Tag: gospel

  • Out of the Blue – When the unexpected happens

    merlin in crabapple tree

    The robin was suddenly smacked with a bolt out of the blue. A  merlin (a type of small falcon) dropped, seemingly out of nowhere, and knocked it out of the air. They both hit the ground with a thud in front of me, and there was a brief flurry of feathers.

    The strike must have been a little off target as the robin flew away while the merlin flew up into the nearby crabapple tree. It sat there for a few moments, looking a little stunned.

    Score: Robins: one, Merlins: nil. This time.

    Sometimes, life can be like that. We are cruising along, living life as usual, when some major problem hits us out of the blue. There is no warning at all, at least none that we noticed.

    It can come as a job loss, an illness, a marital breakdown, a death in the family, an economic collapse, or any of ten thousand or more different scenarios. Whatever the problem, it leaves us shaken and stunned.

    We wonder what happened. We wonder where God is in the midst of it all. We wonder how, or even if, we will survive.

    We begin to realize that we aren’t as much in control as we had imagined. In truth, there is very little that we do control. We’re not the center of the universe, and not everything falls under our purview. 

    That’s actually a good realization to have, even if we came to it the hard way.

    Jesus spoke on that subject.

    “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Matthew 6:25-31

    Remember when times of testing come (and they will), God is in control. He knew about it before it happened, even if it seems out of the blue to you. 

    We can trust Him, no matter what we face. The outcome might seem uncertain to us, but the one who holds the stars in His hands has our backs.

    Even when circumstances are hard, God is good.

    To paraphrase a Bobby McFerrin song,

    Here’s a little song I wrote

    You might want to sing it note for note

    Don’t worry, trust Jesus.

    In every life we have some trouble

    When you worry you make it double

    Don’t worry, trust Jesus

    Don’t worry, trust Jesus.

    Until next time, no matter what comes your way, remember that God is there for you.

    Kevin

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  • Loving Touch

    God’s Hand in our lives

    A creek and walking trail run through the center of a local forested park. It’s a beautiful spot, with several small bridges that cross the creek, making great places for creek watching.

    Near one of the bridges is a small clearing and “beach” where local kids love to play, kindergartens do field trips, and one of the local forest schools meets. On the edge of the clearing stands an ancient hollow tree.

    This tree is the perfect size for kids to climb through, and for adults to fit in. At the entrance, you will find a spot where the old bark has been rubbed smooth and polished by thousands of loving touches from the kids. They touch it when climbing in or out, and often simply rub their hands along it because it’s smooth and polished. I had to give it a rub myself.

    I’ve seen something similar in old wooden banisters or the back of ancient church pews. The tiny amount of oil in each hand’s touch shapes, smooths, and polishes the wood.

    There is a sense in which, on every day of our lives, the Lord lovingly touches us. He molds us, shapes us, and directs us. If we were able to see, I suspect we might look lovingly shaped and polished as well.

    There is nothing about us that escapes His notice.

    For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. Psalm 139:13-16

    But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace. Galatians 1:5

    For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. Romans 8:29

    He knows us and shapes each of us individually.

    For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10

    Each day, He continues to work in us and will not leave the job unfinished.

    And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6

    No matter what life throws our way, we remain secure. Our circumstances might change radically, and life is far from easy much of the time. Still, we can hold fast knowing the hands that hold us.

    I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me,is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one. John 10:28-30

    There will come a day when we will see what His loving hands have shaped us to be. What rejoicing there will be on that day.

    Hallelu Yah (Praise God)

    Be blessed, 

    Kevin

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