Sleep, Peace, and Lions

[1]

Psalm 4:8 King James Version

⁸ I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for Thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.

 

I love the majestic English of the King James Version of the Bible, don’t you? I read Psalm 4 this morning, and it reminded me of an incident in our Tanzanian experience and also of Rose, our fearless leader, who assigned us the prompt: “Write about the blessings you have in your life.” During this NaNoWriMo month, I am trying to whip my Ikizu Memoirs into final or at least semi-final form. I am on chapter 53 of 58 planned chapters. Sylvia is my editor, and she recently sent me chapter 41 entitled Lion Encounter.

On Sunday night we were camping with our group in the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Serengeti National Park. In our tent we had our one-year-old daughter and the three Conway children, too. I awoke in the predawn to the sound of something dropping onto the roof of our tent. Deciding it must be a small branch from the tree we had pitched under, I turned over to go back to sleep. Suddenly, George’s shout: “Get out of here!” from the next tent, shocked me into action. Grabbing a flashlight, I jumped up and raced to the door of the tent, unzipped it, and shone the flashlight out into the darkness.

I stopped dead. Frozen. Not ten feet were the shining eyes of two lions staring back at me. There was nothing between me and two lions! They lay between me and the campfire. Time stretched out. The lions watched me but made no move. I remained still. Slowly, I swung the light of the flashlight in a wider arc. There were at least seven lions around our campfire, staring at me. Their eyes roved a bit to my right. There was George, clad only in his briefs, standing frozen in his doorway—and more lions.

I yelled to wake up the others in the group. Two teenagers sleeping in an old Land Rover looked out their windows. They started the Land Rover, and it backfired into action. All the noise was disturbing the lions’ tranquility. Slowly they got up and stretched. Regally, thirteen lions filed out of our campsite. There was no hurry, no obvious fear in their attitude, maybe only a bit of disgust.

No one got any more sleep. When daylight arrived and we got up to eat breakfast, on the roof of our tent we found two dusty lion footprints. Conversation centered around whether or not the lions were hungry. Two or three miles down the track towards the park headquarters in Seronera, we came upon our thirteen lions, busily polishing off two Thompson Gazelles. That ended the discussion about the lions’ lack of hunger.

This morning, my gratitude extends from not being devoured by lions then to an almost complete Ikizu Memoir now. Rejoice with me!

How grateful we are, Lord, that we can lie down and sleep because of the assurance that You make us dwell in safety.

 

 

 

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[1] https://www.instagram.com/elmarvn/p/CqPs67XKbTg/

Dog Walking and Terror

 

[1]

Psalm 4:8 American Standard Version (ASV)

⁸ In peace will I both lay me down and sleep; For thou, Jehovah, alone makest me dwell in safety.

Cleo, our German shepherd-Labrador mix, and I had a routine that we went through every night. If I forgot one thing, she refused to do the next thing. When it was bedtime, she got restless. She sighed heavily, then came over and lay down where ever I was sitting. Finally, I’d take the hint and go to the coat closet and fetch her leash, a small flashlight, and a plastic bag for her indiscretions. Then we walked across the street and out into the desert beyond.

The desert is always solitary and indeed deserted. The city lights are ever close, so our stroll was never in the deep darkness of the desert a long way beyond us. But enough stars are actually visible to make out the constellations. The planets do indeed wander through the background of stars beyond. At the time, Saturn was bright in the sky and had been sneaking up on Spica for several months.

Often coyotes were singing to the moon all around us. On occasion we even saw one watching us boldly or slinking slyly away. Cleo was a bit larger than even the largest coyotes, and she has a great love of chasing them. I would slip her leash loose and watch her eagerly give chase. She was far too old and fat and slow to get too close. But she loved it, and the coyotes seem to love it, too. As they got to a “safe” distance, they would stop, turn around, and watch her, sort of egging her on.

One time, years before Cleo was born, I was walking Brenna, another of our line of dogs, when a woman appeared from the south with a couple dogs in tow. She was surprised or even shocked by my appearance. Our dogs were on leash, so there was no potential dog fighting.

“Oh! I’m terribly sorry. I promise I’ll never come out here again!” She was overcome with fear.

“Don’t worry,” I answered. “You’re not doing anything wrong and certainly in no danger. I like to walk my dog here, too.”

“Please let me go!” she pleaded. In her terror, she continued verbally groveling, making very little sense in what she said.

