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Make Room for Healing and Joy

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Don’t Hold on to Things You Shouldn’t

We’ve all found ourselves in unpleasant situations. Places where we feel trapped. Sometimes it’s because of things we’ve done. Sometimes we’re there due to no fault of our own.

The Israelites found themselves in bad situations repeatedly. They would go through times when they would be captives of other countries. Most of the time this was because they would be doing things they shouldn’t.

There was a lot of guilt and judgement.

God would give them chances to change. These opportunities would come to them through prophets of God.

One of these messages of hope came in Isaiah 6:1-7. Isaiah received a message from God and he felt doomed because he was a sinful man. A Seraphim that was attending to God touched Isaiah’s lips with a burning coal and said, “This coal has touched your lips. Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven.

The year of Jubilee was a time for the Israelites to dedicate a year of rest to God, acknowledging that God would provide for their needs.

The Year of Jubilee, which came every 50th year, was full of releasing people from their debts, releasing all slaves, and returning property to those who owned it. During this time, the Israelites were not supposed to reap or harvest; it was a time for people to return to their families and loved ones.

The Year of Jubilee was a time of Restoration.

So, after seven years of Sabbaths, we reach the 50th year. A year dedicated to rest, the restoration of property, and freeing people from debts, servitude, and slavery.

Because everyone was released from their debts and slavery, everyone got to rest and could start the next year with a clean slate. 

It’s important to note that God owns everything. Anything He’s given to us, such as resources, crops, etc., belongs to him. Therefore, the Israelites would dedicate this year of rest to him, acknowledging that God would provide for their needs.

The Israelites went into captivity because they didn’t observe these resting years (Leviticus 26). Because they didn’t trust that God would provide and dedicate time to resting, they reaped the consequences.

God also instituted the Year of Jubilee as a foreshadowing for his future work on the cross. Jesus relieves us of all spiritual debts and our slavery to sin by His death and Resurrection.

In Matthew 1:18-25, Joseph learned of the coming of Jesus when an Angel came to him in a dream. He was told what would happen and what he was supposed to do. And he did it.

Our ultimate forgiveness is through Jesus. But we have to accept this gift.

Jubilee was a release from the past. A restoring. It brought hope for the future.

The Israelites held on to things and wouldn’t let them go. They neglected to take advantage of Jubilee, and they suffered unnecessarily because of this.

Too often we do the same thing. We’ve been hurt by someone, and we don’t let go. Then we’re the ones who suffer. We tend to hold on to things as a way of protecting ourselves. Even when we’ve let go of something, it has a way of creeping back.

We have the power of choice. We can forgive. We can release the past. This makes room for healing and joy.

Jesus is our Jubilee.

A Straight Path is the Shortest Way

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This Can Be Hard in the Wilderness

In geometry, a straight line is the shortest distance between two points (on a flat surface). When going from point A to point B, on a map or in life, it’s rare that we can go in a straight line. In this case we want to find the “most straight” line.

The same is true for our path to salvation.

The fewer detours or obstructions we have to deal with the sooner we get to where we’re going.

The Israelites had been in exile for years. Isaiah explained over and over that they had been dealing with this judgement because of their own self-inflicted obstacles. Then in Chapter 40 he shifts to a message of hope.

In verses 3-5 he tells them,

“Clear the way through the wilderness for the Lord! Make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God! Fill in the valleys, and level the mountains and hills. Straighten the curves, and smooth out the rough places. Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. The Lord has spoken!”

Isaiah is telling them to get ready for the coming of Jesus. That the path is straight. There is only one way to salvation and that is Jesus. They needed to quit wandering around out in the wilderness.

In the New Testament, when Mary visited Elizabeth, the unborn John leapt in Elizabeth’s womb. John already knew he was going to have a part in the Christmas story before he was born. He was going to make a path through the wilderness to Jesus.

We need to do the same thing as John and help each other through the wilderness. We can do this by sharing the road map of life. This map can be found in the Bible. This isn’t to say that it’s easy, but it is the straightest line.

The best path is the straightest line.

