“Is that Your Boy?”*

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Processed with VSCOcam with lv01 preset“Is that your boy?” asked the salty 82 year old owner of the marina as we backed the boat into the slip, with my son, Steve and son-in-law, Greg handling the lines.  “Yes,” I answered, “He’s my son,” and then pointing to Greg, “and he’s my son-in-law.”

We were on a three day boat trip down the Potomac River, across the Chesapeake Bay to Tangier Island, then up the St. Mary’s River and finally back to Occoquan, south of Washington.  It was early October and God had blessed us with absolutely beautiful weather – warm sunshine days and cool nights – picturesque sunrises and artistic sunsets.  We had lunch at various crab houses along the way and anchored out each evening with one of the boys cooking dinner on the boat.  We were all easy to be with.

Tangier Island is like stepping into a time warp, discovered by Captain John Smith in 1608, a population of 569 who still speak with a trace of Elizabethan accent; all connected either directly or indirectly with the crabbing industry.  No cars, only golf carts and walking paths populated with houses and front yards filled with gravestones of preceding generations; lots of docks, marshes and crab boats.

It may sound like a small thing, but for the owner of the marina to see enough resemblance to ask the question, “Is that your boy?” made me feel kind of proud.  Forty-three years separate my son, Stephen and me.  He is 30 and vigorous.  I have white hair and am not quite so vigorous.

In today’s society, families tend to get so disbursed that we can easily lose our sense of family and identity from generation to generation.  We go our separate ways, life full of work, children activities and busyness; seldom doing things together, living far apart, seeing each other only on an occasional holiday.  In prior generations, like Tangier Island, families tended to live together more, or at least in closer proximity, sons worked with their fathers and were a continuation of the father in both work and life.

Tradition tells us that Jesus initially took on the work of his earthly father, Joseph, working as a carpenter before he began his public life. “Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them.  And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.” (Luke 2:51-52) In his public life he also took on the work of his heavenly Father, becoming his presence in human form in the family business of salvation, offering the fullness of life from God, the Father to all people.

This is the natural order established by God – man, woman, family cooperating with God’s creative act to fill the earth and to work and take care of the garden of creation, extending God’s plan and leading each generation to God, so that God may one day be “all in all.” (1Cor. 15:28)  Let us pray that God may be as proud of us, his extension in this world, as I am of my son, Stephen, son-in-law, Greg, and all my children, their spouses and families, who are an extension of our family and heritage.

*Reposted from February, 2014

A Surprising Outcome with the Lord’s Prayer

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Does our frequent use of the Lord’s Prayer result in it becoming a rote prayer with no power?

Over the past couple of years, I have been taking communion on Sundays to residents of a local nursing home.   One of the residents on the Alzheimer’s floor (we will call her Mary Jane) has always been eager to receive communion, but on a recent visit she became quite agitated and even accused me of wanting to kill her.  I was shocked as was her attendant, who tried to calm and assure her that everything was fine.  She would have none of it, and I retreated to call on other residents.

Last week when I returned to the home, I found Mary Jane just finishing her breakfast and asked if she wanted to receive communion.  She did not respond.  I knelt down beside her chair and asked if she would like to say the Lord’s Prayer.   I started to say it slowly, “Our Father who art in heaven…”  She quietly joined in, “Hallowed be thy name.”  As we continued, she pronounced each word in a slow deliberate fashion, “Thy – kingdom – come, thy – will – be – done, on – earth – as – it – is – in – heaven.”  She grew more emphatic, “Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” With a smile on her face and a look of contentment, we continued, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

I gave her communion, and then to my surprise, she said, “I love you.”  I responded, “I love you, too, Mary Jane,” and gave her a pat.  What a contrast to my prior visit! 

In reciting the Lord’s Prayer, Mary Jane may have been recalling a prior time in her relationship with God – perhaps in church, maybe in personal prayer or a family prayer time.  We can only speculate what she may have been thinking, but it brought her peace and contentment.

We must never underestimate the power of this prayer which Jesus used to teach his disciples how to pray.  Its proclamation of the holiness and omnipotence of God, and its petitions that God’s will to be done on this earth, that our daily needs be provided, that our sins be forgiven as we forgive others, and that we be protected from temptation and evil are a profound and eloquent summation of what counts most in life

Why should we be surprised that this prayer, testifying to the kingdom, glory and power of God, awakens a soul ensnared in the darkness of Alzheimer’s disease?

