The Old Man in the Back of the Sanctuary

It has been said that the only thing that is consistent in life is change. I have certainly found that to be true in my life. We sometimes bring about good changes by our aspiration and perspiration; and bad changes by our mistakes and bad decisions. But most changes are out of our control. I have written about the first major change I experienced at the age of nine when a house fire left us with the clothes we were wearing that day, our family car and a small book case the firemen pulled out before the ceilings began to cave in. Then, several years later, my mother died much too soon. Those traumatic changes were completely out of our control.

While going through those stressful times, it is comforting to know that change for the better is sure to come. On the other hand, when we are enjoying success and pleasant times we often forget about change. When any of my friends on social media have a wedding anniversary, I always wish them a happy anniversary and then remind them to continue cherishing every precious moment together. They all know my present situation and why I offer that advice.

Even when change is predictable, it is often difficult. My father worked at an auto assembly plant. His job was to keep a specific segment of the assembly line stocked with the needed parts to install on the vehicles. Every year the plant would close for two weeks for model change. The assembly line would be updated and the new parts would be delivered. I remember my father rattling off part numbers in his sleep during those stressful times.

Some people handle change better than others. My wife was very organized and enjoyed having a set routine. At her memorial service, I described how every change in her life was a mountain for her to climb until she reached a level routine stage again. Then I shared that my biggest mountain to climb was facing life without her.

While change is a part of life, as Christians we have the unchangeable mercy, grace, love and Spirit of God within us. When smooth sailing suddenly becomes a  tidal wave of stormy seas, the steady, peaceful hand of our Lord is the anchor we can depend on.  I can’t imagine going through the changes of life without the stability of my heavenly Father  with me, even when I face that final change from mortal life to eternal life with Him,       

In my last blog post i wrote about the increased attacks of the enemy and how God is responding to them by answering our prayers. I’m sure there have been times in history when spiritual warfare has been this brutal, but it seems to be the worst I have seen in my lifetime. In addition to the worries and fears that we can fend off with prayer, there are increased temptations and doubts.

I think the biggest temptation is to counter attack those the enemy uses to attack us with the same intensity as them. That is exactly what the enemy wants. The Apostle Paul reminds us, “For we are not fighting against flesh and blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12) During the ultimate personal attack on Him, Jesus did not attack the men who were driving nails into his hands and feet. Instead, He asked His heavenly Father to forgive them. I am so glad God hates sin but loves sinners like me enough to send His Son to die in my place. He expects us to follow that example.

The world will never understand how it is possible to separate sin from the sinner. They feel sin is a permanent part of their life. We know that sin can be forgiven and removed from our life by God’s mercy and grace.  So never counter attack a person who attacks you. Instead, lean on the promise of Exodus 14:14, “The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” Instead of attacking your attacker, stay calm and pray for them and then for God to attack the evil spirit behind the attack.   

When it comes to fending off temptation and doubt, we can fill our heart and mind with God’s word and love so that there is no room for anything the enemy tries to squeeze in. That is the way to resist him and when we resist him, he will flee from us. (James 4:7)

As you know, I’m no student of end time prophecy, but it sure seems like the war between good and evil (between God and our enemy) is really ramping up lately. From all of the violence and conflict on the news, to the personal battles my Christian friends and I are struggling with, it is just one thing after another with which we must deal. Could it be that Satan realizes his time is getting short?

On a personal note, early Friday morning I booted up my laptop to check my emails and do some online work for the association I work for from home. During the boot up process the screen went black. The power light was on but I couldn’t get any response no matter what I tried. Panic set in as I thought about all of the information I could no longer access and how I would not be able to continue writing my blog. A friend was picking me up shortly to take me to the VA clinic for a blood work up; so I prayed for help and left it in God’s hands. When we returned, I just idly reached for the power button and the laptop came to life booting up without a problem. I spent the next few hours catching up my work and praising God for His tech support. My Christian friends have had mechanical car trouble, physical aches and pains, and stressful encounters with doctors, nurses and insurance companies. Our prayers have resulted in many praise reports as God answers and grants us His peace.  

In times like this, the scripture I lean on is Philippians 4:6. “Don’t worry about anything, instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.” Whether it is a friend or me with worries, following that advice from the Apostle Paul always provides praise reports and peace of mind. Have you noticed that as troubles increase in your life and the lives of your Christian friends or family, the power of God also increases in your lives and praise reports come much more frequently?

