Jesus’ Words

“I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are white for harvest. Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad forever.” (John 4:35-36)

Once when I was talking with some Christian friends I asked, “Do you think that the fields are still white for harvest? Has the Gospel spread throughout the world in the centuries since Jesus’ words, so that there are no more fields to acknowledge Christ and come into the fold of God? The discussion was animated, but there was no real consensus; and I wondered if this was a misunderstanding of Jesus’ words, or a reflection of cynicism on the part of Christians.

Jesus spoke those words just before his two day visit to a Samaritan village where, likely to the disciples’ surprise, many people became believers in Jesus as the Christ. Jesus rarely stayed longer than he had intended in any community, but here he responded to the invitation of the people, not to heal or perform miracles, but to speak about the Kingdom of God, and to harvest souls for that kingdom.

Not long after my conversation, Jack and I traveled to Cap Rock Canyon where we would hike and see the buffalo herd there. As we drove to the canyon we commented on the drought that the area was experiencing, and we passed a field of cotton that was so dry that the plants were withered almost beyond recognition. I felt sorry for the farmer whose crop appeared totally lost. We had a great day in the canyon and the sun was setting when we left. As we drove past the cotton field we were startled by a bright white glare on the right side of the road, and to my astonishment I saw that the withered field had burst into full cotton bloom while we were in the canyon.

I recalled the scripture, and realized that it had been on my mind since that first conversation, and I felt a strong sense of relief that what I had thought might have withered away, was actually alive and very, very well. The scripture spoke to my need and my hope for that magnificent field, gleaming in the setting sunlight. I was reassured that the fields are indeed still “white unto harvest,” and that God still seeks sowers and reapers to attend to His fields .

It was said of the prophet Samuel that God “let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground” (1 Samuel:3:19) So far, Jesus’ words have carried us for over two thousand years. I believe they are headed for eternity.

Love in Him,

Prue

When they (the disciples) had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water, and they were frightened. But he said to them, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” (John 6:19& 20)

Jesus prefaced his admonition to the disciples not to be afraid, with the simple statement, “It is I”. This is the entire reason they should not fear. Throughout the Old Testament , God tells His people not to be afraid: to Joshua, Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9)

Joseph said to his brothers, Don’t be afraid. . . You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good. (Genesis 50:19) His brothers couldn’t believe that Joseph could have forgiven them for selling him into slavery when they were young. He didn’t say, “It is I, your own brother, so you don’t have to be afraid; but, rather, “God intended it for good.”

It’s not until Jesus speaks to his “brothers” in the boat that we can glimpse the intention of God in sending us a brother who is also His son. The disciples don’t have to be afraid because their brother, who they know to be from God, is with them: “It is I.”

I believe that the risen Christ still speaks these words to us in times of anxiety and fear. He knows that the simple assurance of his presence in a situation or difficulty will give us courage to endure and persevere: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?. . .No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, or anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:35)

Joseph knew the truth of these words a thousand years before Paul wrote them. More than two thousand years later than Paul, we can experience these truths ourselves when faced with the uncertainties of our world ,we find God’s voice in the scriptures and we hear our brother say, “It is I”. Don’t be afraid!

Love in Him,

Prue

Once when our family was fostering Jesse, a young boy of six years old, I was putting him to bed when he asked me about his older brother, who had been killed in a bicycle/auto accident.

“ Everyone says that Jason’s happy in heaven, but how can he be? Me and Justin, (his other, also older brother) aren’t there, and Mom’s not there! Jason doesn’t know anyone in heaven. He doesn’t know Jesus. He never met Jesus. He wouldn’t even recognize Jesus! And Mary, why he’s never seen her at all, and she doesn’t look like Mom. He wouldn’t even know her!” Jesse stopped and thought for a fleeting moment, and I saw a smile almost break through. “Do you think? … Do you think that God makes it so that when Jason looks at Mary, he sees Mom?”

“Yes,”I said. “That’s exactly what God can do.” His whole body relaxed and he turned over to go to sleep. I felt that I had witnessed a divine intervention in the spirit of Jesse.

After that conversation Jesse settled into his school work and into our home life with interest. I knew that I had not been able to reach him concerning Jason, but that Someone else had taken that burden off of me. I hadn’t really understood the depth or the nature of Jesse’s anxiety, but I knew that a healing had begun.

