It is really hard to believe how far we have come in a year. Last year we were worried, confused, and scared; but we were also comforted, cared for, and lifted up. Today we have two beautiful healthy children. God has blessed us in so many ways. This year we are especially thankful for the family, friends and strangers that carried us with their prayers and support through the tough month of December last year. Listening to the Dr.s and Nurses at St. David's hospital in Austin we truly believe that we experienced a miracle. Thanks be to God!
As a pastor getting ready for Christmas means planning sermons, and making sure that worship is meaningful and pointing us to the coming of Christ. Not just the baby in the manger but the second coming when the Kingdom of God reaches its fulfillment.
However as a father I am really enjoying my 3 year old's excitement as Christmas approaches. She loves it all. We had some snow the other day and she yelled "It's Christmas", I had to tell her that it doesn't only snow at Christmas.
I guess the big challenge for us will be how do we help her become just as excited about the real reason for the season. We have time and she is enjoying playing with her little people manger scene. That gives us some opportunities to tell the story. That is when she and her baby brother are not fighting over baby Jesus. (There may be a sermon in that.)
My prayer this week is that as we progress toward that blessed day that we truly appreciate the many gifts that God has provided for us and that we are excited and looking forward to Jesus with that same excitement that our children have as they wait to see Santa.
The early Christians used to greet each other with the word "Maranatha" which literally means "Come Lord Jesus!"
One of the most beautiful Psalms of thanksgiving is the 100th Psalm.
"Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, the sheep of His pasture." Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations."
Even with all that is going on with the economy, the war on terror, and our own personal trials and tribulations; I believe with all my heart that we are a people and a nation that has truly been blessed by God. Of all those who "give thanks to Him and praise His name" we should be at the top. I’m convinced that if we were to make a list, we would find that we have much more for which to be thankful than just our material possessions. Like you, I’m sure, my list would include the major things life, health, family, friends, and the nation we live in, despite all its flaws. But even more than that, I’m thankful for my salvation, my church family, and the grace that God showers upon me each day.
Our introduction to Junction was a prayer service held on Tuesday September the 11th of 2001 at the courthouse. My wife Laurie and I had just arrived in town about 30 minutes before the service was to start. We met several of the other ministers and their wives. As we talked about it afterward Laurie and I were glad that we had arrived when we did. We are very thankful to have come to a community that shares a unity in Christ that is not found in other places. It is not common to have Christians from so many different faith traditions all come together and worship as one in the body of Christ. With Jesus we have so much for which to celebrate on Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving Day is my favorite holiday.Mainly because it doesn’t commemorate a battle or anyone’s birthday or anniversary. It is simply a day set aside to express our nations thanks to God.
In 1789, George Washington made this public proclamation. (Now I will quote only a little part of it, "By the President of the United States of America. A proclamation: Whereas, it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor, - and "Whereas, Both Houses of Congress have by their joint committee requested me `to recommend to the people of the United States a day of Public Thanksgiving & Prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God.’"Now, Therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. . ." So read the very first Thanksgiving Proclamation.
This week we pause once again to give thanks. And one would assume that because of the example of our forefathers, and because we today have so much, that we would be an extremely thankful people. But it is often just the opposite, isn’t it? The more we get, the less thankful we become, the less mindful of God we become, & the more we want.
I think that the 100th Psalm was written to deal with that attitude, to remind us of our need to be thankful. I think also that there is a real danger in this season of determining our thanksgiving on the basis of how much we have. "Do I have enough turkey to gorge myself sufficiently? Is my money in the bank secure? Am I healthy?" And we let these things determine whether we are or aren’t thankful. The Psalmist says that all of these things may change at any time. They may drift away, or they may burn, or someone may steal them. The only thing we have for sure is our relationship with God. And that is what the 100th Psalm emphasizes. Just scan the Psalm it reminds of that the basis of our thanksgiving is the Lord.
Oftentimes the place where we meet to worship God is called a "sanctuary," indicating that God is there. But God is everywhere. He is with you as you drive on the highway. He is with you when you work. He is with you as you care for your children. He is with you every moment of your life. That is the source of our thanksgiving, isn’t it? I pray that this will be a meaningful Thanksgiving for you all.
I know that since we have returned to Junction that we have not put any effort into updating the blog but starting this week we will try to get at least one post up a week. Both children and Jim and Laurie are doing well. Keep an eye out for new posts and pictures.
What is it we think of when people mention the story of Jonah? I guess a lot of people think about the fish. Others think about the plant that grew and then died. We tend to remember the stranger things, don’t we? My personal favorite part of the story is when the king requires the animals to repent, and wear sackcloth! Yet it is very easy to hear these parts of the story and miss what is actually going on. The story of Jonah is quite funny, it’s true, but underneath the humor God has some very important lessons to teach us.
When things don’t go according to our plans there is trouble. Talk to the business man who blows up because the plane he is supposed to be on is canceled or overbooked. Talk to the salesperson who can’t make their quota of sales for the day. Talk to the parent who blew up in the middle of grocery store because the two kids cannot control themselves and are bothering everyone in the store. Talk to yourself when things just don’t go your own way; you know what I mean. But since when do things always go to plan?
