruel, tyrannical, and unjust government. Yet time after time in Scripture, followers of Jesus are told to pray for government leaders even though they are the ones who put countless people to death. Believers are told to respect the laws of the land, even laws that put them in the role of unjustly treated people. Believers are told to seek the good of the land in prayer and servanthood.

On election night you will wait in front of your TV just waiting to see who won or lost which will either bring rejoicing or moaning. You will hear monologue after monologue of TV analysts explaining why this party lost, or this one won. A few of you will, unfortunately, have to endure another month of merciless campaign commercials if you live in a state that mandates a candidate to win 50% of the vote.

Jim Denison writes that “politics cannot heal our nation, but living in light of eternity can. There are approximately 210 million Christians in America. If each of us prepares for judgment by loving God with “all” our heart, soul, mind, and strength, we will love our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:30-31). We will then engage our many problems not with political animosity but by “speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15).

Daniel, along with others serving in Nebuchadnezzar’s court, faced certain death but he chose to stand in the gap. He praised the God of heaven, saying: “Let the name of God be praised forever and ever, for wisdom and power belong to him. He changes times and seasons, deposing some kings and establishing others. He gives wisdom to the wise; he imparts knowledge to those with understanding; he reveals deep and hidden things. He knows what is in the darkness, and light resides with him. O God of my fathers, I acknowledge and glorify you, for you have bestowed wisdom and power on me. Now you have enabled me to understand what we requested from you. For you have enabled us to understand the king’s dilemma.” (Daniel 2:20-23)

This election may be over but how tragic if our nation does not find Christians in prayer. How tragic if God cannot find anyone to stand in the gap to bring healing. How tragic if in The United States, South Africa, Singapore, the UK, and all the other nations there is no one to stand in the gap on behalf of the land. When facing the devastation of World War II, President Roosevelt knew where to find help. “I ask that our people devote themselves in a continuance of prayer. As we rise to each new day, and again when each day is spent, let words of prayer be on our lips.”

LORD, on behalf of our nation, may you find us faithful to stand in the gap. Give our leaders wisdom, humility, and integrity to fulfill their roles. Help us to remember that “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.” Restore to us again a passion and love for You. Give us wisdom on how to act and speak. Give us the courage to stay true to You.

God is great!

 

Planting Seeds of Faith

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This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come. —Mark 4:26-29

America’s best-known seed thrower is John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed. Traveling through the then-frontier area of the United States in the early 1800s, he planted apple seeds. Folklore pictured him as a wandering nomad tossing seeds here and there, but he planted seeds with intentionality. “Chapman’s preference for seeds over grafting for creating not only varieties like the delicious and golden delicious, but also the “hardy American apple.” Since apples that are grafted are the same as the parent tree, they don’t change. But by forgoing grafting, Jonny created the conditions for apple trees to adapt and thrive in their new world home.” –Michael Pollan

Robert Schuller shared that “Anyone can count the seeds in an apple, but only God can count the number of apples in a seed.”  Learning to live life without the final answer is an incredible adventure. You can count the seeds but you can’t count the apples coming out of the seeds.

Joshua and Wyn Haldeman decided to count apple seeds leaving Canada for South Africa in 1950. Haldeman set up a chiropractor practice in South Africa but Dr. Haldeman’s real passion was to discover the Lost City of the Kalahari Desert. Every year, the Haldemans would pack up supplies and with their family of five children head off into the desert in search of the lost city. Though Joshua and Wyn never found the Lost City of the Kalahari, the apple seeds of adventure were planted in their children and passed on to their grandchildren, including Maye Haldeman Musk’s son, Elon. His name is famously associated with companies such as Tesla, SpaceX, and now Twitter.

Planting seeds, whether for growing crops, starting new business ventures, or seeking to discover lost cities requires faith. You do everything you can as you prepare to plant the seeds; dig the hole, fertilize the soil, and pull weeds. Yet it is not until the day you see a sprout break into daylight that you know you were successful.

