Comfort Ye

Debbie and I were scheduled to attend the Minister's Institute of the NorthEast this week north of Baltimore, Maryland.

I have a fellow teacher from the Changchun University of Science and Technology who is presently serving as a Visiting Scholar at Johns Hopkins University.  Consequently, we decided to arrive a day early to visit with Guan.

Guan is a very intelligent, capable teacher who was respected by her students.  I sat in on her class on occasion and found her to be an excellent instructor.  She has an amazing grasp of American culture and history.  Her English is very good.  I have seen her judge speech and debate competitions and always considered her to be very tough on the students.  She was not timid about clearly expressing their weaknesses and errors!  If anything, she was short on encouragement.

In time, we seemed to connect and forged a professional relationship based on mutual respect.  On a number of occasions, she offered me a ride home to my apartment - saving me a half-mile walk in bitter cold weather!  :-)

Her American apartment was on the fifteenth floor with a wonderful view of the campus and of Baltimore proper.  Her furnishings were sparse - for the obvious reasons;  she is only here for six months.  [Remember that the currency exchange rate makes it extremely difficult for Chinese people to visit America.  It takes 6.5 yuan to make one American dollar!]

She welcomed us with a wonderful home-cooked meal of dumplings, blue crab, salmon, and fruit. We recognized that she had splurged on our behalf!

After eating, we drove to The Cathedral of Mary Our Queen to walk the grounds and tour the cavernous sanctuary.  We were fortunate that someone was playing the majestic pipe organ during our visit.  It's glorious reverberations resonated in our souls as we took in the frescos, statues, candles, naves and other religious symbols!

Following this we drove to the Inner Harbor to the John Hopkins Peabody Music and Arts Building to attend a recital of a friend of Guan's.  Chuanqi Shang is a young man who suddenly realized that he was drinking and smoking to the detriment of his voice.  He knew he had a gift and decided that it was from God.  He gave his life to Christ and began to study music.

We were mesmerized by the power of his rich tenor voice as he sang English Italian, French, German and Chinese songs for nearly an hour!  His pianist was also Chinese, Chenchen Wang.  For two songs he was joined by a third young lady, Jia Lin, whose soprano notes blessed us without measure.

The hall was filled with Chuanqi's family and friends from the Chinese Christian Fellowship!  They were not timid about expressing their appreciation for the gifts of these three young people!  We were so enriched as we heard these words so passionately expressed:

Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.

Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished,

that her iniquity is pardoned.

The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness,

Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low;

the crooked straight, and the rough places plain.

We were joyfully reminded that God is still out there searching for the lost and rescuing them from an eternity of suffering!  Praise His merciful name forever!!!!

Travis' Dream!

We lived in East Liverpool, Ohio at the time in a big house that overlooked the Ohio River and Chester, West Virginia.  We loved that house because of all the oak wood (including floors) and the tile fireplace.

However, we rarely used the fireplace.  It was such a source of heat loss, that I covered it with plexiglass during the winter so you could still enjoy its beauty. 

Our tradition included hiding baskets filled with candy and small toys.  On Easter morning, the kids would have to search the house to find their baskets.  This search proved to be a very fun experience for them as my creativity at hiding the baskets escalated!

As a matter of fact, one year Troy didn't find his basket until we returned from church.  On the way into the house, he saw it hanging from a hook on the front porch about ten feet off the ground! 

The year Travis was 10, I had hidden his basket in the fireplace behind the plexiglass, a card table and a pot of flowers.  I was convinced it would take him a loooooong time to find it!

However, he came down the oak stairs, crossed the living room, moved the flowers, the card table, the plexiglass and immediately found his basket.  I was astonished as I asked him how he knew where it was.

He said, "Dad, I dreamed that you hid it in the fireplace!" 

His reaction:  He was totally bummed because he had been robbed of all the fun of hunting for his basket! 

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. 

75 Pounds?

One of my favorite stories in the Bible is extremely relevant to our upcoming celebration of Easter!

