Done Deal

Anybody who knows me knows two things about me. I am passionate about prayer and I am passionate about God getting glory for doing the seemingly impossible in answer to prayer. Brenda and I have been blessed to see many answers to prayer over the past eighteen years we have been married. Some large ones and some that might not seem like a big deal to others but were continued reminders to us that God hears and God comes through.

There have been many times when either the answers to prayer did not come or at least they did not come in the timely manner we had hoped they would. We have had to learn the often painful lesson of waiting on God. Days have turned into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years. I can still remember asking the Lord for His will and for things that did not come.

[Luke 18:1] exhorts us to always keep praying and not to lose heart. That is pretty easy to read but much harder to live out. Our faith soars when the answer comes in a timely manner. On the other hand, our faith sinks like the Titanic when the answer to our prayers does not come. Abraham got a first hand lesson in waiting on God for his promised heir in Genesis 16-21. For over two decades he waited and waited. He at times grew impatient and took matters into His own hand like following through with Sarai’s plan to give Hagar (her maid servant) to Abraham for a wife so she could conceive and have a child to be the legitimate heir. Everything went according to plan accept God did not bless it. It was not His will.

Waiting on God is not always a pleasant experience but it is profitable. It builds enduring faith. At times God’s delays give Him more glory such as the death and resurrection of Lazarus. [Jn 11] We may not understand on the front end what the Lord is doing but His glory will be furthered if we wait long enough and trust Him.

We as a family have prayed and prayed waiting on God. I recall the many times the boys and I would sit around the breakfast table discussing verses from the Bible and then taking those verses to God in prayer. We prayed and waited. At times those things we had asked God for seemed so close only to fall through our fingers.

I received a phone call yesterday that once again allowed me to have a front row seat to behold the Faithfulness of God. Our realtor called us and told us we were ready to close on our house. We had been praying for our own home from even before we actually moved to Paradise. We looked at many over our four years there but the door never opened. When we moved to Seminole we knew we had to find a place to live since there was no parsonage. We have lived in the vacant mission house for the past three months but missionaries are coming to live in that house in June.

All of our stuff still remains in storage. We have prayed and prayed. We came to town with less than two thousand dollars in our savings account. We started looking at houses in faith knowing that only God could make that happen. On the first day we looked at close to a dozen houses. Out of all those one of the last ones really stuck out. It was not an extravagant house but that suited us because Brenda and I are not extravagant people. It was way out of our price range and it was only a three bedroom house.

We looked at so many houses they at times began to run together except for the one of 2112 NW Ave B. That is the one house we could never get out of our minds. We prayed for wisdom and then were disappointed to learn that someone else put a contract on that house. As we continued to look we did not find anything. More praying and more waiting ensued. Let me remind you that while we were waiting we were still asking God for His provision to make our getting into a home a reality. It would take a miracle for us even to be able to have money to put down on a home.

Several weeks after we moved to Seminole the first miracle happened. We were given a check by anonymous donors in the amount of $7,800. Hallelujah. We kept praying and waiting and then we received another gift for $500. During this time we found a house we liked with two exceptions. The house did not have a shower or bath in the master bedroom and there was no garage. We looked at that house two different times and were just about ready to make an offer on it when our realtor told us the contract had fallen through on the house we really liked. It was still priced out of our league but I went back by myself to look at it as Brenda was tied up and could not come with me. Each time I walked into that home it felt right. There was peace in my heart. It is located in a great part of town. It was completely updated. The only two set backs were the price and the fact that it was only a three bedroom hosue.

As we were in the middle of praying about what to do a third miracle happened. I have blogged about this miracle in the one titled “Numbers”. A loving couple from the church dropped by one Saturday while I was watching some college football and Brenda was napping. They did not stay long but handed us a card. They told us the Lord had been dealing with them about doing that for a long time. I opened the card and there was a personal check for $5,000 made out to us to help buy a home. I was stunned to say the least. Brenda could not see the card but knew by the look on my face that they had done something extremely sacrificial and had been very generous.

We decided to put feet to our faith and to make an offer on the house we had most liked on NW Ave B. We decided we could close in the formal living room to make a four bedroom house and got a bid on that. We made an offer and the sellers countered offer. We then made another offer and they countered offer again. Brenda and I felt a peace the Lord was giving us the green light and we signed a contract contingent on our getting financing. We signed a contract for $13,000 below what the house appraised for.

