ADAM, WHERE ARE YOU?

      Adam, where are you? In a series on the Bible's great questions, I must add this question to the list... because I've experienced both the pain of hiding and the joy of running home free. I know what it's like to be burdened by sin and secrets... and I know what it's like to celebrate God's forgiveness. Perhaps, you're hiding too, and if you are, you need to know that God is calling, Ollie, Ollie, all in free!"
       When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good... and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it...and gave some to her husband... and he ate it. Then, their eyes were opened and they realized that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves and made coverings for themselves. Then they heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees in the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, "Where are you?" He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid. And God said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?" The man said, "The woman you put here with me- she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it." (Genesis 3:6ff)
      Recently, I took time to look through a pictorial from one of the church's I served. I do this every now and then because it allows me to reconnect with people I love. I look at a middle-aged couple who were happy at the time, but ever since the doctor's botched his surgery, the man can no longer speak or walk... and they both wonder why. There's also a picture of a younger couple with kids. They're both impressive, but soon after the picture was taken, they were in the midst of bankruptcy- and they left our church to find a place where they would be be fed spiritually.  Finally, I looked at the picture of our church's youngest couple. They were part of our praise group, but Alex fell in love with a woman he met over the internet. So, he left for NYC, leaving his wife with a big hill to climb... and a lot of questions on her heart. There's a story behind every photo... because life is difficult, and because our journeys are burdened with sins. secrets, and a hundred little deaths.
      Someone said that we are "as sick as our secrets," and I believe it. We are also as sick as our sins because unconfessed sin is a cancer of the soul. Indeed, sin always keeps us longer than we wanted to stay and costs us more than we wanted to pay. Thus, crippled by fears, secrets, sin, and the burdens of life... we hide! We hide from our God. We hide from our family and friends, and we hide from our own best selves. Accepting the lies that our culture tells, we come to believe that people won't love us if they knew us... so we wear a thousand different masks and tell them what they want to hear. Of course, the burdens of living dishonestly are too much for us, and we lose ourselves entirely. To be like God, we play God... only to discover that we are naked... and so we hide!
      A lesser god would let us sleep in the bed that we've made... but our God calls to us, "Kenn, Jim, Bob, where are you?" Our God walks among us with compassion in his heart. "Come," He says, "You who have no money- come buy, eat- free of charge... from the bread of life and the cup of salvation." A lesser god would've  given us over to our sins, but through his Son's death and resurrection, God calls, "Ollie, Ollie, all in free." "Ollie, Ollie, all in free. Kenn, Judy, Ann, come out from your hiding... and run home to me!" 
      "Kenn," he said to me when I was killing myself with sin and drinks, "Where are you?" "I'm hiding over here," I replied, "I'm tired from running, exhausted from wearing so many masks, and I am very afraid of being found... because I am naked." I figured that I was a goner, that hiding would be a way of life for me... but then I hear his voice, softly at first and then  more loudly, "OLLIE, OLLIE, ALL IN FREE. COME ON IN. COME AND EAT THE BREAD OF LIFE. COME AND DRINK THE WATER OF LIFE. COME AS YOU ARE, GOD CRIED... AND WITH TEARS IN MY EYES... I CAME!

WHOM SHALL I SEND?

Isaiah 6:1ff... In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord (and I cried) woe is me... for I am a man of unclean lips. The Lord touched my lips and took my guilt away, and then I heard him say, "Whom shall I send! And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"

     In the Presbyterian Church, we nominate, elect, ordain, and install ruling elders (presbyters) every year, and we do that at a special worship service which frequently features the text of Isaiah 6... and the song, "Is It I, Lord?" These ordination services are designed to focus on each elder's personal responsibility to answer God's call in his or her own life... but we are all called to serve God- each one of us- with our own God-given talents and gifts! There are no exceptions! God calls to each one of us- whom shall I send to proclaim my word. teach my truths, love my disciples, invite their neighbors, feed the hungry, visit the sick and the lonely, listen to voices long silenced, liberate those who are shut-in, shut-out, shut-down, and shut-away, stand up for justice, sing my songs?  There are no exceptions. Each one of you is invited to minister for your God, and He awaits your answer! Will it be "yes" or "no?"
      Most of us will say "no" because the cost of serving God will seem too high. We would rather watch than get involved. We would rather visit that join. We would rather stay home than attend or teach a Bible Study class... or sing in the choir... or clean the sanctuary on Monday morning. Most of us will say "no" to God's call because saying "yes" would be inconvenient for us. We may be willing to write a check or two. but we really don't want to actually feed the poor or visit the sick. Giving, too, is a substantial service to God, but if we are asked to give sacrificially, most of us will find a way of saying "no." Most of us would rather attend church than follow Christ as a cross-carrying disciple. This is the way it is, the way it's always been, and most likely, the way it will be in the future.
      But every now and then... God will invite someone to preach to a people who won't listen, teach to a people who refuse to learn, invite a people who won't show up, and love a people who won't love us in return. Every now and then, God will invite someone to do a thankless job and to do it for a lifetime... and that man or woman will say "yes!" There are people- I've known a few- who raise their hands and say, "SEND ME!" These are those who believe that they will save their lives by losing them for God's... and they are those who will one day... be with their God forever and ever.
      There are many great questions in the Bible, but few of them are more important than this one because it separates the "sheep from the goats." It is my prayer that you will raise your hand and say, "Send me." It is my prayer that you will experience the freedom and the joy that surrender brings. Vow this day to give the Lord a hand- not by applauding as he walks by- but by journeying with Him as he walks along the narrow way. Choose this day to serve. Listen to your own life story, listen to your passions and your tears, consider what God has laid on your heart and what talents He has give to you... AND RAISE YOUR HAND! Raise your hand and shout it out, "HERE I AM, LORD. SEND ME!"
     

WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?

      "Eli, Eli, lema sahachthani?" "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Ps. 22:1; Matt. 27:46)
      In our ongoing discussion of the Bible's great questions, we now encounter one of its loneliest questions. It was first asked by David in the 22nd Psalm, when he was surrounded by enemies and  treated like a worm. David, who had trusted in God since his birth, felt betrayed by a God who had promised him steadfast love... and he lifted his voice in a protest borne of desperation. The question- my God, why have you forsaken me- is not irreverent, and it doesn't betray a lack of faith because David knows that God will triumph in the end (read the rest of Psalm 22). But, in the midst of faith, the question does reveal the deep emptiness and the sense of unworthiness that accompany betrayal.
      I loved you... and you left me for another. I trusted in you... and you betrayed my trust. I gave you keys to my home... and you took everything I had. I confided in you... and you broke our covenant. Who among us hasn't lifted his voice and cried, "Why have you forsaken me?" You, who I have loved so dearly- you, to whom I have stood so vulnerably- have betrayed me. You of all people! Yes, we know the pain of betrayal and we've come face-to-face with the overwhelming emptiness that fills us... when we are forsaken. Even if we continue to hope, perhaps even continue to believe, that our lover/trusted friend will save us in time, the pain of feeling abandoned cannot be contained.
      Jesus lived out the 22nd Psalm in remarkable detail. He had trusted God his entire life. In fact, he was always within his Father's will. He was perfectly faithful and fully obedient, and he knew that his trust would lead him to Golgotha's Hill. He knew that, if he surrendered to his Father's plan, he would be scorned and abused. He knew that he would be "poured out like water," (Ps. 22:14) and his mouth would be "dried up like a potsherd," (vs. 15) precisely because he trusted in God. He knew this. He had prophesied it, and we should not take his question as a lack of faith. But IT IS a confession of deep pain- a pain that cannot be contained and should not be denied. Some people seem to think that people of faith should never cry out. They believe that crying out is a sign of weakness or disbelief... but it is not. It is an honest confession that there are times when God seems to be far away, and that we desperately need to see His face! It seems to me, then, that the question David and Jesus asked IS a statement of faith.
      But it is also a very real and authentic expression of pain within the context of faith. Maybe those of us who expect everything to go our way ...have never trusted as deeply as David did. Perhaps, we've never surrendered enough to end up on Calvary's Hill.

