“After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”  1 Thessalonians 4:17

I simply could not believe my eyes! So I blinked a couple times, then moved in for a better look! But my eyes hadn’t deceived me because standing not 20 feet from me was an old friend from long ago. And I was about to catch up!

I was at a hobby store talking with a fellow friend and hobbyist about our hobby. Together we were awaiting another hobbyist to join us in our mutual hobby. Looking around at the same time I was talking, my eyes caught the sight of someone I remembered as an old friend. My conversation stopped because of the interruption, as I just HAD to get a better look to confirm.

As it turns out, it WAS him! Not only that, he was talking to the hobby store OWNER. It appeared that THEY were friends as well! Though a lot bigger than me, Dan was always the calm type. So I didn’t think anything about sneaking up behind him and thumping my hands on his broad shoulders. True to his nature as I remembered, and THANKFULLY, he didn’t spin around and take a swing at me. When he finally saw my smiling eyes, we moved in for a big hug, then caught up.

It was the second time that happened this last week. On Tuesday I saw an old friend from my sons’ high school days. They used to hang out together regularly at my house, but after graduation Josh had moved away. But he was apparently back now, His hair starting to turn gray. We caught up.

It doesn’t happen often, but when I see an old friend I haven’t seen in a long while, I immediately think of Heaven and this Bible verse. Because this verse is FILLED with hope and joy for my future! A future that INCLUDES Jesus Christ IN PERSON… along WITH my family and friends as well.

I love stopping along life’s hard way and considering that future REUNION DAY when we will be reunited. In fact, it is a GREAT way for me to get through the hard stuff here. Laying even a potential life of 100 years here on Earth, beside eternity, is a non-comparison. This verse gives me joy because THAT REAL and GENUINE joy will NEVER end!

God is a God of PROMISES. And He NEVER breaks them. He has promised that there IS a perfect place at HIS place, where love, joy, peace and contentment will NEVER go out of style. He has promised me and the world that reality, if we simply choose to join HIS family. Because I have been sharing Jesus for a LONG time, I know there will be some old friends and forgotten acquaintances there too! And we will rejoice together AS Friends and Family FOREVER!

Are YOU going to be there? If so, who are YOU looking forward to seeing?

“May those who wait for You not be ashamed through me, O Lord God of hosts; May those who seek You not be dishonored through me, O God of Israel.” Psalm 69:6

It was an accident really! Unintentional though it might have been, it STILL created a disturbance. Well, at least in ONE individual anyway. But with the help of the Holy Spirit, I was jarred into remembering it while it was fresh, and to commit to NOT embarrassing someone in public again! That is… if I can HELP it!

In front of about 40 people I picked one gal to make a point. Our families have spent time together on vacation and I’ve known her for several years. That said, I had no way of anticipating her failure to answer the question, “if you were to die today, would you KNOW for CERTAIN YOU would go to Heaven?” Her answer, “Well I think so?” Made the WHOLE room go… “OHHHHHH!” Which meant there was NO way I could back up!

She is a sweet, kind and quiet sort of gal. Very polite and not wanting to be the center of attention. But she found herself there, unexpectedly! Interestingly enough, her brother had had the EXACT same experience several months ago. But he’s a tough guy and it didn’t bother him like it did his sister. Last night, as he sat beside her, he tried to give her brotherly advice, “DON’T YOU LIE NOW!” Which only caused her face to redden even more!

As it turns out, she already had been saved, and remembered the time she asked Jesus Christ for forgiveness of her sin and Him into her heart. In reality, SHE shouldn’t have been embarrassed as much as the person who had shared the Gospel with her! Because whoever did, failed to make the point of salvation CRYSTAL CLEAR! Because HOPING so and KNOWING so are 2 different things.

EVERY Christian is called to share the Gospel of Salvation with people in their world. But there ARE distinctions. As Gregory Koukl says in his book ‘Tactics,’ Some of us are planters, while some of us are reapers. Unfortunately, planters who are not reapers, will often use that point as reason to not plant! And they SHOULD be embarrassed.

