What Things?

Praying til Pentecost Day 11

• "He appeared in different form to two of them, while they were walking along their way to the country." Mark 16:12
• "What things?" Luke 24:19

From 1972-1974 I served as a missionary Journeyman to the Baptist Mission of East Africa. My job title was, Field Evangelism Assistant, but the job description was more revealing. I was responsible for the construction of churches in the Rungwe District of Tanzania. This was a beautiful place located in the Southern Highlands of the country where three mountain ranges merged. It was in the rain forest, and total annual rainfall for the area was 120 inches a year. Over 40 of that accumulation came in the month of April. There were a miniscule number of paved roads, and most of my work carried me off road anyway. We made our own bricks, cement blocks, trusses, window frames, and pews. The only manufactured item we could import was the tin for the roofs from Communist China. Gasoline costs in those days were $2.50 a gallon and Land Rover pickups loaded with cement and sand were not very eco friendly.

To maintain proper accounts, and assure clear documentation I had to have contracts written in English, Swahili, and the local tribal language. Progress was slow, tedious, and often dangerous due to the weather and road conditions. I was on my second Land Rover pickup. The first had rolled over the mountain side when the brakes went out on it. I was able to bail out, but my partner was hospitalized. Until it was replaced, I checked on all my projects on a 150cc Yahama trail bike, and carried what supplies I could in a back pack and saddle bags.

My assignment was for 22 months, and the time I had left was slipping away with all the rain and mud. I was in one of the garden spots of the world, but it was very frustrating work. Cross cultural communication, supply shortages, theft of supplies on the projects, cement and lime ruined by the water, and the washed out roads and bridges conspired against any Western concept of time management and project completion. Did I mention 120 inches of rain?

August 20-26, 1973 I took a week off to attend the Annual Mission Meeting in Narobi. We were hosted by the Limuru Conference Center, and 300 missionaries and MKs (Missionary Kids) were in attendance. I was asked to carry a sign from the truck of one of our BMs (Big Missionaries) and take it to the Worship Center. It was a six foot long sign and about two feet high. I balanced it on my shoulder and started walking across the camp ground. Everywhere I went, I caused a ripple of laughter to start rolling across the green commons area. As I approached the dining hall a group of BMs were slapping their legs and laughing and pointing at me. The loudest of all was a guy named Eucled Moore. He shouted out something about type casting, self-fulfilling prophecy, or truth in advertising. He was on a roll. I stopped in front of the group of comedians, and took the sign off my shoulder, and saw that it had printed in huge block letters "F-R-U-S-T-R-A-T-I-O-N!"

This story is a little funnier to me now, but the truth always hurts the first time it hits. Like a salve placed on a sunburned skin, there is an increase in the heat before there is a release from the pain. What I know now is that the guys laughing the hardest had forgotten more about frustration than I would ever learn. They were husbands, and fathers and were seasoned veterans of the AWA Wars (Africa Wins Again!). They may have been laughing at me. I am pretty confident that Eucled was, but they could feel my pain too. They had been there more than once, and they enjoyed seeing a young gun earn his spurs at this rodeo.

When the Risen Christ walked into the lives of Cleopas and his wife Mary on the road to Emmaus, he encountered them at the lowest point of their lives. Their dreams had been crushed at the bloody grounds of the crucifixion of Jesus. Their plans for a future and a hope were frustrated. The account in Luke describes them going down hill figuratively and physically as they travelled the seven miles from Jerusalem to Emmaus. They were so engrossed in conversation and discussion of their problem that they missed the Presence of Jesus when He came along side of them.

When Jesus asked them what they were talking about, Cleopas sarcastically rebuked Him for His ignorance about "the things" that had been happening the previous three days. Jesus did not take offense. He just asked, "WHAT THINGS!"

These two words were the key that unlocked the door to the pent up frustration of the two travelers. Cleopas poured out a perspective that was totally saturated with all "the things" that had happened in the past. He had failed to bring his past problem to God. He had been overwhelmed by what he had seen, and as a result he missed the Presence of Jesus walking right beside him.