We need to use this map in our own lives as well. Life can be a hard road. But it is easier if we know the best path to take.

Advent is the preparing for the coming of Jesus. This is a good time to focus on the path and find our way through the wilderness of life.

Part of preparing for Jesus is repenting of the things we shouldn’t do. Repenting can seem like a negative thing. But it shouldn’t be. Repenting doesn’t mean stop, don’t, no.

Instead of looking at it negatively, look at it positively. It’s not the ending of something, but rather the beginning. Start, do, yes.

Start down the right path. Do something to move you closer to Jesus. Say yes to the straightest line.

Even though the wilderness can seem overwhelming and easy to get lost in, look for the straight path. Nothing is too hard or too difficult for Jesus. He will show you the right way to go.

A Story is a Good Way to Tell a Story

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It Makes the Message More Real

Stories are a way to relate to information in a more personal way. We can connect and feel stories. It taps into our emotions. It’s a way to make things more understandable.

The Bible is a collection of stories. These were stories that people then could relate to. We can still relate to them today.

Often we are so close to something that we can’t see the whole picture. We are stuck in our rut. Focused on our situation. We want what we want. Our narrow view is all we see.

This was Isaiah’s perspective in Chapter 64 Verses 1-4. The people were tired and frustrated of being in exile. Isaiah wanted God to shake the world and come down as a warrior to free them. He closes with God acting on behalf of people who wait in Him. People were waiting on God throughout the Old Testament.

We are impatient people. We want what we want, and we want it now.

The answer to Isaiah’s plea wasn’t answered quickly. This answer didn’t come as Isaiah expected. It came in the form of a little baby…not a warrior. (Luke 1:26-38)

Too often we are so busy that we forget to step back from the rat race and patiently wait on God’s timing. We feel that waiting is a waste of time.

We need to be willing to wait on God.

Maybe God is waiting on us to wait on Him.

Many times, we hear something that is hard to believe. Like the story of Jesus, being born as a human, dying on the cross, and then coming back to life. From a worldly perspective this is a little hard to believe.

Stories can help us step back and understand things that are hard to believe.

A good example of such a story is one that Paul Harvey shared on his 1970’s radio show, “The Rest of the Story”. This was a Christmas story about a man and some birds.

The Man and the Birds

Author Unknown
As told by Paul Harvey

The man I’m going to tell you about was not a scrooge, he was a kind decent, mostly good man. Generous to his family and upright in his dealings with other men. But he just didn’t believe in all of that incarnation stuff that the churches proclaim at Christmas time. It just didn’t make sense and he was too honest to pretend otherwise. He just couldn’t swallow the Jesus story, about God coming to Earth as a man.

He told his wife I’m truly sorry to distress you, but I’m not going with you to church this Christmas Eve. He said he would feel like a hypocrite and that he would much rather just stay at home, but that he would wait up for them. So he stayed and they went to the midnight service.

Shortly after the family drove away in the car, snow began to fall. He went to the window to watch the flurries getting heavier and heavier and then he went back to his fireside chair and began to read his newspaper.

Minutes later he was startled by a thudding sound. Then another … and then another. At first he thought someone must be throwing snowballs against the living room window. But when he went to the front door to investigate he found a flock of birds huddled outside miserably in the snow. They’d been caught in the storm and in a desperate search for shelter they had tried to fly through his large landscape window. That is what had been making the sound.

Well, he couldn’t let the poor creatures just lie there and freeze, so he remembered the barn where his children stabled their pony. That would provide a warm shelter. All he would have to do is to direct the birds into the shelter.

Quickly, he put on a coat and galoshes and he tramped through the deepening snow to the barn. He opened the doors wide and turned on a light so the birds would know the way in. But the birds did not come in.

So, he figured that food would entice them. He hurried back to the house and fetched some bread crumbs. He sprinkled them on the snow, making a trail of bread crumbs to the yellow-lighted wide open doorway of the stable. But to his dismay, the birds ignored the bread crumbs.

The birds continued to flap around helplessly in the snow. He tried catching them but could not. He tried shooing them into the barn by walking around and waving his arms. Instead, they scattered in every direction … every direction except into the warm lighted barn.