THANKS TO SPPC MEMBERS- WE WILL NEVER FORGET YOU

      Well, Sherry, Buffy, and I are now settled in the Chicago area. As you may know, we were blessed to sell our home in RI at full list price, in a last-minute transaction that even our realtor called "divine intervention." We have also been blessed with a wonderful place to live and we had a great Thanksgiving with our family in New York.
      God has been very good to us, and it looks like I may have found a church... where the songs are singable and the sermons are short. Things are good... but we miss you and thank you from the bottom of our hearts. I miss seeing your smiling faces and I miss both of our Bible Studies and both of our Men's Groups. I miss the kids on Sunday mornings and I will miss not being with the Thompsons this Christmas eve. I miss many things, except for the meetings, but the point of this brief letter is not to lament about what I miss... but to thank you all.
      I want to thank each one of you who gave us cards and/or gifts at either one/both of my retirement parties. All of them were thoughtful and many of them were most generous. I want to thank those who opened their homes to Sherry and me- some of you on many occasions- and I want to thank those who have contacted us after I retired and even after we've moved to Plainfield, I want to thank each member of our Session for their support, leadership, and commitment to the church. I also want to thank every member of the church staff and most particularly, Donna Reedy, for doing her work with excellence and faith!
      We have been overwhelmed with leaving, moving, and resettling, and I confess that I am not the best at writing thank-you notes.  However, even though I served bigger churches along the way, I am convinced that my time at SPPC was the best time of my ministry! You gave me the opportunity to love and lead, to teach and minister, to baptize and bury, and to know and be known, as we worked, planned, and played together. You gave me the opportunity to serve Christ in your midst and what is more- you supported me as I did. No man could ask for more!
      I have every confidence that you will continue to serve our Risen Lord with energy and grace, and I know that He will bless you when you do. I served SPPC for seven years, and as anyone in "my" Bible Studies would know, seven is a very good number! May our Lord bless you richly- collectively and individually- and may He be ever so present to you this Christmas! Sherry and I will never forget you and we thank you in ways that words really can't express.
      Remember to speak the truth in love,

      pk and Sherry

Who am I that you would care about me?

      Many of you know the 8th Psalm. Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name! When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place... what is humankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?
      Yes, it is true. As Christians, we believe that we have an awesome God. Scientists suggest that we are fortunate products of an impersonal selection process, and they further maintain that our inspiring moon, our magnificent mountains, and our majestic waters are simply the product of natural forces. But our faith calls us to see something much greater than this. Our faith invites us to see God's hand in every lovely thing, and with eyes of faith, our hearts leap for joy... when we take in all that God has made. People ask, "how can we explain the beauty of our world," but people of faith fall to their knees and praise God for the work of His hands.
      People without faith are blind to God's work in and for the world... but even people of faith... often struggle with David's question: O God, what are we that you would consider us? Who am I that you would care about me? O Lord, I am embarrassed to pray for myself because I am so small and my life is so insignificant! Can it be that you really care if my heart is breaking today, that I am lonely tonight, or that I have a big interview tomorrow? Do any of my concerns rise to your level, O Lord? How can it be? How can the God of creation care about one of his creatures, and how can the God of all people care about each one of us?
      I can understand a God who is to big to be known, but it's a hard to fathom a God who knows my name! But it is true. God has created us and called us to be his people. He has a plan for each one of us, and he listens to our joys and concerns (as any good father would). We may receive mail marked "occupant," and we may be called by a number as we queue up. Our neighbors may not know our name... but God does! This is the great truth of it. God DOES care for you... and even for me! God DOES watch over us and God DOES hear our prayers! God is not too big to notice us... but he is big enough to cheer us on, cry for us... and even die for us!
      In my view, struggling with the question: O God, who am I that you would be mindful of me? leads us to a peace that passes all understanding... and to a confidence that the world will never be able to squelch. Amen.

ARE WE SPOKES ON THE SAME WHEEL?

      Many years ago, while I lived in Omaha, I shared a meal with a good friend from AA and my pastor from the Reformed Church in America. Pastor Lu met us to talk about matters of faith, and somewhere during the luncheon, my friend stated that all faiths were pretty much the same. He said that we were all headed in the same direction, and that... when you get right down to it, our religions are all spokes on the same wheel. In the same time period, another friend of mine- a work associate- was with me on a business trip when we noticed a large billboard with the words, "JESUS DIED FOR YOU!" It was am awkward moment because my friend (like many of my other friends) was Jewish... but finally, he observed that "it doesn't matter what you believe just as long as you believe something."
      Both of these comments beckoned for inclusion, and as a Sociology student in college, I applaud inclusion. Both comments called for tolerance in a world where sharp lines of intolerance are often drawn, and both comments embrace the truth that most of the world's great religions have embraced some form of the golden rule. I agree with this point. I get it, and acknowledge that- to the extent that they call for more concern about our neighbor and a kinder, gentler self- our great religions are in agreement. However... this does NOT mean that they are spokes on the same wheel... and I doubt if many of their own adherents would agree with that statement. Hindu's believe in karma, reincarnation, and a quest for liberation; Buddhists believe in living disciplined lives of moderation until they experience enlightenment; Muslims believe in salvation through faithfulness and jihad; and Christians believe they are saved by accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Yes, it's true that most faiths teach righteousness, but they interpret this in very different ways. Some religions focus on the individual and repentance. Others focus on the community and the need to keep it unsoiled. Some faiths are preoccupied with guilt- others are more concerned with honor. Some religions are sure that money is incompatible with a life of faith, while others seem to be much less concerned with wealth. Jesus said that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Light... but that is certainly a statement, with which other "spokes on the wheel" (and even many Christians) would disagree.
      In short, we are not part of the same theological wheel, and I think we would do more justice to our faith... and to our neighbor's faith... if we honored our differences in love! To my Christian friends, I say "Merry Christmas" because it is Christmas, and to my many Jewish friends, I say, "Happy Hanukkah" because it is Hanukkah. It seems to me that, rather than pretending that it doesn't matter what we and others believe, it is far better to acknowledge what our neighbors' believe and to let them know what we believe... because what we believe DOES matter. Indeed, in the end, it may be the only thing that does!

WHY HAS ALL OF THIS HAPPENED TO US?

     When an angel of God approached Gideon, he hailed him as a mighty warrior who had found favor with God. In response, Gideon questioned how God could be with him and his people when they were being oppressed by the Midianites. Expecting things to go our way is a common thing... but it is NOT a substitute for faith! It is a good thing when we are free to express ourselves to God... but it is a greater thing to trust him in all circumstances. Our passage is based on the 6th chapter of Judges and it invites all of us to put ourselves in Gideon's shoes.
      Some people go to church to earn God's favor. They believe that good things will happen to them if they do good things for God. If they invest in good deeds and hang out with good people, they expect health and wealth to come their way. Rather than being unabashed acts of love, their acts of charity are more akin to insurance premiums. They expect to be blessed for blessing others, and this perspective in hardly new. Jabez (1 Chronicles 4:9-11) asked God to "expand his territory" because he had been obedient, and Job's friends were absolutely convinced that misfortune came his way because he had sinned. Indeed, when a number of Galileans were killed in an accident, Jesus' disciples asked, "Who sinned? These men or their parents?" (John 9:2ff) Their reasoning was simple: if God is pleased with us, God will bless us. If we have found favor with God, we will have a lot of friends and a lot of money. If we are faithful, we will have a happy marriage and a long life!
      It all seems logical and it's easy to live a life of faith if things are going our way. It's easy to preach about all things being possible if all things have come to us. It's easy to claim that we are God's "chosen people" when everything is going our way... but what happens when the bottom falls out? What happens to our faith when we're hanging on a cross? What happens when we're told that we have stage 4 cancer? What happens to our faith when we bury our children... or lose our jobs... or watch our loved ones die?  It was hard for the Hebrews to see how they could be God's chosen people when they were exiled in Babylon... and it was hard for the Jews to see how they were chosen when they were being slaughtered in Hitler's concentration camps! Likewise, it was hard for the Israelites to believe that they were living in the "promised land" when they were being suppressed by the Midianites. After Joshua died and before Saul was anointed King, Israel was a tribal people without an appointed or elected leader. They were decentralized and it was common for neighboring countries to wage war and oppress some of their tribes. Thus, the promised land was not all that it was promised to be, which is why an angel (messenger) of the Lord found Gideon threshing wheat in a winepress, for fear of the Midianites. (Judges 6:11ff) Hey, Gideon, the angel said, "the Lord is with you, might warrior." Oh really? Gideon was not so sure, and he spoke his mind- "if the Lord is with us, why has all of this happened to us?" (6:13) In fact, Gideon went on, it seems more like the "Lord has now abandoned us and given us into the hands of Midian." (Judges 6:13)
      Well, Gideon asked more questions of the angel, but in the end, he trusted God and defeated the Midianites. We've already noted (in a previous blog) that God can do anything, and I have no doubts about this at all. However, Gideon's question is our question. It is every defeated, broken, frightened and disappointed person's question... and it is an important question because it forces us to deal with the true meaning of faith... which is living AS IF God's promises are true. Faith is CHOOSING to believe in all circumstances and trusting God in all things. God does not attempt to explain His actions to us, but he does invite us to trust Him each day. God does not rationalize his decisions, but he expects us to embrace his will.
      Over the years, I've come to these conclusions: 1) People who base their "faith" on their circumstances in life... will surely lose it; 2) Surrender, and only surrender, sets us free... from worrying if God is doing his part or not; 3) honest doubt often leads to great faith (remember Thomas). Doubt is not the opposite of belief- disbelief is- but nursing our doubts will keep us from making the life-changing commitments we need to make. Gideon was right, of course. It doesn't look like you're a mighty warrior when you're hiding in a winepress, and Gideon's question is legion. Who, among us, hasn't heard... and said, "Why me?" God has heard it too... and he can handle it. He has heard "why me," and "it's not fair," again and again and again... and he knows that many of us see our relationship with him as some sort of a "deal." Still, he invites us to free ourselves from circumstance. Still, he invites us to trust and obey. Still, he invites us to live as a chosen and saved people. Amen.

