If you have been with me long, or in any of my classes, you know that I do my best to make my lessons practical.  Too many sermons end up short of the mark.  They are all theory, all concept, all theology, and fail to tell the listener how to apply those ideas to their lives in a concrete way.  “It’s up to the listener to apply it,” I heard one preacher say, which misses the most obvious point in the world: if it were easy to do, surely we would have done it already.  And then there is the big stumbling block for us all:  Applying the scriptures to my life means I must examine myself for faults that need correcting, and who is eager to do that!?   

Read the prophets sometime.  They were specific in their catalog of sins. 
Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals— those who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth and turn aside the way of the afflicted; a man and his father go in to the same girl, so that my holy name is profaned; they lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge, and in the house of their God they drink the wine of those who have been fined. Amos 2:6-8.

Do you think that was specific enough?  Read Micah, Hosea, and Malachi.  They are all that way, and they were not the first.  “Thou art the man,” Nathan told David, leaving no room for doubt in David’s mind.  Concrete applications should be part of every lesson if for no other reason than to help people learn how to make those applications to themselves.

I recently sat in a hospitality “workshop” given by a wonderful sister in the Lord named Patricia Miozza, the very ideal of hospitality herself.  Yes, we studied the scriptures and talked about the sacred obligation that hospitality is and always has been.  But after that we put feet to the lesson, learning exactly how to offer warm hospitality.  We talked about excuses and how to overcome them.  We talked about the various methods of showing hospitality.  Then we even talked about making guests comfortable in our homes in an extremely practical way.  Patricia called it “The Hospitality Challenge,” and since I will be using her material, far be it from me to change the title.  Besides, it fits because for many of us it is a challenge, but one I hope you will take.

For the next few Mondays I will share with you Patricia’s eminently practical suggestions for us as we all do our best to practice this God-given duty.
 
Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Heb 13:1-2
 
Dene Ward

Imagine my surprise when I went to a workshop on essential oils and the speaker opened her presentation with that statement.  Quickly she went on to explain, and I have appreciated her even more as a sister in Christ since then.

            This young woman uses the oils.  She enjoys them in her bath, on her skin, and diffused in the air around her.  However, she does not believe that they imbue people with spiritual powers.

            “I am a Christian,” she said.  “What some people claim these oils do for you is done for me through Christ and the Word.  Period.”  Once she began to list the claims, and once I did my own research, I have uttered a hearty amen.

            So what do they claim?  The following is only a partial list, and remember, each of these things is supposed to be “spiritual,” so, for example, when it lists “strength,” it means spiritual strength, not muscular strength.  Keep everything in that context.
            Fennel—perseverance
            Grapefruit—generosity
            Helichrysum—patience
            Myrtle—ability to forgive
            Palmarosa—faithfulness
            Parsley—purification
            Sandalwood—unity
            Pine—humility
            Juniper—sincerity and enlightenment
            Myrrh—spirituality
            Cedarwood—regeneration
            Agrimony—protection
            Chamomile—spiritual awareness, inner peace
            Bay laurel—confidence
            Bergamot—joy
            Cinnamon—love
            Angelica--comfort
            (www.mauldinfaily1.wordpress.com, “mama bear musings”)
This isn’t even half the list, but it contains most of the “spiritual blessings” these oils are supposed to impart. 

            Some people also ascribe “magical” powers to essential oils.  Magic?  Yes, as in potions to protect you and grant you good health and good luck or to put a hex on one’s enemies.  This is exactly how the pagans used oils in ancient times, as indicated by many of the Bible verses that condemn the practice of such “magic.”   Remember too, that most of the verses used to claim Biblical authority for using “essential oils” at all are referring to plain old olive oil, the stuff you and I cook with.  Yes, other oils are mentioned by name, but with the exception of the table of incense in the tabernacle and the Temple, I could find none used in the worship of God.  (Please show me if I am wrong.)

            Before we get to this matter of spiritual benefits, let’s clear up a couple of other things.  Proponents of essential oils say that they were used in Biblical times and were even found in King Tut’s tomb.  Let me quote:  “…aromatic materials were used in Biblical times…but these materials would not have been essential oils, at least not by today’s definition of being steam distilled products.”  Steam distillation was not even invented until the 11th century, over 2000 years after King Tut’s death.  (www.weedemandreap.com, “10 Essential Oil Myths vs Fact” by Dr Robert Pappas)

            Others lean heavily on the fact that the wise men brought frankincense and myrrh to the house where the toddler Jesus was living in Bethlehem.  Besides these gifts having more to do with the nature of the Messiah as the future king, priest, and sacrifice, it probably financed, along with the gold, the flight to Egypt the poor, newly married couple had to make to save their child’s life.  And, as quoted above, it wasn’t even the same thing as those two materials today.