I was surprised by her attitude. I, an old man, was certainly not threatening her. I was at least twenty yards from her when she saw me and was not even walking towards her, let alone pursuing her. That she lived in fear was evident in everything she said and in every movement she made. She turned and hastened back towards the houses and streets.

Thank You, Lord, for a feeling of safety and that every night we both lie down and sleep.

 

 

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[1] https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse1.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP._6oRDiZBYfh4V7VuUe_VIAHaEb%26pid%3DApi&f=1&ipt=67572bdf60898b97f1494ba51058ec7f616bc3670dd0efaa2216ac2d1c5e8393&ipo=images

Do Not Forgive!

 

[1]

John 20: 23 Good News Translation

³ If you forgive people's sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

 

For 27 years I worked with a man who remembered every mistake or imagined mistake I had ever made and freely reminded me of all of them every time he took me to task about another imagined transgression. He often spent 40 minutes and more recounting everything I had done, or he had at least accused me of doing. At times I would leave the office, blood pressure sky high, shaking with rage. I began to fear that I would die of a heart attack from his merciless accusations.

In the Lord’s prayer He admonishes us, 

“Forgive us the wrongs we have done,
              as we forgive the wrongs that others have done to us[2].”

Then He elaborates on this, lest people think that by giving us the power to forgive or to retain people’s sins we actually have the power to save or condemn them. Instead, He is pronouncing judgement on the person who refuses to forgive. He makes that crystal clear in his caveat immediately following the prayer:

“If you forgive others the wrongs they have done to you, your Father in heaven will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive the wrongs you have done.”[3]

Throughout the centuries the Christian church has chosen to not forgive people their sins and to torture them mercilessly, even burning them alive or locking them in foul dungeons for years. Its leaders have claimed that Christ gave them that power in John 20:23. They have ignored Christ’s statement about not forgiving those who are unforgiving—those who abuse that power.

And now, the rest of the story of my merciless accuser. I started seriously praying for the salvation of my accuser. As time went by, he left off his accusations and became my strong supporter. I didn’t realize it at the time, but by praying for his welfare, I was indeed forgiving him for his accusations. This resulted in my having a much more tranquil, healthy, and productive life. Christ never did say, “You don’t need to forgive them!” in spite of the accompanying picture.

Dear heavenly Father, give me the grace to forgive others.

 

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[1] https://rockchurchfargo.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/You-dont-need-to-forgive-them.jpg

[2] Matthew 6:12 GNT

[3] Matthew 6:14, 15 GNT

I Will Always Keep You Safe

Isaiah 46:4 Contemporary English Version

⁴ I will still be the same
when you are old and gray,
    and I will take care of you.
I created you. I will carry you
    and always keep you safe.

 

It is Sylvia’s birthday today as I write this. She loves the Lord. She has always loved the Lord. When I got disillusioned and was ready to throw out the baby with the bathwater, she still clung to the Lord. Growing up she aspired to be a missionary to Africa, to the islands, to Asia, to South America, no matter. We ended up going to Tanzania in Africa. When it came time to leave Africa, she resisted until the Lord almost had to chase her out.

Two of her babies were born in Africa. Numerous times her first daughter nearly died of malaria there, but our great God took care of both her and the child He gave her.

She had placenta previa when her second daughter was born, and she praised the Lord that He placed her in the greatest hospital in Iowa. He had her up and walking the next day.

Later South African Airways tried to ban her from flying because she was with child. They were heartless and anxious to destroy her by abandoning her in the big city of Paris. However, God carried her and kept her safe. He forced SAA to abandon their malicious attempt.

When she was “old and gray,” she fell some thirty feet down a rock face, broke seven bones, and gashed open her head. God sent a helicopter to pick her up and take her to hospital. Again, she was up and walking around the next day.

She was a passenger in a car when an 18-wheel truck T-boned her. In what appeared to be a sudden death situation, God stepped in and slid the car out of the path of the accelerating truck after letting the truck push it sideways for over 50 feet. Insurance totaled the car, but she got out and walked away.

Yes. She had her bout with COVID-19. For ten days she could barely keep either food or water in her stomach. She ran a fever and coughed. God helped modern medicine shake her out of death’s clutches.

Thank You, Lord, for taking care of and keeping Sylvia safe through more than eight decades!

 

Enthusiasm in Worship

 

Habakkuk 2:20 King James Version

²⁰ The Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.

