Age to Come

. . . but also in the age to come . . . 

 - From Ephesians 1

I wish we all could think more about this concept of eternity. If eternity is real, then wouldn't this present age, in comparison, be kind of "not real"?

Now, we obviously are real . . . we can observe, see, hear, touch one another. But relative to the eternal,  a life that ends in death can only recede into relative unimportance, as the never-ending moment lasts.

Paul makes a point, here and elsewhere, to remind us of this reality. God is great, God is good. But that's just here and now, in this time and place. God will continue to be good and great in the age to come . . . that is . . . He is good and great, forever.

We've got to put it all in perspective. Our politics, our broken families, our bucket lists . . . these are all either unnecessary, or unimportant, when looked at through the lens of eternity.

Now, the path to eternal life does indeed include worry, anger, disappointment, and even financial reverses, health problems, and in the end, death itself. I am not calling for a "devil-may-care" attitude towards serious problems. We will always be required to care for others and treat them like they matter. But in terms of how we respond to the problems of life, ourselves, if we perhaps tried to place it into an eternal context, we may decide that we can, indeed, persevere through heretofore insurmountable barriers.

The "eternal perspective is like dieting, or exercise, or prayer. It is not a thing we do naturally. We must constantly remind ourselves: There's way more to this than I can see.

Apparel

. . . the Lord has put on his apparel . . . 

 - From Psalm 93

I think that weather is the most potentially terrifying force of Nature. And the most fiercely intense force in weather has to do with water. If it comes down too hard, and in too great a volume, it can begin flooding, and once something begins to flood, it seems the rain simply does not let up.

We like a little rain. We miss it if we go too many days without it. And we enjoy the soothing sound of a steady, gentle rain. But if it has made the ground too saturated, and the rate of downpour increases just a little, the rain becomes a loathsome development.

The Palmist talked about God putting on His apparel, and of His house being adorned with holiness. Respect is paid to the supremacy of water, against our well-foundationed homes. But God is greater yet.

This is all easy to say. We all know devout and faithful, humble and charitable Christians that have had their homes destroyed by the weather. But that's not the point.

We will always be subject to the chance occurrences in this life. But no matter what happens in our time, and era, and place . . . God is greater yet. Eternity will be so much the more meaningful, as we will have gone through the trials and tribulations of this life. I will be glad to have that perspective.

Belong

The rulers of the earth belong to God . . . 

 - From Psalm 47

Ascension Week. It is six weeks since Easter, forty-three-plus days, and now comes the time for Christ to ascent to His Father, to the Eternal Realm where the entire timeline of history is there for His viewing . . . like you or I would read a book, or spin a globe.

Imagine those forty days, the last period of time where the Apostles will see Jesus bodily. Once He leaves, they will only know His presence, the promptings of Holy Spirit . . . His Word, His nudging us one way or the other.

They have had about six weeks with him.

In the next six weeks, I will wrap up a school year, travel to Cleveland for a family reunion, build two lesson rooms for our music studio, prepare programs for the second half of the summer, travel to western Illinois for another family reunion, enjoy July 4th, and prepare to travel to Oklahoma for a third family reunion this summer.

Six weeks will fly by.

Peter, John, James, and the rest of them had only six weeks with Jesus. They thought they had received a lot of wisdom and training from three years in His ministry. But now a lot would have to be crammed into six weeks. At the start of it, it seemed like time enough. But as the days proceeded, they began to realize how rapidly the time was flying.

But then Jesus did something no other world leader has ever done, or ever will (under their own power): He ascended to Heaven, to live forever and assist His Father with the end-times preparations.

Of course the rulers of the earth belong to God. We all belong to God. What person, in history, from the most to the least powerful, could add immortality to his or her own lifespan?

None!!

This is the proof any of us ever need, that there is a God . . . the fact that we can only do so much, and if we are to do any more, we're going to need help.

The help is from God.

Come Over (SA)

Come over . . .  and help us.

 - From Acts 16

Once we've followed the command of God, to "Stand . . . get your things . . . and walk," we find that our eyes are opened, we get out and about, we begin to see things. We encounter new people. We hear new things.

