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The sun was just coming up. The motorcycle cop turned on his flashing lights and followed the red pickup that ran through a stop sign. As he pulled up behind the slowing truck, he thought, “This guy is probably late for work.” Little did he know that this man had just robbed an all-night grocery store. The driver had his nervous hand on his gun, thinking, “the cop already knows.” The officer approached the driver’s side of the pickup and said, “Good morning sir. May I see your…” He didn’t get to finish the sentence. The driver stuck his arm out the window, the barrel of his gun two inches from the center of the officer’s chest. He was knocked to the ground seven feet away. For a moment, all was silent. Then, to the horror of the gunman, the officer stood up. He brushed himself off, then realized what had happened, drew his own revolver and fired two shots into the side of the pickup. One shattered the windshield. The other ripped into the robber’s leg. “Don’t shoot” he screamed, throwing his gun and money out the window.” How did it happen? The officer was saved because he was wearing his Kevlar vest. Only 3/8 of an inch thick, this Kevlar fabric layered together is strong enough to stop a bullet.

A few months later, another officer went to serve a search warrant on a well known drug dealer. As his partner knocked on the door, he yelled “Police” and started to kick down the door. From inside the apartment four slugs were fired through the door. One hit him the same place the motorcycle cop had been hit, right in the center of his chest. The bullet ruptured an artery and he died in less than a minute. He was 27 years old. He left behind a wife, three children, and a Kevlar bullet proof vest in the trunk of his car parked 30 feet from where he was shot.

Police officers believe in bullet proof vests. They work. It would be hard to find a cop that does not believe those vests save lives. But that is not enough. An officer must do more that believe in the vests. He must live out that belief. There must be personal commitment. He must be willing to wear that vest at all times.

The same is true for those who express faith in Jesus. We must live out that faith, taking it with us in every aspect of our lives. We dare not leave it behind as though we do not always need our Savior. If Christ does not go with you, you leave yourselves wide open to the attacks of the Devil, the World and your own corrupt nature. But if you clothe yourself with Christ, you are protected. Put on the risen Christ every day of your life. Let Him be the one that guides and directs and influences everything you say from this point onward.

A few years ago, someone shared with me a list of the “Top Ten Statements Your Pastor Would Like to Hear.” I modified and updated it a bit and share it with you now:

10. There is nothing that inspires me and strengthens my commitment to the Church like attending a Voter’s Meeting.

9. I was so enthralled by your sermon I didn’t even notice it was 20 minutes longer than usual

8. Personally, I find sharing my faith much more enjoyable than golf or fishing.

7. I wish our pastor wouldn’t spend so much time in the office!

6. Pastor, I’ve decided to give the church the $500 a month I used to spend on the Home Shopping Network.

5. I volunteer to be the permanent Sunday School Teacher for the Junior High Class. When can I start?

4. Your last Bible Class was great! When does the next one start?

3. I love it when we sing hymns and songs we’ve never sung before!

2. Pastor, we want to send you to that Bible seminar they are holding in Hawaii. You and your wife pack your bags.

1, Hey, it’s my turn to sit in the front pew!

Truth be told, I don’t want you to worry about what the Pastor wants to hear. Don’t worry about what your family and friends and coworkers want to hear. Ask yourself “What does Jesus want to hear?”

I asked that question over the years to those who were being confirmed in their faith. They would publicly say they believed in Jesus as their Savior from sin, that they would be faithful to Him, that they wanted Him to be the Lord and Master of their lives. That is exactly what Jesus wants to hear! And He wants us to strive to live in keeping with that declaration.

Lord Jesus, help us remember that You have already paid the price for our sins and earned our forgiveness. Help us to live according the promises we made in our confirmation vows. Forgive us for the times we fall short, and give us the joy of living in keeping with your will for us. Help us to match our actions to what we profess to believe.

 James Taylor sings a song that tells us to “Shower the people you love with love.” That sounds well and good, but it might also be understood in a wrong way, namely only loving the people who love you.  Jesus spoke about that in Luke 6.

Luke 6:27–36 “But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ lend to ‘sinners,’ expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

Simply loving those who love you is not what Jesus is after. He tells us to do a hard thing: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you. In other words, Jesus wants you to love everyone the way He loves everyone. Not just your family. Not just your friends. Not only those who are kind to you. Everyone. Love everyone completely. Shower EVERYONE with love. Don’t hold back or withhold it from anyone. Be loving to everyone with the kind of love God has shown to you.

