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We all have times in our lives when we are really looking forward to some special event. Maybe a wedding, the birth of a child, a graduation, promotion, or a vacation. My youngest daughter, Kelly, will be three in June. She is really looking forward to her birthday! Her sister had a birthday in March, complete with cupcakes and pizza and a trip to Boing-Boing, a children’s play land in Oaxaca city, here in Mexico. Her sister Sally received many gifts and Kelly cried because she received none. We consoled her by telling her that her birthday was coming up, and then she would be the one receiving the gifts. Since then, a few of her little friends have had birthdays, complete with all the trimmings and gifts, and Kelly knew that she just had to wait for her special day to arrive. She is really looking forward to that day. On any given day she can be heard singing “happy birthday” and eating pretend birthday cake and swinging a stick at imaginary pinatas.
How about you and me? Is there anything that we are looking forward to that much? According to St. Peter, there is a day coming that should excite us more than all the birthdays, holidays and vacations combined. It’s called the “Day of the Lord”.
Peter writes about this Day in the last chapter of his second book. This “Day of the Lord” is characterized by two things: one, the destruction of the heavens and the earth, and two, a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. I think this is what Peter was really looking forward to. In chapter two Peter describes some nasty stuff in this present world to indicate that this place is definitely not the home of righteousness. He writes about false prophets, false teachers, destructive heresies, denying the Lord, depraved conduct, greed, exploitation, lawlessness, unrighteousness, corrupt desires of the flesh, arrogance, blasphemy, doing harm, carousing, adulterers, seducers, sinners, lovers of the wages of wickedness, lustful desires of the flesh, slaves of depravity, and people who turn their backs on God. What a wretched stew pot this world is. No wonder Peter says three times that he is looking forward to the destruction of this world, and the creation of a new world which will be the home of righteousness.
Me too! I not only long to be free of the wickedness of this world, but the wickedness in me. I know that if I look closely at my life, I can see elements in me, in my soul, of every thing Peter mentions, in my very being, and I hate it; I hate the struggle I face everyday against the world, my flesh, and the devil. I hate it when I see on the news, or read in the paper’s of people being murdered, children being abused, the poor being taken advantage of. I hate it when I see children with birth defects, when I hear of people dying of cancer, when I learn of loved ones suffering.
So what is God waiting for? The world of Noah was wicked, and God destroyed it by water. Sodom and Gomorrah were wicked cities and God destroyed them by fire and brimstone. The first century world and our world are full of evil, why doesn’t God go ahead and do it in? Get it over with?
Peter answers that question in chapter three. He tells his readers that “the Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” This verse, and the idea behind it, remind me of Paul and the Corinthians. Acts 18 tells us the story. Paul went to Corinth and was preaching and teaching his heart out, giving his all to the people in the city, and what happens? Verse six says that some Jews opposed Paul and became abusive. I can just hear Paul screaming out in frustration, “That’s the thanks I get?! I’m outta here!” That night God speaks to him in a vision. The Lord said, “Keep on speaking, do not be silent. I am with you and I have many people in this city.” God is telling Paul to be patient, continue on with his good work, because God had “many people” that He had chosen for salvation in the city of Corinth. Most of them had not heard the Good News of salvation, of God’s love and mercy. They didn’t know that God loved them and wanted them to be happy.
God says the same thing to His followers in this wicked world. This is not your home, you are just a passin’ thru. You are strangers and aliens in a foreign land. I know you long to go home and be with me forever in the perfect land of righteousness, but just wait a bit. There are a lot of people that I have chosen (Peter’s first letter is addressed to the elect, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father; 1:1,2), that are the elect, that have not yet heard the message that the Kingdom of God is near; that it is accessible to them, and that they have received a royal invitation from the King of Kings to be a part of it. It is your job to get the message out, give the invitations, spread joy and grace and compassion to all around. And then one day, the work will be complete, and all my followers will come home. What a day of rejoicing that will be!
One day this world as we know it will be utterly destroyed by fire, according to Peter. A new world, the home of God and righteousness and all that is good and lovely, whole and just, peaceful and complete, will replace this bad old place, and I am really looking forward to going home. How about you?