Jesus understood the importance of seed-planting faith. In the book of Mark, He shares how seeds of faith planted in different ways have different outcomes. Some of the seeds thrown will be robbed by Satan before they even take root. Others grow well at first but the heat of persecution and trouble destroys the new growth. Some of the seeds grow well but the weeds and thorns of everyday life leave the fruit worthless. The seed that is sown “on good soil, hear the word, accept it and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.” (Mark 4:13-20)

We enjoy the fruit of apple trees because of the effort it took to plant the seed, nurture the plant, and finally pick the crop.  Just as apple seeds grow into fruit-bearing trees through tender care, Jesus assures us that our faith seeds will grow into fruit-bearing lives as we let him shape and prune our lives. In Hebrews we are told, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” (11:1)

Planting seeds of faith will never be easy or certain. Oswald Chambers said, “Faith is deliberate confidence in the character of God whose ways you may not understand at the time.”  “For we live by faith, not by sight.” (2 Cor 5:7)

Abraham planted seeds of faith by leaving his home for an unknown land. Those seeds would grow into him being “the father of many nations.” (Gen 17:4)

Joshua planted seeds of faith by declaring “as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:15)

David planted seeds of faith early in life when facing his giant by declaring, “I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.” (I Sam 17:45)

What seeds of faith do you need to plant? Jesus said of the kingdom of God that “it is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.” –Mark 4:31 “I think faith is the small mustard seed of opportunities every day. For example, ‘Am I going to love this person? Am I going to share my faith with this person? Am I going to pray that little prayer?’ It really is a daily thing where you seize those little mustard seed opportunities and then see what God does.”—Mark Batterson

We will experience the joy and hope that only Jesus can bring through planting seeds of faith. “He calls us then to make an act of faith every time we would naturally be pulled down into the pit of joylessness, for there is an end set to the sin and sorrow and confusion of the world as well as to our own private trials. We only see today. He whom we worship sees tomorrow.” –Amy Carmichael

Lord, I choose to plant seeds of faith this day. I may be able to count seeds but I know only you can count the fruit from those seeds. Find me faithful now and forever.

God is great!

 

 

Can you hear me?

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As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the road begging. When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was going on. They told him, “Jesus the Nazarene is passing by.” Luke 18:35-37

“To be a follower of the crucified means, sooner or later, a personal encounter with the cross. And the cross always entails loss.” –Elisabeth Elliott

Life can seem to be unfair depending on your outlook. Dallas Wiens, a painter in Fort Worth, went to work as usual.   As he worked on a painting job outside Ridglea Baptist Church the lift he was working on accidentally hit a power line. After waking up three months later from his medically induced coma, he discovered he no longer had a face. The accident destroyed his nose, lips, and facial muscles. Now blind with no feeling from his neck up, it would seem life wasn’t fair.

Dallas could have given up hope and purpose to live but he didn’t. He doesn’t call the experience an accident but rather a “gift from God.” He became the first full facial transplant in the United States. Speaking at a local school before the transplant, Dallas told the students “how God has given him strength, purpose, and hope and encouraged them to make a commitment to God in the middle of their own circumstances.”

“There’s a difference between living and surviving,” he said in an interview. When asked if he mourns his losses he replied, “I’ve never really thought about it. In life, in my mind, this is who I am today, and whoever I was then died when I hit that power line. I had a chance to become a better person, and I have.”

Jesus never had an uneventful day! Something would happen but more importantly, that something was always someone. As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind beggar asked about all the commotion he was hearing. The noise was overwhelming, the man could feel people rushing past him as he sat on the edge of the road. He kept shouting, what is happening? Finally, someone yelled back at him, Jesus! Jesus the Nazarene is coming into town.

The beggar had heard about this strange man, the one whom people were always talking about, the one that performed miracles. He was the one the religious leaders called a heretic. Could this Jesus be his one chance for healing?

He started shouting, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” Be quiet, you are bothering us shouted the people around him. No way would he keep quiet if there was a chance he might be able to see. “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

He knew he had only one chance, only one chance. The odds were stacked against him but he had to take the risk. He couldn’t go to Jesus. He couldn’t see him. He was a nobody in the eyes of those around him. How could Jesus possibly see or hear him hidden by rows and rows of people all shouting? Pushed out of the way to make room for the crowd, he did the one thing he could do, cry out to Jesus.