It is no surprise that Christians are under attack throughout the world. I’m reminded of a story I read about a Christian and an atheist walking down a lane together. Satan suddenly appeared on the path ahead of them. The atheist hid behind the Christian and begged him to protect him from Satan. The Christian calmly replied, “He already has you. He is trying to come after me.” The enemy can TRY to trip us up or distract us with worry or fear, but he can never defeat us. The power in us is much more powerful than the power in the world. All we have to do is release it through our prayers of petition and praise.

I heard a joke the other day that made me laugh, but also made me think. It was about a rich man who knew he was dying and wanted to take something with him to heaven. He was told time and again that it not possible, but he was persistent and finally got an exemption for one suitcase. He died and showed up at the pearly gates with his suitcase. St. Peter stopped him and told him he couldn’t enter with anything. He explained about the special exemption and St. Peter went to check it out. He came back and said, “Okay, but I’ll have to inspect the contents.” The suitcase was opened and it was filled with gold bars. St. Peter scratched his head and asked him, “Why would you want to bring paving stones to heaven?”

I’ve always known that we can’t take our physical possessions with us to heaven no matter how valuable they may seem on Earth. I have never seen a trailer hitch on the back of a hearse – have you? Now I fully understand why. Nothing here even begins to compare with what awaits us up there. My home will be fully furnished and prepared for me. I will be too busy praising my Savior and reuniting with those I have missed for so long on Earth to even think about the possessions I left behind.

There are a few things we can take with us to heaven. They are things that will even be multiplied as we enter God’s kingdom. The first one that comes to mind is love.  

We can bring with us the love that God has placed in our heart for Him; for our family; for our neighbors; an even for our enemies. Our love will become so rich and pure beyond anything we can even imagine down here.

Another thing we can take with us to heaven is gratitude. The gratitude I feel here for all of the things God does for me every day directly and through the actions of others will be nothing compared to the gratitude I will feel as I continue the eternal life that was begun when I was only eleven years old on Earth. Eternal life means that my gratitude for God’s mercy and grace will never end.

We will enter heaven with a spirit of praise and worship, but that too will be multiplied beyond our wildest dreams. We feel God’s presence here through the Holy Spirit when we praise and worship God. There, we will be in His full presence as we sing and praise Him. Talk about a beautiful, humbling experience; that will be perfect.

So maybe we can take it with us; as long as our definition of it is in line with His.     

One of the things from my youth that I miss most is respect. We were taught to respect others, especially our elders and those in authority. It was taught as a civil way to behave, but it is scriptural. Peter writes, “Respect everyone, and love the family of believers. Fear God and respect the king.” (1 Peter 2:17)

When I trained employees I always taught them the golden rule of customer service. “Always treat your customer like you want to be treated when you are a customer; unless you’re a masochist. That usually elicited a smile, while getting my point across. But toward the end of my career I started seeing a puzzled look and I had to explain what a masochist is. The actual Golden Rule is found in Matthew 7:12. “Do to others as you would like them to do to you.” Everyone longs to be respected so we should respect others and what we sow, we will reap.

When I was a young man, we could disagree with someone without becoming disagreeable. We could actually discuss our differences and still remain friends. In this world today, if someone disagrees with you they are your enemy. You must attack them and force them to accept your position. Right now I have over 200 friends on Face Book. I have never unfriended anyone for their religious or political views. I have friends who are avowed atheists; who have completely different political views; and who have a different view of the Christian life than I do. Of course, there are also many who share the Christian life with me. I have only been unfriended one time. Without getting into details, his college professor told him a political lie. I had direct personal knowledge that it didn’t happen and I shared that knowledge with him. He could not believe that professor lied to him so he unfriended me. Mark Twain was right when he wrote, “It is easier to get someone to believe a lie than it is to convince them what they believe is a lie.”

The world tries to squeeze Christians into its mold; and if there is no longer a difference between our life and theirs; they have succeeded. We know that we can’t force anyone to believe as we do, but when we isolate ourselves from them, we lose the opportunity to show them the difference Christ has made in our life. The Holy Spirit guides me on social media. He speeds me past some hateful posts and instructs me to comment respectfully on others without name calling or finger pointing; just stating this old man’s experience and point of view. I am hopeful that I have planted some seeds of truth in their minds and hearts that I could not have done without  respect .

It has been said that an atheist is someone with no invisible means of support. That may seem like just a cute play on words, but there is some truth to it. At times we all need support in life, both visible and invisible. We have the support of God’s Holy Spirit within us as we pray, worship, study scripture and live out the Christian life. We receive encouragement and prayer support from Christian fellowship with each other. Those means of support may appear to be invisible to a casual observer, but they have real impact on our lives.

