Musings of a Prodigal Son: Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas Everyone! I haven’t written in awhile because I have been distracted. I wish I could say it was all good things that distracted me but it wasn’t. As I look around and see all the things that people are going through, illnesses, deaths of loved ones, loss of jobs, major life changes that are not by choice, it somehow makes me feel inadequate to have anything much to say. But… God says we are to use the voice and gifts he has given each of us because each of us has a timely word and/or deed for someone who needs it. This is all made possible because of what we celebrate at this time of year. 

Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the Living God, the Creator of the World was born in a stable cave a little over two centuries ago. All history hinges on that single moment. That baby Jesus grew into a man, died on a Cross and ushered in the salvation of ALL who will receive Him as the first Christmas Gift. Regardless of our circumstances, we ALL have this if we will receive and “open” that gift by receiving the gift of salvation in our hearts. 

I think we are all subjected to the pressures that the holidays bring to purchase gifts that we cannot afford, to focus on things we have no business, while leaving the weightier matters undone. Things like passing someone by on the way to Christmas shopping when that person may have been the whole purpose of our “Christmas” giving. Gifts are the most appreciated by people that need them. We often give people what they don’t need while neglecting what they do. Maybe a hug, a look in the eye, a heart-felt “I Love You” is a better gift than the box of candy or even the PlayStation. I’m not saying that giving gifts is wrong but let us not detract from the things that matter most. Remember, the greatest gift some of you could ever imagine would often be one more hour with someone with whom you can no longer spend time. Make the purpose of this season to focus on things that cannot be purchased with a credit or amazon card. 

Christmas should be a time to focus on the gift that allows us to spend eternity with God and to prepare for that reality by focusing on the priceless things that are eternal, such as other people and family, that can also experience the gift that Jesus came to give us all. 

For unto us a Child is born, 
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end. 

(Isaiah 9:6-7)

Musings of a Prodigal Son: The Battle for Souls

Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and he shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is lightfor my yoke is easy and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:29-30)

There is an intensifying battle raging for the souls of all people. Particularly in our own country, the United States, there is a battle waging for the very souls of every living member of our society. With the modern marvels of the internet and an ever-expanding social network, information is being dispensed at a never before seen pace. Propaganda, much of which is false, is spreading like wildfire throughout our world. One nation under God, although a form of propaganda within itself (as we have never been completely united), has become a rare commodity as our “me” society continues to divide people for every reason while espousing to unify. There is the “I want to keep my culture”, “I want to keep my individuality” interpreted to the absurd. Everyone seems to want to assert their uniqueness but not pay the price for unity. As Jesus once stated to the Pharisees, you “strain at insignificant things (assembly, form of worship, rules, etc.)  but leave the greater things (visiting the sick, those in need, sharing the gospel with the hurting by loving them and ministering to them, taking care of the elderly, etc.) undone…” Even the individual has not escaped this rampant movement to de-unify. Many individuals have conflict within themselves and now have trouble identifying themselves. Absolute and obvious truths are ignored. Every truth is relative, and no one wants to take any responsibilities for living out objective truths. Everything is about the individual until it is time to take responsibility for something and suddenly the individual is a victim of another individual. We are fast approaching a season when everyone is a “victimizer” and everyone is also a “victim” of something. As responsibility for actions and accountability fades in our society, chaos is on the rise. What do we do? We blame each other. We choose to listen to the information that only supports the lies that we have already bought into. We further separate from one another while discussing how we are becoming better as a people and more “enlightened” than we have ever been in the past. Suicide, Murder, Rape, Mental Illness, and a whole host of other problems continue to increase at alarming rates. The Church has become a silent bystander as we are now two generations into the “lets take care of our own” mentality. Churches have been resting stops for the weary (and sometimes not weary but lazy) Christian as a rule for the last 50 years. The radical message of the New Testament to “go into all the world (which includes our next door neighbor), has been somewhat forgotten except for the occasional mission offering. Our Lives have focused on us. Not them. Not the focus of Jesus. As a result, the stagnation that has resulted in the condition of many modern churches has led to their closing or a membership so meager that they struggle to keep the lights on week to week. As isolation becomes rampant we retreat to our Amazon served homes and come out only to go to work, the occasional outing, and to any number of “fun” activities. Pop Psychology has replaced prayer, self-help seminars have replaced fasting, and movies have replaced preaching. Making the gospel a modern production is the quest of the day to compete with the other forms of entertainment. But where is the power? Where is the conviction of Sin? Where is thirst for righteousness? Where is the deliverance from persistent Sin? The bottom line is: Where is the Holy Spirit? Where are the changed lives?

