The Little Foxes

"Catch us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines," Song 2:15

As we grow older we continue to change. We think that we are the same, but we are not. We think that we will never grow old, but we will. Most changes happen gradually. It is not like falling off of a cliff and plummeting down. Like the text, it is the little foxes, that little changes, the little differences that bring on dramatic changes.

One of the big changes that happens to all of us as we age is the loss of strength and reserve capacity. We find it harder to do what we used to find easy to do. We do not bounce back as quickly from injury or illness. We beat ourselves up for being lazy. We injure ourselves trying to beat the rap. We play mental gymnastics trying to convince ourselves and others that we are still able to do everything.  

This gradual decline does not mean that life is over. It just means that we have to adjust our lives to respect those changes.  Spend time in a hospital and see how that changes your life. Visit the ER and look at all of the terrible conditions that people find themselves in, including you.

I know that life must be lived to the end. That does not mean that you must live pedal to the metal up until you keel over dead. Adapting to changing circumstances is a part to life that we know we must do but we find it hard to put into practice.

Little changes produce big results in many areas of life. So why are we surprised when little changes slow us down at the end of life?

Peace or Fear

 "men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth," Luke 21:26

I have noticed something that seems to be emerging in the modern world. People are terrified of illness and viruses, but they refuse to be vaccinated. They are more afraid of the vaccine than Ebola or hantavirus. They fear the vaccine more than the measles or the flu. They were terrified of covid, but they will not get a covid vaccine.

I do not know all that people are afraid of. But this is something that baffles me. The anti-vaccers have convinced people that vaccines are evil and that it is a plot to hurt them. Diseases that were eradicated have made a resurgence. People with compromised immune systems are terrified of everything.

Notice that it is the fear and the expectation that causes trouble in the text. People are terrified at the prospect or the possibility of getting sick. On top of this people do not trust doctors. They look to Google rather than a medical professional. And now ChatGPT is god who has all the answers.

When my wife was sick pastor Mitchell told us to do what the doctor tells us to do. We did. I get vaccinated with no ill effects.

There is an answer to fear. It is found in Christ.

"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27

Maybe it's time to go back to church. Maybe it's time to trust your doctors.

Sermon Thoughts

 I can tell when  sermon sticks to the outline, and when it goes off into the arena of inspiration.

Pastor, we are glad you have pastor friends. We don't and perhaps never will.

Evidently God can only work twice in life. To save you, and to send you out to pastor. 

Preaching is part theology, and part art. There is a skill in preaching that can be learned.

Pastor Mitchell, we are told, used to practice preaching. We could tell.

Sometimes I hear the voice of God in a sermon. Often I don't.

An unprepared preacher feels threatened by a fact checking audience.

I regularly come home from church and remind myself that what I learned is still true.

I am surprised by how off track the Evangelical movement has led us.

That's all for now.

My Thoughts

 It's a poor workman who blames his tools. It's like a person who trips glaring at the sidewalk. I wonder if we can say that it is a poor pastor who blames his church. We could be more if you would do more. We could do more if you would give more. God would move more if you would pray more. We would grow more if y'all would witness more.

The size of a local church is directly linked to the ability of the pastor. This is an inescapable fact. God will not give you more people than you can effectively minister to. Blame must begin by looking in a mirror, not by glaring at the pews.

If you want more, you set the example and you give more or pray more or serve more. Or else you can set the example by being content and happy to be here. Like I am.

Don't mistake being born on third base as the same as hitting a triple.

A Blessed Hope, Or Woe Is Me

 Last night we had a band of thunderstorms move through our area. The weather people made it sound dangerous. There were warnings issued. But the storms moved through and this morning my rain gauge only had a small amount of water in it. No tornadoes were recorded. The sky was falling until it didn't.

We hear dire warnings on a regular basis. The world is much worse than it has ever been. Surely the end is near. I half expect someone to stand on a busy street corner holding a sign saying the end is near. 

I have lived long enough to put warnings into perspective. I have read enough history to know that we have lived through much worse times then this. And this gives me peace when society around me is losing their minds in fear.

The Bible talks about the return of Christ. 

"looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and savior Jesus Christ." Titus 2:13

Have you ever heard a sermon in this verse? The blessed hope instead of doom and gloom.

Forever Young?

 This is important information to help us grow old in our faith.

Winning in life is not always being young and fit. It is not never getting old or infirm. It is being able to live and to remain independent as long as possible. We do not even think about these things when we are young. It is most of what we think about as we get older.

1. Mobility. Can you get out of bed in the morning? Can you get out of a chair unaided?

2. Do you recover from physical setbacks? Are you physically resilient?

3. Can you managing your meds, your pharmacy, and take the meds your doctors recommend?

4. Are you still socially connected? Or are you continually isolated?

5. Are you still curious about life? Are you still mentally engaged?

6. Can you adapt to changing circumstances? Life is about changes. Can you adapt to changes?

7. Do you still have a sense of humor? Can you still laugh?

I think that as we age in our Fellowship we will need to take charge of our own well being and do what is best for us on our own. We will get no support from the pulpit.  It is a fool who thinks that the goal of life is to be forever young. It is still he who endures to the end who will be saved in the end.

He's A Miracle Working God Today!

 I have noticed something happening in our Fellowship. I doesn't seem on the surface to be a big deal. But I wonder if it is more important than we understand. There seems to be a trend to take the supernatural out of the Bible. We seem to be trying to explain the signs and wonders in the Bible through a naturalist lens.

Manna did not grow on a bush or a tree. Manna was angel's food that appeared every morning by a miracle. Elijah and Elisha crossed the Jordan river on dry ground. That was a miracle. The ram caught in the thicket was not there until God stopped Abraham from killing his son. It appeared at just the right time.

One reason for this drift from the supernatural work of God is partly our naturalist education system. We think that science can explain everything.  And also as we grow and prosper we find that we have no need for miracles. We have all that we need. And finally, if we have asked for God to intervene and nothing has happened we change our theology to reflect our experience.

An evangelist was once asked what do you do if you pray for someone and they don't get healed. He replied; I say, bring me the next one.

Let me share a thought with you about divine healing. There is a time when miracle healing happens. There comes a time when that sick person needs support and care to survive. Those are two different prayers.

God's nature does not change to suit our experience. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is a miracle working God. Don't let your unbelief rob you of a miracle.