presbyopia
There are times when we look through the lens of time only to realize that some of our memories are faded like old black and white photos in our box of mementos. As we age, not only does our memory begin to deteriorate, but as Shakespeare once wrote in his “Seven Ages of Man” - sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything (from As You Like It)
The physical visual condition that causes our inability to focus sharply because of loss of elasticity of the eye’s lens is a condition known as Presbyopia. If you are middle aged, you will need to possibly consider reading glasses and yes, your eyesight with deteriorate with aging. The Greek presbys simply means “old man” and presbyteros meaning “priest or elder” are the origins of the word.
I recently listened to a sermon by Tim Dilena who shared that we need to “open the eyes of our hearts” to those around us. When we see others through our mortal eyes, we have a distorted picture of what a person is really like. When we look through God’s eyes, we can see others as frail human beings that need love, just like we do.
In our Christian walk, there are many times when the lines of our faith are fuzzy, dull or unfocused. We are living in a world when culture can often define our way of living, our attitudes and sometimes even our beliefs. We have lost our first love like the church of Ephesus. Jesus encouraged them to find that fire again and continue where they were doing well. We can see, but we need to hone in on areas that will increase our faith. Sardis and Laodicea, another two of the seven churches of Revelation, were told to find their passion for Jesus again and open their hearts to him. But how? There are numerous biblical principles, examples and parables to guide us, but maybe today, one could start with a single verse:
Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. 1 Peter 3:8
crazy
I was recently given a book by a friend entitled “The Paradoxical Commandments” by Kent M. Keith. The crazy thing is that he published the book over twenty years ago and yet still today, his work is relevant. His words have been used by Mother Teresa, teachers throughout America and used as a theme to graduating classes at universities. He penned the words in the hope that people would find personal meaning in a crazy world.
Interestingly enough, many of his statements are mirrors of what the bible tells us about how to live in a world that is counterculture. Here they are:
People are illogical, unreasonable and self-centered. Love them anyway.
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives. Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway.
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable. Be honest and frank anyway.
The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds. Think big anyway.
People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs. Fight for a few underdogs anyway.
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight. Build anyway.
People really need help but may attack you if you do help them. Help people anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you’ll get kicked in the teeth. Give the world the best you have anyway.
And so, the author shares that if we work to bring hope and meaning to each day, our impact will be powerful and be long-lasting. Jesus tells us that if we find life in Him, there is hope for the future, the present and even from the past. God transforms us, loves us, gives us a purpose and redeems us. So, as believers, our hope is solid - good for eternity. The Word - the bible is relevant to today and crazy as it is - it has humanity’s story - from the beginning of time in Genesis to the end in Revelation. It’s worth the read!
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 1 Peter 1:3-5
apricate
Have you ever watched a dog or cat, circling round a ray of sunlight shining through a window? They are looking to find a warm spot and curl up with eyes closed to bask in the warmth of the sun rays. Many of us long to find that spot on the beach or that blanket on the lawn; that place by the lake where we can enjoy the sunshine. The Latin term meaning to bask in the sunshine is apricate.
There is just something about the light, the warmth and rays of sun that stimulate our entire immune system. Emitting vitamin D and waves of warmth do something to us emotionally, physically and spiritually. But what happens when that sunlight is shielded and obscured?
Have you ever looked up in the sky and seen a variation of lines running across the sky in various patterns? There are some scientists and “experts” who will tell you that “they” are trying to control “climate warming”. Perhaps that should be a red flag to wave and refer to this geoengineering as “climate warning” instead. Recenly I watched a video called “The Dimming” that explains exactly what is going on and why we should perhaps be more aware that the sunlight we are getting is not so safe, regardless of solar flares and cancer causing rays. It’s worth a watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rf78rEAJvhY
I do know that when God creates His new kingdom on earth, there will be no more need of sun or moon. I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. Revelation 21:22-27
Those born again spiritually will have their name in the Lamb’s book of life. What a glorious hope we have in Jesus. Imagine eternity! Have you given Jesus your life and surrendered all to Him? It can be yours too!
metanoia
The world is shifting, tilting, off kilter and yet so many people are living vicariously, dangerously and oblivious to what is truthfully happening in the spiritual realms and in some cases, in the world. And yet, many of us, as believers, know that these are times for putting on our armour to do battle with the enemy and fight on our knees in prayer. When I refer to the fundamental shift of how a person sees something, I am talking about metanoia.
As believers, God requires complete metanoia from us; believing in God’s truth, living our faith and not just paying lip service by saying we are religious. It’s not good enough to say we are a “good person” or “I believe in God.” Even the demons believe that!
