Those Packed Boxes

I'm not ordinarily a weepy girl.  However, pulling into the garage this morning, from an errand, the presence of our youngest's packed-for-grad-school boxes just slammed me in the heart.  Previously, I had been ignoring them, and what they represent.

My great-grandmother, Mollie Boling, had 10 children, over a period of 22 years.  The timespan from when the oldest was born, to when the youngest left home, was 40+ years.  Not having followed in her prodigious maternal footsteps, Hubster and I had two sons, 23 months apart.  I won't go into the whys and wherefores of that decision, but I think Grandma Mollie might have possessed some wisdom that somehow eluded me.

Our older son left home for college at 18, stayed either on campus or rental property and never returned.  His younger brother chose frugality, lived at home and saved his money until college graduation.  Then, he was more or less "in and out" in the 7 months following.  He was, still, not totally gone.  But, tomorrow he moves onto a college campus for graduate school . . .  and I know he will not return "home" again.  This situation leaves us with only one "son" at home; he is covered in fur. 

I told the Hubster yesterday, "This is going to be like when we were first married!"  But, my heart was not in it.  Then, the two of us were our intact family; now, the two of us are only part.

Last Sunday, I went to pay my respects to a sweet, sweet Christian family who had lost a much beloved member.  Along with many others I had prayed and prayed for them and will continue to do so.  No matter how you sugarcoat it, loss sucks.  Whether it's loss of a loved one, loss of one's health, loss of financial security - - you name it, much of the time this type of loss seems out of our control. It feels like God's betrayal; it hurts.  We feel lost and defenseless, as the path ahead seems dark.

Even "positive loss" (what a term!) - - those milestones in life that signify growth and development - - can be hard on the heart.

Is God able?  Is He sufficient to comfort us during times of change, transition, loss?  Yes.  Yes, He is!

28For You, O LORD, light my lamp;

my God enlightens my darkness.

29For in You I can charge an army,

and with my God I can scale a wall.

30As for God, His way is perfect;

the word of the LORD is flawless.

He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.

Psalm 18:28-30 (BSB)

I posted this passage because it reminds me of God's "chesed", that Hebrew word meaning "loving devotion", to His children in difficult times.  In our darkness and sadness, He lights our lamp.  He empowers us to meet life's greatest challenges.  He reminds us that His ways are always right, whether we understand them or not. 

Later on in Psalm 18, the Berean Study Bible speaks of how God's "gentleness exalts me".  When we hurt, He hurts along with us. and in loving devotion gently cradles us close to His heart, if we will draw near.  While He won't remove all hurt and loss from our earthly lives, He will shield us as a loving Father deals in mercy toward His children. 

Earlier today I sat down at the piano and played a little, as I often do when encouragement seems absent.  You may recognize these lyrics from the hymn.  They meant so much today!

"Summer and winter and springtime and harvest . . . 
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow
Blessings all mine, and 10,000 beside.
Great is Thy faithfulness, great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
ALL I have needed Thy hand has provided.
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me."1

Amen.

Source:

1      Hymn - - "Great Is Thy Faithfulness", copyright 1923. 
Lyrics:  Thomas O. Chisholm, Tune:  William M. Runyan

Natal Day Ruminations

Image by Heidelbergerin from Pixabay

Waking early, the biblical concept of firstfruits was on my mind.  So, I did a word search on the term in my online bible program, to see what popped up.  Probably, the main reason behind this was today is my natal day, and I had been thinking about giving the Lord the "firstfruits" of it, after I rose from the bed and sat down with a cup of coffee.

Have you ever made pancakes?  You make the batter, heat the griddle and then, after pouring out the first one make decisions about the thickness of the batter, perhaps adjusting the heat on the griddle...I had a friend, the baby in his family, who used to say, "The oldest child is like the first pancake, usually a flop, and you just throw it out!"  I always thought that was funny, as I am "the first pancake" in my birth family's line-up.

However, the Bible gives special emphasis to "firstfruits".  The concept is tied in closely with the first born, as the firstborn child is, in God's perfect design for families, the firstfruits of the mother's body.

We have this blueberry bush that yields early in the season, apparently, as I was getting berries off it in mid-June.  However, after I picked the first two cups of berries, it seemed to stop bearing, for the most part.  Not sure what happened there, but I looked in the days following and there was little there to harvest.  Maybe the birds beat me to it....
Farmers will tell you that the first crops from the field are the ones they save for seeds for the following year, because the first ones contain the most potent seeds.  They are, supposedly, the best of the best, of that crop yield.

In keeping with that line of thought, it makes sense that God would require His chosen people, the Hebrews, to bring to him a grain offering of the first crops of the season each spring.

14“Three times in the year you shall keep a feast to me. 15You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. As I commanded you, you shall eat unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. None shall appear before me empty-handed. 16You shall keep the Feast of Harvest, of the firstfruits of your labor, of what you sow in the field. You shall keep the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in from the field the fruit of your labor. 17Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord GOD.