For me, there is NOTHING more important on this Earth than knowing, loving and following Jesus Christ. He is my Creator, life giver, forgiver and sustainer for my whole reason to be here on this planet in the first place. He asks ME to SHARE HIM with those who do not know Him. Doing so should NEVER be an embarrassment for me. Neither should embarrassing others. So I apologize to our young and future powerful planter if you got a little red-faced. But I am sure you are VERY clear now.

Are YOU embarrassed to share Jesus?  

“For I know that my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth; And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I shall see God, Whom I shall see for myself, And my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” Job 19:25-27 NKJV

Redemption in the Face of Tribulation

Despite the storms that rage against me, Lord God, I will not become embittered against You. Would that I respond to hardship like Job who refused to doubt Your goodness in the face of relentless tragedy and loss.

For I know that my Redeemer lives. You are my Redeemer. You transform the crude sketches in my life into priceless works of art. In Your time, You make all things beautiful (Ecclesiastes 3:11), including my life. Perform Your redemptive work — but give me Your strength to hold on until the end.

My heart’s desire is to be more like You. As gold is refined in the fire, purge me of the dross that tarnishes your character in me (Romans 5:1-4). I look forward to the day when I will be able to see the changes You have made in my life.

You see the big picture — the forest — while I can see only the trees.

Although I may not fully understand the reason why I’m in this situation, one thing I do know: You are good, and Your mercy endures forever (Psalm 106:1).

Therefore, I will not give up. I will not allow the hardships I face to dictate to me my emotions and responses. Lord, I rest myself in Your care. I trust You. You are in control, and You know what You’re doing.

Magnifying the Lord

“I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together. I sought the LORD, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears.” Psalm 34:1-4 NKJV

This day, O God, I choose to bless Your name. I bless You because You are great, and Your greatness does not depend upon my circumstances. The problems of this world are mere child’s play in comparison to Your ability to overcome. So, I choose to focus on the Problem Solver rather than any problem. I will boast in You, O God, because nothing is impossible for You (Matthew 19:26). Only You can make the impossible possible.

I proclaim Your name, O Lord. I ascribe greatness to You, my God, for You are the Rock. Your work is perfect and all Your ways are just (Deuteronomy 32:3-4). For this reason, I place my trust in You with confidence. You are greater than my problems; greater than my sins; greater than my sickness; greater than those who oppose me; greater than the powers of darkness; greater than my own shortcomings; greater than the failings of Your people; greater than the powers of human government; greater than my limited conceptions of how big You really are. My God You are greater!

My power to overcome any situation comes only from You, because greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4). My heart’s desire is that Your great name will be made known throughout the earth, beginning in my life.

I lift my arms in surrender to the One who reigns above the heavens and the earth. There is no power on earth greater than Yours. No love stronger. No wisdom deeper. You alone stand above the earth, but You have willingly chosen to also stand beside me.

The fact that You are great, yet You choose to reveal Yourself to me through Your Son, Jesus, through Your Word, and through Your Holy Spirit, drives me to my knees in gratitude. You didn’t have to reveal Yourself to me, but You did. Now may Your greatness be revealed in my life so that others may see Your glory as well (Ezekiel 38:23).

Meditating on His Omnipotence and Omnipresence

“And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, ‘Alleluia! For the LORD God Omnipotent reigns!’” Revelation 19:6 NKJV

Hallelujah! For the Lord God almighty reigns! The heavens and the earth are no match for Your awesome power and might. As You spoke through Your prophet Jeremiah,

“Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?” Jeremiah 32:27 NKJV

There is no mountain or battle too great that Your might cannot cast it into the deepest sea. Nothing is too hard for You.

Despite Your great power, I have nothing to fear. I revere Your great name, but I need not be afraid of You because Your love is as great as Your power.

