TITLE:  2022

SUBTITLE:  WHAT I HAVE LEARNED

I better start off with things I still have not learned.  That list would include patience.  Often, I have threatened to take white-out and use it wherever that word appears in the Bible.  Rest assured.  There is not one drop of white-out to be found in my Bible. 

Many will agree I still have not learned to keep my mouth shut or to keep my political and social views to myself.  Pretty sure changing me on this is a lost cause. 

Finally, I continue to hold to the belief that “speed limits” are suggestions instead of actual laws.  If people can rob stores and receive no punishment, then I can drive a mile or two over the suggestion on the sign.  Okay.  Yes, my lead foot does seem to go a bit more than a mile or two over.  And that would be a big bit more.

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED

I have learned to trust.  If you have read some of my blogs, you realize this has been an extremely rough health year and trust has been front and center.  I have trusted:

• medical staff to be responsive to my condition, care, and medications
• operating room personnel to monitor my condition during surgery and to work as a team
• doctors to make wise and informed diagnoses and to give us the facts we needed to make decisions
• my friends and prayer warriors to pray when I no longer had the words
• my family to listen, observe, advise, and support me during this journey
• God to be there and give me the strength to recover and the ability to know when I needed to rest

I have learned that I do not have to understand or give into the why/what if game.  Let me explain.

This year has been rough, but the hardest part was the blood infection and the aches and other issues the antibiotics have left behind.  A blessing is that tests show the infection is no longer in my blood.  I am a puzzle to the infectious disease doctor because he cannot figure out how the infection got into my blood.  There are two things that caused my mind to play the why/what if game.  At my follow-up appointment, the infectious disease doctor made the comment that I almost died.  In the back of my mind, I realized that but tried not to focus on it.  Then I received a Medicare statement and one of the doctors I saw was referred to as a “terminal emergency doctor.”  Even on the first day …. Terminal doctor… You almost died. 

And the game began.  “Why didn’t I?”  “What if I had?”  “What now?”  “If it wasn’t my time, what does God have for me to do?”  Why?  What?   This is not a fun game.  It is a game I did not want to play, but I could not get those words terminal and almost died out of my mind.  I pondered.  I tossed them around and around – Why?  What if?  Friends are amazing.  I spoke with three lady friends and they listened.  They prayed with me.  They gently helped me see that I did not need to know why.  My hubby is a worrier!!!  So I waited until my mind had settled and then I shared with him what I had learned.

God knows the why/what if and I have faith and trust in God.  I do not need to know why I did not die.  Once I figured that out, I quickly declared I would not allow words to control my mind or make me afraid. 

I did not want to play the why/what if game, but play it I did.  AND ONCE I HAD GOD AS MY PARTNER, WE WON!!!

 Last week I tried to get you to see that Jesus experienced ordinary things.

Can you see Jesus laughing and smiling, as someone tells a joke?  Can you picture Jesus shaking his head as he has to explain a parable to the disciples, for the third time?  Can you see Jesus taking the hand of a dear friend and having a quiet conversation with him?  Jesus doing ordinary things and all the time he was teaching the love of the Father.

God had a plan for Jesus and he would fulfill that plan.

Jesus lived in such a way to show us the joy.

FULFILLED

I did not intend for this to be a series.  I thought comparing Jesus to a carpet cleaner would be a stand-alone blog.  But, as usually happens, that blog pointed out the hope we have because a baby was born.  The next blog explained how the birth of the baby was only the beginning of God’s plan.  Jesus was sent to teach the love of the Father.  The third blog, hopefully, helped you see Jesus finding joy as he spent time enjoying nature and ordinary things.  And this blog –

Advent uses the words Hope, Love, Joy, and Peace so you are assuming this blog is on Peace.  You are right.

The beauty queen contestant is asked the question, “What matters the most to you?”  The contestant leans forward, speaks into the mic, and says, “World Peace.”  Let’s get real.  If the contestant was honest, the answer would be, “Winning the title of Miss America.”

PEACE

Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, good will toward men.  Luke 2:14  KJV

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.  John 14:27  NIV

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,  Romans 5:1 NIV

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:7 NIV

When we read these verses on peace, we realize that the peace that came to earth was a personal peace.  Jesus provided a way for our ole sinful lives to obtain peace with God.  Now, nowhere does it say that the peace that transcends all understanding will make our life a piece of cake.  BUT it will take away our fear and guard our hearts and minds. 

For some reason, this Christmas season, my mind cannot separate Christmas and Easter.  It is as if Jesus went from the manger to the Cross.

God sent a baby and the baby Jesus gave us HOPE.

Jesus began his ministry to teach the LOVE of the Father.

Jesus lived in such a way to show us the JOY.

Jesus provided a way for us to obtain PEACE with God.

AND (a very important ‘and’ – like ‘therefore’ in the scriptures) God’s plan was fulfilled.

So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.  Mark 16:19

Merry Christmas

 Last week I told you it was as if Jesus went from the manger to the Cross.