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27) These are the words and promises of Jesus, and this message resonates throughout the Bible. It’s the gift of our covenant relationship with the living God. That peace, in whatever measure we receive it, makes life on planet Earth blessed.

In my alarm I said “I am cut off from your sight!” Yet you heard my cry for mercy when I called to you for help. . . .Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord. (Psalm 31:22&24)

Don’t be anxious about anything, but in every situation , by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God. And the peace of God, that passes understanding , will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7)

Jesse had heard the Christian message, and tried to apply what he heard to his life and the tragic accident that took his brother’s life. The comfort he received came through his belief that God is both loving and powerful. It was enough .

Love in Him,

Prue

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:3) This is the first of all the“blesseds” in Jesus’ beatitudes . It catches attention because of the question of what Jesus means by “poor in spirit.” For a long time I thought that the phrase meant sad people, ones without a robust spirit; and I couldn’t connect that with Jesus as we know him in the New Testament.

I have heard many explanations and finally one very simple one made sense to me: “poor in spirit” is the person who knows his need for God. It is the one who recognizes the chord that attaches him or her to God Himself and knows that it is a lifeline chord. Jesus, in addition to all his great power to heal and to transform water to wine, and to walk on water, was poor in spirit , for he separated himself daily to reunite with his Father. His prayer in Gethsemane, “Not my will, but yours,” (Matthew 26:39) was an acknowledgment of his need of God’s will in the unfolding events toward his own death.

“Poor in spirit” means there is room in a person’s spirit for the Living God to move and bond. John the Baptist famously said “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30) For Christians to grow, this must be the case. For Christ to increase in us there has to be room in our own spirits for the bond with Him. The only way to make room is to throw out the trash that clogs our lives, the trash of jealousy, envy, anger, selfishness and a litany of other impediments to the Holy Spirit of God. One of the largest is fear. Throughout both Old and New Testaments we are reminded , “Don’t be afraid.”

To be poor in spirit is to be receptive to the Spirit of God in Christ, to believe that if we surrender our “impediments”, there will be a filling that surpasses anything we hoped to receive.

When Jesus gave the world the beatitudes, he was giving his own attributes and those of his Father. He was inviting believers into his family and revealing the ways of God to His people, that they might become like Him. He was opening the door to his and his Father’s own dwelling, as he did in all his teaching. He simply shows us how to make room for Him in our lives. John the Baptist came to make room for the Christ. Jesus came for all people, to make room for the Kingdom of God for all time.

Love in Him,

Prue

The king (Solomon) said, “This one says, ‘My son is alive and your son is dead,’ while this one says,’No! Your son is dead and mine is alive’. . . Bring me a sword! Cut the living child in two, and give half to one and half to the other.” The first woman said, “Please, my lord, give her the baby! Don’t kill him!”

Then the king gave this ruling: “Give the living baby to the first woman. Do not kill him; she is his mother.” (1 Kings 3:16-27) When all Israel heard the verdict the king had given, they held the king in awe, because they saw that he had wisdom from God to administer justice. (1 Kings 3:28)

Dramatic as this story is, strong in three vivid characters: Solomon and two prostitutes, it is not really about any of these, but rather about God Himself. It’s not the wisdom of common sense, or even of psychology that is displayed here, but rather the gift that was promised to Solomon by God: “ I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be.” (1Kings 3:12)

I have heard the question more than once, “What if the first woman had never said, ‘Give her the baby?’ Solomon was taking a big risk!” I laugh, because Solomon was never taking the smallest risk. His words were not his own, They were the fulfillment of God’s promise of the gift of God’s wisdom previously unknown on earth. They were the very words, measured and calculated by God, who knew both women better than they knew themselves. “Bring me a sword” were infallible words because they were God’s words given to Solomon.

This incident happened in one place at one time for many reasons, all of them God’s reasons. Solomon was far from being the next in succession to inherit his father David’s throne. He had four living brothers older than himself, all closer to the throne than he; nevertheless, God had told David that Solomon would be his heir. David had ensured the succession before he died, but the nation was still unsure, as there had been strife with two of the older brothers.

To the people of Israel Solomon’s judgment of the two women assured them of his gift, a gift from the only God they trusted at that time. God could have chosen any way to establish Solomon as king. He chose two prostitutes and a baby to reveal Himself in Solomon. I find that very hopeful for myself.

