Flight Paths

And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said unto his neighbor in the word of the LORD, Smite me, I pray you. And the man refused to smite him. Then said he unto him, Because you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD, behold, as soon as you have departed from me, a lion shall slay you. And as soon as he had departed from him, a lion found him, and slew him,   1Kgs 20:35-36.
 
           If you know your Bible, you know that is only the beginning of the story, but it was certainly the end of it for that second young prophet.  Here is the hard lesson we all must learn:  serving God is NOT for wimps.  Sometimes God asks for difficult things.  Sometimes they seem impossible.  But God expects the impossible from us—the things you cannot do alone, He will help you with.

            First century Christians understood this.  Many of them converted knowing they might be thrown into prison or even the arena within a week.  And us?  We want promises of health and wealth.  We demand a life where no one contracts a serious illness, where our homes never blow away in hurricanes or tornadoes, where jobs are never lost, accidents never happen, and babies never die.  We want the reward now—the perfect life in the perfect place.  Then we will consider serving God.

            It doesn’t work that way and it never has.  This prophet could not believe that God would ask him to strike his fellow prophet.  “Why God would never…” you can hear him thinking just as so many say today.  He found out there was something a whole lot worse when he didn’t have the gumption to do as he was told. 

            I have a feeling that a whole lot of people are going to meet the same lion he did.
 
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God,” Luke 9:57-62.
 
Dene Ward

A cooking magazine I read used to run a page of embarrassing mistakes its readers had made in the kitchen.  I probably could have kept the page going for several years single-handedly.
 
           I tend to become flustered when I have company.  We had an older couple over for Sunday dinner once, sweet, kind people whom I should never have been nervous about at all.  Everything was going well as I slid my homemade crescent rolls into the oven.  Twelve minutes later I peeked in to see how they were doing and was horrified.  I had covered them with a linen kitchen towel during their last rise and had forgotten to take it off.

            I pulled them out, managed to remove the towel without mutilating my rolls, and slid them back in, but the damage was already done.  They never did fully rise, instead becoming heavy and doughy and tasting faintly of freshly ironed cotton.  “I thought maybe it was a new-fangled method I hadn’t heard about before,” said my sweet friend.  Indeed—a new-fangled method that did not work very well at all.

            Then there was the time I put a ten pound ham in the oven and very carefully set the oven timer backwards.  Instead of starting at 10:00 and cooking till 12:30, it was rigged to come on at 12:30 and cook till 10:00.  My twelve guests and I walked in at 12:15 to a stone cold ham.  Aren’t microwaves wonderful?  I sliced off enough to go around once, zapped them, and called everyone to the table while the rest finished nuking.  At least I had managed to get everything else done on time.

            And who could forget the first meal I cooked for Keith after our honeymoon?  I pulled the meat loaf out of the oven, holding that brand new Pyrex loaf pan between those slick new oven mitts.  I turned around a bit too quickly and, as I did, that pan slid out of my grasp and sailed across the room landing upside down in the floor behind the table.  Keith managed to duck, but it was a portentous way to begin married life.

            Yet all those embarrassing moments, and many, many others, are stories we laugh about now.  In fact, most of them we were laughing about the same day, often within minutes of their occurrence.  Look how well-balanced we are.  No arrogance here, no stubborn pride.  We can learn from our mistakes, even laugh at ourselves.

            But let one person dare to disagree with us about a spiritual matter and that’s a completely different story.  Our minds are made up; we won’t listen; we instantly dismiss any scriptural evidence we cannot otherwise explain away with, “That’s different.”

            Let anyone dare to tell us we might have erred in our actions and things are even worse.  Instantly we counterattack; instantly we rationalize; instantly we blame that person for our failure to behave as a Christian.  If he had told us differently, we would have listened.  Really now?

            I can hear you and yes, you are right—these are NOT laughing matters, but that makes it even more important that we NOT get too angry to listen, or too ”hurt” to examine ourselves objectively.  I can tell tales about my mistakes in the kitchen over and over, but heaven forbid (or is it some other place?) I actually consider another side to a disagreement or scrutinize my own actions and their motives.

