All My Yesterdays...

"I, even I, am He who comforts you..."
Isaiah 51:12
NKJV

I have often stood outside yesterday's picture window, peering in like a stranger wishing I could enter in.

Isn't there a cozy fire flickering in the fire place? Doesn't it light up the faces of the family gathered together lovingly by its side? Don't I hear loving, kind, encouraging words spoken here? Aren't everyone's needs met in this idyllic little cottage? Isn't this a safe harbor from the cold, frigid storm that lies just outside it's doors? Don't I remember how much I loved growing up in this story book family where everyone's needs were met and no-one was ever hurt or left out? Why can't I keep this picture in focus? Whose house is this really? Whose family? I'm having trouble seeing them clearly...

The truth is, looking back, I know we were hardly the perfect, “Father Knows Best” family that was idealized on T.V. in the '50s. No, we didn't even have a fire place. We sometimes didn't even have heat on cold winter nights. My father wasn't sitting in the big stuffed chair, smoking his pipe and reading the newspaper. He was working the midnight shift in one of the roughest neighborhoods in Chicago. My mother often couldn't hide her fear that she didn't have enough money to put dinner on the table for her children. Pregnant with her eighth child, a good practicing Catholic, where was the church when it came to feeding the babies they told her she must have? I could tell, even as a young child, she often felt alone in dealing with these things. Yes, where was the Church...?

A better question really is, where was God? Was He on vacation? Was He sitting on the beach with His feet up getting a nice sun tan? Had he taken a job on the other side of the world and was now too busy to keep up with our needs? Was He taking a nap? Or, worst of all, did He just not care?

It took me a long time to settle some of those questions. My memories kept demanding answers. I don't have them all, even today. I probably won't have them either, until I sit across from  My Savior on the porch in heaven and have the chance to look into His eyes and ask Him directly, did you care? 

But, I can already see Him staring back at me, with love filling up the space between us. I can see Him. He has scars on His forehead where thorns once pierced His flesh. He has holes in the palms of His hands and the soles of His feet where nails were hammered in. He has a gaping gash in His side where a spear entered where it never should have gone.  No.  I guess it's undeniable that He didn't take the easy road Himself when He decided to redeem you and me.

What is there left to say? Yes. He cares. I know He cares. He cares for me and He cares for you. You can rest all of your yesterdays and all of your tomorrows in the certain knowledge that He cares. And He will “wipe away every tear from your eyes...” (Rev. 21:4)   I'm counting on it...

May God give you and me the strength and grace to face whatever it is that is overwhelming us today. May He be with you and with me in all of our tomorrows...

Joy to the World...

To the orphan and the widow, 

Heartbroken and alone,

I pray for you the Comfort of the Christ Child,

On this beautiful Christmas morn.

To the prisoner in isolation

Deserted, all alone,

I pray the Presence of Jesus will surround you,

On this glorious Christmas morn.

To the sick, the dying,

The fearful, the afraid,

May you be able to trust in Jesus,

On this fearless Christmas morn.

To the children, the mother or the dad,

Abandoned and alone,

I pray you know His love for you,

On this loving Christmas morn.

To the sinner falling in despair,

Afraid you've gone too far,

May you know the freedom of forgiveness,

On this grace-filled Christmas morn.

To the one who stands outside the church,

Afraid to enter in,

I pray you find your Savior's love for you,

On this peace filled Christmas morn.

To the poverty stricken,

Too poor to buy a gift,

Receive the gift of Jesus,

On this extravagant Christmas morn.

To the child abused, abandoned,

Confused and all alone,

May You feel His arms around you,

On this tender Christmas morn.

To the martyrs laying down their lives today,

Suffering and alone,

May the angels welcome you to heaven,

On this glorious Christmas morn.

To the one surrounded by riches that never satisfy,

May you come to treasure riches of a very different kind.

May you find the only gift that matters,

On this priceless Christmas morn.

Joy to the World

to the Prisoner and the King.