Jesus still asks the question, "What things?" The message of the Risen Christ to us today is still and invitation to bring our frustrations and fears to Him and let Him make sense out them. When we add up what we have seen with our own eyes, but leave Jesus out of the equation, we are in danger of miscalculating the right answer.

What is it that frustrates you? Have you talked to others more than you have talked to Jesus about it? Take the time to place "the things" that are on your back and roll them over onto the shoulders of Jesus. His yoke was designed with you in mind.

Getting something off your chest does not mean that it has been removed from your back. Giving someone a piece of your mind does not give you peace of mind. Jesus still asks the question, "What things?" When "the things" that you have seen begin to choke you and trip you up, stop in your tracks and turn to Jesus. He calls on you to cough up the bone in your throat and the rock in your shoe. TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!

Hearing

Praying til Pentecost Day 10

"Do not be afraid, go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they shall see Me." Matt. 28:10

Jesus is all about removing the fear, restoring the hope, casting the net, expanding the Kingdom, and delivering the good news. His mission is our mission. His first concern was for fear to be removed, and then he commissioned the women to go find His men and tell them to return to Galilee. They were to go back to the place where they first heard His call on their lives. He promised that He would be there when they arrived.

I have really been blessed by Face Book reunions. On the whole the "blasts from the past" have been very encouraging. One of the common denominators of these renewed connections with people from my past is the unusual things they remember. It is a reminder to watch what you say because people will remember it! I was encouraged recently by a person that I have not seen in 30 years. He said in his "Comment" section on Face Book, "Do you remember when you said, 'God doesn't move parked cars?' "

I had to admit that I was a bit foggy on that one. He went on to say that he had quoted this statement from me for years. He said I shared it within the context of knowing God's will for our lives, and that God has a tendency to guide us best when we are moving towards Him. In other words, you have to be moving to be led.

This really ministered to me. I had become so separated by distance from what I had taught 30 years ago that is really was like hearing it for the first time. This was a unique way of being reminded by God that some things never change, and I would do well to "Practice what I preach!"

In these early hours of the post resurrection world, the Risen Christ was instructing His disciples to operate on faith in His word not by the sight of His Presence. He instructed the women to deliver His word, and He commanded the disciples to return to their roots.

Leaving Jerusalem, the grave of their greatest defeat, and returning to Galilee, the birthplace of their greatest hope would give them a fresh encounter with Jesus. If they remained huddled around the cold ashes of their burned out dreams, they would never know the warmth of rekindled hope that only the Risen Christ could offer to them.

They had to start moving towards Jesus to find out He was already there waiting for them to arrive. A healthy church is not a parking lot filled with people trying to escape reality. It is a mobilized army moving in obedience to the words of their Commander.

The early disciples could hardly believe their ears. They had seen too much. What they had seen had almost deafened them to the voice of the Risen Christ. What a paradox. What we see can often impact our capacity to hear from God.

Whenever Jesus showed up in the lives of His discouraged disciples, He removed their fear and restored their hope. He called them to Himself, and then He sent them out to encourage others with the message of the Kingdom of Heaven. Some things never change. God doesn't move parked cars. You have to be moving to be led.

Have you heard from Jesus today? Remember the Risen Christ knows you by your first name, and is seated at the right hand of God praying for you by name.
 

Seeing

Praying til Pentecost Day 9

• "And they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy and ran to report it to the disciples." Matthew 28:8
• "And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they refused to believe it." Mark 16:11
• "And these words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe them. But Peter arose and ran to the tomb." Luke 24:11

"Seeing is believing!" The world in which we live scorns the fool who trusts in something he cannot see. Jesus invites His followers to become citizens of a kingdom where, "Believing is seeing!"

"WUDDA! CUDDAH! SHUDDAH!" These words are the vision statement of those who are determined to blast through life politely ignoring God. They use their rear view mirror as a corrective lens for their terminal blindness, and still miss God nine ways from Dallas.

In my first pastorate, I remember George telling me over and over again how this church had missed God four times. He would use every cross road in our church's decision making as an occasion to roll out the ancient scrolls of his impeccable memory and recite once again the horrid details and tragic consequences. It was hugely demoralizing and effectively paralyzing.