Through Your Son, Jesus, Emmanuel, You are “God with us” (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23). Clothing Yourself in human flesh, You prove Your love and willingness to meet me at the point of my need. Jesus, You are God’s power and presence revealed. Only through You can I truly be freed from my bondage to sin.

God, where can I go to outrun Your love (Romans 8:35)? You have positioned Yourself right beside me, carrying me, encouraging me, believing in me. At the end of my rope, when I feel all alone, Your Word promises that You are with me (Hebrews 13:5) and that no one can snatch me from Your hand (John 10:28-29).

And because I cannot escape Your love, I also know I can go to You in prayer. You alone have the ability to answer my requests according to Your power and might.

Because You are all powerful, all present, all wise, and all loving, I can entrust the control of my life to You without fear of being unloved and uncared for. You have raised up Your people for the express purpose that You would show Your power in us, and that Your name would be declared in all the earth (Exodus 9:16). And so here I am Lord, willingly giving to You the praise and honor befitting only You.

Excerpted with permission from Battle Prayers by Michael Klassen & Thomas Freiling, copyright Michael Klassen and Thomas Freiling.

Your Turn

Struggle comes to us all, doesn’t it? Let’s face it with worship and adoration remembering that God is so much bigger and powerful than any trial we endure. He is with us!  Tonight at FLAP we will come together and pray for Galen and Paula as they face a Battle ahead in making the decision about his leg.  Thank you in advance. 

“His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to His eternal purpose that He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Ephesians 3:10-11

My least favorite day of the week is Gym Day. Unfortunately, we have 3 of those every week. Showing up at the gym is rather daunting for many reasons. Michael, the owner of the Gym, is my friend. He’s my friend because he loves Jesus. But Michael can be intimidating because he is built like… well… a Gymian!

Wearing a Batman shirt as I pretended to ‘work out,’ Michael came out of the office wearing a Superman hat! I thought, “it figures!” After seeing each other’s garb, we discussed the reasons for each of our choices for favorite superhero. I had to admit that HIS made MUCH more sense. Super-Man looks and does just like his name sounds. Bat-Man??? Eh…not so much!! This got me thinking about God’s names.

Knowing how my brain does or doesn’t work, I KNEW it HAD to be the Holy Spirit dropping the word into that muddy quagmire under my hair because, “Superintendent” is not a Bible word. I had read the word in a story, which had nothing to do WITH the story. But it caught my eye, swam around a while, then connected to a question that needed an answer. “What is the ‘intent’ of Almighty God?’ So I went fishing!

The original Greek word for Christian is “Christianos” which comes from the two Greek words “Christ and “tian.” The word Christ means “anointed” and “tian” means “little.” So the word “Christian” literally means “little anointed ones.” Which is what God expects me to be and look like. Today, the word ‘superintendent’ is the title of someone in charge. But I suspected there was more to be considered.

God has purpose, intention and an overall objective for mankind. As a created being, it seems logical to me that if I find out what that is, and conform to it, my life will find meaning and fulfillment. I had to wrestle among SEVERAL verses to pick out an ultimate one to define what God’s purpose is… And I like this one.

God’s intent and purpose is that His Church should make known ALL the wisdom of God to everything… everywhere! Especially the satanic and evil human world. Which means I SHOULD be focusing LESS on the tough MAN side of my favorite superhero, and focus more on FLITTING and SQUEAKING for Jesus wherever I go in this dark world!

How do YOU picture YOURSELF for Christ?   

“Can you make a pet of it like a bird or put it on a leash for the young women in your house?” Job 41:5

“It” was estimated to be around 9’ long! And while I’m NOT an expert on all things alligator, I’ve seen enough to make as good an estimate as anyone. But seeing and sizing the gator by the pond was NOT what shocked me. My eye was caught by the 2 ladies inching closer to it… cameras in hand! Even though I was about 3 football fields away and moving 45 mph…the image was fused into my head!