God worked and it all went off without a hitch. This is when my realtor called yesterday afternoon and told me we could close the deal yesterday if we had time. We reworked our schedules and signed the papers and closed the deal. It was a day of celebration and a long answered prayer when they handed me the keys and the garage door openers. I thought of all the years we had been praying and waiting on God since we sold our home in Hudson, TX and moved to Paradise where we lived in the parsonage for the next four years.

After school we took the boys to the house. They have been waiting anxiously until we can get moved. We opened the garage door and went into the house. It was the first time Taylor had ever been inside. We all gathered in the empty living room and I told the boys to close their eyes. When they opened them I showed them the keys and told them the house was ours.

They were excited as they looked around. Taylor was taking it all in and was especially pleased when I showed him where his bedroom would be. After everyone had a chance to walk around, including Annabelle, we assembled on the back porch as a family sitting on the patio furniture that was generously left behind for us. By the sellers I asked the boys to remember all those days we had prayed around our breakfast table in faith asking the Lord to bless us with a house. I reminded them of how faithful our God was and that at long last God answered and the house was a done deal. I asked what they thought we ought to do next and Tucker piped up, “We aught to pray and thank God.”

That was exactly what I had in mind. We sat on our new back porch and each one in our family prayed and thanked God for His miracle in providing us a house. We dedicated the house to the Lord to be used for ministry purposes. We prayed in faith for the many deep spiritual conversations that would take place in that home and for all the friends the boys would have over. We asked the Lord for His protection and that the boys would grow fond memories of life in Seminole like they made in our time in Paradise. It was a sweet time as a family to celebrate the goodness of the Lord in the month of November with Thanksgiving just a few weeks away.

Once we get the remodeling done on adding the fourth bedroom we will be set to move in right in time for Christmas. Brenda’s family will be coming to visit and to celebrate Christmas with us. It will be a joyous occasion as we get to share our new home and show the new church and the community we now call home.

As I sit here early this Saturday morning taking it all in what the Lord has done for me and my family I am overwhelmed. I think about how the Lord used some wonderful people in our lives in East Texas to support us and help us minister. I think about the loving people from FBC Paradise and the Paradise community who captured our hearts and prayers even to this day. We will never forget that flock and how they blessed us over and over again and up to the very end were used by God to provide my truck. Though God has moved us our bond with those precious people will endure. My mind now drifts to the loving people from FBC Seminole who have demonstrated their affections and support for my family by not only calling me as their pastor and encouraging us with letters, cards, emails, and kind deeds but who have loved with more than words in being used by the Lord to make this miracle house a reality. It is a done deal. I cannot wait to begin using that home as a place of ministry. Once again God has allowed Benda and I to have the desire of our hearts. [Ps 37:4] We have delighted in Him. He is more than provider of trucks, houses, and so forth. He is our King and we delight in Him more than His gifts.

If you are ever feeling down and your faith is shrinking in the midst of your trials or your waiting on God, I invite you to drive by 2112 NW Ave B in Seminole, TX and notice the house. Stop and remind yourself that the Edwards family prayed for that house for close to four and a half years before they had even heard of FBC Seminole. Look at the black four door truck in the drive way that was prayed for seven months. Let the faithfulness of God sink into your souls. Come and knock on the door if you need to and let us show you around a true miracle house. Let Taylor tell you how the Lord answered his prayer by allowing him to have a room of his own for the first time in his fourteen years of living. Let Brenda walk you through the house testifying of how the Lord has blessed her. Let me take you into the back yard where we entertain and on the back porch where I sit often to read, pray, and meditate. Let me tell you how hard it was to wait and to trust but how God came through. Let us pray with you over your situation and by faith believe with you it too will become a done deal.

A Basket Full of Love

I am not sure where the idea originated other than the heart of God but a group of people rallied around the idea of taking common everyday laundry baskets and filling them with groceries and household items. These baskets were offered on the altar of the church and then each family was challenged to take their baskets and an address they were given and to deliver their baskets on a Sunday afternoon.

