September 18, 2001
There was no warning. Within twenty minutes of each other, two airplanes flew directly into the twin towers of New York’s World Trade Center and a third crashed into the Pentagon in Washington.
Thousands of people worked inside those buildings. Some of them never heard or saw anything coming. One moment they were drinking coffee, sorting paper on their desk, chatting with other employees; the next moment they were in eternity.
I’m writing this the day it happened. By the time this is printed, anything could occur. Another bomb. Retaliation. The U.S. and even Canada could be at war. Who can guess? We didn’t think today would be this way. There was no warning.
When life is unexpectedly snuffed, we shake our heads and realize how fragile we are and how precious our days. A few take stock and make decisions. They say, “After this, my life is going to be different. I will be more thoughtful, less reckless” and so on. I’ve said it too, yet I must be honest. A death, a funeral, a tragedy produces deep sorrow and personal reflection, but life goes on. I adjust. I must. And seldom do I change.
Yet for some, change is unavoidable. It happens in proportion to the size of the tragedy plus their proximity to it. I think of those who happened to be late getting to work at the Trade Center today. How can they be the same? For one thing, their place of employment no longer exists.
As the reality of ‘like a war movie’ scenes from television settle in and mark our hearts, some of us will change too. People will dig deep into their generosity and offer their money, food, clothing, even comfort and blood to those affected by today’s catastrophe. Many will pray.
For now, my personal response is both prayer and tears. With that, I feel a pleading rising up inside me. A voice says, “Oh people, there is no warning. We may think we are invincible. If we at least realize we are not, we might be careful, yet no matter what we do, death happens, and for most of us, it happens without adequate preparation. We didn’t think about it.
Jesus talked about a man who thought he was invincible. He was rich and his crops were fantastic. He thought to himself, “What shall I do since I have no room to store my crops?” So he decided: “I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my corps and my goods.”
We are like that man. We live in the richest province in one of the world’s best countries to live in. We have so much and life is so good. We are strong. We have few worries about our future. We are more concerning what to do with all the goods we have now.
But there is no warning. God said to the rich man, “Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?” For him, death came without any chance to figure out Plan B.
The voice inside me calls out: People, don’t wait until you are old. Don’t wait until you are done ‘doing your thing’ because you think you have ‘plenty of time for God.’ No one knows. Eternity could suddenly open its doors and there you are inside, without any opportunity to prepare yourself. There may not be any warning.
Lord, my heart aches for the loss of life and the devastation in New York and Washington. I see people rallying to save lives, to protect and care for those who managed to survive. Yet I see You too, reaching out Your blood-stained hands and pleading with the living that they stop and consider the fragility of life, that they listen to Your voice. May they turn from any rebellion against You and they realize Your love and forgiveness is their greatest protection.
God, no matter how sudden or how devastating the end may come for any person, life never ends for those who place their souls in Your care. You promise: “Whoever has the Son of God has life” and “whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.” In the midst of our overwhelming shock and sorrow, Your mercy and the assurance of eternal life is what we need the most.
Showing posts with label unexpected. Show all posts
Showing posts with label unexpected. Show all posts
Monday, April 23, 2018
Friday, July 14, 2017
Only God can hug and rebuke at the same time! .......... Parables 614
November 17, 1998
The pastor asked for simple prayers. “Tell God why you love Him. Make it short and to the point.”
My first thought was, “I love You God because You are the only friend I have that can give me a hug and a kick in the pants at the same time.”
It happened that week. My errands included picking up cardboard cartons at a local moving company. I called first and a man said he would have them for me. I cringed at his voice. It reminded me of someone who is dishonest, an unsavory character. With some reluctance, I went for the boxes.
When I got there, this man met me at the door with a huge grin. He acted as if he knew me. I cringed. He was paunchy, covered with grease and talked constantly. I was unimpressed, even repulsed. He loaded the cartons in the back of my van and said something about moving. I mentioned I was not looking forward to this one. He said, “Don’t worry. The Lord will give you the strength and stamina when you need it.”
Smack — pow! The Lord blessed me from an unexpected source; He reminded me that He gives strength when we need it. He also rebuked me from that same unexpected source as He confronted me about my judgmental attitude.