Did you know that most public schools, even those in rural areas, have many students who laugh at the Cross of Christ and consider the gospel message an outdated myth? With the information of falsehood flowing rampantly on the internet, many of these students are witnessing more to these things than many Christians are standing up for their faith. There are many other students who believe that with more education, they “outgrow” the beliefs of the Bible and that Christianity (and the Church) is just one of many “institutions” that are a hold-over from a less enlightened age? Colleges and Universities have positioned themselves as “enlightened” institutions that subtlety(often brazenly) contradict the teachings of God’s Word. Christianity, for many Christians, has become more of a label than a life-changing experience. 

And we wonder why we have so many problems We wonder why there is so much depravity in the world. The “enlightened of this present world” don’t stand a chance against the forces of evil. Only God in Christ can overcome the world. Only a heart change can make the world better. Billy Graham said it best in one of the last messages he preached when he said that America and the World will not survive without a true revival among the people of God that brings conviction of such power that Christians recommit again to God and many that are lost turn to Him in Faith through His Son Jesus Christ. Only Prayer and Fasting can bring this about. Are we willing to do it? Or will we keep our heads in the sand and believe that “this too shall pass”. The only thing that can change our nation now is an outpouring of the Spirit of God in such power that lives are radically changed and those who profess Christ take a stand and put on his yoke. We have to choose. Jesus said take my yoke. It’s easy to take his yoke. We simply believe and follow (obey) him. The Heavy Burden of watching the world crumple around those we love will become lighter as we watch Him change what only HE can change. Deception begins to lose its power in light of the Truth overflowing in those who know Him. 

Revive us again;
Fill each heart with Thy love;
May each soul be rekindled
With fire from above.

Hallelujah! Thine the glory.
Hallelujah! Amen.
Hallelujah! Thine the glory.
Revive us again.

Musings of a Prodigal Son: Radical Faith, Radical Purpose

It would seem that the gulf between what it means to be a Christian and what is acceptable in our society is widening. It is becoming more and more radical for us to live the “normal” Christian life. To express one’s beliefs and faith is often labeled as being intolerant. It often amazes me that those who espouse to be the most tolerant are often the most intolerant of all. It seems that everyone is free to express their own beliefs, no matter how radical they may be, unless they are Christian. If you are Christian and express what you really believe, it is not accepted in our society. Christians have gone to “church” and remained passive for too long. Instead of going to “church”, it is time for Christians to be “The Church.” In an age where intellectualism has educated people “beyond” Christianity, our society has digressed to new depths as old problems have continued to increase. Suicides, Divorce, Drug Addiction, and many other problems have increased. As we have become more “enlightened” our problems have become greater. Since right and wrong are now relative in our society, many don’t seem to have any anchor on which to moor their life. The result is chaos with no unified purpose. Man was not created to self-serve. He was created to help all of creation have fellowship with God. I see many entries on the internet, particularly social media, of people who have been hurt by others who claim to follow Christ. The result has been to throw Christianity out the window because some who have a religious spirit have judged others instead of loving them. This type of religious spirit was the same thing that Jesus confronted while on this earth and that the Holy Spirit inspires Christians today to confront. Religion has never been the way to God. Religion is often man’s idea of how God wants us to be. Christianity is about a relationship with Jesus. It is about receiving a sacrifice because none of us measure up. None of us WILL measure up in the future no matter how much we “learn.” Real Christianity is about receiving Christ and letting Him change us from the inside out. Why are we constantly searching for something that will change us from the outside in? (i.e. education, pop psychology, philosophy, etc.). Man’s best thinking got him into this jam and certainly will not get him out of it. Man, since the beginning of time has rebelled against a truth outside himself that he must adhere to. We like to map our own course. No matter how many times we crash the ship of life into the rocks, we still want to navigate. Christianitysays there is a truth outside of ourselves that is to navigate (guide) us. There are only two choices. We continue to rebel, or we surrender to the truth and live by it. Three things need to be shared in urgency: 1) Don’t let anyone convince you that you are being intolerant for proclaiming and believing in a truth outside of yourself. 2) Love Your Neighbor As Yourself (no matter how difficult he or she may be). Remember, you were very difficult,and God saved you. You didn’t do anything to deserve it and had no merit within yourself. God loved you simply because he did. Be radical enough to love others that way. The only way to truly love others in that way is to spend time with God who loves them unconditionally just as he loves you. True love for others is an overflow of His Love. Pray for others, worship God, read His Word. 3)Share Truth with Others in Love. Don’t share it if you can’t do it in love. If you do, you will continue to foster that religious spirit that pushes people away from Christ (from God). Share it in Love and watch it change OTHERS. Share it in Love and watch it change YOU. 

