Where are you?

Posted on June 6, 2016 by Margaret

Although traveling has its perks, arriving home is best of all. But there’s one thing that trumps even that: greeting those we love when they’re coming home to us.

Recently I’ve had the joy of making several trips to the airport to collect Birgitta, Emerald, Nelson, Linnea, and baby Nelson (5 months) as they arrived from a variety of places on different days.

Each time while waiting, I scanned the mob of unfamiliar faces, squinting to find those special ones I knew and loved.

And each time, suddenly there they were, emerging from the crowd – my people.

I wonder if that’s how it’ll be when we travel from earth to heaven. None of us knows exactly what that will be like, but leaving familiarity and entering this new realm surely must include at least one nano-second of searching for the face of Jesus.

Scripture tells us that as soon as our souls leave our bodies, those of us who believe in him will be with him. But how will we know which one is him?

Long ago when I was 8 or 9 years old, I remember asking Mom that very question. It was bedtime, and she was kneeling next to me after having prayed. “What does Jesus look like?” I said, having tried to envision him as we talked to him.

“Well,” she said, “he was Jewish, and the Bible says he didn’t have any special look that made him stand out from the crowd. My guess is he had dark hair, brown eyes, and a beard as most men did then. And that’s about all I know.”

Later she read a verse to me from Isaiah: “He… had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.” (53:2)

As a child I found that fascinating, because others in the Bible had been given good looks. For instance, King Saul was “as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel.” (1 Samuel 9:2) But Jesus, who could have created his own body and face to be exceptional in every way, chose instead to make himself plain – nothing special to look at in either form or beauty. So, I wondered, how would I recognize him among the heavenly crowd?

Today I’m still wondering. The marks of crucifixion won’t identify him, because many others died that way and will have similar scars.

So I thought of all my recent trips to the airport. Maybe recognizing Jesus will be much like recognizing my loved ones in a crowd. I know them well enough to identify them anywhere. Maybe as I continue to know Jesus better, I’ll recognize him easily when the time comes.

But even if that doesn’t happen, 1 John 3:2 says, “We know that when Christ appears… we shall see him as he is.” So, just as when I spot my people at the airport, seeing them as they are, I might recognize Jesus the same way.

And if all else fails, I’m confident he knows what I look like, so maybe if he notices my confusion, he’ll simply call out my name and wave me over.

“I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.” (1 Corinthians 13:12)

Preacher Man, Conclusion

Posted on March 12, 2016 by Margaret

As I sat at Derek’s dinner table digesting God’s big surprise (yesterday’s post), he asked me what I thought of Nelson becoming a pastor.

“It’s glorious!” I said, confident that the Lord had been schooling him to this end for a long time. “But how can he be a pastor without being ordained? And how can he be ordained without having gone to seminary?”

Derek’s answer surprised me (God’s Part Two). “You don’t need to go to seminary to become a pastor here. It’s about being the man the church ‘puts forward,’ combined with an interview and ordination process that happens in front of a panel of Baptist pastors working in Hawaii.”

Two weeks later I was sitting in the back of the church as its members discussed the possibility of Nelson becoming their new pastor. Five different people stood and told of their long-ago hope that if Derek ever left, Nelson would step in. When they voted whether or not to extend the call, it was unanimous – and that day they “put forward” the man they wanted as their new pastor.

Two weeks after that, Nelson was sitting in front of six Baptist pastors, answering questions about God’s Word and his own faith. I was privileged to listen in on the process and their discussion afterwards. Once again the vote was unanimous, and they agreed to ordain Nelson the following day.

And what a day it was!

After these same men had preached in their own churches that morning, they and their wives joined us to participate in Nelson’s afternoon ordination service. The charge was given, followed by the pastors encircling our son to pray phenomenal blessings over him as he received Part Two of God’s amazing surprise….

….and I couldn’t help but weep.

As I listened, God gave me a flashback to the days of difficulty Nate and I had had with a youthful Nelson as he made one unwise choice after another. I remembered a teen who ran away from home on a sub-zero night and was missing for four days. I thought of court room episodes, car accidents, alcohol, and a tearful conversation with Nate during which I questioned what would ever become of our wayward son.

As Nelson kneeled in the little sanctuary in the process of being ordained, God gave me the answer. Directly into my heart and mind he said, “During those troubled years when you were looking at Nelson, all you saw was a rebellious kid.

But Me? I saw…. a pastor.”

“I have chosen the way of faithfulness.” (Psalm 119:30)

Roadblocks

Posted on January 22, 2016 by Margaret

As Birgitta continues her Discipleship Training School here in Kona, Hawaii, I continue being Emerald’s nanny. Our adjustments have been legion and continue still. But we have pushed past several roadblocks and feel like we’re making progress.

Our first 4 days at the University of the Nations were a blend of sickness and jet lag. One rocky night found Emerald vomiting seven times, keeping both she and Birgitta scrambling for dry bedding and clothes throughout the night.

Emerald’s flu was complicated by exhaustion and lasted 3 torturous days. We were tired, too, and had all we could do to keep up with laundry as we tried to figure out where to find quarters, a wash machine, and time to use it. We couldn’t bring a vomiting child to the dining area so had to figure out how to buy food for the room. It was 4 days before I got a sip of coffee.

During that time I, for one, forgot how to have a normal conversation and could only speak in questions: How do I get into the front gate? Why is there no way to close the room door without getting locked out? Can I have a second key? How might I get one? Where do I collect mail? Is it true we can use bowls and spoons left behind by others? Where are they? Can I take books from the library? How do I get a library card? Is there a preschool playgroup on campus? Would Emerald qualify? How far is the walk to town? What stores are available?

But now, after 15 days, the 3 of us have learned a handbook-full of new things as friendly folks on campus have given us the answers we craved. And at long last we are beginning to feel at home in this beautiful, tropical place full of people who love the Lord. Emerald is healthy, and jet lag is history.

Birgitta, as the only mother in her group, has had to adjust to being “odd-man-out” in that regard. Merging Emerald into class sessions, prayer meetings, and worship gatherings has been only moderately successful so far, but that’s why I’m here, at least for now – to pick up the slack.

But we aren’t the only ones struggling with a new start. Everyone comes to such challenges again and again through life. Despite a burst of enthusiasm at the beginning, before long we wonder if we made the wrong decision. Looking back to our previous normal tempts us to quit when things get hard. But then what do we do if we feel God led us to make the change in the first place? Quitting seems like questioning his wisdom.

We don’t have to look very far to get God’s advice on this. He says we’re to blast through every roadblock that gets in the way of doing what he’s assigned us to do. (Hebrews 12:1) This will not only please him but will lead to a good end-result.

It’s taken 15 days, but today we three are beginning to see the results of persevering. Though we still have questions, following God’s advice is our best option.