            As for the “magical” properties, I seriously hope I don’t have to say much about that.  Those things are condemned in both the Old and New Testaments not just as sins, but as “abominations to the LORD.”  No Christian should ever believe such things or use these oils in that way.

            For those spiritual properties, let’s examine the scriptures.  In no particular order:
2 Cor 5:17—God has made us new creatures in Christ (regeneration)
Rom 12:5—we have unity in Christ (and many more passages)
2 John 1:3—we have grace, mercy, and peace through God and Jesus Christ
2 Cor 2:17—sincerity shows when one speaks in Christ
Phil 2:1—encouragement and comfort are found in Christ
Eph 3:12—we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him
Eph 1:18—Paul prays for our enlightenment, in this context, in him
1 Pet 1:22—we are purified by our obedience to the truth
Gal 5:22-26—the fruit of the Spirit (love , joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control) comes when we put to death the deeds of the body and are led by the Spirit, a very good definition of spirituality.
And should anyone still be doubtful, Eph 1:3—God has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing.  “Every” should cover anything I missed in the lists above.

            If I need these oils in order to be able to forgive someone, why didn’t God make sure I knew about it in His Word?  In fact, He does tell me that if I do not forgive I will not be forgiven, so this is a serious matter.  If I need some sandalwood in order to have unity, why weren’t the first century Christians told to find some and use it?  Their unity, Jesus said, would make the world believe.  Are we consigning people to Hell because we don’t have any sandalwood in our assemblies?  If I need parsley for purification, surely God would have told us that it wasn’t just the blood of Jesus that purified us.  I think you can probably see my point by now.

            When the Jews started relying upon horses, chariots, political alliances and false gods, God destroyed them.  I think you can add essential oils to the list if they are being touted as “necessary to purification and spirituality.”  Even if we believe they just “help,” we are on dangerous ground.  When God supplies something, it’s enough.

            If you enjoy using essential oils in your own home, please do so.  I enjoyed passing them around and smelling them.  And it certainly was an eye-opener to me about how generous those wise men were with their gifts.  One ounce of frankincense (that’s 2 tablespoons) was listed at $97.00.  I believe they brought Jesus far more than that (and remember it was NOT exactly the same thing).

            But if you claim to be a disciple of our Lord, you need to be careful what you believe about these things.  You owe it to Him to make sure that your companions do not tar you with the same brush as those who make unscriptural claims.  They need to hear that while you may enjoy these oils you worship the Creator, not the creation. 

            Do not undermine the all-sufficiency of Christ by claiming that these oils can do for anyone what he does for those who are “in him.”  It’s nothing less than blasphemous to say that “essential oils” can impart the same spiritual blessings that He can.
 
Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. Heb 13:20-21
 
Dene Ward

Since late last year it has begun to look like things are on a downward trend.  Before long there may very well be more surgeries, even riskier than before.  I usually cope fairly well, but one morning the blues hit particularly hard.  I was out with Chloe and came upon the morning glories.  We saw more blooms that day than any before, at least five shades of blue and purple, and a lilac-throated white as well.

            Why I did it, I don’t know, but I began assigning names to each blossom, names of people who have been special blessings to me during this journey toward blindness.  At first I thought I would run out of names before I ran out of blooms.  Higher and higher my eyes roamed, spotting another and another, and yet another bloom ten feet above the ground.  When I ran out of blooms I still had a dozen names left over.

            Suddenly my steps became springier and my mood brightened.  Look how many people have been there for me, driving me all over, picking up medications for me, sending cards, calling, bringing meals, giving me an encouraging word, and often a hug, even helping me with some of the earlier expenses that the insurance company wouldn’t touch, and always praying. 

            “My grace is sufficient,” Jesus told Paul when he had prayed for the thorn to be removed.  “It doesn’t need to be removed; you just have to trust that I will help you through it.”  He has certainly given me ample help.   