Joseph of Arimathea was a prominent member of the Jewish ruling council (Mark 15:43).  He was a wealthy man.  He was a secret disciple.  He had not agreed with the Council's decision to have Jesus crucified!

We don't know much more about him.  He hadn't appeared earlier in the gospels.  Had he been a follower of Christ for a long time?  Had he heard Jesus preach and seen Him heal the crowds?  How had he come to a decision to follow Christ?

We don't know...

But what we do know about this man is enough to inspire us to "see Thee more clearly, love Thee more dearly, follow Thee more nearly".

We do observe that he and Nicodemus were apparently friends.  Remember Nick?  He was also a member of the Jewish ruling council.  He's the one who came to see Jesus at night in John 3.  He wanted to know how to be born again.  It was in responding to Nick's question that Jesus gave us the greatest verse in all the Bible:

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, 

that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

These two apparently became friends through their association on the Council.  They both had been drawn to Jesus.  They saw that this Man was special and recognized that "...you are a teacher who has come from God." (John 3:2)

How much had they conferred?  Had they spoken of Jesus frequently?  How close was their friendship? How much had Jesus influenced them?  To what extent were they following Him?

How thankful I am that all four gospel-writers tell their story:

• Matthew 27:57-60
• Mark 15:42-46
• Luke 23:42-46
• John 19:38-42

What is their story?

Jesus had died on the cross.  Fortunately, He had died on His own - so they did not have to break His legs as they did the thieves.  Their deaths needed to be rushed because they could not hang on the crosses during the Sabbath.  

When the soldiers retired from the scene, Joseph sprung into action.  He went to Pilate and sought permission to take Jesus' body down from the cross.  This was a bold request.  It may have been granted mainly on the basis that Joseph was a well-known leader of the Jews in Jerusalem.  He may have been one of a few who could make this request and see it granted!

Then, accompanied by his friend, Nicodemus, they lowered the body of Jesus from the cross.  Most portray this being done by wrapping long strips of cloth under His arms and gently lowering Him to the ground. Then, these two prominent, Jewish leaders carried the body of Jesus to the place where Joseph had recently had a tomb hewn for his own use.  

We dare not miss the significance of this event!  Touching a dead body meant that these two godly men would be unclean for seven days (Numbers 19:11). This meant that they would not be allowed to participate in the celebration of the Sabbath or the Passover!  

It doesn't take much imagination to realize that these men took on the blood of Jesus.  After carrying Him to the place of the tomb, they would have washed His body.  Then, they carefully wrapped Him with strips of cloth that had been saturated with - are you ready for this?

seventy-five pounds of myrrh and aloes!

This has always explained to me how the women found the tomb in the dark early on Sunday morning.  They simply followed their noses!  

My research reveals that this amount of spices would have cost a great deal; not to mention that Joseph was giving up his own carefully prepared burial site.  These are tangible measurements of his love for Jesus!  

So, how much do you love Jesus?  Seventy-five pounds worth?

Do you proclaim Him to your friends and neighbors?  Do you stand up for Him when His name is used in vain?  Do you maintain an ongoing dialogue with Him?  Do you systematically read His love-letter to you? Do you regularly join others who worship Him and serve Him?  

I mean it - really?  Before you click back to Facebook - how much do you love Him?  What could you change about your life that would be an expression of your love for Him?  What tangible thing could you do TODAY that would demonstrate your love for Him?  Make a plan and a determination before you click - or it will never happen!  

Thank You, Lord Jesus!

Really!  No one else can forgive my many sins and cleanse me from all unrighteousness.

Yet, You did this for me!  Wow!  You're amazing!

I didn't deserve it.  I can never earn it.

All I can do is thank You and live for You.

With Your daily help, I will do this.

Amen.

Dirty Politics

Politics is ugly stuff!  It always has been and I guess it always will be.

King David had many sons and they all probably had dreams of succeeding their father on the throne. 

Absalom was the first to try to take his father's throne.  He endeared himself to the people by intercepting them when they went to the king for justice.  Over a period of time, he garnered significant trust with them through this personal access and through his good looks and charm!

