christian living

And Take Your Chair With You!

/ Bill Jones / 2 Comments
Chair

Chair (Photo credit: elycefeliz)

The Lord blessed our Easter Sunrise Service again this year. That morning the chairs were neatly lined in rows in the grass on the east side of the church. The sound equipment was set up on a folding table and the speakers and microphone were in front on their stands. To anyone driving by, it would have been clear there was a service being held on the lawn. And, since many of the chairs were filled, it was also clear there were people who were committed to worshiping the Lord even when it was early in the morning and the temperature was a little nippy.

As the service began, a turkey’s gobble echoed through the woods across the road, and songbirds welcomed the sun as it rose above the tree-lined horizon. We sang praises to God, proclaimed Christ risen indeed, and heard a message about that morning long ago – when the tomb was found empty; About the joy that spread among those first disciples as they began to understand (and see) what Jesus had told them was true. He had conquered death for them and us!

We closed the service with that joy still in our hearts. As we left to begin breakfast preparations, the able-bodied folks folded up a chair or two and carried them toward the fellowship hall. Like ants, the chair-carriers converged from different directions and formed a single file, slow moving line into the building and around to the storage area. The sound equipment was also packed up and returned inside.

If someone drove by fifteen minutes after the closing prayer, they wouldn’t have seen chairs or people sitting in them – no evidence of a worship service, no evidence of commitment. By that time, the chairs were stacked away, and the bacon and eggs were on the griddles. The joy remained with us, but like the chairs, it was now hidden from the world outside.

Jesus called us to be light of the world (to brighten it) and salt of the earth (to season it with grace). That does happen inside the church building, but to be truly effective, our light and salt should also be evident to those who interact with us outside the church building – including those that just happen to be passing by at a particular time. We have to remember not to leave our joy and our commitment to Christ stacked and stored at the church house, but to always carry them with us as we go out again.

 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”  Matthew 5:14-16 ESV

Do We Cover Ourselves With Religious Tablecloths?

/ Bill Jones / 4 Comments
Woe unto You, Scribes and Pharisees

Woe unto You, Scribes and Pharisees (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As my wife, Sharon, and I wandered through the local discount store, a “50% OFF!” sign caught my eye. I picked up a package from the stack and read the label: “Religious Tablecloth”. I wasn’t sure how you make a tablecloth be religious, but apparently someone figured it out. There it was on the shelf for sale. I considered buying it and watching it to see how well it did in being religious (but, of course, it was only given that label because of “The Last Supper” design that was on it.)

Through years of helping Sharon decorate for Church functions, I have learned that you can cover up a lot of things with a tablecloth – like a stack of hymnals, a super-sized can of green beans or an old, nearly collapsed cardboard box. Then, whatever you set on it, from a flower arrangement to a group of candlesticks, will look good and you won’t see what’s under the tablecloth. I guess if you put a religious tablecloth over something, it will look good and appear to be religious too.

Jesus often condemned the Scribes and Pharisees for their hypocrisy. (He repeated the phrase “Woe to you Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” so many times in the 23rd chapter of Matthew that I sometimes call it the “Woe” Chapter). He said they were like whitewashed tombs – beautiful on the outside but unclean on the inside. “So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” (Matt 23:28 ESV)

We Christians can also be guilty of hypocrisy – of hiding under a religious tablecloth. We might outwardly appear to be following God, and even sincerely believe ourselves that we are. But in the place where it counts, in our heart, we may be envious or greedy or in other ways sinful. While we may be successful in hiding that from others, and deceiving ourselves for a while, we can never hide it from God. “…Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.” (Luke 12:1-2 ESV)

God knows our heart so there is no need to try covering it up. The best thing to do is to be obedient to Him, search our heart and confess our sins. God’s Word has given us this marvelous promise: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9 ESV)  If we trust in that promise and rely on His power to cleanse us, we won’t need a religious tablecloth to cover us. For what is within us will be revealed and be beautiful – a righteousness not from ourselves, but a righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ Himself! “Filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” (Php 1:11 ESV)

A Prayer for Our Leaders

/ Bill Jones / 2 Comments
English translation of hebrew version. Map of ...

