LIFE

Being Lay Leader during January, I started the month and told our church they were filled with a great sense of humor and that we should come to church with joy in our hearts.

January 13, I told them they should get up on Sunday and say, “I am so excited.  I get to go to church today.”

January 20, I was going to say something about the congregation being the life of the church, but I was not there.  Why?  Because our grandson was choosing a new life – an eternal life!  He was baptized!

There are a gazillion articles, books and papers written on how our lives change once we accept Christ as our Savior.  Some books point out person after person who continued on with their lives as if nothing had happened and use that as proof that God is not real.  Others tell of miraculous changes where addictions are instantly left behind.  And some tell how the changes are subtle, happening slowly as greed turns into generosity and selfishness into compassion and hate into love. 

As I thought about this, I wondered:  What else changes when someone becomes a true believer?

HEAVEN?  Do the carpenters get busy and add another room to the mansion?  Do the angels look down at Satan and go, “Na, na, na, na.  This one is ours!”  Is another heavenly robe sown? 

Yes, I am being a bit silly, but the question remains:  What changes when someone truly chooses a new life? 

THE PERSON:  Even a person who grew up in the church and has always believed changes when they make a personal commitment.  Maybe, slowly at first, thoughts change.  Attitudes change.  Actions change.  A person changes when they fully accept that the Cross is for them!

THE FAMILY:  When a family has a commitment to a new life in Christ, the family changes.  I am in no way saying the terrible twos will not happen, those dreaded teenage years will be smooth sailing or that life will be a bed or roses.  Life changes because the family is united in their faith.  Their faith directs family situations to be handled with respect and love and wisdom.

(Disclaimer:  Pastor Larry also writes a blog:  https://larry- fromthepastorsdesk.blogspot. com/ but you need to know we never discuss what the other is writing and it is absolutely a coincidence when the blogs are on the same topic.  It is also a coincidence when the ideas swimming in my head are mentioned during the Sunday sermon.)

THE CHURCH:  What exactly happens when the Church makes a commitment to a new life in Christ?  THE CHURCH CHANGES!  The focus and the direction of the church changes.  Eyes open and see.  Hands unclasp and do.  Hearts thaw and feel.  Doors open wide.  And a church works as one, using each talent and gift to the Glory of God.

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January 20, I was going to say something about the congregation being the life of the church, but I was not there.  Why?  Because our grandson was choosing a new life – an eternal life!  He was baptized!

NEW LIFE BEGINS

One person chooses a new life – an eternal life – and thoughts, attitudes and actions change.

One family commits to a new life in Christ and family situations are handled with respect and love and wisdom.

One church makes a commitment to a new life in Christ and begins to work as one, using each talent and gift to the Glory of God

NEW LIFE

One person changes their life, which can change a family, which can change a church, which can change a community, which can change a country, which can change the world.

That means we are ---- come back next week to see.

EXCITED

Are you a morning person?  Do you wake up; eyes wide open and ready to face the day?

Well good for you.

That is not exactly how I wake up.  My day starts when hubby says, “Good morning, it is time to get up.” He is my alarm clock because .... Well .....  My mom always woke us kids up so I never woke up to an alarm clock.  Until I got married.  Believe it or not we received three alarm clocks as wedding gifts.  Personally I think alarm clocks are a strange wedding gift but, as it ended up, we used all three.

Morning one:  The alarm clock was there waiting to welcome me to a new day.  The alarm went off. A very loud alarm that scared me to death and clock one did not survive me trying to silence that absolutely obnoxious sound.

Morning two:  The box said the alarm was a pleasant sound that would not cause permanent damage to the ear.  The box lied. Clock two joined clock one in the trash can.

Morning three:  Bill turned the alarm clock off and from that day forward, the alarm clock resided on his side of the bed.

A perfect morning would be to hear a very soft, “Good morning Mary.  Here is your coffee and the morning paper turned to the cartoons.”  Ah, coffee!  Thank you God for coffee.

Over the years, I have gotten up to go to work, to fix breakfast and get everyone out the door, to take care of sick kids, to take care of a sick hubby, to go on vacation, to deliver calves, to get cows off the road and fix fence at 2:00 AM, and because it is the adult thing to do.  It is not that I want to sleep in.  It is just that I hate waking up!

Except for Sunday. On Sunday I am excited, because I know that, after coffee, I GET TO GO TO CHURCH!  I am:

EXCITED FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORSHIP.

EXCITED TO BE IN GOD’S HOUSE.

EXCITED TO GREET OTHERS.

EXCITED TO JOIN IN SONG.

EXCITED TO HEAR THE WORD OF GOD.

EXCITED TO LEARN FROM THE SERMON.

Yup.  On Sunday I wake up with the joy and excitement of knowing I will be going to church...... right after I have my coffee.

JOY

Written Sunday, January 6, 2019

I am doing Lay Leader at church this month.  This morning I started by saying the congregation has a sense of humor.

