In our neighborhood they begin just before dawn, about 10,000 of them . . . "tweeoou, tweeou, tweeou . . . cheep, tweet, cheep, tweet . . . boooy, boooy, boooy, boooy . . . caw, caw, caw . . . an assortment of world-class sounds only an Eternal God could create. To be awakened by a choir of birds, each a unique creation of God, is a phenomenon rather new to us. Most of my life I have lived in crowded places. City noises drowned out the gentle glory of aviary audio. Now I love to awaken on mornings when our windows are open. The wake-up chorus provided by a feathered glee club is a sampler of heaven-created wonder.
In contrast to the glory of early morning symphonies of sound, a neighbor 100 yards away screams curses at children. "Get moving . . . you’re gonna be late . . . what’s wrong with you?" Pat and I cringe as we hear the damage being inflicted on little children’s pliable spirits, and we pray. "Lord, please give us an opportunity to approach and confront a frustrated mother. Help us abort the systemic ruin and deliver the Message which restores the glory of your presence. May curses be reversed and songs of praise and prayers of trust be offered from this family."
The human voice is also the Lord’s creation, uniquely designed for His joy. With my voice I may call out and delight the One who made it, "God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer." (Psalm 66:19) Since He neither slumbers nor sleeps, my voice cannot awaken Him, but I know He listens with pleasure. He made the human voice so that creation could converse with the Creator!
And our voices were created to present intelligible offerings of praise, awe-filled expressions of wonder and thanksgiving. John, the political prisoner on the Isle of Patmos heard the chorus, "I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting: "Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God . . . Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: "Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns."
(Psalm 19:1,6) I believe one of the wonders of heaven will be the chorus, the God-made, God-redeemed choir of voices . . . no amplifiers, organs, keyboards, nothing man-made . . . just His creation fulfilling His design and desire!
This is "Wesley Week" for me. Charles Wesley penned the warm-up music of heaven. He arranged for us to begin peeking into the place John described in detail . . . gates of precious metals and gems, sunless light, endless glory, incomparable sound . . . and we sing! I share only the first six of 19 verses. When we have more time, we will sing them all!
O for a thousand tongues to sing
My great Redeemer’s praise,
The glories of my God and King,
The triumphs of His grace!
My gracious Master and my God,
Assist me to proclaim,
To spread through all the earth abroad, the honors of Thy name.
Jesus! the name that charms our fears,
That bids our sorrows cease;
’Tis music in the sinner’s ears,
’Tis life, and health, and peace.
He breaks the power of canceled sin,
He sets the prisoner free;
His blood can make the foulest clean,
His blood availed for me.
He speaks, and, listening to His voice,
New life the dead receive,
The mournful, broken hearts rejoice,
The humble poor believe.
Hear Him, ye deaf; His praise, ye dumb,
Your loosened tongues employ;
Ye blind, behold your Savior come,
And leap, ye lame, for joy.
Some act as if waking up is for the birds! Ah, the birds think they are for waking me up! I’d love you to enjoy the same wake-up call as I! Is it too far-fetched to think that the birds are off in a remote place rehearsing with a Wesleyan hymn, warming up for the morning concert? Waking up with the birds is so much fun, builds so much faith!
Life is full of the endless rotation of politicos, Republicans, Democrats and Independents. Flurries of scandals seep from the crevices of human fallibility filling headline news outlets. One disease is under control and another sneaks in like Carl Sandburg’s fog, on "little cats feet." And, the joys and frustrations of a favorite sports team winning and losing may cause one to feel as a bobbing cork on ocean swells. Restlessness is a too frequent companion.
Last night I was traveling home from a speaking engagement in heavy weekend traffic. (Don’t go anywhere near the Dover Racetrack during race week or navigate US Route One when beach weekenders head North!) Two preaching assignments and more than 200 miles in the car left me exhausted. The joy and energy with God’s people and sharing the passion of my life slipped away as the miles piled up.
