The gift of Burden 

It's almost noon and yet it’s still cool and rainy out here underneath the covered deck. I am amazed at the peace surrounding us. We were told it would be noisy due to the traffic here at the lake; people partying. But it has been so quiet. 

I thought about our pastor last night after watching his Sunday morning message. He was preaching a sermon as Di and I watched online. I was taken back by the picture of him at the podium. He looked drained and measured with his words. Longer than usual pauses between sentences and again, words measured as though he was carefully deciding on the right ones to choose. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him like this. It was as though the weight of the world was weighing him down and he was struggling to get through to the audience; an urgency if you will I hadn’t noticed before. 

This man is a man among men. His example stands like a torch, yet he is humble and funny and always helping someone in need. I would do well to measure up to his image; as much like Christ as I have known in a man before. We all love him with a passionate love and gladly, willingly follow him as our shepherd.  

But this time I wanted to rush up to him and embrace him and tell him, “It will be alright”; not unlike what I have heard him say so many times to others. 

The burdens we take on can certainly be telling. The shoulders droop, the face becomes slightly gaunt, and the eyes look deeply into everything, evaluating and questioning. The measure of responsibility that we are willing to take on will and can bring us down without ‘reinforcement’ coming to our aid.  

I know my Pastor prays and gets answers to those prayers. I know that he is being sustained by a great power that can only come from the Creator. But he is certainly paying the price for his devotion. Not many are that willing to ‘suffer the cost’ in this day and time. Most only want recognition or power or money or all of the above. It’s a good thing he has such a formidable ‘partner’. Her efforts to organize, assemble, preach, sing, and that’s only a few of the things she accomplishes, are full on ‘get down’ all the time. I don’t think I can keep up with her walking. She is across the room by the time I can get up from my chair. 

The two of them are, put mildly, awesome. 

If we had people like this guiding the country, we wouldn’t have the problems we do. Down to earth thinking with guidance and discernment are invaluable traits. Lack of leadership is costing us our freedom in minute increments; little by little eating away at our liberty.  

I listen to the prophets and scholars foretelling the future. One says this, another says that. Who can ‘reason’ the real? When did we get away from ‘hearing from God’ about how to handle things? I’m sure a lot of them are right but to what degree? How do we know who to trust in this Topsy Turvey world where everything is turned upside down, inside out and twisted to fit ‘opinions’ that are directly contrary to God’s laws? 

At this point, I can only add to the ‘rant’. What can I do to change things? Maybe more than we think. By God, we overcome. By God we ‘see’ what to do and by God we succeed. It’s all a matter of putting God first and following the leader into the future with assurance and confidence and ‘the peace that passes all understanding’. 

I began this note with an observation. Maybe I should keep my opinions to myself a little more, but I love the people around me and I don’t want them to suffer needlessly. We sometimes take on more than we should, perhaps, when God is saying ‘leave all your cares with me because I care for you’, all of you. 

This war isn ‘t over. We have ‘miles to go before we sleep’. The way to victory is by way of the cross; the milestone, the ‘marker’ that shows us which way is right. I’m still a novice, I know, but I’m gaining on it. 

It's a beautiful Sunday morning. The sun is just now rising, and the coolness of the morning is a pleasant feeling indeed.

We have come to the lake on a working holiday and things could not be any better. Our little trailer is equipped with all the amenities and the view is spectacular. 

I normally sleep till after 9 and have to drag myself out of bed and to the coffee pot. Not this morning. I felt refreshed and calm. It's very nice. Thank you, Lord.

How often do we get so caught up in the day-to-day activities that we miss the pleasant surroundings and a chance for an encounter with the Creator. I am looking forward to my prayer time for the first time in a long time. Sad to say, right? Although it's hard to admit, I find a bit of satisfaction in confessing my short comings. We all too often try to hide the things we deem unpleasant or embarrassing and try to make our 'profile' a positive picture. However, I think spiritual health is an important component and I am working on my 'profile' a lot more of late.

No one wants to look bad in the eyes of friends and family, or anyone else for that matter, but an honest look in the mirror is in order here and I want to be as candid as possible; clearing the decks so to speak.

"Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." James 5:16

Is confession really good for the soul? I think so. The weight of carrying around a bunch of negative baggage is such an abhorrent picture. I wouldn't wish that on my enemies. We are supposed to be free and happy and filled with all sorts of joy and peace and contentment. That's what God designed in the beginning. Imagine Adam walking with God Himself in the garden of Eden. Things can't get any better than that.

And so, here I am enjoying this terrific cup of fresh ground and contemplating what will happen next. Thank you, Lord. You are so awesome. You have greatly increased my faith these past few days. 

We had been 'waiting' for the answer to a major prayer and for once, I hadn't given up and tossed in the towel. I had stayed with the belief that God would come through and of course He did. How can we doubt Him? His mercy and kindness so outweighs the mundane everyday operations of life. We think so much smaller than He does. Why is that? Over and over again He validates His word and orchestrates the outcomes of millions with the gentle movement of His hand. I marvel.

Take some time to talk to Him today. You will be so much better for the effort. God never misses a chance to bless.

The Truth is always the Truth 

The Truth is always the truth. No matter what else is said or done, the truth will always be the same. A lie will never be the truth; it can’t be. It will always be false in one way or another no matter how it’s displayed or said or implied. 

The evil one uses lies as a starting point in any discussion. If he can sway you with a partial truth, he can manipulate you. The advantage is then on his side, and you become confused because you reason that there is ‘some truth’ in what is being said, so how can I go wrong? However, the problem with that is that the half- truth, or partial truth has a lie imbedded in it, making it a lie and therefore, it can’t be truth. This in and of itself can be confusing but there is a clear point to my offering here.  

I truly believe that most everyone wants to believe the truth, but sadly what is often presented is not always “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth" that comes out of someone’s mouth.  

As I said, “a lie is a lie and always will be. Truth is the truth and always will be.” Logic can cause us to stumble over situations like these and wrestle with the matter until things get frustrating; even maddening. So, discernment is the better road to travel when determining what is truth and what is a lie. 

Example. A friend tells you that he doesn’t have the money he owes you because he hasn’t been paid for a certain job he did. However, you are aware that he just bought something expensive and paid cash. Do you think he lied? Did he have money from somewhere else perhaps? Maybe he had a savings account that he used to save up for the item? After all, this is a ‘friend’ we’re talking about. Friends don’t lie, do they? Your friend promised to pay you as soon as he got some money.  

There are a lot of questions here that have to do with truth. We have to be able to discern the truth and separate it from lies, so that misunderstandings not unlike the example above doesn’t ruin our friendships unnecessarily. Lies can ruin lives altogether if we’re not careful. 

Dianna told me something that sticks with me to this day and has become a staple in my thinking. She said, “If you don’t know the truth you can’t recognize the lie.” It was insight from the Lord she received when she was concentrating on Him and spending time in His presence. 

Our lives are difficult enough without lies entering in and causing hate and mistrust and division. We must surely be on guard for the enemies’ attempts to distract us and divert us from our callings.  

Psalms 14:12 “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, But the end thereof are the ways of death.” 

The lies we tell will always come back to haunt us unless we repent of them and follow after the truth. “You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free”, often comes to mind when I think about truth. This scripture has probably saved millions from a horrible end, but only because they followed the Word’s instruction. 

Seek truth. It will always be truth and it will never deceive you or take you in the wrong direction.