Where Is Your Faithfulness?

What does a farmer think about when he sees the grain tumbling from the combine into the wagon...thousands of kernels, pouring into storage bins? Does he think about the blessings of God? The prophet Malachi said: "Put me to the test and you will see that I will open the windows of heaven and pour out on you in abundance all kinds of good things." (Malachi 3:10) Does that farmer think about God's goodness? No? Then he should!

What does a mother think when she sends her children off to school, and watches them...healthy and strong, learning and growing? Does she think about what Jesus said: "you know how to give good things to your children. How much more then, will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?" (Lk. 11:13) Does she think about what Jesus said? No? Then she should!

What does the average person think when he goes to work in the morning, and puts in an 8‑hour day and collects a full week's pay‑check? Does that person think, like the Psalmist, "Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation." (Ps. 68:19) Does he think about the Psalms? Or do you? No? Then you should!

How does God put up with our indifference, when He has been so good to us? Where is our faithfulness? Where are we on Sunday mornings? Are we in God's House to praise Him? Where are we when it comes time to give an extra offering? Are we giving of the first fruits of the land, or the first portion of our pay‑checks? Are we reflecting His goodness to us through our gifts? Where are we when the difficult times come? Are we the first to complain, or do we remember the good times, and say, "Thanks be unto God, for His inexpressible gifts." (II Cor. 9:15) Where are we when someone needs a greeting or a friendly word? Are we so busy with our own little problems, that we cannot see beyond our own nose?

Let us remember to praise the Lord! As the Psalmist has said: "praise God in his sanctuary"..."Praise him for his mighty acts."..."Praise him with the sound of the trumpet."..."Let everything that hath breath, praise the Lord." (Ps. 150)

Count Your Many Blessings!

The devil got his grip on me last week! Did everything he could to make me miserable!...covered my body with chiggers and sores!...thought I would die!

"Why me?" I thought to myself. "What have I done to merit such grief?" And I pondered the old story of Job and his boils. In the 2nd chapter, we read, "Satan made sores break out all over Job's body. Job went and sat by the garbage dump." (Job 2:7‑9 T.E.V.)

I've found myself sitting by the garbage dump fairly often, haven't you? So many times, my problems, and my griefs and my distress become greater in my mind than God's mercies and God's love, and God's marvelous provisions!

Can't say we don't have a right to complain now and then...but why cry those salty tears so often, when you can change your tune, and change your life by concentrating on the good things God has heaped upon you? Count your many blessings! See what God has done! And like Job, you too will find victory over Satan's wicked darts!

Noah Was Listening!

In the story of Noah and the ark, we ask ourselves, "Didn't God care enough to speak to anyone else but Noah?" "Wasn't there enough wood for a thousand arks?" "Why couldn't thousands have been saved, rather than just one family?"

And the truth is that God probably did speak to every man, woman and child...but the sad fact remains that only Noah listened, only Noah heard, and obeyed!

God is trying to say something to us! In the beautiful message of Easter, and in the power of the resurrection, God is telling us something...there is HOPE, and there is LIFE...life everlasting!

Economic recession and taxes may engulf me, but I am not afraid! I may lose my job, I may lose my health, I may lose my friends, but I have not lost my HOPE! When I am on the side of Christ, I am on the side of victory! When I have been raised with Him, the world cannot harm me! Nuclear warfare may destroy me, but though I die, yet shall I live!

This is a message clearly written for all to see. This is the story of a great stone rolled away from the tomb, and an empty grave. This is God's answer to all the gloomy predictions and the dismal miseries mankind has brought upon his fellow‑man.

God is not dead! God is alive! And that makes my future bright...if I listen, that is, and if I obey!

It Takes Obedience

One of the special parts of vacation‑time is sitting along the lake, and just doing nothing at all!

I did that one morning along Lake Michigan, just as the sun was coming up about 5:30. It was beautiful! A few moments before, and the lake was dark and calm. But suddenly the sun arose and every tiny wave responded, reflecting the sun in a golden pathway stretching from my seat to the opposite side of the lake.

The waves didn't question their need to reflect the sun...they just did it, in perfect obedience.

I thought to myself..."Why can't we as God's children do the same? Why are we so concerned about reflecting our own glory, or making the almighty dollar, or being so busy in doing nothing? Why cannot we too be obedient to the rays of God's love and simply reflect them to make a golden pathway for others to see His glory?

Maybe it's not a profound idea, but it seems as though I should do a better job in reflecting his Glory rather than being so concerned about my own.

Any chance that you and I might be
able to reflect some ofGod's glory
today? It seems like a good thing to
do. Not sure I've got specifics on
exactly how to do it, but I believe it
needs thought.

Catch The Vision

This morning, I had another vision! This is not to say that I have them often, like daily, or monthly, or every so many years. Indeed, I am really not inclined to have such things. In fact, I have sometimes been a bit critical of others who made such claims.

But I have discovered that my problem was not the lack of visions, but my lack of eyes! I just had not been seeing what was there to see. Having eyes, I saw not!

