Finishing up a time in Grand Junction, Colorado. I’m markedly impressed with the beauty, and the people I met. Earth is not my home, not by a long shot, but my time in Western Colorado was both timely and rejuvenating.
Photos: G.J. Delight
Tag: personal comments
Photo: How We Learn to Love
There are times when we are driven to a most desperate place. We can go no lower. Jesus meets us, He does not forsake us. He stands up and intercedes for our souls. He bends over to pick us up, speaking wonderful things to our confused and misguided hearts. He loves us, and the purpose of our trials teach us that critical truth. We learn it in no other way.
When You Lose [Faith]
…”calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” Luke 7:19
Here we have John the Baptist locked away in Herod’s prison. We read of his wavering, but that shouldn’t alarm us. There has always been difficulties for those who follow without diluting their love for Jesus. It’s very likely that John had preconceptions about Jesus’ ministry. But that certainly doesn’t mean he was apostate or backslidden. He still believed, as he looked out through the bars.
We walk in a greater light and have surer promises that John did. And in that light we still have our difficult moments. We can falter and shake and doubt. And John only had a 100th of understanding that we have. Often we are amazed by another’s confusion and struggles, it is so clear to us that they are falling short. It is frustrating. Moses once went ballistic, beat his rod on a rock and had some choice words. His anger spilled all over him and made a mess. We read of his provocation, and miss our own faults, sins and weaknesses.
We need to understand the depth of our own depravity. There are those who have proceeded us, who have had their moments of despondency and doubt. We see them, as it were, from a distance and criticize and challenge what we see. Noah’s drunkenness and Lot’s vacillation. The flakiness of Samson, Peter’s denial and Mark’s timidity, and much more.
Today, let us resolve to be gentle with each other. “For we all stumble in many ways”, James 3:2.
Geriatrics R Us, and Other Thoughts
I’m coming up to 50 and it seems very strange. I have never gotten old before, so it is an adventure. I guess for the first time I’m face-to-face with three things.
1) I am older than most people I meet.
A few weeks ago I attended the weekly pastor’s meeting for Homer. I looked around and of the 7-8 pastors/elders I realized I was the oldest present. It really felt strange. I am no longer ‘looking to’ but am now ‘looking back’. But I still find myself thinking that old age is always 15 years older than where I am now.
2) Time has become increasingly valuable.
For the first time ever, I am operating with the sense that my time is slipping away. It’s funny but I can’t watch TV anymore, because it uses time up. It seems foolish to me. The same with books and magazines. (I even resent bathing, because of the time involved, lol.) I get frustrated unlacing my shoes, because time is slipping away. We think that as we get older, we will have patience. That is decidedly not the case for me.
3) I have an eternity with God and His faithful, ahead of me.
The first two are somewhat automatic, they just seem to come when I am in a certain frame of mind. But this one, #3, comes when I pray. Growing up I always had a fear of death. Just thinking about it now, makes me a little edgy and anxious. I need to hold on to the promises and actively anticipate heaven.
Growing old is weird. Making the different transitions to age-appropriate concepts is a real hoot! My hair is grey now, and I’m having issues with my hearing and my sight. I really like to read the obituaries, especially noting the age of the deceased. I’m also a big baseball fan, and it’s funny but I catch myself thinking that I could be the father of anyone of them.
Time rolls on, whether you like it or not. It’s best to think about scrapping your earth suit. Our present bodies are becoming obsolete. The funny thing is, 100,000 years from now, we will look back at this time on earth and wonder what the heck that was all about. :-)
Broken Believers 