You Have Yosemite

Once when Jack and I were visiting with friends in Merida, on the Yucatan Peninsula,, we hired an Uber driver to take us to the zoo and later to return us to our friends’ haciendita. The driver spoke fluent English, and said that he had been caught in the U.S. For illegal entry and deported to his home in Merida. He wanted nothing more than to return to the U.S., but knew that it wasn’t safe for him. I asked him, “ Why do you want to be there so much? This is a beautiful city; the whole countryside is lovely, and you are apparently a successful Uber driver. What would the U.S. Have to offer?” “Yes,” he answered, but you have Yosemite!” I couldn’t answer , because I have lived my whole life in the U.S., and never visited Yosemite National Park in California; but I was puzzled because the driver insisted that Yosemite made the difference between Mexico and the U.S. , and the U.S. won, in his mind. I admit that it planted a desire in my mind to visit Yosemite, but I have yet to carry out the thought.

“Yosemite isn’t like any other place,” he said. It’s more than beautiful. There is no other place on earth like it. Why do you come to Mexico when you have Yosemite?” I had no answer. We had just toured a very lovely zoo in Merida, with natural habitats, a small lake, a flock of beautiful flamingos, and trees, shrubs, flowers, and benches situated to catch beautiful views. I had heard that Yosemite was a particularly spiritual place for some people, and perhaps it was for this man; I was embarrassed to admit that I had never been there. I had no answer for why I was in Mexico, when I could have been in Yosemite.

After the fire came a still small voice . When Elijah heard it. . . he went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (1 Kings 19:13) Elijah was trying either to escape death at the hands of Queen Jezebel, who had vowed to have him killed, or die peacefully away from her. The voice of God told him to return, as God had more work for him to do.

I was in Mexico at the invitation of some dear friends and I felt grateful for the visit, but the Uber driver’s question stayed with me and I thought that God has a plan for each of us and sometimes we need to hear the perspective of one who is in vastly different circumstances from ours. Merida is indeed a lovely city, but I didn’t let it give me a wanderlust. After all, I have Yosemite.

Love in Him,

Prue

God’s Bridge

“Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.” (1 Corinthians 1:22-25) St. Paul’s words in this passage have puzzled and inspired readers ever since he wrote them in a letter to the Corinthian church. Who can describe the “foolishness” of God ? To many, for God to allow His only son to die on the cross at the hands of human beings was unmitigated foolishness, but for Paul it is the whole answer to the hunger for the very meaning of life itself.

If God, the creator of the universe, had simply washed His hands of His creation and walked away, perhaps to create another world, we would all be lost. How, though, could He relate to His creation in such a way as to have a presence in their lives and an actual relationship rooted in His own character of love?

For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only son, that whosoever believed in him should not perish, but have eternal life. (Jesus’ words, John 3:16)

Jesus himself knew of the sacrifice he would make so that these words would be fulfilled. Jesus also said, “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.” (John 3:14)

It was the Holy Spirit of God Himself that Jesus would give to believers after his resurrection. In this way Jesus became the bridge between God and human beings. Just as we trust a bridge in order to walk or drive across it, so we trust that Christ’s promises are true and tat God actually sent him to make a new and eternal life a possibility even for us. God desired it out of His character that prompted Him to seek fellowship with His own creation. This is the very great “foolishness” that gives us hope and joyful existence on the earth. It is perceivable in the Scriptures, and in the lives of believers who have experienced and then displayed the love of God for us.

The invisible God has provided a bridge for a seeing and believing people to know Him,and even sent messengers like Paul to inform us of His inexhaustible and eternal love.

Love in Him,

Prue

Of my four siblings, only my oldest sister had bright red hair. It was her “crowning glory”, and noticed by everyone. Nancy grew up to become an elementary school teacher; and one day when she was teaching second grade, the principal walked into her room accompanied by a red-haired boy and carrying the boy’s file folder. He told Nancy that Warren would be in her class, an handed her the folder. Nancy glanced inside it and noted that Warren had been moved from two different second grade classrooms because of “personality conflicts” with the teachers. Nancy’s was the only second grade class left that he had not attended. She pushed a student desk forward so that it was adjacent to her desk and told Warren that it would be his desk, and thus began his third try at second grade.

