He is risen! greetings from s.e. pa. we had an especially good Good Friday service last night. we, as humans, normally don't think of physical death as good and much in life takes shape based on that outlook. conversely we are either totally unaware of or, if aware, dismissive of the reality of spiritual death, that is being separated from God...at physical death, eternally. strange that we should exercise so much thought about remaining physically alive in this living hell called earth, thinking it somehow good, while unconcerned about forever being separated from God (the only real good). so it is truly GOOD friday on which He allowed Himself to be abused, taunted, ridiculed, despised, rejected, beaten and killed...all for me.
i write on saturday because tomorrow, being resurrection day, the library is closed and i am thus barred from communicating with you at that time. well...eddie after seven years and eight months rode off into the sunset yesterday morning to live in harrisonburg, va to take care of his aging parents who have increasing physical difficulties. we have prayed many times together and apart that God would lead him rightly and now He has. eddie has a peace which he has not had for a while. it will be great for the whole situation. WHAT A BLESSING! maybe he will even meet the one God has for him to love and marry. we will see.
have made some progress this week at 54. God provided a means, via jim greiser's truck to get a load of horse manure which i trust will be a blessing. was able to finish chopping out the stump in the front yard, extended the wall of the raised garden out about a foot or so and, in so doing, made the slate pieces straight again, turned and mulched the soil with the manure and planted,indoors, basil, tomatoes and peppers and outdoors about six different vegetables which i got through heirloomseedsacres.com. i also started to dig out the old broken water line that drains into the front street. today God has given a beautiful soaking rain to start things off. i had ordered an irrigation system from the same place but have not received it yet so i'll have to check on that. i hope to make some progress on unearthing the pipe this week. we'll see what God has in store. thursday evening i go to the poconos with jim yothers for a wild at heart conference. there is a bit of dissonance here in that i'm not much for what i perceive as rah-rah events, but felt led to go with jim...i don't have any clear reason why but am looking to the Lord to guide and use this time in some way for good.
shared last week a bit of what i have been experiencing as far as focus. an article by marvin olasky also helped me see myself a bit better. he writes, 'the parable of the prodigal son should have a plural in its name: sons. we all know of the younger brother's libertine living, but the elder brother has a more subtle problem: he is self-righteous and lacks joy.
part of the evangelical political problem in contemporary america is that much of the press and public sees us as elder brothers. sometimes we are that way in reaction to younger bothers. sometimes younger brothers go their way in reaction to us.
in higher education, younger brother colleges are party schools that profer sex and stimulants. some christian colleges try to avoid that by imposing tight rules in elder brother fashion. those rules may lead to external conformity rather than deep belief. both younger brother and elder brother colleges divert students from learning more about God.
in journalism, younger brother magaqines ranging from rolling stone to people sell a continuation of younger brother college life. elder brother reporters tend to be self -righteious fault-finders - and it' always someone else's fault. elder brother journalism lacks love compassion and a sense that all of us are in this mess together. christian publications that look only at sin among secularists can also be elder brothers.
in the realm of social justice', younger brothers want governmental redistribution so that evedryone, regardless of conduct, gets part of the national inheritance. some recipients of washington's largesse are widows and orphans, but others are younger brothers or sisters who should go home, but do not because government checks allow them to keep destroying themselves. elder brothers though, wax sarcastic about wastrels while they overlook the needy...the gay rights debate is another younger vs. elder brother combat zone. while covering manhattan's annual humongous gay pride parade, i didn't see any lip-locks except when the marchers observed a dozen souls from a church waving Bibles and screaming at them, 'you're going to hell, sodomite' or 'you're an abomination in the sight of God'. the presence of elder brothers allowed younger brothers to feel self-righteous..ironically, ranting reminders about sin provided the opportunity to forget about sin.
younger brothers who perceive self-righteousness or joylessness in their elders head toward mockery. on the comedy network, jon stewart is a snarkyh younger brother and stephen colbert pretends to be an elder as he parodies fox's tut-tutting bill o'reilly. elder brothers tend to forget that truth without love is like sodium with chloride: poison, not salt. what's rare on tv and in life are third brothers who, because they know deeply that the Father loves them, have love for and patience with both elder and youger brothers. third brothers, knowing they have been forgiven, are not prideful.
a third brother christian college helps students to see that all peple are made in the image of God and all people are sinners. because of that, beauty show up where we expect banality and evil emerges where we anticipate excellence...students become bilingual and bicultural, able to move in both christian and secular circles without ignoring the problems of the former or the knowledge generated in the latter, through common grace.
third brother journalism rises out of the history lecture in chapter seven of the book of acts: stephen, with neither an elder brother's pridefulness nor a younger brother's sarcasm, realistically emphasized the fallenness of his people and the holiness of God. he does not seek life's meaning in the formation of or adherence to a man-made religion that sets up a code of morality. third brother politics is also different. the founders fought for both liberty and virtue. elder brothers tend to forget the former, younger brothers the latter. third brothers know that we can never have enough laws to banish sin. they tell the truth, but do not rant at abortionists and gay rights activists. they control their tongues and lungs not because killing babies and killing marriage is right but because their goal is to change hearts. third brothers ask pointed questions and here are ones for each of us to answer. am i a younger, elder or third brother? can we through god's grace leave behind elder and younger brotherism?
i am much like the man, healed of blindness, when asked of Jesus, ' how do you see? , said, 'i see men as trees walking'. the man knew he had a problem but he still couldn't see correctly. may God have mercy on me and heal me in this area so i can see correctly. right now i am 180 degrees away from what david said in psalm 131 and, if honest, would write, 'oh Lord, my heart is proud and my eyes are haughty. i involve myself in great matters and in things too difficult for me. i have not composed and quieted my soul. a weaned child rests against his mother. my soul is not like a weaned child within me. my only consolation is that i am in some little degree of misery over this rather than totally blind to it. everything i think and do, it seems, these days is judged as self-righteous by the conscience.
i am a bit, but not yet enough, like those in psalm 107 of whom it is said, 'there were those who dwelt in darkness and in the shadow of death, prisoners in misery and chains, because they had rebelled against the words of God and spurned the counsel of the Most High. therefore He humbled their heart with labor. they stumbled and there was none to help. then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble. He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke their bands apart. let them give thanks to the Lord for His loving kindness and for His wonders to the sons of men! for He has shattered gates of bronze and cut bars of iron asunder'. my prayer is that You would have mercy on me and forgive me and help me be the way i should.
the spring is beautiful. the daffodils are in full bloom, shirley's hiacinths are lovely and there are those single threadlike wisps full of tiny purple blossoms. the birds are singing and hopping about the lawn. no matter how bleak life can look at times to a manic-depressive personality, yet God, in His signature-kindness provides little hints on every side that He knows all, has everything in hand and ALL IS WELL... if only they can be seen. thank You Lord. open my eyes that i may see, glimpses of truth Thou hast for me. place in my hand the wonderful key, that shall unclasp and set me free. silently now i wait for Thee, (make me) ready my God Thy will to see. open my eyes. illumine me, Spirit divine.
hope you have a good week. love, dad
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