Baptism, Then Jail

     Our church is big on changed lives, and baptisms. We celebrate baptisms once a month. Several times a year we have an outdoor cookout in the courtyard of the high school we meet at and have an outdoor baptism celebration.

There is a microphone outside the baptism tank and after each service several hundred people gather around to hear the “God stories” from those being baptized. It is inspiring to hear what brought them to this point and how their lives have changed because of choosing to follow Jesus.

People are nervous about talking in front of a crowd. But that is the special part, hearing how God has changed their life and seeing their excitement to start a new life following Christ. Last Sunday brought several of these stories:

* One man was agnostic his whole life, didn’t know what he believed, until some neighbors invited him and his family to church. He had a huge smile and such joy when he came up out of the water. He had been lost and now is found.

* One high school student had never been to church before. Her parents did not believe in God, but allowed her to come to church when a friend from school invited her. After attending the High School student ministry for several months and the student camp, she knew she wanted to be a Jesus follower. None of her family came to watch her get baptized, but her new church family cheered her on.

* Another man heard about how God loved him and forgave him while he was in jail, through our jail ministry. When he was released he could not wait to get baptized and start his new life following Jesus. Because he was still on probation, he was wearing an ankle monitor, which could not be submerged in the baptism tank. No problem, my husband and another man filled a cooler with water and drenched him. He was so happy!

Then a quiet teenage girl came. She made some bad decision in her life regarding drugs, but desperately want to leave that lifestyle and have a real relationship with Jesus. Her Mom, who had prayed for this day and had been through a lot with her daughter, stood in the baptism tank beside her, tears of joy streaming down her face.

Yesterday, that Mom came to me at church, her eyes red and swollen, filled with tears again, but no joy. She said the Monday night, after the baptism celebration on Sunday her daughter was arrested. 

My heart went out to her. I prayed for her and told her, who her daughter really was, who God created her to be, was who she was last Sunday. The temptations and evil of this world are so great for teenagers, it is difficult to break away and follow Jesus wholeheartedly.

I hope to visit her this week and tell her, reconfirm what she already knows, that the God of the universe loves her, has forgiven her, and has an amazing life planned for her, if she will choose to follow Him.

                  Her baptism was real.

                                    Her jail time is not too difficult for the God who loves                                                              her to use it for good in her life.

Will you join me in praying for her and her Mom?

So Close

Have you seen the funny video where the Mom demonstrates to her family how they can put their dishes in the dishwasher instead of leaving them in the sink? She takes one step from the sink to the dishwasher and shows how close they are and how easy it would be for them to actually place their dirty dishes in the dishwasher. It hit home at my house, and I found it hilarious.

          With two teenage boys in the house, there are many things that are “so close.” The first are these clothes on the floor.

 One son needed his work uniform washed. He got so close to placing them IN the washing machine. But, nope, they are on the floor. Seriously, just a little more umph in his toss and they would be in the machine.

          Then, there are these glasses. As in the funny video, they are so close to making it IN the dishwasher. It is only one step away. Why didn’t they just put them in the dishwasher instead of leaving them on the counter?

          As another school year ends, I realized our sons are so close to graduating. Two our our chicks have already left our nest, and we know how fast these last few years will fly by. We are so close to finishing our parenting season. It has been long, almost 28 years, with two more to go. As Gretchen Rubin says in her book, The Happiness Project, “the days are long, but the years are short.” Some days have been long. Some mornings trying to get them ready for school have been long. Some nights trying to get them to bed have been long, both the toddler nights and the teenage nights. Looooong.

          But, the years have flown by, and we are so close to being empty nesters, assuming both graduate from high school and actually leave the nest.

          They are so close to becoming young adults. They are so close to making it through 12 years of school, which has had it’s share of difficult years. They are so close to getting their driver’s license and driving without a panicked parent, gripping the dashboard sitting next to them.

          I know these last few years with them are just as important as the first few. They are becoming young men. They don’t need their Mom as much as they did when they were little, and it is a balancing act for me as to how much to let them go, and how much to reel them in. But, I want to finish well. I want to savor these last few years. Very soon, there will not be any late night/early morning conversations in the kitchen like this one:

12:30am

Jeremiah: Don’t forget your night job, Josiah, as a bungalow.

Me: What?

Jeremiah: You know, a bungalow.

Josiah: That’s not what it is. The word is jungle-low.

Me: Ummm, do you mean gigolo?

It is hard to trash talk your brother when you don’t have the right words!

          Aside from the bungalows, these tall, lanky teenage boys are so close to becoming adults. I am grateful that, even though my parenting season is so close to ending, I know their Heavenly Father is not finished with them.

          I trust that He is faithful and will complete the work He has started in them.