Nancy delighted in Warren. She kept him close to her in school activities and discovered that when he wasn’t bored he was bright and actually eager to excel. She called on him frequently to run errands, and openly favored him. She laughingly told me that she was quite sure that at least some of the other students believed that Warren was her own son.

When Warren’s mother came for her first parent conference a month later, Nancy showed her his work, which was well done. “Yes,” said his mother, “but how is he really doing in class?” Nancy paused, then looking at this mother, she boldly answered, “How do you think a red haired boy would do in my class?” There were tears in the mother’s eyes when she left her son’s classroom. For no reason of his own, Warren had received favor. Nancy later told me that Warren liked being favored, and he never gave her any trouble at all.

The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the Lord loved you. . .( Deuteronomy 7:7-8) St. Peter wrote to Christians: You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession . . . Once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” (1 Peter 2: 9-10)

Nancy eventually mothered four boys, including twins. None of them had red hair. Warren had a very good second grade year, and was successful in third grade, even with- out a red haired teacher.

You and I can wake up every morning knowing that the favor lasts, and the love is real.

Love in Him,

Prue

Sometime between 486 and 465 BC a young Jewish woman named Esther, or “Hadassah”, her Hebrew name, took her life in her hands and stood silently waiting to see if her husband, King Xerxes of Persia, would acknowledge her, thereby saving her life, or if he would ignore her and so condemn her to death. (Esther 5:1)

The story of Esther that appears in the Bible is the story of a young woman savior, who finds herself in circumstances not at all of her own making, as a pawn in the life of King Xerxes and the Persian court. In spite of having no independence at all, having been chosen from a large number of girls by the king, Esther emerged as the savior of the nation of her people who were living in exile from Israel in Persia.

While it’s hard for us to imagine a life dictated by others, leaving little or no room for freedom of action or even of speech, this was the life of the queen of Persia, young Esther. When she first learned of the decree that had gone out to destroy the entire Jewish population, Esther thought that there was absolutely nothing that she could do to reverse the edict put in motion by Haman, the highest officer next to the king.

Esther’s uncle Mordecai, succeeded in getting a message to her of the imminent disaster waiting for their people, but at first Esther couldn’t see any path for herself to avert the slaughter. Mordecai wrote his famous words: “Who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14)

It was the law of Persia that no one was to appear before the king in the throne room without being invited. It was punishable by death. Esther didn’t know for sure the depth of Xerxes’ attachment to herself: she had not been invited into his presence in a month.

Xerxes extended his scepter, and Esther lived to plead the case of the Jews.

The book of Esther is the only book in the Bible that does not make reference to God or Lord. It is a story that takes place in a land of exile. The presence of God in the events of the book is evident in the simple, profound, action of Esther herself. She first called for fasting from Mordecai and the Jewish community as well as herself, and then she stood by the pillar in the throne room waiting to know if she would live or die.

Esther is a pre-figure of Christ himself, as she offered her life for the rescue of the whole Jewish population in Persia. Her action resulted in the defeat of Haman, and the elevation of Mordecai to Prime Minister, freeing up the Jewish people in Persia and bringing them favor in the eyes of the rest of the people, as well as of the court. To this day Purim is celebrated in the Jewish community in remembrance of Esther’s sacrifice.

A young woman with almost no options for her life, and without mentioning His name, displayed the Holy Spirit in her courage and desire to preserve God’s people. We are blessed to know her story.

Love in Him,

Prue

Sitting on the gymnasium floor in junior high school after our class had finished a workout for almost 45 minutes, I began to imagine an ice cold 7UP, and how incredibly delicious that would taste at that moment. It was an image that I couldn’t shake, and I stopped listening to our gym teacher as I wallowed in the thought. I had never experienced such compelling thirst before.

In the Bible there are two occasions of intense thirst on the part of the Hebrew people that occur near the beginning, and again near the end of their forty year trek through the wilderness. They are moments that determined the very fate of Moses and his brother Aaron.