Radical times call for Radical Faith and Radical purpose.

Musings of a Prodigal Son: Don't Let Ministry Pass You By

"But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own; that you should show forth the praises of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9)

"See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil." (Ephesians 5:15-16)

Most of you reading this blog have heard that all who have put their faith and trust in Jesus are a kingdom of Priests (royal priesthood) and ministry is the responsibility and privilege of us all.

On a Tuesday night approximately 2 months ago, as Michelle and I were getting ready to leave to go to a Bible Study sponsored by one of the couples of our church, my neighbor  stopped on the sidewalk next to my car. When I said hello to him, he proceeded to tell me that he was not doing so well as his wife had passed away approx 2 weeks prior. Michelle, who was already in the car, met me on the sidewalk and we prayed with our neighbor who I will call Mr. B. We had also begun a Bible Study with my mom (she was visiting us at the time) and Mr. B was invited to attend our Bible study which was every other Tuesday (we alternated Tuesdays in order to attend the one by the couple in our church). Since he was hurting, he was also invited to attend a Bible Study at our home the next night (which was Wednesday).  It was obvious at that first encounter that he was hurting deeply as he and his wife had been married for 47 years prior to her death. Once he met with us, we discovered that he and his wife did missionary work in other countries for many years serving in an administrative capacity for the distribution of Bible materials for a major denomination. They had recently retired and leased the home next door to us and were having a home built in a neighboring city. His wife had died unexpectedly from a major stroke. As we begun the Bible Study in our home, it became apparent that it was also a ministry time for us as a co-worker also joined us along with my mother. Mr. B continued with us bi-weekly until  approximately two weeks ago. He was there every every other Tuesday and did not miss at all. Two weeks ago, mom prayed for him in his grief as it was apparent that she was anointed to do so, having gone through something similar in regard to my father approximately 11 years ago. On that night, Mr. B lingered at our home after the Bible Study and talked with me at length. He began to share his hurt and grief. He also discussed his service time as he was an Egyptian Soldier during the 6 Days War of 1967. He expressed many difficult things as his grief let many barriers down for him. It  was obvious that his heart was broken and he missed his wife greatly. He expressed that he appreciated our group and that he considered us dear friends.

Last night, as we prepared for the Bible Study and our co-worker arrived, Mr. B did not come to our door at 7pm the way that he normally did. I told Michelle and the other participant that I was going to walk over to his home to remind him. (he told me that if he ever forgot, to please remind him). So I went to his home and his son answered the door. He preceded to tell me that his father had passed away on Sunday at Church. He told me that he believes that his father died of a broken heart and one of the things that brought him the most comfort after his wife's death was our Bible Study. He stated that His Father looked forward to it and benefited from meeting with us greatly. So, approximately 2 months after his wife's death, Mr. B joined her in paradise with our Lord Jesus Christ. Now they rejoice and fellowship together in Heaven. As I arrived back at our home to began the Bible Study, we spent time discussing the impact that Mr. B had on our lives the short time we were allowed to meet with him. We reminded each other of the importance of ministering to each other in the name of the Lord Jesus. We were also reminded that our paths and purpose are often only seen when we look back. We certainly did not think that the meeting we had with him the previous week would be our last on this side of heaven. The fact that he lived next door to us and we could have easily not known anything about him or his pain reminded me again that there are so many people close to each of us who need ministry and healing in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Next time you see your neighbor, look again. Really look. Next time you are in the grocery stores and someone lingers next to you and that voice inside you tells you to say, "hello", do it. The next time that voice inside you says to tell that person that you are happy to see them today, do it. It may be their life line until Jesus calls them home.

