President Harry Truman famously kept a sign on his desk that read “The Buck Stops Here.” When I listen to the news or read the newspaper I feel as if our whole world is wondering where the “buck” stops, who or what is to blame for every natural or man—made disaster or even difficulty. Consensus doesn’t rear its head, and everyone is left unsatisfied.

Almost three thousand years ago the “Teacher” and author of Ecclesiastes ( attributed to Solomon) wrote, “This only have I found: God created mankind upright, but they have gone in search of many schemes.”(Ecclesiastes 7:29) It seems like an accurate description of the condition of human civilization on planet earth today, in search of many schemes.

Witnessing the conflicts among and within nations throughout the world makes the first century appearance of the Son of God on earth even more astounding when you consider that the light He introduced, and the change in the spiritual realities for everyone, have never left, but have spread all over the world. From the original apostles to Saint Mother Teresa, and countless others, including John and Charles Wesley, the question has been radically shifted on the world stage from where the “buck” stops, to What is God’s love like?

In all the centuries since Jesus’ walk on earth the Holy Spirit has been at work in the lives of people and nations, for as Mother Teresa insisted, “People are hungry for God.”

I once watched on TV an episode in her life when Mother Teresa was asked by a young man if she would allow him to use her name and develop a logo to use in her behalf in raising money for the Missionaries of Charity. She responded that she would gratefully receive any amount he wanted to give, but that she could not accept professional fund raising in her name. The young man thought that she misunderstood him and failed to grasp what a wonderful offer he was making. In the end, she said with a smile, “God bless you, but, No.”

Pursuing the “buck” and looking for where it stops is the way of the world, but there is another way for Christians who have hidden Christ in their hearts: “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them ( those of the world),because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”(John 4:4).

It was , however, to the world that Jesus was sent , and throughout the world that He preached and sacrificed His life. Jesus Himself said, “For God so loved the world that He sent His one and only son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but will have eternal life.” (John 3:16).

Truman was accepting responsibility for his administration as President. Jesus accepted responsibility for the rescue of our souls. All “bucks” stopped with Him.

Love in Him,

Prue

The story of the Exodus is the story of freedom in every sense. It’s the story of a helpless people who cried out to God, and beyond all hope and expectation were entirely released from the bondage of slavery to a foreign power. This freedom required courage and obedience from the people, but no particular labors, and the sacrifice only of a lamb.

Simple obedience to the direction of God through Moses produced ultimate freedom.

The combination of obedience yielding freedom seems contradictory, yet this pattern is the great prototype of life in the Bible.

Today we tend to think of freedom simply as securing our “rights” to unrestrained willfulness , as license to pursue our impulses, but Biblical freedom is much more. It is the freedom to enter and share literally the divine life of God Himself.

A Millennia after the Exodus, St. Paul wrote, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”( Galations 5:1) It’s Paul’s relationship with Jesus that has informed him about freedom. Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart , and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matt. 11:29)

Th take on a yoke suggests an additional bondage, but Jesus says his yoke is “easy” and “burden light”. It is a sweet thing to accept Jesus’ “yoke”, for it is given and received with love. This is the key that unlocks the freedom that was displayed at the Exodus, the freedom St. Paul says comes to us from Christ. His yoke is the obedience of love, the joyful obedience of a child toward his or her parent, conscious of the parent’s love.

The Bible reports that Moses was the Meekest man on the face of the earth in his time. (Numbers 12:3) Through his humility, his ability to put his own interests aside, God communicated with His people The humble acceptance of God’s Spirit in our lives unleashes divine freedom for us. Human freedom cannot compare to the freedom God has to give us. It is a better life, a more joyful life, and an accessible freedom right here on earth in the midst of our circumstances; a freedom that even the prisoner in his cell can experience and claim as his own today. The obedience of love produces freedom

for our spirits.

Love in Him,

Prue

The Queen’s Laughter

Queen Elizabeth II visited Houston in 1991 when I was living there, and I went to City Hall to see her. She and Prince Phillip were seated on a covered platform out doors overlooking the reflecting pond .