And that’s when he realized they were afraid of him. To them, he reasoned, I am a strange and terrifying creature. If only I could think of some way to let them know that they can trust me. That I am not trying to hurt them, but to help them. But how? Any move he made tended to frighten them and confuse them. They just would not follow. They would not be led or shooed because they feared him.

He thought to himself, if only I could be a bird and mingle with them and speak their language. Then I could tell them not to be afraid. Then I could show them the way to the safe warm … to the safe warm barn. But I would have to be one of them so they could see … and hear … and understand.

At that moment the church bells began to ring. The sound reached his ears above the sounds of the wind.

He stood there listening to the bells, Adeste Fidelis, listening to the bells pealing the glad tidings of Christmas.

And he sank to his knees in the snow …

Stories make things more real.

Anything is possible for God.

Who Sits on Your Throne?

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It’s Up to You

Too often we think we know what’s best. We want to be in control. We’ve got this.

We do have the power of choice. We just need to use this power wisely.

Problems begin to arise when we compare ourselves and our situations to those around us. Especially when social media spouts off how great someone else’s life is.

This misplaced focus is the root of the problem.

This is what happened in the Bible in 1 Samuel 8. Israel looked at the other nations around them that had kings. This looked like a good thing. They went to Samuel, who was their judge, and asked him to appoint a king for them. They wanted to put a human king on their throne, rather than God.

Samuel prayed to the Lord and the Lord said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. According to all the deeds that they have done, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.”

Samuel told them it was a bad idea and warned against it.

He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots. And he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants. He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. He will take your male servants and female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys and put them to his work. He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves.

And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you in that day.”

They didn’t listen.

So, then they got their kings.

Then years later, just as they were told, they found themselves living in exile.

This brings us to Daniel. King Darius had a dream and Daniel was able to tell him what it meant. Because of this, the king appointed Daniel as one of his main administrators. Other officers did not like Daniel because he outperformed them. Though some scheming, Daniel ended up thrown in a den of lions. (Daniel 6)

But because Daniel had God on his throne the lions’ mouths were shut.

Later in Chapter 7, Daniel has a dream. This dream is pointing to the coming of a new king…King Jesus.

Rule, glory, and kingship were given to him;
    all peoples, nations, and languages will serve him.
His rule is an everlasting one—
    it will never pass away!—
        his kingship is indestructible.

We don’t have to put Jesus on our throne. But if we don’t, we will have the same troubles as the Israelites when they wanted an earthly king.

We can choose who sits on the throne of our lives…Jesus, our ourselves.

Life is Full of Struggles

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What are You Going to Do About Them?

We all experience struggles in life. We also have opportunities to celebrate peace and harmony. The question is which you’re going to focus on.

This past Sunday we celebrated getting new hymnals at church. Pastor Lisa pointed out that, at different times different things speak to us. This is true in worship.

It might be a prayer, a liturgy, a Scripture, or a song. Music is certainly something that can move us. A hymnal is more than just a book of songs.

It is a gathering of history. It is scriptural. It is a part of a journey. It gives us direction.

One such song is Great is Thy Faithfulness.

This popular Christian song was written as a poem by Thomas Chisholm in 1923. It was about God’s faithfulness over his lifetime.  Chisholm sent it to William Runyan who was affiliated with the Hope Publishing Company. Runyan set the poem to music. It quickly became popular among church groups.

Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father; 
there is no shadow of turning with thee; 
thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not; 
as thou hast been thou forever wilt be.

Refrain: 
Great is thy faithfulness! 
Great is thy faithfulness! 
Morning by morning new mercies I see:
all I have needed thy hand hath provided–
Great is thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!


Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
sun, moon, and stars in their courses above
join with all nature in manifold witness 
to thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love. [Refrain]


Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth, 
thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide, 
strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside! [Refrain]

Great is Thy Faithfulness, Thomas Chisholm

These Biblical lyrics reference Lamentations 3:22-23.

The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
    His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness;
    his mercies begin afresh each morning.