Then I tuned the radio to an all-Gospel satellite station and heard a wonderful presentation of a Wesleyan Hymn. At first the familiar tune and lyrics seemed out of place. Resurrection Sunday has passed (Alas, the congregation we worshiped with didn’t sing it!) and "Christ the Lord is Risen Today" is a morning song! As the tune and lyrics unfolded, like pleats spreading as draperies are drawn, the Holy Spirit lifted, strengthened, encouraged and renewed my spirit so affected by feelings, fatigue, faults and feeble faith. As the three century-old poem was sung the message quieted the spirit of a weary preacher prone to bobbing in futility when faced with roiling uncertainties, chronic diseases, lingering disappointments. Faith began to move in, at first with "little cats feet," and then roared with leonine boldness! The hymn was sung in less than five minutes but swept up on the shores of my soul with tidal force.
Christ the Lord is risen today, Alleluia!
Earth and heaven in chorus say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heavens, and earth reply, Alleluia!
Love's redeeming work is done, Alleluia!
Fought the fight, the battle won, Alleluia!
Death in vain forbids him rise, Alleluia!
Christ has opened paradise, Alleluia!
Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia!
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia!
Once he died our souls to save, Alleluia!
Where's thy victory, boasting grave? Alleluia!
Soar we now where Christ has led, Alleluia!
Following our exalted Head, Alleluia!
Made like him, like him we rise, Alleluia!
Ours the cross, the grave, the skies, Alleluia!
Hail the Lord of earth and heaven, Alleluia!
Praise to thee by both be given, Alleluia!
Thee we greet triumphant now, Alleluia!
Hail the Resurrection, thou, Alleluia!
King of glory, soul of bliss, Alleluia!
Everlasting life is this, Alleluia!
Thee to know, thy power to prove, Alleluia!
Thus to sing, and thus to love, Alleluia!
Since I was alone in the car, with the exception of the Holy, I dared to sing with the recording artists . . . a capella . . . with enough off-key sharps and flats to fill an orchestra’s library. The Almighty visited and accepted my worship. It was Easter, Christmas, Ascension Day, Passover and Pentecost rolled into one! "King of Glory" made "soul of bliss" cruising South on Route 1 on a rainy night!
For seven years Pat and I ministered in Lansing MI at Calvary Assembly of God. Jonathan and Joanna were born in Sparrow Hospital there. We averaged dedicating a baby per month as young couples joined us in populating the earth!
The church grew both by the natural process and the influence of the charismatic movement. During our tenure a larger sanctuary was built to accommodate more people and expanding ministries. Our pulpit guest for the dedication was Reverend C. M. Ward, speaker on "Revivaltime," the international radio ministry of the Assemblies of God. We witnessed miraculous healings and many dramatically changed lives. Living in Lansing Michigan was a happy experience. Our memories from those years bring broad smiles to our faces every time we recall events and personalities.
One day is most memorable of the more than 2600 days we fulfilled our calling there. That day a young man, Mike, called asking for time to speak with him. Mike arrived and began with his explanation, "The church we have been attending has left the faith we hold essential to our spiritual life. We will join a congregation that will minister to us and where we can minister in full agreement with the pastoral leadership and church’s doctrine."
My first question was, "How did you find us?" Mike smiled and explained, "Your building has a lighted cross on the facade. When Maxine or I are going home on a dark or foggy night, we look for the cross. Our street is the first left turn after we see the cross." I didn’t feel the cross was particularly attractive. It was made of glass block set in the stone facade with dim florescent bulbs shining through the textured glass. But, that day I fell in love with that part of the building!
The appointment lasted more than an hour as Mike grilled me about the church’s history, specific doctrines and my personal relationship with the Lord. He and Maxine were newly married and were making plans to begin their family. Mike and Maxine joined with us and accepted every responsibility they could reasonably fulfill and contributed generously in ministry. I dedicated their children. The last news about Mike and Maxine is that they continue to thrive.