Following God's will; it turns out it's quite simple. He does not tell us to go climb fifty stairs and recite an oath for each step. We are not supposed to fast one day each week. We don't have to give up any foods. Although, some of those practices may be very beneficial.

We take a few steps, and directly, someone says "We need your help," or something to that effect.

They're out there. Watch the news. Read. Visit social media. There are immediate needs, and chances are we can each do something for somebody. And that's how God's Kingdom is built. It's how it grows until it encompasses all nations.

As we pass into the Sixth Week of Easter . . . and consider tomorrow, Memorial Day . . . we see things gravitating to a very action-oriented place, and pace.

There's a reason our forefathers and mothers were so motivated to tame a continent, and then defend our ideals so aggressively. These ideas: freedom of thought. The dignity of the individual. The charitable impulse within the heart of the Christ-follower. These are ideas that elevate humanity. When our hearts and minds are open, because we have true respect for each other, then we can do anything.

That first step we take . . . eventually yields progress big enough to build a nation of nations.

Stand (SA)

"Stand up, take your mat and walk."

 - From John 5

The interaction of Jesus with the paralyzed man at Bethesda involved the man himself participating in his own healing.

Think about it . . . our first act of charity, is our kindness to ourselves. We first help ourselves. The first miracle is when we listen to the Voice of God, and when we act. We most obey. And God's instructions to us are simple. "Stand up." That's the first one.

Move. Get out of your rut. Stop feeling sorry for yourself.

"Take your mat."

Get your things. Clean up your mess. Straighten up. It's practical advice about leaving even the small tasks done.

"And walk."

Move it. Make a path. Go forward, or go back, but go.

And that becomes the essence of following Christ and making a miracle happen. For so many of us, that simply are stalled in our own malaise and laziness - - - our devotion to a routine. It paralyzes us. We become immovable. We train ourselves to be settled in our ways.

We think it may be so difficult to obey the Lord. But the first command is "Stand up."

That's something we can all do. And what follows is a miracle.

Advocate (SA)

But the Advocate . . . will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you.

 - From John 14

The title, Holy Spirit, as I understand it, is very difficult to translate into any language. It describes a divine concept that is beyond our abilities accurately to understand.

It is here described as The Advocate: an entity, a moderator between God and man, that pleads to God on man's behalf. But of course, that responsibility has been assigned to Christ, The Son.

Realize that, a thought from God is more real than we are. If there are electrical impulses between humanity and God, or some form of energy, that transfers our thoughts to Him, and vice versa . . . it might be in reality some highly developed communication medium. But to us, it appears as a tangible being. To help our understanding, God may provide The Advocate with eyes, ears, nose . . . a face! And arms, legs with a full humanoid body.

There's a Star Trek Original Series episode, Metamorphosis, that portrays an energy field that is so advanced that it has intelligence and emotions. It assists and provides for a man, who comes to call the energy field "the companion." The Companion interacts with the man, that Kirk and Spock come to recognize as love between the two.

The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, might be like that. The word "spirit" itself, in this context, comes from the Greek word, ruach, or breath, or win.

We need to have a sense that we are interfacing with Holy Spirit - - - with the breath, the wind, the voice . . . the thoughts, of God. We will be reminded of what we know to be true. We will realize that we should not have said something that we said. We'll read social situations more effectively. We'll actually care whether or not we are building up another person, or tearing them down.

In educational research, we understand the value of making sure that children feel safe in school; that they feel valued and appreciated. It can mean the difference between success and failure for them. And we need them to succeed . . . all of them.

This should be what Christians are all about. Are we helping others to become more than they think they are? The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, should be showing us the way. When those thoughts come your way . . . do not ignore it. Make your heart a ready receptacle for the Voice of  God.

Honor (SA)

People will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations.

 - From Revelation 21

Glory and honor.

In New Jerusalem, there will be some sense of the passage of time . . . there are still twelve months. There are fruits that grow in season. As there are the twelve days of Christmas, so there are twelve months in a year. Our basic, fundamental unit of time measurement, a year, is divided into twelve, or roughly, into months which correspond to the moon's phases.

It will glorious, as if we all were children experiencing the magic of Christmas every day. Except, the magic will be real.