            Too many times, instead of looking up to count the blooms, I am looking down to count the weeds.  Do you know what?  There were far more blooms than weeds that morning, and it is so in my life as well.  In fact, some of those blooms once were weeds, but through the grace of the Lord working in our lives, the two of us managed to make a new relationship that we both count as blooms now.  In some cases, the grace that made this happen were the very trials we prayed to have removed.

            So today, as you walk through your life’s garden, don’t look down and count the weeds.  Look up and count the blossoms that hang from the vine of Christ’s grace, the grace he promised would help you overcome, would make you stronger, and would cover any weaknesses you still might have after giving your all.  Put a name on every one of those blossoms.  I imagine you will have names left over too, names you forget about when your mind stays too long in the weeds, people who have made the hard times easier to bear, and who will hold you up when life beats too hard for you to stand on your own. 

            God is the reason those blooms are there, as He sheds yet more grace into your life, promising that nothing will happen that is too hard for you to bear, and that you will never have to bear it alone.        
 
Fear not for I am with you; be not dismayed for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand,  Isa 41:10.
 
Dene Ward

A few mornings back Keith and I took our last cup of coffee to the carport and sat in our nylon lounge chairs, the kind with the attached pillow you can flip over the back if you do not care to use it. We did use them, both of us, and leaned back, watching the mockingbird flit back and forth to its nest in the bloom-laden rose trellis and the hummingbirds guard their two feeders like Fort Knox. A couple of squirrels ran along the “highway,” a route they use every day from one live oak top to another, down the limbs and across the fence.  Off in the distance a hawk screamed, a rooster crowed, and a wild turkey gobbled.  Occasionally we flipped a treat out for Chloe to chase.  It was still the middle of spring, cool and bugless, humidity low for a Florida morning, low enough that the scent of jasmine reached us from the vine a good 75 feet down the drive. 

After twenty minutes or so, we got up to start our morning. As soon as Keith stood, a snake slithered out from under his pillow, down the back of the chair and dropped onto the carport. Our chairs are only six inches apart. If that thing had stuck its head out between us from under the pillow, judging by the roar when he saw it, Keith might have had a heart attack, and I might still be running.  Talk about “Flight Paths”—I would have made a good one.

Guess what we do every morning now?  That’s right. We flip those pillows back and look under them before we sit down.  People say habits are hard to break.  We didn’t have a bit of trouble breaking ourselves of sitting down before we looked.  Depends upon the motivation, I guess.  Maybe that’s why we have such a hard time breaking ourselves of sinful habits—we enjoy them too much, or we just don’t think they are that important.

From another perspective, we didn’t have a bit of trouble creating a new habit either.  Same reason—motivation.  I really do not want to think about a snake lying under the pillow I am leaning my head against, or the possibility of it slithering down my back, do you?

So why can’t we make new habits to rid ourselves of that besetting sin in our lives?  Can’t I learn to pray for self-control before I leave the house when I know I have trouble behind the wheel?  Can’t I learn to recite a few passages about longsuffering and kindness just before I walk into a meeting with that particularly obnoxious colleague?  Can’t I learn to avoid situations that I know will tempt me instead of purposefully putting my soul in harm’s way?  Of course I can, if I care enough, if I believe God would want me to do so, if I think of Him instead of me and my stubborn will. 

AND, if I believe that Satan is real, that he is out there trying to find a way to make me fall.  He is, you know.  He is right under that pillow, waiting for you to sit down without a care in the world and lean your vulnerable neck back into reach of his fangs.

Change a habit today.  LOOK! before you sit down.
 