How could Jesus hear him? Why would the King of Kings, the promised Messiah bother with a nobody? One voice crying out among thousands of other voices. Jesus, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. Do you hear me? He had lived his life with no one caring. Religious leaders who were anointed to care for people, couldn’t or wouldn’t help him. Government-appointed leaders didn’t help him, he was just another nobody among scores of nobodies. Why would Jesus hear him?

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost, but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.

‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,

And grace my fears relieved.

Did his ears hear right? What are they saying to me? Get up!  Jesus heard your cry. He wants you to come to him. Get up! Jesus heard a nobody. Dirty from all the dust of the road, mocked by the crowd. People looked at him with pity. When was the last time he had a bath? His clothes were torn and tattered, he didn’t have time to change into something better, even if he had something.

Jesus had heard his cry for help. Now Jesus looked at him, not as a nobody but as a somebody. Jesus didn’t wince from his smell. Jesus didn’t judge him by his appearance. Jesus didn’t patronize him. Just looking at the man you would have thought he needed food, maybe some better clothes, and a place to live. Not, Jesus, he dignified the man by asking “what do you want me to do for you?”

The beggar could easily have voiced his complaint on how he had been mistreated in life, how his situation had been so unfair. Yet in this life of begging and blindness, he could have stayed bitter, forgotten hope, and stayed in his misery. To answer Jesus’ question, he would have to give up the only thing he had ever known, being an outcast and beggar.

“Lord, let me see again.” Are you sure that is all? You do know who you are talking to? Jesus, didn’t have to ask him, are you sure that is all you want? No, I only want to see again. Jesus looked at him and simply said, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you. And immediately he regained his sight and followed Jesus.”

“The reason you are inside the gate for such a time as this—is to risk your life for those outside the gate.”—Ann Voskamp. This once blind, hopeless beggar now found himself inside the gate. Jesus not only gave him physical sight but he gave this nobody a new life as a somebody. “And immediately he regained his sight and followed Jesus, praising God.”  No longer did he have to sit in the dust but because of his faith Jesus did something amazing in his life then “all the people saw it, they too gave praise to God.”

I am thankful Jesus hears our cry in the distance. We know we have a Savior who listens and responds to our deepest needs. Jesus invites us to follow Him. We no longer live on the outskirts but are brought into Jesus’ life-changing love.

This week a good friend and encourager of my blog, Prayer Safari, died suddenly. Pray for the family of Julie Thomas who is now living in the final stanza of Amazing Grace: “When we’ve been there ten thousand years, bright shining as the sun, We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise, Than when we’ve first begun.”

God is great!

Jesus Amazed

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When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people who were listening, he entered Capernaum. There a centurion’s servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant. When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, “This man deserves to have you do this, because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue.” So Jesus went with them. He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him”: Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed… When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well. Luke 7:1-10

Mourners stood in line for more than 24 hours stretching up to 10 miles to pay their respects as Queen Elizabeth II lay in state in Westminster Hall in the Palace of Westminster. Commoners and aristocrats all stood together in a line. Manchester United F.C. legend David Beckham was no exception. He could have played his “fame card” but he chose to walk with everyone else. “We all want to be here together, we all want to experience something where we celebrate the amazing life of our Queen. We all go through this pain to be here today.”

The closest I have come standing for hours waiting on “royalty” was when we lived in Johannesburg and our family drove out to Alberton with literally thousands of others to wait. Yet, the time was worth it for Matthew and Katelyn as their excitement became ecstatic when they heard the sound of the helicopter and upon landing, outstepped the world-famous Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael. True royalty to a mob of children!

Luke captures a fantastic story of a Roman Centurion who could have met Jesus yet refused because he was not worthy to have Jesus in his home.  He was a man of power, prestige, and influence simply because of his rank and position. Since he had a top-notch intelligence service at his command, he knew what was taking place in his region and one of the major developments was a man named Jesus. Out of curiosity and political security, Jesus was on his radar of interest but more importantly, he had a major crisis in his household.  A beloved servant he valued highly was sick, maybe dying.  Maybe this Jesus could help.

The centurion decided Jesus was the only solution and sent a group of Jewish leaders to ask him to come. The religious leaders, who were sent to ask Jesus for help, focused on the influence of the sender, not the servant’s need.  Instead of mercy for the sick servant, they pleaded for Jesus to come because this man was a major donor to their synagogue and therefore in their eyes, deserved special attention.