Then, through a clever and carefully laid out plan, he marched on Jerusalem to overthrow his father.  David escaped with a large group of those who were faithful to him - including many of his fighting forces.  He left a spy behind to send him 'intelligence reports'. 

In the long run, David's forces defeated Absalom.  Unfortunately, Absalom died in the battle.  David was deeply grieved over the death of his son!  [Read II Samuel 15-19 for the whole story]

The next to try a coo was Adonijah.  He was one of David's older sons.  He was an arrogant man who used his privilege and opportunity to have fifty men run ahead of him!  He conspired with one of the priests and the leader of David's army.  David was now very old.  Adonijah threw a party and invited everyone who was important - including all of David's sons - except Solomon.  The plan was to announce his kingship and overthrow his father by surprise!

The prophet Nathan heard of this plan and spoke privately with Bathsheba (remember her?).  He informed her of the plot and advised her to speak to the king about his promise to make her son (Solomon) king.  After she approached the king, Nathan also came to report to the king about Adonijah's plan.

David sprung into action!  He called for Solomon to be placed on the royal donkey and brought into Jerusalem.  Once there, Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anointed him king over Israel.  Then they blew the ram's horns and all the city began to shout:  "Long live King Solomon!" 

Adonijah's feast was just culminating when they heard the shouts from the city.  It threw his guests into confusion;  they scattered in fear of retribution!  Adonijah took refuge in the sanctuary in fear that his brother would have him killed. 

David effectively handed his rulership over to his appointed successor, who sought to bring honor to God and his father, David!  [Read I Kings 1 for the whole story]

In the legacy of kings of Israel and Judah that follow Solomon's reign we see terrible atrocities take place.  The whole situation is so despairing to God that He finally allows both nations to be carried off into captivity.

The New Testament bears similar brutalities and horrors.  Remember how Herod had the children of Bethlehem slaughtered in hopes of killing off any future heir to the throne (Jesus). 

This same Herod killed two of his own sons because he didn't want them to succeed him on the throne! 

Politics get nasty. 

All this ought to make us feel a little better as we view the 'reality show' dramatics that have been unfolding over the past several months.  Although there have been some nasty exchanges, at least no one's broken into fisticuffs - yet! 

There have been a few hopeful moments for me in recent weeks:

• watching Ben Carson give his testimony in a church including lengthy quotes from the scriptures.
• hearing about Franklin Graham's plan to hold prayer rallies in every state capital between now and November to call the nation to prayer for godly leadership!
• hearing the crystal clear hope of Heaven described and lauded at Nancy Reagan's funeral! 

These small pieces of kindling help me keep my fire of hope for America burning.  In addition is my personal prayer that God will help us through this privileged opportunity of selecting leadership;  a freedom that would be cherished by so many in other countries around our globe!

As a leader, I also get to lead a congregation in prayer about this election process every Sunday.  Prayers of agreement are especially powerful before our mighty God. 

But the thing that helps me sleep at night is the acknowledgement that God truly appoints leaders:



Romans 13:1 (NIV) 



Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities,

for there is no authority except that which God has established.

The authorities that exist have been established by God.

God will either give us leadership that will establish justice and restore values...

or...



He will give us leadership that will execute His justice on a nation that is turning its back on Him.

Whichever happens, my role is exactly the same.  I am to be a godly man who lives with integrity and intercedes for my family, community, country and world!  I am to be a faithful example of what it looks like to live for God.  With God's help, I will do this! 

My counsel to you:  It's far more important for you to pray than it is for you to vote! 

The Sensitivity of a Child

Today would have been Travis' 40th birthday, so we're an open wound today. However, there are a few tender stories that I never told and today seems a good day to share them.

We received our tragic phone call on October 5th, and immediately flew out to be with Travis.

We presently live on the Whippo farm.  Across the soybean field from us is Wally and Lynn's home.  Their kids, Ellie, Joey, and Audrey love to come to our trailer to visit with Aunt Debbie.  She plays cards with them and they drink tea together!  :-)  They are Travis' youngest cousins.

