JOHN THE BAPTIST

The idea for this blog came to me at 5:00 AM, January 23, 2024.  I started it with “I am no artist” and I was going to include a picture I had drawn during a Bible study.  A simple picture to show Jesus being baptized with the sins of all the people floating around him.  I had two sentences written when I realized John was to be the focus.  You see, study after study focuses on Jesus.  The Spirit of God is given a whole chapter.  But what about John?  I started over. 

Picture John telling all the people that “the one was coming.”  This was his message.  One after another, after another, after another, he would dip them in the water and proclaim, “Be prepared.  Confess your sins.  Be baptized, but know, I only baptize with water.  The one who is coming is powerful.  He will Baptize you with the Holy Spirit and Fire.”

I often wondered if John dropped the person he was baptizing when he saw Jesus.  Anyway, he looked up and saw his cousin standing there.  Can you see the smile on Jesus face?  Jesus knew John would stutter and stammer about not being worthy to baptize him.  John would look in Jesus’ eyes and know.  He would know this was why he had been born.  Born for this very moment.

I can see John humbly take Jesus’ hand.  I can see Jesus step into the river.  I can see John look at Jesus and, in that split second, he would understand.  And he would feel the power.  He would feel it as he put his hand on Jesus’ back.  He would feel it as he lowered Jesus into the water.  He would feel it as he spoke silently.  He would feel it as he raised Jesus out of the water.  John would never be the same.  John was changed.

John was changed.  He had heard about the angel coming to his father.  He had heard how his father could not talk.  He had heard about being given the name John.  He had followed all the instructions which the angel had given his father.  He only ate locusts and wild honey.  He had never tasted wine.  And people laughed at the way he dressed.  He had baptized so many people and heard their sins spoken as they were tipped back into the water.  But this… this was different.

John had not expected to have his eyes opened.  He had not known he would be so changed.  Changed because now he understood.  He understood the why to all the times he had been told he could not act how the other children had acted.  He understood why he was to only eat certain foods.  He understood ..  and he was changed.  As John stood in the middle of the Jordan River, no longer holding the Son of God, he was changed.

And John took a deep breath, reached his hand out to a sinner, and said, “I baptize you with water for repentance, but the one who is here, the one who is more powerful than I, will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and Fire.”

And John was changed.  Why?  Because the one who was coming had arrived.

Are you thinking this should be an Easter blog?  It probably would work better there, but for some reason and for some person, this blog is to be posted today.  Someone is struggling.  Someone wants to change.  If that someone is you, talk with Jesus.  And, like John, you will be changed.

MY 2024 RESOLUTION —

I was reading the editor’s comments, in the Angel’s magazine, and it got me to thinking.  She said each year she picked a word to be her “word” for the year.  Previous words had been patience and trust.  She was having a hard time picking a word for 2024 until her mother suggested she pick music.  She knew her daughter loved music and loved to dance.  Music made her daughter glow.  Like a good daughter, she listened to her mother.

The point of the article was that we always make a New Year’s Resolution to change something about ourselves.  We will have respect for others.  We will have more hope.  We will watch our language.  We will obey the speed limit.  Sadly, most of us are never able to keep those resolutions.

The Forbes Health/One Poll survey found that the average resolution lasts just 3.74 months.  Only 8% of respondents tend to stick with their goals for one month, while 22% last two months, 22% last three months and 13% last four months.  Not a very good track record.

BUT (pay attention because BUT means a brilliant idea is coming) what if we were like the editor and made a resolution to celebrate and increase the talents God gave us?

I do enjoy music, but God did not endow me with the gift of things associated with music.  I cannot sing.  I cannot dance.  I can barely find the Message on Sirius XM.  BUT (attention please) if you are gifted with a musical talent, maybe your resolution should be to bless more people with that talent.

God did bless me with a very vivid imagination.  I can listen to the music from a play and the play will run through my mind.  I can see the stage and the action.  I read a book and the scenes unfold in my imagination.  I can read a story in the Bible and picture it.  I can see the crippled woman walking through the men to go to Jesus.  I can see the man being lowered through the roof.  My Sunday School class probably wishes I would use it less, BUT I will continue to use those images to bring a character to life or to help explain why the character felt pain or joy or invisible.

Do you get the idea?  Use what God gave you to spread that joy to others.  Use your talent to encourage.   Did you ever think about encouraging being a talent?  It is and if you are an encourager keep it up.  You are a blessing to others.  Are you a good listener?  That is such a gift.  So many people wish they had someone to just listen to them — to actually hear them — to acknowledge their fears and dreams and joys and tears.  Is that you?  Are you a listener?  Then make a resolution to use that talent.

Do you get the idea?  Do you like people?  Be an usher at church.  Do you love the scripture?  Be a liturgist.  Do you have a talent for leading a Bible Study?  Then do it.  Are you reading this and thinking, “I do like _____ but I would be no good at it.”  That is just the gap Satan is looking for.  (Last week’s blog.) He will stop you from using your God given talent by convincing you that you are not good enough.  BUT YOU ARE GOOD ENOUGH.  God will guide you.  God will give you opportunities BUT you have to be willing to step out of your “I am not good enough” zone and say yes.  It might be a very small yes, BUT it is the first step.

It is not too late to make a resolution for 2024.  What talent do you celebrate?  What talent do you get great joy from?  What talent brings joy to others?  What talent could bring joy if you shared it?