And for Jonah, it would be just perfect if the Ninevites that he tried to run away from were all struck dead by God. It would just be perfect if God would wreak vengeance on that bunch of no-good tormenters of Israel, for they have treated Jonah’s people badly. They have slaughtered them and made life hell. He wanted payback. And that is what he preached “40 more days and Nineveh is toast!” (3:4). Notice his message was totally negative and with no good news. He knows God is angry with them, and he wants just desserts for them. That Jonah is angry, goes without saying, but the Ninevites responded to God, they believed God and repented with all seriousness with prayer, fasting, sackcloth and dust (3:5) and when God saw what they did and they had turned from their evil ways, God had compassion and did not destroy them (3:10). Mercy triumphs over judgment! Awesome grace of God was beautifully displayed. And we know that yes, God is angry, He is horrified by sin, yet He will graciously forgive if anyone will turn and plead for mercy. That has always been the case and will always be the case. So God was no longer angry at Nineveh. But someone else in story remained angry, Jonah, flew into a rage.
Here he is the one who knows personally the grace of God. He had just been rescued from his own grave and even said “salvation comes from the Lord” yet he couldn’t really stomach what he confessed. That salvation really comes from God. He was angry at God, I wonder if we are ever like that? Jonah knew about the Character of God. He prayed to God, “I know what kind of God you are. That is why I did not want to come here. You are gracious and compassionate; slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. That is why I tried to run.” Jonah feels like these are horrible people and they deserve judgment. He does not want God to show mercy to these people. Perhaps the people will slip up and he will have a front row seat for their destruction.
God caused a vine to grow and give him shade. It quickly appeared without any nurture or help from Jonah. Jonah was happy for the first time in our scripture. The next night God sent a little worm to kill the plant and Jonah was right back to being angry, pouting n the hill side. God sent a hot wind and Jonah stayed alone on a barren hillside and wanted to die. He was not willing to go back into the city or head for home. He just wanted to pout, over the mercy of God for the City and for the loss of the plant. God ask him if he had reason to be angry about the plant. He says yes and that he wanted to die. He sounds like a spoiled child. God says that he on the other hand has had everything to do with the creation of this great city and people. Shouldn't God care about them?
Jonah has been angry with God and only submits when he feels forced and is a stubborn and harsh representative. He only serves God at a minimum level and has no joy in his work. He does not really care about what God wants, he wants to control who God will touch and save.
When are we like Jonah? Where are we in the picture of God’s kingdom today? Are we happy to be working in the kingdom? To we appreciate his efforts on our behalf. Do we resent his work in the lives of others? The story of Jonah is about a reluctant prophet that God uses in spite of his flaws and attitude. God’s work is our work. We are called to look where he is working and joyfully join him there.
It is so good to be back in Junction. I cannot put into words our gratitude for all the prayers, calls, cards and visits over the last month. We were gone for 32 days and it sure felt longer.
Mignon arrived from Bridgeport today and was terribly excited to meet her little brother. She just loved touching and holding him. She thought that he was a doll at first. She has pulled out all of her toys.
Tomorrow we are going to start some rearranging and turn the room that used to be a carport into a play room for Mignon and all of her toys.
Zane thinks that he likes the apartment but I bet he will really like the house in Junction tomorrow. He is a pretty happy baby and only cries when he is hungry. Saturday he gets to meet his big sister. We are watching the Gator game this last night in Austin. We have been doing some packing; the Christmas tree is down and packed and my clothes are packed, Laurie is working on hers during half time. Curt and Jennifer are coming in the morning to help us get our stuff to Junction. I can't wait.
Last night the three of us stayed together in a room at the hospital. Zane did not have any wires or tubes, it was the first time that we were able to hold him without having to worry about pulling something tripping over cords.
Laurie feeding Zane
Looks like an Angel
His going to the apartment outfit.
His bed in the apartment.
Even though we had wonderful nurses and great doctors, we are very happy to have Zane with us unencumbered by all the medical paraphernalia. He is eating and sleeping well. We plan on coming home to Junction Friday, Laurie's mom will come Saturday bringing Mignon and we will be a family reunited.
As you can see in the picture Zane is tubeless again, and his tests went well. The MRI was normal and the hearing test was fine. He is doing so well that the doctor said tomorrow night Laurie and I can spend the night at the hospital with him so that we and they can make sure that he will nurse and do well with us. Then on Tuesday Zane gets out of the hospital. We will stay here in Austin with him until Friday when we will return to Junction.
Laurie was able to nurse Zane for the first time today. He is doing much better with the feedings and tomorrow he should be tubeless again. The Doctor today told us that they are going to do an MRI on him tonight just as a precaution. She said because he was such a sick baby they want to check and make sure that all is normal. She was very clear to us that this is nothing to worry about it is just precautionary. She also wrote orders for his hepatitis B shot and circumcision.
We are hoping that we may come home next Saturday, January 10th. That is not for sure yet but it looks likely at this point. Laurie and I are definitely ready to come home and have Mignon with us again.
Zane is 3 weeks old today. He also is just on his mother's milk as of today. He is still not finishing his bottles so the are still using the ng tube in his nose. He gets four bottle feedings a day and four feedings through the tube. He had just had a bath before I took these pictures and he was very alert and awake while we were there. After his belly was full he developed the hiccups,and we got to change his diaper. It has been a good day we are both feeling better but still sneezing and coughing, I will be glad when we are over this.
December 11, 2008
December 11, 2008
His going to the apartment outfit.
