When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”                                                                                                                                       John 8:7

If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out, or you will be destroyed by each other.                                                                                                                                                                       Galatians 5:15

Recently someone near and dear to me posted a quote on social media regarding “toxic masculinity.” Someone else near and dear to me commented that she refused to use the term unless there was also a term “toxic femininity.” Further comments from multiple parties  disagreed as to whether there was such a thing as “toxic femininity.” Since we’ve all heard “Boys will be boys,” but “Girls will be girls” wasn’t a saying, it was opined that society doesn’t dismiss bad behavior in females the way it does in males. This comment was met with “Oh no? Have you seen a movie or TV show lately?” (“Lately” being the last fifty years or so.) Females behaving badly has not only been tolerated, it has been celebrated in some circles. The fact is, men and women (in general) each have their own weaknesses, and a woman can take advantage of a man’s weakness to get what she wants just as much as a man can take advantage of a woman’s weakness to get what he wants. Admit it, abuse and manipulation happens on both sides.

Here’s the bottom line, folks: Men are sinners.

Women are sinners.

Old people, young people, and middle-aged people are sinners.

Rich people, poor people, and middle-class people are sinners.

White, black, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, and Middle Eastern people are sinners.

Since Jesus Christ is no longer here in the flesh, it’s safe to assume that when you look at another human being, you’re looking at a sinner.

For that matter, if you look in a mirror, you’re looking at a sinner. So, what are we to do?

I’ll tell you what we don’t do – point fingers at whole groups of people in a way that is only going to escalate hostility.

Sinners have agendas, and unfortunately there are those whose agenda is to pit groups against one another, encouraging rude, mean-spirited, even outrageous (emphasis on “rage”) behavior. For some, hate gets ratings, and for others, hate gets votes.

But before we start raging against the media and politicians, we should ask ourselves, If hate pays off, whose fault is that? If hate is what motivates us to watch certain news programs or vote for certain candidates – or repost, share, and retweet certain articles, then shame on us.

As Casting Crowns has observed, “Nobody knows what we’re for, only what we’re against…” *

So, what are we supposed to do – ignore bad behavior? No, but Jesus gave us 2-step instructions for detoxing:

“First, take the plank out of your own eye, then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” (Matthew 7:5)

After doing the hard work of removing my own “plank,” I tend to be more compassionate as I seek to help others with their faults. I may also have some insights into what strategies do and don’t work, which will be helpful, as well.

I may even realize that I’m the one that needs to change my position. (>Ouch!<)

“Blessed are the peacemakers …”  (Matthew 5:9a) Admitting my own shortcomings is the starting point in making peace, not only with my fellow sinners, but more importantly, with God.

“For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) “The wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23)

When I realize my sin has earned me an eternal death sentence, that I am helpless to save myself, it is only then that salvation is possible. There is only One who is sinless, who came from heaven in the form of one of us, and who died in our place to pay the price for our forgiveness. Since only a perfect sacrifice is acceptable to God, we could never have paid the debt ourselves. (No one else could, either.)

Jesus didn’t come to show us the way, He came to be the way. – the only way. (John 14:6)

So, rather than look a round at others, saying, “At least I’m not as bad as _________,” let’s look to Jesus, the perfect One, confess our own sin, and receive the cleansing – the detoxing – He offers.

Imagine if everyone did that! The nightly news might get pretty boring, but I’m willing to risk it. How about you?

Prayer: Jesus, Friend of sinners, help us to look at our own sins and shortcomings before dealing with others that we perceive as being worse than ourselves. Let us seek to lead by example, to be quick to commend the goodness in people and slow to condemn those who are stumbling. Make us part of the solution, rather than the problem. In Jesus’ name. Amen

*”Jesus, Friend of Sinners,” Songwriters: Mark Hall, Matthew West
© Warner Chappell Music, Inc., ESSENTIAL MUSIC PUBLISHING, CAPITOL CHRISTIAN MUSIC GROUP, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.

https://video.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search?fr=yhs-sz-001&hsimp=yhs-001&hspart=sz&p=jesus+friend+of+sinners+casting#id=8&vid=fbcb432035004c165ea6f81462bb86e8&action=view

Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one and the same. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. … The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon.”                                                                                                                                                                                          Genesis 41:25, 32

I woke up with the dream still very clear in my mind. I pray daily that I will remember the dreams that I need to remember and forget the rest, so I lay there for a while, pondering what this dream might mean. Remembering a certain Facebook chat, I thought, Ibra.

There is a young man in Uganda who friended me on Facebook. (It was his Christmas card I described in “What Color Is Jesus?” https://seekingdivineperspective.com/2020/07/31/what-color-is-jesus/ ) This friend had told me about his two younger brothers in an orphanage who needed sponsors. I had decided to sponsor these little boys with food and tuition for school.