Love in Him,

Prue

Sometimes, and sometimes frequently, I catch a glimpse of sunlight from the kitchen window on the counter top and almost catch my breath at the beauty of such an ordinary sight. It’s not only this, but other common sights around the house and yard, and even neighborhood. Familiar objects strike a chord with their beauty. I used to dismiss such things, but now I think that they counteract some of the dreadful news we often hear that showcases dismaying conflict and evils in the world. I dismissed the feeling of beauty as an escape response, but now I think it is a lift of the veil of earthly wrong to glimpse the life of God in our midst. It reverses the sense of emptiness at the current events we are powerless to change.

In his Spiritual Diaries, Pope John Paul II wrote, “This feeling of beauty is a type of fulfillment of Christian prayer, through which the world becomes an epiphany of God.” Beauty in any form, but especially in nature, is a reflection of its creator. The sense of beauty delights and elevates us with a perception of grace on earth. The psalmist declared, One thing I ask from the Lord, the one only do I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple. (psalm 27:4)

Beauty is one of the strongest hallmarks of the presence o God. When we begin to see beauty where we never saw it before, it is a spiritual shift that echos the beauty of the Lord. The psalmist as well as other Biblical writers knew this experience. Jesus himself read from Isaiah when revealing to his people his real identity: The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, . . . to provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning. . . (Isaiah 61:1&3)

Our front door has a panel of beveled glass that catches the morning sunlight and splashes rainbows around the living room floor and walls. When I see the rainbows I experience the oil of joy, for they remind me of the beauty of the one who loved us enough to ensure our salvation. There are endless times when beauty works for our God to convey His presence. We have only to “ask, seek, and knock” to find and experience His beauty. (Matthew 7:7)

Love in Him,

Prue

One autumn Jack and I traveled to Houston, Texas, to hear a guest preacher who had been invited to give a series of sermons. He was a well known preacher from radio, T.V.. and online. The pulpit where he preached was situated in front of a soaring wooden cross on the wall behind him. We were attending only one of the services.

After the service began, a voice from the congregation started shouting and eventually heckling the preacher: “You are lying! You don’t worship God; you worship a piece of wood! You worship anything in the shape of a cross, but you don’t worship God!”

I turned to see who was speaking, and saw a young Islamic man sitting in the section to the left of us. The room was well attended, but he was clearly distinguishable, as he sat near the aisle. The preacher finally paused and addressed him, and asked him to wait until after the service when he, the preacher, would be happy to sit with him and talk. The young man did not respond to this, and continued his tirade. Finally the ushers escorted him out. I could see that he left the building, apparently with no intention of staying to talk.

It is hard to understand that after thousands of years the message of Christianity could be so profoundly misunderstood, but I could not help remembering Jesus’ words to his very first believers: In fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. (John 16:2-3)

Jesus spoke these words just before he introduced the gift of the Holy Spirit to his disciples: Unless I go away , the Advocate will not come to you: but if I go, I will send him to you. (John 16:7) The priceless Holy Spirit of Christ would companion the disciples to protect their faith and their message when Jesus returned to the Father. This gift, little understood at first, and still mysterious because the Holy Spirit is the third member of the Trinity, nevertheless continues to deliver Christ to us to this day.

I believe that it is the deeply personal relationship between wholly human and wholly divine, the Christ, and ordinary people, that other religions cannot accept. To some, it is not possible that there is truly a living bridge between God and humans where we can meet. The story is too simple, and the gift too great. But for eleven disciples (later, twelve) and countless saints and believers throughout the centuries, Christ is the very real and very true bread of life itself.

Love in Him,

Prue

A minister once told this story about himself. When he was quite young, perhaps ten or twelve years old, he had a gift of being able to play the piano by “ear”. His mother paid for lessons, and all his teachers were impressed with his ability. His mother also knew that he had not ever learned to read music, but that he could easily “copy” his teacher and sound very good. Finally he was given a new teacher who placed a piece of sheet music on the piano and told him to play it the best he could. “Will you show me how you would like me to play it?” he asked. “I don’t want you to play it according to my style, but according yo your own understanding,” she answered. He was thoroughly defeated, and had to admit that he couldn’t read music.

