Hail the Day

As a followup to my post earlier this morning... I was driving to church and I had this song playing and was encouraged by the words.

Hallelujah, hallelujah
The King of Love is on His throne
Hallelujah,  hallelujah
His grace will lead us safely home

Though He dwells beyond the stars
His redeemed are on His heart
Even now He intercedes
Jesus cares for all our needs

This is a wonderful adaptation, by Sovereign Grace Music, of the glorious hymn by Charles Wesley called "Hail the Day That Sees Him Rise." You can hear this adaptation here.


p.s. You know this is good, solid music when the liner notes indicate that they had a "Theological Consultant" for this CD!!

There is no other...

We've been reading in the Hebrew Bible, the Old Testament, the book of Isaiah for our Daily Walk Bible (DWB) reading and I've been struck at how Isaiah has made it clear to the nation of Israel that they have a clear choice: they can either worship and trust in "the Lord, your Holy One, Israel's Creator and King" (43:15). Or, they can worship and trust in other men/nations/militaries to save them (Isa. 31:1-9). Or, the other option is to worship and trust false idols made by human hands (40:18-20; 41:6). Like all things in life, a decision had to be made.

And for us today, that decision remains! Will we trust in our nation/government/military to save us and lead us? Or will we put our trust in the things of this world...money, power, possessions? Or will we trust in the One whom it is written: "the Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding" (40:28).

If you know me, or follow this blog with any regularity, you know the decision I have made: "But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord" (Joshua 24:14-15).

Maybe this is simplistic, but my next decision, to put it very bluntly, is what will I do/should we do when the proverbial s&*% hits the fan?

Again, I turn to God in prayer and to his Word for we know that "the word of our God stands forever" (Isa. 40:8) and that it is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16).

During this difficult season in my life and ministry it was, therefore, incredibly encouraging to be reminded of King Hezekiah and his prayerful actions during his hardships (see 2 Kings 18-20, 2 Chron. 29-32 and Isaiah 36-39). When King Sennacherib of Assyria came to attack his nation Hezekiah "tore his clothes and put on burlap (signs of mourning) and went into the Temple of the Lord" (Isa. 37:1, 14-20); and when Hezekiah became deathly ill "he turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord" (38:2-3).

In both instances God heard his prayer, saw his state, heard his plea for mercy and responded with compassion: the Assyrian army was drawn away from Jerusalem and their King was killed in battle (37:9, 36-38) and Hezekiah was given another 15 years to live because "I have heard your prayer and seen your tears" (38:5-6).

But what happens when life doesn't play out like we had hoped and prayed? When we aren't delivered from our enemies? When we aren't delivered from our cancer? When we turn our faces to the wall in prayer, like Hezekiah (38:2), and the prayers seem to bounce right off and go nowhere? What then?

As Jesus reminded us in Luke 11 we continue to ask, seek and knock trusting that God will answer in His time, and His will.

I know, easier said than done. True!

But as a Christ-follower this is what I hold onto; that my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ "is the kind of high priest we need because he is holy and blameless, unstained by sin" thus "he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf" (Hebrews 7:26, 25) on OUR BEHALF.

And so I keep going back to God's Word, and I encourage you to keep going back to God's Word. Contextually speaking, these words were for Israel, then. But they are powerful words for us today because I believe in Jesus Christ who "is the same yesterday, today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8).

"Comfort, comfort my people, says your God" (Isa. 40:1).

A prophecy about Jesus - "He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart" (Isa. 40:11) ...

About God - "Who else has held the oceans in his hand? Who else knows the weight of the earth..." (Isa. 40:12).

"Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not grow faint" (Isa. 40:31).

"For I have chosen you ... don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God...for I will help you. I am the Lord, your Redeemer" (Isa. 41:9-14).

Again, about Jesus - "Look at my servant, whom I strengthen. He is my chosen one...And you will be a light to guide the nations. You will open the eyes of the blind. You will free the captives from prison..." (Isa. 42:6-7).

"I have called you be name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you..." (Isa. 43:1-2).

"From eternity to eternity I am God. No one can snatch anyone out of my hand. No one can undo what I have done" (Isa. 43:13).

"You have been chosen to know me, believe in me, and understand that I alone am God. There is no other God-there never has been, and there never will be. I, yes I, am the Lord, AND THERE IS NO OTHER SAVIOR" (Isaiah 43:10-11).

It's finished...

Since I have Youth Group tonight and will be working late, and since my wife had to work yesterday and I didn't get to see her at all, I decided to stay home and have an elongated lunch break today. We had a leisure-filled lunch, played with the pup and then finished the 1962 Lego VW Bus. Here it is, in all its glory! :)

All the sweet doors and hatches that open and go upwards!

Need to wash your hands? Sit at the bench? Maybe have a glass of wine at the table? You can do it all in this little plaid-curtained bus!

 

The little sign says "Make Lego Models not War."

Rear license plate.

 

A happy nerd. Thanks babe for a wonderful 32nd birthday gift. I enjoyed putting it together with you the last few months!!

My wife is awesome!

After kicking butt on her final for her Nursing school class my wife and I decided to celebrate by continuing to work on our 1962 VW Lego bus and we had a blast!

She is oh so meticulous and methodical!

Not quite!! This is the true, zany side...so, so fun to be with!

 

Before you consume, you better make sure that is BPA free :)

We had a great time watching NCIS and working away...she finds the pieces and I assemble. Last night, as you can kind of tell, we finally got the windows put in with the sweet plaid curtains. Oh how I would love to have one of these in real life!

Eventually we realized we needed to stop and go to bed but our cute puppy needed to go out one last time. Once again, she brought a smile to my face and lots of laughs. But first, when we turned on the light we found him doing this in his kennel...