Lamenting is crying out. It is to express deep sorrow, to mourn, or grieve.

This is what the book of Lamentations is. In the Bible, people would wear sack cloth and throw dirt. I remember when people would wear black for a while to show their feelings of lamenting. Now people get on social media.

Lamentations 3:19-26 gives us a good plan for dealing with life’s struggles. It tells us to get these struggles out and share them with God. It professes God’s daily mercies and peace we can have. It points out that it is up to us to look to Him for this comfort.

We need to tell God how we feel and have faith in Him.

It is up to us to believe. Christians do not lament as the world does.

Give your struggles to God and live in His peace.

What’s the Purpose You’ve Been Called To?

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Here I Am Lord, Send Me

Pastor Lisa is preaching a series on the prophets. This week’s prophet was Isaiah. As is the case with most prophets…the people hearing the message weren’t very receptive.

We don’t like it when someone tells us what we’re doing is wrong.

We like to think we have it all figured out. This is how it was for the people of Judah and Jerusalem when Isaiah shared God’s message with them. He was telling them to change their ways or there was going to be price to pay.

The Bible is full of people being made aware of their mistakes. It’s also full of examples of what happens when the warnings are ignored.

In this week’s Scripture, Isaiah 6:1-8, we hear about Isaiah’s vison of the Lord sitting on His throne. There were six winged creatures flying over Him covering themselves with four of these wings. They were calling out,

“Holy, holy, holy,
    Lord All-Powerful!
The earth is filled
    with your glory.”

As Isaiah witnessed this, he realized how unworthy he was. Then he cried out, “I’m doomed! Everything I say is sinful, and so are the words of everyone around me. Yet I have seen the King, the Lord All-Powerful.”

purpose

Then one of the creatures took a burning coal from the alter and touched Isaiah’s lips and said, “Your sins are forgiven, and you are no longer guilty.”

The Lord asked, “Is there anyone who I can send? Will someone speak for us?

Isaiah answered, “Here I am Lord, send me.”

We need to be willing to do what we’ve been called to do.

This doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy. It’s a more difficult road for some than others.

This is the case of Ayaan Hirsi Ali. She is a Somali-born Dutch-American writer, activist, and former politician.

She is a critic of Islam and advocate for the rights and self-determination of Muslim women. At the age of five, following local traditions in Somalia, Ali underwent female mutilation organized by her grandmother.

She received political asylum in the Netherlands, gaining Dutch citizenship. In her early 30s, Ali renounced the Islamic faith of her childhood and began identifying as an atheist.

In 2003, Ali was elected to the lower house of the States General of the Netherlands. While serving in parliament, she collaborated on a short film titled Submission, which critiqued and depicted the oppression of women under Islamic law.

This led to death threats after the film’s release. At this time, she became more outspoken as a critic of the Islamic faith. Her outspoken criticism of Islam made her a controversial figure in Dutch politics. Following a political crisis related to the validity of her Dutch citizenship, she left Parliament and ultimately the Netherlands.

Moving to the United States, Ali established herself as a writer, activist, and public intellectual. Ali founded an organization for the defense of women’s rights—the AHA Foundation.

Ali was a central figure in New Atheism. She was strongly associated with the movement, along with Christopher Hitchens.

Writing in a column in November 2023, Ali announced her conversion to the Christian faith. In this article she claimed that in her view the Judeo-Christian tradition is the only answer to the problems of the modern world.

So, what changed? Why does she call herself a Christian now?

“Part of the answer is global. Western civilization is under threat from three different but related forces.

We endeavor to fend off these threats with modern, secular tools: military, economic, diplomatic, and technological efforts to defeat, bribe, persuade, appease, or surveil. And yet, with every round of conflict, we find ourselves losing ground.

But we can’t fight off these formidable forces unless we can answer the question: What is it that unites us? The only credible answer, I believe, lies in our desire to uphold the legacy of the Judeo-Christian tradition.

That legacy consists of an elaborate set of ideas and institutions designed to safeguard human life, freedom, and dignity—finding their roots in Christianity.