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Our present purpose is inseparable from God’s stated eternal purpose for us to rule the earth forever as his children and heirs. That is at the core of the Westminster Shorter Catechism’s defining statement:”Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.” We will glorify God and find joy in him as we do what he has made us to do,” serve him as resurrected beings and carry out his plan for developing a Christ centered, resurrected culture in a resurrected universe.” Randy Alcorn in his book Heaven
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Next blog – The Ruler and the Shepherd
In my last bog post I wrote about going to the prison across the street and teaching English. As I was writing a bunch of thoughts came to me, things I thought about writing but that didn’t seem appropriate to that entry. So here I am to write about life I’m general in that particular prison that I go to every Tuesday afternoon.
First, a little about the history of that prison. It is a relatively new prison, built about ten years ago. It was originally built as women’s prison. When I arrived at FFHMs Home for needy children, in 2005, the new prison across the road had about 12 women incarcerated there. In 2006-2007, violence and rebellion broke out in the city of Oaxaca,Mexico, First the teachers union took over the city because their demands weren’t met by the governor of the state, whom they hated. They were soon joined by various communist and radical socialist groups, which plunged the city into turmoil for over a year. Finally the president of Mexico sent in the troops to rescue the capital city of Oaxaca, and made hundreds of arrests. The question was, where do we put all these new arrestees? The answer was at the New, near empty prison just outside of Tlacolula. The new inmates were landed inside the prison in military helicopters, and the population jumped from 12 to over 200.
Soon after that our mission pastor began making regular trips to the prison, preaching the good news that even though their bodies were behind bars, their spirits could be free. A few months after that, I began teaching English there.
I mentioned earlier that I am going to write about General life in that prison. First I am going to write about my general life or experience there and then about what I see or have learned about the inmates General experience living there.
It takes me about 15 minutes to walk from the children’s home to the prison. Outside the prison is a state police outpost. The officer on duty wants to see my identification and asks me who I am going to visit. I tell him I am an English teacher and that I am going to my class. After all these years most of the police know me and just wave me on. I proceed to the main gate, arriving about 3 pm. The prison guards are supposed to start letting the public in at 3pm, but they normally don’t visitors in until 5, 10, or even 15 minutes past the hour. There are usually a half dozen or so family members waiting to be admitted. Almost all of the visiting families have a bag or two of food to bring in as well as a big bottle of Coca Cola, Mexico’s unofficial national drink. At some point the guard will open the huge metal door, and let people in, three at a time. Finally I am allowed in. I give my special teacher identification to the guard, and then another guard, almost always a female, goes through my bag to make sure that I am not trying to smuggle in contraband, like weapons, drugs, or photos. Once my bag is cleared, I need to be cleared. First they make sure I am wearing the correct clothes. Black, navy blue and camouflage clothes are not allowed, nor are hats, shorts or erotic clothing. If I am alright in the clothing department, a male guard escorts me into a tiny room and closes the door. He pats me down, checking for knives, guns or the always dangerous cell phone. If he decides I’m not a risk to myself or others, he opens another door and I retrieve my bag and make my way to checkpoint number two; Control.
It’s called Control because the two or three guards there control who goes from one side of the prison to the other. One side consists of prisoners who are still on “trial” (see my last blog). The other side consists of convicts. My classroom is on the convict side. I greet the guards, who always seem to be good natured and are friendly. Some call me James Bond. One guard likes to be called after the actor Van Dam. I ask permission to pass, and ask them to unlock my classroom. I always stop by to say “hi” to my ex-student Tony. We both used to live in Santa Cruz, California.
When I get to my classroom, it is almost always locked, so my two or three students and I begin class sitting on a bench outside. Eventually a guard will show up and we go inside.
The classroom has a huge white board and about 30 desks. My first class is basic English, and my second class is do advanced students. We finish about 5:30 and I make my way out of the prison and back to the mission. Thus, my life at the prison.
The average inmates life at this prison is like nothing you have seen in movies regarding American inmates in American prisons. In the movies, and in prisons in the U.S., like Alcatraz, there are bars all over the place. In this Mexican prison, I have never seen any bars, although I have never been to see their cells, which probably have bars. I have been in a couple Mexican prisons, and they are like little villages. They elect a president. They have little kiosks where they make things to sell, like belts, little boats, pictures, wallets, sandals, baskets, and lots and lots of soccer balls (receiving about 80 cents for each ball they sew together). Some inmates tend gardens, make tacos, sell fruit and vegetables, or cut hair. Generally there are families eating together and children playing on swings or teeter-totters. There is a basketball court that also serves as a soccer play area, and there is almost always a spirit game of basketball or soccer going on. Usually I forget that I am in a prison, because the atmosphere is more like the downtown plaza than a prison. Most of the prisoners have a spouse or children on the outside, so they work at some kind of trade or job and sell their products to fellow prisoners, visitors, or their family members take the products out of the prison to sell. There is a big wood shop where some inmates make furniture or frames for video games.
