Bring It All

I had a dream the other night. Jesus was calling to us, all of humanity. 

Gently imploring, "Come to me. Bring me whatever you have, whatever you are. I love you exactly as you are so come."

I was in line with a great crowd of people who were moving toward Him. Some were holding a thimble full of their stuff, some were pushing a wheel barrow full and others were driving dump trucks!

It didn't matter to us or Him, what any of us had or the size of it, we were just joyfully relieved to be giving it all to Jesus, the good, bad and indifferent parts of us. He was willingly receiving it all and was pleased.

Then I woke up.

I'm thinking the point of my dream is this:

God isn't messed up or surprised by who you are, where you've come from or what you've done. He just wants you to come to Him. Lay everything down before Him and allow His love to fill you, bless you and change you. 

He's calling my name and yours. He's patiently waiting.

So what are we waiting for?

Quit looking at my stuff and I'll quit looking at yours. 

Let's just go - together.

Matthew 11:28-30  “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (MSG)

Heart Attack!

A few days following the Aurora, Colorado theater shooting, I went to the post office to mail a CD and buy a book of stamps.  As I  placed my small, bubble wrap lined, mail envelope on the counter, the clerk asked the usual,  “Does your package contain anything liquid, perishable, fragile or potentially hazardous?”

"No," I smiled, " it's just a CD. Nothing dangerous in there."

By his demeanor, I could tell the guy was in a grumpy mood, but it was his response that revealed how troubled he was about the recent tragedy. 

 "We'll you never know now days. Could be instructions on how to build a bomb or take out a theater full of people on a DVD."

"I suppose that's possible, but I don't know much about guns and nothing about bombs. This is just a Microsoft program for a friend's computer," I assured him.

He weighed the envelope, "It seems like people can take each other out with anything if their mind is set on it, guns, bombs, razor blades, it doesn't matter.I don't know what's wrong with people anymore. There's gotta' be something that can be done about it"

He stamped the postage on the envelope so hard I hoped he didn't break the CD inside. 

"There is, " I said as he pulled a book of stamps from underneath the counter. He stopped midway, staring at me, waiting for me to continue. "This isn't a gun or bomb problem, this is a heart problem."

His gaze changed from curiosity to perplexity and I went on, "The only thing that can really fix a person is a heart change and the only one who can change a person's heart is Jesus." 

Immediately his expression went dark and the conversation shut down like an off switch had just been tripped. He shoved the stamps toward me, grabbed my money and slapped the change with a bang back on the counter, then turned around and walked away. There was no, 'Can I get you anything else today?' or 'Have a nice day, Ma'am." None of that for me!

I left there with a greater realization of how offensive Jesus is to some. He is not always the answer people want to hear. Though the existence of sin in the world requires the rule of law for maintaining justice, controlling outward behavior with more rules and regulations rarely gets to the root of our dilemma. That's like putting a bandaid on a tumor. Jesus dealt with this problem constantly during his earthly ministry. He never danced around the perimeter of an issue but always went right to the heart of dealing with our brokenness.

Anytime our country is overrun by the wicked plans of men, media pundits and government officials want to guarantee us that it will never happen again. I don't believe that's possible. Jeremiah 17:9 says, " The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?"  A person's actions display what is in his heart, whether good or evil. Proverbs 23:7 states, "as a man thinks in his heart, so is he."

Our nation is having one 'heart' attack after another and emergency intervention is desperately needed. We are under attack by people whose hearts have been overtaken by great darkness.  Other tragedies, the senseless slaughter of little children in a Connecticut school and the recent bombing of innocent bystanders at the Boston Marathon, give credence to that fact. 

The price of man's sin is always death (Romans 6:23) but God gave all of us a way out in the gift of His son, Jesus, and has set us into this historical time to be light in the midst of darkness.  So what can we do? 

~We must be certain our own heart is right before God. Psalm 139:23-24 "Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me.."

~We must know God's word in order to stand firmly in times of despair, doubt and temptation. Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

~We must pray continuously for our nation, state, leaders, churches, family, friends and not give up. Luke 18:1 "...men ought always to pray and not to faint [lose hope]."  We must also pray for our enemies even though it is not easy to do. Matthew 5:43-44  “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,"

~We must overcome fear of current events with a sound mind and the power of love.  2Timothy 1:7 "For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."

~We must be ambassadors of Christ's love one person at a time, living the Good News of the Gospel within our world of influence. 2 Corinthians 3:2-3,"You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, recognized and read by everyone. It is clear that you are Christ’s letter..not written with ink but with the Spirit of the living God—not on stone tablets but on tablets that are hearts of flesh."

Counter attack the forces of evil with a heart full of Jesus, love and truth and give our nation a heart attack that will do it some good.

^{Luke 24:46-47} '[Jesus] said to them, “This is what is written: the Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and a change of heart and life for the forgiveness of sins must be preached in his name to all nations..'

The Heart of God

What is God’s view of our fallen, messy world? 