The support I have received in the six and a half years since my wife died has become more and more visible. God has brought people into my life to provide the care I need; the men from my church who rented a dumpster and cleared out my basement after it flooded; the Christian plumber who repaired my leaking toilets for the price of the parts; my wonderful caregivers who come every weekday to help with things I can no longer do myself. Even the chair I’m sitting in as I write this with a lift to help me stand; my new refrigerator with an icemaker; the well-built ramp in my garage to help me get in and out of my home; and the electric fans that have gotten me through some very hot days without an air conditioner; even the blog I’m writing are all visible signs of God’s tangible support in answer to prayer. The most powerful support I experience is when I am on my walker moving from room to room each day. It may appear that I get where I’m going on my own strength and will power, but that is deceiving. When my knees begin to give out on me (as they often do) a power beyond my own keeps me on my feet and moving forward in answer to my desperate prayer. “Lord, I can’t even walk without you holding my hand!”

An atheist can’t experience any of that support. Instead, he believes that he must get through this life on his own power. All of the people I’ve known who claim to be atheists want to be in full control of their own life and destiny without any help or interference from a God above or a man here on earth. They have no hope for a life after this one, so they struggle through this life on their own. They actually feel superior to those weak people who have to lean on their God for support. It takes more faith than I have to ignore all of the signs of God’s creation all around me; from the macro workings of the Universe to the micro DNA blueprint in every living cell (including the ones that make up my body). You can’t shake the strong faith of an atheist by telling them your experience or debating him. It isn’t until he runs into a situation that is completely out of his control that he experiences a crisis of his Godless faith. Combat veterans tell me there are no atheists in fox holes.           I cannot imagine a life without God’s mercy, grace, love and support. Can you

I ran across another quote from Mother Teresa recently. It sounds like it is aimed at parents, but I think it applies to all mentors. “You will teach them to fly, but they will not fly your flight. You will teach them to dream, but they will not dream your dream. You will teach them to live, but they will not live your life. Nevertheless, in every flight, in every dream, in every life the print of the way you taught them will remain.”

As a corporate trainer for seventeen years, I often had one or two trainees at a time and I felt that I was more of a mentor than trainer. I taught them the basic knowledge they would need for the job and to pass the state certification exam, but I also shared with them my experiences in the field to give them an idea of what they might run into on the job. During five weeks of training we got to know each other pretty well. Each of them was unique. Some had problems with written tests and others breezed right through them. Some could read instructions and get it, while others had to have hands-on experience in order to understand. Of course, they each had their own personality and talents. My job was not to produce employees just like me; it was to provide them with what they needed to be the best employee they could be.  

I’m still in touch with many of them. Some are still enjoying serving customers in the field; some have been promoted to manager positions (one is now the company’s general manager); and several have started their own business. It is both gratifying and amazing that they all credit me with getting them started on their career path even though those paths are different. Mother Teresa was right; we can teach the basics, but what they do with that training is their own flight, dream and life.

What does all of this have to do with living our best Christian life and helping others to do the same? This blog was created to mentor new Christians and remind older ones of the basics of living as a son or daughter of God. My favorite passage from the Phillips translation of the New Testament is Romans 12:2. “Don’t let the world squeeze you into its own mold…” When I mentor others, I am very careful not to squeeze them into my mold. The key is to help them reach their full potential even if that takes them beyond what I have achieved. The Christian life is not a competition. I simply show them how to listen for and obey prompting from that supreme Mentor within each of them – God’s Holy Spirit. He is a mentor you can always trust.  

Even if you are saying to yourself right now, “I’m not a mentor!” you are commanded to love others and share your faith and experiences with them. That will influence them in a very personal way. There are also people watching your life from a distance that you aren’t even aware of. Without knowing their name or saying a word to them, you are mentoring them about the Christian life by your actions.    

I have written many times about my wonderful fellowship with my Christian brothers and sisters. The Greek word used in scripture to describe that fellowship is koinonia. It is defined as, “Christian fellowship or communion with God or, more commonly, with fellow Christians.” Last Saturday morning during our breakfast, one of my brothers in Christ reminded us that as part of our relationship with God, He wants to spend time in fellowship with us – koinonia time.

