Praise be to Jesus,
the Author and the finisher of our faith, who makes all things glorious in His
time and makes all things beautiful in all seasons. He blessed us with a
brilliant week. This past Wednesday our church hosted a community dinner
with some seasonal foods along with amazing desserts followed by a troupe
of Irish Dancers who presented Irish dance and songs. On Saturday
the seniors from our local High School had a mega-Auction at the Civic center
to raise funds for their senior trip to Disney World. The seniors labored
diligently and with a smile. Our community supports the seniors with much
love. They give to them generously. The Senior auction is a fun
event which draws in people of all ages. Saturday evening our church
hosted another dinner event with special foods with dessert galore.
"Simon Peter", one of the beloved disciples, made an appearance
in our church following the dinner reception. Dr James Geer Ph
D personified Simon Peter. The presentation by Dr Geer on the
testimony, faith, struggles, and victories of Simon Peter was stirring and
provocative. The people who attended the presentation were deeply moved
and blessed. Praise the Lord that the Good news of Jesus still has the
power to change and transform lives in such way the dead in sin rise up and
walk in newness if life. The Lord blessed us in His house yesterday in
worship and celebration. The Lord blesses us with a celebrative heart and
joyful spirit.
Alice and I walked for over a mile in the afternoon yesterday. The snow
is melting fast and furiously, making room and space for our Annual Maple
Festival that will be held this coming Saturday and Sunday. As we were
walking we saw birds flying and cheering, carefree and unafraid. The early
Spring flowers that were hidden by the snow are all coming out with a
smile.
We
talked Sunita and her family in Washington, DC. They spent part of
Saturday at the National Arboretum in our Nation's Capital. The
spring flowers are full bloom there. It is also the season of the Cherry
blossoms in Washington, DC. It is all beautiful.
Our
oldest grand children, Micah and Simeon, were in a swim meet in Boston this
past Saturday; they did well.
I
was gazing at our strawberry patch yesterday. The plants look vigorous
and alive. Amazing. One of our friends planted lots of garlic for
us last October. The the garlic is up and luxuriant. Praise the
Lord for the way our Lord makes flowers bloom, plants come to full life,
seeds germinate, come to full life again after being dormant during
the long and lingering period of time.
We
praise the Lord for our friend Al Binder who is celebrating his 90th birthday
this week. Al and his dear wife Evvie accepted Christ while watching
Billy Graham preaching from Madison Square Garden over 60 years ago.
Evvie and Al have walked with the Lord, serving Him all these years with much
joy and zeal. Evvie has gone to be with our Lord Jesus. Al
continues the journey.
During the Lenten Season we walk with Jesus in His humility, Passion, and suffering, culminating in His victory over the grave and death on Resurrection morning. The famous atheist Frederick Nietzsche, who coined the phrase, “God is dead,” once said, “Assert yourself. Care for nothing except yourself. The only vice is weakness and the only virtue is strength. Be strong. Be a superman. The world is yours if you work hard enough for it!” At some point Hitler read Nietzsche and decided to become that “superman,” and we all know how that turned out. Jesus showed a better way when he said, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5). These are two very different, juxtaposed ideas. Although the first words are from an atheist, and the last quote from the teaching of Jesus, it often seems that Christians go by Nietzsche’s philosophy rather than Jesus’ teaching. Many Christians live as though the only virtue is strength. Jesus never talked about strength, but he often spoke of meekness.
I looked up the definition of meekness in the dictionary, and one of the definitions was: “deficient in spirit and courage.” That is not Jesus’ idea of meekness. It is not about being weak, but it is about not reacting with aggressiveness and malice. The other definition I found comes closer. It was, “enduring injury with patience and without resentment.” Patience is not something I am very good at, but I really came up short when I looked up the definition in a Greek-English lexicon which defined meekness as, “gentleness of attitude and behavior, in contrast with harshness in one’s dealings with others.” I’ve never been good at the gentle thing either. That’s not an excuse, but it is a confession.
It is very difficult to imitate the Way of the Cross and the Way of the Lord, but this is also what makes Him so attractive to me. What a challenge to work toward being transformed into the image of Christ. It takes humility and surrender to the will and heart of God on a moment by moment basis. Although we in our humanness tend to value strength and dignity, Jesus values meekness and humility.
I love to read about some the beautiful, winsome traditions of Great Britain. Many Christian Rituals and traditions are so powerful that they transcend time. On Thursday of Holy Week the queen of England presides over the Royal Maundy Thursday Service at Guildford Cathedral. It is a service held each year on the Thursday before Easter, and the British monarch presents gifts of money to the poor. The royal web site says, “The tradition of the Sovereign giving money to the poor dates from the 13th century. The Sovereign also used to give food and clothing (later changed to a gift of money), and even washed the recipients’ feet — this varied from Sovereign to Sovereign, the last Monarch to do so was James II.” It must have been quite a site to see royalty in the humbling posture of foot washing. It is not surprising that this element of the ceremony was dropped several hundred years ago. Although now the Queen would not risk much except her dignity by washing the feet of the poor, in more politically charged times even the smallest display of meekness and humility could place one’s political power in jeopardy. It is unfortunate that we sometimes see meekness as weakness and consider it a disposable quality, but we seldom see power as disposable. The Bible says, “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (Colossians 3:12). This is to be a character quality of Christians because we follow the model of Christ. Jesus said, “I am gentle and humble in heart.”
Meekness means living without fear. I am amazed at Jesus’ ability to live without fear. The Bible says, “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth” (Isaiah 53:7). Meekness comes with a blessing. Jesus said, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5). It is not the strong and powerful or wealthy and famous who inherit the earth; it is the meek. The world knows comparatively little about the life of Herod the Great or Pilate, but it knows a great deal about the life of Jesus, and millions throughout the ages have ordered their lives by his teaching and given him their devotion. Dorothy Sayers, in a book of her essays entitled "The Whimsical Christian", has one essay called “The Greatest Drama Ever Staged,” where she writes, “The people who hanged Christ never, to do them justice, accused him of being a bore — on the contrary, they thought him too dynamic to be safe. It has been left for later generations to muffle up that shattering personality and surround him with an atmosphere of tedium. We have very efficiently pared the claws of the Lion of Judah, certified him ‘meek and mild,’ and recommended him as a fitting household pet for pale curates and pious old ladies.”
The Bible says, “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone” (Hebrews 2:9). This lesson from the life of Jesus says that the meek win and the arrogant and powerful lose. This is heavenly wisdom, but not the worldly way. Meekness is the quiet confidence that God is in control, and there are great rewards in that confidence. We are rewarded with peace.
In Christ our Lord,
Brown.
https://youtu.be/qXggFYQQTJ0
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