I can’t help but wonder if Jesus used these Jewish leaders as an example later on when He was a guest in a prominent religious leader’s house. Jesus observed how the “guests picked the places of honor at the table” so they could be seen by the crowd. These leaders knew how important it was, politically and socially to be seen with those who have real power. Jesus looked and said, no you are doing it wrong.  “When you are invited, take the lowest place” because someone more important might show up and you get relegated to the back row. “For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Luke 14:7-14)

Unlike the religious leaders, this seasoned army officer understood what true authority and humility looked like. Rethinking his original request, he sent a second message but this time he entrusted it to friends who would better confer the message. These friends understood his heart for his servant’s well-being. The other group wanted Jesus to come because of what they could get. This group brought a message of the heart.

This Gentile, part of the hated Roman government, despised by the religious elite had the opportunity to meet Jesus yet in humility said, “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you.”  A Roman Centurion was never in a position of begging for help. What would others think of him? That he was weak? He should have commanded Jesus to be brought to him. “The only way to care for the disadvantaged is to disadvantage yourself, which is guaranteed to turn out to your advantage.”—Ann Voskamp

This centurion understood he was not worthy to have the only one who could heal his servant come into his house.  “Hearts are broken in ten thousand ways, for this is a heart-breaking world; and Christ is good at healing all manner of heart-breaks.” –Charles Spurgeon

Yet this unworthy centurion knew the chain of authority and the One coming to his house had the authority and power to answer his “prayer.” Though I am unworthy, I need your help, “say the word, and my servant will be healed.” Jesus probably wanted to shout: Yes, someone finally gets it! It is not about influence, position, or power. It is not about how much wealth a person may have at his disposal. It is not about where you are from or what you can do.  It is about who you turn to!

“I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.”

This centurion may not have fully understood who Jesus was at the time but he knew enough. He joined an elite group of folks who didn’t fully understand, but they knew enough. A destitute widow grieving the death of her son heard the words, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” (Luke 7:14) A broken and rejected woman heard the words, “Your sins are forgiven.” (Luke 7:48) A beaten down and physically worn-out woman heard the words,” Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.” (Luke 8:48) A condemned man with no hope heard the words, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43)

LORD, though I was unworthy to have you in my house, you made me worthy because of your love for me on the cross. No longer unworthy but now a joint heir with you. No longer living in the past tense but the present tense of forgiven with the future tense of eternity. “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”

God is great!

Sunday Mornings – More than just another day

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Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts. Acts 2:46

What gets you up on Sunday mornings for church? If you are a child, probably your Mom or Dad. If you are a teenager, hopefully, Mom or Dad takes you to church, but it could be a friend. If you are more mature in life, maybe it is an obligation, but hopefully, it is excitement. Excuses abound for not going to church: the music is loud, the people are all hypocrites, the preacher preaches too long, or the building is too hot or cold. C.S. Lewis was asked the question, “Is attendance at a place of worship or membership with a Christian community necessary to a Christian way of life?” Lewis beautifully captured what it means to go to church:

“My own experience is that when I first became a Christian, about fourteen years ago, I thought that I could do it on my own, by retiring to my rooms and reading theology, and I wouldn’t go to the churches and Gospel Halls, and then later I found that it was the only way of flying your flag; and, of course, I found that this meant being a target. It is extraordinary how inconvenient to your family it becomes for you to get up early to go to Church. It doesn’t matter so much if you get up early for anything else, but if you get up early to go to Church it’s very selfish of you and you upset the house. If there is anything in the teaching of the New Testament which is in the nature of a command, it is that you are obliged to take the Sacrament, and you can’t do it without going to Church. I disliked very much their hymns, which I considered to be fifth-rate poems set to sixth-rate music. But as I went on I saw the great merit of it. I came up against different people of quite different outlooks and different education, and then gradually my conceit just began peeling off. I realized that the hymns (which were just sixth-rate music) were, nevertheless, being sung with devotion and benefit by an old saint in elastic-side boots in the opposite pew, and then you realize that you aren’t fit to clean those boots. It gets you out of your solitary conceit.” – from Answers to Questions on Christianity, God in the Dock

It could be that a few of you may have a long-forgotten treasure tucked away in your keepsake box: a perfect attendance pin from years ago!  God never intended for church going to be about pins, certificates, public recognition, or trying to gain God’s favor.  Rhonda Stoppe writes “Church is not a place to go, rather it is a living body where God wants you to become a part—for your good and His glory.”