            Why can’t we share stories of change and enlightenment in spiritual matters?  Why can’t we thank the ones who told us we were wrong instead of telling everyone else how horrible they are?  Why is it that the very thing we say all the time, “I know I’m not perfect,” is the last thing we will ever admit?

            Perhaps it’s because we don’t really believe it.
 
He is in the way of life who heeds correction; but he who forsakes reproof errs.  He who hearkens to the reproof of life shall abide among the wise.  He who refuses correction despises his own soul; but he who hearkens to reproof gets understanding, Prov 10:17; 15:31,32.
           
Dene Ward

I was beginning to think it would never happen.  We had one brief—very brief—cool snap in November, but then summer returned.  We were still running the air conditioner in early January.  Finally, the third week of the new year we had several days with lows in the low thirties, one where we never topped 41, and even a few snow flurries.  Now, I said to myself.  Now I can prune the roses.
 
           You never prune the roses until they become dormant.  I was not sure three or four days of cold was enough to put them in that state, but surely they were close simply because it was time, I reasoned, and the cold was not predicted to last beyond another 48 hours so my window of opportunity was small.  So I took my clippers and went at it, cropping the thinner, more pliable stems and leaves—including those with some new red growth from the warm week before—and gave them the half to two-thirds haircut they need annually.  It will be an anxious few weeks before I find out if I ruined them.

            Dormancy is an interesting thing.  Plants, or seeds right after harvest, go to sleep.  For plants it happens with adverse conditions like low temperatures, drought, or low light.  In order to conserve energy, the plant stops growing and sheds softer tissues, replacing them with hard wood, scales, and dried tissues.  It puts on this suit of armor to protect itself.  When conditions change, warmer temperatures or enough water to live on for example, the plant wakes up and resumes its normal growth.

            After mulling it over one morning I decided that is our problem.  We never go dormant.  I defy you to study the Word of God deeply enough, and meditate long enough to reach new insights, by taking just five minutes a day to “read a chapter.”  It won’t work.  But instead of finding that precious time—instead of making it—we make excuses instead.  We stay too busy with life to slow down and spend quiet time with God.

            And Isaac went out to meditate in the field toward evening...Gen 24:63.

            I will ponder all your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds, Ps 77:12.

            My eyes are awake before the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promise, Ps 119:148.

            Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer, Ps 19:14.

            Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things, Phil 4:8.

            And that is just a fraction of the verses that tell us we need to spend far more time with God than we do.  How many times did Jesus spend all night praying?  And if you have not had your prayers drift off into meditation, that may well be why you sit there thinking, “I could never pray that long.”

            Look back at the advantages of dormancy.  Dormancy is a period of rest for the plant.  God knew we needed rest.  He gave His people a day no other culture had, the Sabbath.  When everyone else was working dawn to dusk just to survive in an ancient world, He took care of their basic survival that day (as when the manna did not spoil) so they could rest, so they could spend time with family and with Him.

            Dormancy provides the plant with “a suit of armor,” protection during adverse conditions.  If you wait until the crisis arises to consider your actions, you will invariably make poor decisions.  Time to think ahead, recognizing your weaknesses and planning your “way of escape” can be critical to your spiritual survival.  Meditation will give you that time to prepare yourself.

            Dormancy gives the plant “anesthesia” for the painful tasks of pruning and grafting.  Looking at yourself in the mirror is hard enough without being forced to in the middle of a spiritual emergency.  Time alone to carefully consider and face your challenges can make the difference in whether you make the changes you need to or not.  In the face of rebuke, too many of us consider it too painful to even consider the notion that we might need a little pruning of the character to please God.

            And then there is the greatest benefit of all:  time to develop a
relationship with your Creator.  I knew a young couple that broke off their engagement after realizing that they had absolutely nothing to talk about.  A wise young couple, I think.  If you haven’t spent enough time in His Word to have anything to talk to God about, don’t be surprised if He doesn’t break it off with you.
 
I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands. ​I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land-- Selah, Ps 143:5-6.
 
Dene Ward

On February 15, 1876 the Seth Thomas Clock Co received a patent for the first alarm clock.  I doubt it was as beautiful a sound as the alarm clock I had one day last week when a wren sat on a limb outside my window and sang out its clear, loud, beautiful song.  It wasn’t quite time to get up, but it was such a nice alarm clock I found myself in a much better humor all morning despite the early rise.