They were more affected by Travis' condition than most people realized.  So, one day, Ellie wrote a note to our post-lady and she and Joey placed it in the mailbox.  It was a request:

Dear Mail-Lady,

If you are a Christian, would you please pray for my cousin, Travis.

He is in the hospital and is very sick.

Thank you very much!

Ellie

Lynn was unaware that they had done this.  But the next day a response note was left in the mailbox and Lynn found it:

Dear Ellie,

I am so very sorry to hear about your cousin.  I will pray for him and all who love him.

Take care sweety.

Love,

Lynda

(your mail lady)

Here's a picture of Lynn and Wally's kids:

Around that same time, I received a text from our niece, Barbie:

"Aunt Debbie and Uncle Hal,

It's little Barbie (Mahosky Hagen).  Liz (Sargent) explained to Lily this morning what is happening with Trav. A little confused, Lily asked Liz a couple of questions (along the line of why this is happening when Trav is younger than his parents).  She asked Liz to see a picture of Trav and Liz found a picture of him involving a baseball game.  She then asked if she could draw a pic of Trav for his mom and dad.  

Not quite understanding the entire situation, her precious mind clearly understood that you will miss him.  

Love,  Barbie

One more.

On October 13, four days after Travis died, Liz (Sargent) sent me the following Facebook message:

So Zak just walked upstairs to brush his teeth and said 'mom, today in the car I asked God if Travis was in Heaven and He said yes'....I said 'oh yeah?', he said "yep, i just closed my eyes and put my hands together and said 'God is he in heaven or the bad word and God said 'He's with me'."....Just wanted to share.

The following is a picture of Justin and Liz and their three children:  Zak, Lily and Allison.

When bad things happen, don't leave children out of the equation.  They have an amazing capacity not only for understanding, but also for responding with amazing levels of compassion!  How thankful Debbie and I are today for the love-messages of these precious little ones!  

Trapping

When I landed in East Liverpool, Ohio, there didn't seem to be any dominant sport by the men in the church. However, eventually a friendship blossomed between John and Denise Repella (Heidi, Hayley and Holly) and Debbie and me (Travis, Troy and Tracie).  John is an avid trapper and it didn't take long for him to invite me to accompany him on his trap-line.

Needless to say, it was a new experience for me.

The first time I went, we parked his truck off-the-road and hiked across a long field to a stream-bed.  As we looked down the bank, we saw three raccoon in separate traps within fifty feet of one another.  John hopped into the stream-bed and sloshed across the creek to the first coon.  He put his foot on its neck and quickly used his pistol to shoot the first coon.

When he glanced up at me I must have had a shocked look on my face.  John simply said:  "Kinda cruel, huh?"  In reality, it was very humane, but I just wasn't used to seeing animals being killed.

I went with John on his trap-line quite a few times.  I eventually figured out that he took me along to help haul his furs back to the truck!

On one occasion, we walked down into a wide, flooded valley where he had set a number of beaver traps. It was a bitter, cold day!  We came to his first trap which was set under the water - which was now frozen! John used a hatchet to break the ice.  Then, he laid down on the ice and plunged his arm up-to-his-shoulder, into the ice-cold water.  Seconds later, he pulled a huge beaver out of the hole in the ice.  After re-setting the trap, we moved on to find four more beaver - all large!  Hauling them out of that valley and back to the truck was exhausting;  as I recall, the average weight was about 60 pounds!

I learned so much from John about trapping and other things and we became the best of friends during our thirteen years in East Liverpool.  I discovered that this relatively quiet and private guy had lots of stories. They were all very personal.  He told me about a night when he saw a UFO.  He spoke of another night when God warned him not to go up a creek!  He talked about his years in the coal mines.

During summers, John also let me tag-along on a couple of fishing jaunts. Friendship is formed by the sharing of intimate thoughts and stories. That bond is not easily broken.