My vision this morning was a beautiful flock of geese...an arrow pointing due north...one of those awe‑inspiring sights that thrills the soul. "But that's no vision," you say..."that was simply a beautiful sight...a herald of spring!"

That's right...but the "vision" was still there...because my vision was of something within the tiny brain of each flying bird that was drawing him like an arrow to his destination!...and each bird responded to that inner instinct.

God is tugging at our hearts. He is calling us to come up higher...to live more perfectly...to love more completely. Here then was my vision: when we come to God to worship, or to pray, or to grow...when we follow the way of the cross...when we look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith...and when we respond to this inner "tug," we too become a beautiful sign in the sky.

Here is the way! Walk in it! Here is the Savior! Follow Him! Here is Life! Live it to the best of your ability! Like an arrow...moves the Church of God...a sign, a promise, a hope to all who behold!

I Saw God At Work Today!

I saw God at work today! And He's looking for workers! No unemployment in His Kingdom!

I saw Him in the sky, upon the earth, under the waters, cardinals flashing by, geese honking on the wing, geodes rolling down the creeks, onions sneaking their fragrances into gardens, while dandelions are having their come‑uppance in yards all over America!

Over in the school yard, wall‑to‑wall kids, playing, growing, learning...fully employed in the process of becoming like their elders, but hopefully a little wiser. Back home, moms and dads, struggling with the task of bringing up Johnny, and wondering where they're bringing him up to! And over at old First Church, church members are gathering to bring the sacrifice of their hearts, to place upon the altars of God's will.

Yes, in these days of unemployment, I'm glad I'm fully employed for Him. No other task demands so much! No other work pays such beautiful dividends!

Are you getting all the dividends God wants to give you?

Don't Turn Off The Clouds!

Years ago, my nature photography lacked character. But I have discovered a secret: when you take pictures...if possible, get some clouds in the sky!

Most of the time, we think we don't want clouds. Clear blue skies seem nicer. But out west in the mountains, the majestic peaks seem to draw the clouds to them at least once a day. The lightning flashes, the thunder rolls, and the rain descends. The mountains have learned that the clouds are necessary to keep life fresh and alive.

There is a kind of daily classroom for all of us, and the Teacher of life requires discipline, growth, and study. Business isn't always that great, and day after day needs sacrifice, hard work, and faith from our business‑people. Farmers watch their crops grow with bated breath. Will they survive? Profits are never guaranteed.

God put us in this world with no absolute assurance of clear skies. Life is difficult, but storms and problems appear to be necessary to build character. Jesus said, "If you are not willing to take up a cross and follow me, you are not worthy of me." (Matthew 10.38) There is a toughness that our Lord requires of all who would follow Him.

Today, He invites you to come to Him. He promises no life of ease, but He does promise an abundant life, and an eternal life for all who take up the disciplines of the Cross and walk with Him.

It is not easy to be a Christian in today's world; but we are the people of God, who are pledged to be loyal and faithful to Him. Accept these disciplines, and you will find that even the clouds make life more interesting, and troubles have a way of turning into opportunities.

Clouds are not that bad. Indeed they may even be good. In the book of Romans, we read that we are to "rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts. (Ro. 5:3‑5)

If clouds aren't bad, then life's struggles
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Where In The World Is Everyone Going?

Sometimes, one gets those "left‑behind" blues. Everybody else is going someplace! Packing up for Florida! Fishing up in Canada, flying over to Hawaii, Alaska, the ocean, Niagara Falls! What a variety of spots to go!

Most of us get vacations, and we have no reason to complain; but I do think of those many persons in our community who are not able to go, go, go! In my Chicago church, there was a lady, so crippled by arthritis, that she could never travel! Never went anywhere! But one day she told me, "I'm going to Mexico next week, and I'm all excited!" I knew better. She was not going, but she did so vicariously through friends. She found out all about the places they planned to stop; she read up on these spots, and she ended up knowing more about the trip than those who went!

In many ways, going to church can be an exciting venture. Or, how about going to visit a neighbor, or making a phone call? Here's some close‑to‑home activity. Need some excitement?..go to the library. Read a book, read the Bible, and meet the Eternal!

My day can be exciting, because today, I am going to meet the King! Who can out‑boast my experiences when I tell my friends I have been walking with, and talking to the Lord of the Universe, the Creator of the world!

No need to have those "stay‑at‑home" blues! Just get your ticket for today's gift of life. You can really go places with God! Pleasant traveling!

Are You Paying Tribute To Your Maker?

The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God'" (Ps. 53:1) In the spring of the year, how could anyone believe there was no God?

Have you been up at 6 A.M. recently, to hear and see the frantic activities of Spring? Have you listened to the birds? Have you walked across the grass, and felt the soft springiness beneath your feet, and seen the thousands of dandelions? Have you examined the soil, and found the busy worms and seen the myriads of tiny roots? Or have you noticed the buds on the trees, bursting out with a kind of star‑spangled brilliance? Have you looked up into the heavens, and seen the vastness of the universe? If so, wouldn't you be a fool, to say God did not exist?