St. Paul declared, “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk, but of power.” (1 Co. 4:20)  There is power in the Lord’s Prayer and God’s word.  May we all be awakened!           

Cut to the Heart

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Have you ever been cut to the heart by what someone says?   

That happened to 3,000 people who were listening to Peter on the day of Pentecost right after the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples.  The Book of Acts reports that when the disciples were anointed by the Holy Spirit various physical phenomena were seen and heard – the sound of a roaring wind and tongues of fire seen coming to rest on the disciples as they began to praise God in different languages.

Some who were present accused the disciples of being drunk, but Peter stands up and skillfully defends what is happening.  He boldly witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus and the coming of the Holy Spirit.  Quoting the prophets and psalms, he explains the historical basis for what God is doing in their midst.

Luke reports, “When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and asked Peter and the other apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’”  Peter answered, “Repent and be baptized…in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.  And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:37-38)

When we are “cut to the heart” by someone’s words, the Holy Spirit is usually convicting us of some truth or reality in our lives.  We know deep within our being that we must act on what we have heard.

Many years ago, at a Life in the Spirit program, I experienced the presence of Jesus Christ in a new and special way.  While at first believing that this experience was real, I started to have some doubts.  So, I sought prayer from one of the prayer teams to confirm that what happened was indeed real.

After they prayed over me and I started to walk away, a priest who was part of the team took hold of my arm and said, “You don’t believe!”  I looked at him, startled, and he said, “Oh you believe in God, but you are not sure that he has answered your need.  God doesn’t think you are half as bad as you think you are.  If you will just accept his forgiveness and love, good things will start happening in your life.” 

I was cut to the heart by his words.  While I had not shared with them what my doubts were, he spoke directly to them.  How could he know what I was thinking?  While I didn’t fully understand that evening what was happening, I later came to realize that the Holy Spirit had given him a word of knowledge for me, affirming my earlier encounter with the Lord and his forgiveness and love.

Like the people Peter spoke to on Pentecost, the words of the priest became a watershed moment, leading me to put Jesus at the center of all aspects of my life, including my marriage, family and work life.  While I don’t always meet the expectations of the call, my life has never been the same.

God loves to speak to us in the words of others, in scripture, and in his quiet whisper to the heart. 

Holy Spirit Power Outage

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Have you ever suffered multiple inconveniences due to an extended power outage?

The lack of air conditioning on a hot muggy night; spoiled food from a refrigerator not working; eyes straining to read by candle light; groping for clothes in a dark closet — just a few of the inconveniences we are likely experience.

In the same way an electrical power outage can make life difficult, so too will a Holy Spirit power outage be a challenge to live out our Christian faith in today’s world.

Before his ascension, Jesus instructed the disciples not to leave Jerusalem until they had been “baptized with the Holy Spirit.”  He said, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem…and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:5, 8)

This is exactly what happened to the disciples.  They began to testify boldly to Jesus’ resurrection and experience the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  These gifts included wisdom, understanding, counsel, knowledge and fear of the Lord, as described in Isaiah 11: 2-3, and faith, healing, miraculous powers, prophesy, discerning spirits and praying in different tongues, as described in 1 Corinthians 12:7-10.

Just as Jesus affirmed that they needed the power of the Holy Spirit, so too, do we need this same power if we are to fulfill our calling as Christians, living out our faith day to day.  

While I received the Holy Spirit when baptized as an infant, it wasn’t until I seriously confronted sin in my life as an adult and people prayed with me for the release of the power of the Holy Spirit, that I began to experience God’s presence in deeper way.  Only then did I begin to experience the fullness of the Holy Spirit and the reality of the gifts of the Spirit.  All my priorities and values began to change.  I no longer compartmentalized my life, putting Jesus in a box, but accepted his offer to dwell in me and brought him into every aspect of my life, including my family and work life.  

The Holy Spirit gives us eyes of mercy for the homeless person asking for money at a stop sign, a patient hand for the elderly person on the Alzheimer’s floor of a nursing home,  and the gentle truth and encouragement for the inmate in the county jail.  The Holy Spirit gives us patience to listen to a  business colleague who needs to talk and empowers us to pray with a friend for the healing of a serious illness.