After a couple of years, my five year old could mouth the words of his story and almost lip sync it perfectly. The facts were accurate, but the missing ingredient was the lesson learned. In all of the stories, the failure was based upon an inability to "see" God in the present tense. They could always see the result of missing God in the past tense, but they could not see through the cloud of doubt and see the blessing of God in the future, if they obeyed Him in the present.

They had seen it with their own eyes, albeit from a distance. They knew the finality of the cross. They had seen the trauma and smelled the drama of death. The stench in their nostrils was still fresh, and their mind's eye could not erase the recent memory of the crucifixion. Christians have always been intimidated by immediate circumstances. Some things never change.

As a result of what they had seen in the past, Friday was a finale. They were unable to believe the fresh word God had for them in the present tense, because they would not believe what they heard.

The Risen Christ was shifting their eyes from their rear view mirror to their windshield. From this day forward, they would not be called upon to trust what they had seen, but to put their confidence in what they heard. Faith was to come from hearing and "hearing by the word of Christ." (Romans 10: 17)

All they saw ahead was the dark and foreboding future of a life without Jesus. They were about to learn that in the Kingdom of Heaven, "Believing is seeing!" Their first response to what they heard about the Risen Christ was willful disbelief, and scornful derision. They not only rejected the message, but they had to rebuke the messenger for delivering nonsense.

The Risen Christ chose to send a woman to deliver the greatest message the world could ever hear. It may have been that the disciples did not approve of the method as well as the message. In any event, they rejected the message and the messenger. They refused to believe what they could not see with their own eyes. They would have nodded in agreement with the phrase, "Seeing is believing!"

More Christians and churches have been killed by the paralysis of analysis than any leap of faith. The early disciples were faced with the facts of the death of Jesus, and could not bring themselves to put their confidence in what they heard about Him.

Today's lesson is for those who remain faithful in delivering the message they have heard from the Risen Christ. The messenger is not responsible for the reaction to the truth. The messenger is only responsible to the Master to deliver the truth.

T.H.I.S.

Praying til Pentecost Day 8

• "...that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His suffering." Philippians 3:10
• "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ." Romans 10:17

All of us have heard and perhaps even made the statement, "Seeing is believing." It is commonly accepted that when we see something with our own eyes then we can have confidence that it is real or it is the truth. It is hard to believe in the worth or reality of something that cannot be seen.

In the Kingdom of God, Paul's statement sets the record straight for believers, "Faith comes by hearing." Trusting in the word of Christ is not a result of seeing with the eyes of faith, but hearing with the ears of faith.

Sight can be a pretty tricky deal. I remember when I was a ten year old fifth grader at the Main Street School in Farmingdale, New York. I was asked by Mrs. Curtis to write a statement on the board, and then return to my seat at the back of the room, and read it to the class. I didn't think anything at all about what I was writing. I just printed it on the board and walked to my seat. This was my first experience with the public embarrassment that comes from being made aware I needed glasses. I could not see what I had written well enough to read it to the class from where I was seated. I had to get up, and walk closer. The closer I had to return to the board, the louder the giggles became. I could hear the dreaded words begin whispered, "Four eyes!" In those days glasses and braces were not a status symbol or a fashion statement. They were the brands of inadequacy. Whew! Glad that nightmare is over. I am not sure that I have trusted what I can see for the last 50 years. Recent cataract surgery has done nothing but reinforce my skepticism in sight.

Words mean something. Paul wrote to the church at Philippi that he wanted to know Jesus better, and he anticipated that this would be done through the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His suffering. To the church at Rome, he would remind them that placing faith in the Risen Christ was a result of hearing the word of Christ, not seeing the person of Christ. One of my favorite statements of Jesus is the invitation to "Come unto Me...and rest. (Matthew 11:28)

Sunday I invited the children of our church to come forward for a brief teaching session. I held a little guy in my lap that had brain surgery two years ago. He and I have become friends over the past two years, and I have been at the hospital and in his home enough for us to be comfortable with one another. We always play a simple little game. I hold out my arms, and he reaches up to me. I lift him up and he places his little head on my shoulder. I begin to sing, "Go to sleep little Taiden, go to sleep. Go to sleep little Taiden go to sleep." He closes his eyes and pretends to be sleeping. After a brief pause, I will lift him up and say loudly, "Wake up!" He laughs out loud, and shouts, "Do it again!" We demonstrated our little game for the other children and the adults Sunday morning. He was a natural. I pointed out that Jesus is still calling us by name to come and place our head upon His shoulder, and rest.

