Archive for December 2023

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Keeping the Story Real

December 20, 2023

 “This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 1:18)

The front porch of my Mamaw and Papaw Helton’s Kentucky farmhouse was a place of storytelling. My dad, uncles, and grandfather would sit in the rockers and porch swings and tell the tales of past events. It did not matter that they had been told and retold and were known as well as an Andy Griffith rerun. They were the stories that entertained. They were the ingredients in the family identity recipe.

Underneath the stories were the reasons, causes and effects that were often lost in the numerous retellings. The why behind the story had been layered over with the recounting of each saga. Pretty soon, the reason for the story had disappeared into the distant past.

The deeper truths and values of our lives are sometimes buried by the narratives that we bring back to the front porch. There is always the danger of forgetting about the hope, grace, peace, faith, and love that are at the root of the stories.

I find that with the story of the birth of Jesus. We’ve told the story so many times that it’s become just a story. We remember the details, but the story is more than the details. Most of us can quote pieces of the conversations between Mary and the angel, the words of the angel to the frightened shepherds who were out in the fields watching their flocks. We know about the inn that had no room, the manger birthplace, and the reason Mary and Joseph were in Bethlehem (The Roman census).

The story is powerful. It is impacting. It is miraculous and majestic. It’s more than one of Aesop’s fables or Grimm’s fairy tales. It is the story of the love of God funneled into the form of a newborn who has come to save the world.

During this season of reflection and celebration, may we not lose sight of the grace of God that embraced His humanity.

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Confusing the Peace

December 17, 2023


“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:7)

Finding peace these days is like trying to hunt down the hottest selling item that’s on the kids’ Christmas list. We’re looking for it, but it seems to be more elusive the more we need it.

It’s much easier to find prime examples of “a lack of peace.” There are the Middle East tragedies that seem to intensify instead of ease, the border unrest that draws sympathy and criticism, neither with any firm solutions, the heightening fentanyl crisis that seeks to increase the troubles of the already troubled, and the inner turmoil that is sickening the souls of for many of our youth and young adults.

When Jesus came into the world as a newborn, it was an intense, unpeaceful time. Those in power eliminated any possible threats before they were able to get any traction. There had been some others before Jesus who had caused problems. They were quickly silenced. “Keeping the peace” meant keeping quiet and never questioning the oppressive conditions.

Even Jesus, the One who was “Peace on Earth,” met the resistance of man. The very One who offered peace was viewed as “a problem” by those who liked it just the way it was and by others who interpreted peace as meaning something completely different.

Similar elements cloud the picture in our days. The Peace That transcends all understanding is not welcome in many troubled spots of the world and is scorned by the darkness of wasteland hearts. There is still no room in the inn of empty lives.

Instead of being offended, the Lord of Hosts keeps offering His hand as a gesture of peace for embattled humanity. There have been, and will be, those who see the Light. In His timing and in His way, stories of healing, hope, and rebirth are in our midst.

Peace on earth and goodwill to all will be found by some who were at the end of their optimism. At that point, some of the redeemed will ask themselves why they hadn’t found Him sooner.

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Obedience In The Direction of “NO”

December 15, 2023


“You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth? (Galatians 5:7)

I was not chosen…and I was okay with that. Actually, a bit relieved.

The Back Story: Our school board experienced an unexpected resignation. As a result, the process to appoint a replacement began. The recent November election had been contentious. Battle lines were drawn, with the remaining four board members being viewed as a highly conservative group. The two newly elected board members ran with that as their platform, defeating the two incumbents.

A parent who I greatly respect came to me and asked if I would consider applying for the vacant board spot. The same thing happened to me in Michigan when a school board member there had moved out of the district. I was selected to replace her and then ran in the next election and served another four years.

This time, I checked with some people whose opinions and perspectives I highly respect to get their thoughts. I fully expected to receive “stop signs” and comments like “What in the world are you thinking!!!” But they went the other direction on me. So I applied…as did 23 others!

I had to get a resume together. I can’t remember the last time I did a resume! And then, all of the responses from all of the applicants were put online for anyone who suffered from insomnia to read. The list was narrowed down from 24 to 5 finalists, who will be interviewed by the board. I’m not one of them, and a relieving exhale filled our home.

Sometimes, obedience doesn’t always lead us to a yes conclusion. Sometimes, we’re asked to simply be willing to take that first step. I wouldn’t have even thought about applying if the parent hadn’t come to our house and talked to Carol and me about it. The surprise of that visit and conversation caused me to seek whether God was in the leading or not. Only a handful of people knew that I had applied and, quite honestly, those few folks, all had a tugging. They urged me to proceed and yet they were concerned for my welfare in a heated environment. They saw that I could make a difference, but were worried for the stress level that would come with the responsibilities of the position.