If you are not experiencing the fullness of God’s presence and the gifts of the Holy Spirit, follow Peter’s advice in Acts 2:38, repent of any sin and pray for the release of the power of the Holy Spirit which you received in your baptism.  Jesus said, “If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the gift of the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13)  All we have to do is ask.

Do not suffer a Holy Spirit power outage any longer.

Faith and Uncle Tut’s Outboard Motor

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Have you ever noticed how often Jesus said to someone, “your faith has healed you?”  

We see it with Bartimaeus, the blind beggar sitting by the road outside of Jericho, persisting in calling out to Jesus as he passed even though the crowd attempted to silence him. (Mark 10:46-52)  We see it with the woman who had been bleeding for 12 years pushing through a crowd crushing around Jesus, hoping only to touch his cloak.  (Luke 8:43-48)  We see it in the friends of a paralytic who went to the extraordinary efforts of taking him upon on a roof and then lowering him down through the tiles in the middle of a crowd in order to get him to Jesus. (Luke 5:18-26)

In each of these instances it seemed to be the actions that these people took based upon their faith that brought forth a response from Jesus.      

Faith without action is incomplete.  We need to act on our faith in order for it to have effect.  It usually requires that we go out on a limb and risk failure, embarrassment, or disappointment.  

A number of years ago my daughters and I were water skiing in Uncle Tut’s boat in the sound between Holden Beach, NC and the mainland when the outboard motor conked out.  He tried to start it several times, he fiddled with a number of adjustments, but nothing seemed to work.  It was getting late in the day.  There weren’t any other boaters in the area.  He had no VHS radio, and it was a time before cell phones.  We just sat there in the middle of the sound, unable to get back to the landing.  I started to silently pray that the motor would start.   Uncle Tut kept pulling at the starter cord, but nothing happened.

I got a sense that I needed to pray out loud so Uncle Tut and my daughters could hear me.  As Tut was giving it another pull, I shouted, “Lord Jesus, start the engine!”  Varoom, the motor started right up.  Uncle Tut, who loved to tell stories, told this story for years – how my prayer started his motor when nothing else he did could.

Every day we have opportunities to act on our faith.  If we see a questionable business practice, our faith in Christ should enable us to speak up for integrity.  If a colleague is discouraged, our faith should motivate us to provide encouragement.  If an employee needs to talk, our faith should be willing to listen.  If we see a need for healing, our faith should be willing to offer to pray.  If we need healing, our faith should be willing to ask others to pray with us.

By giving us free will, God risked everything to become one of us in Jesus, counting on there being a few willing to follow him and carry on his work.  How much are we willing to risk in living out our faith to carry that work forward?

Emily’s Smile and the Face of God

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IMG_0433Have you ever been confronted with so-called medical facts that seem to deny a higher spiritual reality? 

We had that experience with the birth of our daughter Emily, who was born with Down syndrome.  I will never forget the meeting with the geneticist after Emily was born.  He spent an entire hour telling us about all the things that Emily would never be able to do, including, “She will never be able to read.”

His professional training and protocols blinded him from seeing a larger reality involving God’s perspective.  To the geneticist, Emily was imperfect, but to God she was flawless, part of his grand scheme to teach the rest of us about him and what really counts.  

Emily was born with an inclination to love.  Her first reaction when meeting others is to hug them.   She has no guile.  She is not calculating.  She is not likely to offend God as we have all done.  I have learned as much about God and his ways from Emily as any sermon, teaching or spiritual writing I have ever heard or read.

On a Sunday morning a few years ago, I happened to be serving as a Eucharistic Minister in our church and it just happened that I was stationed on the isle that my wife and Emily were coming down.  When Emily saw that it was I who would be serving her communion, she broke out with that big beautiful smile of hers, started rushing toward me, cupping her hands to receive the Body of Christ, and exclaimed, “Daddy!”  My heart melted, and then I thought, isn’t that how God would like all of us to approach him – with absolute love and joy, not worrying about what others might think.   

“From the lips of children and infants, you have ordained praise.”  (Psalm 8:2)

This past week, we celebrated Emily’s 30th birthday.  The geneticist got it completely wrong.  Emily did learn to read.  She has an incredible sense of time, remembering the birthdays of all our family — siblings, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, and thirteen nephews and nieces.  She reminds me when to take out the trash.  She has a great sense of direction.  If I go a different direction on the way to church or to her work, she corrects me.  She works at a bakery and catering business from 9 to 2 every day.