Jesus invites believers to find rest in Him. They don't really know Him until they rest in Him. Rest can be described as ...

• R - Releasing
• E - Every
• S- Single
• T- Thing

Rest is not found in reclining. It is found in releasing. There is no better way to release what we are suffering than to bring it to Jesus in prayer.

I have often made the comment, "I don't need this!" Another favorite of mine over the years has been, "I'm not going to take this." Perhaps you have heard some others...

• I don't deserve this!
• I didn't sign up for this!
• I didn't ask for this!
• I didn't go looking for this!

Over the years I have tried to come to grip with THIS! What this means for me is to begin with the definition of THIS.

• T-The
• H-Hurt
• I- I
• S-Suffer

When Paul said that he wanted to know Jesus, he may not have known what he was saying. I understand that he was under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to reveal the mind of Christ to him. I just wonder sometimes if Paul knew the consequences of his statement when he wrote it. He may have been like a 10 year old fifth grader writing something on a blackboard, and having to come to grips with what he wrote by getting closer to the truth.

Getting closer to Jesus comes through suffering. The power of His resurrection will never be known fully without experiencing the fellowship of His suffering. The same holds true for our human relationships.

Two years ago, I was acquainted with the parents of the little boy I mentioned earlier in my blog. We were friendly, and on a first name basis. I had a respect for the contribution they made to our community, and we were on cordial speaking terms. Our relationship began to deepen when the suffering of their little boy began to worsen. His seizures required brain surgery at one of leading children's hospitals in Texas. I traveled 70 miles with one of our men in the church, and we met them at 5AM at the hospital to pray with them before the baby was taken to surgery. We stayed all day with them until the baby was released from surgery and taken to recovery. It was a long 12 hour ordeal filled with several different prayer sessions. Long story short, our relationship with one another went to another level through the rough sea of suffering. Without that experience together, we would still be cordial acquaintances, but we would not have the kind of relationship that we now appreciate.

The fellowship of His suffering takes place when we bring THIS to Jesus. Can you hear Him speaking to you today? He still says, "Come unto Me...and rest." Release every single thing that is on your mind, and on your back over onto the shoulders of Jesus. Remember, rest is not found in reclining, but it is found in releasing THIS.

Rumors of...

Praying til Pentecost Day 4

"Jesus said, 'Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.' Now while they were on their way, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened. And when they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, and said, 'You are to say, 'His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep." Matthew 28:10-13

Fear and false rumors have always been obstacles to a great movement of God. Satan is a liar, and those who spread falsehoods and undermine the truth in any form or fashion are under the influence of the evil one.

Recently a malignant reminder of the relentlessness of false rumor has surfaced in our community. Tracing down the source of a lie is more difficult than staying on mission with the truth. The fact of the matter is you just can't keep throwing rocks at every barking dog and still get to town. To cut to the chase, Satan lies, and he has influence on enough people to keep his lies alive. His purpose in lying is to discredit, disprove, discourage or at least delay the people who are on mission for God.

It interests me that the two women were on their way to deliver the truth to the disciples and Satan immediately started lying. He can do nothing else. It is who he is. Matthew's account reads, "Now while they were on their way, some of the guard came into the city..." (Matt. 28:11)

Ron Dunn was often quoted as saying, "Good and evil travel down parallel tracks and usually arrive at the same time." That is exactly what happened when the truth about the Risen Christ was being delivered to the disciples. Satan placed it in the hearts of the elders of the Sanhedrin to conspire against the truth by concocting a story that simultaneously maligned the guards for dereliction of duty and accused the disciples of grave robbing. Stooping to the use of a bribe to seal the deal, the elders of Israel promised to protect their co-conspirators if the governor ever found out the truth. The Scripture records, "This story was widely spread among the Jews, and is to this day." (Matthew 28:15)

What was the response of the women? They delivered the truth in spite of the lies that were being spread about their message. What was the response of the disciples when they heard the truth? "The eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee to the mountain which Jesus had designated." (Matthew 28:16)

In other words, they took the high ground. They did not call on the elders to retract their story. They did not have a news conference to alert the city that rumors were being circulated about them. They did not take their offense to the governor. They had seen first hand how much justice Rome was capable of handing out. They obeyed their orders, went to the mountain, and waited for the Risen Christ to show up.