This is glory. Pure joy tied to greatness, excellence, justice, and abundance.

But there's the part about "honor" in eternity. We have to realize that eternal beings do not have the same goals, desires, needs, and drives as we do. We have these various forms of hunger, in our lives today. Some hungers must be assuaged, if we are to live. Others are just primitive-type drives that, as highly-developed and willful creatures, we are capable of controlling. Some of these drives may be denied, and it will not kill us. This is the self-control that Nature, or God, expects us to exercise. We are not like the lower forms of creatures, that operate on instinct and can't help themselves.

We can help ourselves.

We aspire to the Kingdom of God and a residence in New Jerusalem. Where honor prevails, the people are permanently joyful. And they have mastered themselves. They are no longer controlled by their drives.

This is essence of honor. This is why "purity" goes hand-in-hand with honor. You cannot be selfish and pure at the same time. You cannot be impure, or unclean, and have honor. An honorable person is a clean-living person. An honorable person is the person that we once thought was commendable; the kind of person you would want your son or daughter to marry. They checked their impulses. They withheld pleasures for themselves. They delayed gratification. And this was considered a worthy aspiration.

But we now mock that kind of attitude. Rather than urging our culture and society onward and upward to lofty goals and principles, we have brought the lofty principles down to our own level, or lower . . . so that no one has to reach for anything. Leave people alone so they can scratch their itch. Elevate the lowest common denominator.

If Eternity is in a realm where people are unselfish, not driven by selfish desires, not prone to satisfying themselves first and maybe others later . . . then shouldn't that inform our vision of society and culture, in this age?

Health

Let your ways be known upon earth, your saving health among all nations.

 - From Psalm 67

I was sharing with a close family member today, how tired I am of some of the hot political issues of our time.

For as long as I can remember, two issues, in particular, have been on the front burner of American debate.

Did I just say "debate"? It's more like "argument." Or how about bitter, fierce, strife?

The issues are a) gun control, and b) abortion

Over and over again, day in, day out, every single day of my life, for almost sixty years . . . we've been dealing with it. The two sides have rehearsed their statements and retorts. They turned around their own points, sliced and diced those of the opponent. Everybody's got a comeback. Everybody's got an article.

Everybody hates the other side . . . they now hate the people on the other side.

Nobody is listening any more.

And I'm sick of it. Can't they just empathize? Do they want to tear apart our way of life, this desperately?

Everybody knows you should not behave as they do. We know it's wrong. We know the result can't be good. But we do it anyway . . . we elevate dysfunctionality to the national scale, where the stakes are high and everybody can find a massive side to join.

The healthcare debate is not as bad, but it's composed of the same materiel.

The Psalm says that God has "saving health" for all the nations. He is the healthcare plan. And yes, it is not a promise that every single human will be be in good health from now on. But it does mean that it will happen, and that it is as good as done.

We should be able to move forward, without all this angst and anger. God's got this. He plays the Long Game. We do not need to worry, to the point of playing dangerous partisan political games.

Once we trust God, it becomes much easier to bear with each other, with much more patience, and even, much more love.

Trance

 . . . in a trance I saw a vision.

 - From Acts 11

The expansion of God's plan to all people began with a trance.

This crazy notion, that everybody on earth will be able to live forever; regardless of situation at, or of birth, wealth, popularity, bloodline, DNA . . . began one afternoon as Peter was praying. And when we say he was "praying," we mean, probably while fasting, hungry, lacking nourishment, maybe lacking sleep. He fell low to the ground and implored God passionately. We spent a couple dozen minutes just asking for forgiveness. He spent twice that asking God to purify his thoughts and words. And then he prayed double that, again, for the people around him, and the growth of the church.

There were so many natural reasons why he might begin to see things. But what he did see was very good: a vision representing God's favor to all men and women!

It was an important moment in the "coexist" movement. It was a solidifying of a central Christian message: we all are equal. No one is more important, or more valuable, than anyone else.

