Uncomfortable Grace

 Good morning:

 Last Sunday, I spoke to our congregation in worship services on the topic of Uncomfortable Grace.  Now, that may seem somewhat confusing, especially to someone who thinks of grace consisting of only the good things of life that come our way at the hand of God.  You know, those things like a comfortable home, transportation, adequate good food, a vocation and a job, family, and so on.  And you are correct that those things are a gift of grace from a loving God.  But there is another kind of grace that God sometimes bestows on his people…uncomfortable grace…the kind of grace that, when we see it we often don’t recognize it as grace at all, but rather we see it as something bad…something we don’t like and don’t want to be part of.

This kind of grace might be something like the loss of a job, or perhaps an extended illness.  It might be some kind of medical issue or perhaps a family problem.  These things are events which disrupt our normal routine in life.  They force us to re-focus on our priorities.  They make us re-think how we do things and how we think about things.  And when we have to do those things, it’s always uncomfortable for us because those things get us out of our life ruts and force us to look beyond the here and now.

But in the end, these things which disrupt us often also refine us…remold us…remake us into better people, more dependent on the God of the universe and much less dependent upon our own strength and ability.  I am, over time, posting many of the writings of my childhood and lifetime friend Karl Detweiler on my Facebook page.  Karl had a great job with Duncan Aviation in the Omaha area, was a family man and was enjoying life…up until his doctor told him he had terminal cancer.  He died a little over a year later, but wrote extensively on his Facebook page about his journey with cancer.

For Karl, life took a most unexpected and unwanted turn.  He has always embraced the Christian life.  But in the process of coming to terms with his newfound lot in life, it is easy to see through Karl’s writing the process of him being refined, remolded, and remade.  His example in those last months has made a lasting impression on many…his family, his friends, his co-workers, and all of those who are reading those posts I’m putting on my Facebook page.  Even in death, Karl still speaks…still teaches…still encourages…and continues to embrace his God and Lord.

For many of us, the unexpected turn in life may not be as critical as was what hit Karl.  For many of us, those unexpected turns may be as benign as being caught in traffic or stopped by a train while going to an appointment…and then being late for the appointment.  It might be a phone call saying that the repairman can’t be at your house today as scheduled, and could he reschedule.

Or it could be that your car died at the stop light and won’t start.  Or maybe you’ve gotten the 24 hour stomach virus and the plans you had for that day will have to be postponed or canceled.

You get the idea.  Whether it’s cancer or your car battery conking out at a light, these kinds of unexpected turns work, if we’ll let them, to mold and shape us into better people…better human beings.  How we respond to these things is the key.

Do we do the “woe is me,” trip and become angry that we can’t do what we wanted to do?  Or do we look over the situation and deal with what comes our way in a mature and measured way?

One way to gauge our response is to think about what happens inside our heads when someone in traffic appears to cut us off, or maybe doesn’t use their turn signal, or pulls into our lane right in front of us.  Do we become upset or even angry with them?  Or do we slow down, wonder if they’re maybe having a bad day, and give them and ourselves room and just continue on our way?  How we handle these kinds of minor annoyances is a good way to determine how we will handle the more serious side of things.

I believe that God many times gives us these unexpected twists and turns in life for a reason…not to punish us or for some kind of sadistic pleasure…but rather to refine us and mature us…to help us understand that life isn’t always unicorns and rainbows…and to encourage us to look beyond the here and now to the not yet…the promise of a life to come that is free from the trials and pains of this life…free from the consequence of sin that has resulted in a fallen creation.

May you be encouraged as you also look beyond what this life has to offer, and see what is being prepared for those who have decided to follow Jesus…our Lord and Savior.

 Blessings.

Finding God

 Good morning !!

 I recently ran across a post on social media from someone who is not my friend, but rather is a friend of one of my friends on that platform.  I’ll call the friend of a friend “Laura” and my social media friend “Jennifer.”  Laura posted what I am about to read first.  Jennifer then responded to Laura with something that I think you need to hear.  These short posts give a very different perspective on “finding God” than what most of us who are Christ-followers have.  The background of both Laura and Jennifer is, I believe, one of battling with the demon of addiction.  I’ll read these two posts, then will respond.

 Laura writes:  I didn’t find God at church, I found him on my bathroom floor hysterically crying begging for him to stop the pain & heal my heart.

Jennifer responds:  It IS God there with us on the bathroom floor! But boy have we used His community to apply the bandages afterward and warm the bath water to start again. I’ve found both too! Much needed!

 There are a couple of messages in this short conversation that we who are Christians need to understand.

First, many people don’t necessarily “find God” in a church setting, or in any place even close to a church setting.  Laura just came out and said she didn’t find God at church.  That doesn’t surprise me.  Some people are intimidated by church.  Some don’t handle crowds very well.  Others may feel like an outsider, not a part of the cliques that inevitably form in such gatherings.  Still others may feel uncomfortable in the clothes they are wearing, their hygiene, or their lack of self-respect.

