NOVEMBER 2010


NEWSPAPER


PAGE 43 TWO FATHERS, TWO FEASTS Continued from Page 42 THE GOOD NEWS


“It’s a short journey,” I offer to the children. “We’re almost there.” I know. I’ve been there before. I’ve driven this road. I’ve covered this territory. For


me, it’s no challenge. Ah, but for the children, it’s eternal. So I try another approach. “Just think how good it will be,” I depict. “Turkey, dress-


ing, pie … I promise you, when you get there, the trip will have been worth it.” But they still groan. Which takes us to the third similarity.


Children can’t envision the reward. For me, six hours on the road is a small price to pay for my mom’s strawberry cake.


I don’t mind the drive because I know the reward. I have three decades of Thanksgivings under my belt, literally. As I drive, I can taste the turkey. Hear the dinner-table laughter. Smell the smoke from the fireplace. I can endure the journey because I know the destiny. My daughters have forgotten


the destiny. After all, they are young. Children easily forget. Besides, the road is strange, and the dark night has come. They can’t see where we’re going. It’s my job, as their fa- ther, to guide them. I try to help them see what they can’t see. I tell them how we’ll feed the ducks at


the lake. How we’ll play on the swings. How they can spend the night with their cousins. We speak of sleeping on the floor in sleeping bags and staying up late since there is no school.


And it seems to work. Their grumbling decreases as their vision clears—as their


destiny unfolds. Perhaps that’s how the apostle Paul stayed motivated. He had a clear vision of the reward.7 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wast- ing away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.8 It’s not easy to get three girls under the age of seven to see a city they can’t see. But


it’s necessary. It’s not easy for us to see a City we’ve never seen, either, especially when the road is


bumpy … the hour is late … and companions are wanting to cancel the trip and take up residence in a motel. It’s not easy to fix our eyes on what is unseen. But it’s necessary. One line in the 2 Corinthians passage you just read makes me smile: “our light and mo- mentary troubles.” I wouldn’t have called them that if I were Paul. Read what he called light and mo-


mentary, and I think you’ll agree: • Imprisoned.


• Beaten with a whip five times. • Faced death.


• Beaten with rods three times. • Stoned once.


• Shipwrecked three times. • Stranded in the open sea. • Left homeless. • In constant danger. • Hungry and thirsty.9 Long and trying ordeals, perhaps. Arduous and deadly afflictions, OK. But light and momentary troubles? How could Paul describe endless trials with that phrase? He tells us. He could see “an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”


Can I speak candidly for a few lines?


For some of you, the journey has been long. Very long and stormy. In no way do I wish to minimize the difficulties that you have had to face along the way. Some of you have shouldered burdens that few of us could ever carry. You have bid farewell to life-long partners. You have been robbed of life-long dreams. You have been given bodies that can’t sustain your spirit. You have spouses who can’t tolerate your faith. You have bills that outnumber the paychecks and challenges that outweigh the strength. And you are tired. It’s hard for you to see the City in the midst of the storms. The desire to pull over to the side of the road and get out entices you. You want to go on, but some days the road seems so long. Let me encourage you with one final parallel between your life’s journey and the one our family took last night.


It’s worth it.


As I write, the Thanksgiving meal is over. My legs are propped up on the hearth. My tablet is on my lap.I have every intention of dozing off as soon as I finish this chapter. The turkey has been attacked. The giblet gravy has been gobbled. The table is clear. The kids are napping. And the family is content. As we sat around the table today, no one spoke of the long trip to get here. No one


1 1st Thessalonians 5:9, NEB 2 Isaiah 57:15.


3 Psalm 74:10; 89:46. 4 1 Chronicles 29:15. 5 Psalm 39:5. 6 James 4:14.


7 Psalm 103:15, 16. 8 2 Corinthians 4:16–18. 9 2 Corinthians 11:23–27.


This passage excerpted from: In the Eye of the Storm Max Lucado ©1991. Thomas Nelson Publishers: Nashville


Hope in Returning Home


and lower into our own choices, until we have no other way to look – but UP. Then there comes a time, often when


we’re at the end of our rope, when we are so overwhelmed by the condition of our life, that we begin considering that our way might actually be the wrong way, and God’s way might actually be the right way. When that happens we realize that returning to the house of our Heavenly Father is our only hope. However, like the lost son in Luke


By Pastor Dave Shepardson Word by Mail


A parable is a story that teaches a


truth by painting a picture. In Luke Ch 15 there are three great parables about one great truth; God’s joy when that which was lost is found. These parables illustrate God’s great love for us and His strong de- sire for us to return to Him. In the third parable in Luke 15 we find the story of the lost son returning home to find hope in his father’s house. Maybe this parable paints a picture of your life. Like the lost son, we thought we


could do it our own way, we thought we knew what was best for us. So we set out into the world to prove it. But our running into the world caused us to run from God, and we ended up separated from God by the choices we made. But God, who loves us with an im-


measurable love, has not left us alone. While we’ve been running away from Him, He’s still been at work in our lives. In fact, God often allows us to sink lower


15, we might start back a bit timid, not sure how God is going to react. We might think God is going to respond like the harsh judge we imagine Him to be. But then, while we are still a long way off, our Heavenly Father sees us returning to Him. And instead of responding in anger, our God RUNS to meet us. Not in judg- ment, but to embrace us in love. In Luke 15 it says the father ran to the son and “kissed him,” it means literally that the father smothered him in kisses. Why? Because his son who was lost, has now been found. And the moment you turn from a self-directed life, and turn toward a God-directed life, God will run to you in unconditional acceptance and love. He will throw His arms around you, and He will smother you with kisses. God will always welcome you home, if you will simply turn from your sin, and turn toward Him. Then, as the story of the lost son goes, there will be rejoicing in the house of the Father. He will put a robe of righteousness on you, He will put the ring of an heir on your finger, and He will say; “Let the party begin, for my child who was lost has now been found!” Why don’t you grab a Bible and read Luke Ch 15 for yourself. You’ll be glad you did.


mentioned the requests I didn’t honor. No one grumbled about my foot being on the ac- celerator when their hearts were focused on the banana splits. No one complained about the late hour of arrival. Yesterday’s challenges were lost in today’s joy. That’s what Paul meant. God never said that the journey would be easy, but he did say that the arrival would be worthwhile. Remember this: God may not do what you want, but he will do what is right … and


best. He’s the Father of forward motion. Trust him. He will get you home. And the trials of the trip will be lost in the joys of the feast. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll close my eyes. I’m a bit tired from the journey, and it feels good to rest.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48