It turns out these “little boys” were about seventeen and fifteen, and although they were lacking much of what we would consider the basics, they each had a cell phone. (This is not unusual in Uganda.) They began to message me frequently on Facebook, calling me “mummy” and expressing their affection for me. The younger one especially seemed downright giddy to finally have a mother! One day in the middle of a chat, his account just vanished. His brother Ibra told me later that he had been hacked.

A week or two later Ibra sent me a message saying his phone had been dropped in the water and was no longer working. (He’d had logged on from a friend’s phone.) He wanted to know, “mummy, would u get us phones please, mummy?” I thought, Man! Teenagers in Uganda aren’t that different from American kids!

Cringing a bit (“Tough love” never came naturally to me.), I answered with the following message: “Boys, I am amazed that teenagers in Uganda are just like teenagers in the U.S. The money I am sending to [orphanage] is for your food and tuition, and some extra for the teachers, who are having an especially hard time right now [and] don’t have enough food to eat! I think for now you will have to log in from a friend’s phone and cut down on the texting time. (I Timothy 6:8) I didn’t have a phone at all when I was your age, and somehow I did just fine.(I guess PARENTS are the same everywhere, too. 😉 ) I know you boys are strong and resourceful, and you will do well, too. Maybe there’s some way you can help [director] and the other adults with the little ones. Invent some new games to play with them.”

(I know, I can’t believe I resorted to “when I was your age … !”)

I fully expected the typical teenager’s response. So, when I looked at my phone just after awakening the next morning and saw two messages from Ibra, I opened them reluctantly…

“Wow thats nice mummy i wrlcome it too maybe it is the best.”  All spelling aside, I was impressed with his mature response!

The second message left me breathless:

“And by the way mummy i had a dream   I saw a big man in the sky and he was with two small buddies behind him and the big one was wearing a crown and other small ones also having theirs and when i was coming i saw him and at that moment i called him like Jesus and at that moment i fall down coz the man was too powerful i think Jesus is with me in whatever stape i make i was like wow”

I responded:

WOW! As I am reading this, I just woke up from a dream, too! I think it was about you. I had a new baby that I had adopted. He was black. I was teaching him things, like how to obey the grownups, telling him, ‘This is what big boys do in school.’ And even though he was a tiny baby (I would never have tried to teach a real baby those things yet) he was learning like a much older child! We were in the middle of a lot of people, and noise, and it was chaotic, but this child was doing an amazing job of focusing and growing, way beyond his years! When I woke up, even before I read your message, I was thinking that’s you! You are growing spiritually way beyond other boys your age. I was feeling bad about telling you “No” about new phones, and expecting you to pout like most boys your age  would when they can’t have what they want (That’s how most kids in America would respond.) But you didn’t! That’s huge! I think the other boy in your dream was probably [your brother], don’t you? You are sons of the King, and he is getting you ready to rule with Him. The rest of the world is so chaotic and distracting, especially with social media. Maybe God is telling you He has better things for you and [your brother]. I am excited for you!

And I understand if you aren’t able to message me very often. That’s OK. I always pray for you and [your brother] every day, no matter what. I love my boys (I guess I will have to call you my young men now. 😉 ) and I am so proud of you!

So, here’s another story just beginning to unfold. Life with Jesus – still not boring!

Prayer: Lord, thank You for taking away our idols and distractions when necessary, even when we don’t like it! You know what’s best, and You have great plans for us that we can’t even imagine right now. Keep us focused on You, in Jesus’ name. Amen

There was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”                                                                                                            II Corinthians 12: 7-9

The hazy glow of the rising sun was enough to awaken Paul, but not enough to give him a clear view of the words that had been written on the scroll the day before. He knew that even with the brighter light it was doubtful he would see clearly enough to finish the letter himself. He was going to have to wait for his scribe and friend to come and continue writing from where they had left off. Until then, he was alone, except for two Roman soldiers, silhouettes silently standing guard.

Paul had so much to say, no means to say it, and no control over how long he would have to wait until the scribe arrived. The words flew about his mind like trapped birds frantic to escape. Frustration threatened to rob him of the joy of the night before, as he had dictated the final words of the day: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4) Taking his own advice, he deliberately rejoiced.

Oh Lord, thank You for another day to serve you!

It was not the ideal setting, this house arrest, although thankfully he was no longer in the Roman dungeon where he had spent time in the past. Still, Paul longed to be with his brothers and sisters in Christ. Sometimes the hunger for their fellowship was an almost palpable ache.

He fought the pain by considering the advantages of confinement.