Musings of a Prodigal Son - You Can’t Go Back

Two things happened this week. Well, more than two but two of enough significance that it prompted me to do some thinking. The first is I saw some old friends in Tennessee on vacation the other day that I have not seen in years. They sure looked older. As I am writing this, I know they probably thought the same thing when they saw me. I knew them at a time when my life was so much more acceptable and defined, my identity more established. My friendship with them was forged on both good times and bad. As the saying goes, steel sharpens steel. That would have been an adequate summation of our relationship. The ironic thing is that even though almost 20 years have past, my love for them is as fresh as when I saw them often and there was the recognized bond of friendship. When I saw them this time, there was an element of sadness. There was a bridge I could not cross. There was a gulf I could not breach. My Love remains as strong for them as ever. That is probably the reason that thinking about this is so painful. I longed for something just out of my reach.

You see, they were a part of my life when I was married to someone else. When I had another identity to them. Although I am the same person that they once knew in the core of my being, I have a different identity now. What they call me has even changed. I was once Bro. Rodney, now I am just Rodney to them. The subtle difference is not lost on me. I have also grown in many ways and changed. So have they. In truth, the person they knew is back somewhere on the road of experience. I so want to pick up where we left off. But we can't. All any of us can do is to embrace what we have in the moment. If we spent time together now, we could build something different. But it will never be the same. It can't be. Seeing people who you fought battles and shared life with after a long time can make  you want to go back. Not in every way but just back to that close relationship you had with friends. When you see them though, there is the realization of the fact that you can't go back. You can't be everything you were and neither can they. There is Joy but also sadness. The pieces of the puzzle do not fit. 

I believe that this is another consequence of our sin. I believe that the rare fire of friendship and fellowship in Christ closes the gap that life changes cause. We spend our lives diverging from each other as we sin. When we come face to face again with those relationships in this life that have transcended that barrier, we are keenly aware if the gap has developed since our last encounter. We see through a glass darkly, but we shall see Him as He is. Not just Him, but Him in us. You see, the thing that made the bond so strong with these friends was Christ. He never changed. I did. They did. He did not. The bond I miss is Him in them and they miss He in me.  I so miss the aspect of Christ that He allowed me to see in them. It is still there. I wanted to spend time around it again. In them. And for a brief moment, I was able to.

The other thing that happened is that my good friend and former Pastor passed away unexpectedly the day before Thanksgiving. He was in his early 60s and the picture of good health. Haven’t seen him in several years since Michelle and I moved to Orlando. He was the Associate Pastor of a church in Miami for many years (over 20). He had retired within the past year to fulfill a dream he had and he and his wife had moved to Alaska, purchased a Bed and Breakfast,and were in the process of running it. I’m quite sure it was a ministry to them. I had visited our grandson in Miami in the recent past and visited the church hoping to see him but discovered he had moved to Alaska with his wife. We had talked of pastoring a church together if God had willed. I met him just after my engagement to Michelle as he was the Pastor that we approached about counseling and performing our marriage. He began meeting with us and after a time, performed our marriage ceremony (twice). We were married in private at our home with some family that were not able to attend the formal ceremony. Then a few weeks later, we were married in the church. He and I became fast friends. We talked openly with each other about our failings and the bountiful Grace of God. I found him to be one of the least judgemental people I have ever met. We laughed, we cried, we touched that part of each other that only Christ makes possible. I have talked to Michelle many times since we moved about how much I missed him and wanted to reconnect to fellowship in Christ. Below is the last text I sent him on August 19:

         “Hey! Went to visit you today at Upper Room. I am happy for you but had a deep level of sadness when I asked one of the members where y’all are and she told me y’all had moved to Alaska. Please stay in touch with me. I haven’t had the sense of brotherhood that I had with you since I moved to Orlando. You have a special place in both mine and Michelle’s heart. Y’all are always welcome to vacation in our home in Orlando. Miss you.”