The women did not delay in delivering their message, and the eleven did not hesitate to meet up with Jesus. This is huge. The devil loves to intimidate by false reports and false accusations. His purpose is to put the messenger on the defensive and delay the delivery of the message. He knows the truth better than anyone, and he knows he has no defense against the power of it. His only alternative is to get Christ followers so wrapped up in setting the record straight that they forget their message and their mission.

Thank God the early disciples did not spend all their time chasing down false rumors. They got over their fear, and faithfully delivered the great news about the Risen Christ. They put themselves in the right place at the right time to have an encounter with Jesus. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father, but by Me." (John 14:6) Thank God these two women and the eleven did not put their time into stopping the rumors, but put their trust in the Truth.

The message of the Risen Christ that we share today is a direct result of faithfulness of those who chose to stay on mission and deliver the message. May we be found faithful to do the same in the face of opposition from the "father of lies."

Crash

Praying til Pentecost Day 3

" 'He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where he was lying. Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you in to Galilee, there you will see Him, behold I have told you.' And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples. And behold Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshipped Him. Then Jesus said to them, " 'Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.' " Matthew 28:6-10

The early disciples were receiving a crash course in faith. Paul would later write, "So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ." (Romans 10:17) It is this gathering of the faithful that was going to change the world. They would be called the church or the "called out" ones. They would be known for their responsiveness to the Word of God. A recent study of groups and gatherings reminded me that a collection of geese is called a gaggle, a group of sheep is called a flock, cattle are referred to as a herd, and a gathering of buzzards is called a committee. I won't go there right now, but that last reference is pretty disturbing.

One author has suggested that a gathering of Christians should be called a "crash." This is what a group of rhinos is called. Rhinos cannot see very well, but their hearing is superb. Once they hear, they are prone to move with great speed and unstoppable power. Nothing can stand in their way, especially when they move as a group or a "crash."

It is an interesting perspective to say the least. Perhaps that is why one of the first things the disciples were told to do was to "go quickly." They were reminded of what Jesus had said, and then given a mission to perform.

The ladies were to trust the fact that Jesus was already waiting for them to arrive at the destination they had been assigned. They had to trust the angel's promise and start out on their journey. The next thing they experienced was the personal presence of Jesus meeting them along the way. This is another great picture of the Risen Christ. He honored their faith in His word by offering them the privilege of His fellowship. Jesus is not looking for any special ability from His disciples. He is watching and waiting for them to be available to Him.

One of the world's greatest misconceptions is contained in the statement, "Seeing is believing!" In the Kingdom of God, "Believing is seeing!" One of the most repeated words in angelic vocabulary in the word, "Behold!" It is rooted in a verb that means "to see, perceive, attend to." When the angels use it they are attempting to get the eyes of their listeners off of them and onto the Word of God. The appearance of an angel always generated fear in the hearts of the people receiving their message. They would often have to repeat the word "behold" and make sure people did not miss the message by being overwhelmed by the messenger. The word carries a more contemporary meaning of "Look! Look here! See here! Pay attention! Get this! Get it? Got it? Good!" The angels were held responsible for not only delivering the message, but making sure that the message was received. The angels reminded the two women that they were just repeating what Jesus had said to them before He died. (see italics)

There are at least 155 verses of Scripture that refer to the 40 days Jesus ministered to His disciples from Resurrection Day to Ascension Day. After His ascension the disciples waited an additional 10 days in Jerusalem, waiting for The Promise of the Father.

These Scriptures contain powerful images of the Kingdom of God, and they unveil the truth of Christ's teaching in the context of 50 unprecedented days. For 40 days the disciples received instruction about the Kingdom of God, and for 10 days they waited and prayed.