And yet sometimes we live as though He did not exist. We figure that everything else is more important than acknowledging Him. We decide that a lazy Sunday morning is more important to us, than to be in church. We spend our money on expensive foods, and expensive clothes, and expensive baubles, and then we put some "cheap" currency into our gift for the Lord. It is what we have been doing for years! We go to church now and then and sing, "Onward Christian Soldiers". But we don't act like we were "going to war" against anything. We don't really seem to believe that God is important!

I once had a funeral of an 80‑year‑old‑man, who had 5 children. None of them had seen their Dad for 15 years. Only one of them decided to come to the funeral. In a very real sense, these children did not know they had a father. How sad!

But do we do any better, when we give our token love to God, or when we give our token gifts to Him? It is as though we had no Heavenly Father! Don't be a fool! Even the flowers of the field pay tribute to their Maker!

Have A Yeasty Heart

Home‑made bread is a vanishing species! But every so often, we have it! How unpromising that little roll of grayish dough looks in the pan. But, give it a few hours, and it rises above the con- fines of the pan that had so completely buried it. Somewhere, within that mass of inert‑looking stuff, there is a vital spore that begins to multiply, and a kind of miracle takes place!

Somewhere within each of us, there is a seed, a yeasty piece, just waiting to be re‑born and brought to life! There are a lot of church members among us, inert, at a stand‑still in their spiritual lives, but with a good yeasty heart.

"This is my Body", Jesus said. Let us praise God, for the "Body" of the Church of Jesus Christ. And let us pray that each of us may let the yeast of Christ's spirit bring a miracle within us, as we work together in His miracle‑filled world.

It Is A Strange Sign

If a person with three eyes and four arms flew in on a space vehicle, and came to observe Holy Communion in our church, there would be one puzzled alien! But maybe you are confused too. Does it really mean something? Why in the world, has the Church from century one, observed this phenomenon? Let's take a look.

l‑‑It is drama: the gospel is acted out here. "God so loved that He gave." Everlasting life is given through the sacrifice of Jesus. That's drama and powerful stuff!

2. Sins are forgiven here as well: ours, and all who ask for it from the Giver of forgiveness. Good news, if we just believe and accept it.

3. There is atonement in this observance. Jesus brings at‑one‑ment. The wall that sin made is broken down. Through confession and forgiveness of sins, I am no longer separated from my neighbor or from my God.

4. And here is magic! As we lift up in memory the one who is more precious than silver, and worth more than all the treasures that earth can produce, we count the coins of our spiritual bank account, and remember Jesus, and what he did for us, and said to us. And that remembrance is magic.

5. In a terribly divided world, this sign tells us boldly that there is no exclusiveness. We must be of one accord. We may not go into rapture at the thought of loving all races and all cultures, or even of loving some of our immediate brethren, but we either learn to do just that, or find ourselves consigned to the Pit! "Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity!" (Lk. 13:27) Jesus said. It's a bit scary, this food and drink given to us.

6. But finally in this sign, we find ourselves living between two worlds. We look back into the world in which Jesus was crucified and then we look forward to the world in which he is to be crowned Lord of all.

Fortunately, if we have grasped its meaning, we end up taking the "bread" and the "wine" as we should. We may even find ourselves standing next to that three‑eyed, four‑legged creature from outer space, or that two‑legged hard‑to‑love neighbor from down the street, and discover that we can get used to it. You see, our God is the Father of all, and Jesus Christ is the Savior of all, and we who go by His name, must be the friend of all.

There's no doubt about it. It is a strange sign. But I hope we stay in the ranks of those who find life‑transforming power in taking "the bread" and drinking "the cup" as new citizens of that brave new world of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Surely Lord, You Don't Mean Me!

Every time I take Holy Communion, I recall that heart‑rending statement of our Lord, "Someone here is going to betray me." And although Jesus was talking about Judas, I keep feeling I have to respond too. Do I? "Surely Lord, you don't mean me!"

I've got a hunch that fellow over there may be playing loosely with his marriage vows, and that's a real sin, Lord. And I sometimes wonder about the guy who plays the horses, or spends so much trying to win the Lotto millions, and fails to give his own kids some assurance of college, or the love and time he owes them. Isn't that a real sin, Lord, to be so casual about the hard‑won money we get?

But the words keep coming down to me, "Someone here is betraying me!" and I reply, "Surely, Lord, you don't mean me!" Oh, I missed a couple of Sundays in church, but you can't hold that against me. I'm a good man, and I don't do much that is wrong, and I'm not like some of those folks who sin a lot. "Surely, Lord, you don't mean me!"

But then, a kind of shiver of truth runs through my soul. Could it be that He does mean me? I don't always stand up for some things I know are very good. I do let my kids get away with murder some times, and don't always set them a good example. I haven't had much prayer in my life lately, and I do chuckle at some of the crude jokes I hear at Club meetings. Oh Lord, maybe it is me!

I remember when I became a Christian and joined the church, I promised to be faithful, and to make you Lord and Master of my life. And I know very well that making money has sometimes been more important than making you Master. And keeping a nice home and watching the Cubs has been more important than always getting to church. Maybe I am the "Judas". "Dear Lord, forgive!"

