Unknown Assets

            I used to read those occasional announcements in the newspaper, listing unclaimed assets available to unknown heirs and daydream I’d find my name listed somewhere within that magic list. I always wondered how anyone could have unknown relatives who could carelessly leave money in a forgotten account. How could you misplace a sum of money so carelessly?  For sure, I knew exactly how much was in my wallet or bank account any given day.
            The state posted these legal notices to give unknown heirs one last chance to claim their inheritance. If no one spoke up before the deadline, the gift would revert to the state. Many people did as I did, never really believing, sort of like wishing on a star. Most folks probably ignored these lists, figuring they'd prosper on their own. but most investments have an expiration date and expire when you do. They can't be spent across the border.  A few may see the list too late; they find they could have been the missing heir, but missed the deadline. Heirs Unaware!
           The Holy Bible is brimming with promises, offering membership in a family with untold wealth at the fingertips of all who ask. Receive everything due you as heir! Upon your request to the Owner of All There Is, He will add your name to His Book of Life, making you co-Heir of All There Is. He also declares there will be a deadline for any such claim. Don’t wait too long. Don’t be an Heir Unaware.

             

       
            Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that 

    `    `  do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief 

            approaches and no moth destroys.                 Luke 12:33

Who's the Boss?

         

Looking Back, Looking Forward

            If you live as many years as I do, I pray they are a joy, not a burden. Simply put, I pray you chose God, our Living Father, as your Companion, Teacher and Savior. That’s the only way I know for you to reach your last days on earth contented, eagerly awaiting your homecoming to the mansion He has prepared for your eternity with Him and your family who preceded you in claiming their place with all the Saints from the beginning.

            Just think what a thrill it will be to meet even one person, your favorite that you’ve read about in your Bible! To ask Elijah how his faith could have been so quickly swallowed up by fear for his safety just after he had called down rain, then fire from heaven to consume his sacrifice to the Living God after the hundreds of heathen priests had failed! Or to thank Mary for her meek obedience to God’s call to bring forth the Savior who redeemed us all.

            And to greet old friends, whom you now learn to your surprise and joy, did not ignore your fervent words about this Lamb of God who gave Himself to share eternity with anyone who asked.

            This world and all its challenges, pain and fears will fade from your memory and seeing loved ones you had been missing, even visits with the wise King Solomon or Paul, who brought, for the first time, Life to Gentiles—all these thrills will pale at sight of Christ Jesus, who loved us so.                         I can hardly wait! 

   
     



           

A Bad Day

 Feeling rained on? Having a terrible, horrible, no-good day? STOP! Take a deep breath and look around. What’s going wrong? Think: what’s behind the mess you woke up to today? Surely you haven’t done something you regret? Look in the mirror and examine your heart for any misstep. Forgiveness is only a breath away, and the discomfort fades fast. Sometimes God sees us heading for deep water and puts a stumbling block in our path.

Nothing comes to mind? You’re pure as the proverbial driven snow—this time. Maybe things have been going so great you felt unbreakable and now you’re shocked to find trouble still knows your zip code. Have you shown gratitude for those good days provided by your Creator or have you begun to think you’re smarter than you already decided you were? Has He gone silent lately, thinking you had forgotten Him?

Since we humans tend to talk to God only as a last resort, sometimes it takes a little “special effort” for God to remind us He’s there, waiting for us to look up. Sometimes we willfully make a poor decision and before rescuing us, our Lord lets us experience a teaching moment, reaping a bit of the chaos we’ve sown. A parent often chastises a thoughtless child and a classroom does have tests.

Not you? You’ve probably been praying daily for some time about your spiritual growth, wanting to offload habits holding you captive, or you just want to know God better. You can’t find God’s campus anywhere in your Google search and you’re just not fond of the preacher at the church around the corner and there’s no spirit summer camp. You’re frustrated—why hasn’t He sent you a text or voicemail message?

You have faithfully prayed and listened and waited—and nothing! In the meantime life moves on and you haven’t noticed any change. But God lives outside of time (He created time, remember?). Maybe your clock isn’t in synch with His, your perception is skewed. Maybe He decided to teach you patience and grow your trust through roadblocks you’ve been blaming for the delay in your progress.

Had you been keeping a prayer journal recording your most fervent prayers over time, one future day weeks, months or years later as you reread those pleas for growth you realize many habits you once struggled with are faint memories, your rush to anger is gone or at least dimmed. On that day you would see how far you have come from your former messy life and could see more clearly your final destination in the Home being prepared just for you in Heaven.

Free from Gravity

            This January it was time to replace my power-lift recliner. I have already worn out three. But I now needed a little more help, something easier on my miserable old knees, something to improve the quality of my sleep and add a little more comfort to my days.

            And found it. At a price I formerly thought I never would have paid for both a sofa and chair. And after sitting down in it, I didn’t even ask the price for such a (miracle?) chair! I had seen zero gravity chairs in luxury catalogs but never aspired to own such a Cadillac caliber place to park myself. When I compare my lot with many other retirees who need but could not buy the comfort they need, I am blessed beyond all reason in my family, my pension and Medicare, enabling me to live so comfortably.

            And as I weightlessly (and at my size that’s a miracle, folks) float back into a reclining position, it seems to be a metaphor for my last decades as I gradually moved forward and closer to His image, more deeply in love with Christ Jesus, who so greatly loved me and so very gradually, faithfully began to change me, oftentimes without my perception. All my little changes, occurring bit by bit, imperceptible to me as they took place, unaware of any movement as I now am while gliding ever so slowly toward the desired place I need to be.