The cheerleaders from the University of Texas performed with great enthusiasm and many leaps and somersaults. The marching band played “Home on the Range”, and at precisely the line, “and the skies are not cloudy all day. . .” , the sky clouded up and it started to rain. I looked around to see if anyone else had noticed the coincidence, and saw that the Queen was laughing out loud, and the Prince was trying hard to stifle a laugh.

People scrambled to avoid getting soaked, though it was a brief shower. I scrambled, too, and found myself closer to the platform with an even better view of the royal couple. I was grateful for the shower and for the whole experience. It was worth all the trouble of fighting the traffic and finding a parking place and devoting the larger part of the day to the visit, and more.

Simply the laughter of the queen made it more than memorable. The shower and the laughter brought renewal and refreshment from what might have been a tedious obligation for the queen, and a routine ceremony for the crowd.

“I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing.” (Ezekiel 34:26) That day the shower was indeed a blessing for me, and apparently for others as well. It fulfilled the proverb,”In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.” (Prov. 16:9), and joy and pleasure was the fruit of the rain.

The passing of Queen Elizabeth has signaled a sea-change in people’s minds, as if an historic age has come to an end and we are reminded that the future is unknown. It helps to remember that God’s promises still hold and that His supply of showers of blessing never runs dry. As He blessed England with a gracious Queen, so He blesses all His people who seek Him.

Love in Him,

Prue

Holy Spirit Reading

Everyone reads the Bible differently from everyone else. Some read it critically; others seeking direction or guidance; still others for entertaining stories. Some read to disprove the Bible or at least parts of it, and others read it for the beauty of its metaphors and language.

There is another kind of reading that carries us far beyond the others. It’s “Holy Spirit” reading. It’s reading the Bible daily for no purpose at all except to become familiar and even close to God, It’s reading even the tedious passages with a mind to receive the Spirit behind them.

I once told the students I was teaching to imagine having lunch in the cafeteria with a friend five days a week, but never seeing or talking with that friend any other time. Imagine how God must feel when we “check in” with Him occasionally with our prayers, but never make any other effort to connect with Him.

One day while reading the Bible for pleasure, I came across this passage: “Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘ See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet.’”( Exodus 7:1) It occurred to me that God was giving Pharaoh ( and Moses, and all readers) a glimpse of Himself as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, for Aaron would deliver the sacrifices, but where was the Holy Spirit? I couldn’t help remembering that Miriam, their sister, had led the singing after the crossing of the Red Sea, and had displayed discretion and help at the birth of Moses when the Egyptian princess found him.

The prophet Micah says of these three, “I sent Moses to lead you, also Aaron and Miriam.” (Micah 6:4) While Moses became God-like to Pharaoh, God gave a glimpse of His triune Self in the three siblings He sent to Israel.

It would be many generations before Jesus would tell His followers to baptize in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,” (Matt. 28:19), but in these early people we see a vision that will give us an even greater understanding of our God, and a pathway to closeness to Him.

When we do “Holy Spirit” reading, the Person of the Holy Spirit knows and is present. If every hair on our heads is counted, then every moment spent in His book is counted, too. It is a win-win activity. It produces patience, order, and contact with our Creator. God shows Himself in many ways, most fully, perhaps, in the Bible.

Love in Him, Prue

At the grocery store now many food items have as many as three prices listed . The first price is for strangers who shop without coupons or a store card. The second is for those with a card only, and the third is for those with both a card and a digital coupon.
As I’m not very good at using coupons, I have to settle for the second option most of the time.

While I was shopping this week I felt as if this system drains the pleasure of selection and buying by filling me with regrets for not having the right coupon, or of being manipulated to perform tasks for which I haven’t the time in order to buy groceries.

I fondly remember the roadside vegetable stands that accepted cash only, but the price was the same for everyone, and a human being always checked us out. In a world of constantly changing technologies the purchase of food should be simple, but instead it gets more complicated almost every week I shop.

“Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed–or indeed, only one. Mary has chosen the better part, and it will not be taken away from her”(Luke 10:41-42). These words of Jesus have been a focus of attention for Christians for centuries. They express a dichotomy that draws a pattern for the spiritual life.