WILL YOU SWEEP AWAY THE RIGHTEOUS WITH THE WICKED?

      Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? (Gen. 18:21) When Abraham was visiting with the three visitors who encountered him beneath the oaks of Mamre (Gen. 18:23), they discussed Sarah's impending pregnancy (Gen. 18:10ff) and they also talked about Sodom and Gomorrah's impending doom. They were looking down toward Sodom... and the Lord decided to share his plans to destroy the city with Abraham. He told Abraham that he was going down to Sodom himself, to see if it was as evil as he had heard. Then, the three men began their journey, but Abraham approached the Lord... and asked, "Will you sweep away the righteous with wicked?" If there are 50 righteous people in the city, will you destroy it? How about 45? 30? 20? 10? Would you save the city if there is only 10 righteous people... and the Lord said that he would save the city if he found 10 righteous people! Abraham, if seems, won his argument with the Lord, who said that, he would NOT destroy the righteous with the wicked. I confess that this question was not on my original list of the Bible's great questions, but in light of the recent uproar about (radical) Islam, I am persuaded to include it.
      In Biblical times, Abraham's question was very bold for two reasons. In the first place, it was (and still is) bold to question and/or challenge God! Most people are still afraid to speak their mind to God, but in Abraham's time, it was also bold to worry about individuals. Individual freedoms were unheard of, and certainly secondary to the mores and behaviors of the entire community. Of course, Abraham was most likely lobbying for his nephew's life (Lot), but in our time, his question is quite profound, Would you label an entire people on the basis of what you've seen- or just heard about- from a few? There are no-good, manipulative, greedy, and murderous people within every racial, ethnic, religious, and political group... but does that justify labeling, attacking, or destroying all of the group members? Would you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? My wife is Swedish- will you hold her responsible for the savagery of the Vikings? My people are German- would you hold me responsible for the holocaust? It's important that we discern who the righteous and the evil are... and judge them accordingly. I, for one, am increasingly concerned that we are unwilling to name and call-out evil when we see it. We make excuses for it's perpetrators and we turn a blind eye to those people who mean to kill us.  In my view, this is a dangerous position to take. However, it is NOT acceptable to sweep away the righteous with the wicked! Labels dehumanize people & sweeping condemnations are always wrong! There were evil people in Sodom, but there were also righteous people, who deserved a better fate.
      I am reminded of a story I read about a wealthy rancher who had tens of thousands of acres. His ranch went for miles in all directions... and he named it, "The winding river, double-bend, triple R and dynamic Z" ranch." One of his friends was impressed. "Wow," he said, "how many cattle do you have?" "Not that many," the rancher replied, "Only a few survive the branding." Not that many survive the branding- may God keep my eyes on this great truth.

IS ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR GOD?

      In my last blog, I presented the first "great" question in the Bible. It is not the greatest question- that will come later- but it is a great one. After anger got the best of Cain, he murdered his brother, Abel, and when God challenged him, Cain asked a question that we all ask to this day: AM I MY BROTHER'S KEEPER? The answer, it seems to me, is YES. I am my brother's/sister's keeper because my brother/sister bear God's image and because we're all in this thing together. Now to the 2nd of the Bible's GREAT questions: IS ANYTHING TO HARD FOR GOD? It's an important question. It's a question that has always challenged people of faith. It's a question that begs for a hurried answer from people who have not been tested. It's a question that gives deep peace and unquenchable hope to believers around the world and, if it makes you feel any better, it's a question that is as old as the book of Genesis.
      In the 37th chapter of Ezekiel, the Spirit of the Lord carried the prophet to a field of dry bones. There were a lot of them (waist-deep) and they were very dry. They were not sort of dry, or in need of a little TLC- they were dead and rigid. God asked Ezekiel, "Son of man, can these dry bones live?" Well... can they? What do you think? And the prophet answered, "You know Lord." Yes, God knew, and through His word alone, the bones came together. Then, flesh came upon them, and they rose to their feet, like a victorious army! In the 32nd chapter of Jeremiah, we join the prophet as he is sitting in prison. He is waiting for Babylon to destroy the city, and things couldn't have been bleaker! And yet, the word of God came to Jeremiah, telling him to buy a piece of land. So, he bought a piece of land, and considered it a wise investment... because the day would come when Judah would thrive again. It seemed impossible, but God said, "I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything to hard for me?" Well, is there? Would you have purchased a lot in a country that was just about to be decimated? In the 1st chapter of Luke's gospel, an angel of God told a teenage virgin that she would bear a son without having sexual intercourse... because God would be the boy's father. Has anyone ever heard of a virgin birth? Is it even possible? Mary was confused, and she asked the angel, "how can this be?" It will come to pass, the angel assured her, because nothing is impossible for God!
      I could cite other passages, but I will conclude with the well-known passage from the 18th chapter of Genesis. Abraham was sitting under the oaks of Mamre and his wife, Sarah, was preparing a meal inside their tent... when three strangers approached Abraham. Immediately, Abraham invited them to stay for a meal, which would have been common in those days, and as they waited on the food, the 4 men talked about many things. The entire "pericope" is fascinating, but our focus in on God's promise-His statement of fact. Just before they left, the spokesman for the three told Abraham that, come spring, Sarah would give birth to a boy... and Sarah, who had been listening inside the tent, began to laugh. She snickered and laughed out loud because the visitor's words were more than ridiculous. She was old- really old- and beyond the "way of women," and Abraham was even older! They had tried to have a child of their own for decades, and now that it was too late, the visitor said that she would become pregnant and give birth to a bouncing baby boy. The messenger (angel) heard Sarah and asked Abraham, "Why did Sarah doubt and laugh at what I said? IS ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR THE LORD?"
      If everything is possible for the Lord, we ought to be a very confident and bold people. We ought to face life head on, and (without coming to believe that God is OUR servant) we ought to pray as if there is no tomorrow. If nothing is too hard for God, I can pray for life in the face of a death. I can enter a dying person's room and pray for God's healing because God can do anything. If God can do anything, I can buy a piece of land just before the entire area is destroyed, and I can put my entire trust in God. If God can do anything, I can throw caution to the wind and turn all that I have over to Him, and if God can do anything, I can believe, claim, and live for a promised life after death. If God can do anything, enemies can become friends and losers can become winners. If God can do anything, I can approach his throne boldly! Indeed, believing that God can do anything... IS the key to transforming hope and real contentment. I prayed for both of my brothers to live, and they died... but I believe that God can do anything... because I believe His word and...because He has given me 2nd, 3rd, and Nth chances. If God can do anything, He can erase my sins and wipe my slate clean!
      But IF some things are to hard for God, I better pray and preach cautiously because I don't want to embarrass myself or put God on the spot. If God can't do what He wants to do- if He is confined by the laws of physics and our own free will- then I had better look out for myself. If Christ is not risen, we are all fools, and if God doesn't know our name, we are truly lost. Stories from the Bible are fascinating... but my greater concern is for me and you and what we do with this question today: IS ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR GOD? WHAT DO YOU SAY?
   
   

AM I MY BROTHER'S KEEPER?