No matter how hard we try to be friendly, welcoming, and accepting of others, there are some who have such barriers and walls about them that even our warmest greetings cannot penetrate.  That’s just the way it is sometimes.

Laura did say that she found God on the bathroom floor with her as she was in the midst of the pain that inevitably comes as a result of addiction.  God isn’t averse to being with us when we are in the middle of our greatest depression and need.  He is there when we hurt.  He is there when we are ill.  He is there in our time of greatest need.  He hears our cries, our sobs, our screams.  He lays on the bathroom floor with us as we work through our pain and suffering.  He heals.

 Second, the faith community, when working as it should, can be an incredible resource for helping those who are hurting.  Notice what Jennifer said.  She evidently has been on that bathroom floor herself.  She knows God is there on the floor with her.  And she also knows that her church community will be there to help her heal…pick up the pieces and glue them back together…to “apply the bandages and warm the bathwater,” as she puts it, so she can start again.

Church done right is much more than meeting once a week on Sunday.  Church is God at work in the lives of those who are, as Laura said, “hysterically crying” for His help and healing.  Church is loving one’s neighbor.  Church is generosity.  Church is being there.  Church is reaching out…helping, holding, healing.

Jennifer has found God on the bathroom floor, and has experienced the healing of God in the church family that surrounds her and loves her.  This…this is the church at work in the world.  This is the church, gritty and real.  This is the church, in the mess and chaos.  This is what the church should look like the other one hundred and sixty six hours of the week when we’re not gathering together in worship and fellowship.

So, what about your church family?  Does it “apply the bandages and warm the bath water” from time to time as needed to help in the healing process of someone who is truly loved as a neighbor?  Is your church family one that God works in and through for someone on the bathroom floor, whether literally or figuratively, hysterically crying for healing and help?

More to the point; what about you?  How do you figure in this mix?  What part do you play as a member of your church family?  How can you truly use God’s power to redeem the creation, even if that redemption is just one person?

I’ll leave you with these questions…you’ll have to supply your own answers.  And I’ll invoke God’s richest blessings upon you as you both find your place in His plan for you and with His blessing carry out the work He has prepared for you to do.

 Blessings,

The Dichotomy of Days

 Good afternoon.

 It’s been sort of a roller-coaster couple of days for me this week.  Yesterday, the wife and I went to the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson and took in the sights…both traditional and some new.  It was also band day there and several high school and middle school bands were there.  They marched into the fairgrounds; then went to the free entertainment arena and played a couple of numbers before they dismissed the kids to enjoy the fair.  Two of our grand kids were in their high school band, so we got to see them there as well.

The fairgrounds weren’t very crowded, and the weather was perhaps just a bit warm in the afternoon, but very tolerable.  Everyone, it seemed, was at least civil…many held doors open, stepped out of the way for others, and so on.  I think the lack of a huge crowd makes everybody’s day a little better.

We stopped at several booths and visited a bit.  The Goodland vocational school just recently became affiliated with Fort Hays State University, and we visited with the woman there about that, as we had lived in Goodland for some years…and also, my wife went through that same thing with WSU Tech when it became affiliated with WSU a few years back.  We stopped at a booth where there was a company whose owner we knew from the time our older son was in elementary school.  He wasn’t there, but we had a good visit with those who were there.

We stopped at the Hesston College booth and found out that the traditionally two-year college is now offering bachelors degrees as a four-year institution.  We visited about that as well.  And we stopped at the Harper Industries booth and visited with the guys there about Dew Eze products.  Look that up on line if you’re unfamiliar with that.  It’s a great success story of an entrepreneur who made good.  And we knew the entrepreneur and his family.

Yes, we saw the butter sculpture.  Yes, we saw the largest pumpkin and the largest watermelon.  Yes, we rode the train.  Yes, we rode the sky ride.  Yes, we stopped at the channel 12 booth.  And yes, we got ice cream under the grandstand…and while we were there got cold water from the Temperance Union water fountain…which has been at that same location under the grandstand for many decades and has that same little animated man turning the pages of a booklet extolling the virtues of temperance.

We didn’t get to the midway, the giant slide, or the Old Mill.  But we did get to the food court where the wife got her chicken & noodles and I got my catfish.  We heard a ventriloquist give  his schtick and wandered through various buildings.  We got a funnel cake, fried cheese curds, and lots of water.

Then today, work has been a bit different.  The day began with meeting a young Spanish couple who had two small children whose electric had been shut off the day before.  They didn’t speak English.  A good friend of mine who works for the health department to find services people could access to meet their needs came with them and interpreted.  He works as a day laborer, finding daily work wherever he can.  She is a stay-at-home mom.  Mainly because of the small kids, we gave enough to the electric company that they got their power turned back on today.

I don’t know how the future will go for them, but at least for now the kids have electric service and the parents have one less thing to worry about.