            I thought throughout the day of the various “alarm clocks” I have had in my life—the gentle touch of a mother shaking me awake for school, the hand of a husband pulling me into a warm embrace a few minutes early, the cry of an infant letting me know he was hungry whether I was ready to get up or not!  I remember when those cries turned into coos and laughing as those same babies woke and played quietly in their cribs before the hunger pains set in.  Wonderful alarm clocks indeed.

            Alarm clocks are not just for waking us in the morning.  Alarm clocks for the soul have a much more serious job.  I can remember moments in my life when a word was said, a scripture was read, or a thought from a deep meditation suddenly blared in my heart as loudly as any alarm clock on the bedside table.  In one moment I knew I needed to make a change in my life, and I needed to do it quickly. 

            Keith has gotten so deaf that he can no longer hear an alarm clock.  We bought one designed especially for the hearing impaired—the “Sonic Boom and Earthquake Alarm Clock.”  He needs it for the few times a year I am not at home to hear for him.  Even though the extra loud “sonic boom” alarm would have me plastered to the ceiling, he still cannot hear it, so he uses the “earthquake” part of the clock.  A plastic disk about four inches in diameter lies beneath the mattress.  When the clock reaches the set time, this pad begins to vibrate—not just a little massage, but a pulsing shake that can take your breath away.  In fact, the company told us to lie on the bed and try it out while we were awake the first time.  They had too many customers come close to a heart attack when their first experience with it came while they slept.

            Sometimes it takes a good hard shake like that to wake us up.  We are too good at rationalizing and too poor at applying the scriptures to our own lives.  “But I didn’t mean…”  “But it’s not the same thing as…”  “But I would never do that…” escapes our lips too often for it to really be true. 

            The best alarm clock your soul can have is a trusted brother or sister in the Lord who is not blinded by his or her friendship with you, and whom you trust to tell you the truth for your own good, even when you don’t want to hear it.  Far better to have a one of those than have the Lord send you an earth shaking event to wake you up.  Neither a sonic boom nor an earthquake for the soul will be pleasant. 

            Get yourself an alarm clock and set it.  Then listen for it.
 
Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep.  For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.  The night is far gone; the day is at hand.  So then let us cast off the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, Rom 13:11-12.
 
Dene Ward

Rise up, you women who are at ease, hear my voice; you complacent daughters, give ear to my speech. In little more than a year you will shudder, you complacent women; for the grape harvest fails, the fruit harvest will not come. Tremble, you women who are at ease, shudder, you complacent ones; strip, and make yourselves bare, and tie sackcloth around your waist. ​Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine, ​for the soil of my people growing up in thorns and briers, yes, for all the joyous houses in the exultant city. For the palace is forsaken, the populous city deserted; the hill and the watchtower will become dens forever, a joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks; Isa 32:9-14.

            The women of God’s people would not face facts.  They were going to be destroyed.  “Complacent” Isaiah calls them.  “Careless” the King James Version says.  That word means bold and confident.  Despite the facts, despite the preaching of God’s prophet, they did not believe they would be destroyed.  What I call it is “denial,” the haven of fear for some of us, and I have seen it often in my sisters.

            When they do not want to believe that a loved one will soon die, they blame everything on the doctors.  “They” are wrong, they don’t know what they are doing, they listen to the insurance companies too much, they are simply cogs in the big business of modern medicine and don’t care about patients anyway.

            When they don’t want to believe there is a financial problem, they place their confidence in how things have always been.  It never crosses their minds that times might have changed and they might need to cut down their costs of living, actually sacrificing a few things.  They believe that it will only last a few days and then things will be back to normal.

            When a family member or friend, especially when a child has gotten themselves into trouble, the accusers are lying, the teacher just doesn’t like my baby, the police have made trumped charges.  It cannot possibly be that someone I love actually broke a rule or committed a crime.

