Amazed

Pilialoha.  The theme of my brother's toast at his daughter's wedding.  It means "beloved".  I had to look up the meaning because I couldn't remember.  I was amazed and astonished when my brother gave the explanation.  This was my younger brother, he was never littler than me.  He followed me down the sledding trail.  He was the annoying brother who would put his foot across the imaginary line  Dad created across the backseat so he wouldn't "have to stop the car" when we both were bugging each other.  And he was that little boy who bought me jewelry like the dog pin I still have.

This little brother had a daughter who was getting married.  He'd started and sold companies, managed people and budgets and led spiritual retreats!  He had experienced Life's challenges and found solace in God and His good gifts. Where had the  years gone?  Why was I surprised?

In Mark 1:21-28 the people in the synagogue at Capernaum were amazed at Jesus' teaching.  He taught with authority, so much authority that an evil spirit possessing a man challenged Him.  Jesus commanded the evil spirit to be quiet and to come out.  It obeyed.  The people were amazed at His "new" teaching and that His order to the evil spirit was obeyed!

Why were they so amazed?  Jesus was announcing that what they had long awaited had come.  God heard their petitions and He was here.

These verses reminded me that change is hard.  Change is hard because I am confronted with the realization that I am not the center of the universe.  Life goes on, not just for me, but all around  me.  When I go on vacation I rarely read a newspaper or follow the news, yet the news happens.  The world does not stop just because I do.

God is continually at work around me.  He's at work.  I'm the one not paying attention so I'm the one who is astonished and amazed at what God is doing in my life and everyone else!  God has a Plan for the world, everyone else, my brother and  me.  He is amazing!

I am not the center of the universe.  God is the center of the universe and He is Amazing!

If the evil spirits recognize and obey, why don't I?  He is AMazing!

I need to be like the people in Capernaum and tell everyone, so the Good News will spread throughout the region because He is AMAzing!

Life may change around me but God remains the same.  Always at His work, He is AMAZing!

God hears us. God is here now. He is AMAZING!

 

Like Right Now!

"Oh you mean right now?"  I was standing at the airline counter checking in a group of women for a series of international flights.  The agent had told me some of the tickets were "waitlisted" for one of the legs of our journey.  He seemed calm about it so I thanked him for the information. He looked up at me and repeated, "some of your party are waitlisted."  I then asked what that meant.  He was very matter of fact, "They don't have tickets."   "Ok, what do I do?"  "Call your travel  agent."  Again, I replied "OK."  He repeated the instruction to call my travel agent and the realization came to  me, this must be urgent.  I was slow to understand and respond in this situation. 

In Mark 1: 16-20, Peter, Andrew, James and John were quick to respond to Jesus' call to follow Him and become fishers of men.  They were working their fishing nets when Jesus sees them and invites them to come with Him.  Matthew and Mark describe their decision to follow Jesus as immediate, without delay and at once.  Luke gives a bit more background.  These disciples heard Jesus teach from Simon Peter's boat.  They saw Him provide a huge catch of fish.  When Jesus invited them to "become fishers of men" they left everything and followed Him.  They left jobs and families.  They left security and the known for the unknown.

In a world that teaches us to know everything before we make a decision, I find it intriguing that these men were so quick to make such a life changing decision and follow Jesus.  Have I ever been so quick to follow Jesus?

I thought about these men.  They were hard working.  It sounds like they had to fish all night and part of the morning for their income.  They were loyal.  They worked with their families.

They were open, especially to spiritual matters.  They must have had questions and longings and when they heard Jesus they knew He had the answers.  I doubt they understood the answers Jesus later gave them but they just knew He was  The Way.

I'm learning to be spiritually open in a similar way.  I have access to plenty of facts in the Bible.  I just need to spend time in the Bible learning.  Jesus gave us the Spirit to be our daily companion. To remind us, to guide us, to be Jesus' voice.  I'm learning that when I get the feeling, "this is Jesus", I need to respond without delay, at once, immediately.  I don't need the facts or the why.  I need to follow Jesus.

There is a better way to live than knowing all the information and details.  The better way is to know Jesus, His teachings and His Voice.  I have learned that Jesus loves me and invites  me to the best life.  My choice is to follow immediately, at once, without delay, like right now!

It's about Time!

"Do you have a Ford Villager on the lot?  Is it green? We'll take it!"  We ambushed the young car salesman as soon as we exited The Lemon.  We were desperate to regain our plan.  We had strayed.  We learned  our lesson and wanted to get back to the plan.

