Someone recently forwarded a link to this youtube video tribute to the NICU nurse.  Enjoy it.

NICU Nurse

13 Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: 14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. 15 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.

I’ve attended several funeral/memorial services in the last week.  One whose life on this earth a mere 20 years, the other living for nearly 8 decades.  Both passed away unexpectedly.

The services got me to thinking about how we go from day to day in our busy lives, often thinking life goes on forerer, taking for granted that tomorrow will be here, and us along with it.  We leave for work each day just like any other, a quick hug or goodbye or see you in a little while.

But will it be the last time you get to say that?  Is it possible that you or someone close to you is suddenly taken away by a tragic accident, terror attack, or some other sudden random unknown cause?

I can remember visiting with my grandfather shortly before he passed away.  While I didn’t know it would be the last time I got to be with him, it was within reason that it might be.  The same with my grandmother.  I had those opportunities knowing it might be the last time.

My cousin, Kevin, passed quite suddenly.  While I knew it could happen, I didn’t entertain the idea that it would happen, and certainly did not consider the last time I saw him would be the last time I saw him.

We cannot know God’s will, when he calls one of us home to Him, but we can realize that each time we have with each other might well be the last time, for our lives are but a vapour, here but for a little while.

¹⁹We love because he first loved us. ²⁰If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. ²¹And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.

God loves us. Despite our failures. Despite our issues, baggage, lack of faith, greed, and disobedience. God loves us.

But how can we claim to love God, yet fail to love our brothers, the creation he loves most, the creation made in His image?

It is easy to say we love God, whom we have not seen, because we create our own image of him. He is our Santa Claus, our benevolent giver, our once-a-week pick-me-up. We love who we want him to be. But I believe that to truly show our love for God, we must love his people. That is far more challenging, and a much greater show of love. We are given countless opportunities each day to show love to God by loving our fellow humans, yet we so often fail. We get angry in traffic when someone cuts us off, we fume if someone gets ‘our’ parking spot, we lie, we hurt each other, we get jealous of what others have. What would happen, though, if we woke up tomorrow and we saw the face of Jesus in every person we met? What would we do? What if Jesus cut us off? What if Jesus was that person who ‘stole’ our parking spot? Would we react the same? I don’t think so! Remember this verse:

‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these; you did not do for me.’
Matthew 25:44-46

If we do not love our brother, sister, neighbor, fellow human, we do not love God!

So in this most holy time of our Lord’s birth, let us remember to see Christ in each person we meet, no matter how lowly they may seem. Let us treat each other with the love and respect that we give our Lord.

CLOSING PRAYER

Dear God,

We love you so much. Help us remember who you are. Help us remember to love what you have created. Please forgive us for the ways that we have wronged each other. You are our most holy, and we love you.

Amen.

*Twas the month before Christmas*

*When all through our land,*

*Not a Christian was praying*

*Nor taking a stand.*

*See the PC Police had taken away,*

*The reason for Christmas – no one could say.*

*The children were told by their schools not to sing,*

*About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.*

*It might hurt people’s feelings, the teachers would say*

* December 25th is just a ‘ Holiday ‘.*

*Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit*

 *Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!*

*CDs from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-pod*

*Something was changing, something quite odd! *

 *Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa*

*In hopes to sell books by Franken & Fonda.*

*As Targets were hanging their trees upside down*

* At Lowe’s the word Christmas – was no where to be found.*

 *At K-Mart and Staples and Penny’s and Sears*

*You won’t hear the word Christmas; it won’t touch your ears.*

*Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-si-ty*

*Are words that were used to intimidate me.*

*Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton, Wolf Blitzen*

*On Boxer, on Rather, on Kerry, on Clinton !*

*At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter*

*To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter..*

 *And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith*

* Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace*

*The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded*

*The reason for the season, stopped before it started.*

*So as you celebrate ‘Winter Break’ under your ‘Dream Tree’*

*Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me.*

*Choose your words carefully, choose what you say*

*Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS , not Happy Holiday !*

Please, all Christians join together and wish everyone you meet MERRY CHRISTMAS Christ is The Reason’ for the Christ-mas Season!