            Women used to be the strong ones.  When I think back to those hearty pioneers who traveled west, who left most things behind and lived on beans, bacon and flour for months at a time, who built fires for every bit of housekeeping from cooking to cleaning, who carried water several times a day, who worked dawn to dusk, then sat by a dim lamp to darn socks and mend shirts until they could no longer stay awake, I wonder what they would think of the spoiled women of luxury we have become—even those of us who don’t live in mansions and wear designer clothes.  I hear too many say, “I could never do that,” to think we are as strong as they were.  Too many seem unable to face facts, recognizing what needs to be done and doing it without a second thought, no matter how difficult it may be.

            What has happened to us?  At one of the places I spoke several years ago, I mentioned something that had befallen my family, something I had to do that I had never done before and wasn’t sure I could even do.  It was supposed to be an application of Prov 31:25: “Strength and dignity are her clothing.”  One of the women actually spoke up and said, “That’s where I draw the line.  No one could make me do that.”  What?  And so something that needed to be done and no one else was there to do it, would not get done?  And everything would be all right? 

Denial, false confidence, indifference, complacency, carelessly assuming things would go on just fine.  That’s what those women in Isaiah were doing.  Sometimes you have to be strong.  Sometimes you have to face the facts, no matter how awful they are.  Sometimes you are the one who has to act.  Don’t be the weakling who wrings her hands in despair or sits there confident that nothing is wrong when everything is.  Don’t let this oracle be meant for you.  
 
​The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps. ​One who is wise is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool is reckless and careless, Prov 14:15-16
 
Dene Ward

Today’s post is by guest writer Lucas Ward.

I’ve become concerned lately about the strident political expressions of some of my brothers.  I do not often, if ever, agree with the present administration either, but some (many?) of my brothers have moved from respectful disagreement (what in other countries is termed “loyal opposition”) to openly voiced disdain, contempt, and scorn.  At least one brother has spoken of joining in armed revolt.  When I mentioned in a comment that we are commanded in Romans 13 to be in subjection to the powers that be because they “are ordained of God” (vs1) and they are “ministers of God’s service” (vs 6, see also 4) I was answered that it was impossible that God was behind this president because he was guilty of breaking God’s law in several different ways.  Specific instances were mentioned and passages cited. And I agree that President Obama is guilty of sin in the instances mentioned.  So, the question that must be answered is can God be behind a national leader who is not leading his nation in a godly manner? Can God have ordained that leader?

Look first in Gen. 15:13-14.  God tells Abraham that his descendants will be servants in a foreign nation and will be mistreated by that nation.  Sure enough, in Exodus 1, a new Pharaoh comes to power who did not know Joseph and who leads Egypt in a horrible persecution of the Israelites.  This continues through several generations of Pharaohs before Moses leads the people out of bondage and God’s promised judgment comes upon the Egyptians.  The prophecy lends strong support to the idea that God was behind those Pharaohs, but, even better, we have God’s own statement in Ex. 9:16 that He had put those Pharaohs into power.  That verse is also quoted by Paul in Romans 9:17.  Those wicked Pharaohs were in power specifically because God wanted them to be in power.

Jump ahead 700 years or so to Isaiah.  In chapter 10 we see God (speaking through Isaiah) saying that He was using Assyria as His instrument of wrath.  The Assyrians weren’t aware of this; they were destroying nations and persecuting peoples for their own evil reasons.  God used them to accomplish His will. Those nations who needed to be punished (including the northern kingdom of Israel) were punished, and then God punished the Assyrians for their wickedness.  The evil Assyrian kings were only in power, and successful as an empire, because God had set them up for His own reasons: to be ministers of His service and accomplish His will.

Skip ahead another century and read Habakkuk.  God used the wicked Chaldeans for a time to punish the Kingdom of Judah.  Then He judged them for their wickedness.

Finally, let’s look at who was in power when Paul wrote Romans.  Romans was most likely written at the beginning of Nero’s reign.  So when Paul wrote “Let every soul be in subjection to the higher powers: for there is no power but of God; and the powers that be are ordained of God” he was writing about a man who was not only an idolater, but who came to power by the assassination of his uncle and adopted father, killed his own mother to consolidate his power, and who would go on to begin the first Roman persecution of Christianity!  The inspired Apostle wrote that this man was “ordained of God” and a “minister of God” (vs4), and that Christians were to “be in subjection” to him.  In fact, the Apostle John prophesied in his Revelation that a whole line of evil Roman emperors were going to be set up by God specifically so they could persecute the early Church and help it grow.  Then God would punish those wicked leaders for their sins.  Meanwhile, both Paul and Peter instructed all Christians to be in subjection to those same evil emperors.