After that he began the laborious process of learning to read music, and to play the piano accordingly. He became much more accomplished, and could have had career as a professional musician , but became a Christian minister instead. Some times he plays to piano for his congregation. All the years that he played by ear were not wasted, of course, for he became ever more accomplished.

When I heard this I thought that even an extraordinary gift can become a stumbling block to our growth in understanding our Christian life. With the rare gift this young man had, it was hard to see any need for it to be “harnessed” into conventional music.

Paul wrote about the struggle to be motivated by God instead of by ourselves: My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power. (1 Corinthians 2:4) The moment of transition for Peter and some of the other disciples occurred when Jesus appeared to them by the Sea of Galilee after the resurrection. Jesus advised them to cast their nets to the right side of the boat and when they made the big catch, to bring fish to his fire on the beach, where he had bread for them as well. There Peter’s life changed forever. (John 21)

Jesus never condemned the fishing done by Peter and the others; he simply transformed it through his Spirit to a new life for Peter, and eventually for the world.

The young pianist needed to surrender in order to realize his real potential. The moment we perceive that the Spirit of Christ is waiting patiently for us to turn over ourselves to him, the transformation can occur in us. It is beautiful music.

Love in Him,

Prue

Michelle was a three year old little girl when her family, including an older sister and brother, moved into the house across the street from our house. I soon got to meet the whole family, and we became friends. My daughter had just left home for college, and I was “empty nesting”, so I enjoyed Michelle and her siblings being near by.

One day, when I had been visiting with their mother, as I turned to leave, Michelle said to me, “You know, you could have a new baby, because my Daddy has lots of spare parts in the garage that he would give you.” I thanked her very much and said that it was a very kind offer. I didn’t laugh or even act surprised, but I thought that my neediness must have been detected by this very young child, or perhaps her mother had explained to her my “empty nest.” In either case, I was touched that she wanted to supply a remedy to what she thought was my need.

And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. ( Matthew 6:7)

Jesus gave many strong assurances that God is present with us and wholly knowledgeable about our needs and desires: Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you; for everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened to him. (Matthew 7:7-9)

If a three year old child with no resources at all, can wish to fill my need as she perceived it, how much more an omnipotent God, who creates life itself on earth, can fill the real needs and desires of all our lives. The promise is absolute. Jesus makes no exceptions. It all takes place in a relationship of trust and faith, and ultimately of love for the one who promises: The Lord your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love Him with all your heart and all your soul, and live. ( Deuteronomy 30: 6)

Neither Michelle nor I ever mentioned the spare parts in her father’s garage again, but I did feel that though my nest might be empty, my heart was full of gratitude and joy in my new neighbors.

Love in Him,

Prue

God used a powerful image in comparison between Himself and a woman with a new -born baby. It’s an appealing image, for it is universally understood, and lets us have an inkling to the bond that God seeks with us: Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me. (Isaiah 49:15-16) The image is one of profound intimacy, of a deep and life-long bond; and then He acknowledges that among humans not every such bond is lasting, but that in Him it lasts for eternity. It is a oneness between Him and human beings.

I have identical twin nephews named Charlie and Toby. One day Toby was walking downtown on the sidewalk when he heard someone yell from a car, “Charlie!, Toby,! Charlie! Toby! Whoever you are!, Hi!” It was a friend from college who, like many of their friends, couldn’t tell the twins apart. While they looked almost exactly alike, they differed in their interests and activities, and even lifestyles, but to this day the two of them share a deep and irrefutable bond.

Just before his crucifixion, Jesus called his disciples “friends” (John 15:15), but after his resurrection he told Mary Magdalene to tell his “brothers” that she had seen him alive: Go to my brothers and tell them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God” (John 20:17).

The brotherhood that Jesus created with his disciples is no ordinary brotherhood., It’s more like a twinship between Jesus and each of the eleven and ultimately between Jesus and every one of his followers: I pray also for those who will believe in me through their massage, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me, and I am in you. May they also be in us . . . (John 17:20)

This oneness is essential to Jesus, and the eleven of his twelve disciples entered it. It’s the oneness that Jesus seeks with everyone, for it comes from the heart of his Father. It’s the love that Jesus had for his people: Righteous Father, . . . I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that I myself may be in them. (John 17:25-26) Being one with Christ makes us all brothers and sisters.

Love in Him,

Prue