The Old Man in the Back of the Sanctuary

When I was growing up, I would stand in front of a full length mirror to examine myself to make sure I was presentable before leaving home. Today people can take a selfie and enlarge it to find even a few hairs out of place. The problem is, I don’t think we are qualified to examine ourselves in that superficial way or in any other. When we self-examine our condition physically or spiritually, we either see ourselves as we used to be or as we want to be, but seldom as we are. We either see ourselves through rose colored glasses, overlooking even serious problems; or we critically magnify the tiniest or even imaginary flaws turning them into major issues of concern. We may ask someone we trust for their opinion, but their perspective is limited by their senses and clouded by their emotions. What we need is someone who can see through us and see what’s going on inside. No, it isn’t Superman. Only the Creator of the universe can actually see us when we think we are hidden or hear us when we think we are in private. He can see through our exterior and examine what is going on inside of us – even to our very core.

About six months ago, I found a very noticeable swollen area on my left wrist with no pain or discomfort. I asked my physician about it. He said it was in the area of a lymph node but didn’t seem to be the node itself that was swollen. He ordered X-rays. In the meantime, I nervously explored WebMD for the symptoms of lymphoma to perform a self-diagnosis. Of the ten symptoms listed, I only had one – swelling. Even though that was reassuring, I could not rest until the lab sent the X-rays to my doctor and he got back to me with the results. It appears to be a ruptured tendon even though there is still no pain. It’s nothing to worry about, but I had no way to know that for sure without that picture of what was going on inside.

Want to know your true condition? Request an external and internal examination by your Creator. In Psalms 139 the psalmist first describes God’s ability to know us inside and out and then in verses 23 and 24 he places an order for X-rays; “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.”

As believers we don’t have to evaluate our own condition. The Holy Spirit within us will show us what God sees when He looks at our hearts and our minds. It is like seeing ourselves through His eyes. All we have to do is ask and then review the results with Him to determine any needed treatment.

 

When I was a boy, every time I exaggerated a problem my mom and dad would tell me, “You’re making a mountain out of a mole hill.”  I thought it was one of their folksy expressions.  It actually dates back to the year 1570 (A little before their time).

For you city dwellers who have never seen a mole hill, moles are blind rodents that tunnel underground to find grubs and worms.  As they tunnel the surface is raised above the tunnel leaving an unsightly trail of raised earth wherever they have tunneled in the yard or garden.  Once the mole is eliminated, a heavy roller can be used to level the surface by pushing the dirt back down into the tunnel.

So, what my parents were teaching me was not to take something that can be smoothed over and turn it into an insurmountable problem.   What they didn’t tell me at the time was that I would eventually encounter some real mountains in life, so there was no need to create one.  It was Jesus who taught me how to make a mole hill out of a mountain.

In Matthew 17:20 Jesus tells his disciples that faith the size of a tiny mustard seed can move mountains.  Since I find no record of anyone, even Jesus, actually moving a physical mountain by faith, I have to believe Jesus was referring to the mountainous problems we face in life; those obstacles that are so huge they seem impossible for us to overcome.  In my lifetime I have witnessed mountains blocking my way either move to the side or be reduced to mole hills as the result of my faith in Jesus Christ and my obedience to His Holy Spirit.  However, based on all of my experiences I offer this advice to younger generations: Your faith can move mountains, but don’t be surprised if God hands you a shovel and wheelbarrow instead.  Sometimes He just wants us to roll up our sleeves and get involved.

The biggest mountain of all for me was when my wife of 50 years went home to be with the Lord, leaving me alone, heartbroken and hopeless.  I called out to the Lord in my distress and He answered my prayer by sending Pastors Sam and Taylor Hamstra with a message of hope and the assurance that God wasn’t done with me yet.  Then He provided me with a purpose and a new family of brothers and sisters in Christ who are there for me through thick and thin.  With His help my mountain has been reduced to a mole hill that is tamped down beneath my feet as I continue to walk with my Lord.