Thank You, Jesus, that here I can have the solitude I need to hear Your voice clearly and make sure I am saying exactly what You would have me say. Here Your words will be written down for others to read – no arguing within the congregations over what I’ve said, no twisting of my words by divisive troublemakers. Thank You for this!

As he intentionally thanked God for where he was, Paul felt the restlessness loosen its grip on his heart. He could see how his situation illustrated what he had written years before to the Roman church: “All things work together for good for those who love the Lord, who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28) When traveling, speaking to the churches, and arguing the case for the gospel with the Jews and even the Gentiles, there had been little time for writing. But this was apparently his ministry now, and there was ample time.

But if he was called to write, why was he plagued by this recurring trouble with his eyes?! It was especially bewildering considering that the Lord had once done a miraculous work in his eyes, both blinding and then healing them.

Lord, thank You for that day – for blinding me so I could see the Truth! He smiled at the irony.

And then You restored my sight! What a glorious miracle! All glory to You, Lord Jesus! 

And yet, he sighed, why have my eyes become dim again? 

The problem had plagued him for years, like a thorn in his flesh. Paul knew that God could restore his vision again. He knew God loved him. God did not do things halfway!  And yet God had said “No.”

Three times He had said “No.”

By the third time Paul had asked, God’s answer was clear:

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” (II Corinthians 12:9)

Paul remembered how he had shared that revelation with the church at Corinth, but at times, like this morning, the question would return to nag him. And as he had done so many times before, he resolved that he didn’t need the answer. If the Lord wanted to be glorified in this weakness, then so be it.

As once again he let go of the matter and placed it back into God’s hands, a wave of peace swept over him that surpassed his understanding.

“The peace of God, which passes understanding” … he liked those words! He would have to remember them and share them with the Philippians.

*                                      *                                    *                                     *

That evening Paul was looking back on a day well spent. The scribe had returned, written down the final passages of the letter to the Philippians, and read the letter back to him in its entirety. Paul had been pleased with the way the Lord had directed his words. Now the house was still, and he knew that soon there would be a changing of the guards, followed by a long, lonely night.

“Sir?” The unexpected voice startled Paul. It came from the direction of one of the shadows by the door – the shadows that had been standing silently all day as Paul had been dictating the letter.

“Yes?” Paul responded cautiously.

The soldiers looked around furtively. Then one of them asked, “Who is He? This God you were talking about when you dictated that letter?”

“We want to know more,” said the other soldier. The two exchanged glances.

“Much more,” the first one added.

Paul’s heart leapt, but just then he heard the rhythmic footsteps of two more soldiers approaching.

“We have to go now,” whispered one soldier hastily, “but we will be on duty again tomorrow.”

Paul smiled. “I look forward to it,” he replied softly.

Suddenly there it was – the answer to his nagging question! These were not the first Roman soldiers to ask about his Jesus. There had been many whose duty it had been to guard the apostle. In doing so, they had grown spiritually hungry –

— because they had heard him dictating his letters!

Of course! His eyes were the reason the gospel had become known “throughout the whole palace guard” (Philippians 1:13)! How could he have missed it?

Filled with an inexpressible satisfaction, Paul settled for the night, silently giving thanks for two more souls who would know the living God by the end of the next day.

Prayer: Lord, Your plans for us are good. Thank You that we can trust You, even with the things that don’t make sense to us now. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

“[D]o not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.”                                                                                                                                               Mark 13:11

Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season.         II Timothy 4:2a

It was “That Sunday,” the one which occurs once a year, usually in mid-August, vacation time for the entire worship team, except yours truly and one or two other exceptions. This year the exception was Garry, the bass player, who was in the sound booth filling in for the missing sound person. So, that left me up front with my guitar and a couple of mics.

I’ve written before about the chaos that resulted when I was in semi-panic mode, stressing out over what songs to sing, what key, and whether or not my arthritic hands will be functioning efficiently the morning of the service.

https://seekingdivineperspective.com/2019/11/01/when-i-am-weak/

https://seekingdivineperspective.com/2020/08/14/a-visit-from-murphy/

I have shared the passing notion that Murphy – as in “Murphy’s Law” (Anything that can go wrong, will.”) – is the name of an angel whose assignment is to keep us all humble. There’s nothing quite so humbling as trying your hardest to “do something for God” only to have it all fall apart in any and all conceivable ways, as well as some ways no one would have thought of. Then, to have it all come together through no effort of your own, showing that God was in control all along, and it wasn’t about you, anyway … well, that is indeed humbling. Bravo, Murphy.

So, as “That Sunday” approached again, I drove from Kentucky back to Michigan the Friday before, not really thinking about Sunday, but praying my usual prayers in the car and singing worship songs along with the radio and CDs, as I usually did while traveling. Saturday I went to the church office, pulled some songs I knew out of the file, went home, sung and played them on the guitar, chose four I thought would work, and started cooking dinner.