When Jesus speaks to Martha about Mary, He is calling attention to Mary’s absorption in His own teaching to His disciples. He knows that Mary perceives Him to be speaking as and of God. She cannot help being drawn to His words.

By repeating Martha’s name Jesus expresses His love and regard to her as well. As Mother Teresa was fond of saying, “All people are on earth for two things: to love and

be loved..” Martha’s irritation prevents her from appreciating Jesus’ presence and teaching, and so He brings Martha back to the very reason she and Mary love Him.

When I grumble about the grocery store I forget the better part: such a rich selection from which to choose, and the God who has made it possible for me. Though I face many price changes, He paid the one and only price to secure my life with Him. I believe that it will not be taken away from me.

Love in Him,

Prue

Slowly paddling a canoe through a bed of water lilies is a sweet experience. Seeing the morning or late afternoon sun on the blossoms and flat leaves works in the imagination toward a quiet , precious beauty. You know that for centuries, probably millennia, such a beauty has touched the minds of countless others, and led to a peace that our ancestors also experienced.

In San Angelo Texas there exists the International Water Lily Collection that consists of dozens of man-made ponds containing a rich variety of water lilies in a myriad of colors and even shapes. When I visited it, there were artists’ easels set up around the ponds and artists at work interpreting the irresistible beauty of the ponds. Images of the flowers were mirrored in the water. It was as if traces of Eden were present on today’s earth, having never really left, and inviting us to create as God Himself creates. “Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation : seed-bearing plants and trees on land. . . according to their various kinds. . . and God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:11)

Because evil is so very visible in our world, we sometimes become suspicious of anything that might seem to be good, but God declared all creation “good” at His hand, and made sure that goodness could still exist and be experienced on His earth for all time.

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”(for disbelieving)(Romans 1:20).

Water lilies in bloom convey serenity and calm. They move with the water and can be almost hypnotic. Watching them is soothing and even renewing, as the psalmist wrote, “I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child I am content.” (Psalm 131:2) St. Paul echoes the psalmist, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.” (Philippians 4:11)

Water lilies are more than an accident of nature. They are a gift from God.

Love in Him,

Prue

Catherine had been an army nurse during World War II when I met her late in her life. She had been present in Paris immediately following the liberation. She told of wearing her uniform in the city, and people stopping her to give her flowers or food gifts , thanking her and hugging her . She told of flowers showered upon her from second and third story windows as she walked by.

When she finally returned to New York, and stood in line for a ticket to a Broadway show, the whole line gave way and insisted that Catherine take the first place. I have stood in line on Broadway, and I could hardly believe her account.

“Give Thanks to the Lord, for He is good.

His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the Lord of lords:

His love endures forever.

To Him who alone does great wonders.

His love endures forever. (Psalm 136:1-4)

The end of World War II, with its great victory for the allied nations, was a source of rejoicing for all the victors. It’s clear that the rejoicing was expressed in gestures of love and affection for everyone in uniform who participated.

When my father returned from the army wearing his uniform he went first to the administrative offices of a school district in a town two hours from home. When he returned to the car where my mother and his parents were waiting he had a job as a principal in one of the elementary schools. He had no connections in that school district or city except his uniform.

The joy and gratitude for deliverance from war, fear, aggression and heartache is accompanied by an outpouring of a love, just as the joy and gratitude of discovering and rediscovering that the redemption Christ has achieved for us is true and real puts us in touch with a love in us that lasts. It’s a healing gift that brings peace and renewal to our lives, regardless of our age or circumstances.

My father never went to Paris and was still in training when the war came to an end, but he experienced the gratitude that leads to peace and the love that endures forever.

Love in Him,

Prue

On Monday all the stress and tension of weeks and weeks of dry heat was relieved in a night and a day of rain that brought almost eight inches of water to our rein gauge in a steady downpour. The temperature plummeted. It was as if the growing things sighed a sigh of release and contentment. People barely complained of the inconvenience of the rain in the pleasure of the relief.