According to Romans 13:1 and 1 Peter 2:13, it is sinful for Christians to denigrate government leaders. That goes double for joining armed revolts against them.  It may be my right as an American citizen to say whatever I want about the current President, but sometimes I need to forget about my rights as an American and focus on my duties as a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven.  The Word of God always trumps the Constitution.

Rom 13:1-7 Let every soul be in subjection to the higher powers: for there is no power but of God; and the powers that be are ordained of God. Therefore he that resisteth the power, withstandeth the ordinance of God: and they that withstand shall receive to themselves judgment. For rulers are not a terror to the good work, but to the evil. And wouldest thou have no fear of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise from the same: for he is a minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is a minister of God, an avenger for wrath to him that doeth evil. Wherefore ye must needs be in subjection, not only because of the wrath, but also for conscience' sake. For this cause ye pay tribute also; for they are ministers of God's service, attending continually upon this very thing. Render to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.

1Pe 2:13-17 Be subject to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether to the king, as supreme; or unto governors, as sent by him for vengeance on evil-doers and for praise to them that do well. For so is the will of God, that by well-doing ye should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: free, and not using your freedom for a cloak of wickedness, but as bondservants of God. Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.
 
Lucas Ward

I started taking piano lessons when I was about seven years old.  It was not “formal” training in a studio, but just a few lessons from a friend of my mother’s to see if I was interested.  I still remember the first lesson, the first book I had, and the first tune in it.  “C-D-E made a boat; round and round the pond he’d float.”
 
           A few months later this friend told my parents I needed a “real” teacher.  Frankly, I think she was just fine as a teacher.  I learned the keys, the notes, and how to count in a few short weeks, but she insisted so off we went. 

            My next teacher had recitals.  I still remember that first recital too, and I can still play my first recital piece:  “Arab Horsemen” by Hazel Cobb.  Those horsemen were a long way from the guy named “CDE” and his boat.  Instead of one hand playing three notes, I had both hands running over six octaves on the piano, and a whole page played with my arms crossed!

            As I sat in the student row waiting my turn to play I saw other students wringing their hands or wiping sweat off their palms onto their skirts or pants.  What was the problem, I wondered?  It never dawned on me that they were nervous about playing in front of people.  I wasn’t nervous.  I knew my piece and could play it flawlessly.  What was the big deal?

            A few years later we had moved and the new teacher entered me in a talent competition in the County Fair.  Once again I was mystified by the nervous entrants around me.  I had a great piece and knew it inside and out.  I had spent three hours one particular day analyzing every note, every nuance of phrase, and every dynamic marking.  I got up and played it, and won a blue ribbon. 

            The next year I entered another competition.  This time the piece was more difficult.  It was written only a year or two before by Aaron Copland, a contemporary American composer.  It did not make much sense to my classically oriented ear.  Going from this note to the next seemed totally at random to me and I had a difficult time memorizing it.  But the rules for that category said I had to play it.  

            For the first time in my life I was not comfortable waiting my turn.  Then when I got up to play, it happened--I went totally blank.  I could not even start the piece.  The judges were kind.  They let me look at the first line.  Then I walked back to the piano and my daily practice automatically kicked in.  I played it perfectly, and aced the Beethoven rondo that followed.  In fact, Beethoven felt like an old friend at that point.

            Ever since that day I have experienced what everyone else does—performance anxiety.  I played a solo professional recital once and was sick to my stomach about five minutes before I walked on.  That one time when I forgot what to play has never left me.  From then on I knew I was as mortal as anyone and I always wondered when it would happen again.  Actually it did happen once in the middle of my senior recital, a requirement for a degree in music education.  I was playing a sonata and made up about four bars on the second page of the first movement before Haydn’s music found its way back into my hands.  Good thing you get points for covering up a slip when you perform.  I still got my A.