      For people of faith, the Bible is a book of answers. In fact, it is THE book of answers because it provides direction and correction for our lives, hope for the future, and definitive information on God's nature and will for us. John Calvin called Scripture the "spectacles" of faith, noting that, while we can see God at work in nature and in the course of our lives, we see God most clearly in the Bible. I agree with this entirely. In a world where truth is relative, I need THE truth, and in a world which insists that one belief is a good as another, I need a Big God. I cling to my faith and my faith is shaped by God's word. However, for some time now, I've also been challenged by the Bible's Great Questions, and I've come to believe that struggling with these question deepens our faith and our relationship with God. There are scores of great questions in the Bible, but I will do well to cite those that speak to me: the first of which is AM I MY BROTHER'S KEEPER.
      You know the story. After Adam and Eve violated God's commandment, they were evicted from the garden of Eden and forced to eke out a living as farmers and keepers of sheep. Childbirth was now painful too, but Eve bore two sons- Abel, who became a sheep herder, and Cain, who became a farmer. Both of them also offered a measure of their blessings to God, but God liked Abel's offering better. It pleased Him more, and Cain became envious and resentful. His anger was sure to get the best of him, and it did. He lured his brother. Abel, into a field... and murdered  him there. Much later in time, Joseph's brothers would consider murdering him out of envy and resentment as well, but Cain went through with the deed... and killed his brother. I don't know how he expected to explain Abel's absence to his parents, but God intervened first... by asking Cain, "Where is Abel, thy brother?" Where is he? What happened to him? And Cain replied, "I know not, am I my brother's keeper?" Who made me responsible for Abel? How would I know where he is?
      Am I my brother's keeper? Well... am I? Who is my brother? And what does it mean to be a keeper? Well, the Hebrew word for "keeper" often means "overseer," as in keeping sheep. In the Old Testament, Israel's kings are called shepherds because they were expected to protect, care for, and guide the people. It was their responsibility to keep the people safe and to lead them to higher ground. Keepers were expected to watch over things- like the keeper of the royal wardrobes, or the keeper of the wine. There are many different examples of what it means to be a "keeper" in the Bible, but they all carry the notion of being responsible for the people/things assigned to them... and accountable to the one who gave them the responsibility. Thus, it is clear that we do have a responsibility to watch over and provide care to our "brothers."  But who are our brother's? Clearly, God is speaking about Cain's biological brother in this passage. What have you done to your brother- to your mother's other son? But the Bible also uses the term "brother" for more distant relatives (Gen. 13:8), fellow countrymen (Matt. 5:47), disciples (Matt. 25:40), people who share the same faith (Amos 1:9), colleagues (Ezra 3:2), people to whom we are attached (2 Sam. 1:26), and to all other people (Gen. 9:5).  Everyone, it seems, is our brother! My brother is my brother. People whom I love like a brother are my brothers. My uncles and cousins are my brothers. Fellow Americans... and fellow Presbyterians... are my brothers. Every man, woman, and child who has given his or her heart to Christ... is my brother. Indeed, since God has created all of us in His image, everyone in the world is my brother. I am connected to each of them and accountable to God for being their keeper!
      This doesn't mean that they are necessarily "right," or "good," but it does mean that I have an obligation to watch over them and to carry them, if I must. Abuse, discrimination, exploitation, bullying, and killings would be sharply reduced if we acted as one another's keeper! Billy Graham once noted that "the highest form of worship is unselfish Christian service," and I would say "amen" to that. James (1:17) noted that, "Religion which is pure and undefiled is to visit the orphan and the widow in their affliction," and I must say "amen" to that. Finally, in what I call the Bible's great open-book test, Jesus invited his followers into his Father's kingdom... because they fed him when he was hungry, clothed him when he was naked, and gave him something to drink when he was thirsty. (Matt. 25) They saw him as brother when he appeared as the least among them... and they acted as if they were his keeper! Let those who have ears... hear.

MY SEARCH FOR A FAITHFUL CHURCH

      I am writing this from Joliet, Illinois, where Sherry and I have settled after my retirement. Since we lived in Joliet from 1991-1996, there's a sense in which we have returned "home," and most importantly, our granddaughter lives just 2-3 miles down the road. Relocating (which we've done several times) is never easy and this one hasn't been particularly easy either... but we're blessed to be here. Thanks to our daughter, we are living in a great place in a great neighborhood... but the time has come for me to find a church.
      I haven't been in church since I delivered my last sermon on September 13 and I'm feeling a strong need to hear God's word and become active in a church. But which one? I love the people I know at the church I once served here, and I know that I would be welcomed by a small group of friends (some of whom accompanied Sherry and I to Israel). I consider their Senior Pastor and their Associate Pastor to be personal friends... and I know that both of them are excellent teachers. However, they don't really need me there... and it's hard to go home again. There's a small church close by, but when small churches claim to the "friendliest" church in town, they sometimes forget to add... "to people we know." Big churches, which are hard to find in my denomination, are generally not places "where everybody knows your name." Too small? Too big? Can any church be just the right size?
      Probably not... but I also need to decide on the denomination. I'll probably settle on the ELCA because I was baptized there (as an adult), married there, and our daughters were confirmed in a Lutheran church. It would make sense to become a Lutheran again... but I've come to believe that our so-called "mainline" churches have watered-down theologies. They are good at welcoming all comers and they are also good at not judging others (both of which are assets)... but being nice is not going to save anyone. Since I came to my faith by accepting Christ when I was completely bankrupt spiritually, I am convinced that he is the source of any transformation any of us will ever receive. He is the source of our hope and our salvation, and without Christ, we are much more likely to be a churchgoer instead of a disciple. I'm sure that I won't be fed in a church that is not Christ-centered, but the more conservative churches are often unaccepting and judgmental. They preach and teach Jesus, but they are sometimes filled with the Pharisees who plotted to kill him.
      Churches differ in their beliefs and in their way of doing things... but the purpose of any church is to welcome people in Jesus' name and to help them grow in Christ so that they can enjoy and serve Him throughout their lifetimes. This is the church's job. It is the church's only job, and it can't be done if the church is not preaching Christ crucified and risen... or if it is driving off the very people Christ came to save. In my view, many liberal churches don't lead others to "rebirth" in Christ and many conservative churches don't act as if they really know Christ. However, there is a porridge that is just right. There are churches that preach and teach Christ... and who welcome, love, and minister to ALL people... precisely because they know Him! Years ago, my spiritual mentor reminded me that there is no "perfect church" and that any person who seeks one is bound to be frustrated and disappointed. Thanks, Lu! I couldn't agree more. But there are FAITHFUL churches.... and it is my prayer that God will lead me to one. Amen!
   

The Pope's Got It Right

      I'm not a Catholic and I don't see myself becoming one at this time in life... but I love our Pope! In fact, I think that he's the greatest spiritual leader of my lifetime- by some measure- except for the Rev. Billy Graham, who also spoke the truth in love and practiced what he preached.
      In a world filled with self-indulgence, the Pope calls for restraint. In a world where everyone is suspicious of everyone else, the Pope calls for love and understanding. In a world where the most popular dream is to "grab all you can," the Pope calls for charity... and greater equity. In a world where people honestly believe that "perception is everything," the Pope suggests that our inner self is much more important. In a world where people are increasingly isolated from one another, the Pope reminds us that we're all connected... and that we really are brothers and sisters in Christ. In short, the Pope, like Christ, marches to the beat of a different drummer. He heard and responded to God's call for his life and he lives as if God's word really is the Gospel. I find the his joy, candor, and positive message to be absolutely invigorating.
      I've led adult studies through the entire Bible many times now, and I've long found these things to be true: 1) the Biblical message is neither Republican nor Democrat. These are modern political ideologies- both of which are man-made (literally) and self-serving; 2) from cover to cover, the Bible notes that love is an "action" word which finds in life in the way we treat and serve others. Being righteous- doing the right thing- by your family, your community, your country, and certainly your God- is one of the Bible's primary themes, whether we're reading the 10 Commandments or the Sermon on the Mount; 3) any religion or spiritual viewpoint that calls us to hate others must be wrong... because God is love; 4) Righteousness is a central Biblical theme. We need to behave ourselves and lead honorable lives, no doubt, but we are also called to practice justice, which means keeping an eye on the widow, the orphan, the alien, and others who are vulnerable. It speaks to safety nets... and to providing opportunity for all of God's children. In Matthew 25, Jesus judged the "goats" harshly because they neither saw nor responded to Him in the least among them. This is not a political statement, but it is Biblical; 5) rich people will have trouble getting into the kingdom of heaven because they are quite likely to fall in love with their wealth. Yes, it's the love of money that's a sin- not money per se- but money and the love of money are kissing cousins. Money beckons for and demands our worship, which is why Jesus spoke of its danger time and time again. Money is, at best, a tempter, and at worst, an idol. The Pope is right about this.
      Theologically, the Pope and I are not in agreement. We hold different views, but we are one when it comes to Scripture. I admire his ability to live out a message of grace, righteousness, and justice, recognizing that abortion is not an act of righteousness. I am personally challenged by many Bible verses. Some seem to conservative. Some seem to liberal. Some of them appeal to my own views. Some of them challenge me to do business with the living God. As God's word, the Bible is always incredibly affirming or disturbingly challenging... because it is God's word. Amen.