I will not forget one elderly gentleman in our church who testified about knocking on the door of a house and simply telling the residents, “We have a basket filled with love for you.” It was a very simple act but it touched so many people. Mainly those who delivered the baskets. It is truly more blessed to give than to receive. [Acts 20:35]

It really takes so very little to make a difference. John wrote in [I Jn 3:17-18] “But whoever has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? Little children let us not love in word or tongue but in deed and truth.”

Churches are often good at telling communities they love them but do a poorer job of putting that love into action. O, I have seen love shared by churches with my very own eyes. I have witnessed people rally together to rebuild houses devastated by fire or floods. I have seen thousands on top of thousands of dollars given to those who were in need. I have witnessed churches dispersing clothing and school supplies for those needing some assistance. Churches have met the needs and even fulfilled the Christmas wishes of children who would otherwise have gone without as well as sending shoe boxes filled with love, toys, and clothing all over the world wit organizations like Samaritan’s Purse.

When the church of the Lord Jesus really rallies together to love their communities and the world it is a beautiful thing. On the other hand, when churches become so focused on building their own kingdom that they do not meet the needs right under the shadow of their steeples this is tragic. There are hurting people all around us and if we choose not to look with spiritual eyes we will look right past them at our beautiful steeples and buildings and miss the point all together.

I am not advocating the social gospel where we meet physical needs and stop right there. I am thinking that meeting spiritual needs is just an avenue to tell people the great news that God offers forgiveness for mistakes and morale blunders. In a world filled with negative and violent news I think this is a welcome change. We meet physical needs in order to have the open door to meet spiritual needs. [Mark 2:1-12]

It was just an ordinary laundry basket. God took those little white baskets and moved people to fill them with canned goods, baked cooking items, clothing, books, snack foods for children and it was all done in the name of Jesus. Those simple baskets were prayed over and filled with more than food, they were filled with love. I love that man’s introduction as he and his wife stood at the door of complete strangers and said, “We have a basket filled with love for you.”

It was just a simple gesture but it was doing something. We have this world’s goods and we know that people are often in need. The fact that we cannot meet every need in the world individually as well as corporately should not keep us from doing something!

Baskets of love should not be an event but rather an ongoing lifestyle. We should walk in the Spirit asking the Lord to open our spiritual eyes to see needs and then we must be willing to sacrifice and give to meet those needs. At times that might mean money. It might mean physical labor to help with house repairs or yard work. It might mean giving a bag of groceries or clothes. When we all do a little it can turn into a big deal collectively.

What needs are in front of you? What is the Lord calling you to do to meet those needs? Do you need to rally the troops where you are to make a difference? It doesn’t take much. A basket filled with love can go a long way.

Blending Into the Shadows

I have two burdens on my heart for this blog. One concerns how people are left to blend into the shadows of life the older and less mobile they get. The other one is how we have a tendency to drift into the dark corners of life when we are not walking in fellowship with the Lord.

Let’s address the first. As a pastor I have spent a good deal of time ministering to senior adults in hospitals or homes. I have listened to their stories and have often thought about the real possibility staring at me that one day I may grow old and I may not be as mobile. It is not a pleasant thought. It reminds me of a conversation I had with my pastor back in Lufkin, TX many years ago.

It was a Sunday night and as he and I sat on the front pew before the start of the service he began speaking very candidly to me. He told me that some of the most lonely people in the world are retired pastors. After they retire a new pastor eventually comes to take his place and begins to build his own memories with the flock. Soon people no longer need their former pastor and soon forget about him for the most part. Life moves on. The retired pastor often has trouble at this point. The older he gets his health may become more frail but fewer and fewer former church members will stop by to visit or call to check on him though he may have spent decades doing the same things for the flock.

My pastor then looked me in the eye asked me to promise him that once he retired and I would always check in on him. I made that promise and do not want him to see his last days blending into the dark shadows of life unseen and forgotten. He has had a tremendous impact on me and therefore I want to honor that impact by not letting him be forgotten. I know the church he has pastored for over thirty years will not let that happen either.

It is a stark reminder that I am growing older too. With each passing year I can feel the effects of old age creeping on. They might not be apparent to others but I see the signs coming. One day I could be the one alone, forgotten, and no longer needed. How do I want people to treat me in those days? That motivates me want to be a better pastor.

