Wait for the Lord.

“I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.  Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.”  Psalm 27:13-14

In my remaining time on this fallen planet, I never want to forget that the LORD has been merciful and gracious to me.  He has proved Himself again and again to be slow to anger and continually abounding in steadfast love.  When my patience grows thin when my life takes yet another wrong turn, when my basket of golden eggs shrinks before my eyes, when my life is full to overflowing with troubles and enemies; I can take hope in what God has accomplished for me on the cross of Calvary.

Our Triune God who sent His Son to die for you, these children in Haiti and also for me will always keep His promise and not leave His children hopeless in whatever ailment life may be pouring into our buckets.  As these children in Cap Haitian wait for their noon meal from Him, we too listen to the words of David and ‘wait for the Lord, be strong and wait for the Lord.’

While driving home yesterday I was thinking about how blessed I am to be here, with Him and without thinking about it I began to sing along to the song ‘Nothing but the blood’ that was playing on the radio that was written by Robert Lowry in 1876.  The words express so well how wonderful it is to be washed by the blood of Jesus.

“What can wash away my sin?  Nothing but the blood of Jesus; what can make me whole again?  Nothing but the blood of Jesus.  Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow; no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus.  For my pardon, this I see, nothing but the blood of Jesus; for my cleansing this my plea, nothing but the blood of Jesus.  Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow; no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus.  Nothing can for sin atone, nothing but the blood of Jesus; naught of good that I have done, nothing but the blood of Jesus.  Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow; no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus.  This is all my hope and peace, nothing but the blood of Jesus; this is all my righteousness, nothing but the blood of Jesus.  Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow; no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus.  Now by this I’ll overcome, nothing but the blood of Jesus; now by this I’ll reach my home, nothing but the blood of Jesus.  Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow; no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus.  Glory! Glory! This I sing, nothing but the blood of Jesus; all my praise for this I bring, nothing but the blood of Jesus.”

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

Our relationship with...

“Hear my voice when I call, LORD; be merciful to me and answer me.  My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”  Your face, LORD, I will seek.  Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper.  Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior.  Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me.  Teach me your way, LORD; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors.  Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations.”  Psalm 27:7-12  

The tenth verse of Psalm 27 “Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me” has always caused me to consider what that means to me and also to children living in Haiti.  The journey of both my parents has ended and they have received their Heavenly reward; their relationship with me has ended but my relationship with my Heavenly Father is ongoing and will never cease.  The relationship that I have with my daughters continues and will prayerfully be continually blessed in the coming years.  The children in attached photo attend the Lutheran school in Cap Haitian and their relationship with their parents is unknown to me, but their relationship with their Heavenly Father is assured.

The relations with their parents will be the last to desert them, but if their parents should happen to desert them for their denouncing of vodouism, there is a Father who never forgets and never departs.  Some of the greatest of the saints have been cast out by their families for their coming to Christ, and have been persecuted for righteousness' sake.  It has happened to Pastor Revenel Benoit in Gonaives and has probably happened in the lives of other Haitian children who have turned from vodou to accept Jesus as their risen Savior.  Thank you for keeping them in your daily prayers.

I heard Alexa share a song recently titled ‘Things like that’ by Joe Nichols and I was able to locate the lyrics.  It is a country song, not written in the 1800’s; not a song out of the Lutheran Service Book; but it sure has a message that needs to be heard today as it touches on the value of relationships with our children and with our Heavenly Father.

“His daddy taught him all about huntin and fishin, how to work on that old truck when it needed fixin, how to say sir and how to say mam, how their ain't nothing wrong with getting dirt on your hands.  Have mercy on all of the kids out there who haven't been raised to even care about things like that these days.  His momma used to cook every meal in the kitchen, she helped with his homework and taught him religion, she laid down the law and he let her know where he was going and when he'd be home.  Have mercy on all of the kids out there who haven't been raised to even care about things like that these days.   As the years changed him from a boy to a man he was blessed with a generous heart and a plan wherever life takes him wherever he's at he's gonna find some way to give something back.  Now his weekends are spent doing what he loves most with 12 little angels who call him coach; some have nothing and some are spoiled rotten but when they're with him they're not forgotten.  Have mercy on all of the parents out there who haven't been raised to even care about things like that these days.  As the years changed him from a boy to a man he was blessed with a generous heart and a plan wherever life takes him wherever he's at he's gonna find some way to give something back.”

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 is always with us.

“For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock.  Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD.”  Psalm 27:5-6

When a North American drives through the countryside of Haiti there is one thing that will cross your mind as you observe houses without glass in the windows and a cloth for a door closure; there is no security.  When living in Haiti there was no AAA to call when I had a flat tire and no 911 when there was danger or an emergency.