RETIREMENT PARTY

      Last night, at my wonderful retirement party, a number of people gathered (many more than I deserved) to say goodbye. I greeted people as they entered and then I prayed for God's blessing as we shared a common meal. The restaurant did an excellent job of serving so many people, and after we had eaten our fill, we listened to three of my friends say nice things about me, In fact, many people said nice things about me... but my naysayers and critics weren't invited to the event. When they finished (and they did a wonderful job), we were blessed with a  selection of songs and hymns performed by Peter Grau (singer) and Perry Hultgren (keyboard). They were extremely well done, and at last our emcee, elder Jack May brought the party to a close... except that I grabbed the microphone and told each and everyone in attendance how much Sherry and I appreciated their attendance. I could've told a hundred stories... but time was short. So, I cited a few highlights and gave our heartfelt thanks to everyone. I told them, and I will say it again, preaching, teaching, and representing the gospel is an honor and a blessing! In my case, it was amazing... but then again, God's grace is amazing. Someone asked if I was going to like retirement, and I told him that I didn't know. But I do know that I wouldn't trade a moment of my life for all the money in the world because we have an awesome God! Here is a selection of pictures from my retirement party. They are people from South Park Presbyterian Church of Rock Island and United Presbyterian Church of Peoria. I am in their debt... and also to the Rev. James Benson, who is the pastor of Good Shepherd Presbyterian Church in RI..

yours truly

me and Olivia

Two leaders- Betty and Annette

The Miller table

The Hennesseys, Melba, and Bonnie

Me and good friend from Peoria

Two of my golfing buddies in front

elder Jack May

Me and my dear wife, Sherry

Language of Pain

      "It was the time of the preacher when the story began... of the choice of a lady and the love of a man. How he loved her so dearly he went out of his mind... an' he cried like a baby. He screamed like a panther... in the middle of the night, but he could not forgive her, though he tried and tried and tried... and the halls of his memories... still echo her lies." As some of you know, our daughter and grandson were with us last week. We took in a family reunion, played air hockey, gathered together to bury my mother... and Kendra shared a Willie Nelson song with me. It's called the "Time of the Preacher," and it describes a pain too deep for words. It describes a loss that cannot be expressed... except in guttural cries. He cried like a baby because he could do no other, and he screamed like a panther because he had no words... for the empty darkness that was all around. In the course of our lives, if we have a soul at all, our hearts will be shattered. Our child will die. Mother, dad, baby brother, little sister. Our lover will betray us, our dreams will mock us. If we live long enough, if we care deeply enough, death will laugh in our face and run off with our heart, and we will be left without words... just sobs, and screams, and waving our fists at the air... like the primitive creature we've never quite outgrown.
     Pastor Benno Pattison writes of his father's passing. He and his brother were prepared for the inevitable, but his grandmother was overwhelmed with grief. She covered her son's dead body and made frightening sounds. "Her keening came from the depths," the Pattison wrote, "I'd never heard a sound like it, nor have I heard a sound like it since. She wailed, a deep primordial call to God, to the ancients, to her child, to the still, cold body, She called from her depths. It was an awesome auditory experience... To hear my grandmother's wailing over my dad's body was to hear an ancient tongue speak the mysteries of life. It silenced us all... but the psalmist gives us permission to wail out to God from our deepest place of grief, anger, fear, frustration. There is a human truth embedded in the voice of the psalm, the aggrieved, the marginalized. It is the truth that there is a place in us that speaks in an ineffable tongue, a sighing and groaning...that is at once transcendent and imminent. It speaks of the mystery of creation itself, of an earth caught in bondage, of a world calling out for redemption, freedom, release... (and salvation.) When my dad died, Pattison goes on, we were sitting in another room adjacent to where dad had spent the last two years of his life slowly dying.  The nurse came out with a shocked look on her face. We walked into the room and stood observing the end of a life. The prayer was mumbled into the silence of our terror, our fear, prayed out of the depths of our tradition, an echo of David's cry to God from the depths, this holy place of deep truth, deep emotion, deep reality.  From this place we stand in our depths and ask, wail, lament, complain, weep, hope--God, are your there?  God, are you listening?"
      Have you ever cried to God from a holy place of deep truth? Have you ever shaken your fist at the wind? Have you ever had a holy conversation with God? Have you ever cried for an Absalom in your own life? Has there ever been anyone you would've died for to save... or taken their place... at any cost? Well, David did, and as the time of this preacher draws to a close, I will turn once again to Frederick Buechner. Listen to his words: "Almost from the start, Absalom had a number of strikes against him. For one thing, he was much too handsome for his own good... For another thing, his father...was...either spoiling him rotten or reading him the riot act. This did not promote stability of character. He murdered his lecherous brother Amnon for fooling around with their sister, Tamar, and when...Joab wouldn't help him patch things up with David...he set fire to his hay field. Israel found this kind of derring-do irresistible, of course, and when he eventually led a revolt against his father, a lot of them joined up. On the eve of the crucial battle, David was a wreck. If he was afraid he might lose his throne, he was even more afraid he might lose Absalom. The boy was the thorn in his flesh, but he was also the apple of his eye, and before the fighting started, he told the chiefs that, if Absalom fell into their clutches, they must promise to go easy on him. Remembering what had happened to his hay field, old Joab kept his fingers crossed, and when he found Absalom caught in the branches of an oak tree by his beautiful hair, he ran him through without blinking an eye. When they broke the news to David, it broke his heart, just as simple as that, and he cried out in words that have echoed down the centuries ever since. '0 my son Absalom, my son, my son;' he said. "Would I had died instead of you, 0 Absalom, my son, my son.' He meant it, of course. If he could have done the boy's dying for him, he would have done it. If he could have paid the price for the boy's betrayal of him, he would have paid it. If he could have given his own life to make the boy alive again, he would have given it. But even a king can't do things like that. It takes a God."
      Indeed. It takes a God- a God who understands our pain-filled groans... and our fear-filled screams- a God who will die for us! As you know, I like words (too many, too often, I know)... but the most holy ground I've ever stood on... has been filled with silence, sobs, guttural cries... and hope! My mother died on July 3rd. We buried her last Saturday... and in between, I uttered a thousand words. But there was a night in the middle of it all- when I sat my glasses down on my desk in the office... and sobbed out loud. It only lasted for a minute or so because I am not a cry baby... but it was the most honest conversation that I had with God about the matter. Once, Jesus cried out, Eli, Eli lama sabachthani- my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" as he hung on his cross... and from time to time, I scream like a panther... in the middle of the night. Amen.

IN MEMORY OF BILL MAULE

      Bill Maule died today... and the world is now a lesser place. I've known a lot of men who were more gregarious than Bill...but none who were more sincere. I've known a lot of men who shook more hands than Bill did... but none who had more grace. I've known many men who had more bravado than Bill did... but none with more courage.
      Bill was diagnosed with ALS a few years ago... but he didn't surrender easily. With quiet grace, noticeable faith, and the love of family and friends, he stood face-to-face with this killer for a long time. He handled the disease with grace, and after his longtime employer shamelessly let him go, he found part-time jobs, which he did successfully... for as long as his body would allow. Bill and his wonderful wife, Shannon, visited Sherry and me in Rock Island once, and while we were having lunch, Bill said that he would be happy "if his friend, Kenn, would say a few words at his funeral service." I told him that I would if I could, but there have been many changes at the church which Bill attends, and that may not be appropriate now.
      So, let me say it now- plain and clearly: I loved Bill Maule... and I am glad that he is running free on the streets of heaven tonight. In a world filled with self-interests and big talkers, Bill Maule was truly filled with the Holy Spirit!

THE LAST TIME IS ALWAYS HARD

      Last Thursday, I gave my stoles to a new friend in town. He's a young preacher and I wanted to give him a welcome-to-the-ministry gift. He will wear them well... and besides, I won't be needing them anymore... because my last day in the pulpit will be August 23, 2015. Today, I am writing my last Pastor's letter (below) and this coming Saturday, I will officiate at my mother's graveside service in Des Moines. I'm praying that it will be the last funeral service I will ever do. When you near retirement, you're in for a lot of "lasts," and it's hard to do anything or see anyone for the last time- especially if you know it's the last time. The same can be said for serving communion and teaching Bible studies- although I will cling to my Wednesday morning study for as long as I can.
      First, as I write my last letter to the members at SPPC, I want to express my gratitude for your support and for going out of your way to share your lives with Sherry and me. If you shared a meal with us, invited us to a QC event, let me into your golf circle, or befriended Sherry... we thank you! If you caught any part of the vision I tried to cast, or heard God's word in a new way from my preaching and teaching, I am thrilled!  If I was able to give you grace in your hour of darkness, I am humbled. Being here has been a good thing for all concerned. I was able to strengthen SPPC's faith journey, unify members as a church family, re-energize our children's ministries, welcome dedicated Christians into our fold, encourage members to get more deeply involved in church leadership, and initiate any number of new ministries. I feel good about these things, but I am disappointed in my inability to add to the numbers on Sunday mornings or on our ministry teams. Perhaps, these goals will be on the next pastor's plate... which brings me to your future.
      Friends, I will have no involvement in the search for you new pastor. None at all. But I will say these things before I go: 1) Call a pastor who knows Christ- a man or woman who really, really knows Christ; 2) Call a pastor whose first book of authority is the Bible, and who preaches from it every Sunday; 3) Call a pastor who will challenge your leaders to be servant-leaders... and who will lead your Session into a deeper and more transforming relationship with Christ; 4) Call your Session to be bold because the Holy Spirit is bold... and remind them that bold means BOLD; 5) Love one another as Christ loved you- sacrificially and with forgiveness- and learn to see Christ is every single one of them; 6) Encourage your pastor to help you improve your prayer life, and if that doesn't seem to be his/her cup of tea, improve your prayer life anyway... because a non-praying church is a church that has lost communication with God; 7) Follow the vision and listen to the prophets in your midst. There's a time when an organization has the luxury of coasting... BUT for SPPC, this time is gone! The time has come for you to cross the Rubicon and ride fearlessly into the future that God has in store for you!
      As for me, I'm going to write. I will miss my ministry. I won't miss the church- although Sherry and I will find a church to attend in the Chicago area- but I will miss doing what I love most.... which is preaching, teaching, and pastoral care. It is a privilege to preach God's word- an honor- and I've never taken it lightly. I love the word of God and I hope that my love has shown through to you. I love teaching too, which is why I've taught so many classes. I love the Gospels, the Old Testament, and I've learned to love Paul. They give me joy, and I hope that my joy has been visible to you. However, the most sacred thing I've done is to "be Christ" to families who are facing death. I've been blessed to sit with many of you as a loved one is dying, or has just died... and I know... the awkward silence... of that moment well. Then, the silence gives way to tears, stories about the person who died, funeral details, unexpressed confusion, visible pain, and exhaustion. It's always the same... but when I leave the family's presence, I know for sure that I've been on holy ground. Praise God, if death can't conquer faith, nothing ever will.
      It took her awhile. She was suspicious at first. She didn't trust pastors... but in the end, she told me that I was the "real deal." You're the "real deal," she said, and her affirmation has never left my mind... because being the "real deal" was always my greatest goal... and my greatest prayer. Keep Sherry in your prayers... and don't give up on SPPC.