And the good news is that the Savior is forgiving when we confess. He does forgive. He does cleanse. He does welcome us to His table.

But the sad part is that there are thousands, yes millions of people (so‑called Christians), who just go "truckin' off" into Eternity saying, "Surely, Lord, you don't mean me!"

Can you hear in all of this the agonized soul of a pastor who throughout the years has wondered why people could be so careless about eternal things?

The message of course, is that we have all failed. Not a one of us can claim otherwise. My sins are different than yours, but nonetheless, they are sins. And the good news of God for us today is that these sins may be forgiven, and that the Lord is merciful to all who love Him and seek to serve Him. At the table of the Lord, "I'll drink to that!"

"He's Keepin' Score!"

Every baseball game, every football or basketball game tends to bring up some questionable calls by the umpires and referees! The "Instant Playback!" helps us to see the gross errors and mistaken "calls" that are made. But it's just a game, and the players learn to live with it!

But there is also a "game of life". And day after day, you and I see people getting hurt, we see injustice and unfairness. The rich get richer, and the poor get poorer! Many times, bad people do not get punished for their evil, and criminals go scot free. At the same time, there are good people who are unjustly accused, and righteous folk who suffer more than their share! Where is the justice of this old world in which we live? Why do the righteous suffer, and the evil prosper? These are questions as old as time itself.

A good friend of ours puts a unique kind of slogan in his front lawn weekly by careful mowing and trimming of the grass. He actually gets down on hands and knees, with a scissors to clip the words so they show clearly. One week, it said: "He's Keepin' Score!" I like that! There is an absolutely fair and unimpeachable Referee. Not all the scores are settled in this world! Not all the rewards and punishments are meted out during this brief existence! The Psalmist said it rightly, "The ungodly are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away." But those who live faithfully, who walk in righteousness, are like a tree, planted by streams of living water, and yield fruit in their season. (Psalm 1)

God has His own "instant Play‑back". He is not fooled by what some people get‑away‑with! "He's keepin' Score", and I'm glad! I may get "fouled" in the game of life! I may have "three strikes" on me unfairly, but the Lord knows, and He is my ultimate Judge! I'll take my chances with His score‑card!

What Is Your Life?

The writer of James has some simple, practical wisdom. He writes: "What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we shall live and we shall do this or that.' As it is you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. Whoever knows what is right to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin." (James 4:14‑16)

This morning, the air was heavy with fog...it was hard to see the highway and other cars. Suddenly a car would loom out of the fog, and then just as suddenly it would move on. Life is like that in many ways. Each of us must live a kind of solitary existence. We move through the fog...briefly encountering other lives. Our two lives cross and we influence each other briefly...but then on we go into the fog again.

Several of my neighbors have moved recently to distant communities. I realize how briefly our pathways have crossed. For others, there is the agony of sickness and death. For some, there is the joy of birth and new life. But how brief and ephemeral is our existence. Our life is like a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.

But out of the fog, and through the mists, comes the light of the Savior. The warmth of His Presence dissolves the confusion and the fear and then we are able to see clearly. We are so tiny in this great universe! We have little reason for boasting. Much of the blessings and mercies of God, we have turned into confusion...but thank God for Jesus, the light of the world. He takes away our fear of tomorrow, and of dying, and he gives us courage for living. He helps us to make sense of a seemingly meaningless existence. Following Him, we can know what is right to do, and through Him, we have the strength to do it. May He give you strength to live this day at your very best.

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It Is As You Will

Someone has said that literally nothing is impossible to us, if we will as a people to do it. I believe that, and I think God believes that too.

Again and again we have asked, "What is God's will?" And it would seem that it is God's will that we move ahead...that we strive onward to love His Kingdom and to help bring it to pass. But it is always "our will" that needs priming. If we really said "yes" to God's work, then no goal would be too high.

Our giving and use of our finances has always been an indicator of what we think is important. And if we looked at our finances, we would discover that 85% of all we earn is used for necessities, i.e. food, housing, clothing, medical bills, etc. The balance of 15%, however becomes the give‑away to the question, "where is our heart's commitment?"

Of that 15%, 5% goes for recreation, 4% for alcoholic beverages, 2% for tobacco, 1 1/2% for cosmetics, 1% for T.V. and 1/2 of 1% for religion. This means that we are twice as receptive to "Avon calling" as we are to Christ's call in the Church. And it is easy to see that our bad habits are grossly more demanding of us than our stewardship for the Lord.

H.J. Heinz who is famous for his 57 varieties, was a Christian steward of large proportions. He was a S.S. teacher, president of his County S.S. association and an executive of the International Council of Religious Education. In his will, the opening words were: "I desire to set forth at the very beginning of this will as the most important item in it, a confession of my faith in Jesus Christ as my Saviour..." And then, in that will, he left a third of a million dollars to the church.

What is in your will and my will, as symbol of our love and tribute to Jesus Christ? Do we show it through our giving, and through our commitments?