I think that I experienced something like a vision once. In the lowest point of my divorce year, I prayed fervently that God would fix my marriage and bring my family back together. After several weeks of nothing happening, I asked God to fix me. I had been feeling hate towards the males that had come into my ex's life; you know, the predictable people (male and female) that come along and encourage their friends to get a divorce. But in the prayer where God fixed me, I began to see a vision. It was the faces of all of the men that I had hurt through the years, by influencing their wives/girlfriends to break up with. And then it was the faces of other people I had hurt, for any kind of reason.

The images were flung into my line of site, one after another. They had expressions of anguish as they looked me in the eye.

This vision caused me to cry.

I think you have to be utterly broken to have a vision. And while it is possible for a person to put him or herself into a trance, and then to see whatever they want to see . . . still, there are ample examples of a vision, or trance, resulting in good things: like Peter's vision, and mine.

Do we want to connect with a higher intelligence? Do we want to approach God's throne?

You have to be broken. You have to lose the baggage. You need humility. You need to be ready, and you need to listen.

Apparently, it can be done.

Commandment

By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

 - From John 13

I feel that the statement by the Lord speaks for itself. It needs no explanation or reflection. He means what he says, and He says what He means.

But if were so very clear, we would not have certain problems today, for instance:

• Christians dividing against themselves, in order to take sides in secular politics
• Church members with problems paying medical, college, or emergency bills
• A divorce rate among believers, to match that of non-believers

And I could probably go on . . . 

The three examples would be unheard of, let alone though of, if Christians really loved one another. 

People should be flocking into churches, just because of the health care, the help finding jobs, the financial support. In fact, families should be so good at this, that the Church isn't even required for this purpose. 

Christians should be modeling highly functional marriages and families that are greater than the sum of their parts. No exceptions.

The world should not be able to point the finger at the Church and assert "Hypocrite!" They should envy the way the Church takes care of its own, and the needy in its communities. Secularists should be beside themselves doing it better, but in vain. It should become clearly obvious that the government is no substitute for real charity.

And Christians should not . . . should not . . . be taking sides against other believers. If the Church was unified in our times, unconditionally, so many of our problems would simply fade away. 

The key concept in today's passage is: new commandment.

There is only one appropriate response to a commandment from the Lord . . . especially a commandment that He says is more important than all the others. 

Mothers

 . . . and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

 - From Revelation 7

I look at today's Epistle, on Mother's Day 2019, and see many words that could describe the perfect Mom.

• Blessing
• Glory
• Wisdom
• Thanksgiving
• Honor
• Power
• Might
• They have washed (our) robes
• Hunger no more
• Thirst no more
• Sun will not strike (us), nor scorching heat
• Shepherd
• Guide (us) to springs of life
• Wipe away tears

There are no perfect Moms. But there are a lot of very good ones; close enough to perfect. And when we see a list like that above, describing God our Father, Himself, we know that He uses real people - - - humans - - - to manifest Himself to us. So often, the face of God is seen through our Mothers. 

Hip Hop music, representing high-risk neighborhoods and childhoods framed in dangerous circumstances, frequently site the key role of mothers, in giving kids hope. Country music has a special place for "Mama."

The world is a tough place, and life is soaked in sadness and disappointment. God offers hope and promise . . . and He gives us our protection and security along the way, in the form of our mothers. 

We should feel safe, protected. We should be fed, cared for, and housed. In a functional world, where all is right, we have our parents, and particularly our mothers, to thank for providing us with our basic needs. 

When things go wrong, when mothers are not doing their job, we get an angry generation; one that demands that government do all of our mothering for us. 

If there are no moms . . . it is incumbent upon aunts, sisters, grandmothers, to pick up the slack. When we get to where we need government to do our mothering for us, then we may have gone too deeply down the wrong path. 

Pray for Moms today. And pray that every child has a mother, to demonstrate God's love in the most effective way. 

Want

I shall not be in want.

 - From the 23rd Psalm

The 23rd Psalm is probably the most familiar chapter in that book. It may be the most familiar chapter in all of the Old Testament, if not the entire Bible.

When I was a child, it was recited, every week, by the congregation, at some point in the Sunday worship service. This showed how important it was to all present, and to the forbears of that congregation. I learned that it serves as the most representative section of the entire Scripture - - - one that wraps it all up into a succinct passage.

It talks about God's provision for us. It is full of happy confidence. We are more than okay.