We had a six month plan to purchase a new car.  For once (because we are both subject to impulse buying) we had shopped, discussed and budgeted. In six months we were going to buy a green Ford Villager. 

Soon after we made our plan our impulsive nature took control.  A fellow from church had just started selling used cars.  He called and had a "great deal" for us. It was a fine looking car and it had lots of amenities. The price was right.  So we bought it.

I should have known that this was the wrong decision when the first morning the "new" car slept in our driveway I awoke to not one, but two flat tires.  The next 30 days were a series of strange sounds and finally a quaking of the front end.  That was the final straw.  My husband called and said, "Meet me at the Ford dealer. Right Now!"

We'd had a plan, a good plan and we ditched it for something else.  I remember this poor choice so in the future I will trust God's plans and His timing.

Mark 1:14-15 remind me that God has a timeline and not to rush it or stray from it.  After John was put in prison, Jesus went to proclaim the Good News. The Good News was the time had come for the Kingdom of God.

The Israelites had lived under another's rule for generations. It must have been great news to hear that the end of oppression was near.  Those living at this time must have realized that finally the time was right.  There had been rebels who tried to bring an end to Roman rule but none had succeeded in kicking the Romans out.  At this exact point in history Jesus was announcing it was time.  I'm sure many were eager to follow.

Yet I know that those living and hearing His words misunderstood.  They thought Jesus would kick the Romans out.  He would be their King. History and experience tell me that Jesus offers a different kind of kingdom.  The Israelites wanted freedom from the rule of the Romans.  The Kingdom of God offers each of us so much more than physical freedom.  God's Kingdom gives us freedom of the soul. 

Jesus came to pay the price for my attempts to control my life and my time.  If I just follow Him and choose to live in His Kingdom, following His time table and plan, I will be free from the oppressive state of the world.

God invented time, I did not.  God is in control of time, I am not.  God has a plan for me, a really, really good plan.  Why do I keep thinking I have a better way?  I continue to let the world tempt me with good deals and amenities.  I may think I need to "take my time" but I really need to accept and take God's time!

Finally, I am reminded that just as we rejoined our plan for the Ford Villager, God offers me the opportunity to rejoin His timeline at any time!  I just have to follow His plan.  He is merciful and loving and always awaits my decision to rejoin His work.  The consequences are of my own doing.  Yet God loves me in spite of them.  God loves me exactly as I am with poor choices and flawed timelines.

There is the freedom of the soul.  

Wild Animals

The comfort of wild animals.  People have said that it's hard to come home to an empty house but I learned that it is also hard to wake up in an empty house.  For 9 months my husband and I lived in separate households.  He had a "short-term" ministry in Idaho and I stayed home in Iowa.  Just before he left for Idaho we expanded the family by two puppies.  I know we were crazy getting two pups to train.  The two puppies were, and still are, wild, but those mornings alone were much easier because they were with me.  So I was not alone.

Mark 1:9-12 gives the order of events of Jesus' baptism and temptation.  The Gospel of Mark almost feels like it should have "bullet points" along with occasional vivid detail. 

Jesus came,

                was baptized,

                saw the Spirit descending on Him and

                heard a voice.  

Then He was

                sent to the desert,

                tempted by Satan, and

                was with wild animals and angels.

I was surprised by the wild animals in Mark 1: 9-12.  "Has that always been there?" I asked.  The other gospels do not mention wild animals and angels.  Mark doesn't give the details of the baptism and temptation of Jesus.  Matthew and Luke recount the dialogue between Jesus and Satan.  Mark showed me a misconception in my mind. I always thought of Jesus being alone.  Jesus was not alone. He was "with the wild animals and angels attended Him." (NIV)

Hebrews 4:15 tells me that Jesus understands my weaknesses and challenges because He's been there.  He's been human and in similar circumstances.   

He has been

                isolated,

                hungry and

                faced with opportunities to obey or not.

In my mind I related His temptation to facing circumstances alone.  Anytime Life delivers unpleasant circumstances I am faced with two perspectives, to find fault with God or to trust God, to trust myself or to follow God.

Jesus did face the temptations of

                hunger,

                power and

                self-importance. 

He chose to

                obey,

                trust and

                follow the plan immediately and completely. 

In a human sense, He was alone, just as I often am when Life delivers circumstances not of my choosing.  Yet He was not alone. 

He had the memory of The Voice affirming

                who He was (The Son of The Father),

                what He was (Loved) and

                how God felt about Him(well pleased).