 You see, because of my own failings, I have difficulty trusting people and have a difficult time being vulnerable with them. He was someone I showed “all the dirt” to and He still exuded Christ to me and made me want to serve the Lord. Those are rare gems. When we find them in this life, we should hang on to them until the Lord calls them or us home.

I have often thought, since leaving Miami, in the back of my mind of the hope that one day we might be in the same place with our wives ministering together. But God called him home. I wanted to go back and rekindle the fellowship we had. I can’t go back. Neither can you.  All we can do is take full advantage of today and be thankful for those precious people who showed us Jesus. One day we’ll see him as He is. They will too. Some already have.

Musings of a Prodigal Son: Leaving a Legacy

 I need your prayers for His guidance. As I mentioned previously, I have considered going back to school following my retirement from the VA in a few years. I love to teach. I also love to Preach. I have never lost the desire to do it. I am a pastor not by my own devices but by a gifting from the Spirit of God that has been squelched much of my adult life. Sometimes all I want to do is move back to Alabama or some other rural area and pastor a small church. The older I get, the less all the hustle and bustle mean to me. My greatest fear is reaching the end of my life, whether in near or distant future, and having not fulfilled my life’s purpose or destiny. Don’t get me wrong, I am confident in my relationship with my heavenly Father. This is due to my reliance and trust in the worthiness of His Son, Jesus Christ. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever and he makes me a child of God. However, I want to have fulfilled my destiny in this present realm. Glimpses of that life come to me as I work in the profession that I currently work in. There are times when I can reach out to someone and even pray for someone in my current context. Those are the times I fill most fulfilled and that I believe that my life has the most meaning. To minister in this realm however, means that people must have confidence in your ability to lead. Often my decisions have affected peoples confidence in me to lead. What I am learning, however, is that God’s design was never determined by our choices, it was and is determined by His wonderful plan.

Watchman Nee, who I consider a great Chinese Christian Philosopher and anointed teacher, stated in his book The Normal Christian Life, “We are not sinners because we have sinned. We sin because we are sinners.” In other words, we are lost (born into) and can do nothing about it but God through Jesus Christ made a way.

As in one man, all die. So in one man (Jesus) shall all be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:22)

That takes care of the “standing” problem. Salvation (simple faith and trust in Jesus Christ as the only way to the Father) takes care of the fact that I am a sinner. However, it does not put to death the flesh. That is my struggle. My flesh is very much alive. As long as it is, for me to live the way that I am describing above, it must be crucified (according to the Bible). The cross provides for that. My problem often has been my reluctance to allow the “good” parts of my flesh to be crucified daily on the cross. I just want the “bad” crucified. So, I have lived much of my adult life in frustration. The things I want to accomplish, I find myself not doing. The things that seem right to me, which lead to disappointment and unfulfillment, are the things I do. They are not necessarily “bad” things, they are just not the best things. They are not the God Breathed and Holy Spirit Anointed Things. As I am writing this I am remembering the countless times I have sang the congregational hymn, “I surrender all.” While I have sang this, I have often thought about all the “bad” things that need to be surrendered, but not the “good” things. The song says, I surrender ALL.”