There are so many people in society who were once productive members. They worked, volunteered, gave, sacrificed, and served their local church. Many of them wish they could be just as active as they always were yet their health fails them. Their minds may still have the want to but their bodies just cannot physically do what they once did. They do not have the energy to keep on the go and so they sit alone. They hope and pray someone will remember them and long for a phone call, a drop in visitor, or a card or letter in the mail. Days of disappointment often turn into weeks and weeks into months. Before long, years have passed and a whole new generation comes on the scene that do not even know the aging saints who gave so much of themselves and their money to the church. When their names are mentioned new members give blank stares. We must not let these people blend into the shadows. We must make some time periodically to go, to sit and to listen. We must simply remember and love. [Jn 13:34-35] We must be available to those in the shadows of life. [Matt 25:31-40]

I am also extremely burdened for those who drift away from the Lord and lurk in the shadows of life embracing their sin and the shame that comes with it in the darkness. Sinful deeds are openly done in the darkness. We think no one sees and we think we can hide our wickedness but God sees all. There is nowhere we can run from His presence. Sons and daughters of the light can even grow accustomed to living in the shadows because their deeds are evil.

I recently received a phone call from a distraught mother who was burdened for one of her children. I had preached an event for his youth group many years ago and she called asking me to pray and to call this child. I have done both but this child is still lurking in the shadows. Only God can bring him back. How easily we give up on those who drift away. It is awkward. We don’t know what to say and inevitably say too much or nothing at all. We find ourselves not really knowing what to say but James tells us, “…if any among you strays from the truth and one turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” [James 5:19-20] That is never easy to ask someone the hard questions and to confront one straying from the truth. It may not be easy but it is necessary. I have needed it in my own life many times from my wife and from a trusted band of brothers. They have often had to confront me and to ask me the hard questions. At times I have been angry and offended but on the other hand when I listened to their concerns the Holy Spirit used them to speak truth into my heart. They were used by the Lord to bring me out of the shadows. God has used many preachers and books to bring me out of the shadows into His glorious light. There is a freedom living in the light with nothing to hide. Jesus said it right, “For everyone who does evil hates the Light and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” [Jn 3:20-21]

It is time to walk into the shadows to remember those who gave so much and to reclaim those who have strayed from the truth. Neither is easy or convenient but both are needed. I plead with you as you read this confront me, speak truth to me if you see me straying. As I get older I hope the Lord will call someone to remember to listen, to care. Until then, I hope I do the same for someone else. “In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” [Matt 7:12]

Reflections

Do you ever have one of those moments when you stop and reflect on life? I had that experience one week ago today. I attended a community prayer meeting and had a wonderful time with God. When it was all said and done that prayer encounter with the Lord caused me to spend the rest of the day reflecting on Him and my role in the Kingdom of God.

There was a time in society when people were encouraged to think deeply and reflect. The intellect was stimulated with thought provoking questions and truths. There was a time when reading a book was a more common use of time than listening to the radio or watching television. Today there is little time to read even though we have access to more information than ever. We are trained to listen to sound bites on the evening news or catch the headlines on web but when do we ever digest the sound bites and reflect on the implications of it all.

Our days are scheduled well in advance with multiple appointments and commitments. Even when we do schedule vacations we feel the pressure to squeeze as much in as we can and justify doing so in order to get the most bang for our buck. In all of this there is little if any time to reflect. Reflect on the pace of our lives. Reflect on the condition of our families. Reflect on our relationship with the Lord. Reflect on the spiritual condition of our churches, communities, and country. We often make next to no time to reflect on the scriptures and let truth fall into our hearts.

It is early on a Tuesday morning and I am at the office alone well before the sun comes up. I have spent a great deal of time reflecting and the truth is I do not like some what I see in my own life. There are far too many inconsistencies. I do not like the condition of my walk with the Lord. Though I love Him and desire Him it seems I have lost a deep seated passion to run hard after Him. [Ps 63:8] KJV I miss the intensity that has often gripped me to know God and chase after Him in relentless pursuit. It is easy to fall into the rut of going through the motions but we were created for much more than that.