We're as safe as little kids falling asleep in the back seat, as their Dad drives them home from a vacation to visit their grandparents. We're as relaxed and carefree as a person staying under the warms covers, listening to the cold rain outside.

This is how the 23rd Psalm affects me.

A person that believes the 23rd Psalm is true, would have to have a distinct approach to such things as modern politics. How can you engage in envious policies and practices, when you believe the Lord keeps us from want? You want others to have the same confidence - - - not from government programs, but because you have personally worked to help them out.

I'm not being unrealistic. I am not a Pollyanna, nor is my head in the sand.

It's going to be all right. We're okay. We're better off then we know.

Tabitha

She was devoted to good works and acts of charity.

 - From Acts 9

There was a woman in the early Church; a widow with some means and an artistic streak, as evidenced by her skill in making cloaks. 

In her widowhood, she devoted herself to good works. There is no retirement for the faithful. She provided clothing to them that needed it. The other widows in the community considered her a leader and a role model. They depended on her for a lot. Her spirit and reputation preceded her. She was well-known and admired in Joppa, site of modern-day Tel Aviv.

But she became ill, and died. This was such a crisis that word was sent for Peter, who was presently in a nearby town, to come without delay. He prayed, touched her hand, and she came back to life. The healing power of Christ was now evident among regular people like us. With faith, even the dead were brought back to life. 

The woman's name was "Tabitha," or Dorcas. The name means "Gazelle." 

The charitable person is an active person, a swift and even joyful site to see. They bound back and forth in their communities, doing their good. Going from one need to the next. They are tireless. And when they are gone, they are missed, terribly. 

I wonder . . . if we could return to the faith of Peter, would the dead be raised again?

If we committed ourselves to caring for the needy, for our entire lives, would be appear as gazelles to those around us?

Fantasy

My sheep hear my voice.

 - From John 10

There's a mystical quality to the relationship between Christ and the Church. And this should appeal to a lot of people, maybe most people - because we seem drawn to magic, and fantasy, and Science Fiction.

Let's just assume, for one moment, that the Story of Christ is pretty much like any fantasy narrative. We will enjoy hearing it, because we like make-believe. We love when the good guy wins. We love having a champion, a super-hero, that wins in the end, and that we are on his or her side, and then we all live happily ever after. What if Christianity were basically derived from that basic human aspiration from long ago?

 . . . What if all of those heroic narratives were derived from a true story: The Story of Christ?

Jesus says to the Scribes and Pharisees that His sheep hear His Voice. This of course means that the Scribes and Pharisees don't hear His Voice. Or maybe, they can't hear His Voice.

It would be hard for the Scribes and Pharisees not to believe they have just been insulted.

Did He just imply that these deplorables are smarter than we are?

Or maybe He hinted at some mystical connection. A cult! A dangerous secret society!

The followers of Christ were these people that clung to their guns and religion. It would be better off if they were not present in society!!

This is always going to be a problem for the Church, and for Believers in Christ. If it's all true . . . they that hear not his voice will be frustrated to the point of anger and resentment. If it's not true . . . then there is a sizable movement in society, preventing our forward movement (because . . . Science).

But in the end, it is indeed true. There's a reason we love fantasy so much. We were made to be drawn to it - - - because reality is not far from it.

The Good Guy does win in the end. And we all do live happily ever after.

Elders

And the elders fell down and worshiped.

 - From Revelation 5

Why not the youth? In this picture of all living things surrounding the throne, heaping praise and worship upon The Lamb, why are "elders" singled out as the most noteworthy group?

Well, they "fell down," for one thing. They prostrated themselves. They did so, so rapidly, that you might even say they "fell". Is that even an image that our modern generation can handle?

It sounds so affected, so dated. People falling down, bowing down to a greater being. People singing songs of praise. People beside themselves in adoration for some figure from out of folk culture; religion; mythology. Where is the one who stands alone? Did the entire mass of humanity really just join in a chorus of unity, raising accolades to a Man that very recently was held as controversial, even with contempt?

Did a sophisticated and enlightened generation, post-2020, really act out in such a primitive way?

Apparently so. But notice, the Elders "fell down" the most readily. The Elders. The Educated. The Wealthy. The Healthy. The Popular. The Leaders. The Cool.