Soon after escaping Egypt’s Pharaoh through the red sea,the people found themselves without water and complained to Moses, who prayed to God for direction. The Lord told Moses to use his staff to strike the “rock of Horeb”, and that water would rush out of the rock. Moses followed God’s instructions in detail, striking the rock with the staff he had earlier used during the plagues in Egypt. Fresh water gushed out of the rock. (Exodus 17:5-6)

Almost forty years later, close to the Promised Land, again there was a water shortage, and a rock. Again the people complained to Moses. This time, though, God’s instructions were slightly different. He told Moses to carry his staff, and to “Speak to the rock.” Numbers 20:7)

Moses, instead of speaking to the rock, spoke to the people, then struck the rock as he had done all those years before: “Must we bring you water out of this rock?” he said to the people; and God told Moses that he and Aaron would not enter the Promised Land. It seems unimportant, a small variation on the Lord’s instructions, but Moses’ small change showed God a changed heart.

Many years later, the apostle John wrote God’s message to the church in Ephesus: “You have persevered and endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you. You have forsaken the love you had at the first. (Revelation 2:4)

All I did in that long ago gymnasium, was imagine a cold glass of 7UP, but it distracted me so much that I didn’t hear a word our instructor was saying at the end of the work-out. All Moses did was change the words and follow the former solution to a problem, and ignore the words God spoke to him. God finds our souls immeasurably precious to Him. Where we stand toward Him is more important than any other part of our lives. David, Moses’ spiritual descendant , would one day write, “Create in me a clean heart, O God.” (Psalm 51:10) That was Moses’ real and only hope, and ours, too.

Love in Him,

Prue

When the great patriarch Jacob died, eleven of his sons were worried and downright frightened that Joseph, the one they had thought first to murder, then settled for selling him as a slave, would now take revenge for the harm they had meant for him. The brothers concocted a message they claimed came from Jacob, requesting Joseph to forgive and forget their misdeeds toward him. Surprisingly to the brothers, Joseph began to weep. (Genesis 50:20) His love for his family had never dimmed in all the years that had separated them from him. He had prospered and become next to Pharaoh in importance in Egypt, but his attachment to Jacob and all the brothers never died. He spoke to them the words that no one could have anticipated: “Don’t be afraid! You meant it for harm to me, but God meant it for good.” That Joseph could still love his brothers was beyond their belief. It came to them as a marvel; to each of eleven sons of Jacob the very idea of such gracious forgiveness revealed a God of love such as they had never realized, even in their father’s time. Joseph continued: Don’t be afraid; I will provide for you and your children.” And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them. (Genesis 50:21)

Centuries later Jesus surprised his disciples when he spoke kindly to them: “Don’t set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. . .Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”

Joseph’s brothers had never experienced the kind of love displayed by Joseph. They had no way even to imagine that Joseph might not desire revenge for their misuse of him. They could hardly believe in such a love. It took many more centuries for another twelve men, all descendants of Jacob, to experience an unconditional love that would spread and expand throughout the world. God’s son, Jesus, was the one who would give his very life to reveal God’s loving forgiveness to His people that the prophets foretold of a new relationship with a God who loves His creation and holds a fondness in His heart that is unquenchable toward His own.

Joseph’s love for his brothers, in spite of all they had done, astonished those brothers. God’s love for us, in spite of all that we do or fail to do, is astonishing to me. To have arms that open wide when we seek forgiveness, and a love so deep that we never reach its end, is against all odds for many of us to believe, but Joseph made sure that his family experienced it, and Jesus made sure that we could, as well.

Love in Him,

Prue

“For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of God.” (Matthew 5:20)

This powerful remark made by Jesus in his sermon on the Mount has puzzled me, partly because I can’t picture what the Pharisees and teachers believed, or what sort of thing “righteousness” was to them or to me. When I read 1John 2:7 & 10: “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love is from God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. . . This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins,” Jesus’ words began to resonate.

We cannot love as God loves, but when we first recognize God’s love for us, then we have opened the very door of the kingdom of God. John went on to write, “We love because He first loved us. (1 John 4:19). It’s not as if God first loved all of humanity,(He did), but for every single soul, God takes the initiative in loving. He loves each of us before we are even born. It is the quick or slow realization of this love in us that makes the difference and puts our feet on the path to the kingdom of God.

