Dad Returns

 

Every few months or so, I get the urge to watch one of those videos where the dad returns home from war and surprises his kids at school or at some event. For me, they never grow old, and I cry every time. There is just something that touches a human heart in such a moment that it transcends accurate description and one can only respond with tears of joy.

This morning I spent a few minutes watching one of those videos titled “Dad” on YouTube. While each scene has its amazing moment, there is one where a little girl is lightly clapping with her classmates while a soldier walks into the room. Her tiny smile stops, the hands no longer move, her body freezes, and she begins to realize a dream is coming true. This is not just any soldier; this is my dad. Her hands instinctively cover her face as if to make certain she is not dreaming. She then gathers her strength, stands, and runs towards him for the long awaited embrace. In that moment, all of the sleepless nights, unending worries, and terrifying possibilities stop and only pure joy fills the heart.

I don’t always sleep well. I sometimes get out of bed the next morning with trepidation, fearing what the day will bring. There are days I simply struggle to live life and feel like a failure when the sun goes down. Also, I don’t associate well with those who can’t relate to such thoughts, fears, and concerns, and instead, always seem to have life wrapped around their finger.

When I watch those videos, the Holy Spirit reminds me that such a day is coming for those who are eagerly awaiting the Savior’s return (Heb. 9:28). I am that child who keeps looking for his Heavenly Father, I continually search for signs of His return, and I read His love letter to His children; in particular, where He makes a few things vividly clear… “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So encourage each other with these words.” (1 Thes. 4:16-18). Notice the emphasis on Jesus coming and not an ambassador, but Jesus Christ Himself is coming. This tells me that as much as I want to see Him, He wants to be with me even more. I long for His embrace where He wipes those fears, worries, and “what-ifs” away.

Verse eighteen says to encourage the Body of Christ with this truth. So for those who can relate to a weak and weary soul, rest in His unbreakable promise…HE WILL RETURN and wipe your tears never to return to sorrow. Even so, come Lord Jesus (Rev. 22:20)

 

God Doesn’t Make Straight Lines



A few years ago, I went over the handlebars of a bicycle and ripped open my right forearm. The gash was large and deep. Friends rushed me to the emergency room where the doctors stitched me up. Two days later, I had a fever of 103° and uncontrollable shakes. My doctor advised me to get to the ER as fast as possible. As soon as the check in nurse saw my arm, I was rushed ahead of the entire waiting room, and within minutes they had removed my sutures, allowing the poison in my arm to literally flow out, causing the nurse to step back and gasp.

They pushed an IV in my other arm and started me on antibiotics. The head nurse came in and said, “You will be here several days; this is not good.” Over the next three days, I watched the red infection consume my entire arm and progress to my shoulder. They were readying me for an amputation, as they had me on the strongest antibiotics we possess, and it did nothing. As a last resort, hospital staff wheeled me into a dark room where they called in an expert in sonogram reading. White-coated doctors and students filled the room as they used my body as a test case. Five minutes in, this specialist broke the eerie silence and said, “Nurse, take a picture of this. Does everyone see that? God does not make straight lines.” My head spun to catch the man’s eyes. I had never felt such relief. This doctor knew that I had something foreign in my body because God creates beautiful curves. The original doctor had left a one-inch sliver of wood in my arm, and it was killing me. The staff hurried me into surgery and removed this deadly straight line.

As I contemplate my life, I see curve after curve, bend after bend, and what appears to be, detour after detour. I have often considered these diversions as a nuisance keeping me from His purpose. The truth is God does not make straight lines. When one reviews the great men and women of the Bible, you will see that no one had a straight line. Instead, their life is marked with upsets, setbacks, and deviations. God then uses your personal experiences to propel His gospel in a way that no other man, woman, or child could possibly accomplish. You are unique, not so you can make money, become popular, or gain power. No, your life’s path contains curves and bends to spread the gospel to a dead world who desperately cries out for help. Embrace your apparent detour. Study it. Learn from it. And get ready, because God wants to use you, and you alone, to change eternity for a select few. God doesn’t make straight lines, so stop trying and simply rest in His leading, His wisdom, and His purpose. Life becomes more peaceful when we truly rest, knowing His love supersedes our own desires.

40 Minutes with a Buddhist

As I walked through a large wholesale-club today, a vendor offered me a sample of free food. As I accepted the morsel, the man, Jack, asked me what my shirt meant. At that time, I had just left Vacation Bible School and was wearing a t-shirt with the letters VBS on the front. I explained to Jack what VBS meant and asked him if he went to church. He said he was Buddhist and did not attend a church. I politely asked how he came to believe in Buddhism, and he proceeded to talk for the next twenty or so minutes about his three tours of service as a Marine in Vietnam. He believed what we did to them was horrendous. Personally involved in the killing of men, women, children, and pets in several villages, he was horrified by what he had done. But every time he returned to the same village, the people seemed to be fine and happy, despite the atrocities (his words) committed against them. Believing their joy must come from a religion, he began to study their faith and came to believe and follow Buddhism.

After multiple questions I found that he believed the following items: 1. The ultimate goal of all of man is compassion. 2. There is an ultimate and singular truth. 3. All of mankind is gone astray and is evil (he chuckled, women are okay though). 4. Buddha was not a god and never claimed to be. 5. If a god existed it would make sense that he would create a being to live forever and that is why we are reincarnated. 6. Jesus was a Zen master. 7. Jesus was not God and never claimed to be God. 8. The Bible is simply a compilation of what Buddha had already said six hundred years prior to the birth of Jesus.  

It was intriguing and truly a pleasure to listen to Jack for forty minutes. I cannot begin to imagine the depths of evil he witnessed firsthand during a difficult war. I applaud him for seeking truth in a violent time. Jack was well-informed about why he believed what he believed and it was clear he had spent many hours reading relevant material.

Sadly, Jack was able to answer questions about Buddhism far better than many Christians are able to defend the hope that is within them. Worse, the God of the Bible commands for all adherents to study and be ready to defend their faith (I Peter 3:15), Buddhism does not. Are you prepared to ask someone like Jack pertinent questions? Are you capable of intelligently responding to the claims of a Buddhist, Mormon, etc.? If you are not, what will you do different tomorrow to get ready for a close encounter with a Buddhist vendor at your local grocery store?