The story all began with the cross in the facade in our building’s face. The cross-shaped glass was symbolic, but the preaching of the cross of Christ is the power of God that saves. Some church properties are generic and might pass as warehouses or retail stores. Contemporary efforts to be relevant often strip symbols from public view. But, there is one cross on public display that became the catalyst for a wonderful series of events, a long-lasting relationship and many happy memories. The cross of Christ does that, magnified to the nth degree! Saint Paul wrote, "As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins . . . made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved." (Ephesians 2:1,5) It starts at the cross! All other events pale in contrast with the day the cross comes into focus.
As technology advances we risk falling into the trap of "virtual deeds," the exercise of brushing up against reality but not fully engaging. Yesterday our pastor presented a masterful Memorial Day video salute. Combined with patriotic anthems and appropriate choruses, the worship service was moving and the pastoral prayer focused on thanksgiving for the unselfish service our military shares and implored the Lord to overshadow those in harm’s way and their family. It was excellent!
However, Dover Air Force Base is 30 minutes North of where we observed Memorial Day. The harsh reality is, military aircraft land at Dover with body bags of the recent casualties of war. Other bases receive the wounded. Individuals, extended families and whole communities are forever changed. Life pivots around a date with painful memories, sorrow and challenges making forward progress a daunting experience.
As I drove away from the church meeting, ate dinner with new friends, visited a veteran in a rehab facility, and helped Pat prepare for our guests at a holiday picnic I wondered if a few moments of salute in air conditioned comfort was enough in light of the sacrifices of others. My father-in-law, Roy Kolas, is part of the American demographic, Tom Brokaw’s "Greatest Generation." That generation daily loses almost 900 from its honored roles. Roy is 91 years-old. We don’t have many Memorial Days left to tell him "Thank you!" Viet Nam War veterans are aging, many now in their seventies. Young veterans, still in the prime of life, learn to walk on sophisticated, but still artificial limbs, scoot around in motorized wheel chairs or writhe in pain in military hospitals.
Is the grand Sunday morning experience enough? No, I don’t think so! Pat and I will call Roy this morning. My friend Ralph served in Europe a long time ago. I’ll call him too. It is the least I can do. I am open to suggestions about how to better express my appreciation for the selfless service of so many. This morning I repented. I admit, I have taken for granted the military of our nation. Shame on me!
Today I will pray for those military personnel who have enriched my life and help make a safe and prosperous nation possible. The selfless servants who have blessed us deserve more. Sunday morning salutes, the moving digital productions of colorful patriotism, do their best work when those who view them follow up with something more!
"Coffee and . . . " an idiom which I believe is indigenous to Northern New Jersey. It serves as a code phrase for a social event. For more than 10 years following most Sunday evening services, members of the congregation would ask, "Are you interested in going for "coffee and?" The most frequented place for "coffee and" was Matthews Colonial Diner, nicknamed "Saint Matthews" because three or more local churches had delegations in attendance. We enjoyed "coffee and" a Belgian waffle, a wonderful Danish as the sign out front announced "baked on the premises," or a grilled cheese sandwich or a cup of one of the eatery’s signature soups.
"Coffee and . . . " helps simplify an idea about living as disciples of Jesus. As I have been privileged to preach in over 300 different pulpits in more than half of the 50 United States, Spain and South Africa, I am convinced that we Pentecostals have learned how to do church. Our performances are as varied as stripes on zebras, as colorful in some venues as peacock feathers, and loud enough to awaken comatose patients one mile away. In many places we do church brightly, garishly, loudly and to increasingly large audiences. But few people outside the walls of the building or outside the fences, soaring shrubberies and water-filled motes defining the real estate boundaries know what we church attenders do inside, or care.
What we need is, "Sunday and . . . and , church and . . . !" What we do on Sundays is faith building, emotionally stimulating, and helpful to participants. But those who need the experience most are outside. Since what we do Sunday morning is good and needed, those participating must be committed to exporting everything they learn, everything we experience. The joy of Sunday is valid and needs to distributed on Monday, Tuesday . . . you know, all week long. By the way, has anyone laughed or really found the wonderful release from stress and fear because you showed up carrying a bit of "Sunday and" with you?