“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” Philippians 1:6

Kindness is Free

The clichés’ go both ways.

We warn each other about businesses with bad customer service, and we marvel when we receive excellent customer service.

For those of us in the customer service industry, we also complain about how mean customers can be, and it makes our day when customers are deliberately kind.

We were talking about it at our store this week. It doesn’t cost anything extra to be kind, either for the customer or the business. Kindness is free. We charge the same and we give our best customer service whether someone is purposefully condescending or if they are refreshingly complimentary.

Kindness is free.

I’m not sure why someone I have never spoken to before, would purposefully speak down to me, act rude and demanding, as a way to begin a working relationship. I can’t see how it benefits them, and it is certainly not a pleasant experience for me. They don’t seem to understand that being kind does not take away anything from them, because

Kindness is free.

In the same day, another customer went out of their way to compliment my shirt, ask about my day, and chat pleasantly about how they were learning to be more thankful for the little things in their life. It lifted my spirits and I also thought about the things I had to be thankful for. It did not take her any longer or rob her of anything to speak positively. She wished me a good day and I reciprocated. We both left the conversation with a smile because

Kindness is free.

It is easier to be kind when we have experienced the kindness of God. The Bible says it is God’s kindness that draws people to Him. (Romans 2:4)

          What about you? Have you received a random or deliberate act of kindness   recently? Didn't it feel great?

Greatest Job in the World

     It was our last stop and the climax of our 10-day tour of Israel; the Garden Tomb. Our escort through the beautiful garden grounds was a white haired man with a British accent, named Alistair. He led us along the stone path, through the well maintained trees, flowers and shrubs. I had forgotten the site of the tomb where Jesus was buried was so peaceful. Just outside the tall stone walls traffic and people hurried to their destinations. But inside the garden, a calm slowness could be felt. The spacious grounds held small areas tucked away for prayer and reflection.

  

On past trips I was always anxious to hurry to the main attraction, the highlight of the trip and one of the proofs that Jesus rose from the dead – the empty tomb.  But this time, our group walked to the slower pace of our elderly guide. He led us to a shaded spot with a straight view of the rock cliff that looked like a skull, called Golgotha.

     With his endearing accent, he told us the story of how Jesus was beaten and crucified on the cliff we were looking at. It was appropriate to see the barren rock, and hear the terrible story before heading to the resurrection site.

     When he was finished, he allowed time for the group to take pictures and ask questions. He had a great smile and even at the end of the day had so much joy and passion in his storytelling, we were drawn in. 

     He said he lived England, but after he retired he and his wife saved their money and every year flew to Israel for three months where he volunteered at the Garden Tomb. He said it was the greatest job in the world, because he had the privilege and honor of telling group after group the amazing story of our Savior, and how He willingly died a brutal death, but that death could not hold him. Because as we would see in a minute, the tomb that was owned by Joseph of Arimathea centuries ago, was indeed empty.

     How many times had he told the story? He lost count years ago. Yet, even this time his eyes filled with tears as he talked about His Savior.

I was jealous with joy for him, because he really did have the greatest job in the world.

Happy Resurrection Day!

 

Are You Chicken?

When I was four years old we lived on the island of Guam and one day someone gave our family six baby chicks. They were so cute! They were fluffy and soft and constantly in motion in their new home on our screened in back porch. I am not sure what happened to our precious pets, but after the words ‘loud’ and ‘messy’ were heard a number of times, the chicks disappeared. 

         Recently, it seems more and more people are raising chickens in their backyard. Costco even sells a kit to build your urban chicken coop. When my friend bought one and put it together for her two baby chicks, I seriously thought about buying and raising chickens too. My schedule and the amount of coyotes that live and roam in our neighborhood deterred me.

         When my friend’s chickens grew to a certain size, she took them to the vet to have their wings clipped. The vet told her she only needed to clip one wing because if the chicken’s wings were unbalanced they would never be able to fly. It didn’t matter what size their wings grew to, as long as one wing was longer than the other the chickens could not fly and would stay safely in her backyard.

         Kay Arthur, in her book, Lord, Teach Me to Pray, says prayer and God’s Word are like two wings of a bird: Both are needed if the bird is going to fly.

         I don’t know about you, but in certain seasons of my life one of my wings is usually longer than the other. Sometimes my prayer wing is longer when I have many things to talk to God about, and I pour out my long list of requests to Him. But without my other wing, reading God’s Word, I don’t hear from Him. I don’t know His thoughts or plans for me unless I am reading His Word daily.

         How about you? Are you a chicken with one of your wings longer than the other, keeping you from flying in your Christian walk? Or are you like an eagle with both prayer and the Word of God propelling you higher in your journey?

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 faint. Isaiah 40:31