 

The words of this text were stretched in a banner across the front of our church when I was a kid. They were read from the pulpit, and we were urged to exercise reverence before the Lord. Our songs were sung in subdued voices. Only very seldom did someone in the congregation venture a softly spoken, heart-felt “Amen!” There was definitely no running in the sanctuary. The robed choir would sacredly chant these words as they filed somberly in and took their places on the platform.

My grandfather was hard of hearing, so our family always sat on the right-side, front pew. Since Dad was an honored member of the church, his family was expected to behave with perfect decorum. Mom was very cognizant of this expectation and did her very best to make the family live up to the ideal. Yes, we respected the fear of the Lord—and of the razor strap behind the bathroom door at home.

Our salvation was received with solemn acceptance under the realization that it could be withdrawn on the slightest infraction. We trembled lest there be a hidden sin lurking in our past that might be revealed on the day of judgement, and we would be cast into the outer darkness, where all unfortunates cringed weeping, wailing, and gnashing their teeth.

We read, but rejected and ignored, such verses as “You will take up your tambourines and dance joyfully!”[1]  “Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.”[2] “Let them praise his name in the dance: let them sing praises unto him with the timbrel and harp.”[3] “Clap your hands for joy, all peoples! Praise God with loud songs!”[4]   

A visiting week of prayer pastor taught us to sing the following with gusto (* indicates repeat three times):

 

I've got a home in Glory land that (clap) outshines the sun, *
Way beyond the blue.

Do Lord, oh, do Lord, oh, do remember me, *
Way beyond the blue.

 

I took Jesus as my Savior, (clap) you take him too, *
Way beyond the blue.

Do Lord, oh, do Lord, oh, do remember me, *
Way beyond the blue.

 

The next year the song was banned because it had a beat to it, and this caused the youth to move to the music. God forbid!

Was it always this way? “I saw,” wrote Ellen White in 1850, that “singing to the glory of God often drove the enemy, and shouting would beat him back and give us the victory. I saw there was too little glorifying God in Israel and too little childlike simplicity.”[5] In Paris, Maine, in 1850, Ellen White noted: “Sunday the power of God came upon us like a mighty rushing wind. All arose upon their feet and praised God with a loud voice; it was something as it was when the foundation of the house of God was laid. The voice of weeping could not be told from the voice of shouting. It was a triumphant time; all were strengthened and refreshed. I never witnessed such a powerful time before.”[6] Ron Graybill noted these and many more instances in his article “Enthusiasm in Early Adventist Worship” in the October 1991 issue of “Ministry Magazine.”[7]

John the revelator reported on Christ’s reaction to lukewarm religion: “Because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I am going to spit you out of my mouth!”[8]

Dear Lord, build a fire under us and send us forth with an enthusiasm that will ignite the earth!

 

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[1] Jeremiah 31:4 GNT

[2] Psalm 32: 11 KJV

[3] Psalm 149:3 KJV

[4] Psalm 47:1 GNT

[5] Ellen G. White to Arabella Hastings, Aug. 4,
1850 (letter 8, 1850).

[6] Ellen G. White to The Church in Brother
Hastings' House, Nov. 7, 1850 (letter 28, 1850)

[7] https://www.ministrymagazine.org/archive/1991/10/enthusiasm-in-early-adventist-worship

[8] Revelation 3:16 GNT

Toy Trains

 

[1]

[2]

 

Ezekiel 37:5 Good News Translation

⁵ Tell them that I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying to them: I am going to put breath into you and bring you back to life.

 

 

The first few thoughts that flowed through my waking brain this morning were the words of the last verse of Amazing Grace. As I remember it, it goes--

When we’ve been there ten thousand years
            Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise,
            Than when we first begun.

 The vision of Revelation of the 24 elders sitting in a circle around God’s throne and continually throwing themselves face down on the ground and praising Him in vivid poetry flashed through my mind. I confess to not being inspired to an eternity of that nature. But then other things raced through my mind.

I have always been intrigued by languages. I listened to a series of 34 lectures by a Great Courses professor entitled Language Families of the World. He described the various classes of some 7,000 languages spoken in the world today and their unbelievably different ways of expressing ordinary thoughts. I’ve dabbled in over 10 of them. I would love to spend time exploring them all. The words of my thesis advisor came to mind, “I only have one life to live!”