The Church was birthed in the labor room of prayer. The Holy Spirit was the answer to the prayers of the people of faith. They could not possibly have known what God had in mind when they gathered for prayer. Still, they were obedient to wait and pray. They were available and God was able. It is through our availability to God and God's ability to transform that the nonsensical becomes the believable.

Take a look at the story of the 50 days through the eyes of the early disciples. It can be found in

• Matthew 28:1-20
• Mark 16:1-10
• John 20:1-21:25
• Acts 1:1-11

Easter Sunday marked the beginning of a new step of faith in the lives of the disciples. Intimidation by immediate circumstances had overwhelmed them with doubts and fears. The absence of Jesus had left them with the bitter after-taste of the dregs of defeat and the death of a vision. God had taken them to the end of themselves to bring them to the beginning of all that He had in store for them. Little did they realize that God was at work bringing about His very best when Satan was doing His very worst.

GOOD Grief

Praying til Pentecost Day 2

"When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. 'Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?' Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, 'Sir, if you have carried Him away tell me where you have laid Him.' Jesus said to her, 'Mary!' She turned and said to Him, 'Rabboni!' (which means, Teacher)." John 20:14-16

My first encounter with death and grief involved the funeral of my grandmother, Nina Larish Miller. I was 12 years old and remember wondering why I did not react to her passing with the same level of emotion and sadness of the others around me. Grannie had always been a bit of a distant figure. She lived in Pennsylvania, and the first ten years of my life, I had lived in Texas. I had not seen her very often. I had not meet her until I was seven years old, and my most recent visits to her home were difficult. Her last two years on earth, she had been suffering from dementia. Eventually she was secluded from the grandchildren in a nursing home. When she died, I was a little embarrassed that I felt relief for her. She had been such a quiet, and loving person, and watching her battle with memory loss and disorientation had filled me with profound sadness. When death came to her, it did not come as an enemy, but a friend who released her from prison. I learned early in life that there are some things worse than death. One of those is a life that becomes overwhelmed with daily distortions of reality.

Grief is another force in our life that has a powerful way of distorting reality. John's Gospel records this first encounter between Mary Magdalene and the Risen Christ. She was so overcome with the loss of her Lord, that she drew no comfort from angelic messengers. She even missed the Presence of Jesus when He was standing right next to her. Grief can deal out the facts of life, but it does not always add much meaning to life. It has a way of numbing and blinding us to all the good that is going on around us.

The resurrection of the dead moved from theory to reality for Mary, when Jesus spoke her name. He said, "Mary!" He called her by name, and suddenly the fog lifted from her eyes. She saw the Risen Christ, and she responded with a teachable spirit. She called out, "Rabboni!" Jesus was about to start His first class in Kingdom Living 101.

Grief over the loss of a person or the death of a vision often blinds us to the manifest presence of the Risen Christ. Mary was in love with her Lord, but she was just not in touch with her Lord. Death had brought grief, and grief had left the bitter after taste of defeat. When Jesus showed up in the midst of her grief, He called her by name, and offered to make sense out of the senseless.

For forty days, Jesus was going to walk among His followers to restore hope in them and affirm His mission for them. After He ascended to Heaven, they would wait ten days in Jerusalem and pray until The Promise of the Father was sent to them. After Pentecost, the Risen Christ would indwell His followers through the person of the Holy Spirit.

When Mary came looking for Jesus, He was waiting for her. She may not have recognized Him, but He had not forgotten her. He spoke her name like no other person could speak it. He met her in the middle of her grief, and gave her a reason to live and a mission to complete.

Grief still has the power to blind us from the living presence of the Risen Christ. When we are stumbling in the dark everything seems bigger than it really is, especially death. The image of the Risen Christ meeting Mary at the empty tomb should not be lost on us. Jesus still has a way of taking the thing that intimidates us the most and turning it into a victory. At first glance, the tomb looked like a finale of a lost relationship, but it was a prelude to The Promise. When her ears heard her name being called, her eyes were open to the Presence of Jesus. He is calling out to you today. Can you hear Him?