A short time after that, I got a call from a woman staying at a motel with her two teen children, one girl and one boy.  She was divorced from her abusive husband some months ago, is 6 months pregnant, and had been staying in the motel with her kids off and on for the past several months.  She applied for a housing voucher months ago and just now was informed that she could pick it up tomorrow, and she also has a house she can move into once she actually receives the voucher.

She has no transportation.  Her kids attend West High School.  She works at McDonalds just up the street from the motel.  She generally makes enough each week from her job to pay for a week of motel with a little left over.

She called because she hadn’t been able to work recently, and her motel room ran out.  She only needed one more day until she could get the housing voucher.  If she had to move out, because she had no transportation, she couldn’t have stayed in her car…they would have been on the street somewhere.

We normally don’t do motels, but something told me that she was genuine and really needed the help.  I went to the motel, paid for the room for a day, and gave her a little cash to get by with groceries until her food stamps came in on Monday.  I also gave her information on our food pantry and a couple more places where she might be able to access services.

So, this day has been very different from the day before.  Instead of seeing the largess and excess in society…the ice cream, the fried Oreos, the Pronto Pups, and all the rest, I’ve seen the other side…the need.  And it really makes one stop and think…and pray both a prayer of thanksgiving as well as a prayer for blessing for those in need.

May you be well, physically, emotionally, and spiritually this day.  May you be generous.  May you demonstrate a genuine love for your neighbor.  And may you be washed in the grace of God this day.

 

Blessings.

Righteous Protection

 Good morning, and welcome.

 I’m reading a book by Marilynne Robinson titled, “Reading Genesis.”  In the book, Robinson takes a deep dive into the Genesis story.  The front cover states that the book “is a powerful consideration of the profound meanings and promise of God’s enduring covenant with humanity.”  It’s not a simple or easy read.  I read a few pages, then have to put it aside for a time in order to digest the contents.  It’s not a commentary…it’s much, much more.

 I’m at the point in the book where Robinson takes on the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot and his family, and Abraham and his attempt to bargain with God for the safety of the cities.  If you are familiar with the story, you know that Abraham has been told by God that God will destroy Sodom and Gomorrah due to sin and depravity.  Abraham knows his nephew Lot and his family live in the city.  Abraham asks God if he will destroy the cities if there are fifty righteous people to be found in them.  God says, “No,” he will not destroy the cities if fifty righteous people can be found.

 Abraham then lowers the number to 40, 30, and so on until he asks God if God would destroy the cities if ten righteous people could be found.  God again says, “No,” he would not destroy the cities for the sake of ten righteous people.

 Think about this for just a second or two.  The mere presence of ten God-fearing people in the cities is sufficient for God to spare the cities and all who live there from destruction.  Ms. Robinson says this about that part of the account:  When the Lord replies to Abraham that for the sake of ten God-fearing, righteous people, the cities will be spared,  (quote) The Lord replies in effect, that the innocent sustain, even shelter, the guilty.  “For ten I will not destroy the city.”  Unbeknownst to themselves or anyone else, presumably, the innocent stay the hand of the Lord.”

 Now think about this.  God does not change.  There are several scripture passages that say that very thing, but perhaps the one who wrote Psalm 102 says it best. 

 In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth,

and the heavens are the work of your hands.

They will perish, but you remain;

they will all wear out like a garment.

Like clothing you will change them

and they will be discarded.

But you remain the same,

and your years will never end.

 Now, my question for you is this:  If indeed God does not change, and if Ms. Robinson is correct in her assertion that the innocent sustain and shelter the guilty, and, as she says, “stay the hand of the Lord,” could that be true today as well?

 Could it be that those who are God-fearing actually protect in some way by their very presence in society all the rest of us from calamity worse than we could imagine?  We will never know with certainty, though, because we would never know what things would be like without those righteous, God-fearing people in the mix.  However, if the story of Abraham, Lot, and the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah are any indication, and if it is indeed true that God does not change, I think it could be fairly inferred that the righteous indeed have an effect on all the rest of us.

 “You are the salt of the earth,” Jesus said.  “You are the light of the world,” he said.  Jesus here was speaking to those who would be his followers.  In a parable later in the book of Matthew, Jesus tells of the effects of leaven in dough, a small amount of leaven affecting the whole batch.  Could it be that it is along the same lines of thought that the righteous somehow, some way protect and even improve the lives and well-being of all in a society.

 Well, I leave the final answer to you.  For me, I believe it to be true.  It may not seem like there is much protection nowadays in many societies of the world.  But we must understand that we are looking at things from a very narrow, very limited, human point of view.  God’s viewpoint is much more broad and perfectly apprehending.  The creation operates on his viewpoint…not ours.  And thank God for that.  Operating by our viewpoint would have already doomed us long ago.

 This Thought is a little more cerebral and a little more faith-based than some, but I make no apologies.  Consider what has been said.  And may you be blessed this day and the rest of this week.