Nutrition is recognized as a key factor in our physical health. What we eat and digest has a lot to do with how we feel and our overall well-being. One look at me and you know that there aren’t many foods that I do not enjoy eating. (Sushi is the only exception that immediately comes to mind.) Living alone with physical limitations, I miss the nutritious home-cooked comfort food my wife used to prepare for us. Even the leftovers were delicious. Now, I find myself eating frozen dinners, cereal and a lot of bread and Ritz crackers with various toppings. As a result, I take vitamins daily to round out my diet. For five thousand years bread has been the “staff of life”; only in this generation have we been told that carbs and gluten in bread are not good for us.

When Jesus was very hungry from fasting, Satan tempted him to turn the stones into bread. In Matthew 4:4 we read Jesus’ response as He quotes Deuteronomy 8:3, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

When His followers came back from buying food in a Samaritan village and found Jesus by the well talking with a woman, they waited until she left and then urged Jesus to eat something. He responded, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about.” Then He explained, “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing His work.” (John 4:32&34)

Just as our body needs good nourishment, our soul also needs to be well fed too. We are tempted by the spiritual junk food all around us, but we must find good nutrition for our soul. There is a popular series of books titled Chicken Soup for the Soul. It consists of more than 250 different books full of inspiring and encouraging stories about a variety of topics. I have enjoyed reading several of them. I pray that this blog also inspires and encourages you, but those books and this blog will never give you the complete nutrition your soul craves. That nourishment is found, as Jesus tells us, only through the word of God and doing His will.

There is another thing Jesus said that we should keep in mind as we think about what to ingest and digest. “It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth.” (Matthew 15:11) Let us always be careful that the words we speak are an inspiration and encouragement to others, coming from a heart filled with the love of God.

 

In ancient times, my high school chemistry teacher shared his experience working in research and development.  They were developing a revolutionary new laundry detergent that out cleaned every other product on the market while using nearly half the amount of detergent.  They were so excited to get the public’s reaction.  But when the test marketing results came back negative they were stunned.  One of the comments read, “It was like washing clothes in tap water” and that was when they realized the problem.  They added a chemical to the product that produced luxurious suds when agitated and tried again.  That product became the best-selling detergent in the country.  Those suds had absolutely nothing to do with the cleaning power of the product, but they had everything to do with public perception of the product.  Perception is reality to people.

I used that example of perceived value when teaching customer service skills.  The service might be effective, but the customer must perceive its value.  I gave them a few of my suggestions for adding “suds” to their service.  The most important one was a smile.  On the phone a smile softens your tone and adds a friendly feel to the conversation that is perceived as a pleasant experience.  In person a smile softens your appearance and gives the impression you enjoy what you are doing.  The natural assumption is, “If he or she enjoys their work, they must be pretty good at it”.  Another way to improve perception is to simply listen carefully to the customer to discover what they expect from the service then try to meet their expectations.

Why am I sharing this?  I have always believed that if you apply good customer service skills in your personal relationships, the quality of those relationships and your life will greatly improve. Why do we treat strangers better than we treat those closest to us? How do family and close friends perceive your love and service for them? Does your smile tell them that you enjoy what you do for them? Do you listen carefully to learn what they really expect from you? You just might discover it is easier to meet their expectations than you thought. Your time and encouragement might mean much more to them than that latest device or an expensive trip. When you set the example by adding suds to your relationships your perception of their love and service for you just might improve as well.

Unlike us, God’s perception is complete and perfect (no suds required).  But as our Creator He understands our need for them and it pleases Him when we demonstrate our love for Him and for others by doing these little things that mean so much.  He knows when we worship Him with all of our heart in spirit and in truth.  However, we feel the need to demonstrate our worship of God with smiles and tears of joy, clapping our hands in appreciation; then raising our hands and voices in shouts and songs of praise and thanksgiving.  The psalmist makes it clear that all of those things are pleasing to God even though it is simply our love, obedience and service that He expects from us.

By the way, the shed blood of Jesus Christ was, is and always will be the most effective stain remover in existence! 

Some believers think doubt is the opposite of faith, but doubt is actually faith that is still under construction. The true opposite of faith is fear. My favorite young pastor recently preached that what we fear tells us where our faith is weakest. I want to share with you an encounter I had with fear last year.