Leheitraot,

pk

   

REMEMBERING LARRY SHEDENHELM

      Has it really been seven years since my brother, Larry, passed on? No, it doesn't seems possible, but on July 23, 2010, my younger brother, Larry, joined my youngest brother, Randy, and our father, in death. Larry was a good man and I miss him dearly. As we reared our families and built our separate careers, I often wished that I could've made the polished, professional impression that Larry did. He dressed impeccably and he always seemed to be in control of himself. He was direct and honest, but soft-spoken. He listened more than he talked. He was strong, but measured, and while he wasn't a "bleeding heart," no man ever loved his family more than he did.

      Larry was committed to doing the right thing and leaving a mark on this world that others would be proud of... and he did just that. If life was "fair," Larry would be alive today. He would be retired now... tending to his backyard and still loving his kids and their kids. If life was fair, Larry would still be the family's number 1 grill-master, and he and I would have even more time to golf. He was always a better golfer that I was, but I enjoyed every minute of our time together. If he were alive today, my world would be richer, and I know that this is true for everyone who loved him... and especially for his immediate family. If Larry was a live today, we could share our love for the grocery business, tell the old stories about our growing up, and solve the world's problems (which we didn't always see in exactly the same way).
      But life isn't fair... and Larry is not with us anymore. It's a sad thing, but within that sadness, there are countless moments of joy that still make me smile. There are also memories that live on and on and on, just as Larry does in his Creator's hands. Before he died, I asked Larry if he thought he would see our brother, Randy, on the other side... and Larry said that he didn't know if he would "see" Randy or not, but he believed that he would feel Randy's presence and "know" that he "was there." Well, even though I'm educated in such things, I don't actually know much about life after... what we call... death... because I haven't been there. But I do know that there is joy and peace wherever God is, and I know that God's love is much bigger and much stronger that anything we have ever even imagined. And I've learned that God, the promise-maker, is very much a "promise-keeper." In short, I trust God and I  believe that my brother, Larry, has already seen His face.
      Larry, I think about you often- sometimes when I'm just driving along the road, sometimes when I hit drive just about as far as you would've hit it, and every time, when I see a Facebook posting of my nephews and niece, and their growing families. The little ones who ran to you in 2010 are bigger now and there are new, little ones... who will never get to have that joy. But they're doing well because they hang together and because they are also in God's hands! I miss you deeply. You were not only my brother, You were my best friend. Love you, K.

Paying More than You Expected to Pay

      It was in the spring of the year... when kings led their armies to war. David had always done this because he was a self-confident and brave man... but in the spring of this particular year, he stayed home. I don't know why David didn't go to war on this one occasion, but I do know that he saw a woman bathing from his rooftop. Some men would've turned away, but David took in her beauty, and found out who she was and sent men over to her (and her husband's) home .. to bring her back to him. They did as they were told and she did too. His men brought her to him and the two of them had sex. If you can get beyond the immense power differences between them, their tryst had the look of a one-night stand. Bat-Sheba went back to her life and continued to wait for her husband, Uriah, to return from battle... because that's where he was- putting his life on the line for the king whom he adored.
      One could call their night a "conquest,"or maybe David initiated the sin simply because he could. But things went wrong when David discovered that his lover was pregnant. Some men would've confessed their sin at that point... and paid whatever the fiddler was charging. But David was concerned about his reputation... and he hatched a plan to obscure his role in the pregnancy. He sent for Uriah, and when the warrior reported to him, David couldn't praise him enough. You're my kind of man, he told Uriah, and you need a little TLC... so get over to your home and "wash your feet." If Uriah would have sex with his own wife, he'd always consider the child to be his. However, Uriah didn't have sex with Bathsheba. He bunked down with his comrades instead, and David was not pleased with Uriah's character and resolve. Stay one more night, he told him, and hang out with me. Uriah was thrilled to have personal time with his king, and the two of them drank well into the night. No one knows how much they drank, but David was sure that they had consumed enough to "loosen Uriah up." However, Uriah did not weaken, which prompted David to employ plan B. He wrote a note to Joab, telling him to abandon Uriah on the front line, and Joab, who was no poet in the first place, did just that. Uriah died that day, in the line of duty... and David was home free,
      Except that God had seen it all, and he sent his prophet, Nathan, to tell David a story. There was a rich man, who had a huge flock of sheep, and this rich man lived near a poor man, who had one lamb, who was a family pet. The kids loved to play with the lamb, whom they called "Billy." Well, one day, the rich man had an important visitor, who expected a meal... but he didn't want to lose one of his own lambs. So, he took the poor man's only lamb and fed it to his guest, Nathan asked, "What do you think of that, David"? And the great King was outraged. Any man who would do what you just described should be put to death, he shouted! Then, in one of the Bible's better known lines, Nathan replied, "You are that man!" You are that man, and this child will die. Indeed, because of what you did, a scarlet thread of blood will plague your family from this day on.
     Isn't that the way it always goes? Sin will always keep you longer than you intended to sat, and it will always cost you more than you intended to pay! David was in the wrong place, or at the very least, he lingered in the wrong place. David opened the wrong door. He knew that nothing really good could come from this sin, but he opened the door to possibility anyway; David made the wrong decision. As soon as he learned that Bathsheba was another man's wife, he should've let the idea go... but he sent for her anyway; 4) And he made another wrong decision when he decided that covering his sin up was better than confessing it; 5) And he made an inexplicably bad choice when he chose to "murder" Uriah. Wrong place, wrong couple, wrong agenda, manipulation, abuse of power, violation of trust. A night of conquest leading to progressively deeper sins and increasingly higher costs. That's always the way it goes... and sin will always weaken your relationship with God. Your guilt will choke off your prayer life, and if the sin goes on long enough, it will damage your relationship with Christian friends. However you can never be too far gone for God because God loves a contrite heart. David was forgiven (read Ps. 51). Chuck Colson was forgiven. I was forgiven. Any one who trusts in God will be a new creation. This is the truth of it, but beware: most of those who fall away from God's grace,,, will not have the humility to come back to Him on their knees.