Sunday morning I headed to church, where I met Garry and his wife Debbie. Garry worked the sound while Debbie made copies of a song I had fallen in love with during the pandemic and decided to sing, even though that congregation hadn’t sung it before. We went through the songs once, and that was it. No point in wearing out my fingers before church started. We prayed, acknowledging to the Lord that this was not about us but about Him, and asking Him to use our humble gifts to glorify Himself. Just before the service started, I asked the pastor’s son if he would play tambourine for the last song, and he happily agreed to. It was a small tambourine – a toe tambourine, to be exact, but I had found that my ankle didn’t have the endurance to keep tapping it for the duration of the entire song. So, I gave it to this delightfully agreeable child, and all systems were “go.”

I can imagine that by now some reading this might be appalled at what seems like a lackadaisical approach to leading worship. Does she not love the Lord?!? Does she not care enough to take the time necessary to be prepared???

To answer that – YES, I love the Lord with all my heart. And yes, I care enough to be prepared. But over the years and at least two of “Those Sundays,” I have found that a lot of “preparing as if it depends on you,” past a certain point, can be wasted energy, because it doesn’t depend on me.

As I later considered the notion of “preparation,” I realized that I had spent time preparing – hour and hours and hours. – hours I have spent in God’s presence daily – praying, meditating on His Word, and worshiping Him with song when He was the only One who heard me singing. That Sunday I was just worshiping Him as I always did. The difference was, I was doing it in front of the church and inviting them to join me. This was not “The Annie Aschauer Show.”  The focus was on Jesus, and we were all worshiping Him together.

Jesus told a parable of ten virgins, or bridesmaids, who were waiting for the bridegroom to show up. They all had lamps, but five of them had enough oil in their lamps, five didn’t. When the bridegroom showed up, the bridesmaids without oil were scrambling at the last minute to borrow from the others, but the ones who were prepared only had oil for their own lamps. The unprepared bridesmaids heard those dreaded words from the bridegroom, “I don’t know you,” and they were locked out of the wedding feast. (Matthew 25:1-12)

Now is the time for us to build intimacy with God, to fill ourselves daily with God’s presence, as we offer our lives to Him. When the Bridegroom (Jesus) shows up there won’t be time to race around trying to get a last-minute relationship with Him. Salvation may come in a moment, but intimacy only develops over years of consistent fellowship with Him.

If you don’t yet know Jesus, I want you to know that He loves you, and wants a relationship with you! Come to Him today. Confess your sin and need for Him, and you will receive new life from Him. Then begin the exciting adventure of drawing closer to Him every day.

Prayer: Lord, You have made it known what you want from us, and it’s not a performance! We offer You ourselves, our love, our very lives. Make us the people You want us to be. In Jesus’ name, amen.

P.S. Murphy did show up later that day at the grocery store. The cashier’s machine rejected my debit card twice. After various other glitches, I finally was given a receipt and got in another line at customer service to pay for my groceries.

“So, Murph’,” I asked on the way out. “Didja sleep in?“

(He didn’t answer.)

CELEBRATING! Yesterday I hit a milestone and didn’t even realize it until today. Yesterday I gained my 500th “follower.” How many of these “followers” actually read my blog regularly is no doubt considerably fewer, but “500 followers” sounds respectable… until you see that some bloggers have followers numbering in the tens of thousands…

No matter! What REALLY matters isn’t the numbers. It’s the times when what I write impacts a life, and I have to trust that whoever is meant to be reading a given post will either stumble on it or purposefully go there and read the message of the week. When I read “I needed this today!” or “I never thought of it that way,” I know God is at work. So whether that’s 500 people, 100, or just one person, it’s worth the time I spent writing – which is what I love to do, anyway.

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business, and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”                                                                                                                                                                       James 4: 13-15

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             “Man plans, God laughs.”     – Yiddish proverb

                                                                                                                            “Anything that can go wrong, will.” – “Murphy’s Law.”

So, this Sunday our worship leader will be camping. The drummer will be gone as well. The piano player is unavailable, as is the teacher who sang with me a year ago in a pinch. ( https://seekingdivineperspective.com/2019/11/01/when-i-am-weak/ ) The bass player will be there, but he’s needed in the sound booth to fill in for the drummer’s kids.

So, three guesses who’s left to lead worship this Sunday.

This must be “That Week,” because we have been in similar situations on more than one mid-August Sunday. The reason I know is because Facebook sent me a reminder of what I posted a few years back:

    “You’ve probably heard of Murphy’s Law. Well, I think Murphy was on our worship team this morning.