They also receive different types of education. A prisoner who was soon to be released was joking with me that he didn’t want to be released. Here at prison he was receiving free cooking classes, English classes, a computer course and Tae Kwon Do training.
A few times a year they have special celebrations, parties or fiestas. When I was there last Tuesday, they were dismantling a circus like tent where they had had a special Mothers Day celebration. During the Christmas and Easter season, different churches come in and provide meals, music and ministry to the prisoners. In Mexico they have a Day of the Prisoner, and those confined within the concrete walls receive extra good food and drink, along with bands playing their favorite tunes.
So there it is, life in a Mexican prison; my life for a few short hours a week, and what the inmates experience for months or years on end. All things considered, it could be a lot worse. Thank God for those who visit the imprisoned and help make their stay a lot better – life changing for those who choose to follow Christ.
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Next blog – Looking Forward to Going Home
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Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you, yourselves were suffering. Hebrews 13:3
I was released from prison last Tuesday at 5:43 pm. A prison guard walked me to the main gate, put his key in the lock,opened the huge metal door and let me out. I was a free man. It felt great to be free, to be liberated from the iron bars and concrete walls. But I was also thinking of the friends that I had left behind. Bernardo, Aries, Guillermo, Armando, and Marzalino to name a few. I was sad that they were still doing time. Oh well, I thought, I will be able to encourage them next Tuesday.
Your see, I teach an English class at a prison that is across the highway from Cristo Por Su Mundo, (Christ for the world), home for needy children, where I live with my family, and participate with God in helping “the least of these” as Jesus referred to the oppressed and downtrodden of the world. These include the children and prisoners that most of humanity forgets about and leaves behind. Every Tuesday afternoon I walk across the highway and enter a whole new world. I get to leave after a few hours. My students, my friends, have to stay.
One day I was walking alone in the hills that surround this mission. This was about five years ago. I was talking to God about my life. I was thanking Him that he allowed me to cooperate with Him at the home for needy children. I was thinking how fortunate I am to be participating in the Divine Nature that Peter talks about in 2 Peter 1 (see my last blog). Part of participating with God is to make beauty; to make the world a more beautiful place everyday, and I am able to do that by planting and maintaining the gardens here at the mission. But I was thinking, what else could I do? God, what else do you want me to do? What else can we cooperate on in helping this hurting world? Then the verse from Matthew 25, “I was in prison and you did not visit me.” The words of Jesus on the last day, judgement day, convicting me.
The mission already had a couple of preachers and teachers who would go to the various prisons in the area to minister in word and song, and I felt like I could and should do something different, to reach out to other prisoners and help them in a way that they could get a sense of the love of God, without a Bible preacher or teacher. The idea came to me that I could teach an English class. Before I came to Mexico, I had never taught English, but I realized that the most important thing about being a teacher of anything, is to simply know more than your students. So I decided I was qualified and at the request of some people here at the home for needy children, I began teaching English. That was going well, so now I would be going across the highway to the prison to see if anyone there wanted to learn English. There was- and I was there to stay, at least for about three hours every Tuesday afternoon.
All my students are great. I can’t believe any of them have done anything to deserve prison. I have never asked any of them why they are, or were, there. I don’t think it is any of my business. When I see them, I don’t want to see them as murderers, thieves, rapists, drug dealers or extortionists. I want to see them as people who were created in the image of God, people who have made mistakes in life, as I have. People who want to learn English, but more important people who want a friend, people who want to hear the Good News of God’s love, even if it is in the context of an English class. The students come and go, both to class and to and from prison. Two of my students were released, and within months were back in prison, back in my class. Most have been released and are leading productive lives.
I don’t understand a lot about the Mexican judicial system, but it seems that you are guilty until proven innocent, and you don’t get a trial before a judge. What happens is you are accused, sent to prison, and then your lawyer writes to the judge, explaining your side of the situation, then the other lawyer answers with a letter, and it goes back and forth like that until the man is declared not guilty and gets out of prison, or is found guilty and continues to live behind bars. This process can go on for years. There are two sections to this prison; one for people who have been conviction, the other for dozens of men and women who are “on trial” in their cells. One of my favorite students, a very intelligent man, who speaks remarkably good English, has been in prison for the whole time I have been teaching, waiting for his case to be resolved.
