Carrying Precious Seed

/ pastorpete51 / 3 Comments

Psalm 126:6 He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

The Bible nowhere promises that telling others about Jesus will always be easy, socially acceptable or applauded. In fact the early disciples were usually opposed, persecuted and in some cases imprisoned or even put to death. But no matter the obstacles, the work of sharing the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ goes on. It is a going forth and weeping all the while carrying precious seed. So it is with joy that I bring you a praise report this morning about our Nursing Home Christmas caroling. We not only were we given the opportunity to sing yesterday (No photos this time) but we were welcomed into a new facility. For those concerned about the Covid-19 situation let me explain that the setting of our meeting was an outdoor courtyard and we were all temperature checked on the way in. There was also plenty of social distancing and we kept our masks on until we started singing. And what a great time we had! At first it looked as if only two or three residents were coming, but by the time we began our fourth song, about eight more people had joined us and others were able to hear from windows that over looked the central courtyard area! All praise to our God who opens doors that no one can shut!

Nine months have passed of a dark night for our nursing home community with over 100,000 residents being snatched away from us in the United States alone. We must take these numbers seriously. The value of the lives of these most fragile and vulnerable to the virus are precious to God. But no virus or change of government changes our responsibility to bring the word of God’s good news of Jesus at Christmas. I was excited to see new people getting involved in the caroling and an enthusiastic staff singing along, serving hot chocolate and smores to the residents and us! With two more outdoor caroling events planned for this year I would encourage anyone with a desire to reach out to those in long term care to not give up and use every opportunity offered. Send Christmas cards (Write little personal notes in them). Raise finds to buy appropriate gifts. Our small group was able to purchase 35-40 large print Christmas devotionals to give out. Also don’t forget to include the staff in whatever you do, They have been on the front lines protecting lives and sometimes having to say goodbye to people they have loved. God is in control but He has given us the responsibility to carry the seed with weeping. If we will do our part then He has promised to supply the joy that follows when we return with songs of joy carrying the harvest home to Him!

Here are some photos from Christmases past but I hope to bring you some video from our meeting scheduled for Saturday. Pray for us! Ask God how you can be involved in your own community. Most of all – don’t give up! It will be worth it all in the end!

12 Gifts of Christmas / 8th Gift – Blueprints of Grace

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” James 4:6

As we near Christmas we need to remember that same grace that chose Bethlehem’s manger for God’s new born Son of God to lay in, has also chosen whatever struggles we face today. No matter what difficulty we are up against, today’s verse reminds us to abandon our own smarts, or strength. It reminds me of when I was about eight years old going with my step-father to visit his architectural firm. There, everywhere I looked large tables were filled with blueprints. My step-dad put me up on a chair so I could see and flipped through some of his plans. To my eight year old mind those pages looked more like a tangle of arrows and lines than anything useful. But He just smiled and slowly showed me how those arrows and lines would one day become beautiful new buildings. Today standing at the edge of old age I sometimes feel like that little boy again. I Look back and recall the unstoppable tears at the death of my parents, my terrifying visits to the emergency room for back pain and my wife’s battle with cancer. In the heat of those moments they just seemed like aimless and terrifying attacks. Though I know that in God’s design He has been working from a blueprint for good, I still need His grace to calm my heart and help me trust His plan.

Photo by Lex Photography on Pexels.com

The blueprints on God’s workbench are covered with the lines and plans of His grace. We may not see it but we are each a part of His design. One day together we will be completed in the beautiful home He has designed for us all. He often chooses that our struggles today, will become a comfort that we can give to someone else tomorrow. If we humbly ask in prayer, “Father what is this confusing jumble of lines and arrows written on your blueprint of grace for me?” He will delight in explaining just enough of His plan to gently lead us down our path today.

12 Gifts of Christmas / 7th Gift – Rest

/ pastorpete51 / 3 Comments

 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:29

Our plane had finished climbing to 30,000 feet and the pilot quietly announced that we were now free to move about the cabin, but my eyes were still tightly closed in prayer. No – I wasn’t just being religious – I was really terrified of flying! But on a six hour flight it is hard to pretend that you are sleeping for very long. When eventually, I opened my eyes, I noticed a young Chinese man seated across from me, gazing out his window in delight. We struck up a conversation and I learned that he was coming from Hong Kong to the United States and that this was his first time on a plane. The difference between His joy of watching the clouds and the scenery lay in stark contrast to my dark fears. Though I truly believed that if I died I would be with Jesus, I was still gripped by anxiety and my neighbor’s obvious joy made me feel ashamed.

He was enjoying the kind of rest that in our hurry towards Christmas, we all need to remember. Maybe we miss God’s purpose of rest because we feel that with any sort of inactivity we might be missing out. But God is at the controls of our lives and has given us complete freedom to move about the cabin and find rest as we delight in seeing where God is taking us on our journey.

We would be a lot more at ease if we remembered that Jesus patiently lingered nine unhurried months in the waiting room of Mary’s womb. Shepherds learned the Good News of great joy as they rested with their flocks. Even after Jesus was born, He rested in the place the Father had put Him while He was growing up in the tiny village of Nazareth.

In fact, Jesus had brothers and sisters with whom He had to share a straw mattress on the floor and eat the same simple family meals that Mary cooked. Never once does the Bible record a complaint, or reveal an attitude of impatience with him. Jesus simply waited for the day when His Father’s work would begin and He rested in the place where he was. Maybe it was there in Nazareth where He was taught to give thanks for bread and fish. While taking care of his chores He learned to wash feet for visitors, celebrate weddings and handle wood and nails. Then He patiently and painfully endured the cross for us, all the while resting in the thought that the end of hIS journey would be perfect. then before the resurrection Jesus rested three long days in the tomb. That same Jesus who could take a nap in a boat in a storm now invites us to also come, put our trust in Him and celebrate rest for our souls forever!