What about my intellect, my wit, my personality? Not to mention my career (livelihood), my marriage, my children, my hopes, my dreams? Will God not bless those “good” things? Doesn’t he NEED them? The answer to that question is NO. He never has and he never will. Those are simply earthly characteristics that were derived from my time in this realm as an earthly man. They are the result of genetics and environment. They are the natural progression of my earthly abode. The inner man, where true change takes place, needs no personality or vehicle of communication other than the Spirit of God. The only way that I can access the Spirit of God fully is to die to everything else daily. I can’t make it die. Jesus provided the way when he died on the cross. I am to take up my cross daily and my flesh will be crucified. So simple, so profound. Jesus said that it would be easier for a camel to go through a narrow space (a needles eye-which is a narrow-short doorway) than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The reason is that for those who are rich, they may nobly want God to use their riches and deem that to be good. No. God wants them to give up OWNERSHIP of their riches. Now that is extremely difficult to do. It doesn’t mean just telling God that it is all his, it means becoming unattached to it so that one is free to be molded into whatever the Father deems is needed and purposed. Surrender.

I’m not rich, so it is not my riches that interfere with my relationship with God but the principle is still the same. My issues are those characteristics that I am praised for in my life: my personality, my ability to talk with people, my intellect, my security. Yours may be the same or different. Anything that I depend on must suffer crucifixion if I am to be what God intended me to be. It is not an exchange that takes place in this physical realm that we live in but one that takes place in the heavenlies. That is why sometimes when people truly “give things to God” they don’t lose possession of them IN THIS REALM, (although they often do), but if they have been truly given to God, they lose all ties to them in the spiritual where true transactions take place.

We have it backwards in our scientifically influenced minds. We think that the physical controls the spiritual. But in reality, the spiritual controls the physical. I know we theoretically “know” in Christian circles that the spiritual controls the physical, however, the way we live determines whether or not we are aligned with that truth and it reveals what we truly believe.

An example may be prudent here. Have you ever ridden into a community and “sensed” the evil there? Have you actually felt the oppression and knew that the spiritual forces in operation there were mainly evil? In those kinds of places, the physical world follows the dominion of whatever spiritual forces are in power there. The conflicts and solutions to problems in our world are often truly hidden from us because we can’t see the spiritual because of the issues I outlined in my own life above. There has been no daily alignment with our death on the cross. Notice I said, “Our death on the cross.” We don’t have to put our flesh to death, it has already died in Christ. We just have to walk in that “flesh death.” I have tried to put my flesh to death many times and been unsuccessful. Th Bible doesn’t tell me to do that. I have assumed that I must put it to death but the Bible tells me otherwise. The Bible tells me that I have already been cruicified with Christ and it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives within me. What I am told to do is to walk in the Spirit. My flesh died on the cross. If I walk in the Spirit, I will be agreeing with what Christ ALREADY accomplished on the cross. It is not a question of standing (salvation). It is an issue of fruitfulness. Surrender. That is truly the problem. The Battle is truly over. All that is left is surrender.  Without it, our senses are dulled to only discern what is in the physical realm. Surrender means no understanding of what we are surrendering (who can discern the mind of the Spirit?). It means just that, Surrender. When we surrender, we are led in the triumph of our Victor. We were NEVER supposed to know where we are going but we can TRUST our victor to get us there!

The prophet Elisha asked God to open the eyes of his servant so that he could see the spiritual realm (2 Kings 6:17-20). Jesus asked that the disciples and those listening would have “listening ears and seeing eyes.” (7 times and only Jesus said this). He wasn’t talking about eyes and ears attuned to the cries of “crucify him” but rather ears that hear, “Lo I am with you always, even to the ends of the earth.”

 

This is the answer to my struggle: The gulf between what I could be and what I am is a question of surrender. 

What about you?

 

Musings of a Prodigal Son - Life is Still Short

“...What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” (James 4:14)

The contents of an earlier entry are posted in quotations below. As I read these words again, I thought about many we have lost since the time that I typed the words below in early July 2016. Just two short years and so many losses. 

It is a wonderful thing to have grown up in a small community. I have worked in several large cities in my adult life and live in a relatively large one now. When conversations of “where are you from?” come up, I have always been rather proud to tell people where I am from. Sometimes, people would say things like, “I wouldn’t want to live in a small town where everyone knows everyone else’s business.” When people have said this, I’ve just smiled because there is no need in trying to explain the warmth you feel from knowing people and seeing how much they care when a community crisis occurs, such as the death of one of our own. People can’t understand who haven’t experienced it.