As I reflect I am brought face to face with the truth that our enemy never ceases trying to trip us up. I was given a grim reminder as another minister fell into gross immorality ruining his testimony, destroying his family and ministry, and hurting a church and community. This is a startling reminder to wake up and realize that we might be saved but our testimony is not safe until we get to Heaven. We are to endure to the end and I know that on any given day if my flesh is not crucified and if I am not walking in the Spirit I could be tripped up just like many others have been before me. This is a sobering thought.

As I reflect on my life I see that so much of what I am called to do gets pushed to the side to be involved in many things others want me to do. I know I have to be in control of my time and devote myself to prayer, study, and writing while not neglecting the flock God has entrusted to me. There never seems to be enough hours in the day. I leave the office everyday wishing I had more time to read, write, pray, and study. I have to make choices about the best use of time and that can only come when through reflection I contemplate how I am living each day. Am I living with purpose?

Reflecting is good but I am not going to waste all my days looking back. I have to learn from my past mistakes and look forward. Paul wrote it like this, “Brethren I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet, but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” [Phil 3:13-14]

Reflecting helps me to run harder, to push forward in the faith, to pursue the prize of knowing Christ more fully and serving Him with more passion and devotion. I am thankful for the mental ability to reflect. God is using it to help me run the race of life with more purpose and more effectiveness.

I enjoy long trips alone with the radio off as I am alone with my thoughts. Life used to have more time for this. When you rode a horse you had built in time to reflect. If you plowed a field you could use your time for thinking and pondering life. I often done the same thing while sitting on a lawn mower or riding a bike. We must build in times in our lives when we think and reflect over how we are living. That must be evaluated in the light of the scriptures.

Even athletic teams know the value of reflection as they view game film to learn how they can correct mistakes. It would do all of us good to do a little post game analysis on each day. Where did we succeed? Where do we need improvement?

Take some time today to reflect on your life and your relationship with the Lord. Think long hard about the deep issues in your life and pray for God’s direction and solution. Let us present to Him a heart of wisdom and let the Lord teach us to value the number of our days. [Ps 90:12]

Humble Pie

I got a large dose of humble pie early this morning. I got up early to go to the Fitness Center where I was to meet another man from our church to play racquetball. I felt pretty decent about my chances to hold my own. I took a class on racquetball in college. That was thirteen years ago. I played pretty often about six or seven years ago. I was thirty six then not forty three. I knew I would be a little rusty but I did not realize I was about to be force fed some humility like I had not experienced in a long time.

As we started our match I quickly came to the realization that my cardio training on the Stairmaster or the Elliptical had not prepared me for all the running, stopping, twisting, contorting, and lunging to hit the ball. We had not been playing long when through deep breaths I thought to myself, “You are in big trouble. You just started and you are already winded. You had better pace yourself.”

My opponent knew just where to hit the ball to make me run more which only served to leave me gasping for more air. I had no time to recuperate as the next bullet like serve came bouncing off the wall leaving me more times than I care to admit swinging with all my might and connecting with nothing but air. One time I actually swung and missed the ball twice on one bounce.

It was humiliating. The longer we played the more I began to sweat and long for air in my lungs from having to lug this oversized body around the court. My opponent seemed to be floating on air. His shots were precise, his serves like laser beams while mine seldom even were legal. H never appeared to tire and told me casually afterward that he runs three miles a day on the days he does play racquetball. That would have been nice to know on the front end. I might not have agreed to playing him.

I do not know how long we played. At one point I commented the score had to be about 90-4. I am a competitive person and normally do not enjoy losing. On this occasion I was too tired, too uncoordinated, and too unskilled to even make the game competitive. Finally in boredom my opponent called it a day without having even broken a sweat.

Peter challenges us in His book [II Peter 5:5-6] “You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble. Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God that he may exalt you at the proper time.”

What does it mean to clothe ourselves in humility? The word “humility” means to have a humble opinion of oneself, a deep sense of one’s own littleness, and to have lowliness of mind. We are tempted not to wear such an attitude all the time. People compliment us and we like the strokes to our ego. We begin to tout our successes even if other people do not and keep a list of personal statistics and track records of accomplishments. We like to be a made a big deal of. We often let our focus drift from making a big deal out of Jesus to living to make a big deal out of us.

John the Baptist got it right when he said, “He must increase and I must decrease.” [Jn 3:30] He saw his own littleness and the greatness of Christ in contrast. He was lowly in mind and his own estimation of himself.

