We know how our journey ends.

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:18

I’ve recently found a cable channel, FETV, that shows the old Lone Ranger programs that I would ocassionaly watch as a child and sometimes they were cliffhangers.  You didn’t know the ending but had to come back next week to see if Tonto would get away from the evil Butch Cavendish gang.  Now, having seen the program, I know the ending.  When you’ve seen the program, your tension goes down when you know the end of the story.  When you don’t have to wonder or worry if things will turn out badly, it affects your perspective and your attitude. 

This is why believers in Christ grieve differently from the rest of the world.  I had a conversation with a fellow weasel a week ago and we were talking about people we knew who had passed away recently.  When believers lose family or friends who are also believers, they grieve because they miss the person who is gone, but they also know they are in a far better place: in heaven, with God, forever.  Ain’t God good? 

In a sense, we grieve for ourselves because we too, have to find a way forward without our loved one.  But we grieve with hope because we know the end of the story.  One day, we will join them in heaven and be with God forever.  You can have hope, even when there is loss. 

How?  You’ve got to get a bigger perspective and a longer view.  You’ve got to refocus your attention.  You’ve got to stop thinking about just the here and now and start living as if there is much more to your story. 

This life is not all there is!  If you just look at today in this sin filled world and what’s happening right now, you’re probably going to have a feeling of hopelessness.  But if you can see what’s happening to you in light of eternity, you’ll realize that this life is preparation for the next.  God is getting you ready for eternal life.

Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

May God be with you,

Jay

Ain't God good?

“We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia.  We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself.  Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death.  But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.” 2 Corinthians 1:8-9

Life is full of heartaches.  Ain’t God good?  The Burnt Offering event to help feed more Haitian school kids was attended by as many people worship at our church during the summer.  The event raised enough funds to feed over 13,000 meals for Haitian children through Trinity HOPE feeding programs.  Ain’t God good?  In this sin filled world we suffer, feel lonely and discouraged, and face criticism; and sometimes that can feel unfair…but it’s not.  Ain’t God good?

Why does a good God allow us to face challenges?  Did Jesus suffer?  Was He sometimes lonely?  Was He tempted to be discouraged?  Was He often misunderstood and criticized unjustly?  Yes!  Jesus understands suffering better than anyone.  Ain’t God good?

None of us are exempt from suffering, loneliness, discouragement, or criticism, because God is developing in us the character of Christ.  In order to do that, He takes us through some of the same struggles that Jesus experienced.  Does that mean God causes tragedies?  No, God is good.  He won’t cause evil or do evil.  But God can use dark and stressful challenges for good.  He will use them to show us how to help others, use us to help feed His children, to teach us to trust Him, and to draw us closer to other believers.

In the above passages, the Apostle Paul explains how he and his companions learned to trust God through hard times.  Through their struggles, they became closer to God and also to other believers.  Ain’t God good?  So what should we do when we’re going through difficult times?  Refuse to be discouraged.  Remember God is with you…always.  Rely on God’s protection and guidance.  We all go through difficult times.  The difference for those who believe in Jesus is our confidence in God’s promise to be with us, grow us in spiritual maturity, and use our difficulties for good.

Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

May God be with you,

Jay

Cling to what is good.

“Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.”  Romans 12:9

Today is going to busy day for a group of people who are members of Our Redeemer Lutheran in Bloomington, IL.  They are having an event called ‘Burnt Offerings’ and it will have items for silent auction, a bake sale, music, BBQ competition and Denise Gudlin will give us an update on Trinity HOPE.  The fire in my smoker will be going at 7 AM for the five racks of baby back ribs that the ‘Bon Manje’ team will be serving.

Those of us preparing for this event love what we are doing; we give our best for this event that will support feeding His children in Haiti.  Our love of our Heavenly Father must be sincere.  Our love must not be faked or have an on/off switch that we can manipulate when situations seem to fit the need in our timing.  We must detest things that are evil.  We must turn our back on them, walk away when tempted and pray for strength for our resolve and for those that desire the evil of this world.

We must continue to seek and cling to what is good; giving our best.  Clinging to feeding children who live in Haiti and share in our love for our risen Savior Jesus Christ is certainly right and proper.  Supporting the children in Haiti is God pleasing.  Our love for them is sincere and we pray for them as they continue to do daily battle with the evil that vodou priest continues to bring into their lives.