You probably have your reasons for going to church but here are a few of my reasons:

I get to celebrate with others. I love my morning prayer times but I need those times together with others in worship to strengthen and encourage me. The times of corporate worship remind me that I am not alone in my faith journey. As I look around on Sunday mornings and worship with others, I realize we are all on the same journey of faith.  Corporate worship is an important part of that “great encouragement we give each other” in Hebrews 10:24-25 “And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Amy Carmichael writes in Candles in the Dark to her colleagues of this vital unity, “I depend on you to carry on whatever happens. There may be difficult days ahead, but if you all stand together and go on together, nothing can overwhelm you. There may be attacks upon the pattern shown, and upon your vital unity which is founded upon loyal love. Be it so. I cannot fear. He who has called will hold you fast, and He will lead you on.”

I get to hear the preaching of God’s Word. Yes, I could easily sit in my recliner at home and listen to a smorgasbord of preachers. There are times when sitting at home is unavoidable and necessary and I am thankful for modern technology that connects us to the church. However, in an age of relationship isolation, solo worship fails to meet the need for togetherness. The early church realized the importance of coming together as “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” Acts 2:42

I get to model what it means to be a follower of Jesus. My kids know I am not perfect but they did see me worshipping a perfect Savior. I may not be a perfect neighbor but my going to church serves as a witness every Sunday morning. I may not be perfect but as I gather with other imperfect people, together we worship a perfect Savior. “The very moment of my salvation in Christ made my union with Christ an objective fact, but it’s not until the moment of realization of communion with Christ that there’s experiential joy.”—Ann Voskamp, The Broken Way

I get to be part of the global church. Long before I get to church on Sunday mornings, literally millions of fellow worshippers have already been to church and then by the time I leave, millions more will be attending church. In some places globally, members gather in secret due to government persecution, other believers gather under trees for church facilities, others gather in century-old sanctuaries, and many more will gather in store-front church plants. Regardless of the location where the gatherings take place, the beauty of these gatherings is “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. “(Gal 3:28) How awesome to know that I am not isolated but part of something far more significant. I am part of a living body of believers scattered throughout the world.

I get to worship God. If for no other reason I go to church because God is worthy to be worshipped. The One who created me in His image, the One who came to rescue me, the One who has prepared a place for all of eternity for me. This is the reason I go to church! “Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come into his presence with singing.” (Psalm 100:1)

There may be a multitude of reasons to worship together. Whatever the reasons, all are simply a preamble to the greatest worship event of all times when “a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands, And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” (Rev 7:9-10)

As followers of Jesus gather together weekly “from every nation, tribe, people and language” it is the most amazing answer we can give to a world drowning in disunity, divisiveness, hatred, and disillusion!

Lord, what an overwhelming celebration of oneness each week as we come together from every nation, tribe, people and language. You are the reason we can gather together as one. May You find us faithful.

God is great!

Would America be better off without the church?

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But as for me, I watch in hope for the LORD, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me. Micah 7:7

Hurricane Ian has rightly dominated the news the last several days. My heart goes out to the people in the path of this destructive and chaotic event. It will not be easy for those who lost family members and for the challenges of rebuilding a life. In this tragic event, as well as the countless others that have occurred in the last year, we often voice our prayer support as well as our financial and physical support. Many will help out of civic duty, but for Christians, it is or should be, out of a Christ-centered heart and obedience to help the poor, the widows, the orphans, the hurting, and the lost. As Jesus simply said, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matt 22:39)

It is never easy answering an unbelieving world’s question about why bad things happen. We may give the right theological answer but few are looking for such an answer when their world has fallen apart. What they are looking for will be the warm blanket given on a cold night without electricity, a hot meal to satisfy their hunger pains, and a word of encouragement that it will be ok. So, does a Christian have the inside track on helping? Not really when either skeptics or saints can provide the material things.