Since I accepted Jesus Christ as my savior I have not been a fearful person.  I have lived in confidence of God’s protection.  Something happened that shook my world and allowed fear into my life.  I normally leave the low-watt light on over the stove as a night light. I came home one day to find that light was out so I changed the bulb, but it was still out.  Then I noticed the microwave and coffee maker were not working so I figured it must be a thrown breaker switch.  I carefully took one step at a time down the stairs to the basement and reset the breaker.  As I climbed those steep stairs one step at a time pushing up with my cane and pulling myself up with the handrail I finally got to the next to last step and my leverage was running out on the handrail.   As I stepped up with my right foot pushing with my cane my left knee began to buckle and I quickly stepped back down.  I decided to turn around and sit on the top step for a few minutes before trying again.  While sitting there I watched my cane slide all the way to the bottom of the steps.  I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry (I think I did a little of each) before beginning to earnestly pray, “Lord, I need to go back down and get my cane so I can make it to the top.  Please help me.”  I stood up and began to slowly edge down one step at a time with only the handrail for support this time.  I got to the bottom and once more began the slow climb. When I got to the next to last step again I asked God to give me the boost I needed to make it to the top and I made it this time.  The light was on and all was well, but the panic I experienced on the stairs was still with me.  Fear leaves an opening in our defenses and the enemy seeks to take full advantage of it.

I have struggled with arthritic knees for many years but my balance has always been great so I never even thought about falling.  Shortly after the episode on the stairs, I began to get light-headed when standing or raising up after stooping down.  Each time I got dizzy fear of falling began to grip me.  My battle with fear was on.  I knew deep down that God was with me but I needed His assurance.  Sometimes scripture jumps off of the page at you.  My daily devotion included Isaiah 35:3-4: “With this news, strengthen those who have tired hands, and encourage those who have weak knees. Say to those with fearful hearts ‘Be strong and do not fear, for your God is coming to destroy your enemies. He is coming to save you.’”  On top of that, words from a Southern Gospel song seemed to shout to me as I listened to a CD in the car. “Didn’t I rush to your rescue?  Didn’t I hear you when you called?  I walked right beside you just so you wouldn’t fall.”  I also recalled the old English proverb, “Fear knocked at my door – faith answered and no one was there.”

Praise God! With those encouraging words of assurance, my faith was strengthened and the dizziness disappeared.  My battle with fear has ended in victory, but I know the enemy will continue to test my defenses.  My confidence has returned, but I’m not foolhardy.  If anything needs to happen in the basement from now on I will call someone for help.

   

One of my favorite movies of all time is Tender Mercies, with Robert Duvall and Tess Harper.  It came out in 1983 in sharp contrast to other movies that year like Scarface, Flashdance, Risky Business, The Hunger, and not one but two James Bond movies.  That was 30 years before wonderful Christian movies like Do You Believe?, God Is Not Dead and War Room hit the theaters, so it was shocking at that time to see Christian faith portrayed in a positive light by Hollywood. Tender Mercies showed God’s grace at work in a middle-aged, down and out, alcoholic, singer/songwriter. It is a story of redemption and a new start.

God’s grace (His free and unmerited mercy) was overwhelming when I accepted Jesus Christ as my savior 63 years ago. But experience has taught me as I have traveled this long, long road with Him that His grace doesn’t stop with salvation.  He bestows so many other unmerited blessings on us as well.  Don’t get me wrong, the road has not always been smooth and easy, but it has never been boring.  There have been ruts, potholes, steep hills, hairpin curves and more than a few detours along the way, but His grace has been sufficient throughout my journey.

I have noticed something interesting. As I get closer to the end of my journey.  The second or third verses of songs now seem to have added meaning to me. Here are a few examples:

When I’m growing old and feeble – stand by me.

When I do the best I can and my friends misunderstand,

You who never lost a battle – stand by me.

 

Now He is the potter and I am that clay.

Molded in His image He wants me to stay.

But when I stumble, when I fall, when my vessel breaks

Jesus sweeps up all the broken pieces.

He does not throw the clay away.

 

Oh the love that drew salvation’s plan.

Oh the grace that brought it down to man.

Oh the mighty gulf that God did span at Calvary.

 

Through many dangers, toils and snares I have already come.

His grace has brought me safe thus far

And grace will lead me home.