50 Days

Praying til Pentecost Day 1

"Until the day when He was taken up to Heaven, after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen. To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days speaking of the things concerning the Kingdom of God. Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father promised, 'Which, He said, 'you heard from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.' " Acts 1:1-5

Back to basics is a common theme that is repeated often in many disciplines of life. One of the great stories of Vince Lombardi, legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers, comes to mind. He would gather his team, veterans and rookies, each year at training camp and review the basics of the game. His first session would begin with him standing in front of his experienced athletes and holding out a football in front of them. He would say, "Gentlemen! This is a football!" Lombardi built great teams on good players who knew the basics, and carried out their assignments with precision and passion.

John Wooden, basketball coach of the UCLA Bruins, who led them his teams to an unprecedented string of national championships had a different approach, but a similar emphasis. Coach Wooden would gather his team on the first day of practice and have them take a seat on the bench. He would instruct them to take off their shoes and socks, and then he would hand them a brand new pair of socks. He would then instruct them on how to put on a pair of socks so that their feet would not become blistered by wrinkles or misplaced seams.

Years ago I heard a seminar leader coin the phrase, "The way you come on is the way you go on." The significance of his point escapes me, but the accuracy of the statement is spot on when it is applied to the way Jesus approached ministry.

Jesus introduced the constitution of the Kingdom of God to His followers with the Sermon on the Mount. The Beatitudes were the preamble to the precepts that Jesus would lay out for entrance into this Kingdom. When Jesus returned to spend 40 days walking and talking with His disciples, He went right back to basics. What Matthew's Gospel records in chapters five, six and seven become the reservoir from which Jesus draws. Luke's account in Acts says that Jesus came back to review with His followers what He taught them from the beginning about the Kingdom of God. Jesus was not forming a secret society, but mobilizing the company of the committed with a solid background in what their message would be as they became witnesses of the Risen Christ.

The Kingdom of God is built on the cornerstone of the Risen Christ, but as we return to the Beatitudes we learn that the citizens are called "blessed." What Jesus taught in Matthew 5:2-12 established the criteria of the principle of paradox that would mark the uniqueness of this Kingdom. Things are not always as they seem.

People who think less of themselves and more of others are valued the highest. Those who mourn are merely on their way to comfort. Humble people are heirs to all that God has. Holy hunger leads to spiritual fulfillment. On and on the lessons unfold until the citizenship papers of the Kingdom are stamped with the authenticity of transforming people from victims to victors.

For the next 50 days, pray that the Risen Christ will awaken in you a desire to be filled with all that The Promise of the Father has in store for you. Do not settle for entrance in the Kingdom by the skin of your teeth. Allow your life to be saturated by the Presence of the Holy Spirit. When the early disciples received the Holy Spirit, and He took up permanent residence in their lives, they were transformed from victims of circumstance to overwhelming conquerors.

The last words of Jesus on the cross were, "It is finished!" Remember, He is not on the cross, and the tomb in empty. The best is yet to come.

Getting A Grip on Easter

"I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?" John 11:25-26

When I was a student at Baylor University, 1968-1972, we suffered through four dismal football seasons, and two different coaches. Just before I left the campus, a third sacrificial lamb was being offered on the altar. With the arrival of Coach Grant Teaff the Baylor faithful were asked once again to put their trust in the ancient mantra, "Wait 'til next year!" Bumper stickers and billboards began to announce the simple phrase, "I Believe!"

In the fall of 1972, I didn't get to stay in town and witness the resurrection of the program. I was serving in Tukuyu, Tanzania on a remote station in the Southern Highlands of East Africa. When word did arrive about Baylor's early success, one of the missionaries, David Whitson, commented wryly, "Oh, look! Baylor won its game early this year!" Heretic! Obviously, he was not a true believer.

When I returned to the States in the fall of 1974, Baylor's resurrection of their football program had produced a great deal more confidence. Under Teaff's coaching and quarterback Neal Jeffrey, they represented the Southwest Conference as champions and played Penn State in the 1975 Cotton Bowl. Good times!

Within two years, the Bears had moved from a perennial conference door mat to conference champions. The "I Believe!" bumper sticker campaign did not have any power in and of itself to win ball games, but it did raise a significant issue. Before the transformation could begin, someone had to believe it could be done.