As I said, that can be difficult. In fact, it is impossible for us. It goes against our natural tendencies. Some people are unlovable.

• How can you love someone who has hurt you terribly?
• How can you love a child molester?
• How can you love a terrorist who blows up innocent people?

That is tough stuff. What we need to remember is that God loves everyone.  Everyone. And He wants everyone to be saved by believing that Jesus has taken care of sin for us, allowing us to be forgiven for everything we have done wrong.

The Son willingly came to be one of us, to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45), and to be raised on Easter as your way to eternal life. Paul wrote in Ephesians 2: because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions. . .consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household (4-5,19). Shower everyone with love.

You don’t do this in order to be saved. You show God’s love to everyone because you have been saved. Jesus did that for you. You respond by living the life to which Jesus has called you. Shower the people you love – which should be everyone – with love. The love of God in Christ.

Today I am travelling to Colorado to help my daughter’s family move to Texas. That includes my nine-year-old grandson and three-year-old granddaughter! Yesterday I read the news of three nine-year-olds being shot and killed at a school in Nashville, along with three adults. My eyes filled with tears as I prayed for the families impacted by this unspeakable tragedy. And I thought of the words from Jeremiah that are quoted by Matthew in his Gospel:

Jeremiah 31:15 This is what the Lord says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because her children are no more.”

I will hug my children and grandchildren more tightly each time I see them. And the longer I live in this vale of tears, the more I understand and appreciate the lament, “How long, O Lord?”

Psalm 6:3 My soul is in anguish. How long, O Lord, how long?

Psalm 94:2–3 Rise up, O Judge of the earth; pay back to the proud what they deserve. How long will the wicked, O Lord, how long will the wicked be jubilant?

Habakkuk 1:2 How long, O Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, “Violence!” but you do not save?

Revelation 6:10 They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?”

We wonder how long, because we live in a fallen world. But we should remember that we, too, are the ones who are sinning. God could rightly ask, “How long will you continue to be disobedient?” Yes, living in this world of sin in terrible, but we contribute to the awfulness with our failure to follow God’s ways.

That is why we should appreciate just HOW LONG and deep and broad and high God’s love is for us, love that was determined to rescue the world from its deserved fate, love that would open heaven for those who believe in Jesus, love that will not let us go, even in the face of gut-wrenching events like school shootings. I found comfort in God’s promises recounted in this hymn:

Oh, love, how deep, how broad, how high,
Beyond all thought and fantasy,
That God, the son of God, should take
Our mortal form for mortal’s sake!

 For us by wickedness betrayed,
For us, in crown of thorns arrayed,
He bore the shameful cross and death;
For us he gave his dying breath.

 For us he rose from death again;
For us he went on high to reign;
For us he sent his Spirit here
To guide, to strengthen, and to cheer.

 All glory to our Lord and God
For love so deep, so high, so broad;
The Trinity whom we adore
Forever and forevermore.

(Lutheran Service Book #544, stanzas 1,5,6,7)

 Lord, have mercy. And thank you for having had mercy on us.

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

You have probably heard and sung those words: It is well, it is well with my soul. Do those words accurately describe your attitude?  It is not always well with my soul and I know it is not always well with your soul You want your soul to feel well, but it is often in anguish!

A scan of headlines makes it worse. War in Ukraine. Human trafficking here at home. And if the border crisis wasn’t bad enough, throw fentanyl into the mix. Yet it is not just what is happening to others. You have had people gossip and lie about you. You have real problems in your life and family and relationships.  We all struggle with our personal demons. We have good reason to say, “It is NOT well with my soul!” Who wrote that hymn anyway?

In the 1800’s Horatio Spafford was a successful Chicago lawyer, a rich man with many real estate holdings. But wealth is fleeting and the great Chicago fire of 1871 wiped out much of Spafford’s wealth. He and his wife needed to get away and still had sufficient resources for a good vacation, so they planned a trip to Europe. When the time came to set out on their vacation, some last minute business detained Mr. Spafford. He sent his wife and four daughters ahead of him on the S.S. Ville Du Havre. On November 22 disaster struck. The Ville Du Havre was struck by an English ship and sank almost immediately. The four daughters were lost. Only Mrs. Spafford survived from their family. When Horatio sailed across the Atlantic to join his grieving wife, the captain called him to the bridge and reported that they were at the place where the Ville Du Havre had gone down. Can you imagine the feelings? I can’t, but shortly thereafter Spafford wrote his famous words.

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way;  When sorrows, like sea billows, roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul.