As we get to know the Creator of the universe, we are overwhelmed by His power and His love. One of the most misunderstood concepts about God is the existence of evil. Why would a loving, all-powerful God allow evil to exist? The answer is found in our free will and the free will He has given His angels. God wants us to love, worship and obey Him because that is our heart’s desire, not because He forces us to do it.

You may have seen the video on social media that shows a barber telling his Christian client that he doesn’t believe God exists because if there was a loving, all-powerful God, He would not allow all of the evil and injustice in the world. As the client leaves the barber shop he spots a homeless man with long hair and a scraggly beard. He takes that man back into the barber shop with him and proclaims, “I don’t believe barbers exist. If there were barbers, there would not be men who look like this in the world.” The barber said, “They are like that because they don’t come to me.” Smiling the client replied, “Exactly, and evil exists in the world not because there is no God, but because men choose not to come to Him.”

In order for us to have a free will, there must be an alternative to loving and serving God. Lucifer and a group of angels chose not to love, worship and obey God and that evil alternative became real. You see, the absence of God’s presence is the absence of truth, love, light and righteousness. When they moved away from God; lies, cruelty, injustice, idolatry, evil and self-indulgence came easy to them. They took on a sinful nature. God created man in his image also with free will to choose to love, worship and obey Him. When Adam and Eve chose to disobey God, they took on that same sinful nature and then passed it down through generations (Romans 5:12).

God is not only all-powerful; He is all-knowing. It isn’t a matter that angels and humans might choose not to love and worship Him. He knew when He created us that some angels and humans would choose to disobey Him, but it was more important to him that our love, worship and obedience were our choice and He gave us free will anyway. In His unfailing love, He provides a way for us to shed our sinful nature through belief in the sacrifice of His Son on the cross for our sins. Jesus’ resurrection gives proof of the everlasting life that faith in Him produces. We can freely love, worship and obey Him forever. It is God’s will that all should be saved and not perish (John 3:16-17), but He does not impose His will on us. We must make the decision. In the famous painting that shows Jesus standing at the door and knocking there is no handle on the outside of that door. God wants us to open our hearts and lives to Jesus of our own free will and when we do, He will never leave us nor forsake us.

 

We are familiar with the verses that tell us, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35) and “God loves a cheerful giver”. (II Corinthians 9:7)  We hear them whenever there is a fund raising drive by a television evangelist (every telecast) or when the sermon in our local church focuses on tithes and offerings.  God’s definition of giving goes far beyond material possessions.  God wants us to also give of ourselves.  It is a key part of loving Him and loving our neighbors as ourselves.  Robert Louis Stevenson wrote, “You can give without loving, but you can never love without giving”.

Two of the most valuable things we have to give others are our time and our full attention.  God expects us to set aside some of our time and pay full attention to Him in our worship, prayer and devotional study of His word.  He also expects us to give time and attention to those we love.  Our spouse and our children hunger for them.  It is the best investment we can make in our family’s well being.  God also expects us to give our time and attention to our brothers and sisters in Christ and to strangers who are in need.  Whenever I appear to struggle there is almost always someone who offers to help me and whether I accept their help or not, I am always so grateful that they took time out of their busy day to take an interest in my need.  A few days ago a little girl probably nine or ten years old was helping her mother put their groceries on the conveyor ahead of me. When everything was on the belt she found a divider and put it on the belt to separate their purchases from mine. I thanked her for doing that and she immediate asked if she could help me.  I accepted her offer and thanked her for her help.  I had only a few items and could have handled it myself, but I appreciated her concern and I wanted to give her the satisfaction of helping a stranger.

Another valuable gift we can give to others is our intercessory prayer, asking God to do for them what we cannot do.  “But Peter said, ‘I don’t have any silver or gold for you. But I’ll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, get up and walk!’” (Acts 3:6)  Whether it is for healing, protection, salvation or another need our prayer for them is more valuable than silver or gold.

God expects us to give ourselves to Him and to others because He first gave Himself for us.  As Jesus hung on the cross He became the first blood donor giving not just a pint to extend someone’s mortal life, but giving every drop to provide eternal life to all who believe.  In 1954, thirteen years before the first heart transplant operation, I became an organ donor when I gave my heart to Jesus Christ.