This is Christmas and I want to keep Jesus in the manger.  I want to cherish this baby.  I want to kneel in respect and awe.  But it was not God’s plan for Jesus to stay a baby.  God’s plan was for Jesus to fulfill his ministry.

God had a plan. Jesus began his ministry.

Jesus began his ministry to teach the love of the Father.

A MAN

Jesus was all grown up and sowing seeds of his Father’s love. 

We all have pictures in our mind of Jesus and these pictures are usually shaped by the art work we see.  We see Jesus calling his disciples.  We see him with a child on his lap or feeding many people.  We see him healing the blind and we see his anger as he sends the “den of thieves” out of the temple.  We see him talking with the woman at the well and we see him telling Lazarus to come out of the tomb.

But, I also see him doing ordinary things.  I can picture Jesus walking along various roads and noticing everything.  He sees the flowers that have bloomed after the rain.  He hears the secretive Olive-tree Warbler.  He marvels at sunrises and sunsets.  We rush through life, but I picture Jesus savoring every moment. 

Can you see Jesus laughing and smiling, as someone tells a joke?  Can you picture Jesus shaking his head as he has to explain a parable to the disciples, for the third time?  Can you see Jesus taking the hand of a dear friend and having a quiet conversation with him?

Jesus doing ordinary things and all the time he was teaching the love of the Father.

God had a plan for Jesus and he would fulfill that plan.

 Last week I compared Jesus to a carpet cleaner.

Why am I comparing Jesus to a carpet cleaner?  Because God knew I could not have eternal life if my life was dirty with sin and God knew only HIS SON could clean my sins away.  So this blog is about Christmas.  It is about a baby.  A baby!  Born one night.  And on that night, my life changed. 

God had a plan.  He sent a baby.  He sent a baby to change me.  He sent a baby to change you.

God sent a baby and the baby Jesus gave us hope.

A BABY

When I look at our Christmas decorations, I see the baby Jesus in the nativity.  The nativity is the first thing you will see if you come in our front door.  The shepherd had come to see the baby and is kneeling in respect and awe.  There are angels singing and playing instruments.  The wise men are back a ways and trying to figure out exactly where they are going.  They do eventually find Joseph, Mary, and Jesus, but it took them one to two years.  If you look past the wise men, the angels have now turned to the Cross.  Yes, a Cross.  A glass Cross that reflects the lights that surround the manger and lead to the Cross.

I also see the baby Jesus at the top of our tree.  An ornament of the Holy Family, hangs right below the star.  Below them are angels …. and surrounding the angels are crosses.  Glass crosses that reflect the lights.  And strung around the tree are Mardi Gras beads.  Mardi Gras beads caught at Fat Tuesday parades on the day before Lent begins. 

For some reason, this Christmas season, my mind cannot separate Christmas and Easter.  It is as if Jesus went from the manger to the Cross.  But he did not.  Jesus grew up and experienced life.  At age 12, he told Joseph and Mary, “Why is it that you were looking for Me?  Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?”  Jesus learned to be a carpenter.  Jesus was a good son and changed water to wine just because his mommy asked him to.  Then Jesus began his ministry. 

This is Christmas and I want to keep Jesus in the manger.  I want to cherish this baby.  I want to kneel in respect and awe.  But it was not God’s plan for Jesus to stay a baby.  God’s plan was for Jesus to fulfill his ministry.

God had a plan for Jesus to call disciples and to be an example.

 

THE CARPET CLEANER

It was past time to have our carpets cleaned, but carpet cleaning kept being put at the end of our list.  Finally, a date was set and the man arrived.

He came in, we talked for a bit, and then he started in the far end of the house and worked his way back to the office.  He stopped once to tell me he had dusted behind the couch.  Bless his heart because it had been a while since the couch had been pulled out.  I am positive there was dust!! Continuing on, he cleaned spots and worked hard on the traffic areas.  And then, just like that, he was done. 

The carpet looked so much better.  Clean!

I woke up at 1:30 AM and thought how getting the carpet cleaned was like taking Jesus into my life.  I tried to go back to sleep, but no.  The thought kept repeating.  This blog was written at 1:45 AM.

On the date I really believed, Jesus came into my life.  We talked for a bit and then he started at the far end of my sins and worked his way to my very core.  He cleaned away every sin.  He wiped away cobwebs left behind by unbelief and fear.  He made quick work of any dust hidden behind my sins.  And then Jesus did something the carpet cleaner did not do.

He marked my bill Paid In Full.  He paid my bill!!!

Are you wondering what this has to do with Christmas?  I mean, it is the Christmas season and you would expect to read about Christmas.  You would expect me to tell about having a baby.  Or that the Wise Men do not really belong in the scene at the manger.  Why am I comparing Jesus to a carpet cleaner?

Because I can.  Just kidding. 

Why am I comparing Jesus to a carpet cleaner?  Because God knew I could not have eternal life if my life was dirty with sin and God knew only HIS SON could clean my sins away.  So this blog is about Christmas.  It is about a baby.  A baby!  Born one night.  And on that night, my life changed. 

God had a plan.  He sent a baby.  He sent a baby to change me.  He sent a baby to change you.