I have had some students who have been in prison in the U.S. and in Mexico. I ask them what is the major difference. They tell me that if you are in prison in the U.S., you are probably guilty. If you are in prison in Mexico, there is a good chance that you are innocent.
The situation for many in prison in Mexico is tragic. Many prisoners feel helpless, and that their situations are hopeless. I thank God that He reaches out to those men and women behind bars and concrete walls, and reaches into their hearts with hope, mercy, love and grace. While many suffer injustice from the system, they receive joy and peace from God. While the government says “You are to live incarcerated in prison” God says, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.”
I thank God that I am free, on the outside and the inside. I also thank God for setting the captives free; free in spirit; free in heart; free in soul. Those whom the Son sets free, are free indeed.
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Stone walls do not a prison make, Nor iron bars a cage ;
Minds innocent and quiet take that for an heritage;
If I have freedom in my love, and in my soul am free,
Angels alone, that soar above, enjoy such liberty.
Richard Lovelace (1618-1658), from To Althea, from Prison
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Next blog – Life in One Mexican Prison
I have been stuck In 2 Peter chapter one for a couple of weeks now. It is a rich chapter and also a bit difficult to understand in certain places. I don’t like to leave a chapter until I have sucked all the meat out of it that I think is possible . Thus I am still I this chapter. It’s amazing how you can spend so much time in one portion of scripture, reading it and rereading it, and about the time you think you are ready to leave it, something jumps out and surprises you. That happened a couple of days ago. I was surprised by divine nature. Peter tells hos readers that God has promised we are participants in God’s nature. I had read that verse a dozen times and never thought much about it. This time it stunned me to think that God wants me to participate in his divine nature. To be his servant , sure , that’s obvious. To obey his commands, of course. To be a part of his kingdom and to work for it, I think all Christians understand that. But to participate in his divine nature? That is definitely out of this world. I can much more readily identify with Paul when he says that he is the worst sinner (I thought I was); I know where the guy is coming from who said “Lord, I believe, help my unbelief”; it is easier for me to understand King David and his foibles then to imagine God wants me to participate in his divine nature.
So what on earth could Peter possibly mean about participating in God’s divine nature? Peter says in the previous verse that God has promised us this. I have been reading the bible for at least 45 years, and I couldn’t recall any promises to this effect. I was mentally seeking out these promises and was drawing blanks. One promise I do remember is that those who seek will find.
The next morning, during the regular devotion time we have at the home for needy children where I participate here in Oaxaca,Mexico, the person that was speaking had us look at the gospel of John, chapter 14. There they were, a whole bunch of promises from the very lips of Jesus. He promised his followers that the father would dwell in them, Jesus himself would be in them, and if that wasn’t enough, they would be filled with the Holy Spirit. The whole trinity is in me! How’s that for participating in the divine nature?
John 14 promises – I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever…
I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.
If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
Also John 15 – If a man remains in me, and I in him, he will bear much fruit.
If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.
So there it is – God has decided that us frail, mortal, weak, humans can participate in His Divine Nature. God certainly loves us and wants us to be happy! Enjoy God and His Divine Nature, today and everyday!
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Jesus was now in charge; he was already, now, calling the nations to account. And he was going to do so through his followers, those to whom he had given his Spirit. This, whether we like it or not, is where we come in.” N.T. Wright, Simply Jesus
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Next blog – Released From Prison
Last week the Family Schwab went on a little vacation to Puerto Escondido, our favorite sea-side city. There is a tiny cove we like to go to. Normally the waves aren’t so big and Sally and Kelly can play in the water. Last week was strangely different though. The waves were huge, and it wasn’t safe for my little ones to go into the ocean, so they contented themselves playing in the sand on the beach.
playa carrizalillo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
There was an elderly man that was not content to simply lie on the beach and just take things in. He was in the water sitting among some rocks. One wave crashed into him and down he went. I was concerned that he had whacked his head against a rock. He looked a bit discombobulated for a few moments, and then returned to his original position among the rocks. I settled into a comfortable position to read my book, occasionally looking up to see how the octogenarian was fairing. He seemed to be enjoying himself immensely.