A familiar song was sung at a funeral that I watched online recently; ‘Beautiful Savior’, and those two words really say it all so simply when trying to describe how precious the gift is that we received from our Beautiful Savior, Jesus Christ.  We strive to cling closely to our Beautiful Savior.  While the author of this hymn is unknown, the perfecter of our faith is so well known.  This hymn was translated in 1873 by Joseph Seiss.

“Beautiful Savior, King of Creation, Son of God and Son of Man!  Truly I'd love Thee, truly I'd serve Thee, light of my soul, my Joy, my Crown.  Fair are the meadows, fair are the woodlands, robed in flowers of blooming spring; Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer; He makes our sorrowing spirit sing.  Fair is the sunshine, fair is the moonlight, bright the sparkling stars on high; Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer, than all the angels in the sky.  Beautiful Savior, Lord of the nations, Son of God and Son of Man!  Glory and honor, praise, adoration, now and forevermore be Thine!”

Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

May God be with you,

Jay

Feeling hopeless?

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  Jeremiah 29:11

We live in a sin filled world that sometimes, well no, quite often seems void of hope.  Wars, famine, pollution, recessions, etc. can cause us to become easily discouraged when we look at the prospects of our future; and we know that discouragement can lead to depression, and depression will lead us to hopelessness.

When we are feeling hopeless, we see our circumstances and surroundings through a filtered lens that can cause us to continue to spiral downwards in our emotions and our attitudes.  In the words from Jeremiah, God says that He has a plan for you, for me and the children in the attached photo; a plan that will prosper you and not to harm you, a plan that will give you hope and a future.

God has a specific plan for the girl jumping rope at the Maniche School that is located in the Les Cayes District.  At the moment the photo was snapped, she probably could not tell you what the plan was for her life, but she knows that the Triune God who provides her with a daily meal has something special planned for her, because He loves her.  Our Triune God cares about her.  HE cares about you as well.

While the economy in our country may be saying one thing to us, God is saying another; feed my sheep.  While your circumstances may cry out hopelessness, God is saying that He has a plan to prosper and not to harm you.  While we don't know what the future does hold, we know Who holds the future.  We can trust in the goodness of God to care for us and His children in Haiti in the midst of situations that seem hopeless.

Our hope is not in our circumstances, but in God our Father.  That does not necessarily mean that life will always turn out the way we expected, but it does mean that we can always trust in our Father to love us and watch over us.  

Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

May God be with you,

Jay

Giving your best...

“Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let your hands not be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well.”  Ecclesiastes 11:6

As an early riser, this verse gives me something to hang my hat on when people shake their heads at when they learn that my day typically begins around 4:30 AM.  It is not that I love getting up early; it just happens.  Back in the day while living in Haiti, driving to the office in Petionville by 5 AM meant that I could drive down the main street Delmas with very little traffic to deal with; a good thing.  Leaving my apartment later than 6 AM increased the drive time by thirty minutes at a minimum as vehicles and hordes of pedestrians clogged the streets.

Working in the morning when the mind is fresh is generally best for me as my creative juices just seem to slow down in the late afternoon.  It would seem that this scripture would encourage each of us to work and not be idle from the break of day until sun is setting; stay busy with the time you have been given.  Give your best at whatever you are doing. 

Back in the day when Pastor Luke Schnake became our Senior Pastor at Christ in Lincoln, he encouraged the staff and each of us Elders to sign a pledge to strive to give the very best of our time, talents and treasures to serve HIM, while serving others.  If you have an opportunity today, please wish a Happy 49th Wedding Anniversary to Pastor Luke and Jane for always trying to bless those around their marriage through their words and actions. My friends, through all of our labors, always strive to do the best we can with what we have been given.  Each of us has been given various talents and endless opportunities to serve our Triune God.  It doesn’t matter if we are young or old; our time and talents are so valuable for doing His work in this world full of challenges.

Thank you for using your time, talents and treasures to feed His children in Haiti; whether it be morning, noon or night; thank you for answering and following His call to feed His children.  I close today with the words to the hymn ‘God of mercy, God of grace’ that was written by Henry F. Lyte in 1834.