As I reflect on our small community, I am reminded that many have passed on even since I typed the entry that I referenced above. Several high school friends, some my age, some younger, some older, and several prominent community members have gone on. People of importance for everyone is important to someone. Years ago, no one would have ever thought about them not “being there.” Some have been lost to illness, some to tragedy, some to old age. Several have been lost in our little community in a very short span of time. No matter what the cause of the end of our life, life truly is short. This is a fact no matter how many years we are given. Even at my age, I am reminded that I have lived more years than I have left even in the best of circumstances. Tomorrow is not promised to any of us. As Solomon stated in the book of Ecclesiastes, life is a brief shadow(here today gone tomorrow). Nothing we place value in that is a part of this realm will remain. The only thing important is our salvation (only in Christ Jesus) and the impact we leave on other people. Even that impact will fade with time as those people in turn impact others. As the man of God stated, “Days Born of a Woman are Few and Full of Trouble” (Job 14:1)

Times like these remind us that time spent with others is more important than time spent with things, preparation for the life to come becomes more important than our meager investments in the world of now, giving becomes more important than receiving—because giving has lasting value both in this world and the one to come, wisdom from heaven becomes much more important than the knowledge of the world, the profession of our faith is more important than the profession of our career. 

(Post from July 6, 2016)

“I am sitting here writing this feeling somewhat numb. Just got the news a few minutes ago that a friend of mine from high school was killed in an automobile accident. He was a few years older (3) than myself and I really looked up to him in school. He was the quarterback of our local small town high school football team. I was also coming along as a young quarterback at that time and I looked up to him as a result. I remember having knee reconstruction surgery when I was 13 y/o and he and another team member, also a friend, made me a stool to prop my knee on while I watched the games (since I was only days removed from surgery). He was a nice guy. We grew up playing "pickup games" of football in each other's yards and also on the school football field. He graduated and moved on to bigger and better things, eventually becoming a helicopter pilot transporting those critically injured from hospital to hospital or from crash site to hospital to get the medical care they needed. I even read from another friend on facebook that he had recently went on a mission trip to another country with his wife. He had several children. He had several brothers and sisters, one of which was one of my best friends in high school. I remember his robust laugh and his sense of humor. Subsequently, I have read many accounts on facebook of his impact on many lives that his life touched through the years. His earthly life is over. In a hundred years, no one will remember that he was a quarterback, a helicopter pilot, of any of the things that the world places "significance" on. Rather, something else will remain. 

I am sure that many of you reading this will have similar stories of friends who left "unexpectedly" or too early from your perspective. We get so busy going through our everyday lives that we often do not take the time to think about how fragile life really is. We can be here one instance and gone the next. It is at times like these that we are reminded not to put off telling those that we love and care about the things we need to tell them. It is also a time of reflection on what is really important in life. Not the homes we live in, the cars we drive, the gadgets we accumulate, but rather the relationships we foster and the hereafter that we prepare for. What's important in this life comes down to basically two things: 1)Our impact and influence on others. 2)Making preparation for what comes after. 

Having an impact on others is the primary purpose of what we call our earthly life. It is not dependent on the things we possess, the jobs we work, or the knowledge that we accumlate. Rather, it is contingent on time spent investing in the lives of others. This includes family, acquaintances,and strangers. Little things in this regard often have lasting consequences. For instance, a kind word spoken to a stranger may be the difference in that person giving up and taking their life or being inspired to carry on and in turn influencing others for the good. 

Another important thing is preparing for what comes after. This is always a faith endeavor. It requires that we believe in something that we cannot physically see. For Christians, this means putting our faith and trust in Jesus Christ as the only way to God. Acceptance of the free gift of salvation with the realization that nothing we do merits God's favor but an acceptance of what Jesus did for each of us on the cross, asking God to forgive us of our sins, and turning to Him as the One true God. I know, it doesn't sound reasonable. How can it be that simple? Faith my friend. Believing what God says in the Bible as true.

A successful life, no matter how short or long we may think it is, comes down to these two simple truths: 1)investment in others 2)Faith in Jesus as the way of salvation. 

I'm thankful that my friend seemed to realize this and he made these investments. After all, these are the only things that truly remain.