Exodus 23:14-17 (ESV)

So, you see from this command of God that His people were to offer to Him on the altar the firstfruits of the harvest as well as some of the produce from the end of the harvest season, in the fall.  This was done, in part to teach the people thankfulness, as it is God who provides, who is Jehovah-Jireh.  This scripture passage above is the first time the term "firstfruits" is mentioned in the Bible.  Note that God felt these times of harvest offering were so important, the offering had to be brought to either the Tent of Meeting (Temple predecessor) or, after it was built, the Temple in Jerusalem by each male head of household.  Wow, pretty important, wouldn't you say?

Later, in Psalms 78:51 and 105:36, we see the psalmist referring to the firstborn children of the Egyptians, the descendants of Ham (Noah's son) as "firstfruits".  The psalmist was hearkening back to when, at Passover that year, the angel of the Lord took the firstborn child of every household that was not "under the blood".  Not time or space to fully explore that here, but many of you are familiar with that story.

In the New Testament, the apostles Paul (Romans 8:23, 1 Corinthians 15:20, 23), James (James 1:18) and John (Revelation 14:4) refer to firstfruits.  Except for John's, the other references refer to Jesus being a type of firstfruits, as God raised Him from the dead on the first day of the Feast of First Fruits that year.1  And, Paul and James likened the early church members to being the firstfruits of the new Church, following right after Jesus Christ, who gave spiritual birth to His followers, through His message of truth, of salvation.

It has been the practice of Christians to gather in their churches on the first day of the week, giving the Savior the "firstfruits" of each week, and to commune with their Lord over the Word in the morning, giving Him the "firstfruits" of each day, the latter being an ongoing challenge for me.2

So, as I reflect back on these many years this morning (let's not say how many, please and thank you!), I am so grateful to be part of His "firstfruits of the Spirit" (Romans 8:23).  Unlike that weird blueberry bush in our front yard, I pray to never "stop bearing."

I hope all of you have a blessed day.  I may just go make some pancakes.....

Sources:
 
1     https://resplendentdaughter.blogspot.com/2018/03/first-fruits.html

2     https://resplendentdaughter.blogspot.com/2017/11/making-jesus-beggar.html

True Freedom

Image by Wynn Pointaux, from Pixabay

Happy Independence Day 2019!

Today, in America, we celebrate the political freedom we have as Americans, to live out the guaranteed freedoms granted to us by the founding documents of our country, the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution (pictured above).  America is, no doubt, a wonderful country.  It is a joy to celebrate her today, on her 243rd birthday!  And, my family and I plan to!  YAY!

However, being an American, as wonderful as that is, is not TRUE freedom, the subject of this post.

As I sat down to blog this morning, I searched the 915 posts in my blog archives to see what I had previously said about freedom.  Turns out, not much - - - which is a shame.  Why?  Because freedom is at the heart of the Christian faith.  True freedom in only found in the God of the Bible, the Lord Jesus Christ.

To most of the world, this sounds counterintuitive, even offensive, because people who do follow a religion generally see it as an added drudgery, an enslavement that prevents them from doing what they want to do.  Additionally, the name of Jesus is highly divisive.  This is because the Evil One, whom the Bible calls "the god of this age",  has veiled people's eyes about the nature of true freedom, what it is, where it comes from, the joy it brings.  The apostle Paul tells us this in 2 Cor. 4:3-5.

3 But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing, 4 among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe so they would not see the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not proclaim ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus’ sake.

One way that the gospel is veiled by the evil one (Satan) is that people are deceived into believing that they can live "good enough" lives to be reconciled with God.  This prideful deception is at the root of legalistic religions.  Although there are legalists who claim the name of Christ, the root of Christianity is the concept of "grace" - - - that is, "man is utterly sinful and completely incapable of, by his own actions or will, reconciling himself to God."  There was a powerful, little book written a few years ago entitled, How Good is Good Enough?  Answer: there is no one good enough (Rom. 3:23).

Another way that the gospel is hidden is Satan's deception that either
a) God does not exist.
or
b) There is no Heaven or Hell.
or
c) The Bible is just an ancient book.
This is what I call the "fairytale deception", and it is promulgated by academics in America today. The line goes like this:  "Only stupid people believe in Christianity.  You can't be intelligent and believe that." This is an extension of the philosophy of "rationalism".
For the past several years, Hillsdale College has offered to the public a free course on the life of C.S. Lewis, an English professor from Oxford University, England, who was moved to belief in Christ after doing an honest investigation.  No sane person would argue that this man was unintelligent.  99.9% of people who proclaim this lie from the devil have not done an honest investigation of the claims of Jesus Christ, as did Lewis, McDowell, Yuan, Butterfield, Strobel, Limbaugh and many, many others.  It is much more easy and convenient to flow along with certain segments of popular society, even the world of academia, and just .... be carried along with the other lemmings.
Paul, himself, was extremely well-educated.