Many years ago, in a western community, there was a very wise, old Indian. Stories had made the rounds of his wisdom, but a group of townsmen did not like the wise old man and wanted to ridicule and discredit him. They devised a scheme, at a public gathering to do so. One man, the leader took a tiny bird in his closed hand, and asked the old Indian, "Is the bird alive or dead?" If he said, "Dead", the man would release the bird. If he said, "Alive", he would simply crush the bird and reveal him dead, thus discrediting the old man. As they taunted him, the old Indian understood the trickery behind their questions, and when they asked him, "Is the bird alive, or dead?", he replied, "It is as you will!"

And so goes the cause of justice, and freedom, and Christianity, and the work of the Church in this world of ours. "Is it alive or is it dead?" The answer of course is: "It is as you will!"

Selfishness Is Dangerous

Sometimes I get scared when I think of the dangers of selfishness. What does it do to my personality? What does it do to my family? How can I teach them to give, and to give gladly and generously...to learn to trust in something other than materialistic things?

This is one of the tasks of the Christian Faith. I must learn "FAITH" for myself, before I can teach it to my children. I must learn to give to God without penny‑pinching in the assurance that when I give up my "hoarding" and give up my faith in "material things", I begin to launch out in faith with a God who has assured me that He will "open the windows of heaven, and pour down an overflowing blessing." (Malachi 3:10b) An old rhyme goes as follows:

If I get mine,
And God gets His
Then everything will be just fine
But if I get mine
And keep His too
What do you think God will do?

And someone has added the answer, "We believe God will collect!" I'm not sure I know how God "collects," but I do believe I understand the spiritual law of giving. A lake that receives but does not give out is a stagnant lake. By that same token, a life that receives without giving back just as generously, becomes a dead soul!

I do not want to make the mistake of not giving! I believe God has given me the privilege of giving to keep me from becoming absolutely selfish. Here then, is a law of my being..."giving is living". Have I really understood the "health‑cure" my church offers me when it asks me to give?

As a Christian, I have never felt strange about asking people to give. Not to do so, would be an act of unconcern on my part!

Take Life

Several books have been written lately about Life After Death. Doctors and others have collected information about those declared dead, who returned to life, and shared their recollections of what had happened to them in the process. Interestingly enough, nearly all of them had similar experiences: a feeling of leaving their bodies, of seeing themselves and others from a distance, and then of seeing a great light, and experiencing a strong Presence, who gave them a feeling of joy and happiness.

This is nothing new to us! For centuries, Christians have believed this truth about life after death! We may not have analyzed it in quite this same way, but we do believe in life after death! The really big question we think may be just as important is: "Is there life before death? Is there life during life?"

All of us know, for example, of people who are alive, but not really living!...who have all the characteristics of living bodies, but who are really dead in their relationship to God and others.

We hope to live again after death. We believe God has provided this assurance for those who trust in Him. But to truly live for Him now...while we are yet alive, is even more critical!

In the sacrament of Holy Communion, Christians dramatize the sacrificial death of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that we might have life, and have it more abundantly. The cross is a pointer that directs us to the future...but if it does not make us joyous and triumphant in the present...then it was all for nothing!

"Take life!" Jesus said, "Take it now!" Come to him as a beggar....leave as a King! Come with your poverty. Leave with His great treasury of Life!

Fairly Honest Joe

The story is told about a man who died in Los Angeles who was a pretty decent fellow. He had been a bartender, and helped many people with a small loan or meal. His friends began calling him "Honest Joe". He objected because he said that the name put too much of a strain upon him. He insisted that he was only fairly honest.

And so, they called him, "Fairly honest Joe". But when a person is only "fairly honest", he is not really honest at all! How can we be sure when that honesty will run out?

We have gotten the idea that we can be fairly Christian in our living. We have no intention of going too far, or going all the way. No one else knows, nor neither do they, whether they will behave like Christians or not. They may end up acting like pagans. In one moment, they give generously, but on other occasions, they may shock their friends with meanness and selfishness.

They have acquired just enough religion to be miserable, and not enough to be triumphantly generous. What a refreshing breeze was this man Zacchaeus, who when confronted by the Lord said, "Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor, and I'll restore any injustice four‑fold." (Luke 19:8)

Paul, in speaking to the Church at Corinth said, "First they gave themselves to the Lord"...and then "their abundance of joy...overflowed in a wealth of liberality...for they gave according to their means." (II Cor. 8:5,2,3)

Anything less than this, it would seem, is really segmentalized Christianity. The story is told about a man who saw a blind beggar, and said to his Quaker friend, "I really feel for him." The man asked, "Friend, hast thou felt for him in thy purse?" We can't really be just "fairly" Christian. It is a contradiction in terms. Our Lord calls us to go all the way.

I'm Attached To Life

The message of the early Church was that "Christ is Life", and we are attached to His life through the Church, and through Baptism, and Confirmation, and Communion, and worship and a thousand other things.