       We started with the worship leader on vacation, then the young man who was to lead worship this week got called in to work. Kelly was supposed to sing with me, but she was home with a migraine.

       When what was left of the worship team got to the church to practice, we were locked out and had to call for a key; consequently, we were 1/2 hour late getting started.

The song sheets were there (Murphy missed that detail.) but the songs were in keys we couldn’t sing – too high or too low. About the time I was finished transposing them to a key we could sing, it was decided that guitar would be better than keyboard. So during the Sunday school hour I made a run home to get my guitar.

       On the way back, I thought, “I am SO glad this isn’t about US!”

       I shared that little reminder with everyone, and we (worship team and congregation) had a good laugh at the thought that “Murphy” must be the name of an angel God sends occasionally to keep us humble. When the congregation began to worship with us, suddenly there was music – better than it sounded at any point in our fragmented practice.

           Later the visiting pastor commented that Murphy must have visited his study that morning, because his flash drive suddenly didn’t have the Power Point for his message. (He didn’t need it.)

            All that to say, we can take ourselves so seriously that sometimes we need a visit from Murphy to remind us that church is not about us, it’s about Jesus. And if it’s about Him, it’s all good.

                                                                (Thank you, Murphy.)”

                                                                                                                                                      Prayer: Lord, thank You for the privilege of worshiping You, and thank You for humbling us when we need humbling. Keep our focus on You, and keep us from taking ourselves too seriously. In Jesus’ name, amen.

“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Luke 16:10

I have recently been trying to get news from multiple sources, thinking I could get a balanced picture of the “whole story” that way. I have made several observations:

There seems to be very little “discussion” or “dialogue,” only arguing, accusations, and name-calling. Not the most mature way to get a point across. It seems the only thing we call all agree on is that our society is more polarized than ever.

No one seems to be listening to any opposing views. If a dissenting view  is recognized at all, it is mischaracterized, either deliberately or without thinking. (Is anyone thinking? Or are we merely emoting?)

The most significant and frustrating observation is that people are trying to fight a spiritual battle with the weapons of this world, and that is a huge mistake!

Racism, hate, rage, violence, murder, theft, destruction of other people’s property – these are all symptoms of Man’s universal disease of the heart – sin. We all recognize this disease (more easily in others than in ourselves), but our approach to fixing it has been like sending all our troops to Utah when we’re under attack on the East Coast.

The hard truth is, hardened hearts cannot be forced to change. Some leaders may cave under pressure and make superficial changes. But is anyone’s heart any different? And if hearts are not changed, will we ever see the peaceful solution we want – or say we want?

Sinful people can only be changed by acknowledging their sin and receiving the forgiveness made possible by Jesus’ death on the Cross. Only then can sinners truly be transformed and used to bring about the greater spiritual change this country needs.

With all the current effort to change the world! I would like to reintroduce the idea of an individual yielded to God and used by Him to bring about true change, one day at a time, one life at a time.

This is not a popular approach, probably because it isn’t very dramatic, doesn’t attract a lot of attention, and doesn’t yield the instant results our impatient hearts desire. But the only person I have any control over is myself, and even there I am limited. I can choose to ask God to transform me, as only He can, and He usually starts small.

Today I’m reposting a story that illustrates how we can get so distracted trying to change the whole world that we miss opportunities right in front of us.

June 12, 2020 My Life in Our Father’s World
Unexpected Loss
Reblogged from Sacred Cynicism by Pastor Doug Ward
I met someone for the first time 2 weeks ago. He came to church, and then was here again last week. He was a nice man, and he greeted me warmly. We had a nice conversation, and I was hoping to see him again this Sunday. I wanted to get to know him a little better. From the limited conversation we had, it seemed that life had been a little rough. That was just a perception. I found out this morning that this man took his own life this morning.
This news is crushing to me. I had no idea he was in any danger. I wish that something I said last week would have steered him away from this decision, but I do not know if that was even possible. I wish there had been more time. There is a sense of loss this morning. It is not a loss based upon a past relationship, I had only just met him. The loss is the removal of what could have been. Conversations that could have happened. The news once again reminded me of a simple truth – we have no idea which people are holding on to their very last bit of rope. I think this is a good thing for each of us to remember. It would be a great thing if our culture remembered it as well. We are probably too busy yelling at each other to listen to any wisdom right now.