And so, I have come to realize that my atheist friends failed to see the wood for the trees. The wood is the civilization built on the Judeo-Christian tradition; it is the story of the West.

Yet I would not be truthful if I attributed my embrace of Christianity solely to the realization that atheism is too weak and divisive a doctrine to fortify us against our menacing foes. I have also turned to Christianity because I ultimately found life without any spiritual solace unendurable—indeed very nearly self-destructive.

Atheism failed to answer a simple question: What is the meaning and purpose of life?

That is why I no longer consider myself a Muslim apostate, but a lapsed atheist. Of course, I still have a great deal to learn about Christianity. I discover a little more at church each Sunday. But I have recognized, in my own long journey through a wilderness of fear and self-doubt, that there is a better way to manage the challenges of existence than either Islam or unbelief had to offer.”

Like the people that Isaiah was speaking to and Ayaan Hirsi Ali we all tend to think we have it figured out. Some people chose to follow Jesus, and some don’t. The question is…are you going to say, Here I am Lord, send me?

You’ve been given a purpose. It’s up to you to decide what you’re going to do with it.

Knowing God is Different Than Just Knowing Who God is

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Even the Devil Knows Who God is

This past Sunday was confirmation Sunday at church. This is a rite that confirms a person’s baptism and admits that person to full participation in the church. It is the open and outward action of showing one’s belief and acceptance of God.

This journey starts with knowing who God is but doesn’t end there.

It is important for young Christians to be aware and understand what it means to be a Christian. It is equally important for spiritually mature Christians to walk alongside these new Christians and help them with their journey.

Satan is subtle. Just look at what happened in the Garden of Eden.

This is why it’s important to get to know Jesus, to spend time with Him, and to know Him intimately.

Even some of the disciples who were with Jesus struggled with really knowing Him. In Luke 24:13-27, two of the disciples were walking to Emmaus talking about Jesus’ crucifixion when Jesus joined them:

He asked them what they were talking about. Cleopas asked Jesus, “Are you the only person from Jerusalem who didn’t know what was happening there these last few days?”

“What do you mean?” Jesus asked.

They answered:

Those things that happened to Jesus from Nazareth. By what he did and said he showed that he was a powerful prophet, who pleased God and all the people. Then the chief priests and our leaders had him arrested and sentenced to die on a cross. We had hoped that he would be the one to set Israel free! But it has already been three days since all this happened.

Some women in our group surprised us. They had gone to the tomb early in the morning, but did not find the body of Jesus. They came back, saying they had seen a vision of angels who told them that he is alive. Some men from our group went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said. But they didn’t see Jesus either.

 Then Jesus asked the two disciples, “Why can’t you understand? How can you be so slow to believe all that the prophets said? Didn’t you know that the Messiah would have to suffer before he was given his glory?” Jesus then explained everything written about himself in the Scriptures, beginning with the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets.

Here are two people that knew Jesus. They hung out with Him. They ate with Him. They were as close to Him as anyone ever was…yet up that point, they missed who He was.

Having our eyes open and being aware is where the journey starts.

Knowing Who God Is

The disciples were aware of Jesus and who He was. Their problem was their preconceived ideas. They expected Him to be some great and powerful worldly king.

We need to put our preconceived ideas away and understand who Jesus is.

Often, He does not fit into our picture of who we want Him to be.

The next step on the journey is the most important.

This is where we decide to accept Jesus as our eternal savior…or not.

This requires intentional action on our part. No one can do this for us.

The rest of the journey consists of learning.

You Should Obey Your Boss

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So, who is Your Boss?

A boss is a person who is in charge and tells others what to do. This doesn’t mean being told what to do is a bad thing. If it’s done in the right way, it gives us guidance and helps us to be better. We all have a variety of bosses in our lives.

The question is which one(s) are you going to obey?

obey your boss, handshake

With Labor Day happening last Monday, Pastor Lisa’s message was about doing the right work for the right reason.

Labor Day was started to bring attention to workers who were being taken advantage of. I alluded to this in my previous post.