In Paul's wonderful letter to the Philippian church, he said, "For me to live is Christ." My own youth was captured by this thought as have millions of others as Paul said: "It is my eager expectation and hope that, with full courage, now as always Christ will be honored in my body, by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." (Philippians 1:20,21)

What a faith. If we only believed it, and lived it. Years ago when I had surgery, I awoke with the strange realization that a tube was protruding from my abdomen. It felt strange, but my body needed it. During the surgery, life had come to a rather slow beat, but the doctors and nurses were watching my pulse, my heart, and my breathing, and back in my room were members of my family caring and praying. And I realized that I was attached to life, by many kinds of cords. And I thought, "How good it is to be attached!"

Life has a way of "plugging us in", in a variety of ways. And through the years, we have been reminded that these attachments to life are important. We are not designed just for "some future heavenly planet". This world is needed too. The Mississippi River is a life‑line to which many of us are attached. The farmers are in a business to which most of us are attached. The car dealers, the schools, the hopes and fears of our teen‑agers...we all have much at stake in these things. And through the years, the Christian faith has said: "Every part of life is sacramental. It is holy and sacred, and I cannot separate my religion from my work, and my family, or from my community. These life‑lines are all important to us."

And so, I am grateful that my work as a clergyman is not just to give aspirins and sedatives to take away the pain, but to plug folks into a job so big that the pain doesn't matter. Ours is not just a Sunday‑message. It is not just for speaking in hushed and holy tones. But the faith of the Christian has legs on it, has a tube running to it. It plugs into our jobs, into our Mondays and our Tuesdays. There are times when like Peter, I become afraid and deny the saving power of my Lord. Like Judas, I betray what has become in me a weak Christ, an insipid and meaningless faith. But there are also times, thank God, when I can arise out of my bed, and look out on the world, and say, "Hallelujah, Christ is alive, and I am attached to his Life, and don't anybody un‑plug me."

Are You Blooming Yet?

Sometimes I get discouraged with my spiritual growth. Why can I not change into a spiritual giant like the great Christian leaders and disciples?

Already, Lent has come and gone, and Easter is past, and I am not perfect! Strange, isn't it, that we think our lives should improve so quickly when it takes the mighty oak tree years and years.

John Wesley, founder of the Methodist Church, believed that Christians should "go on to perfection". By this, he did not mean that we would ever be perfect as Jesus was perfect, but that life should be a process of moving from one new victory to another.

Have you had any victories lately? Conquered any sins? Overcome any bad habits? Moved on to any new discoveries or truths? Don't be discouraged...it takes time. And just like the tulips and growing things of the good earth, it takes a day here and a day there...here a little...there a little...and finally the bloom appears...the leaves emerge.

Nature takes her time...and so it is with life. Be patient! God isn't finished with us yet...but He's working on us.

Spring Is Exciting!

The old story that April showers bring May flowers, is evident in all of creation around us at this time of year. What should be just as equally evident, is that Easter resurrection should bring post‑Easter excitement! Whenever something happens in this world, there is always a cause‑and‑effect relationship. There is action, and re‑action.

The action of God in bringing life after death for Jesus Christ, was but the promise of life after death for all of us who will take the news in faith. The re‑action to Easter, however, was varied. Some thought it was a hoax. Others reacted with fear. Some said that of course it was impossible, and therefore continued to live on in the drab, dreary world of the expected. But, fortunately, the disciples reacted with excitement. They had seen the Lord! They believed, and they went everywhere telling the good news that Jesus was alive again!

How do you react to Easter? Are you glad it's over so that you can get back to normal? Do you think of the miracle of life after death as something that is impossible, and therefore, pass it off as religious frenzy? But, stop and think! Wouldn't it be great, just for once, to stop acting and reacting as though everything were cut and dried?

In God's world of nature, excitement is bursting out all over. The robins announce it every morning. The trees and the bushes are literally scurrying with frenzy to get their leaves and buds out in the open again. The long winter of death is gone, and the resurrection of life in the earth has come once more. Why do we live as skeptics in such an exciting world? Why do we limit the power of the Creator, by the dimensions of our own tiny brains?

Jesus Christ arose from the grave, just as surely as new life comes to the trees. And because Jesus Christ arose, thank God, I can believe that new life is possible for me too, not only after death, but in the real present!

The Company of "The Third Day"

The invention of the wheel was a major break‑through. The use of a written language, the printing press, the first step into space on another celestial body...these were major turning points in our world culture.

But when a tomb on Calvary's hill broke open to release the risen body of a crucified Jesus, we entered a brand new world. It was as unlike the former one as day and night. Before this time, the world of mankind was about three score years and then blackness. Now, suddenly, his world opened up to infinity with no limits! Before this mankind knew a physical world. Now, suddenly, he was introduced to a spiritual one. Paul says, "if there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body"..."this perishable nature must put on the imperishable." (I Cor. 15:53)

This dramatic revolution of life style, became the burden of the new Church that came into existence fifty days later. It was the birth of another kind of power that was to set the world on fire.

And although we so often seem to ignore it, we as Christians are not alien to power. Indeed, it is part of our clothing, our uniforms as witnesses in God's world.

Although we live in a world of tremendous powers, so many of us feel frustrated by its lack. But after evil persons had done their best to destroy Jesus, "on the third day" he arose. And we are partners in power. We are a part of that Company of the 3rd Day. It is a power that broke open the gravestones, and opened the door to life everlasting.