This brings me to my question for you. Would America or any nation be better off without the church? Voices such as Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, and A. C. Grayling would say the world would be better off without religion. Emory University’s Frans de Waal said, “I’m struggling with whether we need religion…Personally I think we can be moral without religion because we probably had morality long before the current religions came along…so I am optimistic that religion is not strictly needed. But I cannot be a hundred percent sure because we’ve never really tried—there is no human society where religion is totally absent so we really have never tried this experiment.”

We need to be able to tell the world that no, it will not be better off. “Faithful Christ followers must work with urgency for moral and spiritual awakening not only for the sake of unrepentant sinners facing judgment but for our sake as well.” –Jim Denison

Part of the answer will be in the economic impact. In a study conducted by The Religious Freedom and Business Foundation, religion contributes about $1.2 trillion of socioeconomic value annually to the U.S. economy. This would be equivalent to being the world’s 15th-largest national economy. Brian Grim in response to the study said, “Do we need to know (religion’s socio-economic value) in order to appreciate the value of faith? Of course not, but in an age where fewer people are raised in religious congregations, we need to show a more balanced perspective on faith than might come through in daily headlines.”

Part of the answer will be in the moral impact. Micah gives a vivid description of a nation that rejects God. Though written generations ago, it is not a pretty picture. The moral vacuum would be chaotic without the strong foundation of God’s church. “What misery is mine! The godly have been swept from the land; not one upright man remains. All men lie in wait to shed blood; each hunts his brother with a net. Both hands are skilled in doing evil; the ruler demands gifts, the judge accepts bribes, the powerful dictate what they desire—they all conspire together. The best of them is like a brier, the most upright worse than a thorn hedge. The day of your watchmen has come, the day God visits you. Now is the time of their confusion. Do not trust a neighbor; put no confidence in a friend. Even with her who lies in your embrace be careful of your words. For a son dishonors his father, a daughter rises up against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—a man’s enemies are the members of his own household.” (Micah 7:1-6) These verses out of Micah sound familiar in our modern age. Just think how many laws and regulations in the United States it already takes to replace the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes.

Part of the answer will be in the prayer impact. After any natural or man-made disaster, the first words offered are to pray for those impacted. So, who will pray? 1 Peter 3:12 says, “For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the LORD is against those who do evil.” Followers of Jesus offer the needed prayers “because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence.” (Eph 3:12). John captures a powerful and beautiful picture when he writes in Revelation, “the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.” (Rev 5:8)

The most important part of the answer will be found in our message about Jesus. Numerous studies show that the Millennials and Gen Z generations have the highest level of loneliness and isolation. Other studies reflect that these same generations have the most significant percentage of moving away from the church. Coincidence? I don’t think so. “But how can people call for help if they don’t know who to trust? And how can they know who to trust if they haven’t heard of the One who can be trusted? And how can they hear if nobody tells them? And how is anyone going to tell them, unless someone is sent to do it?” (Romans 10:14-15 The Message) Our singular message of hope in Jesus becomes the fragrance of life for those who receive it.

The church has had its fair share of jerks, malcontents, and false teachers and unfortunately will have until the end. However, it has had a greater choir of those like Mother Teresa serving in the slums of the world, Billy Graham articulating the simple invitation to follow Jesus, William Wilberforce fighting the surge of slavery, Martin Luther pushing back against false church doctrine, Martin Luther King, Jr. protesting the injustice of racism, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer standing against the complacency of the church.  Joining this great army through the ages are the unnamed, out of the spotlight, overlooked saints who taught mischievous little boys and girls in VBS, went to the mission field, served in small churches, fed the hungry, ministered to the sick, interceded on behalf of the lost and simply lived a Christ-centered life.

Would America or any nation be better off without the church? The answer will always be no when we “Put away… all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you. Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” –Ephesians 4:31-5:2

Lord, let us be the fragrant of Christ that attracts a hurting, frustrated, messed up world to offer the hope we have found in Christ.

God is great!

Gloom or Glee – Christianity in Decline

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I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. Revelation 3:15-16

Christianity quickly diminishing in US, on pace to become minority religion in decades— (Fox News)

America’s Christian majority is on track to end— (NPR headline)

One after another major publications and news stories picked up the gloomy predictions based on the release of a recent Pew Research Center study. The report reflects the downward trend of people identifying as Christians. 50 years ago, 90% of the population considered themselves Christians, compared to 64% in 2020.