But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. Rom 13:14
 
Dene Ward

I have three bluebird houses.  I wondered one day what made a bird house a bluebird house and got an education I didn’t expect. 
            Did you know that bluebirds were once on the brink of extinction?  Their habitat was slowly disappearing.  Orchards with carefully pruned trees meant no more cavities in the trunks and branches, their preferred nesting sites.  Pesticides meant fewer insects for them to eat, and many of the bugs that survived were tainted with poison that killed the birds that ate them.  Encroaching civilization meant more house sparrows (which are not true sparrows) and starlings to steal their nests.  Bluebird houses put up by interested people and their careful monitoring of the nests has, almost single-handedly, saved them.
            But still, I wondered, what makes it a bluebird house?  Bluebird houses are built in dimensions bluebirds like, shallow depth of 3½ to 5 inches.  I guess they like it cozy.  A good bluebird house has good drainage and cross ventilation.  It also has no perch outside the entrance, which keeps away predators.  A sparrow-proof bluebird house will have a slot entrance instead of a round hole because sparrows do not like slots, while bluebirds don’t mind them. 
            As for the monitoring, songbirds have a notoriously bad sense of smell, so it is perfectly acceptable to open the houses and check the nest and the fledglings every day for parasites or “squatters.”  Monitors can even rebuild the nest if parasites are found without upsetting the bluebird.  They also know the different types of nests and remove the ones that are not bluebird nests.  After a successful clutch has hatched and flown, they remove the old nest and clean it out for the next. 
            Do you think I can’t get any lessons out of this?  Watch me.
            Too many times we get picky about the people we share the gospel with.  I have heard things like, “We need to convert them.  They’d be a good addition to the church,” a thought based upon the lifestyle and income of the family in question rather than their need for the gospel.  We “sparrow-proof” the church by making it unfriendly and unattractive to the people we don’t want to deal with—who wants people with real problems? 
            We aren’t the only ones with that bad attitude.  The Pharisees thought it terrible that Jesus taught sinners.  At least four times in the book of Luke we see them approaching either him or the disciples asking why he associated with such wicked people, (5:30; 7:39; 15:1,2; 19:7).  They turned their noses up at the very people they should have been trying to save.
            The first Christians were Jewish.  Guess who they did not want the apostles to convert?  Peter had to defend himself after he converted the Gentile Cornelius, Acts 11.  Defend himself, mind you, because he saved souls! 
            Then in James 2 we read of a church that didn’t want poor people among them.  They went out of their way NOT to welcome anyone who was not obviously well-to-do.
            If you have not seen attitudes like these, you are either blessed in the congregation you find yourself a part of, or not very old.  Keith was once chastised for bringing the “wrong class” of people to church.  They came from “the other side of the tracks.”
            The Lord didn’t die just for the bluebirds.  He died for those squawking, brash blue jays too.  He died for those territorial cardinals.  He died for those common, ordinary, dime-a-dozen sparrows.  He even died for those disgusting buzzards.  All those people need salvation too, not just the bluebirds. 
            Jesus told the Pharisees who questioned him three parables.  The last, the lost son, included an older brother who obviously did not want his little brother saved.  Jesus made it plain that the older brother was as much in need of grace as the younger.  It had to be obvious to those Pharisees that his remarks were directed to them.  They are directed to us too, when we try to make his house “for bluebirds only.”
 
For the love of Christ constrains us; because we thus judge, that one died for all, therefore all died;  and he died for all, that they that live should no longer live unto themselves, but unto him who for their sakes died and rose again.  From now on therefore we regard no one according to the flesh… 2 Cor 5:14-16.
 
Dene Ward

Today’s post is by guest writer Keith Ward.
 
I am not noted for my patience unless you count the fact that bodies are not strewn in my wake through the day. I am no more patient with myself than with others. I have a 3 way plug on the end of the drop cord that comes to the carport from the shed. It runs the blower and, on summer mornings, the 18" fan that cools us and keeps the bugs blown away while we have our third cup of coffee. So, today, I needed it for the blower and instead of unplugging the fan, I unplugged the drop cord from the 3 way--for about the 43rd time in the last month. "YOU WOULD THINK YOU WOULD KNOW BETTER BY NOW!!” I muttered....well, given my hearing and that I had ear-plugs in to preserve some of the remainder of it from the blower, who knows how loud I was. As I plugged it back in and began blowing off the screened porch and carport, I thought that perhaps, just maybe, now and then, God feels that way about me--"He ought to know better than that by now!"
 
I can quote a lot more scripture than I can live: I have known the line, “as we forgive those who trespass against us,” for about 55 years. Yet I pray forgiveness of things I knew better than to do and get impatient with people who merely do irritating things in traffic.

I pray he just plugs me back in and proceeds with whatever chore I am suitable for.

Maybe, I need to remember that with others? I suspect I would have fired a worker who made the same mistake that many times? How about the brethren?
 
Maybe I need to quit praying or get real about being patient?
 
