Praise the Lord for this brand new day.
It is going to be like summer-like day. I frequently get up by 5:00
AM. The parsonage is located on Main Street so the big trucks and heavy
duty vehicles start roaring by at about 4:30 AM. Then the birds
start singing. I have never used an alarm clock. I just get up
with the singing and serenading birds. Yesterday I drove (more
than just to church or the post office) for the first time after
my surgery. I stopped to see some of the fruit trees I
planted. They are about to burst with blossoms for the year 2016.
The tulips are also about to burst forth with vibrant colors.
Our Lord makes all things beautiful and glorious in His time.
Sunita
and Laureen, who live in Washington, DC, our Nation's capital, conveyed that it
was a sunny day in the city. Our oldest daughter, Janice, spent a
couple days in Washington, DC. She had a marvelous time. She posted
a photo of a flowering tree in full bloom (redbud, perhaps). Alice
and I walked along the streets of town in the evening, just inhaling
the fresh air and gazing at the open skies, vast meadows, and beautiful hills.
We
have been lavished with so much love and grace during these past few
weeks. So many have blanketed us with your fervent prayers before Jesus
our Lord. I visited my doctor yesterday for my regular check up.
She prayed for me and thanked the Lord the healing He has
given. Some church members brought to us local honey, home made
cheese cakes, and eggs from the local farms. Some of our dear friends
gave a substantial and sacrificial monetary gift to defray our costs while we
were in Boston. Some of Alice colleagues sent her home so much exotic
foods on the first and second days she was back at School. It is great to
be loved.
In
1896 a Kansas newspaperman named Charles Sheldon wrote a novel called In His Steps based on an unusual premise: What would it be like if in every
situation we asked, “What would Jesus do?” He described a year in the
life of an American city where everyone in the city—doctors, lawyers,
merchants, salespeople, teachers, students, clergy, and newspaper editors—made
that question the basis for all their decisions. It became an instant
bestseller. Though largely forgotten today, it led directly—many years
and many steps later—to the WWJD bracelets that many people wear.
According
to Peter following Jesus means that sometimes we will suffer even when we have
done nothing wrong. The greatest honor for
any Christian is to be like Jesus. When we suffer unjustly, we share in a tiny portion of
what happened to him. Though he did no wrong, he was betrayed, tried,
denied and crucified. Though he never sinned, he was hated by the power brokers
who plotted to kill him.
Peter
pointed to Jesus and said, “He did not retaliate.” When we are insulted, our natural inclination is to return an
insult for an insult, but
Jesus chose a better way. As the old spiritual puts it, “He never said a
mumblin’ word.” Out of the worst evil, God brought forth the greatest
good. Only God could have done it. “But God demonstrates his own
love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans
5:8). Note the little word “still.” We were “still” sinners when
Christ died for us. He died for us while we were still lost in our sin and far
away from God. T hat’s the truth
about all of us. Christ died
for sinners because it is only sinners that can (and need to) be saved.
Some body aptly coined the phrase: The door to heaven is marked, “For Sinners Only.” If you are a sinner, you can come in. No one else need apply. Christ died so that sinners like you and me could be
saved. Here is God’s call to us today: “‘Come now, let us reason
together,’ says the LORD. ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as
white as snow’” (Isaiah 1:18). Here is God’s promise to those who come by
faith: “the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).
In Christ,
Brown
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