Arrival in Heaven

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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!”

The Last Healing

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And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Mark 10:47 NKJV

As Jesus began His final journey towards Jerusalem, a blind man named Bartimaeus hears the news and in desperation cries to Him for help. Breaking the decorum of his day, he started to shout as loudly as possible, trying to get Jesus’ attention, no matter what anyone else thought.

During His ministry on earth, Jesus had healed all kinds of people. In one of His earliest acts, he healed the mother of the Apostle Peter’s wife, later, the servant of a local government official and then woman who touched his robe in a crowd. Finally as He neared the end of His time on earth; He raised His friend Lazarus from the dead. But in this last miraculous act recorded in the Bible, Jesus paused to heal a bind beggar named Bartimaeus. This blind man had no special credentials or connections except that Jesus was passing by. That amazing hope which He found is also for anyone who has no pedigree, political connections, or friends in high places. The mercy of Jesus comes only with the requirement that, like Bartimaeus, we ask with all our heart. Jesus is as willing to stop for a jailer as for a prisoner. He hears the prayer of the surgeon as well as the patient. He bends his ear as closely to hear orphans as he does to the father of a nation. Our hope in Jesus Christ is based on one thing alone. He died for our sins and rose again. He is walking down our street, and He is still inviting beggars to come to His side in His heavenly home!

Morning on the Back Porch

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Dawn would be too nice of a description for the gray morning light gradually brightening today’s cloudy sky. But one dove welcomes our morning, sunny or not, with her gentle cooing. Then a mockingbird wipes sleep from his eyes and begins running through his seemingly limitless repertoire of borrowed songs. Not to be outdone one far less glamorous crow, perches on the crown of our roof and loudly proclaims that morning is here: it’s time to wake up and get going for the day! All these members of God’s choir know something about rejoicing in the moment that I too easily forget.

It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning,
And Your faithfulness every night, Psalm 92:1-2 NKJV

I confess that with the multiplying of aches and pains, the complications of family issues and the sadness of unfulfilled dreams, that mornings often come with their own chilly spiritual fog. But God has not left Himself without a witness, and when I sit quietly and listen, He sends messengers to wake my heart up again and hope in Him. In the words of the carol, by Longfellow:

“Then pealed the bells
More rich and deep
God is not dead nor doth He sleep,”
Christmas Bells

There is a hope we may find far better than doves, mockingbirds, and crows. A song deeper still than church bells and a dawn that breaks behind any gray sky, because though the darkness of the cross lies ahead, Easter is coming. Jesus watches us through our night seasons, and the depth of His love brightens our grayest morning and shines through even our darkest night!

Even Now

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“Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” John 11:21-22 ESV

The Bible plainly tells us that Jesus loved Martha, and maybe one of the things Jesus loved so much about her was her outspoken way of saying everything that was in her heart. Whether she was complaining about her sister, inviting Jesus into her home, or sending for him in her time of need, Martha was always direct. I have so often heard of her failures and preoccupation with the duties of the pots and pans, yet there was also in her a unique ability to grow because she held nothing back.

In our own daily dealings with Jesus, it is often easier to pray in our religious way and do our religious duty, than to really tell God what is on our mind. So often we fail to grow in our faith because we are hiding behind what we feel is acceptable and we deny Jesus the chance to enter the conversation. But even now, if in complete honesty, we tell Him all our heart He can still do far more than we could ever imagine!