Our Work and Trust

One of my daughters-in-law that visited during the Christmas holidays is an inspiration and a blessing to me. It’s been over a year now that as she was exercising, she experienced some pain in her upper back and weakness in her right leg. It was caused by a slow growing tumor on her spine that had been there for a number of years. The surgery for its removal was very damaging, causing paralyses in both of her legs. The good news is that it was a benign tumor. She is much disciplined in her professional and personal rehab. She does her part and she has turned the rest over to God.

During her visit this Christmas, she shared with the family in a deep way about her affliction and about how she is dealing with it. While she is intent about doing her part in her recovery, she is aware of the mindset necessary to aid in her full or partial recovery. Her faith is two-fold: She believes that she can get better in doing her part and she has faith in God that His will be done in her life. Whether it is in her and her doctor’s plan or in God’s plan she explains that she needs belief and faith in both plans.

She takes St. Paul’s words seriously as he stated in Romans 15:13, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”

Another aspect of my daughter-in-law’s journey in healing seems more specific to her, but again, it is a two-fold action that includes her and the Lord. She realizes that she must reach out and do things to impact her healing, whether for personal gain or in seeking God in her life. In both instances, she sees a need to give and sacrifice in order to receive benefit and blessing. For her this is true for her part and is needed in seeking God’s help in His part of her healing.

She finds support in Isaiah 40:31 in hearing: “But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”

I have been with my daughter-in-law only a few times during the past year, as we live a good distance apart. I have, however, been able to see marked differences in her progress each time. She has gone from wheelchair only, to a walker, to a cane in these past visits. In this holiday season visit, I have seen a determined young woman take short journeys step by step, inch by inch without the aid of a cane or other device.

I see and hear that although she is doing much of the physical work in her improvement, she still holds to her convictions of a disciplined effort to do her part and trust God in His part in her life. She lives God’s Word through St. Paul in Hebrews 11:1-40: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God.”

My daughter-in-law knows there are no guarantees for her, but she mirrors Psalm 112:7: “He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord.”

Holding the One Who Saves Us – The Gift of Faith

At Christmastide, the celebration of the birth of Jesus, do we have a sense of being rescued? It is hard to think of rescue when for many of us it is a time of receiving and giving gift upon gift. The material smothers any awareness of rescue. The only rescue that we might contemplate is the rescue from an excessive amount of things bought on credit. It is difficult for us to focus on God's gift of rescuing us from the power of darkness through Christ Jesus.

In Paul’s letter to the Colossians 1:9-20 we hear in part: "He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

There is a story in Luke (2:22-40 NRSV) that tells about the baby Jesus being presented to the Lord at the temple in Jerusalem by Mary and Joseph. There was a devout man named Simeon who was guided by the Spirit to come into the temple at this time. As Luke tells us, "It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Messiah." Luke goes on to tell us that when Simeon saw the baby Jesus he, "...took him in his arms and praised God, saying, 'Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples...'"

Simeon truly felt rescued. He had finally seen his Savior and held Him in his arms. Simeon was ready to face death with the knowledge of salvation. Our time on earth is short and we, like Simeon, have the blessing of knowing the Messiah, our Savior, Emmanuel, in our time. Each Christmas it is proper for us to hold the baby Jesus in our arms and give thanks to God for sending His only Son to rescue us from the power of darkness. We are redeemed and forgiven through Christ. The gift of salvation is ours in His kingdom. We may not want to put Him down until next Christmas.

As children of our Lord and Master we have a great inheritance. As does any heir, we have a choice as to what to do with it. At this time of celebration of the birth of Jesus, it is important that we reflect, as St. Paul did in Galatians 3:23-25; 4:4-7, on the reason for Christ's coming and its meaning as our inheritance. Faith is a greater master than the law. If we practice it, faith is our key to God's kingdom.

No worldly ruler can conquer our faith. What a gift God has given us through His Son. It is an inheritance unmatched in the natural world. In John's Gospel (1:1-18 NRSV) in speaking of Christ he says, "From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made him known." John, the baptizer, recognized this as he prepared the way for his cousin Jesus.

When the Holy Spirit came upon Jesus while John was baptizing Him, it was obvious to John that Jesus was without sin. The child that was born in a manger became God's teacher and finally a perfect offering for our sin, as He was without sin. Instead of the law being our guide and master, we have become the heirs of faith in God through Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

This is the Christmas story that we must take with us and live out in the coming year. We have a great inheritance. We must use it wisely. We must love God and one another with our faith at the very center of us. No man can destroy it. It is ours to keep for eternity.

This is what St. Paul tells us in Galatians 3:23-25; 4:4-7. "Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith...But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, 'Abba! Father!' So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God."

Being Blessed by and Blessing God

We humans tend to focus on our own need for blessings from God and don’t usually think about returning the favor and blessing God. The Bible is full of passages that refer to blessing God. It seems that blessing God is a way of praising Him.

God is happy to send His Love and Grace to us at all times. Whether a personal need or a need in our mission as His apostles in the world, God is certainly blessed when we turn to Him and seek His Will in the world. So it seems that in taking His blessing upon us and using it to help Him build His Kingdom, we are blessing Him and praising His name in all the world.

In Psalm 16:7 we hear the psalmist saying, “I bless the Lord who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me.” In blessing God the psalmist is praising Him. The psalmist goes even further in Psalm 103:1in saying, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name!”

Our challenge is in asking the question, how do I get into a relationship with God so that I feel His blessings and I praise and bless Him? How do we begin to feel like the psalmist when he says in Psalm 103:22, “Bless the Lord, all his works, in all places of his dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul!”?

As we know through our experiences in seeking the Lord in our lives, it is difficult to turn our attention to God in all things. We must first recognize how great He is in our lives when we turn to Him as did the psalmist say in Psalm 104:1, “Bless the Lord, O my soul!
    O Lord my God, you are very great!
You are clothed with splendor and majesty,…”

The discipline required of us is essential for reaching out and inviting our Lord and God into our lives in all things. In Proverbs 28:9 we hear, “If one turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination.” We have trouble accepting and relating to each other. This is true also in our relationship with God, but the stakes are very much higher. We must allow the influence of the Gospel of Jesus to mold us and change us so that we can relate to the world through His guidance.

 I have a lifetime friend named Chuck who continues to have full awareness of his role in life even in his retirement years. He recently said, “My life has been a very humble miracle. I have tried to be there for my family and true friends. Amen.” He never quits thinking about how to please, bless and praise the Lord. He mirrors our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in forgiving and accepting all who seek the Lord in their lives and might come to him for help or advice. He is a mentor, a coach and an advocate for the Lord.

St. Paul blessed and praised the Lord. In Ephesians 1:3 he says,  “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places”….. We may think that we don’t deserve the blessings of God because of who we are, but this is a giving up without playing the game.  We don’t expect our favorite football team to think this way. Why should we give up before we live life wholly and Holy.

The Good News is that through the blood of Christ we are forgiven. Through Christ, God gives mercy to all who turn to Him. We need to expect the same from ourselves as we sometimes expect from others; whether mothers, fathers, children, spouses, workmates and friends. To bless the Lord means to praise in all things. If we can truly praise Him, we will impact the world.