On the way home, I confessed my sinful pride to God. The Bible is true when it says we “look at a person’s outward appearance, but God looks at their heart.” That man may not have been much to look at but he has a heart of gold.
After receiving God’s forgiveness, I chuckled at His humor in dealing with me. While it is important not to behave like I did, God knew that I was downcast about the large task ahead. He knew I did not need an added burden of His unfavorable judgment. Instead, He rebuked me lightly and at the same time lifted both my discouragement and my sin of pride.
Hebrews 12 offers good advice to anyone who senses God is correcting them. “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those He loves, and He punishes everyone He accepts as a son.”
The passage goes on to emphasize our relationship with God as our perfect heavenly Father. He trains and disciplines only those who are His children, those born into His family through faith in Christ. A rebuke from God is a correction from a Father who loves us and wants us to be the best people possible.
It takes time to learn this. When I was a new Christian, God’s displeasure devastated me. Then I began to realize that He had good reason. The Bible says, “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
Notice it says the profit comes to those who are trained by the experience. Sometimes we respond to a rebuke with excuses, blame-shifting or “everyone does it.” God wants us simply to agree with Him, to say “Yes, I have sinned. You are right. I was wrong. Forgive me.”
Another verse says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
If we do our part, God does His. Instead of being stuck with a bad attitude or wrong behavior, He goes beyond what a human father can do; He purifies our lives.
That is why He is both Father and Friend. He is the only one who can confront our sin and make us feel sad about it, motivated to change. Then, at the same time, He also makes us glad that He told us about our problem.
The pastor asked for simple prayers. “Tell God why you love Him. Make it short and to the point.”
My first thought was, “I love You God because You are the only friend I have that can give me a hug and a kick in the pants at the same time.”
It happened that week. My errands included picking up cardboard cartons at a local moving company. I called first and a man said he would have them for me. I cringed at his voice. It reminded me of someone who is dishonest, an unsavory character. With some reluctance, I went for the boxes.
When I got there, this man met me at the door with a huge grin. He acted as if he knew me. I cringed. He was paunchy, covered with grease and talked constantly. I was unimpressed, even repulsed. He loaded the cartons in the back of my van and said something about moving. I mentioned I was not looking forward to this one. He said, “Don’t worry. The Lord will give you the strength and stamina when you need it.”
Smack — pow! The Lord blessed me from an unexpected source; He reminded me that He gives strength when we need it. He also rebuked me from that same unexpected source as He confronted me about my judgmental attitude.
On the way home, I confessed my sinful pride to God. The Bible is true when it says we “look at a person’s outward appearance, but God looks at their heart.” That man may not have been much to look at but he has a heart of gold.
After receiving God’s forgiveness, I chuckled at His humor in dealing with me. While it is important not to behave like I did, God knew that I was downcast about the large task ahead. He knew I did not need an added burden of His unfavorable judgment. Instead, He rebuked me lightly and at the same time lifted both my discouragement and my sin of pride.
Hebrews 12 offers good advice to anyone who senses God is correcting them. “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those He loves, and He punishes everyone He accepts as a son.”
The passage goes on to emphasize our relationship with God as our perfect heavenly Father. He trains and disciplines only those who are His children, those born into His family through faith in Christ. A rebuke from God is a correction from a Father who loves us and wants us to be the best people possible.
It takes time to learn this. When I was a new Christian, God’s displeasure devastated me. Then I began to realize that He had good reason. The Bible says, “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
Notice it says the profit comes to those who are trained by the experience. Sometimes we respond to a rebuke with excuses, blame-shifting or “everyone does it.” God wants us simply to agree with Him, to say “Yes, I have sinned. You are right. I was wrong. Forgive me.”
Another verse says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
If we do our part, God does His. Instead of being stuck with a bad attitude or wrong behavior, He goes beyond what a human father can do; He purifies our lives.
That is why He is both Father and Friend. He is the only one who can confront our sin and make us feel sad about it, motivated to change. Then, at the same time, He also makes us glad that He told us about our problem.