I am thankful for a good old fashioned dose of humility to help me remember I am not a big deal but God is a big deal. I have limitations, weaknesses. I get tired and am unskilled. Far too many Christians have inflated opinions of themselves and are being set up for a big fall. We all need regular doses of humble pie.

I talked with one of my greatest friends today. He tragically told me of another pastor who fell morally to an affair with a lady in his church. He was the quintessential pastor with the highest academic accolades, a proven track record of past successes, and a large vision for his church.

While his wife was recovering from a life threatening illness, this high minded, large ego preacher slipped. Somewhere he took off humility and began believing his own press clippings. He slipped off the garment of humility and replaced it with pride. While pretending to be the captain of the ship he was really acting out the part of a teenage boy with out of control hormones. We learn from the Proverb that, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling.” [Prov 16:18]

I want to learn humility and to wear it gracefully in places like the racquetball court and not in the public arena of morale failure. This is a warning to all of us. Take heed lest we fall too. We have no room to boast. All we have to boast in is Jesus Christ and His cross. [Gal 6:14] Let us slip into the work clothes of humility and clutch them close to our chest grateful for the reminder that we are too must combat pride and embrace humility. Let us be reminded this day that if we are prideful and filled with ourselves we will find God in opposition against us and we will fall.

Lord, thank you for humble pie today. May I never grow weary of its taste.

Hold My Hand

Brenda has had an infection in one of her toes for nearly a year now. She put it off and put it off but finally agreed to go and see a doctor. We drove over to Midland so see a physician. Dr. Weaver had not been in the examination two minutes when she diagnosed the problem as being an ingrown nail.

Brenda has tried several things to cure the toe but nothing has worked. The doctor told us that there were two treatment options. The entire nail could be removed permanently or a partial part of the nail could be removed temporarily. We opted for the second treatment.

One of Brenda’s fears about going to the doctor was that she might have to get a shot or be stuck with a needle. She has a phobia of needles. I don’t think you understand. SHE HAS A PHOBIA OF NEEDLES! I could see the fear building on her face and eventually working itself out through her dear ducts. I got up to her hold her hand and made a classic mistake.

I gave her the hand with my wedding ring on it. When the doctor stuck her toe to deaden it for the procedure Brenda began squeezing my hand like a vice grip. My wedding ring began to cut into my fingers under the pressure. The more pain she felt the harder the squeezed and then just like that it was done. A few moments later she removed part of the nail and found the ingrown nail and removed it. Again Brenda held onto my hands and squeezed but a minute and a half later the whole thing was over and done.

God spoke through Isaiah in [Is 41:10] “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God, I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”

There are times in life when male or female, strong or weak, big or little we need God to reach down from eternity and to hold our hand. When it is dark outside and my boys cannot see to find their way they do not fear if they can reach out in the darkness and find my hand. Just knowing that I am there brings peace and comfort. It is the same way with God. In the darkest times God reaches down to hold our hand to offer strength and comfort. When we reach out to grasp His infinitely strong and sovereign hand; peace floods our hearts and minds. [Phil 4:7] If we draw our hand back in defiant independence we are left to cope with the darkness with our own limited resources. Many try. It is a hard row to hoe.

Last night we went to open houses on two of the campuses for Tucker and Turner. Turner was excited twisting, leaping, running, skipping, and twirling. It was driving Brenda crazy. At one point he forgot what he was doing and took off running across a parking lot which is a big no no in our house. I told him to hold my hand and that as long as he was holding my hand he could jump, twirl, twist, and shout. He could leap, skip, and bounce all he wanted. The one condition was he could do all of that just as long as he kept hold of my hand. I wanted him to know the safety of my boundaries while still being able to enjoy himself.

The simple act of holding a hand can have so many different implications for a believer. It can remind us that God is in control and serve to strengthen and comfort us in the painful times of life. Holding the hand of God can also serve as our protection. Holding His hand can bring security in insecure situations.