 

When I began writing weekly articles two years ago, I was sure that I would run out of material within a few months. I completed that year and now I am half way through this year of twice a week blog posts. God continues to supply the material based on the needs of my readers. If anything on my blog has encouraged or blessed you, it occurs to me you should know why, so I want to share with you the process for each post.

There are some processes that need to remain a mystery. For instance, no one really wants to see how sausage is made because it just might ruin the experience of eating it. However, I believe revealing the process I use to write my blog posts will actually enhance your appreciation as you read them.

I pray before I begin to write the draft for each post and the draft is usually completed in one sitting. Then I go back four or five times to reread and make changes before posting it. I often have two or three posts in process at a time and I pray for guidance as to which one should be posted first. Once, I had two posts written about difference aspects of the Holy Spirit. When I asked which one to post to the blog His answer was, “Both!” Then He guided me to combine the two posts. “Drop that story, replace that reference, reword that paragraph and add this testimony.” It was as if the Holy Spirit was creating a verbal selfie. I was amazed at the result. I am not kidding when I refer to the Holy Spirit as my Editor in Chief and for that reason I will never take personal credit for the encouragement or blessings inspired by my posts.

I have a computer file named “quotes” in which I place every scripture verse or passage that jumps off of the page at me (God does that to get my attention sometimes). I also list every quote of famous people that I run across that triggers interesting memories or might make a good topic for a post. Often a topic will present itself during the week, but If not I simply look over the quotes and ask God to help choose the one that will touch the most people.

Now you know the behind the scene process of producing posts for this blog. My prayer is that of the Psalmist, “O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do. Now that I am old and gray, do not abandon me, O God. Let me proclaim your power to this new generation, your mighty miracles to all who come after me.” (Psalms 71:17-18)

 

 

I am part of a generation that understands the virtues of perseverance and patience.  Virtues learned at the knees of our parents whose “greatest generation” survived the Great Depression as children and World War II as adults.  Winston Churchill was a statesman of their generation. He once said, “Success is failing again and again without losing enthusiasm.”  When asked to speak to the students at his alma mater (my generation), Churchill emphasized that they must “never, never, never, ever give up.”

Charles Spurgeon once said, “It was by perseverance that the snails reached the ark.” I am reminded of a cartoon showing a man digging a mine shaft to within inches of a mother lode of gold, only to give up and return to the surface.  Once we give up we will never know how close we were to reaching our goal.

Today’s generations have become accustomed to instant gratification.  As a young man I had three means of communicating: in-person conversations, land line dial telephones and the U.S. Postal Service.  I searched the library and encyclopedia for information.  I often shopped several stores before finding the item I wanted to purchase.  We now live in a time when technology puts communication, information and even shopping and purchasing at our fingertips.  If the wait for a table at a restaurant is 20 minutes or more, I’ve seen young people turn around and leave failing to realize if a restaurant is that popular the food might be worth the wait and it will take at least that long for them to find another restaurant with no wait.  Unfortunately for them life isn’t a sprint or dash; sometimes life is like running the high hurdles.  Henry Ford once said, “Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off the goal.”  We must take those hurdles (obstacles) in stride while never taking our eyes off of the finish line.  Most of the time, however, life is a marathon.

I fear that these impatient generations will produce fewer golden wedding anniversaries like the one Carol and I enjoyed.  A couple was asked on their 60^th anniversary for their secret to such a long marriage and the wife responded, “We were raised in a time when if something was broken we didn’t throw it away, we repaired it.” Carol and I repaired our marriage more than once and the result was a wonderful life together.  I wonder if these generations will have the perseverance and patience to mend relationships instead of simply moving on looking for that perfect person for them only to be disappointed time after time because they are not the perfect person for someone else.

I also fear our young people might even give up on their faith when the going gets tough. They need Christian parents, grandparents and local churches to encourage them to not only accept Christ as their savior but to allow the Holy Spirit to teach them these virtues. They certainly won’t learn them from today’s society.  Paul encourages all of us, “So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” (Galatians 6:9) Later in life Paul wrote, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race and I have remained faithful.” As I near the finish line of my marathon, I pray that I too will know that same joy of a race well run.