Month: October 2021

Far More Than We Deserve

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This parable of the vineyard had always held for me the mystery of sunlight shining through fog. I was sure something wonderful was there but couldn’t quite make out exactly what. I once figured that the owner of the vineyard kept retuning for more workers because he didn’t want to lose his harvest. It reminded me of working a hayfield with six of my friends till 2 am. A thunderstorm was rolling in and hay left in the field might be spoiled so we labored till the first drops of rain started falling. But the story of this man returning over and over to the town square till almost quitting time just seemed odd.

Why did he hire men even when it was almost quitting time and why pay them the same as the others? After all the guys who only worked one hour certainly weren’t producing enough to even cover their wage. But then I remembered that when the owner hired those fellows he asked why they were standing around all day and they told him ,”because no one hired us.” They had stayed because they clung to hope even as the afternoon shadows grew longer.

And isn’t that the wonderful depth of the grace of Jesus? He doesn’t come until even the final hours because he cares about hay ruined in his field or grapes left on the vine. He comes over and over looking for us. The lostness of people who no one else wants, who stand abandoned in the town square stirs God’s heart to action! So with whatever few hours we have in His field let’s work with joy, knowing that from the depths of His grace we will receive far more than we deserve on the day we stand before Him!

Peek-a-boo!

/ pastorpete51 / 5 Comments

At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children. Matthew 11:27 ESV

Have you ever played a game of Peek-a-boo with a baby?” You cover your face with a blanket, and then just as they begin to get worried, wondering where you are, you pull it back and shout, “Peek-a-boo! I see you!” Now that might not be exactly what you might think of in this verse but in some ways it is very much the same. When Jesus talked about God hiding, He was being confronted by people who didn’t like anything that He did. When He healed on the Sabbath they were mad because it broke their rules. When He went to dinner they gossiped that He ate with sinners and when one woman went as far as to wash His feet with tears they were totally offended. But some people, instead of complaining began to praise and thank Jesus. That made the religious leaders maddest of all! How sad that by moaning and groaning they missed the love and forgiveness of God that Jesus came to bring. But before we are too hard on the Pharisees we need to ask ourselves when the last time was that we saw the love and forgiveness of God around us. Does it feel like God is hiding from us some days? Then we need to repent of the pride that is blinding our eyes and ask God for a child’s heart again. When we do we will discover the joy of a Father who pulls back the curtain and calls out, “Peek-a-boo! I see you!’ Because He delights in revealing Himself to His children!

One Scrub at a Time

/ pastorpete51 / 15 Comments

So he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him. John 13:4-5 NIV

One of the most humbling parts of our mission trip to India happened in a small village in a farming area. We had come in and given out free dental hygiene kits and shared the gospel with children at a church that consisted of nothing more than a tin roof with rough boards for siding and old carpets laid on the dirt for a floor. At the end of the service a girl of about 13 years old (I think the pastor’s daughter came to the front and with tears of gratitude began to thank us for our visit. Then with the help of her friend these two youngsters insisted on washing our feet. I never felt so unworthy and yet strangely grateful in all my life and their expression of the love of Jesus has left an impact in my heart for a lifetime.

But as moving as that experience was, I have learned over the years that it is easier to travel hundreds or even thousands of miles to serve, than to remember those closest to us. In today’s verse you will notice that Jesus did not go looking for someone to serve. He simply took off His outer robe of a Rabbi and put on the towel of a servant and started washing the dirty feet that sat around the table with Him.

So if you are wondering what your calling is or how you can “Change the world”, be encouraged that you don’t have to wait for another day to go overseas on a missions trip. We have an open invitation from God right now to wash the feet that are closest to us. If that seems hard, then imagine how Jesus felt while He was washing the feet of Judas – His betrayer, Peter His Denier and Thomas His doubter. And yet the Son of God put aside all that and showed them His love as one scrub at a time He made dirty feet clean!

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