Difficult times can prove to be times of special blessing. I’m not suggesting that we should enjoy the difficult times. In such times you are experiencing first-hand your sinful mortality. However, when you’re getting “crucified,” you get a better appreciation for the One who really was crucified. Jesus Christ knows what you go through. He went through that and much more. He took your sins and the sins of those who sin against you, he took all sins upon Himself and paid for them to God. Our Christian faith is knowing that in spite of the problems here on earth, we are promised glory with our Lord in heaven. Someday in glory “God will wipe away every tear our eyes” (Isaiah 25:8; Revelation 7:17). In spite of the cares of this world, it can indeed be well with your soul!

Think about that as you look at the rest of Mr. Spafford’s hymn.

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
A song in the night, oh my soul!

Another powerful Lenten Hymn to guide your thoughts this Sunday.

Stricken, smitten, and afflicted, See Him dying on the tree!
‘Tis the Christ by man rejected; Yes, my soul, ’tis He, ’tis He!
‘Tis the long expected Prophet, David’s Son, yet David’s Lord;
Proofs I see sufficient of it: ‘Tis the true and faithful Word.

Tell me, ye who hear Him groaning, Was there ever grief like His?
Friends thro’ fear His cause disowning, Foes insulting His distress;
Many hands were raised to wound Him, None would interpose to save;
But the deepest stroke that pierced Him Was the stroke that Justice gave.

Ye who think of Him but lightly Nor suppose the evil great
Here may view its nature rightly, Here its guilt may estimate.
Mark the sacrifice appointed, See who bears the awful load;
‘Tis the Word, the Lord’s Anointed, Son of Man and Son of God.

 Here we have a firm foundation, Here the refuge of the lost;
Christ’s the Rock of our salvation, His the name of which we boast.
Lamb of God, for sinners wounded, sacrifice to cancel guilt!
None shall ever be confounded Who on Him their hope have built.

(The Lutheran Hymnal #153)

Our God is an awesome God!

You already know that, I’m sure, but I had more evidence of that in my life this week. My cataract surgery on my left eye, my “good eye,” went very smoothly. The follow-up visit yesterday morning confirmed everything was just as it should be. A lot of healing still needs to take place, but I am grateful to God for the results of the surgery.

Right now, the biggest adjustment for me is that after more than 35 years of being near-sighted, I now see clearly far away but cannot read my computer screen or phone without some help. My right eye needs about a 10x magnification to be able to read, which is impractical, but a 2.5x pair of “readers” is enough to let me read with my left eye. I was told my near vision will improve somewhat over the next month, so we will wait and see (Pun intended).

Thanks for all the prayers. I felt your love and support. When I asked my surgeon if I could pray with him before he started, he said, “I’d love to! In fact, let me say the prayer.” It was wonderful to hear this young man that I have known for most of his life voice his faith and confidence in our loving God and ask His blessing on the procedure.

The day of my surgery I shared part of Psalm 31 with you. I’m sharing a bit more of that Psalm today, the first 5 verses.

Psalm 31:1-5  1 In you, O LORD, do I take refuge; let me never be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me. 2 Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily! Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me! 3 For you are my rock and my fortress; and for your name’s sake you lead me and guide me; 4 you take me out of the net they have hidden for me, for you are my refuge. 5 Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God. (ESV)

Our awesome God is my Rock and Fortress. I know He has redeemed me from sin and death. I thank him for preserving my physical vision, and I will try to keep my eyes focused on Him.

Scripture speaks of Moses reaching the end of his time here on earth without the disability of poor eyesight.

Deuteronomy 34:7 Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone.

I am not like that. I’m more like the descriptions of Isaac and Eli.

Genesis 27:1 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see…

1 Samuel 3:2 One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see…

Well, I’m not quite that bad, but seven years ago in January I had a torn retina in my left eye and a torn and detached retina in my right eye. It was not the result of an injury, but something hereditary. My father had something very similar happen to him.

My left eye was repaired with non-invasive laser surgery, and has been doing very well. The right eye, however, required more aggressive surgery to repair it. They put a buckle around it, removed the fluid from inside my eye and tried to weld the detached retina back into place with lasers. They then filled the eye with an oil to try to hold everything in place. Another surgery removed the oil, and I was hopeful that would be the end of that. At my next checkup, they discovered a wrinkle in the retina, so I went through everything again. I was closely monitored for many more months, during which time they removed the cataract from my right eye, which was caused by all the surgeries. In November they determined that the retina was still not attached properly, so I went through the entire procedure a third time. They were very aggressive with the laser and finally successful in attaching the retina. Unfortunately, the consequence of all those surgeries is very blurry vision in my right eye, so much so that I cannot see anything other than the big E on the eye chart with that eye. Thankfully, my left eye has enabled me to live a “normal” life.