“God of mercy, God of grace, show the brightness of Thy face; shine upon us, Savior, shine, fill Thy church with light divine, and Thy saving health extend unto earth's remotest end.  Let the people praise Thee, Lord!  Be by all that live adored; let the nations shout and sing Glory to their Savior King, at Thy feet their tribute pay, and Thy holy will obey.  Let the people praise Thee, Lord!  Earth shall then her fruits afford, God to man His blessing give, man to God devoted live; all below and all above one in joy and light and love.”

Dear Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

May God be with you,

Jay

HE knows your name.

“But now, this is what the LORD says; he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.”  Isaiah 43:1

We all have names, and HE knows us by our name.  While looking through photos of children in Haiti, descriptive words come to mind that could be given as names; names like hungry, tired, lonely, sadness, empty, broken and hurting.  Through North American eyes there really doesn’t appear to be any joy considering their surroundings.

The attached photo was taken at the Messif school in Ouanaminthe.  Their school room was dark; it was difficult for my eyes to adjust to the darkness of their room after coming in from outside.  It must have been over ninety degrees in their room.  They sat patiently listening to a few North American missionaries’ share the love of Jesus with them as their lunch time drew closer.  He knows each of their names.

Psalm 23 is one of those best known and loved chapters in the Bible because it comforts us with the image of a good shepherd caring for His helpless, wandering sheep.  At just the right time, he stands, calls them to follow him and gently reassures them as he walks forward.

Every one of His sheep have a name, and He knows them all.  Each sheep hears that familiar voice and his own name and follows the steps of the Good Shepherd.  Thank you for answering His call to ‘follow me’ and bring food to Messif.  We all have a name; disciple, steward, benefactor, missionary, good and faithful servant.

Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

May God be with you,

Jay

Blessed affliction.

“It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees.”  Psalm 119:71
Most people curse their afflictions and do not view them as any kind of blessing.  Our personal afflictions and challenges try to take us down.  In the way that this sinful world thinks about afflictions, the world would think David must surely have been out of his mind and delusional when he said afflictions were good.  If we ever really take a close and honest look at our afflictions as blessings or as good for us, we must see how the affliction will benefit us and perhaps fit into God’s plan for our individual journey.  We must see how we can use the affliction as a learning experience.

Take a close look at the children enjoying their Trinity HOPE meal at the school in Colminy which is located in the Arcahaie District.  This school has 88 children who are sitting on a small board with their lunch cradled in their lap and their feet planted firmly on a dirt floor with walls that are constructed of palm branches.  Imagine what their homes must be like; this might be considered to be an affliction.

Affliction comes in many different forms; physical, mental, financial.  To turn every affliction into a learning experience we must first learn what to do with the affliction.  Sadly, too often we let afflictions have their way with us.  We seldom think about doing something with our affliction or helping others with their afflictions.

In our life, we have to learn what it is God wants us to do with our afflictions.  When that direction is realized it becomes easier for us to help others with their afflictions.  Thank you for turning to our Creator in your time of affliction and for sharing the love of His Son Jesus Christ with the children in Colminy.

Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

May God be with you,

Jay

Rejoicing in misfortune.

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”  Malachi 3:10

Yesterday, I was recalling a devotion by the late Pastor Ken Klaus with the Lutheran Hour had some time ago that was titled “Shadenfreude." (SHOD-n- froy-duh) and he explained that ‘Shadenfreude’ is a German word which doesn't really have a very good translation; probably slang and the best translation would be that it means rejoicing over someone else's misfortune.

I must tell you, that if you had traveled to Haiti before the terrible earthquake of January 2010, there were probably many souls on this planet that would reflect that word, “shadenfreude” when looking at the problems that existed in Haiti pre-2010.  “Why bother to help them when they cannot help themselves” was one statement that I heard in a small group one time when I was talking about my work in Haiti.

Pastor Klaus gave a few examples of ‘shadenfreude’.  In the Passion narrative of our Savior, we see many of the people gathered around the cross laughing and mocking Jesus; that was shadenfreude.  In 2001 when the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center were brought down, there were reports of people in some Islamic countries who were rejoicing about the destruction.  Although it made us angry to hear about such a thing, that was shadenfreude. 