            Can you imagine how those apostles felt when Jesus, the one they had always counted on to have the right answer at the right time suddenly left them?  He knew what would happen and gave them this promise:  And when they bring you to trial and deliver you up, be not anxious beforehand what you are to say but say whatever is given you to say, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit, Mark 13:11.  Can you imagine a more comforting promise?  I suppose that is why I have always had difficulties with those who claim that Paul misspoke in Acts 23:3, and that he had to apologize.  Don’t they believe that God kept His promise to these brave men?  Try reading what Paul said with the same tone Elijah must surely have had when he spoke to the prophets of Baal in 1 Kings 18.  It wouldn’t be the first time that God used sarcasm through the voice of a man.  Either that or He broke His promise to Paul; you can’t have it both ways.

            Wouldn’t it be great to have that promise today?  But wait a minute--in a way we do.  Those men did not have the written word.  Paul himself promised that one day the gifts that allowed one to prophesy a part and another to prophesy another part would be done away because the entire revelation would be “perfect,” complete in all details (1 Cor 13:8-12.  That is what we have—the whole shebang.

            So why do we experience performance anxiety when someone asks a question, or when it comes time to speak up in the face of false teaching?  Is it because we are just a little anxious about choosing exactly the right way to say it, or is it because we didn’t prepare ourselves with daily practice, analyzing and memorizing?  One is understandable, the other is inexcusable.  We may not have all the answers on the tips of our tongues as they did, but we have the source of those answers if we will just take the time to look.  “I don’t know, but I can find out,” may be a better testimony than acting like we do know it all.  It tells our friends, if an ordinary guy like him can find it, so can I.

            Those 13 men never knew when they would be called upon to speak up for God.  We don’t either.  Start practicing what to say; start considering all the possibilities. God has given you what you need, but it’s up to you to make use of it.
 
I will hope continually and praise you yet more and more.  My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, of your deeds of salvation all the day for their number is past my knowledge.  With the mighty deeds of the Lord God I will come; I will remind them of your righteousness, yours alone.  Psalm 71:14-16.
 
Dene Ward
           
 

One Sunday, a newly married young woman named Jessie Pounds did not feel well, so her husband went on to church without her. When he returned. she had written the words to this hymn.

Somewhere the sun is shining,
Somewhere the songbirds dwell;
Hush, then, thy sad repining,
God lives, and all is well.

Refrain:
Somewhere, somewhere,
Beautiful Isle of Somewhere!
Land of the true, where we live anew,
Beautiful Isle of Somewhere!

Somewhere the day is longer,
Somewhere the task is done;
Somewhere the heart is stronger,
Somewhere the guerdon won.

(Refrain)

Somewhere the load is lifted,
Close by an open door;
Somewhere the clouds are rifted,
Somewhere the angels sing.

(Refrain)

            Because it is well over a hundred years old, the song contains a couple of words that might be unfamiliar to us.  Do you know what it means to “repine?”  The song gives us a clue with the modifier “sad.”  I doubt I am doing anything joyful if I am repining.  No, the word means dejection or discontent. 
And how about “guerdon?”  The song says we “win” it, whatever it is.  And if you look it up you will find the terse definition “reward.”

Obviously young Mrs. Pounds was allowing her illness to depress her, and the act of writing this song, reminding herself of the hope she had as a Christian, cheered her up.  She wanted to share that hope with us. 

I can already hear some of my brothers talking about how “unscriptural” this song is.  Where does it say there will be songbirds in Heaven?  And certainly Revelation says there is no need for sun because God is the light.  May I just say this?  Those literalists are missing the whole point.  John’s Revelation uses figurative language to describe Heaven.  If you think there will be pearly gates and streets of gold, you are just as mistaken as Mrs. Pounds.  But somehow, I think she knew that; I think she was motivating herself with her own special view of what Heaven must be like.

The descriptions in Revelation are about motivators.  Those first century Christians lived a day to day existence.  They prayed for their “daily bread” because they had no idea if they would have enough that day, let alone tomorrow.  The farmers among them existed at the mercy of the weather and natural disasters.  The shopkeepers and artisans lived at the mercy of the economy.  No one was going to “bail them out.”