Like so many things, it was started for a good reason, but along the way many have lost sight of the reason behind it. Too many times now it’s just another holiday to get out of work.

The question is, who are you working for?

This question needs to be asked and answered.

In Colossians 3:22-24, Paul tells the Colossians a new way to live and work.

colossians

He tells them to obey their bosses. Try to please them all the time, not just when you think they are watching. He also tells them that when they are working for their bosses with their whole heart, they are also honoring God.

“Work willingly, as though you were serving the Lord himself, and not just your earthly boss. In fact, the Lord Christ is the one you are really working for, and you know he will reward you.”

It is easy to get caught up in the daily routine of our work here on earth.

This is why it’s important to take a day like Labor Day to stop and reflect on what our work is and who we’re working for.

We may think we know what is right, but the Lord is the judge of our motives. Share your plans with the Lord, and you will succeed (Proverbs 16:2-3).

Decide who you’re going to work for. Who’s your boss going to be?

boss desk, empty

Learning is How We Find Solutions

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And We Never Stop Learning as Long as We’re Alive

In this week’s sermon, Pastor Lisa used algebra as an example of learning. Really, algebra…

I never was a fan of algebra. I could never understand why it was necessary to mix the alphabet in with math. People that like algebra naturally get it. Not me. I just don’t get this.

Algebraic Solutions

Algebra is the branch of mathematics that studies certain abstract systems, known as algebraic structures, and the manipulation of statements within those systems. It is a generalization of arithmetic that introduces variables and algebraic operations other than the standard arithmetic operations such as addition and multiplication.

This makes my head hurt.

Pastor Lisa’s point was that algebra is a mathematical example of looking for and finding an answer to a problem. Now that I understand.

Why can’t it be as simple as using a box or a blank for the unknown piece of the puzzle? Why does it have to be a letter?

Like in this example:

⬜ + 10 = 13

We need to find the number in this box. And what number, when added to 10, gives us 13?

Simple, it’s three; we can see that 3 plus 10 equals 13. The puzzle here only contains numbers.

Okay…enough about algebra.

The real message here is about learning.

Learning is acquiring wisdom. And the Proverbs are full of acquiring and sharing wisdom. In Proverbs 1:1-7, we are told how the Proverbs can be used to learn.

Proverbs will teach you wisdom and self-control and how to understand things with deep meanings. You will learn what is right and honest and fair. From these, an ordinary person can learn to be smart, and young people can gain knowledge and good sense.

The Proverbs are not promises. They are a probability.

We can go through life ignoring the opportunities to learn. Or we can soak up every lesson, both good and bad, and build better lives. It’s up to us.

We shouldn’t just take things at face value. We should scratch and think and ponder, trying to find the right answers to the right questions.

It’s how we were made. We were made to learn.

Now go and learn!

Life is Full of Choices

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One of Those Choices is Repentance

We all make mistakes. Some mistakes are more serious than others. The thing to remember is that the mistake doesn’t have to be the end of the story.

King David is remembered as someone after God’s heart even though he made a lot of mistakes. One of the reasons he is remembered this way is because of his willingness to admit his mistakes and repent of them.

This is evident in the Psalms. Many of the Psalms are of David repenting. This week’s Scripture, Psalm 6 is one of these. We don’t know exactly what mistake(s) David is referring to in this chapter. What we do know is that it’s an outpouring of David’s regret. To the point of bringing him to tears.

David’s penance is one of the reasons he was remembered as he was.

Penance is any act or a set of actions done out of repentance for sins committed. The word penance derives from Old French and Latin paenitentia, both of which derive from the same root meaning repentance.

This is a sincere change of heart and feeling of remorse. Repentance refers to the genuine interior sorrow for one’s hurtful words or actions.

Repentance implies a purpose and the resolve to avoid such hurtful behavior in the future. 

The superpower that we all have, but too often neglect to use, is the power of choice.

David made a lot of choices, knowing they were wrong. But he also chose to openly repent, asking for God’s forgiveness.

We are faced with choices every day. It’s up to us to ask God for His input before we make the choices. This will reduce the time of repentance.