“If recent trends in switching (changing one’s religious affiliation) hold, we projected that Christians could make up between 35% and 46% of the U.S. population in 2070.”  The study continued by saying “of course, it is possible that events outside the study’s model-such as war, economic depression, climate crisis, changing immigration patterns or religious innovations- could reverse current religious switching trends, leading to a revival of Christianity in the United States. But there are no current switching patterns in the U.S. that can be factored into the mathematical models to project such a result.”  –Stephanie Kramer, a senior researcher who led the study.

Mark Twain in response to a newspaper report about his death, responded, “the report of my death was an exaggeration.” The same could be said of the end of Christianity. Throughout history, religious leaders beat and imprisoned those who spoke the name of Jesus, the mob threw stones, the emperor released the lions, the elite of society scoffed and the intellectuals scorned, but Jesus said “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

G.K. Chesterton’s reflections decades ago can help keep this report in perspective:

Chesterton wrote, “at least five times…the Faith has to all appearance gone to the dogs. In each of these five cases it was the dog that died…. Christianity has died many times and risen again; for it had a God who knew the way out of the grave. But the first extraordinary fact which marks this history is this: that Europe has been turned upside down over and over again; and that at the end of each of these revolutions the same religion has again been found on top. The Faith is always converting the age, not as an old religion but as a new religion”. (Chesterton, The Everlasting Man)

God’s response to Elijah can help keep this report in perspective:

When Elijah thought he was “the only prophet of the LORD who is left” to fight, God reminded him after several mind-blowing natural events that “I still have left in Israel 7,000 followers who have not bowed their knees to Baal or kissed the images of him.” (I Kings 19:18)

History can help keep this report in perspective:

If Christians in America find themselves as a minority in a few decades, it will not be the first time.  America may have had its roots in Christian principles but in 1776 only 17% of this new nation were church members. As one writer said you would find more Americans in a tavern on Saturday night than in church on Sunday morning. From this minority position, God used a couple of major spiritual awakenings and countless local revivals to awaken American Christians. In this growing awakening, God used the church as the catalyst for cultural and societal reforms. Philip Yancey writes in Vanishing Grace that “Christians present an attractive counterculture until they become the dominant culture. Then they divert from their mission, join the power structure, and in the process turn society against them. Rejected, they retreat into a minority subculture, only to start the cycle all over again.”

Our response can help keep this report in perspective:

Maybe the Christianity of the last few decades has become more like a warm fuzzy blanket instead of the fire that swept through the frontier towns and villages of yesteryears. It was a fire that changed society, sent out missionaries to the nations, healed broken families, redeemed desperate people, and shook the world.  “With no social advantage to belief, churches attract people who are serious about their faith—which plants the seed for future growth.” (Yancey) If in the last 100 years Christianity grew from 600 million to over 2 billion worldwide, imagine what could be if the church rekindled their first love?

Jesus’ response on the mountain can help keep this report in perspective:

Jesus was leaving his mission in the hands of a few faithful disciples and He knew the road ahead would be difficult for them. He knew it would be difficult for those who followed through the generations. Jesus knew that governments would change, cultural norms would continue to shift and people would waiver in their faith. Yet Jesus left us this final word, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” –Matthew 28:18-20

Daniel Silliman writing for Christianity Today observed, “Revival could happen, there’s just nothing in the current data that indicates it will.” That statement is probably true except God has never been big on statistics or data. When data had Noah drowning, God closed the door on the ark. When data had Moses trapped by an enemy army, God parted the river. When data had Jesus dead, God moved the stone.  When data had the church in decline, God created a thirst for Him alone.  It will be in that thirst that God will use to revive His church.

“As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and behold the face of God?” Psalm 42:1-2

Lord, create in us a thirst that only you can quench. Let us boldly live our lives for you even when the world laughs at us.  Fall fresh on us again that we may be the generation of the next Great Awakening.

God is great!