Jesus faced these circumstances with wild animals.  Perhaps the wild animals provided additional unpleasant circumstances.  Or perhaps the wild animals weren't as wild I think since Jesus created them. He surely could have handled their wildness. (I'm sure He handled their wildness much better  than I handle the two wild puppies!)

Too often in Life I feel surrounded by "wild animals" that I cannot tame.  Someday I'll tame the two puppies! The "wild animals" remind me that I do not face the challenges of Life alone.  God has spoken to me and called me Loved, Chosen and Rescued.  I need to remember. 

God has never and will never leave me alone.  Jesus faced the temptations in the desert with angels. I face Life's circumstances with The Spirit, who is with me at all times.  I need to remember.

So when the "wild animals" of Life appear, I will remember

God calls to me to follow Him,

God loves me, and

God never leaves me alone.

It's not about the rules

"This is too complicated.  I'm just not smart enough" I thought as I heard the doctrines and practices of another religion.  My memory is nearly 30 years old yet still vividly clear in my mind.  I was on  a mission trip in another land and touring a famous religious site.  I remember feeling sad at the futility of the practitioners' attempts to find peace with such a  complicated lifestyle.  I also felt relief that I knew that Jesus offered me simplicity and assurance.   

"Simple" came to my mind when I read Mark 1:4-8.  John had a simple message.  He preached forgiveness of sin.  People responded and were baptized.

John lived a simple life.  He had one type of clothing, camel's hair.  He had a simple diet of locusts and wild honey.

John offered a simple promise.  The Powerful was coming.  If they were impressed by the message of forgiveness, The One coming would bring the baptism of  the Holy Spirit.

I imagine life for the average Israelite must have been challenging.  They were a conquered people with the Romans making the laws and collecting the taxes.  Their religious leaders created a system of life full of rules to govern every action of daily life.  In such a rigid life with lots of rules and authorities, the promise of the Powerful must have been very exciting.

John kept life uncomplicated without lots of clothes and a lavish diet.  He knew he had a job for God so he did it.  He must have done it well because many people responded.  He was humble, obedient and authentic.

I have noticed that we live in a world that creates more and more rules.  Too many people think the world will be happier and safer with more and more laws.  With the evils present today, perhaps we do need more laws.

Today I wonder if all the rules make life so complicated that life feels futile.  So we carry over the rule -making into our spiritual life.  We construct doctrines, practices and structures so we think we are coming closer to perfection and God.  Deuteronomy may seem like a book of rules for the Israelites but it's really about love and choice.  God choose them, before they followed the rules, because He loved them.  The rules were about benefits, "so it would go well in the Promised Land."

Today I am reminded that the path to find God is simple, not complicated.  I acknowledge that I am a sinner and ask for forgiveness.  I know that I can only be forgiven because Jesus paid the price for my sins.  Then I need to turn away from the sin so it will go well for me.

God doesn't want me to beg for His affection.  He loved me from before there was me.  I have been chosen, not because I follow rules or beg, just because of His Love.  I make it complicated.  God makes it simple.  He provided The Way, Jesus.

If I want to draw closer to God, I need a clean heart and a simple life.  Then Life will be exciting!

Am I a Messenger?

"This is Jan, from ______________'s office." This is my opening line when I make telephone calls at work.  I use my relationship with my employer to build a relationship with the person I am calling.

When I read the first verse in the Gospel of Mark, I jotted in my journal one of my personal "pearls of wisdom", Life is about relationships.  It's not what you know but who you know.  I've gained more in  life through the people I know than my knowledge and education.  The relationship creates the opportunity.  My knowledge and experience "closes the deal."

Verse one of chapter one in Mark identifies Jesus as God's Son.  It also tells us that this is the beginning of any potential relationship.  The basis of a relationship with God is Who Jesus is and to Whom He belongs.

A few days ago my husband and I were discussing the next section of my blog.  I'd  told him I had chosen Mark.  I wanted the next book to be in the New Testament and I wanted a gospel to get to know Jesus more.  We talked about how Mark was written for the Roman mind.  My first thought of the Romans was they were the pagans, so unspiritual.  Yet they were spiritual because they had many gods and probably believed that the gods controlled everything, nature, destiny, fate and even their own lives. 

I think too many people in the world we live in are also pagan and worship many gods.  Too many people worship these modern pagan gods thinking they keep control of their own life and the lives of those around them when we were made for a relationship with Jesus, The Son of God.

Life, the real Life, begins, continues and ends, with a relationship with God's Son, Jesus.

