I Didn’t Hear A Thing!

The story is told about a reporter who was obsessed with talking to military men who had been hit by enemy fire. He always asked, ” Did you hear the bullet coming? What kind of noise did it make? Did you know you were about to be hit?”

Then came the day when he was caught in a firefight and was wounded. His last words to those standing nearby were, “I never heard a thing!”

That is exactly the way it is with some of us. We are looking for a great experience, a vision, some calling or grand revelation.

But somehow in all the fanfare we never quite hear. We are busy looking for stuff….things….events.

God forbid that we should suffer a mortal wound and only be able to say, “I never heard a thing.”

In the Bonds of Calvary,

I Am Thankful!

 As we gather this season around Thanksgiving tables laden with the fruits of the earth that symbolize to us all the gifts of our Creator, I am mindful of our Pilgrim fathers and mothers who initiated this great tradition. But I also remember the lesson they  taught us:

Thanks can be given, even following times of adversity.

Gratitude produces more positive emotional energy than any other attitude in life.

I am thankful for the opportunities of life. 

I am thankful for the challenges of life.   

I am thankful for the blessings of life. 

               Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever (Psalm 107:1).

In the Bonds of Calvary,

Squeezing a Lemon

Over the course of the last few years I have watched as people who became angered or frustrated acted out in various ways. I have seen some become ‘spittin mad’, others violent and some profane or even obscene.

Sometimes they are church-goers, Christians, who have momentary lapses in proper and acceptable behavior.

Why?

So, I often ask this question, “What do you get when you squeeze a lemon?” Answers are usually simple and expected. Lemonade…..lemon juice….seeds….pulp.

The correct answer is, I think, “Whatever is in there.”

When you squeeze a lemon, or anything else for that matter, what comes out is whatever is in there.

And so it is with us! When the pressure starts….when the squeeze begins….when the crush starts and it gets personal the stuff that’s inside starts coming out.

That’s why we need to stay pure before the Lord. We will be squeezed and what should come out is……. love….understanding….forgiveness…kindness…..patience.

In the Bonds of Calvary,

I Know Where He is Going….

I recently read the story of Matthew Henry and how he left his home in a country village and went to London.

There he met a young lady, who came from a nobel and wealthy family, and they fell in love.

When the young woman approached her father about Matthew Henry her father protested. He argued that Henry did not come from a nobility, had no background, and she did know where he had come from.

She responded that her father was correct in his assessment of Matthew Henry’s  lack of background and nobility. Then she stated that though she did not know where he came from, “I know where he is going, and I want to go with him.”

Where I am going IS more important than where I am from!

In the Bonds of Calvary,

His Eye was not on the House!

While reading in the book of Exodus I was reminded again of that time when God passed through Egypt and smote the first-born in every house where the blood had not been applied.

I noticed that God’s eye was not on the house but on the blood. It might have been a big house, a strong house, or a beautiful house – but that did not make a difference. If no blood was applied the death angel entered.

On the other hand, if the house was was a miserable shack falling to pieces from age or decay – but the blood was on the door, everybody inside was absolutely safe and secure.

It stands to reason that inside there were all types of folk. Those with great ancestors, those with money, those with royal connections. Others who stood on ceremonial traditions and ritual.

But God didn’t look at the house. He only saw the blood.

Isn’t that still true? He only sees the Blood!

In the Bonds of Calvary,

I Can’t Hear You!

I have heard it said on several occasions that the  only Jesus many people will ever see or hear about is through the life we live.

The preacher, elders, deacons, and Sunday school teachers may all speak about Christ and His claims. But the proof comes by demonstrating His love through daily living.

Sometimes we can’t hear what others are saying because their actions drown out their words.

In the Bonds of Calvary,

You Gotta Keep Your Eyes Open

The story is told about a man and his wife flying in a small airplane. Suddenly, he passed out at the controls and she was unable to revive him. To make matters worse, she did not know how to fly.

She started to call for help on the radio while attempting to steer the plane and keep it aloft. She frantically called for help but never got any response.

After several hours, when the plane ran out of gas, she was able nto make a rough landing and then crawl for 45 minutes to a farmhouse for help.

The reason that no one was able to respond to her cry for help on the radio is because she kept changing channels and never stayed on one channel long enough to hear a response. Diverting her focus moved her away from her goal.

Lord, help me to never be diverted from the goal of perceiving coming judgment and warning those who are in peril. I cannot afford to be sidetracked from my divine commission.

In the Bonds of Calvary,

“Them is Good Words”

There is a story told in “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” about one of its characters attempting to comfort a dying women. During the conversation she said,”Come unto me….and I will give you rest”.

The dying woman immediately responded, “Them is good words,” she said. “Who speaks them ?”

Isn’t that a great question? The value of the words depend upon “Who speaks them?”

Spoken by anyone else those words may only tantalize or tease. But spoken by God they cast away and bind a world of sorrow and unrest.

They build for me a brand new place of bliss and joy.

In the Bonds of Calvary,

I Know HIS Voice

The football game was about to begin when suddenly a dog ran unto the field. He looked bewildered and lost. The crowd on both sides of the field began to call and whistle for the dog but he appeared to become more and more confused.

With his ears down and his tail tucked he cowered in the middle of the field. The whistling and the calling continued but his  confusion persisted.

Then a young man stepped into the area of the end zone, placed two fingers in his mouth and whistled. The dogs ears went up and he ran toward the man who had whistled.

Of all the whistles and with all the noise the dog recognized that one whistle that he undoubtedly had heard before. It was a whistle he knew.

That’s the way it us with us I think. There are calls and beckonings for our attention. So many calls that sometimes we don’t know how or where to respond.

But then we hear that Voice and we recognize Him calling us to safety and we run toward Him again.

“And they shall hear My voice……..”

In the Bonds of Calvary,

My Father Rejoices!

During my Sunday morning sermon yesterday I made mention of the Prodigal Son. We’ve all heard the story, I thought, so I didn’t spend a lot of time on it. But then, later in the day, I began to think about what had happened in that story and how the father received his lost son.

As soon as the returning son was recognized, the father (could be that he was an old man) ran to his son. Before the son had a chance to utter a word the father had him in his arms, pressed him to his bossom, kissed his face (repeatedly I think), and wept for joy.

I have seen this picture played out dozens of times over the years because God continues to make the way of reconcilliation available to those who have lost their way. And then, He rejoices in His ransomed and lets us rejoice in Him.

Whom He loves, He loves to the end.

In the Bonds of Calvary,