Peace, the kind that surpasses ordinary absence of war and usual understanding, is God’s shalom. It is a valued sense of wellbeing that needs to be known on Wednesday morning in the super market checkout line. Or, is peace only dispensed in certain buildings set on specially dedicated pieces of real estate? Hugging and kissing (the holy kind) is an appropriate expression of love on Sunday, but love is needed in the marketplace! Love is in desperate short supply in Thursday’s rush hour traffic.
"Sunday and . . . church . . . and " are as essential as the "coffee and . . ." experiences on Sunday nights following church services. Over a cup of coffee and . . . our children built friendships in the adjoining booth or table. Laughter bubbling geyser-like from members of sevral congregations filled the same space where Monday morning customers groused about having to start another work week.
I pray your find as much pleasure as I have as I go about doing "Sunday and . . . church and . . . " today! If you are not too busy, we ought to meet at Saint Matthews!
This Spring I am rereading the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible, for sentimental reasons and to keep myself from speed reading the sacred text. (I had forgotten how difficult some passages are in my boyhood Bible.) Some passages stir the warm embers of memory into passionate flame. Other passages are more difficult than ever.
If I were invited to preach on Father’s Day, I may use the Second Samuel account of the distressing season in David’s biography, the occasion when Absalom dared to challenge his father for Israel’s throne. The passage teems with enough intrigue and father-son interaction to develop a series or short book. The book title may be Non Parenting for Dummies.
One paragraph arrested me as I read 2 Samuel 2:7-12 it several weeks ago, "And it came to pass after forty years, that Absalom said unto the king, I pray thee, let me go and pay my vow, which I have vowed unto the LORD, in Hebron. For thy servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur in Syria, saying, If the LORD shall bring me again indeed to Jerusalem, then I will serve the LORD. And the king said unto him, Go in peace. So he arose, and went to Hebron. But Absalom sent spies throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, As soon as ye hear the sound of the trumpet, then ye shall say, Absalom reigneth in Hebron. And with Absalom went two hundred men out of Jerusalem, that were called; and they went in their simplicity, and they knew not any thing. And Absalom sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s counselor, from his city, even from Giloh, while he offered sacrifices. And the conspiracy was strong; for the people increased continually with Absalom."
Absalom’s reach for power rightfully belonging to his father David had gone on for a long time. The KJV says 40 years. Newer translations record four years. For four years, or more, Absalom appointed himself a judge at the city gates and chipped away at David’s authority and reputation. He slyly built a following, an Israeli "Tea Party" that promised better everything when the right leader (Absalom) would ascend to the throne. The defining sentence in the passage is, "And with Absalom went two hundred men out of Jerusalem, that were called; and they went in their simplicity, and they knew not any thing." After more than four years not one of the two hundred men had an inkling of Absalom’s devious spirit. The sad fact is "the conspiracy was strong; for the people increased continually with Absalom."
From the wider text which embraces the whole of Absalom’s conspiracy, I suggest we should learn the following lessons:
Efficient, charismatic leaders can be rogues. Not everyone with a following is the "real deal." A kind and wise mentor who took me into his tutelage as I was being formed for a life of ministry used to say, "Charisma without character will always result in embarrassment" Frankly, I have spent too much time being embarrassed by high profile, highly influential religious people who lacked character.