 
​For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, ​but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Matt 6:14-15
 
 
Keith Ward

I thought we had gotten past this.  A few years ago I even saw an article or two on the subject, but I guess not everyone read them.  So just the other day I saw someone make a comment to a godly, single woman in her late 20s that it was up to her to change her marital status and it was the only way for her to actually reach full maturity and understand responsibility in her life.  I know that young woman fairly well and I know she is probably more mature than the person who made that comment, no matter how long she has been married nor how many children she has.    

In the first place, how is it “up to her” to get married?  That kind of thinking is the reason so many young Christian women “settle,” winding up in inappropriate marriages to ungodly men, sometimes even abusive men.  Young ladies—it is far more dangerous to your soul to marry the wrong man than it is to stay unmarried.  Period.

And as for maturity?  I have seen so much whining on Facebook from young mothers who suddenly find they have to sacrifice for their children—give up some sleep, give up some “me time,” even give up their daily Starbucks--that I would be careful about tossing that accusation around lest it be thrown back in my face with evidence that would shame me.

The only thing the scriptures require of you is to be a servant of God and you can do that regardless of your marital status.  Paul, in fact, seemed to believe you might even be a better servant if you stayed unmarried.  1 Corinthians 7 gets skimmed over to the point that all anyone sees is his admonition to stay single “for this present distress.”  That is not all he says about staying single.  “To the unmarried and widows I say that it is good for them to remain single as I am,” (v8) comes several paragraphs before “the present distress” even enters the discussion.

Jesus also said that marriage was not a requirement to be his disciple.  For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let the one who is able to receive this receive it.  Matt 19:12.  No, women are not “eunuchs,” but then Jesus is speaking figuratively in that last clause—some people choose not to marry for the kingdom’s sake, including women.

The scriptures show us several women who made that decision.  Anna did get married as a young woman—but she became a widow after only 7 years, which means she might have been as young as 21, according to the marriage customs of the day, and then she chose to remain single for the rest of her long life.  She used that time to serve at the Temple.

You need to understand one thing before we look at these other women.  Women in the Bible are often identified as “the wife of” someone, not because a woman has no identity without a husband, but for the sake of identification.  There were at least 7 Marys in the New Testament.  How are you going to tell them apart without last names?  So we have Mary the wife of Cleophas.  We have Mary the mother of Mark.  We have Mary Magdalene, meaning she was from the village of Magdala. 

And we have Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus.  Never is a husband mentioned.  In fact, Luke tells us that the house where they lived was “Martha’s house” (10:38).  Understand this:  Jewish women did not inherit their husbands’ estate—the sons did.  That means Martha was wealthy enough on her own to have her own home.  And she used her home to house her family and open it to the Lord and his disciples.  It must have been a large, well-appointed house.
And that brings me to the Mary who allowed the church to meet in her home when Peter and James were thrown into prison (Acts 12:12), probably another widow who chose not to remarry.  Then there is Nympha who allowed the church in Laodicea to meet in her home (Col 3:15).  And let’s not forget the obvious—Lydia, who immediately upon her conversion insisted that Paul and Silas stay in her home, another case where no husband is in the picture.  Understand this—all three of these women put themselves in danger of persecution when they did this, but their conviction and commitment to the Lord went all the way.  Where is the “immaturity and lack of responsibility” in that?

We tell church members that they are responsible for what they do, that they cannot blame it on “the decision of the elders.”  It is up to me to know what they are doing and speak up if I think they are doing something sinful.  We tell our young people that they must develop their own faith, that they cannot get into Heaven on their parents’ coattails.  Guess what?  Wives must have their own faith too.  So why would anyone think that a single woman, or man for that matter, cannot have his or her own faith?  Why would we think that having a spouse is necessary to please God?

I know plenty of young single people—and some not so young any more—who are living full and godly lives, spending time in the Word, serving the church and their community.  That is what God will judge them on. 

…Each shall receive his own reward according to his own labor, 1 Cor 3:8.

[God} who will render to every man according to his works, Rom 2:6.

…And the dead were judged…according to their works, Rev 20:12.

Did you see a spouse in there anywhere?  Neither did I.  It is up to you what you do with your life.  Not being married does not make you a second class citizen of the kingdom.

I have nothing against marriage.  I have been married for almost 42 years.  My husband has helped me become a better Christian.  But don’t let anyone push you into marriage.  Don’t “settle” for someone who won’t make you a better servant of the Lord.
 