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The Moment Of Glory

This is Christ's moment of terrible tragedy! He is crucified on a Roman cross. But, this is Christianity's moment of Glory! The cross has become a scepter, and Easter, with its message of the resurrection has become the crown of glory!

How many years have you experienced this Good Friday agony, and the Easter message of hope? Has it ever occurred to you that you are the judge and jury, and from you must come a verdict?

It is as important for us as Christians to do something about this moment, as it is for grains buried in the ground to grow and bear fruit!

A young girl, who had gone into a religious cult, wrote her mother an accusing letter in which she said: "You never showed me your faith! You never cared whether you went to church or not! You never acted as though your life was different!"

Our lives must be different because of the cross! If we the jury, do not show by our response that Christ has changed our tempers, our compassion, our love for one another, our decency, our fair play, our honesty, then Christ died in vain! If we do not bear fruit, then the sowing of the seed has been an exercise in futility!

After the resurrection, the risen Lord appeared to Peter, and asked him the question, "Peter, do you love me?" And Peter's quick response was, "Why Lord, of course I love you." But again, our Lord asked, "Peter, do you love me?" And once again, Peter answered in an almost offended tone, "Lord, I do love you." And again a third time, the question was asked, and finally Peter grasped the meaning. Jesus said, "Go, tend my lambs." Love means almost nothing, unless we are willing to do something about it!

Peter did! Will you?

No Dead End!

We have a fear of "dead ends"...of being trapped, of having to turn around, of losing time! It is like trying to stick a chicken in a gunny sack. It almost just won't go in! Or it is like trying to drive pigs into a gate, or a small pen. They always turn the other way. But give them an opening at the far end, and it is a different matter.

And so, death, for many people is like that. We get panicky. We have the feeling of being boxed in, of being trapped. It is the closed gunny sack concept. But let a person catch a glimpse of an opening on the other end...and then it is not a "dead end", but rather a passage‑way through!

The death of Jesus Christ upon a cross was so final, so agonizingly real! And death is real. It is real today. It stalks us all along the journey of life. And so if you were to seek that event of earth‑shaking significance, spin the wheel of everything that has happened and where do you finally stop?...on the invention of the wheel?...on the discovery that the earth is round?...on the theory of evolution, or relativity? Perhaps some would pick one of these.

But if you want to be truly perceptive, you would have to pick out the resurrection as that one bright light upon the horizon. For if gravity gave the scientists a basis for knowledge...and if atomic power gave a certain potential for driving motors and industry...and if the computer promised a certain refinement to the whole process of automation, then though they each promise some bright ray of hope, none of them speak to the haunting fear, that universal uncertainty of mankind, so poignantly questioned by Job of the Old Testament drama, "If a man die, shall he live again?" (Job 14:14)

Give us something that speaks to man's fear of death, and you will speak to the most universal need...more important to him than money, than sex, than power.

And so today, Christians around the world stop the spinning wheel, and herald that one major event that does this. Here was the break‑through, we affirm. We know a man who conquered death...Who went into the valley of the shadow of death...that "dead‑end" of the centuries. And Jesus walked right through! "Death could not hold its prey, Jesus my Savior. He tore the bars away, Jesus my Lord."

And so, for those who have learned the higher laws of life, death is no "dead end", but only an open door into the future. Praise God!

There Is A Man On The Cross!

When the enemies of Jesus crucified our Lord, they thought they had won, but they hadn't! The cross became his staff, and with that staff, He pushed a hole right through the grave! A little boy next to the bed of his dying mother, said: "Mother, you don't need to be afraid of the grave, for Jesus went through it, and left a light behind him."

That's right...the cross became his torch! He was in charge, not his enemies. He could have run away, but he didn't. They took him in the Garden. He had friends there...he had swords, but to Peter, he said, "Put up your sword". They were taking our Savior to the cross, but he had already planned the journey! Pilate tried to conduct a trial, but it was a mockery. Pilate was on trial, not Jesus. Pilate ran here, he ran there. "Say something", he said. "Defend yourself". But Jesus said nothing. Pilate's wife had a dream. "Have nothing to do with this just man," she said. "Who would you like?...Jesus or Barabbas?" he suggested.

Pilate was the disturbed man. Jesus was composed. "Crucify him" shouted the mob. And they did! But even on the cross, Jesus took charge. He forgave those who had crucified him. He gave directions to his disciples. He died that we might have life, and have it eternally. He rose again. The cross was replaced by an empty tomb, and has become the sign of millions around the world.

But again, today, our Lord is being crucified. He is suffering there along with the suffering millions of our world. I helped to drive the nails this time. Because I am a part of a world that is filled with the hates and hurts of mankind, I can no longer blame "someone else." Elizabeth Cheney has stated it well.

Whenever there is silence around me
By day or by night,
I am startled by a cry.
It came down from the cross,
The first time I heard it.
I went out and searched,
And found a man in the throes of crucifixion,
And I said, "I will take you down."
And I tried to take the nails out of his feet.
But he said, "Let them be.
For I cannot be taken down
Until every man, every woman, and every child
Come together to take me down."
And I said, "But I cannot bear to hear you cry.
What can I do?"
And he said, "Go about the world,
Tell everyone that you meet,
There is a man on the cross."