As I tackled graduate mathematics, I found myself at the bottom of a vast quantity of knowledge surrounding me in every direction. I recognized that I had to forge my way through this in one direction until I reached its fringe. Then I pushed outwards and added a new bubble to it. What this did was open an even more vast array of unknowns to explore. I then had even more questions I wished to answer. The more we know, the more we realize how much more there is to discover. My curiosity is endless.

As a child I longed to have an electric train. We were much too poor to even consider buying one. I discovered a little shop in Bulawayo that had a delightful array of electric trains. I could stand there for hours and imagine what I could do with them. On one of our trips, Sylvia and I discovered a farm in southern Wisconsin where a farmer had a whole barn filled with trains and tracks. His wife showed us around, ran a bunch of the trains for us. When she left, she turned the power off, and all the trains stopped and sat there, dead, until she would provide them power again.

Life is like that barn of trains. The huge array of life thrives around the world. All of it depends on external power. When that “power” is cut off, life ceases. Everything lies there in obvious readiness to spring into action. Life is like that barn, and in some ways, God is like that woman in the barn. As long as God provides that elusive spark of life, it roars on; otherwise, nothing—desolation. We need the Sovereign Lord to put breath back into the dead bones.

Lord, thank You for Your constant supply of breath and life and the glorious promise it holds for our future.

 

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[1] https://www.scenicpathways.com/toy-train-barn-argyle-wisconsin/

[2] https://www.travelwisconsin.com/museums-history/toy-train-barn-198829

Woman Snake Enmity

 

 

 

Genesis 3:15

Good News Translation

[God said to the snake] ¹⁵ I will make you and the woman hate each other; her offspring and yours will always be enemies. Her offspring will crush your head, and you will bite her offspring's heel.”

 

From across the street, Shirley came breathlessly into our house yesterday. I was in my office in the back of the house. All I could hear was impassioned conversation between Shirley and Sylvia. Finally, curious, I walked into the front room. Shirley described how her grown son, Ivan, who was on his way out the door, said: “Be careful when you walk out into the backyard. There’s a rattlesnake out there.”

“Well, aren’t you going to do something?” she asked in half panic.

“Nah,” He drawled, “Just be careful where you walk,” and he was out the door.

Shirley told me she placed a tub over the snake and came over to our house. Her breath was short, and her whole demeanor radiated distress!

Rattlesnakes live in the hills around our neighborhood. Katie and I find them occasionally. I have taught her to beware of them and give them wide berth. She can sense a bit of alarm and warning in my demeanor when I see the snake. I do fear that she will try and protect me by rushing in and attacking the snake—which would be a fatal move on her part. So far, she has yielded to my commands. I don’t kill the snakes in the hills—I feel that they serve a purpose in keeping the vermin down. And I sense that I am in their territory. But when they come into our area, they are out of line. I have been instrumental in getting those snakes killed. All my neighbors concur with this decision.

“Is it in the open?” I knew what I had to do.

“It’s under the tub! Oh. I’m scared!” she shivered, “What can we do?”

“Give me a minute!” and I walked towards the back door.

“What are you going to do?” she was desperate and figured I was doing like Ivan and leaving her to it.

“I’m going to fetch a spade,” I said matter-of-factly.

“He’s going to kill the snake!” Sylvia had no doubts. She has lived with me long enough to understand me.

Shirley led me around to the back of her house. There I saw a little red plastic tub lying upside down in the mowed grass. I looked at Shirley, “You’re brave to have done that! Good for you!”

I stuck the blade of the spade under the edge of the tub and flipped it. A large western red diamondback rattlesnake immediately began to take up attack mode. The first thing I noticed was that it had no rattles. The snake moved rapidly, and my first strike hit it about a foot down from its head, breaking its back. It’s wide-open mouth, fangs protruding, struck the spade. My second strike severed the head from the body, leaving it hanging by only a bit of skin.

“Wow! You’re so brave,” Shirley cooed, “Now what are we going to do?”

“Do you have a bag?”

She brought a plastic garbage bag stuck in a large paper bag and stuck it in a cardboard box. She placed this on the ground nearby and made sure the garbage bag was wide open. I picked up the snake by its rattle less tail and dropped it into the bag, tied it shut, and placed it in her garbage bin. I’ve heard that in some parts of the U.S., rattlesnakes are evolving into rattle less rattlesnakes. This has me concerned because rattlesnakes have always warned those who approach of their presence by their rattles. If that happens around here, it will make hiking in the desert more dangerous.