Make a 2024 resolution: I thank God for the talent of ________ and I will use it as God directs.

 HALF FULL OR HALF EMPTY

Last week I answered the age old question of how many people it takes to change a light bulb.  This week I would like to tackle another very old question.  Why did the chicken cross the road?  No, not that one.  That one involves the mind of a female and, as we all know, there is no understanding the mind of a woman.  How often have you been asked: Is the glass half full or half empty?  Your answer is, somehow, supposed to be an indicator of your personality.

With the assumption that the drinking glass has no lid, there is only one answer, but first let’s look at some definitions:

EMPTY:

• containing nothing
• not occupied or inhabited
• lacking reality, substance, meaning, or value

FULL:

• containing as much or as many as is possible or normal
• enjoying all authorized rights and privileges,
• completely occupied especially with a thought or plan

AIR:

• the mixture of invisible odorless tasteless gases (such as nitrogen and oxygen)that surrounds the earth

Is the glass half full or half empty?  The glass, which has no lid, is always full.  You can add water to the very rim and call the glass full.  You can drink half the water and ..  drum roll ..  the glass is still full.  Air replaced the water.

Instead of a glass, let’s think about our souls and start with some definitions.  Note:  The definition for soul was not so easy to find.  These seem to be the common ones.  Also, soul and spirit are not the same thing.

SOUL:

• a person’s total self
• the part of man which enables him to think and reason
• it designates the whole person as characterized by desires, wishes, even cravings and emphasizes that humans are emotional beings

GOD:

• the Being perfect in power, wisdom, and goodness who is worshipped as creator and ruler of the universe
• a being or object that is worshipped as having more than natural attributes and powers
• the one controlling a particular aspect or part of reality.

LUCIFER/SATAN/DEVIL:

• the rebellious angel who in Christian belief is the adversary of God and lord of evil
• a personal supreme spirit of evil often represented in Christian belief as the tempter of humankind
• the opposite of truth

I like the definition that soul is “a person’s total self.”  Wow.  My total self.  That would mean I am filled to the brim with my soul.  From top to bottom.  From right to left.  Filled.  My soul fills me.  I am filled with desires, wishes, cravings, and I am emotional. 

Well, let me tell you I am filled to the brim with God!!  Clear to the top!  My prayer list is long.  I really, really study to prepare Sunday School lessons, and writing my blog is a time of listening to God’s direction on what words to use.  I am filled to the brim …

but what if I am not filled?  What if I have let my prayer time slip so I can play a computer game?  What if I only glance over the study guides and articles for Sunday School prep?  What if it is Thursday and I do a good enough blog?  What if I am not filled?

Remember the air filling the glass as drinks of water were taken?  If I am not filled, there is room for something else to come into my soul.  And that is just what Satan is waiting for.  All he needs is a tiny gap.  He will do his best to pull me away from my God and Christian beliefs.  He will tell me lies.  And his lies will begin to make sense. 

Is the glass half full or half empty?  The glass, which has no lid, is always full. 

Is your soul half full or half empty?  Is there a gap for Satan to find?

 

 HOW MANY?

How many chiropractors does it take to change a lightbulb?  One, but it takes six visits.

How many Einsteins does it take to change a lightbulb?  That depends on the speed of the change and the mass of the bulb.  Or vice versa, of course.  It just might be easier to leave the bulb and change the room.  It’s all relative.

How many lawyers does it take to change a lightbulb?  How many can you afford?

How many board meetings does it take to change a lightbulb?  This topic was resumed from last week’s discussion but is incomplete pending resolution of some action items.  It will be continued next week.  Meanwhile…….

How many church members does it take to light a candle?

Sunday I had a flashback during church.  Eli, the young man lighting the candles, was very serious.  He watched his step coming down the aisle.  He was holding the candle lighter (Yes that is what it is called.  No technical name … just candle lighter.) at the correct angle.  Now, Eli is an experienced acolyte.  This was not his first rodeo.  Then it happened.  The candle would not light and then the candle lighter flame went out.  And suddenly Christmas Eve a few years back flashed before my eyes.

The church lights were dimmed for the annual Christmas Eve service.  The altar candles were lit.  The Advent candles were lit ..  or almost lit.  One candle would not light.  No matter what angle the candle lighter was held.  No matter ….  I was sure we were going to get an answer to the age old question: How many church members does it take to light a candle.  That night it could have been the whole congregation because that one candle WOULD NOT LIGHT!!!!!!

This past Sunday gave me an answer though.  It takes four church members to light a candle.  The acolyte, the lay leader, the man handing up the back-up lighter, and the Pastor (the acolyte’s dad) who was offering encouragement.

Often there is only one way to look at a good story/blog.  Not this time.  Many lessons can be learned from a candle being stubborn.

Sometimes, no matter how you try or how many try, a person will refuse the light of God.

Sometimes, your light will ignite the light of God in another.

Sometimes, you can start the process, but then need others to add their light to make the path brighter.

And finally, sometimes others need to give encouragement to you as you carry the light of God.

This is a new year with unlimited opportunities to use your light to lead someone to Christ.  How do you plan on doing that?

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I could not pass this one up: How many televangelists does it take to change a lightbulb?  But for the message of light to continue, send in your donation today.

Okay.  I should not have looked on down the list.  How many telemarketers does it take to change a lightbulb?  Only one, but that person has to do it while you’re eating dinner.

That is all folks…..