Now let’s take that one step further. How many people need a helping hand? We, the body of Christ, serve as Jesus’ representatives. We are to be the hands of Jesus to those who are in need of assistance. We must be willing to lend a helping hand even without being asked. We are to offer a loving pat for those hurting and filled with sorrow. We are to gently hold the hands of those who are ill offering prayer on their behalf. We are to extend a loving hand for those experiencing excruciating pain. Look at the example of Jesus; [Matt 8:2-3] [Matt 14:30-31] [Mark 5:40-42] [Luke 4:40] [Luke 13:10-13] Those are just a few examples.

Such a simple act has so many implications. Today there are two simple applications. There might be times when like Brenda or like my boys you may need to reach out in your spirit to grasp the hand of God. He has a big hand which will not only engulf yours but also all your burdens as well. Give them to Him one by one. The other application is that somewhere in this world someone needs a loving ministering hand to hold or to help. Will you be that hand for someone?

Waking in the Arms of Jesus

Each Tuesday morning I go to the Care Center to lead a service for the assisted living residents there. We sing a few songs and I teach something from the scriptures. Afterward I try to go by a few rooms and visit with some of our members. This morning I had the privilege of going to see our oldest living member. She is one hundred one!

She is frail but her spirit is strong. Today she was very sleepy and while I visited her with a senior adult lady from our church she had a hard time hearing and communicating. She kept fighting drifting off to sleep. That is when the other lady told her, “One day you are going to go to sleep and wake up in the arms of Jesus!”

That has stuck with me through out the day. Just a few moments earlier I visited with a lady who will turn one hundred on October 29^th. I can’t imagine the frustration mixed with the joys of living to be such a ripe old age. I know at forty three I cannot do things I used to do at twenty three and thirty three. I went to the fitness center early this morning before coming to work. I began working my way up doing presses with dumbbells. I had to stop way short of the weight I was lifting back at Howard Payne University. I cannot fathom having the limitations of fifty seven more years on this body.

We all know that we will not live forever and drifting off to sleep one day and waking up in the arms of Jesus with a glorified body and into our everlasting reward defies imagination. What a day that will be. Jim Hill penned those very words in a hymn. “There is coming a day when no heart aches shall come – no more clouds in the sky

No more tears to dim the eye. All is peace forevermore on that happy golden shore.

There’ll be no sorrow there, no more burdens to bear, no more sickness, no pain

no more parting over there. And forever I will be with the One who died for me.

(chorus) What a day, glorious day that will be! What a day that will be when my Jesus

I shall see, and I look upon His face – The One who saved me by His grace.

When He takes me by the hand and leads me through the Promised Land;

What a day, glorious day that will be!

There must come a point when it is more appealing to look over yonder into eternity than to try to cling to what is left behind here. There comes a day when we have more loved ones over there than we have of those left behind here. There comes a day when every day is a labor as our bodies wear down and begin to fail while we linger here and start to contemplate the glorified bodies we will receive in Heaven. What a day that will be indeed.

[I Cor 2:9] gives great hope for those who long to wake up in the arms of Jesus. “But it is written, ‘What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.”

Don’t read over that too fast. No eye has seen anything that can compare to the beauty and splendor of Heaven. No mountain range, sea shore, scenic forest, or picturesque sunset can compare to the glory of Heaven. Our eyes have never beheld such beauty and wonders and that does not even begin to describe what we will see in Jesus. There are no words. It will be something we will have to experience for ourselves.

No ear has ever heard anything as beautiful as the sounds that will resound in Heaven. I do not know what they all will be but I do know one anthem that will be played over and over again night and day. “And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within, and day and night they do not cease to say, ‘Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God, The Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come.’ And the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever.” [Rev 5:8-9] Louder than any choir you have ever heard, more in harmony and pleasing to the ear than any singer you have enjoyed will be this booming chorus reverberating the halls of Heaven and penetrating our souls.

Still we are not finished. No man has ever come close to imagining what awaits us in Heaven. Colors will be brighter. Our thoughts higher, our senses greater, our hearts purer, and the glory of God more brilliant than the sun. No painter could capture this with oil paints on a canvas. No writer could lasso and corral the right words to convey what Heaven is like. It defies both description and imagination. Still we are contemplating Heaven and not the King of Glory. We do not have that kind of mental capacity this side of eternity. It would blow our circuits.

Alas, we are left with the simple hope and trust that one day each of us who had trusted Jesus Christ as our Savior will breathe our last breath here and wake up in the arms of Jesus. O what a glorious day that will be.