Map of the twelve tribes of Israel (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I stopped reading and listening to the news several years ago. Someday, I’ll probably give more explanation of that, but for now, I’ll just say I realized it added very little that was positive to my life. So, I try to live as I should, and do pray and vote, and that seems about all I can do. (I say “try” because I identify with the Apostle Paul when he bemoaned the fact that he didn’t do what he should but did do what he shouldn’t).

However, even if you make a concerted effort to avoid it, you are bound to read or hear snippets of news every day. You can even hear news on The Weather Channel, and if you go into a business or office that has a TV, it’s likely tuned to CNN or Fox News. And, you don’t want to be rude and run away if folks around you start a conversation about politics or the economy, so you have to participate in those to some extent.

I say that to note that I am aware of some of the conflicts, roadblocks, and seemingly senseless happenings within our government. Based on those, it appears to me that we need some men of Issachar among us these days.

Chapter 12 of the book of 1st Chronicles gives an account of King David’s mighty men. Some joined him when he was still fleeing from King Saul – they were of Saul’s tribe of Benjamin and were able to use both hands in shooting arrows and flinging stones. The Gadites joined him in the wilderness, and were fit for battle and swift as the deer in the mountains. It lists the names of the tribes, along with their characteristics, among the group who went to Hebron to turn the kingdom of Israel over to David after Saul died in battle. Of the tribe of Issachar:

“Of Issachar, men who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, 200 chiefs, and all their kinsmen under their command.”  1 Chronicles 12:32 ESV

That’s why I said we need some men of Issachar among us – we need people (men and women) who understand these times. Most of all, we need them to know what the United States ought to do. May we all pray that God will bless us with such leaders as that.

I searched and searched,but the lettuce had bolted!

/ Bill Jones / 2 Comments

Bolted Lettuce

Radish (or other) roots

Last Saturday, for the first time in several months, I enjoyed a day playing outside. Bad or cold weather, scheduling problems, and a few bouts of just plain laziness have come in various combinations to keep me otherwise occupied. However, Saturday was clear and warm and I didn’t feel lazy, so, even though I did have some “to do” items, I ignored them and indulged myself.

I cut the grass (actually, mostly weeds at this point – but it still looked good when I finished). That was after I pumped up two lawn mower tires that were flat from just sitting there a couple of months.

I cut down the dead stalks of the angel trumpet in the flowerbed by the back door – and could see the new shoots coming up around the base of the plant. The purple verbena was blooming and had already invaded territory reserved for the coneflowers, coreopsis and liriope. So, a good whacking was completed and its normal borders were re-established.

The remnant of the fall crop of greens was still in the raised beds so I started clearing them out. The mustard and turnips had long since faded and were yellow with age and covered with insect chewed holes. I had left several carrots after an earlier harvest, but now found only holes in the dirt where they had been. Since the bed is covered with netting, I assume it wasn’t rabbits from above, but moles from below that got them.

The most interesting beds still contained combinations of “microgreens”, mixed greens and various kinds of lettuce that were planted in the fall. You can see from the picture that one plant had gone to seed (or bolted as it’s sometime called). Once it’s been neglected long enough to do that, it’s not any good to eat. I’m not sure it’s lettuce but that’s what the seed pack said.

I’m also not sure what the other picture shows. It looks like radishes but they smelled like a root (dirt) with no pungent radish smell. (Maybe someone can give us an idea of what type of plant it was). I wasn’t brave enough to taste it since I didn’t know what it was. Rather than going to seed, those plants had apparently “gone to root”, and were probably beyond the good eating stage too.

It was a great day, and on Sunday, I told Sharon I was wonderfully sore and stiff from the first good bit of exercise in a while.

The story above has several possibilities for devotional topics: The mower tires went flat when neglected. The angel trumpet stalks died but the shoots showed new life and God’s promise that the seasons will change until the end of time. The verbena can be invasive and overwhelm other plants around it, so it needs a good whacking now and then. The carrots were covered with netting but still had something attack them from an unexpected direction. The lettuce (?) bolted and was now unfruitful because I didn’t pay attention. The radishes (?) had taken root in a big way when left alone to grow unchecked.

I may develop those someday, but today I just want to thank the Lord, and praise Him for the work He allows us to do, and the fruits of our labor that we enjoy as blessings from Him. And sometimes, those can be as simple as being stiff and sore from doing something we love.

“Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God forever and ever. Amen.”  Revelation 7:12