Arrival in Heaven

Featured / pastorpete51 / 21 Comments

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.                   1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV

Rejoicing, praying, and giving thanks put the circumstances of our lives, both good and bad into God’s hands and help us see them through His eyes. Last night our beloved daughter-in-law Melinda slipped from this world into the presence of Jesus. And while we are overwhelmed with grief and shock, these words are promises to which we cling. Melinda has finished her race. Her battle with cancer is finished. And while that pernicious disease claimed her physical life, it could not touch her soul. That remained fully and exclusively in the hands of Jesus with whom she now lives. Nancy and I didn’t know how to process the news that came in three words. “She is gone.” Yet as sadness rolls over my heart I sense the message echo back from Heaven, ” She has arrived!”

Why Should We Care About Memory Care?

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. So Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. Genesis 48:10 ESV

They barely remember our name and struggle to recall where they are. The hands, once strong and able that provided for us, protected us and even at times disciplined us now hang limply at their sides. What is the use of visiting, when they will not remember it an hour from now? Those are hard but very real questions we may struggle with if we have a parent in memory care.

Genesis 48:10 ESV  Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. So Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them.

https://bible.com/bible/59/gen.48.10.ESV

But God remembers them and like Jacob, they still hold the blessings for our children in their hands. Rather than simply pity them, or stay away in discouragement and sorrow, let us go remembering that God has designed this chapter in their lives to still have purpose. Remember that after Jesus was born, he was brought by Mary and Joseph to the temple.  There Jesus received blessings from, Simeon and Anna, the two oldest members of the community.

Those who are least respected by a society weary of caring for its elderly, are highly honored by God. These weakened by infirmity and age have been entrusted with the blessing for our children. Why should we care about memory care? Because Jesus does and He remembers them and sees when each one falls.

God Loves Ordinary People!

/ pastorpete51 / 6 Comments

And Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me what have you in the house?” And she said, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.” 2 Kings 4:2 ESV

Often when we face problems, we wonder if we should pray. After all, we reason, why would God be concerned with our needs, when there are other far greater needs in the world all around us? We wonder why a big God, would be concerned with our ordinary needs. But in this brief story in the book of second Kings, we meet a poor and rather unimportant widow, whose debts mattered to God. Just as her scenario though scarcely remarkable, mattered to God, so God is interested in our needs today. Though there were certainly many other needy widows at that time, and we don’t know why God didn’t send Elisha to others, what we do know is that this lady asked for help. Maybe we are too embarrassed by our problems to ask for help, but God isn’t ashamed of us or our needs. He may simply be waiting for us to ask so that we can be ready for the answer He sends.

Sometimes we don’t ask God’s help, not only because we think that our issue isn’t important enough, but also because we think we aren’t important enough. Yet, despite what the media, our neighbors or even our family think or say, the Bible tell us that we are made in God’s image. All of us in some way are a reflection of the Creator of this entire universe., Though no one else may think much of us, God thinks the world of us, and He cares so much for our needs, that He sent His only Son to die in our place. To God, there are no big and little people. no big or small needs. We all are precious to Him and the one who watches sparrows and widows, also cares about us today!

Young Washington – Film Review

/ pastorpete51 / 4 Comments

We have been blessed to have our twenty-something grandson visiting for the week and were delighted when he asked if we could go see the new film, “Young Washington.” Though we do go once or twice a year to the movies, I am still somewhat irritated by the lengthy review of scads of new films coming out that I determine immediately to never watch! However; once the feature began things got off to quite an interesting start. First off, seeing Washington as a small boy, was intriguing and his struggles dealing with the death of his father, his being thrust into an apprenticeship and unable to continue his schooling paints a portrait quite different than the one we are accustomed to. The cinematography was spectacular, without the need for special effects, and paints with accuracy both the roughness and beauty of life in colonial Virginia.

The script follows the historical events without becoming a slave to it and is by no means a documentary. Rather, the writers trace the complexities of George Washington, as he struggles with loss, rejections, and the horrors of watching a friend die in his arms in battle. I won’t give away too many details of the twists and turns of the story, but, I would suggest that this film is not for the very young. Maybe I am just a bit old-fashioned but I would suggest 15+ depending on the age and maturity of your children, because of the violence in some of the scenes. This film does live up to its title, “Young Washington, as it stops well short of those events we might ordinarily expect to be included in a movie about George Washington. The signing of the Declaration of Independence, the Revolutionary War, and his presidency will have to wait for the sequel, which is rumored to be in the works. Overall, it was an important film and well worth seeing, though I would not recommend bringing family members under 15, due to the violent shown during the scenes depicting  the French and Indian war.