A third way the gospel is hidden is that other people prevent sinners from coming to salvation in Jesus Christ.  Those who claim the name of Christ (whether that claim is genuine or not) are viewed as representatives of Christ.  Therefore, when one of them offends an unbeliever, their actions often "turn unbelievers off" to the message of the gospel.  Whether the offender is truly saved, a true, sincere follower of Jesus Christ, or not, is not the point.  Even true believers struggle with sin, although they don't practice it.  The point is that unbelievers let their impressions of and experiences with other people define (distort) their view of Jesus Christ.

These veils can be removed, through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Paul never says that those whose understandings are veiled can never come to a saving knowledge of the truth.  On the contrary, he states the opposite, later on in this chapter: (2 Cor. 3:16-17)

6 but when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is present, there is freedom. 

You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

John 8:32

This is true freedom, a liberation we can celebrate every day, not just on July 4th!

Christ followers, Believers, see things differently.  The reason we do is because we are possessed by Christ and filled with the Holy Spirit.  Accordingly, the Holy Spirit continues to "unveil" to us the beauty and majesty of God.  More and more, we focus on the spiritual, the "unseen".  The reason we do this is because the things easiest to see are only temporary, while spiritual victories (and losses) are forever.  We define "success" in a radically different way from how unbelievers define it.  We collect different "trophies", for different reasons.  The world focuses on how much a person can accumulate, for his or her own glory.  These include: wealth, fame, prestige, pleasure.  The Christian focuses on how much more he or she can know and become like Jesus Christ.  Accordingly, any "trophies" accumulated are for His glory and His alone.  It's a radically different outlook, producing a radically different life.  While the world chases sand, we share the liberating message that frees and feeds the soul.  The late English evangelist, Charles H. Spurgeon, understood this and preached about it nearly 133 years ago.

Let me give you a parable. In the days of Nero there was great shortness of food in the city of Rome, although there was abundance of corn to be purchased at Alexandria. A certain man who owned a vessel went down to the sea coast, and there he noticed many hungry people straining their eyes toward the sea, watching for the vessels that were to come from Egypt with corn. When these vessels came to the shore, one by one, the poor people wrung their hands in bitter disappointment, for on board the galleys there was nothing but sand which the tyrant emperor had compelled them to bring for use in the arena. It was infamous cruelty, when men were dying of hunger to command trading vessels to go to and fro, and bring nothing else but sand for gladiatorial shows, when wheat was so greatly needed. Then the merchant whose vessel was moored by the quay said to his shipmaster, "Take thou good heed that thou bring nothing back with thee from Alexandria but corn; and whereas, aforetime thou hast brought in the vessel a measure or two of sand, bring thou not so much as would lie upon a penny this time. Bring thou nothing else, I say, but wheat: for these people are dying, and now we must keep our vessels for this one business of bringing food for them." Alas! I have seen certain mighty galleys of late loaded with nothing but mere sand of philosophy and speculation, and I have said within myself, "Nay, but I will bear nothing in my ship but the revealed truth of God, the bread of life so greatly needed by the people." God grant us this day that our ship may have nothing on board it that may merely gratify the curiosity, or please the taste; but that there may be necessary truths for the salvation of souls. I would have each one of you say: "Well, it was just the old, old story of Jesus and his love, and nothing else." I have no desire to be famous for anything but preaching of the gospel. There are plenty who can fiddle to you the new music; it is for me to have no music at any time but that which is heard in heaven, -- "Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, to him be glory for ever and ever!"
from A Sermon, (No.1910), Delivered on Lord's-day Morning, July 18th, 1886, by

C. H. SPURGEON, at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington, England

Are you burdened for someone today who does not know Jesus?   Perhaps, like me, there are those acquaintances, co-workers, friends, loved ones whom you pray for every day.  Preaching to them may be not only ineffective, but actually detrimental.  It depends on where their hearts are at the moment and, frankly, the example you are living before their eyes.  However, a 100%-effective "wheat" that can be sown into their lives is constant persistent prayer.  How should we pray for them, though?  We need to pray that God will open their eyes to the truth of Who Jesus is, and that past experiences don't hinder them to the fact that Jesus is all-sufficient.  We need to pray that our prayer targets' eyes will be opened to the deception of false intellectualism, that the veil will be lifted and that they will see the true freedom that is in Jesus Christ alone.

Happy Independence Day!

Father, to You, the Godhead Three-in-One, be glory, forever and ever!  Open our eyes, whether we are Yours or yet-to-be Yours, so that we can know the Truth, and so that the Truth may set us free!  In Jesus' name, amen.

Sources:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_23?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=how+good+is+good+enough+by+andy+stanley&sprefix=How+good+is+good+enough%2Caps%2C319

http://redeeminggod.com/gospel-is-veiled-2-corinthians_4_3-4/

http://biblehub.com/library/spurgeon/spurgeons_sermons_volume_32_1886/the_heart_of_the_gospel.htm