At one point, an unusually large wave hit the beach, and down went the old man, tumbling wildly, flailing away helplessly, as the surf did its best to pound the guy into submission. His wife noticing what had happened, jumped from her beach chair and rushed, as fast as an old lady can rush on sand, toward her husband. I wondered how she could possibly help him. Then I realized she wasn’t going out to help him. She was going out to laugh at him. Making her way to the waters edge, she was busting a gut, she was laughing so hard. Her spouse finally got to his feet, got stabalized once again, and then he too, started laughing. It was a wonderful sight to behold. An elderly couple, laughing like children, at the beach, thoroughly glorifying God by enjoying Him and His creation.
Later that evening, Anita, the kids and I were at our hotel, which has a large, common balcony overlooking Puerto Escondido and the bay. I enjoy relaxing on the balcony, looking at all the night lights reflecting off the water. One light was from a light house. It was flashing and rotating, warning sea captains away from the jagged cliffs. Another light that caught my attention was a great search light, moving back and forth in the night sky, probably inviting tourists and townsfolk alike to some kind of grand opening or special event.
faro de puerto escondido (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Of course there were thousands of normal lights fringing the bay, illuminating houses, and making the streets and walkways visible and safe. The main highway through Puerto Escondido runs right in front of our hotel. Looking out from the balcony, I can see a fairly constant flow of traffic. Lots of taxi’s, trucks, buses and motorcycles. At one point I saw a motor scooter coming down the way. It carried a what seemed to be a family of three. The driver stopped his scooter at a wide spot in the road, right in front of our hotel, under a street lamp. The lady and child got off the bike, and then the man parked the motorcycle as far to the edge as he could. The lady opened her backpack and proceeded to take out some food and something to drink. It seemed they were having a little picnic, under the street light, on the edge of the road. There was a small ledge there for them to sit on. They seemed not to mind the traffic flowing by. They had a light to see their food, to see each other, and the cars speeding by could see them. What could be better?
Thinking about these different lights reminded me of Jesus. He said he was the “Light of the world”. I thought his light as a lighthouse, keeping people from making shipwreck of their souls on the rocky cliffs of sin, bad-gunky, and evil. I thought of his light as a search light, spanning the world, inviting people into the kingdom of God, into a right relationship with him, into community. I thought of His illuminating light that offers people a safe place to enjoy communion with him, to enjoy peace, while the mad world whirls by. His light that shows me the truth of his love, mercy and grace.
I am so happy for His light in my life. His protecting light. His inviting light. His illuminating light. And I know that He wants me to reflect this light in a dark world. He wants me to shine a protecting light, an inviting light, and an illuminating light. God wants all of us to make this world a brighter place. Let’s do it.
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“Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16
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Next blog – Participating in the Divine Nature
One day God said, “You know, I think I’ll make a billion stars today.” He didn’t have to, but he did,
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Because he loves us and wants us to be happy.
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God didn’t have to give us sunrises and sunsets, but He did,
Because He loves us and wants us to be happy.
God didn’t have to make oceans and beaches, but He did,
Because He loves us and wants us to be happy.
God didn’t have to make the Rocky Mountains,
The Grand Tetons,
Or the Sierras, but he did,
Because he loves us and wants us to be happy.
He didn’t have to make pink roses,
Purple bougainvilleas,
Or birds of paradise, but he did,
Because he loves us and wants us to be happy.
He didn’t have to give us good scents, like star jasmine, citrus blossoms, and lavender, but he did,
Because he loves us and wants us to be happy.
He didn’t have to give us pineapples, mangoes, and grapes, but he did,
Because he loves us and wants us to be happy.
God didn’t have to give us puppies, and kittens, and goldfish, but he did,
Because he loves us and wants us to be happy.
God didn’t have to be born in a stable
And be crucified,
And rise from the dead, but he did,
Because he loves us and wants us to be happy!
God gives us all good things,
So that we will glorify him by enjoying him forever.
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“Only wonder understands.” Gregory of Nyssa
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Next blog – Waves and Lights
Life with Mikey (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
My ten year old daughter Tifani had broken the rules and needed to be punished. I don’t remember what offense she had committed. I just remember looking at her, shaking my head, letting her know that she had disappointed me by breaking the rules and that she was going to be punished. She looked up at me with big, sad eyes and said, “I’m bad. I know it. Daddy, I need help.”
When I heard her utter those words I burst out laughing, all my anger gone, knowing that my budding little actress had obviously picked up this line from some movie she had watched. All thoughts of punishment had disappeared and I asked her where she had heard those words, “I’m bad. I know it. I need help.”