First, I better tell you that I am neither the tallest nor the shortest person around, but I am always a few inches too short to reach the stuff on the top shelf at any store.  Yesterday I had a day out with friends and my friend – a friend much taller than I am --drove her truck.  A truck with no running boards.  But she is a good friend and brought along a step stool.  So every time I had to get in the truck, out came the stool, I stepped up on it and then into the truck.  This caused more than a few glances and snickers from passersby.  Getting out was so much easier.  I could slide out.  Gravity took care of that! 

I told about this at church and could see a picture forming in everyone’s mind.  I am not sure which picture gave them the greatest joy – my climbing in the truck or my sliding out. 

I told the church what the pastor said in the prayer room as were getting ready to pray before service started.  The pastor had commented, “We are not 27 anymore.”  I told him I was.  I just used the numbers in a different order.  It was my turn for joy because it was funny to see the congregation thinking, “27 in another order would be…oh… 72.”

To top it all off, the pastor suggested I lead the singing.  I informed him that the Bible said a joyful noise and the only one that thought my singing was joyful was God.  I told the congregation I would not be standing anywhere near the microphone during the singing.  The congregation clapped.  Ok.  They did not clap but they were very joyful to learn I would not be leading the singing.

I wish everyone would worship joyfully.  I do not think there is a scripture that tells us to come to church with a scowl on our face.  Believe me, when you are up front you do not want to see row after row of prune faces and I am pretty sure God would agree.  There is so much joy around us

The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.

My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.

Psalm 28:7

I can guarantee that God has provided me with many, many, many stepstools to reach where I need to be.  My heart leaps with joy when I slide down and find my feet firmly planted on solid ground.  And I praise him.

Since my youth, God, you have taught me,

and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds.

Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God,

till I declare your power to the next generations,

your mighty acts to all who are to come.

My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you – I whom you have delivered.

Psalm 71:17-18, 23

Age is a number and hair color is just a color.  But God being beside me when I am old and gray is a fact!  And that fact makes me shout for joy.

Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth;

make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.

Psalm 98:4

I will make a joyful noise unto the LORD.  I will make a loud noise.  I will rejoice and sing praises.  I will do this but I will only do this when I am not standing close to a microphone.

Bottom line:  Come to church with joy in your soul.

WALLS

Tear down that wall.  Build that wall.  We hear a lot about walls so I looked up “wall” in the Bible.  Wow.  The word wall is used over 250 times in the NIV!

Walls of water allowed the children of Israel to stay dry – twice.  Walls that went all the way to the sky caused fear.  Walls were built and other walls came down.  Walls kept people in and people out.  Walls secured cities.  Salvation was called a wall, but so was hostility.  Some walls were covered in gold.  Some walls had holes in them and others could be scaled with the help of God.

Of course the best wall story is Joshua and the walls of Jericho.

Can you imagine the shock when Joshua told the people, “Listen up.  The Ark of the Covenant of the LORD, seven priests with trumpets and the fighting men are going to march around Jericho for the next seven days.  The first six days you will only march around the city one time.  It is not that big of a deal and shouldn’t take too long.  Now, when we march, the priests will be blowing their trumpets but the rest of you are to be perfectly quiet.  Not one peep.  On the seventh day it will go a bit different.  Line up as usual but put on your most comfortable shoes because we are going around seven times and then the priests will sound a blast and you are to shout.  I want you to give it everything you have.  Shout so loud even the walls will fall in fear.” 

Shout they did and the walls came down!

TEAR DOWN THAT WALL

There are walls in our lives that need to come down.  How about that wall that goes up called stubborn?  Brick by brick we build walls of resentment, bitterness and allowing old wounds to keep us from being free.  We build walls so others cannot see we are hurting or lonely.  Sometimes possessions, commitments, work and even people add bricks to the wall that traps us. 

Why don’t we just take a sledge hammer to that wall and whack away? 

Sometimes we are afraid of what would happen if we “let down our guard.”  Sometimes we are not strong enough or courageous enough to change.  Sometimes we do not even know how to begin.  Sometimes it is because life has always been this way and we don’t know any different.  Sometimes it is because we listen to a voice that says we do not deserve any better. 

Set yourself free.  Tear down these walls.

ALLOW GOD TO BUILD A NEW WALL

Tear down a wall.  Build a wall.  Confused yet?

We need a wall around us.  We need to be safe and protected.  Our souls are vulnerable and we need a wall that will not fall down when man shouts.

And there is only one who can build such a wall – GOD! 

The amazing thing is that as God builds HIS WALL, our walls start to crumble.  Stubbornness, resentment, bitterness, old wounds and the walls we hide behind are replaced with bricks of grace and mercy and forgiveness.  As God builds HIS WALL, possessions, commitments, work and even people change in value and are replaced with a giving spirit, God’s plan and work and we are influenced by people He places in our lives.

The amazing thing is that as God builds HIS WALL, our walls start to crumble.  As bricks of wisdom go up, fear is replaced by strength and courage and we listen to the voice of truth.

Set yourself free.  Walk away from the wall you have built around yourself and step onto an eternal foundation with a wall so strong it will never fall.