But I would have you to be free from cares. He that is unmarried is careful for the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord: but he that is married is careful for the things of the world, how he may please his wife, and is divided. So also the woman that is unmarried and the virgin is careful for the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit: but she that is married is careful for the things of the world, how she may please her husband. 1Cor 7:32-34
 
Dene Ward

I looked out the window one spring morning in time to see a cardinal hop from the ground to an azalea limb.  It was a windy, March day and the limb was small as a wire.  The bird may have hopped up to get away from the dangers on the ground, especially Chloe, nosing around under the bushes, but the way that small branch bobbed back and forth under its weight made me wonder how safe the cardinal actually felt.  It must have recognized its relative safety compared to things on the ground because it clung for dear life.  Eventually the wind calmed and the branch stopped swaying, and the cardinal found its way to a stronger branch and eventually to the feeder.

            Becoming a follower of Christ can be a little like that.  You jump up out of the big bad world, expecting safety and peace, only to find your life in an uproar.  Your friends are standoffish and your family actually angry with you.  They take your actions as a judgment against them or a sign of mental instability, or both. 

            Or perhaps you find yourself in a group of God’s people who are themselves in the midst of a crisis.  They are not as spiritually minded as they ought to be, they fuss and fight among themselves and even bicker in the parking lot. 

            Or maybe the group is as faithful and mature a group as you can imagine, actively seeking the lost in the community—that’s how they found you after all.  But some elements of the community are not pleased with their efforts, and so rumors are flying, perhaps labeling them scandalous and frightening names, or simply “spinning” things to sound as bad as possible.

            Whichever is happening, you find yourself on a thin limb blowing about in the winds of trouble.  What do you do?  How do you handle the turmoil? 

            One day when the apostles were in a boat on the Sea of Galilee, a strong wind suddenly swirled around them.  These were not inexperienced sailors.  They understood when a wind was dangerous and when it wasn’t.  Luke 8:23 tells us they were “in jeopardy.”  The boat was filling with water.  What boat?  The same boat in which Jesus lay fast asleep on a pillow.  Jesus may have accused them of having little faith, of not realizing yet who he truly was, so amazed were they that he could actually calm the wind, but at least they knew where to go.  They knew that if anyone could do anything, it was he.

            What do we do when the church finds itself in turmoil?  Too many just bail out with the excuse that if this is the church, they don’t want any part of it.  “Fair weather Christians” seems a good description.  Yet it is only in the storms that we can show the Lord, and ourselves, we are truly his disciple. (Gen 22:12)

            That cardinal knew that regardless the wind, being above the ground was safer than being on it.  Do we understand that regardless the problems it may face, being part of Christ’s body is safer than being out there in the world, with the Prince of this World for company?  Do we have enough faith to go to the Lord for help?  Will we ever reach the point that we are no longer frightened by things that should not matter to believers, or would he say to us as well, “Why are you afraid, oh you of little faith?” Matt 8:26.

            When we jump up to that spiritual Branch and find ourselves tossing in the winds of trouble, will we bail or have the faith to hang on tighter and never let go?
 
But you have come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable hosts of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, Heb 12:22,23.
 
Dene Ward

Sometimes the people who become involved in prison ministries are too idealistic.  They wind up being taken advantage of by the very people they are trying to save, usually because those people see that idealism and know exactly how to exploit it.  Either those idealists become disenchanted and leave the field entirely, or they learn a little pragmatism—they become adept at recognizing the signs and usually avoid being manipulated.  Keith has been working with convicted felons for a long time, so he knows exactly how to deal with them.  First as a probation officer, then a classifications officer, and now as a volunteer Bible class teacher, he has learned to read his audience fairly well.

            “But has all this work ever resulted in anything good?” someone asked once.

            Well, besides the lives that he has influenced for the better, the young men who have learned a little self-discipline and gotten good jobs and become good citizens—and there were a few—besides that, we are worshipping with one of them right now.  You should see the surprised looks when I mention that.

            And here is the thing that might surprise you more.  The larger problem when this happens is wondering how the brethren will receive such a one.  In one place we lived, the church found out we might possibly have a newly released, and newly baptized, ex-convict among us and they were not happy at all.  We heard comments ranging from, “I won’t ever allow myself to be alone with him,” to, “I don’t want him around my children.”