She had recently watched a movie called LIFE WITH MIKEY, and in this movie, a young girl about Tifani’s age was a pickpocket on the streets of New York. She gets caught and an angry man accuses her of stealing his wallet. A small crowd gathers around her. Michael Chapman (Michael J. Fox) shows up. He had just had his wallet stolen by this same girl. He is the head of a child talent agency, and is always looking for new talent. He sees the way that this girls is playing the crowd, and realizes that she is a natural. He intervenes, telling everyone that she is his daughter. Crocodile tears pour down her pretty little face and she exclaims, “I’m bad. I know it. Daddy, I need help.”
She made the confession, “I’m bad. I know it. I need help”, not out of any realization of her true nature, but in the hope that people would feel sorry for her, give her a break and let her go.
Her words, though, have great significance for those who want to enjoy God. The life of enjoying God begins with the startling revelation that we are all bad. That we really and truly Know that we are bad and that without help, we are doomed.
This thought, for many, is the hardest part of enjoying God. In fact, it seems ridiculous! When confronted with the possibility that we might be bad, we immediately present our first list of all the good things we do. We give to charitable organizations and donate time to worthy causes and don’t beat our wives or children and work hard at the office and never cheat or steal.
Our second list is made up of truly bad people like murderers, rapists, thieves and those who cheat on their spouses and take advantage of the poor. We can always point to those who are really bad and thus exonerate ourselves.
Everyone has their own categories of who is bad and what is bad and we certainly don’t fall into any of those categories. But, the category that matters most, is God’s category. Since He is the one we want to enjoy, and it is He that gives the joy, it is His standard of Good and Bad that we need to take a look at.
In the Bible God reveals His character and ours. He shows us His standard of goodness and also how far removed we are from that standard. The Bible tells us in no uncertain terms that because we do not live up to His standard of Goodness that we are His enemies (Rom. 5:10). Indeed, we are dead in our badness. Dead in our sins as Paul puts it Ephesians 2. Sin is just another word for bad, a type of bad that utterly offends a perfect God, and totally blocks our any chance of enjoying God. In Romans 3:12, Paul quotes Ecclesiastes 7:20 saying, “All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” Even the good deeds we do, the random acts of kindness we perform, the rewards we receive for helping others, are all a stench in the nostrils of God, if done apart from being in right relationship with him.
Help Is Available
This is where the Good News comes in. We can’t enjoy the God the Good News if we don’t first understand the bad news. The bad news is that we are bad. The Good News is that help is available!
The last phrase the girl pickpocket declared when confronted by the angry victim was, “I need help.” She was insincere in her claim of needing help. If we truly believe from the bottom of our hearts, that we re bad and desperately need help, God is more than willing to come to our aid and rescue us.
I lived in Sonoma County, California, for a number of years. There were a few years that we experienced terrible flooding. I lived close to the RussianRiver and during a particularly bad flood many of the residents were surrounded by high water and had to be helicoptered to safety. Those residents recognized they were in a bad way and were glad to be helped.
I remember one especially dramatic photograph that appeared in the local paper. A man was being rescued from the raging river by a fireman who was in the river with him. The fireman was roped to other firemen standing on the bank. The drowning man was rescued and the photographer went on to win a Pulitzer prize for the photo.
When we come to a point where we realize that we are drowning spiritually, when we realize that joy, peace and contentment are not the hallmarks of our lives, and that the turbulent waters of depression, disappointment, frustration, anger and disillusion threaten to overwhelm us, and we call out to a merciful, compassionate and gracious God (Daddy), He will rescue us!
In a way, God is like the fireman who jumped into the river to save the drowning man. God jumped into our hopeless, helpless situation, into our badness, in the person of Jesus Christ. And all those who became aware of their badness, and followed this God/Man Jesus were rescued, and are still being rescued and given new lives. Lives filled with joy in God and delight at being delivered from the turbulent flood called existence, and brought onto the safe shore called Life. Life enjoying God.
Some, like many of the religious leaders of Jesus day, didn’t realize how dire their plight was, and chose to cling to the slippery and perilous branches called self-righteousness and good works. They perished without ever experiencing the joy of knowing God.