For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants. They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like poplar trees by flowing streams.” (Isaiah 44;3-4

Thousands of years ago the prophet of God spoke to his people about the character of their God words that evoked His qualities to people who could recognize and understand the refreshment and renewal of rain on the earth. In spite of the colossal changes in civilization since these words were written, our own generation can glimpse the character of our God and the thirsty spirits of our spiritual ancestors in this passage. It is a link to both them and our Savior God for us.

“As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”

(Isaiah 55:10-11)

Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks this water (from the well) will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life, (John 4:13), and again:

“Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” (John7:37)

Nothing could be more alive than the earth that has just been visited with fresh rain. Nothing, that is,except the soul who has believed in Christ and witnessed to that belief.

Love in Him,

Prue

“Shema”, meaning “hear”, is the Hebrew word used by the Jewish faith to designate one of the most famous passages of scripture: “Hear O Israel, the Lord our God , the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your strength.” (Deuteronomy 6:2-5)

These are words spoken by Moses to the Israelites just before they were to enter the Promised Land. In everything the people experienced and lived through, they never forgot the words, though they sometimes wandered far from obeying them.

When Jesus was asked what was the greatest commandment, he answered with the Shema, and added, “The second is like this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. . . There is no greater commandment than these.’” The man who questioned Jesus responded, “Well said, teacher,. . . these are more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”(Mark 12:32-34). Jesus answered, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” To understand the Shema and to live it in our lives is to be close to God’s kingdom and to His son.

Those words of Jesus ended all argument toward him and dispersed the crowd. The primacy of Love in the kingdom of God was indisputable to scribes and Pharisees questioning Jesus. They had not forgotten Moses’ words from centuries ago.

Jesus’ ministry on earth was to prove to be a living out of the Shema. In all his miracles, Jesus displayed the love of God. The healings, the feedings, the walking on water, stilling the storm, restoring the dead, all demonstrated deep love for his “neighbors.”

Jesus’ unconditional, intimate prayer to his Father God: “Abba, Father, everything is possible for you,. . . yet not what I will, but what you will, be done,”(Luke 22:42) is the most profound demonstration of Shema in all the history of salvation. It culminates Jesus’ time with his disciples on earth just before his death on the cross.

That same evening Jesus included the disciples in the Shema: “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my father’s commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that your joy may be complete. My command is this: ‘Love one another as I have loved you.’”(John 15:9-12)

Love in Him,and Shalom

Prue

In one episode of theSherlock Holmes series starring Jeremy Brett, the great detective managed to find and rescue the kidnapped young son of a wealthy nobleman. The nobleman had been overbearing and almost rude to Holmes until Holmes had said to him, “Your Lordship, I’m not unaware of your need for privacy in this , but at stake is the life of your son.” At the end when Holmes opened the envelope containing his fee, he exclaimed, “This is a king’s ransom!” His lordship answered quietly, “You have given me hope and a future.”

“’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” (Jeremiah 29:11)

When God spoke these words through His prophet, the people of Israel were in exile in Babylon and utterly uncertain of their future. God didn’t send a direct message of Redemption or Salvation, but a deeply felt message of loving care for His people. He told them that regardless of their living in an alien and unfamiliar place where customs and beliefs were different from their own, he was still with them. Though they were not in the Promised Land, they were definitely in the hand of the Promiser. It is a love letter to His own, and carries new promise of hope and a future, as He promises personally to be with them.

The world we live in today changes so rapidly that it begins to feel almost alien. Long familiar institutions, including the church itself , the government, and many social “norms” are shifting and changing and making us uncomfortable and insecure, but the constant in our lives is the presence of God in Christ. It’s for times like this that Jesus said “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.” (Luke 12:32) That is His Kingdom, which is His dwelling place and home. Again God tells His people that He is with them, regardless of the appearance of chaos in their world. These words, and the words of Jeremiah were preserved for our generation to receive as well.

When Jesus spoke of giving us God’s Kingdom, he knew what the price would be, and that he would be paying it. Today in the midst of confusion his voice says “Don’t be afraid”, for he is with us in truth and in power. He knew what was at stake and he knows what we need today. He has paid the King’s ransom for our hope and our future.

Love in Him,

Prue