Following the leading of the Lord does not always make the headlines. In fact, it may make only the fine print, or in my case the end of the long list of 24 resumes that were placed in alphabetical order.


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Sabbath Flu

December 12, 2023

“There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God;  for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his.” (Hebrews 4:9-10)

I receive a flu shot each year during the same doctor’s appointment of my annual physical exam. Unfortunately, this year my exam isn’t until the day after Christmas. That means two things: I’ll step on the scale like a side of beef with the excess Christmas fudge refusing to let go of my belly, and secondly, I have a welcome mat laid out for any flu bug that needs a home. I still have some hope that the first thing won’t happen, but the second became a reality this past weekend.

For three days, I had to rest, moving from misery to moaning to moments of feeling normal to recovery. My new resident had my full attention, and all I could do was…rest.

Rest. That word that gets associated with unpleasant things like arrest, cardiac arrest, restraint, restrict, restlessness, and “rest areas” along highways that get closed because of illegal activity occurring there. Rest is what we need and what we so often push to the back of the top shelf in the cupboard. We’ll get to it…sometime.

When I was in Israel many years ago, I remember the elevator of our Jerusalem hotel switched to Shabbat mode for the Jewish sabbath. That meant it would go one floor at a time, the doors would open and close, and it would proceed to the next floor. We were on the 9th floor so it took us a while to get down to breakfast, which consisted of only cold foods. Nothing had to be cooked. The emphasis was on following the Jewish law, restrictions (there’s that word again). In other words, forced rest. What it made me ponder was how easy it is in our culture to push rest out of the way. Sometimes we need to be forced into it.

For followers of Jesus, I’ve noticed that the specialness of the Sabbath has gradually been eaten away like an eroding shoreline. I write this as one of the guilty. In a culture of convenience, it is easy to run to the store to pick up hamburger buns for the afternoon cookout or head to the mall to scour the sales. Youth athletic contests dot our Sunday mornings. NFL games have even pushed up their kickoff times. Sunday is no longer a day of rest but of taking care of all those things we didn’t get to in the other six days of the week.

Golly gee! For us to rest at all, not just on Sunday, is a foreign concept for many of us. We need to take an online course on “resting.” Many of us have bought into the mindset that says if I’m not doing something, I’m being a slouch, a slackard, on the road to worthlessness.

And here’s the thing! Are we any better off for our hyper-living lifestyle? Has the condition of the world improved with the constant buzzing of human bee activity? Has “holy space” become an antiquated idea that has had its day?

Getting the flu caused me to realize my limitations, my humanness, my vulnerability, and the necessity of putting on the brakes.

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The Smile in Death

December 3, 2023

“When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

 Where, O death, is your victory?
    Where, O death, is your sting?” 1 Corinthians 15:54-55

My last surviving aunt or uncle passed away about a month ago. Aunt Jerry was about as sweet and hospitable as anyone, related or otherwise, that I’ve known. She had edged into her 90s and has now danced into Glory. I’ll be flying back to Kentucky for her memorial gathering in a few days. It will be one of those bittersweet times when I’ll reconnect with my cousins and recount old stories of our aunts and uncles and our Papaw and Mamaw Helton.

The death of the loved one will be the stimulus for smiles and laughter about what has been, the memories of family and front porch conversations.

Recently, I’ve experienced the passing of several people who have been a part of my life. A couple of them were unexpected, while others were the endings of longstanding health issues or longevity. The number of deaths in a few months’ time has caused me to be more reflective about the tracks behind me, the ripples in the waves of where I’ve come from, and the people that were involved in those pieces of evidence of one’s life.

Death seems to live all around us, but we try to live as if it isn’t there. Not that we should incorporate a meditative moment each day to ponder its presence, but perhaps we should think of it in different terms instead of treating it like the long-lost uncle that no one wants to talk about anymore.

The passing of my Aunt Jerry causes me to remember her warmth and kindness. She was an encourager, speaking words that made you feel blessed to be alive. Memories of my childhood days in Kentucky are punctuated with her pleasant voice and personality.

Death causes one to halt, to ponder, to cherish, and to grieve. It’s like one of those rest areas along the highway that one realizes he needs to pull into for a few minutes instead of thinking it isn’t needed. It’s a pause before continuing on the journey.

For the follower of Jesus, death is a stepping across. It’s a transition from what is to what will forever be. Scripture tells us of the hope of glory and gives us a glimpse of it. However, living in Glory is an experience that will not be fully appreciated until the Christ-follower arrives. It’s going to a paradise that we’ve only heard stories about, but haven’t seen with our own eyes.

Just as there are the tears of death, there are also smiles in death. It’s the unavoidable final act for each one of us. May each one of us not be so caught up in what we won’t be able to take with us that we lose sight of the One who will, with open arms, accept us.

The One who will smile upon us forever more.

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