Bad Gunky
Unfortunately, that isn’t the end of doing bad things. While we celebrate and rejoice that our Bad Existence was put to death by Jesus, we still struggle with doing bad things. Martin Luther said we are at the same time righteous and sinners and that we continue to wrestle daily with the World, the Flesh, and the Devil. I call these things Bad Gunky. In Stephen King’s novel LISEYS STORY, one of the main characters explains to his wife, Lisey, all about bad gunky. As a child he lived with his father and older brother. At various times they were attacked by what his father called “bad gunky”. This was an evil presence that would, without warning, fill either the father or one of his sons with a violent anger that would cause them to want to kill. The only cure that normally worked to rid the family member of bad gunky, was the shedding of blood. One of the family members that was not being attacked by the bad gunky would have to inflict a large, deep cut on his own body, to set the other family member free of the evil known as bad gunky.
This is a wonderful picture of what our Brother, Jesus, did for us, giving himself up freely to be crucified, to let his blood pour down the cross, so that we could be free from bad gunky, the power of sin, of badness, that caused our spiritual death. Bad Gunky, with a capital B and a capital G is no longer a threat to our eternal relationship with God, to our eternal life. However, bad gunky, small b, small g, still nips at our heels and barks in our ears on a daily basis. This bad gunky tempts us to do bad things. Tempts us to leave the Lord we love. We fall victim daily to bad gunky. Jesus tells us we are to love God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our mind, and with all our strength. He tells us to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. We fail at this everyday. In fact it is an impossible task. So what sets followers of Christ apart from the rest of humanity that fails everyday? It is the fact that as followers of Christ we have as our life goal to love God with all our being, and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. We know this is the surest way to a life full of joy with God and with each other. We begin the day in prayer, asking God’s Spirit to come along side us to help us love as He wants us to love. And, if we are to be honest, end the day in prayer, noticing the ways we have failed to love, and confess to God that we have not loved Him with all our heart, all our soul, all our mind and all our strength. That we have not loved our neighbor as our self. And we rest assured, knowing that God is faithful to forgive us our sins, our bad actions, our lack of love. We sleep peacefully, knowing that our merciful, compassionate, patient God has washed away the bad gunky of the day. We look forward to the morning when God’s mercies are new and we can experience afresh the joy of God.
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The great power of God appears in bringing a sinner from his low state, from the depths of sin and misery, to an exalted state of holiness and happiness. Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) from his sermon God Glorified in Man’s Dependence
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Next blog – God Didn’t Have To, But He Did
The mission pastor at the Home For Needy Children in Oaxaca, Mexico, recently asked me to share a few words on Easter Sunday about the significance of Jesus statement from the cross, “I’m thirsty.”
My first thought was to spiritualize Jesus words. Thirst indicates desire. What the gospel writer, John, wanted to communicate to his readers was Jesus desire that humanity would believe that God loved them; that Jesus desire was for all mankind to be saved; that Jesus wanted everyone to enjoy God, and that the way was open to all because of the sacrifice He was making, hanging on the cross. That was my initial thought of what I would share with the gathered faithful on Easter morn.
But, the more I thought about it, and the more I studied the book of John, the more I looked into the historical/cultural millieu in which John wrote, the more I realized that I was way off base. What John wanted to communicate to the readers of his gospel by recording Jesus statement, “I’m thirsty”, is that, (get ready now), Jesus was thirsty! He wanted a drink. John wanted his audience to remember that not only was Jesus God, but that Jesus was also human.
In the book of John, you see a lot of Jesus/God. Jesus/God overcomes the temptations of Satan. Jesus/God turns water into wine. Jesus/God walks on water, reads peoples minds, and brings dead people back to life. When was the last time you did any of those things? Never? Me too.
Those miracles, or signs, as John calls them, point to Christ’s divinity. They are all wonderful things that a lving Jesus/God did to show His power and compassion. But I find it difficult to relate to those things because I have never done them or seen them done.
But, I have been thirsty. And Jesus was thirsty. I can relate to that. John also tells us in the 11th chapter of his gospel that Jesus cried. I cry sometimes too. I can relate. In chapter 13, John lets us know that Jesus was troubled in spirit. I have been troubled in spirit. I can relate.
So, while the general focus of John is on Jesus/God, he also gives us snapshots of Jesus/human. I thank God, that Jesus is also portrayed as a man with human emotions and human needs. He was one of us. When we have physical, spiritual, or emotional needs, we can be sure that Jesus identifies with those needs and walks beside us in difficult times to encourage us, strengthen us, hold our hand, and sometimes carry us.
