Lyle's Blog

Remember those who gave their lives and futures. The cause may or may not have been just. That was determined by politicians who stayed out of the fight. Eventually everything and everyone gets forgotten. It’s up to us to remember and learn of them. Stand at the grave a moment longer. You have the privilege to stand. Appreciate that for a moment.

Don Mclean wrote a song called American Pie. It’s a rendition of everyone’s rant when they notice that all the things they held dear and the people and events that made up the fabric of their life is fading into a new era. The new generation as a whole doesn’t recognize the precious things that are now lost and forgotten. The essence and value of our life reside mostly in our mind. We are told in the Bible to renew our mind. If we did that when we were young then the emptiness of old age is less important, for we are filled with the promise of eternity and not the things of this world which pass so quickly away. But that doesn’t totally dampen the disappointment of unrealized dreams. It’s the day the music died. We used to fill our ears with it but now the din of re-lived past songs echo hollow. These pied pipers were singing our tunes, we believed, we cared about the written trivia and even danced as it all fell apart around us. The church bells all are broken and in protest hardly a word is spoken. Our lives are gone with a whisper along with our dreams. So, bye, bye American Pie, my Chevys become a Honda, and those old friends are drinking whatever they can before they die. Oh, if I could only reach them. Now I know how Noah felt; alone.

Jesus said that if we’re to enter the kingdom of heaven, we have to become like little children. What are children like? Are they perfect? No, of course they’re not. What they have is a desire for a relationship with their father and mother. If they have a need, they ask and actually expect mom and dad to supply it. They trust; they don’t have any reason not to. I remember my son would stand watching me leave in the morning and he knew when I came home. He wanted to see me. Ditto for me other kids. This is how we’re supposed to be with God, looking for his return and can’t wait till He does. Just simple love; that’s what He wants. If He says something we do it. My children knew I wasn’t going to have them do something that would hurt them. God wants us to trust Him that same way. He wants us to laugh and enjoy His company just like little children. We brought little children into the world for our pleasure. God does the same thing. We were created for His pleasure. He wants to bless us and give us life more abundantly. Imagine that God loves us and wants the best for us. It just doesn’t get better than that. So my new goal is to act more like a child, to believe what God says, and trust Him for everything. When you think about it, there is no one else besides Him; it is He we will stand before at our end. Remember that He is our loving father and after that last breath we want Him to know us intimately and tell us “well done”.

Joseph was a man of unusual faith. At seventeen he was sold into slavery by his brothers. Talk about betrayal, that’s as bad as it gets. As a slave he is falsely accused of taking advantage of his employers wife; he’s thrown into prison for thirteen years. Why would a young man have faith in a God who allowed him to suffer so much. I would submit it was because he knew God. Before all this took place he had visions from God of his future position. He walked with God. He heard God’s voice. Jesus said that his sheep know him and hear His voice. God wants to be intimate with everyone; He wants you to hear His voice. The Bible tells us that if we seek God, we will find Him. We seek so many things in this life, all of them perishing. Relationship with Christ is everything; it is the one thing we can hold on to, depend upon in the end. We’ve all heard many voices; everyone’s trying to get our attention. They are seeking us. But hearing from God requires us to seek Him. When we find Him it is then we can endure all the hardships because we know He is real, a real God that loves us and is everything to us. I believe our faith is about to be tested and like Joseph we’ll make it through if while there is still time we’ve developed that intimate relationship with Him.

Living in America blinds us from the reality of what poor really means. Many of our “poor” are obese. They have many of the amenities that the middle class are accustomed to. Naturally a broad pen doesn’t do justice to those that are struggling, but America provides all sorts of programs to deal with our short-comings. Jesus Christ came to preach to the poor. Have you ever wondered why? Could it be that people with money or a program they can turn to, believe they are self-sufficient; they can supply all their needs. When people have nothing, they’re listening. They need answers; they need a miracle. If you have money, it’s hard to conjure up a need for God. Oh maybe some lip service now and then; after all we need to be noticed. But if you’re not poor it’s difficult to be desperate for God. Jesus said to deny yourself; that’s almost impossible for a rich man to do. But as He said, “With God all things are possible.” One other thing He said, “If you try to save your life you’ll lose it and if you lose your life for His sake, you will find it.” I encourage you to wake up to the house of cards you live in and not wait till you’re at death’s door before you realize that you never had the ability to save yourself; it is Christ who saves and He alone. It is far better to humble ourselves and become poor then strive for riches we can not keep, or as it is so aptly put: What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul. And furthermore what will you give God in exchange for your soul? At any moment we enter eternity, at any moment we stand before Him and give an account of our life. I pray we are all ready.