 "Dad, geesh, why do you have to show the world this picture? What an unflattering pose! I'm trying to sleep, how rude!"

For some reason she thought it would be a good idea to crawl in with him...though his teeth are showing I assure you he was all kisses.

 

A tender moment!

 

Cue the music ... "this magic moment, when your lips are close to mine it could last forever..."

And that encapsulates our celebration of my wife finishing her third class in Nursing School!

Glory Days...

I was visiting my family over the 4th of July when I heard Bruce Springsteen's song "Glory Days" and I haven't been able to get that song out of my head ever since!

 

 

 

Let's be honest, who doesn't connect with this song? We've all got our "glory days" that we think back on, that we long for, or that we reminisce about. One of the reasons the song hits me is because the opening verse talks about his high school baseball days. (Check out this article in the NY Times about the back-story to this first verse.) The song’s stories of reconnecting with old friends that reminisce about the good ol’ days pulls on just about everyone’s heartstrings. Besides, who doesn’t love the honky-tonk sound, whose words just roll off the tongue as it takes us back in time to our own “glory days”?

But years ago I heard from a good friend of mine, an expert on Springsteen, who thought that this song was really lamenting how much we focus on "the glory days." Really? Are you sure? My friend went on to say how, in his opinion, Springsteen was really commenting about our tendency to try to recapture the past because many of us are unhappy in the present.

With that in mind I re-listened to the song, I watched the video, and sure enough I would agree. In the final verse Springsteen has this to say about the "glory days:"

And I hope when I get old I don't sit around thinking about it
but I probably will
Yeah, just sitting back trying to recapture a little of the glory of, 

well time slips away
and leaves you with nothing mister but
boring stories of glory days

 

His fear is that in his waning years all he will have are those “boring stories of glory days.” And to be truthful, who doesn’t have this same fear? Many of us might already prefer to live out those golden memories rather than face the reality of today.

Well days after hearing this song I read Ecclesiastes 7:10, "Don't long for "the good old days." This is not wise" (NLT). Wow! If anyone would know this to be true it would be the author of the book of Ecclesiastes (traditionally thought to be Solomon, the King of Ancient Israel, 970-930 B.C.); a man who let nothing stop him from enjoying anything and everything about life. And even though he lived "the glory days" he realized they were "meaningless." As a matter of fact, he used the word meaningless 24 times in Ecclesiastes!

But I think he uses "meaningless" not because some of these things are inherently bad or evil (though some of them certainly are, especially when used with no restraint or in the wrong context, for example 2:3, 10) but because these things were done in a life that was lived apart from God. That's why we see him telling the reader in chapter 12 "don't let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator" (NLT). He goes on to say seven different times how the reader should "remember him," referring to God.

So is remembering "the glory days" a bad thing? I don't think so. For we see many Psalms where the author recounts God's faithfulness to his people through the years (Psalms 105, 106, 114, 126, 132, 135 and especially 136). Where we run into problems is when we realize that “the glory days” were spent apart from God.

Therefore, I encourage us today to welcome Jesus Christ as “the Lord” and “shepherd” (Ps. 23:1) of our lives and to “honor him in your youth (however old you are) before you grow old and say, ‘Life is not pleasant anymore’” (Eccles. 12:1, NLT).

I can be a babbling fool...

Last night I was at a cookout with a bunch of people I didn't know who are in Nursing School with my wife, and last weekend I was in NYC officiating a wedding for a friend from high school, and I was reminded of an annoying personal habit...when I get nervous around people I don't know or haven't seen for a long time I say stupid stuff.

The happy couple at the rehearsal dinner

 

Proverbs 10:19 says "too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut" (NLT). Now for the record I don't think I said anything that was outright sin but more so just things that are silly, not needed, or don't add to the conversation. I found myself, numerous times in both settings, trying to make jokes when I'm not a comedian. I try to be witty with quick one-liners which is not me. Sometimes they worked or were funny, but most of the times they fell flat. In both instances I found myself thinking "relax, be yourself, don't try to be someone you aren't!" (In case you were wondering when it counted most, during the wedding ceremony, I stuck to my pre-planned words and it went really well!)

 Part of the old "Office Staff" reunited for the wedding

"The wise are glad to be instructed, but babbling fools fall flat on their faces" (Proverbs 10:8, NLT). As I was reading my devotions this morning I was struck by the numerous proverbs about speech, the tongue, wise words, good counsel, the foolish mouth, deceiving lips, etc. While I am behind in my DWB readings in Proverbs (confession) I know this is only the beginning of the treasure-trove of Proverbs that talks about how to speak, or not speak. And so again I was convicted, why do I say things when I'm nervous? 

Newlyweds caught looking at multiple cameras at the reception

 

I know that "the words of the godly are like sterling silver" (Prov. 10:20) and yet when I am in these settings I get all tongue-tied and speak before I think. For example, last night I was saying goodbye to a bunch of people I had just met and made the comment "It was nice to meet some of you!" Oops! I wasn't trying to communicate that "I liked those of you I met but the rest of you I'm glad I didn't meet." Rather, what I was thinking was "I only spoke with some of you, but I wished I had spoken with all of you, so those that I met I enjoyed chatting with for a bit." What was meant to be a parting comment turned into a stumbling affair where I walked away thinking, "just leave and don't try to say anything more."

Old friends reunited for a festive occasion

 

In both social scenarios I know that ultimately I need to extend grace to myself. My tendency, as I am well aware of, is to be too hard on myself. Plus, it's natural and human to get nervous So, grace extended and I move on with life. But in the end, both settings were a good reminder to think before I speak because "the words of the godly encourage many, but fools are destroyed by their lack of common sense" (Prov. 10:21, NLT).