            To those people, a place so wealthy that gold and precious jewels were used as construction material, meant security.  It meant rest from working long hours day after day to simply survive.

            Those people lived under the rule of a foreign king.  Doubtless they had all seen wars and battles.  They knew, in fact, that the Barbarian Hordes could still come over the mountains and wipe them out.  Did 9/11 cause you some concern?  Has it made you worry more about the possibility of terrorists under every bush?  Those first century Christians lived with that sort of uncertainty every day of their lives.  In fact, they probably had more safety as a conquered people than ever before.  But the picture of a huge city with huge walls meant safety and peace forever.  Security—that is what those pictures of Heaven were all about, not materialism.  I have no doubt that if John were writing to us, he would use other motivators.

Frankly, I feel we should give ourselves motivators that mean something to us personally, and we should do the same for our children.  “Getting to worship God forever and ever,” translates to a child as having to go to church, listen to sermons, and sit still forever.  If you think that will motivate them to want to serve God all their lives, you didn’t have any business becoming a parent in the first place. 

And that is what Mrs. Pounds has tried to share with us.  On a day of illness that drug her down, she went to the best place to pull herself out of it—thoughts of Heaven, the reward, the “guerdon.”  Perhaps if we sang more songs about the reward, we would do a better job of gaining it.
 
…we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven…Col 1:4-5.
 
Dene Ward

When I was a child I would often hang my head off the edge of the bed and look at the room upside down.  Suddenly the ceiling was the floor and the floor was the ceiling.  I imagined what it would be like to walk on that new “floor,” high-stepping through doorways and making my way around light fixtures.  The windows would come nearly to the new “floor” instead of being three feet above it.  And it certainly would be easier to clean the cobwebs out of the corners.  I would lie like that for nearly half an hour as my mind suddenly saw things from a new perspective.

            As I have grown older, dealt with people who had many different problems, and had far too many “exciting” experiences myself, my perspective on life has shifted as well.  In fact, if a person finds himself with no new insights on life, especially after the age of forty, he has probably not grown a spiritual inch.  And as you grow, your thoughts should begin to shift.  Things that look plain and simple when you have never experienced them have facets you never saw before.  Suddenly you notice the light fixtures, the exhaust fans, and the part of the doorway that hangs nearly a foot from the ceiling.  They were always there but because you never hung your head upside down you never saw them.

            As a Christian my perspective must be spiritual, not carnal.  It must be with a view toward Eternal Life, not life here on earth, something that could easily be described as looking at things upside down.  As Paul tells us in Romans 8, we must have the mind of the spirit, not the mind of the flesh. 

            The correct perspective is a powerful tool in defeating Satan.  In Hebrews 10:32-34, those Christians looked ahead toward a “better” and “abiding” possession.  With that thought firmly locked in their minds, and from that perspective, they could endure imprisonment, ridicule and scorn, loss of their earthly possessions, and physical persecution.  With the same perspective Christians could face hungry lions while singing hymns and praying.

            On the other hand, a person whose perspective is only on earthly things will not be tough enough to give up the praise of men.  He will not be strong enough to apologize.  He will be intimidated by the thought of losing acceptance in his community.  Living “the good life” will have a stranglehold on him and any trial of life will defeat him.  A wrong perspective can turn us into weaklings.

            Perspective affects every part of one’s life.  Think about Jesus’ perspective on wealth  (Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth...but lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven where neither moth nor rust corrupt…), insults (who when he was reviled, reviled not again), status (he counted not being on equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself), his own desires (And Christ pleased not himself but [others]), and death (the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto but to minister and to give His life a ransom for many). 

            No one understood Him because from their perspective he looked strange.  He was walking on the ceiling upside down.  We must be striving to get up there with Him, and when we finally make it, things that look so difficult from down on the floor will suddenly be much easier.

            A correct perspective may be one of the most important things a Christian can have because it changes everything—every opinion, every moral, every purpose in life.  It will determine the state of one’s heart, and therefore, the state of one’s soul. 
           
…They dragged Jason and some of the brethren before the rulers of the city and cried, These who have turned the world upside down have come here also, Acts 17:6.
 