Proclaim the glorious message

Of Jesus Christ we sing.

Joy to the World

to rich and poor alike,

Joy to the World,

Our Christ is born tonight!

Joy to the World

to everyone of us,

He came for you, for me,

He came for all of us.

Joy to the World,

the little baby Jesus

loves you, loves you, loves you!

The little baby Jesus,

Asleep on the hay.

Joy to the World

This beautiful Christmas Day,

No matter where it finds you,

He was born for you today.

Joy to the World

Let every tongue proclaim,

The riches of His love for us

This gorgeous Christmas day!

Scripture Reference: Luke 2:10 NKJV

Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold,

I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all the people.

For there is born to you this day, in the city of David,

a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

Precious to the Lord

I have a dear friend who is suffering from cancer and the radical effects of the chemotherapy that she is taking to kill the cancer. I have listened to her describe the effects of the chemo and how it has devastated her body, even while it's being used to overcome the disease that could take her life.

As someone who has never gone through what she is enduring, it has shocked me to hear her describe the effects of her treatment on her body and how drastically it has changed her life from day to day.

As I have prayed for her, searching for how to pray, what to say, how to comfort her, how to minister to her, I have felt the reality that so much of this is beyond our ability to deal with on a human level. I cannot take away the pain or relieve the suffering or wave a magic wand to make this disease go away. Well intentioned christian platitudes that do not acknowledge this reality are not helpful. I ask myself, as believers in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, is that all we have? Or does the Gospel make a difference when we are going through a trial that saps every ounce of our energy and leaves us clinging to life by a thread? It has to be the hope of the Gospel that tells us, no matter what we are going through, Jesus Christ is in the room. He has not abandoned us to endure this devastation all alone. He has a tight, tight grip on us. He will not let us go.

It is the beauty of a Savior that loves us enough to enter into our pain with us that quickens my heart. This is not a Savior who does not know our pain, our suffering. A God who does not care. He comes right into the sick room, sits down on the bed, and takes us by the hand. He does not stand afar off. He has not forgotten us. He sees our pain, he understands our grief and our confusion. 'Lord what is happening to me? My body isn't my own anymore. It has betrayed me. I don't even recognize myself anymore. I can't handle the pain... Please help me, I'm falling – I'm frightened – this is not what I want...' He hears you, He sees you, He cares more deeply than your closest friend or loved one. I believe He feels every pain with you, cries with you, fights for you, and intercedes for you at the Throne of the Father.

Jesus is holding onto you, my dear friend. He has His arms around you, even if you cannot feel them. He is whispering encouragement and singing a love song over you. He is saying, “I love you, I love you, I love you. You are more precious to Me than you can possibly know. For you, I went to the cross. For you, I have purchased an eternity that is free of suffering and full of joy. Hold onto Me, my child. Don't try to figure it out. Don't try to master it. Just know that you are not defined by this cancer. You are defined by My love for you. You are not just someone with cancer. You are so much more than that to Me. You are My daughter. I have sought you, I have purchased you with My blood, and you belong to Me. I put My love on you, My child. And I haven't taken it away, even in the midst of this dark trial. I delight in you. I know this is impossibly difficult for you. It's OK to admit that. I never intended that you should suffer this all alone. Do not be deceived by the fiery trial you are going through. I am right here. I am with you. Lean into Me right now. You don't have to be strong. I have you covered. I am the One Who Comforts you, strengthens you, holds you in My arms when you are too weak to stand. I Am with you. I will never leave you. I still recognize you...You are mine. I love you. More than you can know.”

Scripture Reference: Isaiah 53:4   NKJV

“Surely, He has borne our grief and carried our sorrows...”

Will I Know You?

One of my granddaughters loves to ply me with questions about heaven. Either she thinks I've already been there, or she figures I'm so close to the pearly gates that I must have had a chance to look the place over! I'm not sure what it is, but she asks me endless questions about what heaven is like. I tell her what God's Word has revealed to me about heaven and then, playfully, together we imagine some other things He might have in store for us – who knows? I believe Our God is a God of great surprises!