            Thank you, Lord.

           

My 3 a.m. Conversation with God

 Usually, I like to think of myself as an encourager—in writing, at least.  Face to face, I don’t come across like that. In person I seldom seem to get deeply involved with individuals; maybe because I’m not around other folks a lot and the truth is, I’m deep into my 80s now; I don’t know many people of my generation and there are none close by, so there’s that ugly phrase “generation gap”.

I was in my 40s before I began to learn to connect with people, and even then, my written words proved more effective. After all, it’s only in the most recent decade of many that I have seen myself clearly enough to admit at last that I was average at most things, inferior in others and excelled primarily in only one: the use of written words. With pride now limited to one area of my life, pride must be limited to only this one small area of my life.

My usual blog entries begin with bits of my history at a time when I learned a new spiritual truth, and as I find myself going back to reread them and reminding myself, relearning those life lessons (all too soon forgotten in the hubbub of daily life) and admiring the words God gave me to share. I guard against ego which would have me marveling at my insight at having answers to life’s problems. I know I don’t, but I imagine my reader may have as short a memory as I and might also appreciate a reminder.

As I write--and reread--these words, I can hear my Father’s voice, (not mine). When a computer glitch wipes out a page of His wisdom, knowing my unreliable memory can never retrieve those words, I breathe an instant prayer and begin typing and often the page is somehow quickly redone, often better than the original!        

At 3 a.m., however, a news reel before my eyes documents details, decades of repeated failings and my unkind thoughts toward people whose actions I disapprove of, (regrettably long after I invited Jesus into my heart) and instantly I remember that loving “the world” or “mankind” can’t replace love for an individual, misguided or heedless though they may be.  Who am I to think I have answers for others? My heart races as I wonder if I’m a sham, a hypocrite pretending to be His child? When I see Him, will He turn me away as a deceiver? And I feel the chill. 

Yes, I have experienced many miracles and blessings, but were they the result of someone else’s prayers for me, rather than my own prayers being heard? Why don’t I pray more? Why do I dare judge people no worse than I? When dawn arrives, usually I can dismiss the late-night attack and move forward, doing what I know how to do and praying for my life to grow more pleasing to God. And put aside--until the next assault on my faith--any doubts I have, and remember a phrase I began to use some 40 years ago: Don’t doubt your faith; doubt your doubts.

The morning I listened to Dr. Jeremiah’s Overcomer broadcast and Peace flooded my spirit as I received God’s reassurance. I was reminded of the disciples and the people God used mightily in their weakness. I remembered my blog about hypocrites. I had written “I am a Saint-in-Training. If and when I behave like something else, then I am a hypocrite”.     

           

Lessons Learned by Looking Back

            Looking back, way back, I can see the overall landscape I walked through more clearly than I could when I was stumbling through dark days in a fog of worry, which I nurtured as though it was a treasure. Think of the famous picture of two pairs of footprints in the sand, changing to one pair illustrating those times when instead of walking with you, He carried you through the worst times while you were unaware. Now I can see His footprints next to mine.

            Throughout my life, I managed from time to time to get a new glimpse of this great God who created me. Each new insight seems to overwhelm me for a time. Until I get used to this new kernel of knowledge. Before long, I seem to file away that new aspect of my Holy Father, and too often begin waiting expectantly for another crumb to drop from His table. In a way, it's as though I'm climbing a ladder, except I tend to doze off instead of reaching the next level.

            On looking back, I can see myself slumbering through daily life on autopilot when I should have been eagerly looking for the Lord’s next revelation and praising Him for the blessings already filed away.

            When I actually take time to inventory the riches provided by His love, my eyes are filled with images proving His provision, His power, His passion for His creations: a bird in spring bringing food to her hatchings, a bee who somehow knows to collect pollen from a flower which results in honey, a busy ant working in concert with its army as an example to me to be more industrious. All these things remind me of His loving care and make me feel safe in His arms. I’m comfortable and familiar with this God.

            Other images remind me of His great power and my heart thuds in my chest to see signs of God’s power: a mighty waterfall roaring over a cliff, a lightning streak burning anything it touches, crashing thunder vibrating in the pit of my stomach, a tsunami (thankfully experienced only through a film), the nothingness left behind a tornado, the comets whizzing through space toward earth which He diverts and saves our world while we cruise through our day unaware of the dangers swept away from our path.

            And yet most days I go through my day, barely remembering to say hello to my Heavenly Father and forgetting, ignoring the great punishment this same God could bring to me (which I deserve) and the horrific punishment Jesus suffered so I may escape my fate.

            I startle in horror when I am suddenly aware of Almighty God. How dare I ignore His presence, His ownership of this world and its inhabitants? I comprehend anew this God controls my very existence, my next breath of air, and His great love is equaled by His standard of perfection. How can I daily live as though ignoring Him is an option?  Our next world, whether a palace in His presence or locked away forever in an eternal fiery darkness, will depend on whether we honor and obey, or turn away from His hand reaching to bring us to safety.



            He says, "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be 

           exalted in the earth."                                       Psalm 46:10 New American Standard


            Notice He doesn't say exalted "by My people", He's talking about all of us on that day, believers

            or not prior to Judgment Day. He is a fierce God, an awesome. fearsome God to those who 

            don't answer His call. Ready or not, it's coming!

    
            It is written: "'As surely as I live,' says the Lord, 'every knee will bow before me; every 

           tongue will acknowledge God.                      Romans 14:11, New American Standard

    
          He says give me your heart now; waiting for Judgment Day will be too late! Hosanna to the 

          God of All There is!