In the Old Testament, God chose “favorites.” He chose Moses to be His own mouthpiece, and He chose David as “A man after my own heart.” The prophets, too, were spokesmen for Him. In a tumultuous time, God told Jeremiah that He would give him his life, when others were trying to kill Jeremiah. He told Jeremiah that He would give His people “A Heart to know me. . . for they will return to me with all their heart.” (Jeremiah 24:7)

( Jesus said that the greatest commandment was, Love the Lord your God with all your heart, your soul, and your mind. (Matthew 22:36)

God chose Abraham and credited him with “righteousness” for believing in God’s promise of a son. God continued to choose souls who would respond to His love, until He brought His own son into the world through whom all people could experience God’s love in order to return that love to Him and receive eternal life. Our “righteousness” is really a person, the person of Jesus, who rose from death and offers his loving relationship with his Father God to his brothers and sisters to share. In accepting his gift to us, we enter his world and become one of God’s family.

Love in Him,

Prue

Good Things Last

The greatest thing since the wonderful birth of Christ, foretold hundreds of years in advance, the greatest thing in the universe for humanity, was Jesus’ resurrection, now about two thousand years ago. The good things of God, made known in His son, have lasted and continue to last for eternity.

Isaiah began prophesying about seven hundred forty years before the birth of Jesus: There will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. . . The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. . . for unto us a child is born, to us a son is given. . . and he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. ( Isaiah 9:1,2,6)

Isaiah himself was a light to the people of Israel and his words provided light and hope for centuries before the appearance of Jesus on earth.When Jesus grew up n Israel, heministered for only about three years, but he made a deep impression upon both the disciples and the many other individuals who saw him, and were even healed by him. In the minds of many, Jesus was the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophesy. But God had something more in mind. He would make the “good thing” that was Jesus, last for untold millennia. Jesus would send God’s Holy Spirit: “Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you. . . When he, the Spirit of Truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears . . . It is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you.” John 16:7, 12,14)

Good things last because of the faithfulness of God. His commitment to restoring His people to His side was in place when Eve rose her hand to pick a piece of fruit. He has never abandoned His creation, but has opened heaven itself to provide a Savior and a companion Spirit for us to achieve His goal of union with us. God allowed Himself to suffer the desolation of the loss of His son on the cross in order to share our humanity. Jesus’ resurrection was the restoration that offers hope to all of us.

Good things last, and come to fruition, and lead to better and better things because good things are God’s things, and they do not ever end.

Love in Him,

Prue

When Abraham sent his servant to visit Abraham’s brother’s family in order to find a wife for Isaac,his son, the servant was surprised to find Rebekah at the first place that he stopped to inquire. The servant had relied upon Abraham’s God for the journey, and then for discovering the very young woman he was sent to find. He praised God when her family gave him permission to take her to Isaac, but her mother and brother wished to delay her departure at least ten days. They knew that very likely, they would not see Rebekah again: He said to them, “Do not detain me now that the Lord has granted success to my journey” They said, ”Let’s call the young woman and ask her about it.” So they called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?” “I will go,” she said. So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way, along with her nurse and Abraham’s servant and his men. ( Genesis 2: 26-59)

Every person in this story acts in response to the conviction that the stranger from Abraham was truly on a God ordained errand, and should therefore be believed and accepted. This story is washed in a glow of grace. Rebekah, much loved daughter of her parents, and sister to Laban, is to leave immediately on a long, tedious, if not downright dangerous journey to marry a man she has never met, whose name she has probably never even heard until now. Her mother and brother hope for a few days of preparation for the trip, but Abraham’s servant begs, “ Do not detain me,” and theothers, reluctant to see Rebekah leave, call for the girl herself.

Rebekah‘s simple “I will go” is a foreshadow of another young woman named Mary whose answer to an angel was, “Let it be to me as you have said.” (Luke 1;38) In each case, a young, probably illiterate, woman ‘s response to God was the linchpin in God’s plan for the salvation of human beings. Both were faced with a large unknown in their future, depending upon their decision. Both made the decision in the face of difficulties and even opposition. In both young women, the grace of God is evident, as each young woman was entirely free in her decision. There was no coercion, but only the living faith in a God who had been manifested in their relative Abraham.

Rebekah did marry Isaac. Her younger son was Jacob, who fathered the twelve tribes of Israel. Mary mothered the son of God. Neither would be detained.

Love In Him,

Prue