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
Caught off guard? .................. Parables 409
February 22, 1994
The story goes that a man went on a two week vacation and left his Doberman dog alone in his house. Ignoring the obvious questions that scenario raises, the story continues that the man came home and was quite concerned when his dog did not meet him at the front door. He quickly toured the house and found his pet seated in the kitchen in front of the refrigerator. On top of the appliance huddled a sobbing would-be burglar who had been there four days.
The mess left by a dog and a terrified thief was probably much worse than the one found by a mother who went on a short holiday leaving her family on their own. She returned one day earlier than planned. Upon a quick tour of the house, she found the bathtub full of dirty dishes.
Both the burglar and the family were caught in the act. They thought they could get away with something but it did not work the way they hoped. They illustrate several things the Bible says about how people should think and live in the light of God’s promises about the future.
For instance, when the Roman empire ruled the area of Palestine, the Hebrew people had already been waiting several centuries for a leader, a promised Messiah who would deliver them from their enemies. They thought he would be a political giant with great political power, a conqueror who would overthrow all opposition. When Jesus came as a babe in the stable at Bethlehem, they were caught off guard.
Most of them were not convinced Jesus was the One they expected. They did not understand that His coming was for a different kind of deliverance. Instead of Roman oppression, He came to deliver them from their sin to a new and right relationship with God. They were caught off guard because they expected a different kind of deliverance.
Furthermore, He caught some people in the act. That is, many were busily living a life of sin and not concerned about a Savior from God. In either case, their thinking and their actions did not reflect the promises God had made concerning their future.
God made another promise about the future — Jesus said He is coming one more time. He even warned His disciples about being caught off guard again. “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.”
He told them to watch, for that hour will be unexpected, like a thief in the night. He also warned about being caught in the act when He returns, that is, the act of sin: “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
The Apostle Peter said that in the last days, scoffers will come and scornfully say, “Where is this coming he promised?” He goes on to explain that the Lord is not slow to keep his promise but patient with us. He does not want anyone to perish but come to repentance.
Peter also says that the promise of the Lord’s return is not to fill us with fear. Instead, we are to look forward to it and “make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with Him.”
He does not want us to be caught — either off guard or in the act.
The story goes that a man went on a two week vacation and left his Doberman dog alone in his house. Ignoring the obvious questions that scenario raises, the story continues that the man came home and was quite concerned when his dog did not meet him at the front door. He quickly toured the house and found his pet seated in the kitchen in front of the refrigerator. On top of the appliance huddled a sobbing would-be burglar who had been there four days.
The mess left by a dog and a terrified thief was probably much worse than the one found by a mother who went on a short holiday leaving her family on their own. She returned one day earlier than planned. Upon a quick tour of the house, she found the bathtub full of dirty dishes.
Both the burglar and the family were caught in the act. They thought they could get away with something but it did not work the way they hoped. They illustrate several things the Bible says about how people should think and live in the light of God’s promises about the future.
For instance, when the Roman empire ruled the area of Palestine, the Hebrew people had already been waiting several centuries for a leader, a promised Messiah who would deliver them from their enemies. They thought he would be a political giant with great political power, a conqueror who would overthrow all opposition. When Jesus came as a babe in the stable at Bethlehem, they were caught off guard.
Most of them were not convinced Jesus was the One they expected. They did not understand that His coming was for a different kind of deliverance. Instead of Roman oppression, He came to deliver them from their sin to a new and right relationship with God. They were caught off guard because they expected a different kind of deliverance.
Furthermore, He caught some people in the act. That is, many were busily living a life of sin and not concerned about a Savior from God. In either case, their thinking and their actions did not reflect the promises God had made concerning their future.
God made another promise about the future — Jesus said He is coming one more time. He even warned His disciples about being caught off guard again. “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.”
He told them to watch, for that hour will be unexpected, like a thief in the night. He also warned about being caught in the act when He returns, that is, the act of sin: “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
The Apostle Peter said that in the last days, scoffers will come and scornfully say, “Where is this coming he promised?” He goes on to explain that the Lord is not slow to keep his promise but patient with us. He does not want anyone to perish but come to repentance.
Peter also says that the promise of the Lord’s return is not to fill us with fear. Instead, we are to look forward to it and “make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with Him.”
He does not want us to be caught — either off guard or in the act.
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