Global Rescue

"God's plan is that we all experience that rescue."  Galatians 1:5

Yes, we all seek life, rescue, and deliverance, especially in these uncertain days of the 2020 pandemic.  We read about the increasing cases and deaths from COVID-19.  This year I attended the funeral of a baby who lived less than a week.  In late summer, I am hoping to attend Dad's 99th birthday.

No matter the number of days, please know life continues into eternity.  It does not end in "ultimate oblivion."  Sorry, not an option.

Don't worry, because God has a plan to make all things right, simply put "global rescue."   You don't have to be perfect to cash in.

We've all made decisions we regret, acted on impulses we wished we hadn't, and spoken words we wanted to take back.  We've messed up in the game of life.  We've done wrong.  We rarely dwell on or talk about these sorrowful episodes in our lives.  Moral failure is shamed and shunned, so we tend to go silent.  But screw-ups / sin is part of the human condition. 

The amazing miracle is that God loves us just the way we are, knee deep in sin.  No cleanup needed.  God is in the redemption business.  Here's His plan.

God couldn't write off our many mess-ups, like they didn't matter.  They do.  God is holy and righteous.  So God sent His perfect Son, who paid our fines and fees with His life, to make things right again, to give us a new standing.

• If you want to be free, turn from habits and idols that have failed you. 
• Admit your mistakes /sins. 
• Receive God's gift of a fresh start in Christ.  This is what we call "grace."  New life is possible for everyone who personally trusts /believes God.  
• That's the rescue plan.  You don't earn rescue by being perfect.  That never worked for anyone.  And many have tried.

To sum up:
“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it."  John 3:16-18

Is it time to rethink your life plan?  Are you ready to trust God?

Searching for Beauty?

Tulips are colorful messengers of spring.  Beauty lifts our spirits during these days of isolation and reports of COVID-19 cases.  Have you gotten outside lately to take a  walk in the sunshine?

In the midst of the pandemic, in a time of fear over falling ill, job loss, uncertain school plans, and separation from loved ones, it is helpful to refresh our spirits. Many problems are beyond our ability to fix instantly or control ultimately.   Jesus was a realist; he told us life is difficult.  We are living that hard reality now.  So we hand off our weighty problems in prayer.  And we remember to put beauty in the unfolding day.

Let's reorient.  Forget about focusing on the problems.  Turn instead to the God of all comfort, grace, goodness.  Toss your cares to Him.  Be real when you pray; give Him the unedited version of what you are experiencing.  Know that God is for you and always has been.

"Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
don’t try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;
he’s the one who will keep you on track.
Don’t assume that you know it all."  Proverbs 3:5-7

Coffee breaks are nice.  Beauty breaks are better.  Gaze on God's beauty today.  It's more glorious than the Grand Canyon.  Worship changes us.  It rights our tipping perspective.  Our fears begin to fade.  Each dawn holds hope of better things to come. 

Life is short.  That poetic reminder is posted in our outhouse in Maine.  Whenever the end comes, as it surely will for us all, I look forward to spending eternity with God.  He is beauty personified.  He is our peace.  I want my dad who is 98 and living 1,000 miles away to live with that assurance and certain hope.

"One thing I ask from the Lord,
this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the Lord
and to seek him in his temple."  Psalm 27:4

Matt Redman.  "10,000 Reasons."  Nov. 25, 2011.

The Hospitable Cook

Hospitality seems like a distant dream, under current stay-at-home orders.  Still, we are eating together more than we typically do, often family-style.

Hospitality is a timeless virtue, one sought in leaders, especially leaders in the church.

"It’s important that a church leader, responsible for the affairs in God’s house, be looked up to ... He must welcome people, be helpful, wise, fair, reverent, have a good grip on himself, and have a good grip on the Message..." Tit. 1:8

"Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it." Heb 13:2

Welcoming people into your home is a loving invitation.  Welcoming a stranger is a gift of inclusion.  I have warm memories of being invited to Sunday dinner when I was "a stranger in a strange land."  A family I hardly knew would ask a few college students to dinner after church services.  When studying abroad in France, I was graciously invited to Sunday dinner, once again after church services.  Those home cooked meals meant the world to me, far from home.

Hopefully in our confined quarters, we are cooking together to create, to converse, to count, and to share fond memories of people and places we love.  When we gather once again to celebrate with family or friends or simply be together, be ready to share a new dish.

Better yet, why not hone your cooking skills or experiment in the kitchen now?  You have time, don't you?  Christopher Kimball of "Milk Street Kitchen"  is offering their entire line of online cooking classes FREE throughout May 30, 2020!  Check out the many free online classes!

Stories, Prayers, and Bears

Have you noticed any bears in your neighborhood lately?

Teddy bears may be hiding in windows around the world, so out-of-school children can "hunt" them during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Getting outdoors for a fun scavenger hunt is good medicine.

Winnie the Pooh is another beloved bear from our childhoods.  Pooh relished many adventures with his friends in the Hundred Acre Wood.  English author A. A. Milne, who served in both World Wars, left children of all ages, words of wisdom and inspiration to take us through tough times.

“You’re braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” 

 Christopher Robin

“You can’t stay in your corner of the Forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.  Piglet.

"It never hurts to keep looking for sunshine."  Eeyore

“Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day.” Winnie the Pooh

“It’s more fun to talk with someone who doesn’t use long, difficult words, but rather short, easy words like, “What about lunch?” Winnie the Pooh"

"Piglet noticed that even though he had a very small heart, it could hold a rather large amount of gratitude."

 "A little consideration, a little thought for others, makes all the difference."  Eeyore

"Love is taking a few steps backward, maybe even more ... to give way to the happiness of the person you love."  Winnie the Pooh

Does your bedtime include time for prayer / song?   

Andrea Bocelli and Tori Kelly.  "The Prayer."  June 3, 2016

along with a story?  Winnie-the-Pooh, 1926.  The House at Pooh Corner, 1928.

Lifestyle of Love

Give yourself grace and start the day soaking in love.

Fernando Ortega. "Give Me Jesus."  November 7, 2014.

The news cycle used to be contained largely to the evening and late news, but no longer. Now we are bombarded by images, sound bites, and provocative headlines. If the first thing you do is grab your cell phone when you get out of bed, you may want to rethink that habit.

How might a person of faith interact in a healthier way with “the news”?  Certainly, become informed about what is going on in the world; however; don’t overindulge. Ingest a reasonable portion.

Choose news sources carefully. Consider the values and mission of the source.  How does its values align with God’s love for the powerless, the poor, the prisoner, the sick, or the stranger?  (See Matthew 25:31-46)  Listen to multiple perspectives on an issue to deepen your understanding. Verify facts. Are they mentioned in several sources? Has the original context been preserved?

It takes courage to learn what is really happening.  We discover things that are hard to hold in our hearts.  Becoming informed is only a first step. 

Christians are called to love, to serve, to do.

• Pray for the world and its leaders.
• See the good. Give thanks. Ex. Affirm essential workers or join the 7 pm clap ovation of healthcare workers where you live.
• Stand firm. Show up. Speak up. Fight to save lives. Push back against unhelpful regulations as one governor did.
• Partner with problem solvers in your community. Join a volunteer effort: food bank, ministry to the homeless, literacy effort, disaster relief...

In a word, embrace a lifestyle of love, lived out in many ways.

Jesus said, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.’ This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: ‘Love others as well as you love yourself.’ These two commands are pegs; everything in God’s Law and the Prophets hangs from them.” Matthew 22: 37-40