The second verse in Mark continues to build connection with God through the prophet Isaiah and with the messenger sent to prepare the way for Jesus.  Isaiah has numerous references to Jesus' arrival including the comfort of the coming King who will make the world right.  Mark quotes the verse from Isaiah that describes the role of the messenger (Isaiah 40:3-4).  It starts in the desert and the messenger calls for a straight highway for God through the wilderness. The messenger is to make the path straight so God can come to us but a straight path also makes it easier for me, and others, to come closer to God.

I read the verse prior to and just following Isaiah 40:3 which is a normal study habit for me.  I like to get the verse in a bit of context.  Verse 1 in Isaiah starts with "Comfort..."  This world needs comfort through all the valleys and mountains of Life.  Verse 5 promises that the Glory of God will be revealed to all.  Through it all, God is in control and He will prevail.

I've been known as Dick's wife, Adam's mother's, Jim's daughter.  Occasionally, my husband has been known as "Jan's husband."  He'd been surprised to hear it the first time.  He'd entered "my world" while teaching a seminar at a women's conference.   I'd prepared the way for him.  The women enthusiastically welcomed him because they knew to whom he belonged (me!).  They trusted him because they knew him through me.

Today I ponder: 

The messenger is to make the path straight so God can come to us but a straight path also makes it easier for me, and others, to come closer to God.

In this desert of a world in which we live,

Do others see to whom I belong, the benefits and opportunities?

Do I make it easy for others to know the Son of God? 

Do others know of Him through me so they will also trust Him?  

Does this pagan world see that I believe God controls everything, nature, destiny, fate and even my own life?

Do others know that comfort, real comfort awaits in a relationship with the God who will prevail?

Am I a messenger?

Learning to follow His Lead

"Gracie, you did good.  You have been a good friend."  I was driving her to the kennel to stay while we were on vacation.  She was old and had some health issues.  I had a suspicion her time on earth was short and I wanted her to know she  had accomplished her life work.  She had been my dog, a good dog and friend.

Sadly, my premonition was correct.  Several days later, the caretaker called and Gracie was in trouble.  It was time.   Her time on earth was over.  I couldn't be with Gracie but I had said my last words to her.

I'm not good at endings.  When I read a good book, I'll be consumed by it.  I'll spend all my time reading it but yet when I'm a handful of pages from The End, I'll stall.  I don't want it to end.  I want the experience to go on.

I've finished reading Deuteronomy for several days.  Yet I have delayed my final blog entry.  I have always enjoyed Deuteronomy.  Many shake their heads in puzzlement when I list it as a favorite book of the Bible.

Perhaps comparing Moses' homegoing to my farewell to my dog is a stretch but I started my learnings in Deuteronomy with comparisons of training my puppies and my walk of obedience with God.  The puppies are not really trained enough to get the "Mission Accomplished" speech.  Yet I have hope for them.  I have given the farewell speech to Sunny, Sam, Jessie and Gracie.  It's a good life to be a Sipe dog because we spoil them.  Soon  Mickey and Molly will see the benefit of their obedience to us.  Occasionally I see that look in Molly's eye, looking to me for direction.  It's rare but there!

God led Moses into the next chapter of  his eternal life.  Chapter  34 of Deuteronomy begins as Moses climbs Mt. Nebo just as God told him.  When Moses arrives,  God shows Moses the land, the Promised Land.  Moses dies and God Himself buries him.  Moses was 120 years young, his eyes were not weak and his strength was not gone. No prophet since has known God as Moses did, face to face and done such miraculous signs and wonders and led the people of Israel.

I'll admit that I do want to hear God give me the "Mission Accomplished", but not right away!  I'm not planning a homegoing anytime soon.  I'll stall in this life as long as I can.  I think my eyes are getting weaker and maybe the strength too but I'm enjoying this life that God is directing for me.  I want to learn more and serve Him more.  Reflecting on  Chapter 34 has given me encouragement to finish well.

The good news is that I'm not done with this earthly life, nor am I done with my walk with God. There is another day before me.  New adventures and challenges await!   God has been with me, is with me and will be with me. 

The puppies are still learning to walk on the leash.  They still want to lead the way and rush to a destination, any destination.  I intentionally lead them in the opposite direction and I tell them to "walk with me."

Just as Molly and Mickey are learning to follow me since I have the other end of the leash in my hand, I am learning to follow God when I study His Word.  My study teaches me to glance up at God, just like Molly, to see which direction He is leading, even when I don't quite know where we're headed.

There are 65 other book of the Bible to guide me.  So I do not have an end, I have yet Another Beginning!