Following the Right Directions

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It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going. Hebrews 11:8 NLT

Traffic jams and big cities just go together! Living in Atlanta I have learned never to leave home without plotting my course with the GPS. I may know how to get where I am going but Google gets me around the inevitable traffic deadlock and gives me the occasional shortcut. If you drive in any big city you come to depend upon a GPS – until you don’t! Drivers in Denver might be a little hesitant after Google Maps left 100 or so stuck in the mud in 2019. When Google Maps gave drivers a shorter way to the Denver International Airport to avoid a major accident, drivers took the route. However, Google identified a road that wasn’t a road and left drivers hopelessly stuck in the mud for several hours. One lady interviewed said, “My thought was, ‘Well there are all these cars in front of me so it must be OK. So, I just continued.” As the road quickly turned into a slick, muddy mess she further said, “That’s when I thought, ‘Oh this was a bad decision.” There was no turning back once they were in the mud.

We all can identify with following directions over unfamiliar territory. I had a similar situation when we lived in Kenya, but with a different outcome. Our family was going to attend a worship service in one of the Maasai villages outside of Nairobi. I did know the road out to the church would be difficult, if not dangerous. However, unlike the GPS miscalculation, I was following a person who had made the trip to the church hundreds of times. He knew every turn, pothole, and ditch going out to the village. The difference is amazing when you are following someone who knows the way and you can trust him to get you to your destination.

The same scenario could be said of a lot of people spiritually. It is often a struggle to decide the right way to go, when in fact, if you keep your eyes on Jesus, the way forward is less important than the destination. Proverbs 20:24 wisely tells you that “The LORD directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?”  I don’t know about you but I realize that if I take my eyes off Jesus, what looks like the smoothest, most direct path of life ends up being a treacherous road.

Staying focused on Jesus allows you to weather the storms of life. You may think the best way forward looks great but you quickly realize it is the most dangerous way when you are following in the wrong direction. The Denver drivers faithfully followed the voice on the GPS only to find themselves stuck in the mud. Listening to the right voice is essential.

“Who is the third who walks always beside you?

When I count, there are only you and I together

But when I look ahead up the white road

There is always another one walking beside you.” –T. S. Eliot

“So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.” Galatians 5:16-17 NLT

George Washington Carver understood the necessity of listening to the right voices. Had he listened to the voices within his cultural context he would not have heard that he could make an impact on the world as a scientist, advocate for justice, and a voice for the poor. He quit listening to the voices that would label him as “the orphaned child of a despised race” but would come to know the Creator whose voice He would follow throughout his life.

“All my life, I have risen regularly at four in the morning to go into the woods and talk with God. That’s where He reveals His secrets to me. When everybody else is asleep, I hear God best and learn my plan.” It was his faith in Jesus that Carver viewed “as the key to defeating racism and improving the plight of the poor.”

Oswald Chambers wrote “A river is victoriously persistent, it overcomes all barriers. For a while it goes steadily on its course, then it comes to an obstacle and for a while it is balked, but it soon makes a pathway around the obstacle. Or a river will drop out of sight for miles, and presently emerge again broader and grander than ever. You can see God using some lives, but into your life an obstacle has come and you do not seem to be of any use. Keep paying attention to the Source, and God will either take you around the obstacle or remove it. The river of the Spirit of God overcomes all obstacles. Never get your eyes on the obstacle or on the difficult. The obstacle is a matter of indifference to the river which will flow steadily through you if you remember to keep right at the Source. Never allow anything to come between yourself and Jesus Christ, no emotion, or experience; nothing must keep you from the one great sovereign Source.”

The traffic anchor for KMGH Denver said of the GPS wrong turn, “You are driving. Google Maps is not driving. Google Maps is not perfect. You need to know where you are going and, if it does not look like that’s where you should be going, turn around and try again.”

Good advice for drivers, but also a great spiritual analogy. The world has much to say about which road to take but turn around because it will take you where you don’t want to go. The way Jesus leads will bring you home safely.

Your hope is not in the cultural context of the day but Jesus. Your road may be filled with obstacles but in Jesus, you have a Shepherd who guards his flock, a Friend who understands your needs, and a Savior who gives life.

Lord, we trust you to guide us through this week knowing your ways are right. Since You know what is ahead, let us listen with attentiveness and responsiveness. Amen

God is great!