This gentleman told me he had been watching us online. He told me he was hearing things that helped him. I wish I had the chance to follow up with him. I wish I knew more about his story than I do. Here are some things I do know. I know that I have no idea of the pain that this man was experiencing. I have no idea what things he was battling. I also know that Jesus died for everyone, including this gentleman, and I know that grace is far more pervasive that I realize. I do not know how grace, this gentleman, and the resurrection all interacted these past few weeks. I will simply say I hope.
In this current climate when we once again have retreated to our positions to lob verbal grenades at those people over there, a host of people just like this gentleman walk past us. They are probably unconcerned with all of the shouting – they just know that they hurt. This gentleman, and countless others – need someone to notice, if only we would stop shouting, and posting to social media. I just know that I am diminished today by this news. His name was Don.

From Barb: The man he is talking about has been my friend & neighbor for 18 years. I am still in shock but I have hope that when Don breathed his last breathe, Jesus was waiting for him with open arms.

(Ann again) In closing I want to share a song by Josh Wilson that has touched me. Enjoy, and be encouraged to do great things, even if they’re little things.

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=dream+small+lyrics&&view=detail&mid=3F6648AF107A445333783F6648AF107A44533378&rvsmid=13587DF5D4EA5061AEEC13587DF5D4EA5061AEEC&FORM=VDRVRV

Prayer: Lord Jesus, forgive me for having such a high opinion of myself that I think I can make a difference without You. Fill me again with Your spirit, and use me in whatever way pleases You, even if it’s in something only You and I will know about. In Jesus name, amen.

“He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.”                                                                                                                                                                                                            Isaiah 53:2

On my kitchen windowsill is a Christmas card I received a couple of years ago. It is a simple but colorful drawing of the Christ Child in the manger, with several shepherds kneeling in adoration. All the people in the picture are jet black.

Am I offended by the lack of historical accuracy? Not at all. Nor have I written back to the sender, saying “By the way, Jesus was Jewish, and the shepherds were Jewish, and that picture makes no sense.”

Nope. I love that card, because of who sent it and where it came from. The greeting inside is a hand-written note from one of my friends in Uganda – “To my favorite author.” Elsewhere in the note is written in big letters, “UGANDA LOVES YOU!”

Lately there has been some heated discussions regarding the question of “what color was Jesus?” This question was the basis for accusing whole cultures of racism, western European types in particular. It seems that some European paintings of Jesus show Him looking, well, like a European.

But then, why not?  I would expect pictures of Him in, say, a Mexican church to look more Hispanic. In Asia you can find pictures of Jesus looking Chinese or Indian.

There’s a reason for this, and I’m guessing those reasons were more theological than historical.

These artists were probably aware of where Jesus lived and died, and yet they decided to paint Him in a way that made Him more relatable to the people of their own culture. These artists weren’t ignorant. On the contrary, I would respectfully suggest that their critics are the ones who might be missing the point.

And what is the point? What is the message of the Incarnation?

The point is, the Son of God – God Himself – left His home in heaven to become one of us (“us” being Humanity).

As a Man, Jesus went through the same experiences we go through. He was hungry. He got thirsty. He experienced weariness and pain and loneliness. He knew fear and stress and the sting of other people’s hatred. He empathized, He grieved, He knew anger and frustration. These are things experienced by every person that ever lived, every color, in every era, and in every corner of the earth. He came for all of us – for black and white, Hispanic and Asian, Middle Eastern and Native American. And for every race, every nationality, every ethnic group, He took our sins upon Himself and took them to the Cross, where He died for the forgiveness of all of us.

One of my favorite outreaches, the Jesus Film Project has been showing the gospel in video form for decades. Their movie, “JESUS,” the dramatization of the gospel according to Luke, has been translated into more than 1800 languages! Until the pandemic shut down the world, small teams of technicians and evangelists would trek into the remotest places, set up their equipment, and show the film to whole villages at a time. The people would gather to watch and be mesmerized to see the gospel story played out in their language! Now of course when Jesus was on earth He didn’t speak in the tribal languages of these obscure groups, but that doesn’t matter to them. They watch, they listen, they understand – and they believe! 

SIDE NOTE: If you are a linguistics expert and want to get nitpicky about the language Jesus really spoke, you might want to rent “The Passion of the Christ,” where the dialogue is in the original Aramaic. (You might also want to make sure the subtitles are turned on.)

The Apostle John’s description of Heaven in Revelation describes a multitude of people that could not be counted, people “from every nation, tribe, people, and language.” (Revelation 7:9) I’m guessing none of those people got hung up what Jesus looked like when He walked the earth as one of us. Who knows? When we enter into eternity, He may show Himself to us in a glorious new color we have never seen before in this life! (Yes, my imagination can go wild when I think of entering eternity after leaving this finite world.)