However, for the last three or four years a cataract has been forming in my left eye. My ophthalmologist is a friend of mine, and has been monitoring it closely. He is known as a top-notch cataract surgeon, but has been putting this off as long as possible. Why? He told me the main risk in cataract surgery is a detached retina. Because I only have one good eye, he didn’t want to do it until it was necessary.

The time has come. My night vision is nothing but starbursts when there are lights. The retina doctor has cleared me for the surgery, which is taking place today.

I’m sharing this with you so that you might offer a prayer for me and those who will be working on me. I have complete confidence in my surgeon. He has already performed cataract surgery on both of Cheryl’s eyes. I will be praying with him today before the surgery. I do so with the assurance that God is the one in control of all this.

A passage I often shared with others as they faced surgery is the one below.

Psalm 31:9–15a Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and my body with grief. My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning; my strength fails because of my affliction, and my bones grow weak. Because of all my enemies, I am the utter contempt of my neighbors; I am a dread to my friends— those who see me on the street flee from me. I am forgotten by them as though I were dead; I have become like broken pottery. For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side; they conspire against me and plot to take my life. But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.” My times are in your hands.

My times are in the hands of the one who lived and suffered and died and rose again for me. He has provided for my greatest need: forgiveness. He has blessed me beyond anything I deserve. I trust Him in all things. I know that I could not be in any better hands.

It may be a few days before I write another devotion.

I have a 4 year old grandson – Simon – that is quite a character. He has the ability to immerse himself in things totally. He gets a lot of joy out of just being a kid. His wide range of facial expressions crack me up. But he can also be a little pill at times. On a recent trip, we were on a hiking trail with him, his sister and his parents. At one point, he was tired of hiking and started whining, complaining and misbehaving. His dad told the rest of us to go ahead so he and Simon could have a “conversation.”  They caught up to us a few minutes later. Simon was not happy, but was behaving himself better after their “conversation.”

Later that day, at the dinner table, Simon was acting up a bit again, and his dad asked, “Do you and I have to have another conversation?” Simon looked down and said in a whiny voice that was loud enough for everyone to hear, “I hate conversations!”

Can you relate? None of us likes to have our misbehavior pointed out to us. The Law shows us our sin, and we don’t like to hear that we have done wrong. But when we are whining and complaining and misbehaving, we need to have that “conversation” with God. We go astray over and over again. We need the clear word of God’s Law to show us our failures, our shortcomings, our misbehavior. We need to be made conscious of  our sin.

Romans 3:20 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.

Having been convicted of our sin, we can appreciate just how wonderful the Gospel message is. The law prepares us to hear the Good News of Jesus as our Savior.

Romans 3:21–28  But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished—he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.

Lord, thank you for being the loving Father that has the “conversations” with me that I need to hear. Not only do you point out my sin, but you also point out my Savior. Keep my eyes focused on Him. In His name I pray. Amen.

At the worship service I attended yesterday the preacher was in the middle of a sermon series on spiritual disciplines. The topic of the day was prayer. At one point, he said something along the lines of “we should pray in the morning, we should pray in the evening, we should pray at meals…”  When he said that, I had a silly thought. I was reminded of a song made popular by the McGuire sisters the year I was born, Sugartime.

Sugar in the mornin’
Sugar in the evenin’
Sugar at suppertime
Be my little sugar
And love me all the time

Honey in the mornin’
Honey in the evenin’
Honey at suppertime
So be my little honey
And love me all the time

1 Thessalonians 5:17 pray continually

That little love song might be a reminder to talk to our heavenly Father regularly.

Prayin’ in the mornin’
Prayin’ in the evenin’
Prayin’ at suppertime.
Talk to God the Father
Who loves you all the time.

We have the awesome privilege of being able to speak to the one in control of everything with the assurance that He hears and listens to us for Jesus’ sake. He has shown His tremendous love to us by giving His one and only Son to be our Savior and pay for the sins of the world, so that everyone who believes in Him does not hae to perish but can have eternal life. Jesus earned that for everyone, and all who trust His promise receive the benefit of what He did.

In addition, we know He is listening.

1 John 5:14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.

Matthew 21:22 “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”