Satan, the old serpent, has been attempting to camouflage his presence, even getting the more gullible to deny his very existence. In this way they are not prepared for his attacks.

Preserve us, Lord, from the devil and save us from sin, so we will be ready for Your soon return.

 

 

Feet That Bring Good Tidings

 

[1]

 

[1]

 

Nahum 1:15 King James Version

¹⁵ Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace!

 

We have had well over a week of three-digit temperatures (over 40ºC). At night it seldom gets down to 80º (27ºC). When it does, I can consider turning on the whole-house fan to bring fresh, cool air into the house. However, lately it has been too hot even at 4 o’clock in the morning.

The other morning, I went into the back yard. Hundreds of little clouds curdled the sky. It indicated another hot day, but right then it was pleasantly warm. Early dawn turned the hills and trees around me into dark silhouettes. The clouds reflected the city lights and were almost glowing. I watched, enchanted, to see if I could make out a star in the dark lacey background. Nothing!

After five minutes or so, I caught the faint glitter of a star. The star watcher in me chided me for not bring my phone with its Sky Map App. It would have suggested which star I was seeing. The star played hide-and-seek amongst the cloud-curdled sky. Then a second star joined the first one in a dance among the clouds. With patience I watched the dance until two or more stars joined in.

Clearly what I was seeing was the constellation of Orion. Adventists have long taught that Christ’s return would come through the “open space” in Orion.

Standing there in the pleasant early morning stillness, I sensed the feet of him who was bringing good tidings of peace. This was a far cry from the morning news of war, rampant crime, dirty politics, human trafficking, and runaway inflation.

Lord, we eagerly await your soon return!

 

 

[1] https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51915359715_47f8ed32dd_b.jpg

Midnight Answer

 

[1]

Psalm 84:12 Contemporary English Version

¹² Lord God All-Powerful, you bless everyone, who trusts you.

 

Two Canadian students, Sarah and Nolan, told me they wanted to write a historical novel about my mother. Intrigued, I consulted with them over a period of three months or so last year. This summer when Sylvia and I drove east on vacation, I decided I’d like to meet them while we were out there. They both seemed excited by the prospect. While back in Michigan, I tried to set up a time to see them. Over a period of a week or more, I got more and more frustrated because I couldn’t work something out for the convenience of the three of us. I found it impossible to get hold of Nolan by phone. I was discouraged beyond measure.

On Saturday evening, June 22, we were at Sylvia’s cousin’s home in Oswego, Illinois. After walking their dog Munchkin around the block, we retired to our room. We chatted about what we should do next, wondering seriously if the Lord didn’t want us to see them and decided to lay out a fleece. At 8:12 p.m. CDT, I sent Nolan a text: “Nolan, as you know we are planning to be in Canada soon, and we would love to see you. Please call me on WhatsApp or regular cell phone or text me so we can finish laying our plans.”

We decided that if he didn’t call or text, we would know the Lord didn’t want us to stop and see them. We went to bed and to sleep. At 12:45 a.m. CDT, my phone jarred me awake. It was Nolan. We chatted for 18 minutes. During the conversation I asked him to arrange for a meeting with him and Sarah, together or separately. I would arrange my trip to be there at the time or times he arranged.

Relief and peace flooded me. I lay back on the bed and laughed for the next 20 minutes while Sylvia slept the sleep of the just. My mind went through the experience of Abraham and Sarah, when they laughed at the news that they were going to have a baby boy—Abraham 100 years old and Sarah 90! I laughed because of God, who doesn’t sleep, arranged the call so quickly and in the middle of the night.

 

Remember the events? In Genesis 17 God tells Abram he is going to have a son through Sarai and changes both of their names. “Abraham bowed with his face to the ground and thought, ‘I am almost 100 years old. How can I become a father? And Sarah is 90. How can she have a child?’ So he started laughing” (Genesis 17:17 GNT).

Then in Genesis 18, God visits Abraham’s camp on His way to Sodom, and again He announces that the couple will have a son. Sarah is inside the tent listening to the conversation. “So, Sarah laughed to herself and said, ‘Now that I am old and worn out, can I still enjoy sex? And besides, my husband is old too.’

“Then the Lord asked Abraham, ‘Why did Sarah laugh and say, “Can I really have a child when I am so old?”’…

“Because Sarah was afraid, she denied it. ‘I didn't laugh,’ she said.