“Repeat a lie often enough and it becomes the truth”, is a law of propaganda and sometimes known as the “illustion of truth” which was evident during the Nazi regime. In our daily lives, misleading others by “telling the truth” has actually been developed into a new term that phychologists use called: paltering. Almost twenty years ago, Bella De Paulo, a researcher found that the average person lies at least once or twice a day. Some lies were kind, such as telling another person their haircut looked good, when they really thought differently. Many lies were told so often that people quit noticing they were lying. It is difficult to spot a misleading "fact", so when we hear something that sounds true, we tend to believe it.
Satan, the devil, is the king of liars and even though it might seem easier to lie than tell the truth, consequences could ensue. We continue to struggle with this temptation. Lying often leads to mistrust, hurts and even more lies. Be warned: if you hear a fact that doesn’t sound right, use discernment and trust your intiuition because what you might think is the truth, may be deceptive. See things differently.
The Lord detests lying lips,
but he delights in people who are trustworthy. Proverbs 12:22
drift
I know that for those of us living in Canada, we have experienced snow; not to mention growing up on the prairies and watching the drifts blow across the roofs, the streets and our roadways. But I’m not speaking about the cold recesses of winter winds and rivets of snow covering the earth. I’m referring to the drifting away from God. And there are lots of ways we do it.
As we “float along” on the daily sea of life, things are good when the water isn’t turbulant and we are anchored in the harbor. But when our eyes stray from the shore and we look beyond that vast expanse of water, we can be mezmorized and out of our element on the open sea.
I remember a time in Mexico when I was floating on my boogie board and relaxing as the waves lulled me and I basked in the sun oblivious to the fact that when I sat up to check my bearings, I was no where near my towel site! I had drifted away without even realizing it.
As Christian believers, we are in this world, often drifting along as we get caught up in the currents of our culture, but we need to be anchored to our faith in God. We spend time being sure of that because our spiritual lives are secure and depend on it. When we end up in the storm, in a world that is out of our spiritual element, we need to pay closer attention to who and what we are anchored to. When we get tossed about with the wind and the waves - the latest trends, politics or news; we know that we can hold to something solid. When we become lackadaisical and not caring about our spiritual health, we can drift off course so easily.
And so what do we do to stop ourselves from floating aimlessly on a sea of doubt or fear? What are some ways that we can be sure not to drift away in our faith?
Stay anchored to the Word for one. Daily reading of scripture gets us into God’s Word. Secondly, stay connected to the direct line of prayer to God. He hears each prayer and He knows our wants and needs and is able to do more than we can imagine. Finally, hold fast to the anchor of our faith - Jesus. He is truly the Way, the Truth and the Life. No man comes to the Father but through Him. To have Him as our friend and Savior; to have a personal relationship with Him, and to know that He loves us despite anything we have done is security. Anchor your soul.
We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek. Hebrews 6:19-20
obdurate
Out here in the forest, the trees are just shedding the last of their garments; the river has slowed to a trickle and the mountains in the distance are showing first signs of winter white. The peace surrounds us and wraps her arms around us. We long to stay in the silence, the moments of solidarity. It’s devotional time with arms spread wide to encompass the magnitude of God’s beauty and love.
Dr. Martin Shaw recently shared the story of a religious man named Kevin during the Lent season. Kevin was alone in contemplation and prayer with occasional visits to the forest. One day, he stretched his arm out the window when a blackbird landed on his outstretched hand. It was so content that it made a nest and laid eggs there. The world would say, “shake the bird off” but the mystic in us says, “what an opportunity to connect.” This is us. Two internals doing battle.
Kevin took the later choice which required patience and discomfort. He didn’t raise a fist, curse the bird or even complain. Kevin kept his arm outstretched until the chicks were hatched and ready to fly from the nest. Martin asks:
What have I kept my hand outstretched for? How many times have I snapped it shut? Withdrawn? Never once in my life have I felt saintly. You can draw this story with only a few words, but the depth and endurance of it keeps unfolding. Let’s hold the story in our palm like Kevin holds the blackbird, the simplicity and challenge of it. The blackbird was maybe God saying hello.
Jesus longs for us to place our hands in His - to give Him our very life. When the world tells us to grab for the goods and horde our experiences, all our “stuff” and even things that we cling to that are slowly destroying us, the Divine is beckoning us; calling us, “Come.” His voice is there - in the silence, in the middle of the night when I am cozy and curled in my comfort. I step from the darkness into the sound, light and life as He takes my hand and leads me.
When I am obdurate, stubbornly refusing to change my opinion or course of action, He gently guides me, is patient and waits for me to fly from my comfortable nest and open my arms to Him.
Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. Luke 9:23-26