It takes years of life to gain understanding and wisdom. Only the Elders - - - not too long ago, society's paragons of idealism - - - can access the disappointment of the shattered dreams of life. Only the Elders know from experience what it means to long for "hope and change," only to see how unrealistic such a dream really is. The Elders have lost many loved ones to death. They have experienced loss and illness. They have perspective.

And at the end of a conflagration that precedes The Final Day, the world will be so tired of what humanity has wrought. Humanity will be ready for The End, finally.

Like an octogenarian at the end of a long battle with cancer, the world will be ready, and relieved.

The world's leaders; it's elders, that heretofore had been cynics and skeptics, will say, in one voice: "Here Lord. Take it from us. We have failed utterly."

When all else fails, when Death seems to have had the upper hand from the beginning of time. When sickness and poverty have taunted us since forever. When sadness seems to be perpetually on the positive side of the balance . . .

Then . . . THEN . . . perhaps falling down at the feet of The Victor will make all the sense in the world. I'll bow my feet. I'll even kneel.

And I think you will, too.

Favor

His favor [endures] for a lifetime.

 - From Psalm 30

A lifetime is as long as it gets. In the present age, we can measure the length of a lifetime. These measurements are only useful to us today. But in the eternal age it won't matter how long someone lived, whether in this life, or some other that, like the present age, is a subset of Eternity.

The real you, the real me, do not really care about length of life . . . because as eternal beings it has no value, or meaning, or relevance, to us. When we measure the length of someone's life, it serves only as a reminder that we should be sad. Length of life is really just a way of saying: "How long did it take until we lost this one?"

How many years (or months, or weeks) did it take for us to go from sadness to grief?

But for each individual, it is the longest span of time, that we can understand. Therefore, it's as long as it gets. The centenarian is no better off than the stillborn baby.

But God's favor enlivens us. It quickens us, rebirths us.

If God favors us, our life goes on . . . because God Himself is eternal. The favor of God gives the definition of life a different meaning entirely.

And his favor endures. This is better yet. This means it's not going away.

It's one thing to live . . . and we all want to do that, desperately.

It's another thing to live under God's enduring favor. There's no desperation there, no urgency. We no longer worry ourselves over cramming so many activities, or bucket list items, into a paltry sixty or so years.

Rejection

 . . . the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction.

 - From Isaiah 30

I had three heartbreaks in life, that I thought would kill me.

The first was a girl I met at Church Camp, as a counselor, when I was nineteen years of age. The relationship was strictly platonic, if that. But we hit it off really well at first, and began talking about corresponding during the year and even trying to meet up. But without warning, with two days left in the camp, she went cold on me. She just stopped talking, and would take the long way around, so that she would not have to interact with me.

The second was the first woman I ever really (felt like I) fell in love with. There was a level of vulnerability and intimacy that I had never shared with anyone before. She too went cold, suddenly, without warning. Although we lived in different towns, she just stopped interacting. If it had been post-2000, both of these first two women would probably have "ghosted" me.

The third was my divorce. You can't "ghost" someone in a divorce, especially if there are kids.

Each of three cases were true heartbreaks. My chest hurt, physically. I thought that death would be a welcome change, if it would remove the pain.

The death of a loved one is easier to handle, than to be rejected by someone else, especially a close friend, or loved one, or most importantly, a romantic love interest. This is so, because we put so much of ourselves into it. We share more of ourselves. We let down our guard. We have a sort of selfish interest in the relationship continuing.

Other hardships - financial loss, illness, career setbacks . . . these are afflictions of life that make us feel like failures.

But God makes adversity and affliction into assets for us. We almost should welcome them, as they will make us more like Him. We can become a support to others, if we too have gone through difficulties.

My romantic heartbreaks led to some real advantages for me later: my life's passion, The Hudson Education Center, would never have happened had I not experienced the severe rejection of others.

Some day I'll thank these women for rejecting me.



Bread give us protein and nutrients.

Water keeps everything working efficiently, like oil to a machine. You cannot survive long without it.

Adversity toughens us up.

Affliction let's us know we're alive, by healing us providing us with immunity.