Dene Ward
 

​​​​​​​The LORD says, ​​​​​​“The women of Zion are proud. ​​​​​​They walk with their heads high ​​​​​​and flirt with their eyes. ​​​​​​They skip along ​​​​​​and the jewelry on their ankles jingles. ​​​​​​​So the sovereign master will afflict the foreheads of Zion’s women with skin diseases, ​​​​​​the LORD will make the front of their heads bald.” At that time the sovereign master will remove their beautiful ankle jewelry, neck ornaments, crescent shaped ornaments, earrings, bracelets, veils, headdresses, ankle ornaments, sashes, sachets, amulets, rings, nose rings, festive dresses, robes, shawls, purses, garments, vests, head coverings, and gowns. ​​​​​​​A putrid stench will replace the smell of spices, ​​​​​​a rope will replace a belt, ​​​​​​baldness will replace braided locks of hair, ​​​​​​a sackcloth garment will replace a fine robe, ​​​​​​and a prisoner’s brand will replace beauty. ​​​​​​​Your men will fall by the sword, ​​​​​​your strong men will die in battle. ​​​​​​​Her gates will mourn and lament; ​​​​​​deprived of her people, she will sit on the ground.  ​​​​​​​Seven women will grab hold of ​​​​​​one man at that time. ​​​​​​They will say, “We will provide our own food, ​​​​​​we will provide our own clothes; ​​​​​​but let us belong to you – ​​​​​​take away our shame!”  Isa 3:16-4:1.
 
           God’s people had simply become too wealthy and they were proud of it.  They felt they had earned it.  The women’s obsession with expensive clothing and jewelry, with the self-centered cultivation of their beauty, showed in their facial expressions, in their strutting and flirtatious walks and looks, and were products of an upper class that had never known hard times and hard work.  Somehow, they simply “deserved” it all.

God promised them punishment suitable to their attitude—diseases that would rob their good looks, the indignity of baldness and stink, and horror of horrors!—not a thing to wear!  Their craving to be noticed would not be satisfied, even if they begged men to take them in, promising to see to their own needs instead of expecting support from him.  Do you see what really mattered to them?  The attention of man instead of God; the carnal pleasures of life rather than the spiritual blessings of being a child of God. High maintenance women indeed—a man could work himself to death and not satisfy a one of them.

            You see them in the church all the time—high maintenance members—and, in my experience, most of them are women.         

            Every need is an urgent need to this drama queen.  She demands more visits, more phone calls, more cards, more mention from the pulpit, in the announcements, in the bulletin, on the webmail, than any ten other people combined.  And what she gets seldom satisfies her.  Instead of telling you how many have visited or called, she will greet you with a list of all who have not.  In fact, she will always call attention to herself when others are mentioned, even if their need is obviously and by far more than hers.

            She is never content, and will carry a list of wrongs against her that goes as far back as her childhood, and mention them whenever the opportunity arises.  Forgive and forget, or simply letting something go, as in “love covers a multitude of sins,” is not in her repertoire. 

            She is especially conscious of status—all of “those people” have it and she doesn’t.  And because “they” look down on her, everyone is against her or “has an agenda.” 

            She resents authority, particularly when it tries to correct her, and is highly critical of others.  She will judge your motives as surely as if she dwelt inside your heart, and dare you to question her conclusions about them.  She will even tell you what you would have done in any given situation—whether you know what you would have done or not.

            If you want her to remain a Christian you have to hold her hand in every situation, comfort, console, pray for, talk to, and serve her every minute or she simply won’t make it—and it will be all your fault!  And by the way, don’t you ever expect any of the same help from her.  It isn’t her “talent.”

            No, you don’t have to be a luxury lover to be high maintenance.  All you have to be is self-centered and shallow, with all the wrong priorities and a sense of entitlement.

            These people, men and women, think they are unique and that only God can really understand them.  They think one of these days He will come and show everyone else who is really in the right.  He didn’t do it for those proud women of long ago.  Why should He start now?

            What these high maintenance people really need is a good dose of Philippians 2:  Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 

            Be careful, ladies. It is far too easy to fall into this bad habit, especially as wealthy and luxury-conscious as we have become in this culture.  And we are oh, so good at it.
           
Dene Ward