The Incarnation is a profound reality, one well worth reflecting on.  John 1:14 says,     “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” In these days of arguing about anything and everything, let’s focus less on the flesh and more on the Word.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for leaving the throne room of Heaven to live in this fallen world as one of us. Thank You for offering Your life for all of us as the perfect sacrifice. You paid the debt we could not afford, so our sins might be cancelled out and we might live with You forever. And now, as we place our faith in You, we can look forward to eternal life in Your glorious kingdom, along with Your children from every nation, tribe, people and tongue! What a glorious day that will be!  Lord, help us to focus less on the superficial and more on what’s truly important – how much You love us, how much we love You, and how much we should love one another in Your name. Amen.

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith…                                                                                                                                                                    I Peter 5:8-9a

Michigan in summer is a beautiful place to walk and pray, and most mornings my little dog, “Mr. Hollywood,” and I walk through the woods and out to the end if the pier on Lake Michigan. While I talk to God and give Him my day, Hollywood lunges after squirrels and chipmunks and obediently sits at my feet when a car, jogger, or another walker passes. If the other walker also has a dog, obedience can be a bit of a challenge, but we try.

But all bets were off the morning a dog three times Hollywood’s size moved steadily toward us from one of the driveways. I could see its short hair sticking straight up along its back; it was clearly ready for a fight. Most alarming to me was the lack of a leash or any owner in sight.

Hollywood, ever the protector, braced his little body and snarled at the big dog, only enraging it more. I yelled at it to go home, but it lunged for Hollywood, grabbing him by the back of the neck. I’m embarrassed to say, I screamed like a little girl. Just then our neighbor came out and grabbed the assailant by the collar and dragged it back into the yard.

Thankfully, Hollywood was OK, due to the collar, harness, and plenty of fur where he had been grabbed. I voiced my concerns to the neighbor (What if the dog had attacked a child?) and asked him to tell the owner, who was visiting for a few days, to please tether her dog.

A day or two later, not certain the message got passed on, I wanted to avoid a repeat of the scene. I am not a fan of bullies, and I wasn’t going to let a bigger dog chew up my little buddy just because it can. In the woods I picked up a stick big enough to defend us with, and as we walked on, I held the stick in one hand and the leash in the other. We were not bothered again.

This was not the first time I had been assaulted on my prayer walk and probably won’t be the last. However, the attacks usually come in more of a spiritual form, such as a wandering mind. After the briefest conversations with the occasional neighbor we encounter, I have to intentionally refocus. Even with no one else around, my ADD mind has to fight distractions continuously.

For years the distractions came in the form of pain. If it wasn’t bad knees, it was a bad hip, or plantar fasciitis, or even corns that felt like bees stinging my feet.

I intentionally make most of my prayers ones of thanks. So whenever I set out walking and I’m not in pain, I start with thanking God for that.

One morning I was happily walking and praising the Lord out loud for His healing when my prayer was interrupted by a sudden, jabbing pain in one knee.

I sensed this was more than an assault on my body. I had gone from pain-free to scarcely able to walk in a matter of seconds – and just as I was thanking God that I had no pain! The first thought that came to mind was that the enemy of my soul was mocking my faith! The second thought was,

Fight back!

Those of you who know about spiritual warfare know that with all the defensive pieces of armor we have, we have one offensive weapon – our “sword,” the Word of God.

When Jesus was tempted by the devil in the wilderness, He fought back with Scripture. Every time Satan presented Him with a temptation, Jesus responded by quoting from the Old Testament until the devil left Him. (The account is found in Matthew 4, Mark 1, and Luke 4.)

So, as my prayer of thanks for my healing was interrupted mid-sentence by a shooting pain in my knee, I quickly searched my arsenal for a verse to wield against my enemy. I immediately thought of one that would reeeally bother him, and I couldn’t help smirking.

“… and Lord,” I continued out loud, “thank You for this pain in my knee! It reminds me of Your word that says, ‘at the name of Jesus, EVERY knee will bow, in heaven and on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father!‘ * That means everyone, including the devil and his angels, will be bowing to YOU, declaring that You are Lord! HALLELUIA!“

Instantly, the pain was gone.

I chuckled. Knew he’d hate that one.

It may seem today that the enemy is unleashed and winning. But believers in Jesus have the weapon to fight back – the Word of God, which says, among other things, “Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world.” (I John 4:4.) The more we hide that Word in our hearts, the better we’re prepared for the major battles, as well as minor skirmishes.

But what if you aren’t a believer in Jesus Christ, or not sure that you are?

“I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.”                                                                                                                                    (II Corinthians 6:2)

This world is in self-destruct mode. We see it all round us – hatred, war, disease, natural disasters – a lost Humanity. But it’s not too late to turn to God, repent of your sins, and ask Him to forgive you, save you, and make you a new creation. Do it today. No one is promised tomorrow.

A new world is coming, where Jesus will reign. All will bow down to Him; the only choice is whether we will do it willingly or unwillingly. As my daughter used to say, “You can bend your knees now, or you can get your knees broken later.”