Belief is powerful, especially when it is placed in the truth of the Word of God. It means more than intellectual acknowledgement or the accumulation of information. It involves trust, and the act of the will to place confidence in something or someone. With one statement and one question, Jesus settles the issue once and for all. Belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the key to unlocking the door to new life. Belief in Jesus as a good man, great teacher, or ancient prophet all fall short of the answer to the question, "Do you believe this?"

How do you get a grip on the reality of Easter? Does your hand glide over the Scriptural account, and give you have a slight touch on this timeless truth? Do you have a white knuckled grip on Easter, or do you drop it as soon as the service is over and the eggs are in the basket?

Use the five fingers of your hand as a reminder of how important it is for you to get hold of the truth of Easter, and never let go of the power of the resurrection.

1. "I am the resurrection and the life." Jn 11:25-26
This is the thumb of belief. Without the resurrection of Jesus, there is no promise to believe, a person to trust, and or power to transform.

2. "I go to prepare a place for you!" Jn 14:2-3
This in the index finger that points us to Heaven. Remember, this world is not our home.

3. "In this world you have tribulations, but take courage. I have overcome the world." Jn 16:33
We are in the middle of a battle. The victory has already been won, but expect resistance.

4. "I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Matt. 28:20
The ring finger symbolizes the never ending relationship between the Bridegroom and His Church.

5. "I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you." Luke 24:49
This is the final finger, but this is not the finale of Easter. It is the prelude to praying for Pentecost. The power of God is available to people who admit their weakness.

Get a real grip on Easter, and let your belief in the resurrection transform your life today.

God's Waiting Room

"And on the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment." Luke 23:56

God's grace persistently provides a different perspective to some of the most intimidating issues of life. He takes an instrument of death and turns it into a symbol of new life. He takes a tomb, the last stop on life's journey, and turns it into a waiting room for new birth.

When Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus placed Jesus in the tomb, they were forced by The Law to rapidly prepare His body for His final rest, and then return to their homes for the celebration of the Passover. That had to be a very somber, and restless night for them and the rest of the disciples. From dusk to dawn the followers of Christ must have been filled with discouragement and disappointment over the death of their friend and their vision.

Opinions vary on what Jesus was up to during the period of time between His death and His bodily resurrection. The record reveals that He was doing everything but reclining in the empty tomb biding His time. His physical body was there, but Jesus was not.

• He was "put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the Spirit." I Peter 3:18
• He tore the veil of the temple. "And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit, and behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom;" Mt. 27:50-51a
• He shook the earth as he strolled through Jerusalem. "and the earth shook and the rocks were split." Matt. 27:51b
• He opened many tombs and raised bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep. "The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised." Matthew 27:52
• He went to Paradise, the righteous abode of the dead, to fulfill His promise to join the thief on the cross in. "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise." Lk 23:43
• "He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark." I Peter 3:19

Jesus was preparing to release the greatest expression of the power of God that the world had ever seen. The timing of the release was set to reveal the sufficiency of Christ and the sovereignty of God over the sting of death and the condemnation of the law. When His disciples were at their lowest point, Jesus was on a mission to raise them up from their depths of despondency. He had told them that He would die and rise from the grave three days later.

When the disciples felt deserted they became despondent. God's delay does not mean God's desertion. Jesus was right on time, and in sync with God's plan. The disciples had forgotten the Word of God, and that led them to the wrong conclusion. They added up, one and two, and came up with zero. When they calculated "Day One" - the brutality of crucifixion and combined it with "Day Two" - the reality of tomb, they came up empty. They thought they knew what was going on. After all, they had been eyewitnesses to the events. They had jumped through all the hoops, and now they were jumping to the wrong conclusions.

The disciples were convinced that they had all the facts and had done the math. Unfortunatley, they had forgotten to add Jesus into the equation. God's math always includes the Jesus factor. Waiting on God is not a detour into fantasy land, but a place where people can regroup and regain their perspective over the intimidation of the immediate. Eyes blinded by the loss of vision can be restored to see the hand of God moving behind the scenes to accomplish His will, in His way, and in His timing.

The night is always darkest just before the dawn. The Resurrection gives us hope. Not only do we have victory of death and sin, but from Easter Sunday on, we can believe that every moment we wait on God can be filled with anticipation and confidence that the longer the wait, the greater the blessing.