“‘Yes, you did,’ He replied. ‘You laughed.’”  (Genesis 18: 12-15 GNT)

The encounter impressed them so much they named their son Isaac, which is Hebrew for “He will laugh!”

 

We all agreed to meet at the St. Thomas SDA Church On June 29, 2024. This was also the church’s 125^th anniversary celebration, so it was crowded. We not only had the privilege of meeting Nolan, a third-year student at university, and his family—parents, and sister—but also Sarah and family—parents, two sisters and four brothers. Sarah narrated a video history of the St. Thomas Church. We gained a rich blessing from the faith of both families. Now we look forward to reading their book.

 

Dear Lord, thank You for Your personal intervention in our affairs when we need Your wisdom!

 

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[1] https://www.facebook.com/stthomassda/

Why Coso Junction Rest Area?

[1]

Proverbs 3:6 King James Version

⁶ In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

 

We had planned to take a trip to the north during this month of August. Sylvia has a brother who lives in Washington, and I have three cousins there. Besides that, we have a number of relatives and friends along the way. We laid out an itinerary and phoned the people we planned to visit. Remarkably, they were all going to be home and welcomed us to stop with them.

We debated whether to take our Ford F150 pickup or our Kia Forte sedan. Sylvia was anxious to take the car—it is very comfortable and interfaces well with our phones, and gas mileage is at least a factor of two better than the pickup. I love the car, but for traveling purposes I love the F150. We have a cap on the back and a comfortable bed that is always ready for us to just climb into. We can park it anywhere, and that becomes our home! One night a couple weeks ago, in our Forte, we pushed the seats back and stretched out to see if we could sleep in the Forte. Sylvia did pretty well; I finally drifted off to sleep about 2:00 a.m. The Forte trunk size is ample so that we don’t need to place any of our luggage on the back seat. That way we could stretch out the front seats without having to find room for the baggage behind them. We agreed to take the Forte.

When I rolled out of bed Monday morning, August 5, the day of our planned departure, I said to the Lord, “You know that I haven’t really talked to You about this trip. Bless us on the highway! Speak through us as we talk with our loved ones in route. May we be a blessing to them.” Then I thought a bit and prayed further, “If You want us to not take this trip, let us know. If you want us to see other people on the trip that I don’t have on our itinerary, we’ll gladly adjust our itinerary.” This increased my confidence as we packed the car, dropped off Katie with our son Fred and his wife Uni and their big dog Oso, and headed north.

The day was hot, about 105º F (40º C), as we filled up with gas and headed up the Cajon Pass and then north on US 395—dubbed locally as the Suicide Highway. By the time we reached the summit of the pass, the temperature had also risen to 114º F (45º C). The Forte has a much better A/C than the F150, and it ate up the miles while keeping us in comfort. Well past the suicide part of the highway, we came to the Coso Junction Rest Area. We stopped for the bathrooms. We usually walk around the rest areas to get a bit of exercise but didn’t here; it was still 111º. We had pulled out our map and were examining it when my phone rang.

 It was my ENT specialist, Dr de Jager: “I’ve just gotten one of your lab reports. You’ve got Staphylococcus Aureus. It has probably coupled with your MRSA. You need to get to the emergency room.”

“I’m 168 miles (270 km) away from home in the middle of the Mojave Desert.” As I said it, I remembered the prayer of the morning.

“Well, I feel that it is very important that you get attention right away. Find a hospital or urgent care nearby and go to the ER.”

Almost the closest was Riverside Community Hospital at home. If I was going to be hospitalized, I wanted it to be near home. It was 5:00 p.m. We turned around and headed home. I was exhausted and asked Sylvia to drive for a while. Sensing the urgency, she headed down the road at break neck speed. After about 50 miles of that, I traded places with her and headed home as though we were just traveling normally. It was 9:00 p.m. when we pulled into the hospital, and they threatened to admit me. Around 2:00 a.m. they gave me a script and told me to go home.

The net result is that we have postponed our trip north—indefinitely. By the next day I was feeling significantly worse and am happy that the Lord indicated what He wanted us to do.

Thank You, Lord, for taking an active part in my life. Now I pray that You will help me lick this disease.

