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Like a Bridge Over Troubled Water

/ pastorpete51 / 6 Comments

And I said, ‘what shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Rise, and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all that is appointed for you to do.’ Acts 22:10 ESV

In the 1960’s, one of my favorite songs was the Simon and Garfunkel tune, “Like a Bridge Over Troubled Water.” Their song eerily reminds me of when in 1983 a one-hundred-foot section of a highway bridge over the Mianus River in Connecticut, collapsed at midnight. The first car that come upon it was able to stop in time and the driver jumped out and frantically tried to wave down the other vehicles. Tragically in the dark and confusion of the moment 2 cars and 2 trucks ignored the driver’s warnings and tumbled off into the river. An interstate highway is a road on which we normally feel sure that all is safe, but that night it was deadly.

In all of our lives there are times when we take some roads that we think are right, but in reality, we are driving off a spiritual bridge in the night. Just like Paul we think we know what to do but are radically missing what God has planned for us. Thankfully there are times when God’s grace comes and knocks us to the ground, but we need to pay attention. He has put that roadblock across our path because He sees ahead that the road we are on leads to destruction. God stops us in our tracks, because we have been speeding down life’s highway in the wrong direction. We must remind ourselves that God can never teach us anything, as long as we are sure that we already know all the answers. But when we cry out in astonishment with Paul, “What shall I do?” God is delighted to come and show us what He has had in mind and through Jesus Christ He really does become our “Bridge Over Troubled Water”!

For the younger folks among my readers who have no idea of who Simon and Garfunkel were, I have posted a link to their song.

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Songs in the Night

/ pastorpete51 / 6 Comments

But none saith, Where is God my maker, who giveth songs in the night. Job 35:10

When we are in a battle with the enemy like Job was, usually we have no idea what is going on. The invisible forces of the air, like a relentless defensive line in football are always looking to tackle us for a loss. But, when we can’t think straight and sleep is difficult, my dad used to advise me, “Don’t just lie there Pete! Get up and change the channel!” Just as Job did, we need to discover that the worship of Heaven is not limited to the four walls of the church, and we don’t have to hold on for dear life till next week’s service. We can get up in the middle of the darkest night and tune in to the Jesus Channel. Like the verse in Zephaniah tells us:

The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing. Zephaniah 3:17 

God never leaves us alone. He is not only the God who sees us, but also the God who will sing with us on the darkest of nights. I hope you will enjoy our song session from Life Care Center of one of my favorite hymns - God Leads His Dear Children Along-

Some through the waters, and some through the flood
Some through the fire, but all through the blood
Some through great sorrows, but God gives a song
In the night season
And all the day long!

God Leads His Dear Children Along by George Young 1903

Facing Failure

/ pastorpete51 / 5 Comments 
But Peter boasted. “No way Lord! Even if everyone fails, You can count on me!” 
Luke 22:33 MNVIT (My not very inspired translation) 

The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly. 
Luke 22:61-62 NIV

When in the middle of the temptations and stresses of daily life, it feels impossible to have the kind of faith that I read about with Daniel spending the night with lions, David facing Goliath and Moses the Red Sea. But when I come to the story of a disciple named Peter, I have hope. Now Peter certainly had his days of great faith, such as when he walked on water and or when he boldly confessed that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God. Yet when we come to the night of Jesus’ arrest in the garden of Gethsemane, something unexpected happened. At first, Peter seemed brave as he pulled out a sword and hacked off the ear of one of the guys coming for Jesus.  But when Jesus put a stop to his tactics, Peter ran away. Then from a safe distance he sneaked into the courtyard where Jesus was being held. We can’t be sure what Peter had in mind, but maybe he was hoping to find any way to free Jesus. But instead of helping Jesus to escape, Peter ended up denying Him three times.

Sadly, just like Peter, there are times when, despite our good intentions, we utterly fail. Circumstances that we hoped to change, spin completely out of our control and we are left as helpless observers. The things we thought we would never say, we blurt out and the things we never promised not to do; we do. After all our boasting about our faith, we end up falling flat on our faces. But at that moment, while we weep bitterly about our failure, remember what Peter did. He remembered what Jesus said. When three days later, Jesus rose from the dead and showed Himself to the disciples He came for Peter also. But this was a Peter who was a changed person. He had discovered that the strength of His faith did not lie in his determination, strength or ability, but on the love, power and forgiveness of Jesus Christ. He found, just as we can, that our faith does not grow from our successes, but from remembering God’s word in our failures.

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