The choice is yours. 

Prayer: Lord, thank You for making Your Word available to us. Help us take hold of it, hide it in our hearts, and live by it every day. In Jesus name, amen.

*Philippians 2:10-11

As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.                                                                                                                                                       Matthew 9:9

I don’t remember much from college classes over 40 years ago, but I have a vivid memory from art history class that has come back to me lately.

A painter named Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio was commissioned to paint a depiction of St. Matthew for a wealthy cardinal’s burial chapel. His first attempt showed a simple man being patiently helped along by an angel. The picture was not well received, as it made St. Matthew look too much like an ordinary person!

The artist’s second attempt was deemed more acceptable, with the saint looking nobler and the dictation of the gospel more dramatic and supernatural looking.

Although I liked both pictures, I remember thinking even back then that it was a shame to discard the picture of an ordinary man fulfilling an extraordinary task, as that is more the way most of us experience divine help.

As a believer for more than half a century, I have found times of supernatural events – bending or breaking of natural laws, dreams, visions, voices – have been very few and far between. Far more common in my life have been “coincidences” – those “What-are-the-odds-?” moments that never fail to delight me. If I were to have daily visions or hear God’s voice “coming out of nowhere” with unusual frequency, I’m guessing I would be deemed mentally unstable and relocated someplace where I couldn’t hurt myself or others.

Was it even likely the gospel writers took dictation directly from an angel? Possibly. God can do whatever He wants. But most of the stories told in the gospels are of events that happened with one or more of the disciples present, or others such as the woman at the well (John 4) who were likely to tell the writer what had happened. The gospel writers were merely writing down what they had seen and heard.

Still, as I’ve been reading the book of Matthew, a few of the details have caused me to wonder, “Wait a minute… How did he know that?”

I have been trying to imagine how each of the gospel writers might have gained the information they are telling, assuming that it was all by natural means. Of course, God can do miracles any time He wants to, but He is also very skilled at using people and things that “just happened to be” in a certain place and time.

In Matthew’s gospel we are told about Herod the tetrarch, who ruled over Galilee during the time of Jesus. Herod had stolen his brother’s wife, and when John the Baptist confronted him with his sin, John was imprisoned and later beheaded.

In Matthew 14, we are told that when Herod heard the reports about Jesus, “he said to his attendants, ‘This is John the Baptist; he has risen from the dead!’ ” (Matthew 14:1-2)

How did Matthew know this?

Our pastor said something last Sunday while preaching from the gospel of John that might help answer my question.

In John 4:46-54, Jesus had come from Judah to Galilee. A “royal official” came to Him and begged Him to heal his child, who was close to death. Our pastor reminded us that in Galilee a “royal” official would have worked under Herod.

Was it this official who told Herod about Jesus’ miracles?

Jumping over to the gospel of Luke, we find a list of the names of women who followed Jesus and supported Him financially. Among these women was Joanna, “the wife of Cuza, the manager of Herod’s household.”

How did the wife of Herod’s household manager end up following Jesus?

We might note that Herod, although a Jew, was a sort of puppet king put in place by the Roman government. The Jews of the day despised him, considering him a traitor.

But wait – weren’t there other people the Jews despised and considered traitors? – Oh yeah, the tax collectors. But Jesus actually chose a tax collector to be one of His disciples…

Matthew. 

We don’t know how long Matthew had been a tax collector before Jesus called him to be His disciple, but it seems likely he had connections with Rome, maybe even knew some of his fellow “traitors” who were part of the palace staff. Perhaps Matthew had told the royal official about Jesus’ miraculous healings, encouraging him to come to Jesus when his child was sick. Perhaps this “royal official” was Cuza, and his wife Joanna was so grateful for the healing of their son that she became a follower of Jesus.

Why would Jesus choose a despised tax collector to be one of His disciples? Why would He have allowed the wife of the household manager of one of His greatest enemies to follow Him? Why would He choose to accept a criminal on the cross next to Him to be one of the first to enter His kingdom?

(Why would He choose you? Why would He choose me?)

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”  (John 3:16)

That’s “whoever.” Whatever our race, nationality, situation, or time in history when we were born – none of it is a mistake. You are part of God’s strategy! Who are you in a unique position to tell the Good News? You might be the only one who can reach that person. Don’t wait for a vison, a voice or an angel – just keep your eyes open for that “divine appointment.” And when you see it, go for it.

Prayer: Lord, thank You for calling ordinary people like me to spread Your Good News. Help me not to compare myself to others, but to see how You can use me. Here. Now. Thank You for giving me everything I need to fulfill today’s assignment. I’m excited to serve You! In Jesus’ name, Amen.