Frankly, I am torn, because I have so many thoughts running through my head about which I could write. I know many have commented that last week’s blog was a powerful call to action. Afterward, I wrote a response to one of my friends, and I may include that response stripped of the name, in a future blog. Not this week, though. Jeremiah 7 is for another week. My poor little brain feels so overwhelmed with all I could write about….
Recently, I had the great fortune to pray with my friend Jenny, who is a pastor. (Pastors who are friends = four.) Quite out of the blue, she reached out to me last Friday, suggesting that she come to pray with me. Her entreaty was timely. We met Saturday morning at 11 am here at my house. Jenny and I prayed so long even Georgia, who is not fond of people, came out to see that what was up. So unusual. Jenny’s appearance was quite spur of the moment. Indeed, in a moment of discouragement, I had asked the Lord to show Himself to me. He sent Jenny. I asked Him again on Sunday and Daniel and Carol, friends whom I had met three years ago here on the island, appeared at the door Monday morning. “Knock, knock?” Having sequestered herself in a specially- fashioned hole on the underside of the box spring upon their arrival for dinner, Georgia reappeared later that evening while Daniel and I shared some of Carol’s homemade lasagna and garlic bread. I only mention her brief appearance, because Georgia is so very frightened of strangers.
(Kings James Version, Leviticus 25:55) I am the Lord your God [who brought your Siamese cat out from under the bed.]
Hey, a little biblically inspired humor never hurt anyone….
I am at a place in my spiritual journey, not where I question the work of the Lord, but the hearts and intentions of men. Daily. Jenny discussed her own struggles in preaching the Gospel. She taught; she preached: she did all to further God’s kingdom, but was anyone really listening? Was she making a difference? (Not that I would claim to be pastor.) She said early on that to feel isolated and powerless is part of spiritual growth. After all, we cannot force people to accept the Lord. Is that not what ISIS does?
She briefly related the story of Jesus’ journey to pray in solitude, which he undertook so often. Who can forget this:
(Matthew 13:22-23) And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.
This passage comes just before Jesus walks on water and saves Peter from drowning. Interestingly, also in this passage, the Lord tested Peter’s faith:
(Matthew 13:29-30) And he said, come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
Prayer in solitude was how the Lord prepared Jesus for what came next. Jenny exuded the confidence that such is what the Lord is doing with me. Okay Lord, You have my attention.
(Isaiah 6:8) Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
As I tell you my story, I wish not to draw attention to myself, but to reassure those of you who might feel similarly, “Leave to thy God to order and provide; In ev’ry change he faithful will remain.” So say the words of the second verse of the wonderful hymn, “Be Still My Soul.”
What, if anything, is this mission God has for me? For any one of us? Jesus teaches if we follow him we can perform miracles:
(John 14:12)
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
When most people think of miracles, they think of big miracles: raising the dead, healing the sick or giving sight to the blind. I would submit to you humbly, our job on this earth is not to perform the great miracles, but the small ones: talking a despondent friend out of harming herself, turning an alcoholic away from a life in the bottle, helping an Alzheimer’s patient find the words to express himself, leading the Lord’s children back to His teachings, His house one by one.
As I prepared to write to you today, I thought, “What shall I write? It’s too late. I am tired.” But earlier this week I pondered this question; “What does it mean to be a Christian?” First and foremost, to be a Christian you must accept the divinity of Christ. If you cannot do that, you may adhere to some of Christ’s teachings, but you’re not a Christian. You say, “Now wait a minute….who do you think you are telling me that I am not a Christian?” Okay. If you follow Marin Luther King’s teachings to the letter, does that make you a Kingsman? Is there a difference between Christ and any other man with a spiritual underpinning? Yes. Divinity.
So I leave you as the Lord has left me: meditating on the word divinity: the divinity of Christ.
If I am to undertake the journey, I must accept without question or hesitation the divinity of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
(John 6:8) Here am I; send me.
Sandman
(Photo credit: Bushko Oleksandr/Shutterstock)