The safety of believers living in Haiti is not within the walls of their houses, but is found in the Triune God who brings them comfort throughout their daily activities.  To the children who attend Christian schools and live in a home similar to the one in the photo that was taken a mile outside of Ouanaminthe, they have been placed upon an impregnable rock by their Eternal Father where the vodou priest cannot snatch them away in the night.

The children in Haiti, you and I need to join the men of the Old Testament who prayed in faith, nothing wavering, and spoke of their answer to their prayers as a certainty.  Our Heavenly Father has promised the generations of believers that He will be with us daily.   David was by faith so sure of a glorious victory over all those who beset him that he arranged in his own heart what he would do when his foes lay all prostrate before him.

There are over 52,000 answers to prayers each day when children come from their small homes walking to a school where they learn more about a risen Savior and receive their daily meal.  In the same manner that Christ defeated satan on Calvary, the vodou priest is defeated when a child of God is trained to share the Good News and is fed their daily bread; a reason to rejoice!

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

The Lord is my Light.

“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?  The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?   When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall.  Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.  One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.  Psalm 27:1-4

How often do you stop and look at what is going on in this world and ask yourself “what the heck is going on here?”  Professional football and basketball players and team owners bickering over how to split up billions of dollars; BILLIONS of dollars.  Icebergs melting faster than ever before recorded.  Wars, open borders and politics!  Our country chooses between just two people to run for President of the free world while a panel of five will judge fifty contestants to serve as Miss America for a one-year term.  Stop the madness.  Come Lord Jesus, come.

To the small child in the attached photo, none of the news in the above paragraph is news to her.  The most important news to her is that she has a friend in Jesus who defeated the vodou priest down the street and protects her from the gangs.  What matters to her is that she is saved, has a home waiting for her in Heaven and gets a noon meal at her school in Cap Haitian.  Tomorrow may be her moment in time to share the news of her Savior without another friend in her neighborhood who still lives in fear.  Thank you for helping to prepare her for this moment on her journey. 

“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?  The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”

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

Praise the Lord.

“Praise the LORD.  Praise the LORD, my soul.”  Psalm 146:1

How often during a day do we stop our hectic motions and pause to praise the Lord?  What is there that has taken place in our lives to bring us to look up to the Heavens and gaze in amazement at what He has caused to happen in our lives?  We give thanks for food, family, shelter, possessions and wealth, but what about a sliver of unbelievable proportions in our life when something just really smacks us with a “WOW” look at what God just did?

It happened to me at the rim of the Grand Canyon, at 110 feet under the Pacific Ocean, at the Trail Ridge Pass, at Niagara Falls, at the Hospitals in Western Nebraska watching my daughters being born, delivering a calf in the Sandhills and standing in doorway of this Lutheran school in Cap Haitian.

Looking at these children who make up just a sliver of the more than 52,000 children that are being fed every day in Haiti by you and me is a reason to say ‘Praise the Lord’ because it is an awesome sight.  One of the Hymns sang at a funeral recently was ‘It is well with my soul’ that was written by Horatio Spafford in 1873.  Feeding children in a small country that many will never visit is also a God thing in your life and in their lives.  You are bringing a small piece of the love of Jesus into their lives each day, and “it is well”.

“When peace, like a river, attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, it is well, it is well, with my soul.  It is well, with my soul, it is well, it is well, with my soul.  Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, let this blest assurance control, that Christ has regarded my helpless estate, and hath shed His own blood for my soul.  It is well, it is well, with my soul.  My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!  My sin, not in part but the whole, is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more.  Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!   It is well, it is well, with my soul.  For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live: if Jordan above me shall roll, no pang shall be mine, for in death as in life Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.  It is well, it is well, with my soul.  But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait, the sky, not the grave, is our goal; Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!  Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!  It is well, it is well, with my soul.   And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight, the clouds be rolled back as a scroll; the trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend, even so, it is well with my soul.   It is well, it is well, with my soul.”

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

Waiting in the wings.

“So, in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.  There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.  If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Galatians 3:26-29

Have you ever sat quietly outdoors in a lawn chair and thought about your ancestors and your descendants; the one’s waiting in the wings who are watching and learning about you?  I come from a lineage of sinful folks.  They knew it and so did I.  You, me and these Haitian children would probably see some of our lackluster traits in people in the Bible.  But we are children of God.

The Bible doesn't try to paint any of its heroes as anything but real people with real flaws; like us.  Consequently, Abraham becomes real, not despite his frailties, but because of them.  Like all real people, he had weaknesses. Some of them are disappointing to look at, but they help us see the whole man.  And those weaknesses help us learn how to regard our own.