Alligators are fascinating creatures, and living in Florida guarantees you will see one from time to time. But like bears in wooded country, there is little to worry about. They stay in their habitat and I stay in mine. If we happen to cross, I know the basic rules to avoid engagement! Those ladies were obviously tourists and either didn’t KNOW the rules… or didn’t care. Cuz they were breakin’ ‘em!

Alligators can grow to 13 feet, weigh up to 800 pounds, and have about 80 teeth zippered in their head. They can easily kill any blood carrying object… and DO! They are carnivores! Alligators can leap up to 5 feet, run up to 35 miles per hour AND climb fences, or trees with low branches. As I saw it, if that gator decided he was annoyed or hungry, those ladies didn’t have a PRAYER. And they were pushing their luck! But yesterday, I did the same thing myself… at LEAST a dozen times!

I used to tell my girls growing up to “beware of men, because men are pigs!” They had a hard time believing it because they’d reply, “well you’re a man daddy!” At the time they really didn’t quite understand when I huffed back, “EXACTLY!” I don’t ENJOY being like a pig… but I don’t use the simile as an excuse either. Popeye, the cartoon character, may be allowed to say, “I Yam what I YAM!” But being on Jesus’ team, that excuse can’t even be used as BAIT for an escape route!

I have to keep reminding myself that sin is like a very large, hungry alligator. Just lying there in the open doing nothing may make it SEEM friendly. But getting closer to see if I can play without getting bitten is REALLY stupid! Having been bitten SO many times, I’m embarrassed to say that I can STILL fall for it… because I am pig-flesh by nature! Pig-flesh is EXACTLY what sin feeds on!

Job 41 talks about the Leviathan. I’ve heard arguments from people who like to define what that creature REALLY is. But like an alligator, I prefer to leave it alone and see it as the perfect analogy for sin. Sin is mean, nasty, unforgiving and always a murderer. Sin is so deceptive that it ALWAYS comes to me pretty, elegant, inviting and sweet. Why just this morning, I had to do what I did yesterday when I saw those ladies by the pond! I pressed on the gas and just kept fleeing!

How do YOU handle sin!     

“We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.” Romans 15:1

AMPUTATION! How is THAT for a word that alone demands attention? I don’t LIKE bad words like that one. So I am forced to admit that as long as that word visits somebody else’s door, brief attention is all it really gets from me. And right here and now… I want to make a public apology for that.

Galen has wheeled his fat, old, 1 legged, Ranger self into our church for a long time now! Paula is always at his side. Having trained and served as an Army Ranger, Galen is a tough turkey. The quality has rubbed off on his wife Paula and her Christian faith. They both drive further to our church than anyone, which takes almost a half an hour. They never miss a Sunday or Wednesday night service without a legitimate reason! Yet the bad news about Galen’s leg never stops coming!

If I don’t like something, I avoid it. It’s just that simple. For me to deal with unpleasantness I must force myself to die to my stupid, selfish, idiosyncrasies and ask Christ to fill me with HIS love and priorities. It takes EFFORT! Sometimes I get tired and lazy and just don’t want to even THINK about negative things. That happened Wednesday!

I got a text from Galen telling me that, after visiting his Doctor, he and Paula must make the decision to amputate his remaining leg! They’ve done all they can do and the decision now is… “you wanna amputate now or just wait a little while longer?” I was immediately sickened by the news and called Paula, promising that THAT NIGHT we would pray a special prayer for Galen at Prayer Meeting! Then I forgot!

Reading the Word, I discovered verse 30, written BY Paul ABOUT Paul. I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. He sounds desperate! Having served Christ and His church, Paul’s future is NOT looking very good. So he uses ALL the resources at his disposal in private prayer and faith. When that didn’t work, he URGES other believers to JOIN HIM IN HIS STRUGGLE. Spoiler alert! He didn’t get what he asked for!