Emily was not a genetic accident.   Medical science tells us that the extra chromosome that gives rise to Down syndrome is present in one out of every 700+ conceptions.  Children born with Down syndrome are not a genetic accident.  They are part of God’s plan to demonstrate his love, humility, and purity of heart.  When I see Emily’s smile, I see the face of God. 

How tragic that our culture considers abortion a solution to the extra chromosome when the extra chromosome is really an opportunity to see the face of God.

 

“To Whom Shall We Go?”

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With our fractious society today and its many advocacy groups and competing agenda’s, where do we go for truth, moral righteousness and peace?

We have Right to Life vs Planned Parenthood, the Little Sisters of the Poor vs the government health care mandates, freedom of religion vs the demands of the LGBT community, and of course political parties advocating opposing positions on a host of issues.  In this election year, no single candidate seems acceptable to a majority of the voters.

We have fad diets, fad clothing and fad entertainment; lists of what’s in and what’s out at the beginning of each new year; and more choices on social media than we have time to use.

The Gospel of John reports that at one point many of Jesus’ followers started to grumble about some of his teachings and no longer followed him.  Jesus asked the Twelve whether they wanted to leave him also.  Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:68-69)

Both as individuals and as a society, we are constantly looking for meaning and purpose, but the world around us takes us to and fro, and tosses us around like a small boat on a stormy sea.  Everyone seeks peace, but there can be no peace until the love of God is fixed in everyone’s heart.

In our early 40’s while our children were still young, my wife and I faced a decision as to how we wanted to live our lives as a married couple and family.  We had each experienced a personal encounter with Jesus and a renewal of the power of the Holy Spirit on an individual basis, but how were we going to live as a family?  We believed that God was calling us to put him at the center of our marriage and family.  We thought of the words of Peter, “Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.”  Like the apostles, we have tried to follow that call.

Looking back after many years, I would attribute a number of blessings to this decision: two more children added to our existing three daughters including a son and a special needs daughter who has taught us so much about God’s love and ways; career choices attempting to follow God’s will that allowed more time for family and him; involvement in Christian ministry; four of the children married and raising Christian families of their own; thirteen grandchildren to love and pray for.

Of course we have made mistakes and there have been our share of challenges along the way, but God has remained absolutely faithful in his care and provision for us.

“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you as well.” (Matthew 6:31-33)

“Do You Love Me?”

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If Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved him in order to redeem the three times Peter denied Jesus, how many times would Jesus need to ask us?  

Most Bible commentators seem to confirm that the threefold challenge to Peter was designed to parallel his threefold denial.   With each question Peter protested, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Denial can take many forms.  There is the direct denial as Peter had done when he denied that he knew Jesus and was one of Jesus’ disciples.  (Matthew 26:69-75)  Then there are more subtle forms of denial such as failing to speak up when our Christian beliefs are challenged or when explicit anti-Christian conduct by others is taking place in our presence.

Jesus did not mince words on this subject. “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.  But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.”  (Mt. 10:32-33) While there have been times when I have spoken up to defend my faith, I can think of times when I have not.

The more subtle forms of denial are the times when we have failed to live up to “greatest” commandment.  Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” (Mark 12:30)  This is not a passive love.  It involves our inner self (soul and heart); our intellect, thought, reason and will (mind); our action, determination and perseverance (strength).

To help us understand how to love an unseen God in such a complete and total way, Jesus gives us a human illustration in what he describes as the second commandment to “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  Love of self, or survival, is one of the first laws of nature.  It is instinct.  We don’t even have to think about it.  The love Jesus is calling us to embrace, however, is to overcome the instinct of putting self first.  This is of course consistent with what he said earlier to the disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”  (Matthew 16:4)

While I hesitate to think how often I have failed to love according to this standard, God does give us opportunities to love in this way.  Last week I was thinking of a friend who has been recovering from back surgery.  While I had visited him in the hospital, I had had no contact with him in the two weeks since he had been home.  The thought occurred to me (from the Holy Spirit no doubt) that I should call him and offer to bring by a couple of subs so we could have lunch together.  He said yes, we had a delightful time catching up with one another, and I had a chance to pray with him for his continued recovery.

While we may never reach perfection in our love of God and the people he puts in our lives, we should still strive for it, so we can say, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”  

“Stay with Us”

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Have you ever experienced the presence of the Lord and not wanted to let go of the moment?