 

 

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[1] At Coso Junction CA. The Sierra Nevada Mountains on the left have Mt. Whitney, Highest point in the lower 48 states; https://igx.4sqi.net/img/general/600x600/2226492_O7xexnk_dUZWCf9iIyKR_BeU1OLTSmFE3gJkUPpMQmM.jpg

Our Father in Heaven

[1]

Matthew 6:9 Common English Bible

⁹ Pray like this: Our Father who is in heaven, uphold the holiness of your name.

 

Our church uses a liturgical style worship in its 9:00 service, following loosely the Revised Common Lectionary. The actual liturgies are written locally by people who gently try to correct some of the perceived Adventist departures from common modern norms. For example, the Adventist church has prayed the Lord’s Prayer publicly in unison for a long time—certainly as long as I can remember. It has always used the words found in the King Jame version of Matthew 6: 9-13

“Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. …”

At one point I learned that in twentieth century English the word “which” is usually used for animals and inanimate objects and “who” is used for persons, so I unilaterally switched to “who” when I pray the Lord’s Prayer, but I never promoted it generally:

“Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. …”

But then as “thee” and “thou” fell into disuse, the NKJV has it as

“Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. …”

However, in our liturgical service, I don’t remember adopting that version. In our service our pastors tried to switch everything possible to gender neutral. Longstanding terms for God such as “Lord” and “King” were dropped and replaced by the gender-neutral term “God”. In fact, masculine pronouns like “He,” and “Him” were replaced by never using a pronoun for God, even though the English sounds uncomfortable. There were a number of persons who tried using “She” and “Her” on an equal basis with “He” and “Him.” But that never caught on.

Several people expressed strong resistance to the use of “Father.” Some went so far as to indicate that they had experienced a terrible father who abused them continuously while they were growing up. They stated categorically that they would not be a Christian if they had to use “Father” when referring to God. All agreed that they couldn’t use “parent:” it just didn’t cut it.

After a protracted church board meeting at which I was not present, our liturgy appeared with the first part of the Lord’s Prayer:

“Our holy Guardian God, hallowed be Your name. …”

Using “Guardian” instead of “Father” really sounds awful to me. I get mental images of the whole foster parenting situation where guardians have abused their foster children. I also get images of a prison situation where prisoners are guarded in a cruel and heartless manner. It totally erases the loving care that many fathers have had for their children—some notable exceptions are inevitable in a sinful world. However, Jesus chose to use “Father” in His prayer and throughout His ministry. He was more aware of men who have abused their fatherly position than we are; yet He used “Father” consistently. 

I mentioned my feelings about “Father,” to both our head pastor and the current writer of the liturgies. I was politely ignored and dismissed. When I am liturgist, I consistently replace “Guardian” with the word “Gracious”. It’s not that my choice is superior to theirs: it isn’t. It just relieves me from using the offending term without disrupting the service. No one has mentioned noticing it so far.

Heavenly Father, thank You for ignoring our petty feelings and foibles and exercising true fatherly love and grace in Your dealings with us. May Your kingdom come soon.

 

 

 

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[1] https://www.quotationof.com/heavenly-father.html

Son of Man

 

[1]

 

 

John 6:27 Common English Bible

²⁷ Don’t work for the food that doesn’t last but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Human One^[a] will give you. God the Father has confirmed him as his agent to give life.”

 

Our Adventist church uses a liturgical style worship in it’s 9:00 service, following loosely the Revised Common Lectionary[2]. I attend this service regularly and have the privilege of reading the liturgy at least once in most months of the year. I value the experience and gain a personal blessing and try to make the reading a blessing for those who hear me. The actual liturgies are written locally, which often gently try to correct some of the perceived Adventist departures from common modern norms. For example, the Adventist Church official policy is to only ordain males to be pastors. So our current liturgies try to encourage us to think in a gender neutral manner.

On Sabbath, August 3, 2024 the gospel reading for the day was John 6:24-35. The liturgist chose to read it from the Common English Bible (CEB) version. Most English versions, in fact all of English versions on the Bible Gateway website, except the CEB, read “Son of Man,” the name which Christ tended to call Himself. The CEB, which I quote above, tries to be gender neutral and translates the name as “Human One.” Because most people will not recognize this appellation, it gives a marginal reading at “[a]” as the “Son of Man.” I knew it sounded strange to my ear when he read it.