One of Abraham's flaws was that he turned to deceit when his life was on the line.  While he was in Egypt during the famine, he ended up lying to Pharaoh, saying that Sarah was his sister to save his own skin.  Then, even after the scheme blew up in his face, he did the same thing again several years later!

Where do we get those lackluster traits that we would like to keep in a private closet in the basement?  Did we inherit them genetically or did we learn them by example?  If you have children or grandchildren, you may choose to share your past mistakes with them and help them learn from your failures.  They won't think less of you; they'll admire your authenticity.  Hopefully, they will feel closer to you.  Your humility will prayerfully endear them to you, and it will give them the courage to confess their struggles to you.

Afterall, we all are Abraham’s seed.  Today, there are gang members living in Haiti who have done terrible things to God’s people.  They too are God’s children and we pray their evil deeds creating chaos in Haiti will come to a quick end and that they will repent of their sin and seek forgiveness and walk closely with God and right the wrongs they have brought to Haiti.  And just as He did with Abraham, God can use us for His purposes in spite of our flaws.  And in spite of those gang members flaws.  And like this great patriarch Abraham, all of His children can pass on a legacy of faith to the next generation.

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

Saving others from...

“Be merciful to those who doubt; save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear; hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.”  Jude 22-23

Snatching souls from the fire sounds like work for a fire department, not a Christian child living in Haiti.  The children in the attached photo attend school at Christ the King in Merrotte which is in the Arcahaie District in the Northern claw of Haiti; they have just received their lunch and are headed back to the class to eat lunch as they prepare to learn how to go out into their world and save souls.

How were you prepared to seek and save lost souls from the fires of hell?  Did you have formal training?  Thinking back, I didn’t give a lot of thought to going out into the mission fields of this world and actively save souls when I was a kid, but that is what the Son of God has instructed us to do.  The children in Merrotte are facing the evil foe in the form of vodou priests, gang members and people who just don’t know any better and continue to follow and believe his lies and the lies of the great deceiver; satan.

There is a familiar hymn “I am trusting Thee Lord Jesus” that was written by Frances R. Havergal in 1874 that was one of the childhood songs that I was taught when being prepared to go out into the world and seek and save souls.  Hope that it will bring back memories for you too and remind you of your calling. 

“I am trusting Thee Lord Jesus, trusting only Thee; trusting Thee for full salvation, great and free.  I am trusting Thee for pardon; at Thy feet I bow, for Thy grace and tender mercy trusting now.  I am trusting Thee for cleansing in the crimson flood; trusting Thee to make me holy by Thy blood.  I am trusting Thee to guide me; Thou alone shalt lead, ev'ry day and hour supplying all my need.  I am trusting Thee for power; Thine can never fail.  Words which Thou Thyself shalt give me must prevail.  I am trusting Thee, Lord Jesus; never let me fall.  I am trusting Thee forever and for all.”

Be certain that your support is making a difference in the lives of His children in Haiti as they go about doing His work of rescuing lost souls from the fire.  Be thankful that our Triune God is using your life to continually be used to rescue lost souls from the fires of hell.

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

Is everything meaningless?

“Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.”  Ecclesiastes 2:11

This Scripture reading was used recently in a devotion at the Lutheran Hour Ministries and as I was reading the words of Solomon, they moved me into a different direction then the writer had written.  While working for the highway department in Nebraska for 38 years there were several occasions that some highway projects that I designed have now been replaced with something bigger and ‘better’ as the volumes of traffic have increased over the decades.  Not sure that it was totally meaningless when hours were spent calculating; it served a purpose for a time, but now it is useless by today’s measurements.

Solomon was filled with much wisdom; he constructed elaborate buildings, bought large numbers of slaves, cattle and was without a doubt the richest man on the planet; back in the day.  According to him, these things turned out to be meaningless, didn’t bring him the happiness that he was needing so he then added many women to his harem; all this left him still shaking his head and searching for something that really mattered.

The attached photo was taken at the kitchen serving area at the Lutheran School at Merrotte.  A table with 20 plates filled with rice and beans for a few of the 456 of His children on a hot, humid day in the Arcahaie District.  Meaningless, nope, certainly not a feast that Solomon would have eaten; or probably many people living in North America.  I guarantee that this plate of food will bring happiness to the Haitian child who holds tightly onto this priceless treasure.

Each one of these 456 children has a purpose from their Heavenly Father.  Probably like us, they don’t know what that purpose happens to be at the moment, but He knows.  This simple meal is not meaningless.  Their Christian education is not meaningless.  Your support of His children is not meaningless; you are taking part of their legacy and leaving a legacy of your own for others to follow.  Heard a song today on the drive home called ‘Just one more Soul’ by Greater Vision.  The words seemed like a good way to wrap up devotion, reminding me, and hopefully of the urgency in saving just one more soul.