Two of the disciples had such an experience on the road to Emmaus where they were walking and discussing the events of Jesus’ death and recent reports of angels appearing to some of the women saying that he was alive.  Jesus comes up alongside of them, though they do not recognize him.  He asks what they are talking about and observes how slow of heart they are to believe all that was written about him.  He then explains what Moses and the prophets wrote about him.

As they approached the village and Jesus acted as if he was going farther, they asked him to stay with them.  They subsequently recognize Jesus when he breaks bread, but he then disappears from their sight.  As they later observed, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32)

Has your heart ever burned within you, indicating the presence of God?  Perhaps being in the presence of a very holy person; possibly a sermon or a word from a friend that opens your eyes to something that needs to change in your life; maybe the word of an innocent child that reflects a profound truth; perhaps a word of scripture that jumps off the page, an extraordinary act of love experienced from another person, or the gentle whisper of the Holy Spirit providing assurance to persevere in a time of suffering.

Many years ago after the burial of my father, my mother, brother and I were riding out of the cemetery in the funeral home’s limo back to town, and I started to have this overwhelming sense of joy.  It was in the middle of January, on an overcast, cold day.  The snow drifts along the road were covered with soot from the windswept plowed fields of northern Iowa.  It was a bleak dreary scene.

Yet, here I was, inexplicably experiencing this heightened level of joy.  I said to my mother and brother, “I know this sounds odd, but I have a great feeling of joy.”  They both looked at me, but said nothing.  The next morning while I was praying in my father’s bedroom, the following words came into my mind, “The reason for your joy yesterday was because your father is with me in heaven.”  

My heart burned within me as I heard those words and recalled the joy from the prior afternoon.  It was the Lord, and I wanted to hold onto every word I heard.

When Jesus later met with the disciples, he promised he would be with them always.  This promise is also meant for us.  If you have never experienced your heart burning within you from Jesus’ presence, open the door of your heart and invite him in.  He is always tarrying outside, waiting for your invitation. Like the disciples on the road, let us say, “Stay with us.”

Why Do You Believe?

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After Mary Magdalene reported to Peter and “the other disciple” that Jesus’ body had been taken from the tomb, they ran to the tomb.  Peter went in first and found the strips of linen lying there along with the burial cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head.  Then the other disciple went in, and the Apostle John reports of himself, “He saw and believed.” (John 20:8)  

What was the reason for John’s belief?

Did he now recall the times when Jesus had explicitly said he must suffer, die and be raised from the dead?  Was it because of his close relationship with Jesus that he now had an epiphany, connecting Jesus’ past words with the experience of seeing an empty tomb?  The answer is that we don’t know for sure and can only speculate, but it does trigger the question of what is the reason for our belief.

Is it because of the upbringing and training by our parents?  Is it because of our own investigation and analysis of scripture, the historical record, archeological discoveries and scripture scholar commentaries?  Is it a combination of one or more these things PLUS God’s grace?  

I believe that God created us with a built in desire to look beyond our physical existence — a DNA that seeks understanding of who we are and why we exist.  As St. Augustine observed of God, “You made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”  

I was raised Baptist in the faith of my father, attending Baptist Sunday School from the time I was a toddler until age 13, at which time I became a Roman Catholic, the faith of my mother.   I never seemed to question my faith in Jesus as the son of God, born a real human person of the Virgin Mary.  I readily accepted that he suffered the horrible death of crucifixion and was raised to new life by the power of God.

As an adult there was a time when my faith began to take a back seat to my career.  Then one October evening I met the person of Jesus in a very personal and real way, and subsequently experienced the release of the power of the Holy Spirit in my life.

What was the reason for this renewal of my faith?  Was it the frustration with the sin and disorder in my life and the willingness to change?  Was it the example of my wife coming home from a Life in the Spirit Seminar full of joy four nights in a row? Was it the prayers of my wife and a devout mother?  Was it God’s love and grace?

I believe it was all of the above, but God’s grace was the driving force.  God may use a particular circumstance, the words of a friend or stranger, an experience of failure or suffering, the words heard in a scripture or a sermon, or the forgiveness and love of a friend.  Like John, God wants all of us to see the empty tomb and believe that Jesus has been raised from the dead, conquering death and equipping us to live a life serving God and one another with love and truth.