We have prayed and prayed for Galen SO many times, yet have seen NO physical change whatsoever! This area of requesting miracles from God is a personal ‘rotten lemon’ for me. NOT because I don’t believe God can DO them. But because I honestly haven’t seen Him do that many! Asking again makes me feel like I’m jumping into a vat of depression and failure, expecting a different result. And since I don’t like it, I avoid it!

But God NEVER fails. And Galen and Paula aren’t done getting VERY special attention from the Master of the Universe. Like with Paul, their pain will bring Glory for God, just like mine and yours. And even though I don’t LIKE dealing with the subject of weakness and failure, God expects me to do just that. Because ‘I’ have LOTS of bad attitudes and actions that I carry around, I’m hearing God say, “ya want to cut them out now or later?”

Galen and Paula, I’m sorry for forgetting about praying for you Wednesday night. Will you, dear reader, please join me in doubling down for our friends.

What does God want to remove from YOU and how can we help?

“May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 15:5-6

I do not like stale pretzels! At the moment though, that was all we had because my wife had just eaten all the FRESH ones! But my taste buds had colluded with my stomach and sent a signal to my brain that PRETZELS were all I wanted. So the question… do I eat the stale pretzels to satisfy my desire? Or do I stifle Mr. Desire and forgo the pretzels? Decisions decisions!

It’s not like we didn’t have anything else in the house. I had just had 1 tiny little chocolate cookie an hour before, satisfying a desire for something sweet. But shortly after Mr. Sweet left the room, Mr. Salty entered! We also had a few pieces of Pizza we had brought home from dinner. But Mr. Pizza was resting quietly in the box and never made a sound. At least to ME anyway. Mr. Salty Pretzel was SCREAMING!

I like cheddar cheese with pretzels. Don’t ask me how I learned that. But I opened the Fridge, got out the shredded cheese and took a pinch, reached into the bag of pretzels and found it EMPTY! Swallowing my cheese I jokingly cried out to Katie…”YOU AT ALL THE PRETZELS?” She sheepishly grinned and confessed! But I knew there hadn’t been that many left over in the bag anyway. I found a stale bag in the cupboard.

O.K., this story seems kind of ridiculous. But it is common, because little battles like this happen within me ALL DAY LONG! I LONG ago gave up the fight to ONLY eat healthy stuff, figuring that since I KNOW Jesus and KNOW where I am going when I die, I may as well ENJOY my time here while I can. So I can and choose to eat some junk! But I realize that is a DEATH decision for SOME people out there!

NowI am not alone in this house. My bride has full access to any and everything in it. We share, sometimes unequally, because we have learned that in a good marriage, it is beneficial to give up a silly desire that can only satisfy for a short time, in order to benefit ‘The One’ we have chosen to love above all things earthly. Each other! This is a universal, God given trait among His Family.

I am not a baby. I have been a believer in Christ for well over 50 years. I KNOW babies though. New-borns in Christ who are learning to walk, talk and chew. I am acquainted with teenagers in Christ as well. Folks who have been ACTIVELY following Jesus for some years, but NOT necessarily ‘acting their age!’ We are all different and at different levels, with the SAME GOAL! To glorify God.

I DID eat a few stale pretzels, then Katie confessed that she had REALLY wanted the pizza, but chose the pretzels to save the pizza for ME. My taste-buds had been satisfied, so I left the pizza for her to take to lunch today.  It was a Win-Win, because, as the saying goes, no one of us… have it all together. But all of us together… have it all!

How is YOUR relationship with Christ and what do YOU desire? Stale or Fresh? And are you sharing?

“Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” 1 Corinthians 12:7

“Hey.. how about Calico Chicken for dinner tonight?” While the sentence came from Katie’s mouth to my ear, that one sentence conjured within me desire and memories, then ultimately started a chain reaction of very positive actions and events. And we didn’t even have any chicken in the house!