I can answer this by telling you about Lisa, a woman with developmental delays who attends Joyful Noise, a local, weekly church service for adults with disabilities.Most of the time  Lisa is happy and smiling. She laughs hard and loud when something strikes her funny and she sings, claps and whoops it up without reservation during the worship portion of the gathering. I can’t help but smile whenever I’m around Lisa. 

During prayer time however, she takes on a whole new demeanor. As prayer requests are given for a host of needs, illness, death, injury, family problems and job loss, Lisa cries. She is deeply and genuinely touched by the suffering of others and as each prayer need is vocalized her tears flow harder and faster until someone else in the group is moved to bring her tissues and a comforting pat on the shoulder or back 

As I sat a few rows back and observed Lisa this past week, I have to admit my initial thought was a nonchalant, 'Lisa is crying again.'

Immediately I had a God thought interrupt the deepest part of my being. 

“Lisa is My heart. Look at her and see Me. My heart also breaks as I cry for the suffering of My children and My creation.” 

These questions have been asked over and over throughout generations of humanity; is God interested in the condition of the world? Where is He when devastation, hunger, tragedy and evil overwhelm us? Does He even notice the pain, suffering, loss and evil we see and hear about every day? And if He does, why doesn’t He do something about it? 

He already did. He came as one of us, wrapped in a body of flesh, walked and lived among us, revealed the Father’s loving heart and then willingly died for every sad and sorry condition known to mankind. Jesus revealed this brokenness of heart when he looked out over Jerusalem and lamented. “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!’ (Luke 13:34). 

Tragedy and suffering was not in God’s original plan. He created a perfect earth and a perfect human but left the door of free will open, fully understanding the risk that man could slip through that portal of choice and mess it all up. But He did it anyway, even with the knowledge we would break His heart, because He wanted someone to love and someone to love Him back. 

As we move into the Christmas season remember why Jesus came. He has a ‘Lisa’ heart and He cries for and cares about you.

Luke 4:18 (NKJV) “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed.

When Friends Become Family

In 1985, while living in New Hampshire, we heard of a small church in a small town, south and slightly west of Portland, Maine, that needed a pastor. Mike was asked to fill the pulpit on rotating Sundays until this congregation could find someone permanent. The first Sunday we were there, a couple who attended the church invited us over for lunch. From that day until this, some twenty eight years later, Earl and Pat have impacted our lives in ways I would never imagine.

Like all of us, I’ve had innumerable acquaintances and friends over the years, but I’ve discovered that there are only a handful of folks in life that spark a connection that is both immediate and deep. From the moment you say, “Hello, my name is….” they are destined to be indelibly inscribed on your heart. This was the instantaneous bond that took place between Pat and I that Sunday, with no regard for the twenty years in age difference between us.

As circumstances would have it, we became pastor of that small church for a time and moved to Maine. Our friendship with Earl and Pat deepened and evolved past the norm. We became family, though we don’t share a drop of natural blood. Being part of God’s family, with the precious spirit of Christ coursing through our veins, while sharing life together made us family in every way possible.

By the time Earl retired from his trade and took up another occupation on Catalina Island, off the coast of California, we were moving back to New Hampshire. The miles between didn’t discourage us though.  There were many trips, criss-crossing to wherever we each happen to live at the moment; California, New Hampshire, back to Maine when they finally returned to New England and then to Florida following our move here.  After months or even a few years of separation, it was as if we had never been apart. We just picked up where we left off and expanded the bond of love even further.

Earl and Pat accepted and loved our oldest son, born with special needs and all the challenges that presented, without hesitation. Pat was with me when our second son was born and watched him come into the world. They gladly became substitute grandparents to our boys. Pat helped and encouraged me through years of struggling with severe rheumatoid arthritis, even while she was dealing with chronic illness herself. She was there for me when my mother passed away. We have carried each other through many sorrows, cried together, prayed together, laughed hysterically as often as possible and rejoiced together in times of joy and celebration.  

I write this on a plane, flying back home to Florida after visiting my beloved “family” in Maine. I am now the age Pat was when we first met and Earl and Pat are getting along in years. Pat has health issues that make it difficult for them to travel like they once did, but as the years pass, our love for one another remains immovable, solid, strong.

We are not given the option to select the family we are born into and even though we choose our friends, I believe God directs our steps and the details of our days. He ordains certain people to come along side and walk with us and they decide whether to remain in our lives or not. The few that stick it out through all our stuff are true jewels. Those who see and know us as we truly are, in our strengths, weaknesses, faults, failures, through the better and worse, and keep coming back, are the genuine treasures in life we all hope to find.  These rare gems outshine all others, just like the beautiful sea glass that my children used to uncover, hidden in billions of stones on our favorite Maine beach.

Pat has filled many roles in my life - as needed: friend, sister, mother, grandmother, counselor, comforter, caregiver; but most of all she is the true definition of family and because of her and Earl, I and my family have been blessed beyond measure.  At this moment, while I contemplate the mystery and delight of our long lasting friendship, I am aware that I am inept to adequately express my gratitude…..

So I just say, to my beloved friends, from the very depths of my heart……I love you and thank you for being my family.

 Proverbs 17:17 (The Message Bible) Friends love through all kinds of weather, and families stick together in all kinds of trouble.