I believe that is what Jesus was thinking about when He said, “For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them”. (Matthew 18:20) Jesus loves to share in our fellowship with each other. During His earthly ministry Jesus loved to celebrate Jewish holidays, feasts and weddings with followers and sinners alike. He and His disciples were criticized by religious leaders of the time as being partiers when they should be more serious and selective about the company they kept. Jesus shows us how to fellowship with and influence others without sin. He pointed out to those Jewish leaders that a time would come for His followers to mourn and fast, but not while He is with them. (see Matthew 9:15)

Jesus also said, “Look, I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and we will share a meal together as friends.” (Revelation 3:20) He loves to fellowship with us individually as well. I’m sure if someone planted a microphone in my home, they would swear I have an “imaginary friend” that I am continually fellowshipping with, because my voice would be all they would hear. He is definitely my friend, but He is definitely not a product of my imagination. Actually, I am a creation of His and a product of His mercy, grace and loving sacrifice. He is my constant companion and I cherish our koinonia time together.

Obviously, I am not the only one who has experienced koinonia time with Jesus Christ. In 1855, preacher Joseph Scriven described that fellowship perfectly in a poem he wrote to comfort his mother in Ireland while he was serving the Lord in Canada. That poem became the very familiar lyric of the hymn, What a Friend We Have in Jesus. I don’t have to share those beautiful words here, because you know most of them by heart. If you haven’t been spending personal koinonia time with Jesus, just listen for His knock and sweet voice, and then invite Him in to share a meal and koinonia with you. It will enrich your fellowship with other Christians and improve all of your relationships. God wants your fellowship. It reminds Him of those long walks with Adam in the Garden before Adam’s disobedience.

A dear friend of mine recently had serious surgery. My other friends and I prayed for her and when I checked on her to see how she was doing after the surgery she responded, “Prayers got me through this. Life is good!” I was so pleased to hear that she was recovering, but it was also a reminder to me that Christians aren’t grateful because of our happiness – we are happy because of our gratefulness.

I have God’s promise that I will be with my wife again when my tour of duty here is complete.  But it wasn’t until I stopped mourning her loss and became grateful for all of those years she was with me and all of the experiences we shared together that a smile returned to my face and joy returned to my heart. I think one of the greatest things about being a Christian is that we know who to thank for everything good in our life and through Jesus Christ we can come before our heavenly Father with prayers of gratitude.

Someone recently told me that she didn’t know how I could stand my physical limitations and the loss of freedom that has resulted. She couldn’t imagine not being able to drive or walking with pain on a walker or relying on others for household chores, meals and transportation. To her that seemed like a living hell. She cannot understand how I can possibly be happy with this life. If I concentrated on those things, it would be a miserable existence; but those losses are nothing compared to what I still have and what I have gained.

Here are just a few of those blessings for which I’m so grateful. The help I receive through Catholic Charities, the VA and my church make it possible for me to stay in my home. I rely much more on God now, not only to get me safely from room to room, but to guide everything I do (including this blog). I have so many close friends now who give me help, encouragement and fellowship; my Christian brothers who take me to breakfast early Saturday mornings; and five women (including the one recovering from surgery). My relationship with each of those women is completely free from romance or jealousy. We share a special bond through the Holy Spirit, but none of us is looking for another partner at this stage of our life. Finally, in spite of my physical limitations, God has blessed me with a sound mind and a very strong desire to encourage and lift the spirit of others. My dear friend is right – life is good!

It reminds me of a very upbeat song by The Hoppers family gospel group. The chorus says it all. “Life is good cause God is

Life is good cause I’m His…

Life is so, so good!”    

When we look for a qualified contractor to do a job, they must be licensed, certified and insured. When we look for medical assistance from a doctor or nurse they must not only have an M.D. or R.N. degree, but must be licensed to practice in our state. When God looks for someone to perform a specific calling or mission for Him, what qualifications does He look for?

Many years ago a missionary spoke at my church. She told us how humble and unworthy she felt as she entered the mission field God had called her to. She said she prayed, “Lord, I’m sure there are others much more qualified for this mission. Why did you choose me?” She said God replied to her prayer, “You were the one who was willing.” God knows us from the inside out; even better than we know ourselves. Unlike us, He doesn’t need to consult others to confirm our qualifications for the job. He not only qualifies us, but puts His seal of approval on us as He opens doors and ensures our successful completion of the task He has assigned to us.

Sometimes, like in the case of that missionary, God qualifies us as we take on our task for Him. In my case, God called me to write this blog at the age of 73. Looking back, I can see how God has been qualifying and preparing me for that assignment throughout all of those years. He knew I would be willing. He continues to supply me with the messages He wants me to share with you on Sunday and Wednesday of each week and I remain His humble servant and child.

My brother or sister in Christ, whatever mission God has called you to do for Him, you will feel unworthy and humbled by it. That is a natural response, but don’t let that feeling overwhelm you. God always has more confidence in us than we have in ourselves because He will supply the strength and ability to make success possible. Our God is so great.