            Reminds me a little of Acts 9:26:  And when he was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: and they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple.  Yes, a murderer had come into their midst and they didn’t want to have anything to do with him.  In fact, this man had seen to the deaths of their very own friends and relatives.  Their fear and loathing sounds reasonable, doesn’t it?

            But not to Barnabas.  He took that man around and assured everyone that he had changed.  Did he know him better than they?  Not that I can tell from any reading I’ve ever found.  He did not know Saul of Tarsus from Levi of Persepolis.  What he did know was his Savior and the power of his gospel.  For I am not ashamed of the gospel: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believes… Rom 1:16.

            And the more our culture becomes like the culture of that time, the more likely that we will not be dealing with upstanding middle class nuclear families when we evangelize, but with people who come to us with immoral backgrounds, with addictions, and with criminal records.  Or know you not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with men, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you… 1Cor 6:9-11.

            And it will be up to us to show them that we truly believe the rest of that citation:  but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our God. 

            We talk a good fight when we talk about “God saving me, the sinner,” and how we don’t deserve our salvation and need the grace of God, “just like everyone else.”  But too often there is an exception clause in our thinking.  The Lord has made it perfectly clear through his brother James, murder equals adultery equals prejudice (James 2:8-11).  The same law says they are all sin.  None of us will be a step ahead of our brothers with convictions on their records when we stand before God.  We have all been washed, sanctified and justified, and we will all be judged “as we judge others.”
 
For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. Jas 2:13
 
Dene Ward

It has become more difficult each year to find the varieties of tomato and pepper plants we want for our garden.  So we invested in some grow lights and have grown 80-90% from seed since then.           

            When it comes time to transplant them into the garden, they must first become inured to the outdoors.  We set them out in the sunlight, which in this subtropical clime is more direct than the rest of the country, for an hour the first time, and then move them to the shade.  Every day they get more sunlight until they are ready for full sun all day.

            Despite all this care, we lose a few each year.  One morning, as I was putting out the last of the pepper plants, I reflected on how tenacious the weeds were.  If I had been transplanting them, I wouldn’t have had to worry.  Even weeds half an inch tall had a root system five times their length and never wilted in the sun, while the foot high vegetables not only wilted, but often fell over.  In fact, this year we simply threw away half a dozen plants because it was obvious they would never stand up to the rigors of garden growth.  They were prima donnas, requiring high maintenance to simply stay alive.  I doubt they would have ever produced fruit so they were not worth the trouble.

            As we grow spiritually, I fear too many of us have become prima donna plants.  When I see parents treating their girls like princesses, giving in to their every wish and making sure that life is always exciting and fun, I cringe to think what their poor husbands will be going through to keep them happy, and wonder how they will ever be able to stand by him in a crisis—they will simply fall apart.  In all areas, growing up is about becoming stronger, not about gaining more privileges.

            God expects the same from his children.  We are supposed to become stronger, able to withstand a spiritual beating without losing our faith, willing even to face persecution for the sake of the gospel.  God does shelter us when we are young in the faith, promising never to give us more than we can handle, but I think some of us are trying to hang on to our spiritual immaturity, thinking that as long as we cannot handle a trial, God will never send one!  I am afraid it doesn’t work that way.

            God has always had a schedule for his people.  He says that we should be able to teach “by reason of time.”  He has always pictured his people in agricultural terms, vineyards and oliveyards especially, and everyone knows that the harvest comes on a schedule—you can’t put it off.  “The field is white unto harvest,” he told his apostles.  He often seemed to despair when they hadn’t grown quite fast enough to suit him:  “Have I been with you so long and still you do not know me?”  Just as we expect our children to become strong enough to handle life by the time they are grown, God expects the same from us.  It is simply wrong to expect him to pamper us forever.

            When God despairs of a people ever being able to stay faithful, he uproots them and plants something else.  It may look like a weed to us.  I am sure the Jews thought that God would never settle for a Gentile, but he most certainly did.  And he will dig us up and toss us out for someone we might never have given the time of day if we don’t develop a good enough root system to withstand the scorching heat of life’s noonday sun and the floods of a spiritual downpour.  He will simply look out into the field and find a weed that can take it, that doesn’t have to be treated like a hothouse flower to survive.  Weeds, you see, are simply uncultivated flowers--wildflowers--and he can make them into the beautiful plant he wants, the one that can stand the weather and stay faithful.
 
But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. Then you will say, "Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in." That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. Rom 11:17-21.
 
Dene Ward