¹⁴ The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. ¹⁵ In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. ¹⁶ In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called: “The Lord is our righteousness.”

Jeremiah speaks to us from a time of darkness for his people in exile.  His words are a source of inspiration and hope for the future.  Jeremiah tells of God’s promise for the One who will come to restore and set things right. 

From our perspective of history, we know well these words are true, that God has fulfilled His promise through Jesus.

Today, even though we can easily allow ourselves to be filled with darkness from current economic woes, political unrest, war, and personal challenges, we are filled with light from the Righteous One, knowing Jeremiah’s words still ring with the inspiration and hope for tomorrow.  We know we will overcome the ravage of any storm with Jesus.

We know the truth in the words he spoke so long ago.  

Jeremiah speaks to us from a time of darkness for his people in exile.  His words are a source of inspiration and hope for the future.  Jeremiah tells of God’s promise for the One who will come to restore and set things right. 

From our perspective of history, we know well these words are true, that God has fulfilled His promise through Jesus.

Today, even though we can easily allow ourselves to be filled with darkness from current economic woes, political unrest, war, and personal challenges, we are filled with light from the Righteous One, knowing Jeremiah’s words still ring with the inspiration and hope for tomorrow.  We know we will overcome the ravage of any storm with Jesus.

We know the truth in the words he spoke so long ago. 

Moreover,no man knows when his hour will come:

As fish are caught in a cruel net, or birds are taken in a snare, so men are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them.

This past week a sister in Christ passed from us to join those that have gone before  her.  The end of her life here on earth was rather sudden, and at least from my perspective, quite unexpected.

It reminds me that, like many products on the store shelves, we all have an expiration date.  Unlike those products, we don’t have a label that identifies just when that is.

The words from Ecclesiastes seem to echo throughout the centuries as we all seem to live in “evil times”.  Our time now seems to be focused on terrorism and those who have been caught in the terrorist’s actions were caught up as if in the fish net or bird snare.  Their life cut short by an expiration date they did not see coming.  From a distance we see these evil events unfold before our eyes on the television screen, and we think what an evil time we live in.  As have how many over the generations?

When it gets close to us, such as one of our own, one of our family, perhaps our closest friend and loved one, it doesn’t seem like evil times, but more like a personal visit from the Evil One and we have suffered defeat.

Through Christ however, we have not been defeated and we have not lost.  Though we hurt and mourn the loss, we also share in the hope and promise and knowledge of eternal life with our Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Godspeed my friend.

Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe…

As September winds down and October comes upon us, we begin to think of the harvest.    For farmers, this means going into the fields and orchards, gathering and storing.  For those who live in cities and towns, harvest season is not nearly so close and personal, and often may be only a time for putting up new decorations, or a time to rake the lawn clear of the leaves that are falling.

Perhaps it is also a season for reflection, a chance to look back, to evaluate our own individual harvest or blessings, to prepare ourselves for to give thanks.

I looked back to last year and saw a year of upheaval and natural disaster. Over 220,000 fatalities worldwide from hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, and other natural forces in 2008.  Only two years  since 1900 (1995 and 2005) when such records began to be kept,  has more damage ocurred.

Hurricane Ike was one of those natural disasters to affect me directly.  At the time, it was a relief just to know that everyone in my family was safe and without injury.  Then the immensity of the damages to my home, my neighborhood, my community and the entire area covered by the storm began to settle in.

It seems 2009 has been substantially milder in the natural disaster arena,  if only to be shaken up by government shouts of economic disaster in place of some other headline in the news.  Drought, fires, earthquakes and other similar situations surely have continued, and likely will continue.  Joel describes rather vividly much of the disaster to come.

Certainly, the opportunities to serve the Lord have been many. 

Each time a helpful hand is extended in the name of Jesus, a seed is planted, nurtured, and prepared for harvest.