It’s a joke at our house. Years ago, walking in from my job, the aroma hit me! “What’s THAT smell?” I asked. She told me it was an old family recipe from the Civil war era called ‘Calico Chicken.’ The smell was so divine I couldn’t wait for dinner. I wasn’t disappointed! That night, Calico Chicken became a regular favorite in our house. But when I’d press her on the history of the dish, she simply smiled.

The other night Katie came home from the store and started mixing ingredients for that ol’ civil war recipe. Soon the house was filled with good things. With chicken bones and broth left in the pot, I asked if I might use it to make soup. The next day I went to the refrigerator and pulled out anything left over and started putting it in the pot on the stove. Now, a different aroma filled the air.

When I was done mixing random ingredients, I had a whole pot FULL of soup! It was then I remembered my neighbors were both sick, so I texted to see if they wanted any of the concoction. There went half of it! The other half we have worked on for the last few days, and each time it tastes even better than before.

While cooking, I began thinking that a Church is kind of like a pot of soup! Every church and every member is different, as every flavor adds something to the mix without becoming overbearing. As I cooked, I tasted… and each sip of the spoon, along with the discovery of something else in the fridge or cupboard, blended with the other ingredients to make a wonderful aroma and satisfying meal.

The Holy Spirit is in the Soup business. 1 Corinthians 12 tells us that He takes people, then adds to their natural personality and gives them gifts from Him. But the gifts are never given to the getter to keep for themselves. They are meant to merge, blend and satisfy the hunger of the entire body.

I didn’t write the recipe down! It was a 1 pot soup that will never be duplicated, but always appreciated. I may try to re-match the exact flavor, but it will never equaled. After years of pestering Katie about her ‘Old Family Civil Recipe’ she finally admitted she got it out of a cookbook! But it IS a part of OUR family. And like our Church, there is no taste like it.

What do YOU positively add to God’s Soup?

“Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.'” Matthew 16:24-25

THEY’RE BACK IN THE BOX! Yep… all the Christmas decorations have finally been removed, packed up and placed into storage. Even the Valentine’s Day tree has been taken down! But whether late or early, our Living Room is ‘back to normal!’ And to be honest, I have NO idea what that really means!

Katie is an artist at heart. I often feel sorry for her because her eye is NOT easily satisfied. Where someone might place a vase, she will move that thing to different locations, then after placing it, turn it over and over again to get JUST THE RIGHT ANGLE to satisfy her own subjective image of what looks good. I can NEVER figure out what that image is.

When Christmas comes around, it takes over a month to put all 28 boxes in place (yes, we added a few). My hands are the only thing needed to transfer the decorations from one place to another. I LOVE what she does and how she does it. It makes our house pretty and homey, but that’s pretty much it!

I looked up the definition of ‘Decorate’ and found this.. “to enhance the appearance of something by adding something unessential!” A FRIGHTENING definition for me when Katie reads this! But EYE opening when the concept hits home! If decorations are used to make something look more attractive by putting things on or around it, I naturally have to wonder, “What does JESUS think about that?”

Jesus is a spectacular artist! I look at nature, a sunset or a mountain vista and “WOW” is too small of a word. Then I read God’s spectacular Word and see that there are SOME things that God expects us to keep as they are intended to be. The Bible is clear… my life in Jesus Christ is NOT UP for decoration!

To become a Christian I had to be stripped bare of myself. To acknowledge that “I” am the problem and that ‘HE’ is the solution. Walking with Christ means that I must keep HIM as essential by putting all my false decorations away. Humility, self righteousness, pride and direction of movement are ALL fake coverings intended, deep down, to make myself look good. And Jesus hates every bit of it!

The instructions of this verse may not be pretty, but they are pretty clear! Give up your life, your ideas, your likes, wants and desires and… “FOLLOW ME”…WHEREVER!  While I was debating that sentence in my mind, I lost track of Him! Please excuse me while I go catch up!

What essentially guides YOU?