The images of heaven that God has given us, especially in the Book of Revelation, are of a heaven that is breathtakingly beautiful and beyond anything we can ever imagine. Here is John giving us a little glimpse of what he saw on the day that God gave Him a tour of His heaven.

“He who sat upon the throne was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald. Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white robes and they had crowns of gold on their heads...Before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal...”
Revelation 4:3-6

John goes on to tell us that surrounding the Throne of God were four living creatures continually singing praises to the Lord Jesus Christ. I love everything about this description of heaven. God has spared nothing to show praise and honor to Jesus, who, as the sacrificial Lamb of God, is Worthy of all honor and glory, forever and ever. Because He paid it all for us, we will be partakers in His glory. What an incredible, life altering truth – almost incomprehensible to understand.

My granddaughter watches me with wide eyes, still completely believing that, if I tell her something, it must be true! So I tell her that God has said that “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard the things that He has prepared for us in heaven!” I tell her that Jesus said that He “has gone to prepare a place for us, so that where He is, we may be also!” He wouldn't have lied to us about that now would He? I describe for her the streets of gold, the pearly gates and the beautiful glass sea, with rainbows surrounding the throne of God. I tell her that I have many loved ones that I cannot wait to see when I get there – my father, my mother, my baby that I have never seen. And, we shall see Jesus. The One who purchased heaven for her and for me.

She isn't satisfied with that. Like any child, for every question I can answer, she has a million more! Will I be bored in heaven? How old will I be? What will I do all day - will I know you in heaven – will you know me? Will I just be a spirit that no-one else can see? I don't want to be a spirit, she assures me – that doesn't sound like anything I would want to be! Where will I live, will I go to school, will I get sick? Will I know you in heaven – will you know me? She asks me that question repeatedly, looking for reassurance that we will be together when we get to heaven – the touching and innocent questions of a child full of wonder about this strange thing we call 'heaven'.

I delight in these opportunities to share with my granddaughter the picture of heaven that I have in my mind's eye. I want to encourage her to understand that this isn't all there is. There is a heaven He has promised you and me. I do want to stir up in this precious child a hunger for heaven. This world is so fleeting, so temporary, so fragile. I don't want my granddaughter to so fall in love with life here, that she neglects to go after heaven. Go after God with everything you have, little one. And in the process, you will gain heaven...

I am struck by the words of Jesus when He said: “Because you say, 'I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing.' Yet, you do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich, and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed. Anoint your eyes with salve, that you may see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore, be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. To him who has an ear, let him hear...” Revelation 3:17-21

Is God speaking to me – is He speaking to you? Are my eyes and yours so blinded by the riches of this world that we do not see Him standing at the door, begging to come in? Calling us to repent, to understand what is at stake, while there is still time? Have we so stuffed our ears with the cotton balls of “our priorities” that we do not hear His voice or receive His correction? He has told us He will chasten us because He loves us. Do we believe Him? Or are we so self-satisfied, imagining we lack nothing, not realizing how desperate, poor and naked we are before Him?

He has promised us riches untold in a heaven that is waiting. Are we looking for that day? Are we prepared? Or have we traded away the heaven He has purchased for the immediate gratification of things that are perishing anyway?

Like my little granddaughter, I have to train my eyes to look for Him; my ears to hear His voice; my heart to yearn for Him. I have to learn not to settle for anything less. There is a heaven waiting. I don't want to miss it! Do you?

I look at my granddaughter, just beginning life. But, I know that it is over almost before it begins. When it's over, I want to see her again. I want to have her over for hot chocolate in the little cottage by the sea that He has tucked away just for me! I'm sure I'll know her. And she'll know me!

Scripture References: 1 Corinthians 2:9 NKJV

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,

Nor have entered into the heart of man

The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”