Got The Blues?

Today, I had a bad day. It is easy to get the blues! Every day, our newscasters seem to be peddlers of pessimism. There are a seething mass of prophets of doom out there, bawling out their funeral wares.

Are we living "in the worst of times"? Or, is it "the best of times?" Does our answer to this depend upon the kind of faith that sustains and guides us?

In the 2nd century of the Christian Era, the bishop named Polycarp wrote: "Oh God! What an awful age you have caused me to live in!" He had a point, and he was burned at the stake soon thereafter. And yet, that was also the beginning of one of the greatest times of expansion in the Christian world.

Ours is a kind of open‑ended world, and we have the gift of an open future. It is not doomed to be a dead‑end. Sometimes we wonder about the future of the Church. Is there hope? If figures of the last few years were fed into a computer, it might predict that the Church would be dead in 40 years.

But by that same reasoning, if computers had existed back in the 1800's when horse‑drawn carriages were on the increase, and the facts poured in, they would certainly have predicted that the whole world would be covered by 7 feet of horse manure by the end of the century.

As Christians, we celebrate our Lord Jesus. Beyond the darkness of his tomb, there was light, and we are the Community of the Third Day.

The resurrection is our theme...forgiveness is our bag...hope is our thing...for we worship a God of the incredible!

And when the lights start going out all over the world, and you and I get blue and discouraged, we come to the altar of our Church. And there we remember that "God has chosen what is foolish to shame the wise...that God has chosen what is weak to shame the strong...that God has chosen what is low and despised, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are." (I Cor. 1:27)

We stand in a good world. It may be marred and scarred, and torn, and warped, but still it is a good world. And to us, has been given the choice of taking it or leaving it. The Biblical writer in Deuteronomy (Deut. 30:19) said that God has set before us: "life and death, blessing and curse; therefore choose life that you may live."

From Palm Sunday To Good Friday

What a contrast between these two days: Palm Sunday and Good Friday. The first was a day of marching and palm‑waving. The second, was a day of mourning and sorrow. Jesus was betrayed. His body was hung upon a rough cross on the hillside. Frankly, many of the same people were involved in both days.

How can people be so fickle? Treat Jesus like a king on Sunday, and then hang Him on a cross like a criminal on Friday? And yet, we do that, don't we? We do it to others, and they do it to us as well.

Life is like that in many ways. Sometimes we are on the top of the mountain, and all has gone well, and then just as suddenly, we get hurt, or we hurt others, and we feel the bottom has dropped out. Great victories come our way on some days, and then sin rears its ugly head, and suddenly the whole world comes toppling down about us! Why is it so?

This is part of our sinful condition. Jesus knew this and prayed for us on the cross that we might be forgiven because so often, we don't realize what we are doing.

Up and down, up and down...that is the yo‑yo that is ours. And this same pattern would go on and on, if there was not something to change the balance. That something is the resurrection and Easter morning. "He is Risen" we declare. And thank God for Easters that keep coming to us every day of our life if we desire it. We may still have our "highs" and our "lows", but the "lows" will never be quite so low, because the resurrection has made the difference. "Death has no sting. Grave has no victory". And neither do our daily problems have a final triumph over us, if we remember to give thanks unto God who gave us the victory through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Frog Who Wouldn't Quit!

Hi! Glad to be back. Don't let
this be a weak week! Make it a
HOLY WEEK. Hope the following
material will be helpful.

Several weeks ago, while the snow was still on the ground, I saw a robin on a fence post! "Isn't that something?" I thought. "Those robins just keep believing that spring will come!" Yes, every year, they keep believing. And lo, and behold, it comes!

Easter is here, and every year, we go through Good Friday with all of its sad overtones, its tragic moments and memories. But every year Easter comes to proclaim the victory! Death is not the end. Sadness is not the last word. Joy is! Life is! The resurrection is!

This last winter, many people used their wood fireplaces. To get the logs burning, they used kindling. The flame would begin, and then smolder out. I can see the people down on their knees, blowing and blowing and blowing. Or, they use a piece of newspaper and fan and fan and fan! And just when they are about ready to give up, the flame bursts out, and soon they have a roaring fire with all its light and heat.

Did you hear about the two frogs who fell into a cream bucket? The one frog kicked and paddled and kicked and paddled until he said, "I just can't go on any longer". And he didn't, and he died! The other frog kicked and paddled and kicked and paddled, and he thought he could hardly go on. But he said to himself, "I'll kick just a little longer" and he did, and suddenly he felt something solid beneath him. He had stirred the cream into butter!

Have you ever felt you just couldn't go on any longer? Remember the frog. Remember the robin in the spring‑time. Remember the fire in the fireplace, and remember the resurrection! Evil wears us down, with all its hurt and agony, and its desperation. But, Easter comes each year to remind us that beyond the agony is the ecstacy, and beyond the darkness is light and victory. Keep hoping, keep praying, keep on paddling, and you'll find the victory!