Our Fortress

Our Fortress

“God is our refuge and strength,
   an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
   and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
   and the mountains quake with their surging.

The LORD Almighty is with us;
   the God of Jacob is our fortress.”

(Psalm 46 vs. 1-3 & 7)

            Folks, there certain beliefs that were instilled in me by my dad who was an engineer. His thoughts were reinforced by many of my instructors at engineering school. One of them was that engineers are not writers because we think in numbers and theorems. Everything in an engineer’s life is parallel or perpendicular to something! They do not teach us in geometry that the prettiest distance between two points is a curved line!

Today’s message is do not believe that stuff. Good news friend and spiritual mentor of mine, George from Minneapolis wrote the following poem. He is an engineer. Remember the punch line.

Psalm Forty-Six

By George Ewing

With the rising sun God starts our day

We check our schedules and are on our way

In our hearts we may feel a twinge or a prod

Be still, and know I am God!

As we look to those with lives in doubt

Many homes are lost and families shut out

We bring them in with a prayer and a nod

Be still, and know that I am God!

The phony games of life we choose to play

We do not seek to know God’s will for our day

Strange voices about Jesus may seem very odd

Be still, and know that I am God!

Now as I kneel down before the cross

Has life passed by leaving me at a loss

Then Jesus’ arms pick me up from the sod

Be still, and know that I am God!

Thought for Today: God is our rock, our fortress and our love.

Prayer for Today: Today Lord we give thanks to people like George, the contributions they make to our lives by helping us to remember You.

Amen

Patriot's Day in America!

Tomorrow is Patriot’s Day in Boston. There will be a marathon and sad memories of two young mid-easterners with bombs. My focus is not on the bombers, it is on the 120^th Boston marathon and our future,

 Patriots Day

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run,

but only one gets the prize?

Run in such a way as to get the prize.

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.

They do it to get a crown that will not last,

but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.”

(1 Corinthians 9 vs. 24& 25)

            Growing up in Boston we celebrated Patriots day. That gave me two choices to write about today; Paul Revere’s ride or the Boston Marathon. There is a similarity and it is not direction!

            The marathon involves over 30,000 participants, one lady and one male will make a six figure pay check and be declared winners. As many as twenty others will receive appearance money and have a good pay day. The majority will receive personal gratification, be the recipient of a great engine for their body from their training and recognition for a great effort. That is all they want. They do it out of the passion that endurance runners have and the feeling of accomplishment.

            In 2013 two young terrorists interrupted things a bit at the finish line. That was a sad day for all involved and it infuriated Americans and the free world. It pointed out to us that there is a world war in process and that somehow we need to function normally through it. There are 32,000 registrants today doing just that!

            In 1775, Paul Revere and William Dawes raced out of Boston with a message that the British were moving out. Their message to the people of greater Boston was the call to arms. Unfortunately, Paul did not get very far because he was picked up in west Cambridge by a British patrol. However he did get the poem named for him, I guess William Dawes did not rhyme as well! They were both on a mission to benefit humanity, both were unselfish and both are American heroes.

            I talk a lot about being fit; in spirit mind and body. Life is not a sprint. It is a marathon. We need to race it and live it with our eye on the ultimate prize that is promised through our faith.

Thought for Today: For today let us focus on our race for the prize. Let’s take a step closer to perfection.

Prayer for Today: Dear Lord today we pray for the safety and success of the many runners in Boston. May they be blessed with fitness and great memories.

Amen

Happy Landing

Happy Landing

“Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because,

having stood the test,

that person will receive the crown of life

that the Lord has promised to those who love him.”

(James 1 vs. 12)

            Perseverance is life, we need to persevere in many ways and the easiest way is through meditation, prayer and having the faith that the Lord will bring us through our lives. We all hope for an easy life without illness or discomfort; always having a job; a life partner to share things with; and the list goes on. In other words, we want to be born to live happily ever after!

            If we were we would not build character or learn. As I write this in beautiful Minnesota, we are in the nearing the end of what has been a record breaking warm winter. However, it is not letting go and we cannot seem to locate spring.

            We will get through it and when spring comes it will be later than usual and appreciated more. It is a good example of how trials in our lives cause growth and appreciation of the good times. In the instance of our Minnesota weather, in 1974 when we relocated here our real estate agent talked about our beautiful summers and said they were worth the wait. Praise be to God, we need help this year!

            There is a church that I drive by that posts a weekly slogan that describes it very well. I do not know the author but it said something like “Life is not about having a bumpy flight. It is about having a smooth landing!” We need to keep our faith to persevere on our bumpy ride. The best part will be the landing!

Thought for Today: Today will be the first day of the rest of our lives. Let us be spiritual and use it well.

Prayer for Today: Dear Father, we are experiencing a very bumpy ride. We have concerns about money, pollution violence and more. Today we give thanks for having the spirit and will to get through it all so that we may experience the landing. 

Security!

This was written in 2011 right after a police action on the highway that was visible from my window. I thought of it after reading a report about street violence in America in yesterday’s paper. People are shooting each other at record rates in our cities.

Security?

"The Lord Almighty is with us;

 the God of Jacob is our fortress."