We have a responsibility to know whom we follow. Being naive is not acceptable. The adage is timeless, "We teach what we believe, we reproduce who we are." I suggest that we ought to know our leaders in direct proportion to the amount of influence that leader has over us. Unlike political leaders who are impossible to know personally, we can know and choose spiritual leaders. The traits of spiritual leadership were well defined by the Apostle Paul for his protégée Timothy. "Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self–controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect. (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?) He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap." (1 Timothy 3:2-7)
Followers must understand that distance is a built-in peril. Personalities in media ministries cannot be known, but assume authority to speak into everyone’s life who dares to set their radio or television to the frequency on which the teacher-preacher appears. On occasion, not too often or Pat will conclude I am absolutely daft, I speak back to one of the authoritative gurus and say, "You don’t know me, where I live, what I am experiencing or that I should do anything to sustain your presence in the media! And, I don’t know you either!" Glibness, the ability to influence and convince others is not enough! "Who are you?" is the question.
True accountability in groups small enough for members to know one another is imperative. Family is the first, most important God-designed accountability group. A spouse must be allowed to call their mate into account. Parents must assume spiritual leadership for their children. On occasion parents must humble themselves before their children and confess their sin, their errors in discipline and judgment.
If the contemporary Absaloms of our culture are followed as the 200 and later, the masses in Israel’s story, the results will be as disastrous. Someone taught me, "One cannot walk the path others have walked without arriving at the same destination."
The Apostle Paul, the former synagogue-appointed terrorist known as Saul of Tarsus, shares weighty truth with those who would take their salvation seriously. His call to "continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling," is in the context of shining as stars in a "crooked and depraved generation." (Philippians 2:12,14) One living in the United States today finds it easy to associate "crooked and depraved" with our culture. It may never have been easier to level criticism at political figures, employers and church leaders. Reports of compromised character, expressions of twisted values and stories of ordinary people flaunting violations of God’s law fill media reports.
To "continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling," Paul leaves three distinct prohibitions. Alas, the proscribed behaviors have been part on human spiritual DNA since the first residents of the Garden of Eden. And, I confess that they have been deeply imbedded in me and are highly resistant to change.
The first forbidden activity is complaining. "Do everything without complaining." (Philippians 2:14). It is simple to write and say, but can be as stubbornly rooted as my lawn’s ugliest weeds. Complaining is verbal reinforcement of what one doesn’t like or appreciate. We all experience negative events and occasionally we must deal with difficult people. But, complaining, reinforcing discontent violates God’s grace. I am challenged by Peter’s difficult counsel, "Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men." (1 Peter 2:13-15) Our reverent "fear and trembling" compliance to honor God’s appointees will contribute more good than complaining.
I can hear it already, "But, what if good men do nothing?" Prayer is an acceptable activity. Remember, When I work, I work. When I pray, God works! Complaining is the antithesis of grace, forgiveness and loving compliance to what God has ordained. As we pray and forgive criticisms are arrested in their tracks. As "fear and trembling" people work out their salvation without complaint, the grace of God is evident and their spirit becomes contagious among the "crooked and depraved."
Second, "Do everything without . . . arguing." Argumentative people suck life out of others. Some thrive on being right. I am sorry that I have imposed too much of my "rightness" on others, at the expense of a spirit of love, joy, and peace. Of course there is a corresponding side of every truth. Grace has aspects of generosity and justice, two sides of the same coin. Light is light as it is contrasted with darkness. Most often, we ought to allow the side being emphasized to exist without arguing. Another time, another venue will be afforded to present the needed balance . . . without arguing.
And, live "without fault." Faultfinding is the domain of those who have never tasted of the grace of God. Those who have known the forgiveness secured by Jesus, who have sampled the joys of heaven here on earth, who have a hope secured within the gates of heaven, ought to be applying every iota of energy to preparing a path for those who are vulnerable to criticism.
Pat and I discovered that some of our critical and faultfinding peers were contagious. If we spent too much time with them, we began seeing the faults to which our peers pointed more distinctly than the grace and mercies expressed in Jesus. We consciously moved away from some to keep our "fear and trembling" pursuit of salvation in focus. It is entirely possible that others who are well ahead of us in their pursuit of holy living have had to avoid us. When that is true, please forgive us. We are determined to be light in a dark generation, people of hope in places of despair, and those who live as ones who have experienced the cure for the crookedness and depravity too common in our world.