Following 911, there were many donors in North America that held on tight to their money, not sure of what would happen next and satan and his charges mocked the mission work that had been taking place in Haiti; ‘where is your god?’ they asked Christians; shadenfreude.  God smiled upon Trinity HOPE donors then and still to this day is putting a broad smile on donors, the children receiving food in Ouanaminthe and putting doubt in the minds of those who mirror shadenfreude.

Thank you for continuing to pour out blessings on His children, in good times and bad, and feeding the young missionaries who will bring the news of the risen Savior to Haiti.

Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

May God be with you,

Jay

We have a purpose.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”  Romans 8:28

Saturday morning; what is your prime purpose today?  You probably have quite a few.  How is God working through your life to accomplish the purpose for which he gave you life?  I can’t tell you how many times people have remarked that they don’t know what their purpose is in life, why are they still here and not in Heaven.

Why do you suppose that He called you to help feed children in Haiti who will one day bring the message of Hope to just one or two of the people riding in a truck on a bumpy street in Cap Haitian?  Why do you suppose that your quarter was used to provide a meal for one life who in turn went skipping down that street, heading home while singing ‘Jesus loves me’ and that small little song planted a seed in the life of the woman riding in that red truck?  It is a God moment in time; you are called, the child attending the Lutheran school in Cap Haitian was called and the Holy Spirit is entering into that person riding in the back of the truck.

Last night, Alexa played the song ‘Softly and tenderly’ that was being sung by Merle Haggard, and he is in my range and we did a ragged duet.  This song was written by Will Thompson in 1880 and it is such a wonderful reminder that daily we are being called by Jesus to come home.  We are being called home as are the children attending the Lutheran school in Cap Haitian and the lost lives in those trucks that they are touching.

“Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling, calling for you and for me; see, on the portals he's waiting and watching; watching for you and for me.  Come home, come home; ye who are weary come home; earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling, calling, O sinner, come home!  Why should we tary when Jesus is pleading, pleading for you and for me?  Why should we linger and heed not his mercies, mercies for you and for me?  Come home, come home; ye who are weary come home; earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling, calling, O sinner, come home!  Time is now fleeting, the moments are passing, passing from you and from me; shadows are gathering, deathbeds are coming, coming for you and for me.  Come home, come home; ye who are weary come home; earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling, calling, O sinner, come home!  O for the wonderful love he has promised, promised for you and for me!  Though we have sinned, he has mercy and pardon, pardon for you and for me.  Come home, come home; ye who are weary come home; earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling, calling, O sinner, come home!”

Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

May God be with you,

Jay

Great things?

“Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy.  Then it was said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.”  Psalm 126:2

When waiting for something, a street light, standing in line at the bank, waiting for child at school; these are times when we probably don’t consider the great things that God has accomplished in our lives.  Early yesterday morning I was in the hospital waiting to have surgery with my daughters sitting across from my bed; they are something wonderful He has given me in my life.

The children in the attached photo are a few of the 153 waiting for their noon meal at Pont Sonde which is located in the Artibonite District in Haiti.  As a Trinity HOPE donor, I wait patiently for the next newsletter that has new photos and stories of lives being prepared to go into the mission fields of Haiti.

I hope that you and I will never have to stand in line for our only meal of the day, as these children are doing on a hot midday in Haiti.  These children and you and me are waiting for one common blessing, being in Heaven with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  We have already received the blessing of being redeemed by His blood and are just waiting until our life’s work for Him has been accomplished.  Last night before the upcoming surgery, Alexa and I were listening to a song titled ‘Redeemed’ and the words were written by Fanny Crosby in 1882 and it’s message shares the joy that you, the children in Pont Sonde and I have.

“Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it!  Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb; redeemed through His infinite mercy, His child and forever I am.  Redeemed, redeemed, redeemed by the blood of the Lamb; redeemed, redeemed, His child and forever I am.  Redeemed, and so happy in Jesus, no language my rapture can tell; I know that the light of His presence with me doth continually dwell.  I think of my blessed Redeemer, I think of Him all the day long: I sing, for I cannot be silent; His love is the theme of my song.  I know there’s a crown that is waiting, in yonder bright mansion for me, and soon, with the spirits made perfect, at home with the Lord I shall be.”

Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

May God be with you,

Jay