HE'S ALL WE NEED

     Abraham Maslow postulated that we all share a hierarchy of needs, beginning with the need to survive. If we're starving or dying of thirst, we'll do whatever we have to do to survive... but if we aren't in danger of dying, our minds turn to security. We don't want to lose what we have. We don't want someone to take it away, and we want a place where we can keep ourselves and our stuff safe. Survival and safety are basic needs, and they will always come to the forefront if we they are threatened. But if we have a little to eat and a place to call home, we begin to seek community. We need friends. We need groups to which we can belong. Our social needs become dominant because we need to belong. However, even if we have a hundred friends, we have a need to be recognized.We want our achievements to be rewarded. We want a gold watch when we retire. We want a trophy when we win. These are Maslow's first four needs. The first two are primitive. The second two are more advanced, but taken together... fulfilling these needs will not satisfy us... because we will never be whole unless we are "self-actualized."
      We have a deep-seated need, Maslow maintained, to be what we were meant to be. A musician must play music. An artist must paint. A teacher must teach . In church, we call it a calling, which as Frederick Buechner noted, is that place where your greatest joy and the world's greatest need... meet. Most of us never find this place because we simply follow one foot after another into, let's say, the grocery business... or we make a strategic decision to be in that place where we have the greatest security... or make the most money- neither of which is sufficient to fulfill us. Most of us don't have the vision or the courage to find our calling... so we're never self-actualized... and in the end, we're disappointed with our own lives. This is a shame of course... but today I want to make the point that... that Jesus is our self-actualization. As a Christian who found new life in Christ, I want to say that Jesus is the answer to our needs- big and small.
      We can, in some ways, meet our needs for survival, security, community, and status... without believing in Christ. There are legions of non-Christians who have more friends than I have... and even more who have more money. People can achieve a lot without Christ... but they will never be fulfilled. They will never know the joy of shalom, and they'll never know the thrill of being forgiven. Non-Christians can get a lot done- and skip all of our meetings too- but they'll never know the wondrous feeling of knowing that they are SOMEBODY in God's eyes. I am convinced of this: people are empty! They are much greater feelings of emptiness than feelings of guilt. They have holes in their souls, holes which cannot be filled with trophies, gold, degrees, or titles. Deep down, people feel small and anonymous. The believe that no one will love them if they know them, and they suspect that they'll never be noticed unless they have the biggest house, the shiniest car, and the most stuff in town. They bluff and bluster. They laugh and cry on cue, and they wear so many masks that they forget who they themselves were in the first place.
      The people who gathered around Jesus had the same needs we do. They would kill to stay alive and they would fight for a place to stay. They had a need for food and they needed water too. They needed to love and be loved, and they needed somebody to know their names. More than that, they need hope... and forgiveness... and mulligans. They worried about the clothes they wore. They worried about the stuff they had stored away. They worried about being excommunicated and isolated from their community. They worried about their families and they worried about eternity... and Jesus said I AM the answer! Come to me, he said, and I will give you living water. Take and eat, he said, of my essence... because I am the bread of life. If you're worried, call on me. If you're walking in a valley, call on me. If you want to be important and useful, feed my sheep. If you want to make a difference, let me send you on a journey of faith. In Christ, we will find meaning and a deep security. In Christ, we will be in community with saints and servants from all times and places. In Christ, we will receive our crown.
      We are fulfilled in Him! Please believe me and take a leap of faith. Many people would agree that they have all the needs I've mentioned... and they would also agree that they haven't been able to fulfill their deepest needs by acquiring money and things. But when it comes to making a decision for Jesus, they turn away... and try to fulfill their needs in the same old ways that they've tried before- even though they've never worked! Maybe they just don't get it. Maybe they're not ready. Maybe they're scared. I don't know... but I do know that you will never, ever hunger again- not for love, not for forgiveness, not for worth, not for joy, not for peace, not for anything at all... because He is the Bread of Life! Amen.

TOP 10 SECRETS TO A HAPPY MARRIAGE

       Recently, I had the privilege of officiating at our granddaughter's wedding. She married a wonderful man, whom we are pleased to have in our family, and I am sure that the love they share is both deep and real. However, since marriage is such a magnificent gift, it must be handled with the utmost care... and with this in mind, I offered Brooke and Justin what I called "Poppy's 10 Secrets to A Happy and Lasting Marriage."
10. Keep the fire burning. Keep the love that brought you to this moment alive... by establishing and jealously guarding a date-night throughout your marriage. Yes, I know. Most of your nights so far have been date nights... but over the course of time, when being "in love" evolves into "love" and responsibilities mount, it will be tempting to let romance die. Don't do it! Keep the fire burning;
9.  Be more together than you ever were alone. You've known one another for a long time now. Indeed, this is your 11th anniversary tonight... but tomorrow will be a new beginning because in marriage, you are a new creation. You will be one... and the great mystery is this: in being one, you will both be magnified! Marriage is not a trade-off, it is not a contest, and most assuredly, it is not a battle of wills. It is a victorious surrendering to the new "you" in a way that fulfills each one of you. It is my prayer that neither one of you will ever be tempted to overshadow the other;
8.  Stay out of the reconstruction business. Don't try to remake or reshape the other person in your own image. Instead, let love be your business and continue to accept the person whom you are actually marrying. Remaking an object is possible, if you have the talent, but remaking a person is not. It doesn't work and it frustrates everyone;
7.  Be a cheerleader. In a world filled with critics, be your spouse's biggest cheerleader. The world is tough enough and we all need at least one person in our corner. The world is filled with doubters and we all need at least one person who believes that, despite evidence to the contrary, there is greatness within us. None of us is perfect and each of us can count... but marriage is no place for scorekeepers;
6.  Be open and vulnerable to one another. In marriage, we are naked in the deepest sense of the word. In marriage, there is no place to hide... and this is a huge blessing because our greatest need... is to be known and loved anyway! Being known and loved anyway is God's gift in Christ, but our greatest chance of receiving this gift on earth... comes in marriage. So, don't squander it by playing games, keeping secrets, and wearing masks;
5.  Don't major in the minors.  Some things are irritating, some things are worth dying for, and some things don't matter. Remember this when differences crop up. As Robert Fulghum noted in one of his books, There are lumps in the oatmeal, there are lumps in the throat, and there are lumps in the breast. Learn the difference;
4.  Stay Connected. People tell me that they have "drifted apart." They tell me that they no longer have "anything in common," but how can this happen to two people who put the health of their union above everything else! Be interested in each other's life. Ask questions about each other's day. Laugh and cry with one another's stories. Stay involved in your partner's life and you will not drift apart;
3.  Forgive, forgive, and then forgive again. Let me say it clearly: though I love both of you dearly, each of you will need to forgive...and be forgiven... and since marriage is life's most intimate stage, I am sure that Jesus had marriage in mind when he said that we should forgive 70x7... which doesn't mean 490 times, but again and again, endlessly! Resentments are spiritual cancers, grudges are toxic, evening the score is nonsensical. Only love will give life to a marriage, and forgiveness is love's first cousin;
2.  Keep your feet moving. I saved this until now because anything worth having takes effort, and when all is said and done, a big part of success is keeping your feet moving. When troubles brew, keep your feet moving; when you're disappointed and angry, maybe even broken, keep your feet moving; when you discover what the "worse" in "better or worse" actually means, keep your feet moving. If you keep your feet moving and continue to keep the vows you make today, you will be blessed;
1.  Keep the faith! Many years ago, Brooke asked me if there was "anything to all the things she was hearing in Sunday School," and I will answer that now... by saying it is Jesus Christ who turned my life around. Before I accepted Jesus, I was an odd admixture of pride and fear. I pretended to be confident, but mostly, I was whistling past my own graveyard... because I had no promise, no hope, no assurance. It was believing that changed poppy's life- so yes, there is something to it- and I would encourage both of you... to choose to believe.
      Amen... and God bless both of you. Brooke, I will never be able to thank you enough for giving me the honor of walking you down the aisle tonight. Please join hands and repeat after me.....