I don’t know about you, but I’m feelin’ kind of thirsty.
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Christ Jesus, who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross. Philippians 2:6-8
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Next blog – “I’m sorry. I’m bad. I know it. Daddy, I need help.”
Related articles
- Celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ (bummyla.wordpress.com)
Sometimes kids think they have the worst parents in the world. And then, when they go out into the world and live by themselves, all of a sudden, they realize, they have had the best parents in the world all along. When I look back on my life, I realize I have the best parents.
Many are the reasons I think I have the best parents, but one of the main reasons is that my parents were always making deposits of kindness into the Bank of Goodwill. What I mean by this is that my parents were, and still are, very generous people. Growing up, I remember, that when they saw a need, they tried to relieve that need. They were always kind towards people in need, and sought to relieve those needs. They were continually making deposits of kindness into the Bank of Goodwill. In helping others they were storing up treasures for themselves in heaven. Storing up treasures for themselves in heaven was not their motive, but it is a biblical principle.
An example: When I was about ten years old, there was a poor family in our church that seemed to me like the most hard luck family that I had ever seen. They suffered from a variety of health and economic issues. I remember that they had an old, beat up, station wagon. The engine died one day and there was nothing they could do about it. My dad found out about the situation and towed the car it to our house. He worked on it for about a week, rebuilding the engine at his own expense. When he was done fixing the vehicle, it ran better than it had in a long time. He returned the car to them at no cost. For the hard luck family, it was an awesome answer to prayer. For my family, it was a deposit of kindness into the Bank of Goodwill.
Many times my father helped people in need with his mechanical skill or his skill in construction. Neither one of these skills was his “profession”. He taught himself most of what he knew in these areas and used this knowledge to benefit our family and many other families. My parents have always, faithfully given to their local church and supported foreign missionaries. On occasion I have had financial needs and they have been generous in helping me. All, deposits of kindness into the Bank of Goodwill.
The Bank of Goodwill is run by God. He faithfully takes care of the deposits and sees that they give a good return. And the interest is out of this world! He tells us that “we reap what we sow”. We harvest what we plant. We receive back what we put into the Bank of Goodwill.
God tells us that He is generous to those who help the poor; that when we give of our time, talents and treasure, He gives back in good measure, pressed down, shaken together and overflowing. For me, those are all expressions of what happens when we make deposits of kindness into the Bank of Goodwill.
My parents are retired now, at least from jobs that give them a regular paycheck. They live comfortably in a nice, little house on a nice little piece of land in Colorado. They are ever thankful to God for the blessings that they enjoy, praising Him because He loves them and wants them to be happy. They continue to glorify God and enjoy Him by continuing to be faithful givers to their church and to missionaries abroad. Dad continues to help others with his construction skills. If he had a business card, which he never had in his life, I think it would read – Have Nailgun, Will Travel. Mom helps “the least of these” in a hundred different ways. In other words, there is never a time to quit making deposits of kindness into the Bank of Goodwill. I read a bumper sticker once that said Practice Random Acts of Kindness. Perhaps it’s better to Practice Intentional Acts of Kindness. Or, how about today, We All make a deposit of kindness into the Bank of Goodwill.
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The truth is, those who flourish always bring blessing to others – and they can do so in the most unexpected and humble circumstances. John Ortberg, The Me I Want to Be – Becoming God’s Best Version of You
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Next blog – “I Am Thirsty”
Purple litter on lawns; on ponds.
It’s scattered in streets, in lanes, in boulevards.
Purple litter mounds in gutters; against stone walls.
It’s blowing through the air;
falling on the ground.
Purple litter all around.
Purple litter above my head.
It’s on my mind and in my soul.
Beautiful purple litter of
Oaxaca’s jacaranda trees.
Billions of blessed purple flower petals.
God’s good gift;
the beautiful flowers falling on the ground,
the dirt,
the grass,
on the pavement.
They are beautiful purple gifts from God,
signs of His gracious love
bringing joy to hearts,
happy thoughts
of God.
Reminders to enjoy Him
(pictures below)
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Flowers are the sweetest things God ever made, and forgot to put a soul into. ~Henry Beecher, Life Thoughts, 1858
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Next blog – Making Deposits of Kindness into the Bank of Goodwill
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Pics of Oaxacan Jacaranda trees and their beautiful purple petals.
To Enjoy God 