One time the engine went bad in a 1984 Renault Encore I was driving.  John suggested that we buy a used engine and install it.  Ahhh...the height of masculine engagement!  John had just put an engine in one of his trucks and seemed eager to help me change out my engine as well.  We plunged in.  In two days, we had the Encore running again and I drove it for several more years!  It was another rite of passage!

John also gave Troy and me our first experience with frogging.  He took us out very late one night and led us up the middle of a creek.  It was creepy!  He would scan the sides of the creek for small sets of eyes that would focus on his head-lamp.  Then, he would lower his gig in front of them and moments later their legs were in his pouch!

While we were traversing the creek that night in the pitch dark, John stopped suddenly and handed me his gig.  Troy and I watched as he focused his light on the water and peered into the creek.  After moments of scrutinizing something he plunged his arm into the creek and pulled a huge snapping turtle out of the water! It's shell was probably eighteen inches in diameter as he held it up by-the-tail for us to see.  We were incredulous at the site of this big turtle trying desperately to take a chop out of John's leg.  We were even less comfortable when he turned around and released it back into the creek!

I went frogging with John several times that year and we ended the summer with a big frog-leg/chicken-wing barbecue! Delicious!

Our families also became friends.  We shared many cook-outs and family nights.  Travis and Holly became the best of friends!  Heidi and Hayley became Troy and Tracie's baby-sitters.  We played lots of games of Euchre.  We still share ten days every summer at the Tri-State Family Camp in East Liverpool.  Friendships like this are rare and precious!

Free Will

I just read the story of King Saul in I Samuel and it made me think about the free will that God has given us. Free will always gets tangled up with God's sovereignty and God's omniscience.  I'm not a theologian, but it seemed kind of clear to me - so I thought I'd share...

God, through Samuel, appoints Saul as the first king of Israel.  Saul was "...a choice and handsome man, and there was not a more handsome person than he among the sons of Israel;  from his shoulders and up he was taller than any of the people."  (I Samuel 9:2  NAS).  After Samuel anointed him, he said, "...the spirit of the LORD will come upon you mightily, and you shall...be changed into another man...Then it happened when he turned his back to leave Samuel, God changed his heart..."  (I Samuel 10:6,9  NAS).

When you read through these chapters, you get a sense that God had chosen the best man for the job.  However, Saul made consecutive bad choices. Eventually, his victories went to his head:  "[Samuel] got up early in the morning to confront Saul but was told, "Saul's gone.  He went to Carmel to set up a victory monument in his own honor..."  (I Samuel 15:12 TM).

Eventually, God laments that He made Saul king of Israel:  "Then the word of the LORD came to Samuel, saying, 'I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following Me and has not carried out My commands.'...And the LORD regretted that He had made Saul king over Israel."  (I Samuel 15:10-11,35 NAS).

It seems pretty clear that Saul could have chosen obedience.  Saul could have written a different ending to this story - but he didn't.  Saul used his free will to disobey God and suffered greatly for it.  Had he walked in a way that honored God, he could have created an amazing legacy.

Because of Saul's choices, God changed His plan and withdrew His Spirit from Saul:  "Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul..."  (I Samuel 16:14 NAS).  Instead, God placed His Spirit on the young shepherd, David:  "Samuel took his flask of oil and anointed [David],...The Spirit of God entered David like a rush of wind, God vitally empowering him for the rest of his life."  (I Samuel 16:13 TM).

This is not just a sad story from the Old Testament.  It is an illustration of how God works.  He gives us free will and hopes that we will use it to honor and obey Him!  However, when we neglect Him and start building monuments to ourselves we forfeit His blessing.

At one point, after grossly disobeying God's commands, Saul tries to assuage God by sacrificing lots of animals.  Samuel responds:

"Do you think all God wants are sacrifices - empty rituals just for show?

He wants you to listen to Him!...

Because you said No to God's command, He says No to your kingship."

(I Samuel 16:22,23 TM)

Sorry!  You can't please God just by showing up at His house on Sundays. Remember, "...the LORD looks at the heart."  (I Samuel 16:7 NAS).

What does He see when He looks at your heart?