Psalm 46:7

            Recently while writing, a news flash can across my computer screen that there was a shootout on a local highway that had shut down the road. So what, I am here safe in my home. Well, I live within a half mile of the spot and they had put all the local schools on lock down until the situation was resolved. I did not feel very secure at all.

            When a crime or event like this occurs in "our neighborhood", we ask "How could this happen here?"  The truth is that tragedy and violence can happen anywhere. None of us is immune. June and I have said for years that anything can happen at any time. We are always wary when we travel but not so wary when we are at home.

            The author of the 23rd Psalm wrote these familiar words, "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me." The psalmist does not say that we will not have to walk through the darkest valley or that evil does not exist. Rather, the psalmist reminds us that we need not fear or be overwhelmed because God is present with us at all times and in all places. God will see us through. The ground and content of our hope is the promise that nothing in all creation can separate us from God's love.

            Real security cannot come from walls and fences; real security comes from having a relationship with God.

Thought for Today: Today let us feel secure in our faith, our neighborhood and in all of our relationships.

Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father, when the foundations of our lives are shaken, hold us close to you and remind us that you will never leave or forsake us. You alone are our hope and security.

Amen. 

Character

Character

“Now all has been heard;
   here is the conclusion of the matter:
… keep his commandments,
   for this is the duty of all mankind.”

(Ecclesiastes 12 vs. 13)

            What a wonderful world it would be! We are all aware of the rules and will have a chance to break them daily, weekly etc. Temptation is always around and I frankly succumb to it too often. I guess each morning I need to pray “Dear Lord, for today I pray to be perfect.” No coveting, jealousies, anger, aggressiveness toward others (that must mean complete stops at the stop signs!). Ok, when I am done writing this I will try again!

            There are only ten rules to obey for a great life and a great world. Most of us try, many of us fail. That’s why we go to church on Sunday and pray daily. Somehow we end the day wishing we were better- that we were perfect.

            Each day we strive for perfection; that is we try to build character. We attend church and pray and that generates spiritual growth. Building character is slightly different, but parallels it. The closer we are to the spirit, the easier it is to have that perfect character we all desire.

            Persistence is the word, perfection is the goal. Pray daily, obey the commandments daily and life will be good. Never give up being the best you can be.

Thoughts for Today: For today let us be aware of the commandments in all of our activities. 

Prayer for Today: Dear Lord and father today we give thanks for our wonderful lives and the hope we have for the future through our belief in Jesus. For today we pray for the strength and judgment to be obedient and of the highest character.

Amen

New Beginnings

This post is very personal!

New Beginnings

"This is a day of new beginnings.
time to remember and move on,
time to believe what love is bringing,
laying to rest the pain that's gone."

"Christ is alive and goes before us,
to show and share what love can do,
this is a day of new beginnings;
our God is making all things new."
(This is a day of New Beginnings; Vs 1 & 4;
Words: Brian Wren, 1978; Methodist Hymnal No. 383)

            Those of you that have known me long enough understand that on March 21, 1977 my family and I started a true "New Beginning". That was the year of treatment for alcohol abuse and the adoption of the slogan "This is the first day of the rest of your life". They supported me as did my friends and business associates. Each year I am reminded that through faith and friendship there is a good life. I thank all of you that have been my friends and associates since then.

            The story of recovery is repeated in our society every day with the grace of God ever present in the process. Often as Christians we see a need and get a chance to help. One of the beauties of being Christian is the act of helping.

Thought for Today: Today we will be out in the world interacting with friends and business associates. We may see a need to help. Many people will back away. Let us recognize needs in others and step forward with God's support and offer the Christian assistance that is needed.

Prayer for Today: This week the serenity Prayer:

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can,
and the wisdom to know the difference.

Blessings to you and your family!
Bob

Capacity to Love

Capacity to Love

“See what great love the Father has lavished on us,

that we should be called children of God!

And that is what we are!”

(1 John 3 vs. 1)

            Are we made in His image? Are we the children of God? When we are trudging along through life it is often hard to think of ourselves like either of those. First we are taught to be humble so if I am in God’s image or God like, am I being arrogant? That’s a challenge. To be a child of God seems more acceptable to me, it least it cannot be interpreted as me claiming holiness. To me these are conundrums and part of the mystery.

            So here is where I KNOW we are like GOD. When my first child was born it amazed me how much love I felt in my heart. She, Karen, meant more to me than anything I had ever experienced. It was unbelievably good.

            When my wife was pregnant with my second child I was anxious. It was impossible for me to believe that I could feel the same way. My fear was that there would never be enough love in my heart; at least certainly not to the same extreme!

            Guess what, there was plenty there; and for the third and the fourth child, the first grandchild and through the ninth grandchild. Back to the two questions- the answer is yes. We are told of God’s never ending capacity to love and in that sense we have the same capacity.

            The word is “Love your neighbor as yourself” and we have the God given capacity to do it!

Thought for Today: This week let us recognize our capacity to love, care and respect everyone we come we contact and meet.

Prayer for Today: Dear Lord, we have love in our hearts that you have shared with us. Today we pray that everyone can find this love and that we can take a step forward to world peace.

Amen