DANCING WITH ALL OF HIS MIGHT

      Who can forget the epic scene in which Charlton Heston, playing Moses, parted the Red Sea so that the people of God could walk to freedom on the other side. I can still see them- men, women, children, livestock- scurrying through a God-made corridor, with the waters of the Red Sea forming walls on both sides. They made it, praise God, but the Egyptians were closing the gap as they rode their chariots into the middle of the sea... but the sea closed in over them and became a watery tomb. One call only imagine what the Hebrews felt- their joy, and relief, must have been palpable. They were free and they liked the taste of it... so Miriam (Ex. 13) took a tambourine in her hand.... and led the people in song as they danced with joy. Dance, dance, dance, people of God, for you are free! Her song doesn't rhyme well- at least not in English- but I'm sure that it had an engaging beat because the celebration had begun.
      The psalmist began his great work by reminding us that reverence for the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and then he expressed his fears and faith, his lament and praise, in 148 more psalms... but in the 150th, and last psalm, he wrapped things up with these words: Praise him with a blast of the lamb's horn, praise him with the lyre and harp; praise him with the tambourine and dancing, praise him with the strings and flutes; praise him with a clash of cymbals, praise him with loud, clanging cymbals; let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord. David, it seems, was the 1st to call for praise music and this brings us to our Old Testament passage this morning. After Israel lost the ark of the covenant to the Philistines because of Phinehas' and Hophni's great sins and after a previous attempt to bring the ark back to Jerusalem failed, God had blessed its return and, at last, they were bringing it home. David went to Obed-Edom to get the ark, and he was so filled with praise... that he stopped and sacrificed to the Lord after they had traveled only six paces. Then, overcome with emotion, David danced before the Lord with all of his might. He danced with all of his might, and it was a spontaneous dance. He sprang around in half-circles with gusto and energy, and he leaped high and skipped like a lamb. It was a display of ecstasy and the Bible says that David was wearing a linen ephod. Actually, some versions suggest that he was ONLY wearing an ephod, which would've been quite a show because an ephod was something like an apron... BUT Scripture clearly says that David was wearing a linen ephod and a fine robe. So it wasn't what he revealed that his wife was angry about when he arrived home... but she was fighting mad because he had danced and carried on like an uncouth man at tavern. He had exposed himself as a fool, she thought, and acted in an unbecoming way for a king. Before he even had a chance to take off his sandals and rest, she began to berate him for acting in a disgusting way. A king, like a good Presbyterian, ought to have self-control. He ought to behave in ways that are orderly and refined, not disorderly and crude. But David said, God has appointed me King. God has blessed me above your father, Saul, and it is before God, and only God, that I worship. God is an audience of one. He is my only audience, and I will do baser things than what you saw... when the Spirit of God fills me with joy.
      It's a wonderful and challenging story, isn't it? It is a story that's filled with questions. Does true worship demand a emotion? If God fills our hearts with praise, can we resist shouting, "Hallelujah"? If knowing that we're saved fills us with great joy, must we kick up our heels and dance a jig? Should we lose ourselves in worship of God... or be ever mindful of our station in life? The Book of Order calls for a balance between order and ardor.... but if we have to lean one way or the other, should we error on the side of control or expression? Is this a sanctuary... or a worship life center? Should it give birth to reflection... or celebration? I think it's impossible to dance without music, but what do you think? When I was a teen, my grandmother lived with us, and sometimes, when my friends were gathered in our home, she'd break out in song, "Rock of Ages, cleft for me," "On a hill far away, there's an old rugged cross..." and my friends would roll their eyes in disbelief. Your grandma's crazy, they would say, and I agreed... because I made it a practice of guarding my emotions (unless I was drinking)... but when Johnny Rodgers returned that punt against Oklahoma, when we turned against the grain, stumbled and regained his balance, and went for the touchdown, I jumped to my feet and shouted, "JR superstar, JR superstar!" I don't like the ridiculous end-zone dances I see... but I sure was excited when our daughter, Kendra, scored her first soccer goal... and even though I frown on it when others do it, I shouted out, "Go Kelli," when she received her first degree. I had too because my pride demanded it! My points are simply these- a) when we're personally engaged, our chances of emoting our increased- and b) when God is our audience, our chances of being free of what others think are enhanced.
      Thus, without being manipulative, I would season our worship with more ardor... but the choice is yours... or more specifically, your elders. Your leaders are even now considering our style of worship, and as faithful Presbyterians, they will endeavor to make everyone happy... but if they must error in one direction or the other, how would you vote, considering the musical preferences of today and the music of yesterday? If you were Michal, and in some ways you are, would you meet David as she did... or would you applaud him for dancing with all of his might? How do you envision the Holy Spirit? Is he at work in our minds leading us to better decisions... or is he at work in our hearts so that we express ourselves with greater abandon? When I think about David's dance, I can't help but think of the prodigal's father, who ran down a dusty road to hug a son who had abandoned the family and squandered his inheritance. Running at all, let alone running down a dusty road, was unseemly in those times. Undignified and vulnerable. But the father's joy demanded it... because you can't really dance without music. Amen.

      
      
     
      Pentecstals sang, wept, shouted, danced and swooned

AN OPEN LETTER TO MY MOTHER ON MOTHER'S DAY

Dear Mother,    

      When we last visited you in Gower, MO., Sherry and I decided to drive by her old apartment building in downtown Des Moines on the way home. So we took the Keosaqua exit and moved toward 7th street... only to encounter a world that I'd never seen before. We found the Commission for the Blind and we were excited because we knew that Sherry's old, rundown apartment was just a block away. But it was gone! It was completely gone, and I realized that there wasn't a soul in town who even knew that it existed! I was a stranger on the streets I thought were meant for me, and it was the last thing I needed in the week you died.
      I loved you dearly, even with the "demons" that led you to believe that love was a zero-sum game, and despite the voices that told you that you would be nothing if you didn't grab center stage. You and I both knew that my home life was not the stuff of fairy tales. We both knew that conflict could break out at any moment, but there were good times too. I remember how often you played games with me and my friends, and how frequently you took us over to your mother's house, which gave me the chance to hangout with my Uncle Bill and my cousins- Del Jr. and "Butchy." Those were great times, but peace was hard to find. Hard for dad to find. Hard for me to find. Hard for you or my brothers to find. I also remember the conversation we had after one of my Mother's Day sermons at Arcadia Avenue Presbyterian Church. I mentioned that a Mother's loves comes as near to God's love as anything else on earth and I wished you a Happy Mother's Day from the pulpit. Afterwards, in a private moment, you told me how much you wished that things would've been better for my brothers and me. I told you that I did too, but that I was absolutely convinced that you did the best you could... and with tears in your eyes, you said, "Considering the circumstances, I suppose you're right."
      O yes, mother, I knew that you wanted to be your best self. You are gone now, and Mother's Day has come again. You and dad are buried in the plot you picked out, within easy walking distance of your own mother's grave. Things have been good for your family since you passed away. Sherry's still holding her cancer at bay, and our girls are doing well. Brooke is about to have a baby, which will make us great-grandparents again. Larry's family is doing well in Texas. Wade and Erica have another son and Jayme got married recently. Sean and Tnette moved to Florida and Amanda is now married. Your brother, Bill, and his family are doing well, and your sister is still getting by. I'm still preaching, writing, and grateful to be in the ministry. Sherry and I plan on being at the Shedenhelm reunion in Belle Plaine this year and I intend to attend the Shedenhelm reunion in Ottumwa as well.
      The river of life keeps flowing... but from time to time, my thoughts go back to a ranch house on Shawnee Place in Des Moines. I can see Larry and Randy in my mind's eye. I can see dad and I can see you. At times, I can almost hear your voices and I want to take this opportunity to thank you for doing the best you could. Your son, Kenn.

FREEDOM. OH, FREEDOM

      "A hero," Bob Dylan noted, "is someone who understands the responsibility that comes with  freedom," to which I say "amen." Like cheap grace, freedom without responsibility is a sham. It is a wolf of self-indulgence dressed up in a sheep's clothes because real freedom is always bigger than self. It must be. Otherwise we would not be free!
      Freedom is costly. It always has been, whether we're measuring its cost in terms of lives, dollars, or brokenness. I admire our veterans more with each passing day, and, in one sense of the word, we can measure the cost of freedom by counting our dead, which total 645,965 since our War for Independence. 2/3 of a million people have died to preserve our way of life, or to give other people the gift of freedom too. Some of these men and women were gung-ho, some were reluctant warriors, some were doing what they had to do... but each of them died for a cause greater than themselves. Some of them had great faith, some of them struggled with faith, and some of them didn't think much about it... but they all believed that dying is not the worst thing that can happen to a people or to a man. We've buried a lot of heroes, but the cost of freedom doesn't end there. Millions of children have grown up without a dad, or with dads who were never quite the same. My father fought in WWII. He flew a transport plane to the battle lines. He brought needed supplies and troops to the front... and he carried men back to England. He saw things that men aren't supposed to see. He helped liberate those enslaved in concentration camps, and he lost a Co-Pilot, named Kenny. He was not technically wounded, but he left part of his soul in Europe... and he seldom talked about the war for the rest of his life. He, and millions like him, lost their innocence completely.
      Praise God for every hero who knew that real freedom is costly! Decorate their graves, give them honor flights, embrace their journeys, and if you can't understand their stories, at least understand that they have a story. Freedom is never free, but war is not its greatest cost, and certainly not its greatest threat. What threatens our freedom more gravely, it seems to me... is our own self-indulgent immaturity. If freedom is seen as a license to sin- if it's little more than permission to feed our own fancies and desires- if it means that we can all "eat. drink, and be merry," Rome will surely burn because freedom demands responsibility! We are never free FROM responsibility. We are only free TO serve, and freedom will not endure without honor, service, and sacrifice. It cannot endure in a self-centered and childish form because honor, service, and sacrifice are the responsibilities of free people. Teens and immature adults see freedom as a license to live irresponsibly and irreverently... but these are the very behaviors that undermine freedom... because our greatest jailer is SELF. Yes, this is the truth of it. We are enslaved by our own desires, fears, resentments, expectations, and pain, and these demons, more than any outside dictator, will be the death of us... or at least of our freedom.
      Doing what we want, whenever we want, is not freedom because we are chained to "self." Not recognizing this is one of the reasons many never get free. The other reason is that many people think that the spiritual axiom- we're only free when we're free in Christ- is an oxymoron! They don't get it. They can't understand how they can get free by surrendering... but it's a great and undeniable truth. If you want to be free from the Omnipotent Baby you can "self," if you're still running from shadows, if you're tired of wearing different masks, if you're still afraid that no one would love you if they knew you, if you're in the hands of a demon named "ism," give it up now! Turn to God. Quit harboring the illusion that you will be free if you just run fast enough. If you want to be free from "self," come to Jesus, who said, "If you are weary and heavy laden, come to me... and I will give you rest"... for "My yoke is easy and my burden is light."
      Buying more things will only weigh you down. Committing more sins will only add to your burden. Turn to Jesus. After all, as he bled and died, he understood that freedom is the costliest thing on earth... and in heaven! Amen.