“The preachers are weary the singers are tired; the church as we know it is losing its fire.  Some are discouraged from bearing the load but we must determine to keep pressing on ‘cause if just one more soul were to walk down the aisle it would be worth every struggle, it would be worth every mile.  A lifetime of labor is still worth it all if it rescues just one more soul.  So preachers, keep preachin’ and singers, go sing.  Laymen, keep sharing that Jesus is King.  The angels have gathered, they’re surrounding the throne and they’ll start rejoicing for just one more soul.”

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

Our only Savior.

“Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. “For the last fourteen days,” he said, “you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food; you haven’t eaten anything.  Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive.  Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head.”  After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all.  Then he broke it and began to eat.”  Acts 27:33-35

In these verses from Acts 27, we read that the Apostle Paul had just survived a strong storm on the open sea and their ship was battered and he and the other prisoners, guards and crew had been tossing back and forth in the ocean for weeks; without hope.  No radio, radar or emergency warning device to send for help…only prayer.

You cannot help to consider the news these days of our country and Haiti being financially challenged and being tossed back and forth with civil chaos and seemingly being damaged again and again; we are in a similar situation as the Apostle Paul.  In our personal lives there have been times when our journey was battered again and again by the strong waves of this fallen world and nothing that we can do seems to help…only prayer.  The attached photo is of three children who attend a Lutheran school in Gonaives which is located in the Artibonite District.  They have survived hurricanes, floods, gone without food and been swamped by gangs and battered by the lies of the vodou priest.  Their hope and our only hope, comes from our risen Savior; Jesus Christ.

Following in the footsteps of Paul, we give thanks for our blessings and pray for our Triune God to rescue His children from the calamities of satan and this world.  On this day that we celebrate our Independence, it seemed fitting to share the words from the hymn “Eternal Father” which was written by William Whiting in 1860 and joined with music by John B. Dykes in 1861.  These are words that our country needs to remember, draw hope from and give thanks to our Triune God for being with us and ask for his deliverance and blessings. 

“Eternal Father, strong to save, Whose arm hath bound the restless wave, Who biddest the mighty ocean deep its own appointed limits keep; oh hear us when we cry to Thee, for those who peril on the sea!  O Christ, whose voice the waters heard and hushed their raging at Thy Word, Who walked on the foaming deep, and calm amidst its rage didst sleep; oh hear us when we cry to Thee, for those who peril on the sea!  Most Holy Spirit, who didst brood upon chaos dark and rude, and bid its angry tumult cease, and give, for wild confusion, peace; oh hear us when we cry to Thee, for those who peril on the sea!  O Trinity of love and power, our family shield in danger’s hour; from rock and tempest, fire and foe, protect us wheresoever we go; thus evermore shall rise to Thee glad hymns of praise from land and sea.”

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

Working through you.

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”  Jeremiah 1:5

Have you ever imagined how and when God actually put you together?  Have you ever thought about how very important your life is to Him?  He has been waiting and watching for you to accomplish a work for Him through many generations.  What can it possibly be?  Who else has He placed along your life’s journey to either nudge you back on the path, or be the recipient of your gift?  It is mind boggling.

There are 564 children attending the school at Font Baptiste in the Arcahaie District.  The attached photo captured a group of them.  Do you suppose that God placed you where you are today to assist one or two of these children in getting a Christian education and a solid meal every day they are in school?  These kids live up on top of a mountain range in the Northern claw of Haiti in a rolling countryside and most of them walk for an hour or more to school every day and it is hard to imagine how God has interwoven their lives with yours.

I roughly counted 160 children in this photo.  If you drove to this school and wanted to pay for their lunch on any given day before you drove back to Chincheron, it would cost roughly $55 to feed this group.  Hard to imagine that you could impact the lives of so many with what we might consider so little.  Our small blessings can be such big blessings in their lives.  There is a song titled “Count your blessings” that was written by Johnson Oatman Jr. in 1897 that helps to put our blessings into a proper perspective and also think about how our blessings impact the lives of the children in Font Baptiste.

“When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed, when you are discouraged, thinking all is lost, count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.  Count your blessings, name them one by one, count your blessings, see what God hath done!  Are you ever burdened with a load of care?  Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?  Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly, and you will keep singing as the days go by.  Count your blessings, name them one by one, count your blessings, see what God hath done!  When you look at others with their lands and gold, think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold; count your many blessings—wealth can never buy your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.  Count your blessings, name them one by one, count your blessings, see what God hath done!  So, amid the conflict whether great or small, do not be discouraged, God is over all; count your many blessings, angels will attend, help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.   Count your blessings, name them one by one, count your blessings, see what God hath done!”

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