My personal feeling is that this steals the intended meaning of the text, in order to appease a fanatical element in the church. This turns our attention away from Jesus’s intended meaning of His Mission as Messiah to that of gender equality issues. The Adventist mission is to prepare the world for the Second Advent of Christ and Sabbath sanctity and the end of the Great Controversy—the Universal Climax to the eradication of sin and Satan. Gender inequality is an unfortunate result of Satan’s rebellion against Christ. It has societal importance, and Satan is using it to direct our attention away from our divinely assigned mission.

Lord please keep our attention on what You have assigned us to accomplish in these last days of earth’s history.

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[1] https://www.google.com/search?q=gender+inequality+images&oq=GEner+inequality+ima&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCQgBEAAYDRiABDIGCAAQRRg5MgkIARAAGA0YgAQyCQgCEAAYDRiABDIJCAMQABgNGIAEMgkIBBAAGA0YgAQyCQgFEAAYDRiABDIJCAYQABgNGIAEMggIBxAAGBYYHjIICAgQABgWGB4yCAgJEAAYFhge0gEKMjE4ODFqMGoxNagCCLACAQ&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#vhid=ZTJdnZU4eonWHM&vssid=l

[2] See the Wikipedia entry at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revised_Common_Lectionary

The Jack Blanco Story

 

 

Nehemiah 8:10 Good News Translation

¹⁰ Now go home and have a feast. Share your food and wine with those who don't have enough. Today is holy to our Lord, so don't be sad. The joy that the Lord gives you will make you strong.”

 

Last Sabbath Sylvia and I watched “The Jack Blanco Story; It’s All About Jesus[1]”. Jack’s father ran away from his mother before he was born. She returned to Germany where Jack was forced into Hitler’s labor camps. He escaped at least twice and was rejected by his grandfather whom he had been staying with. He served in the US Air Force in Guam where he accepted Christ as his savior. Later he entered the ministry of the Seventh-day Adventist church. At one point in his ministry, he served as the head of the Theology Department at Solusi University.

While documenting his service at Solusi, the DVD zooms in on one of the graves[2] in the Missionary Cemetery on the Solusi campus. That grave is my mother’s grave, and I include a picture of the gravestone with this blog[3]. It shows me kneeling at her grave with three of her grandchildren around me. She died on Easter Sunday while serving at the university in 1974—just six weeks prior to her retirement from 40 years of service in Africa.

Pastor Blanco served the Lord in many places around the world. The documentary describes how he decided to improve his devotion time by making his own paraphrase of the Bible, verse by verse. His purpose was to convey his understanding of what the Bibe writers were saying in modern English that modern speakers of English could relate to. It was also to deepen his own devotions. He published his paraphrase in 2004 under the title The Clear Word. The documentary mentions that the first book of the Bible he paraphrased was Mark.

Eugene H. Peterson started publishing selections of his paraphrase, The Message, in 1993 and published the whole work in 2002. His purpose was to make the Bible accessible to modern teenagers.

I started paraphrasing the Bible on October 11, 2023, about the same time I had my first stroke, although I don’t believe there was any connection between the two events. I was inspired to try this after listening to the testimony of the Bible translators working under the training of Wycliffe Associates. Many of the translators expressed the deep spiritual discernment they experienced during the translation process. I decided, that I didn’t know any language that didn’t have a Bible translation, nor did I know any other language well enough to even consider translating into it. So, I decided to translate/paraphrase parts of the Bible into English. I have found that doing so makes Christ’s life come alive for me. I, too, started with the shortest gospel. I recommend that you try it. My technique is to get five versions of the text up on Biblegateway.com—usually the KJV, GNT HCSB, and CEV, plus the SBL Greek version (purely for my curiosity). I read the text in the various English translations and then go over what I read and, without looking at the source texts, write my thoughts down. Then I examine my version and compare it with the source text. I make sure that my version has all of the parts of the original and conveys what I understand to be the mood of the verse.

Doing this increases my understanding of the text. As I think about it, the text becomes real to me. I heartily encourage you to examine your own devotions. If you feel something is lacking, maybe try paraphrasing what the text you are reading says.

Thank You, Lord, for Your Word that You have given us to learn more about You. Bless me and others as we study it.

 

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[1] Review and Herald Publishing Association 2014. A DVD documenting the life of Jack Blanco.

[2] The scene occurs at the position 1:12:37 on the DVD

[3] The Grave of Esther Muira Clarke. The picture was taken on August 31, 2023 while we were visiting places where she served in Africa.