Near Disasters

Have you ever had a near disaster?

In 1961, a B-52 dropped a pair of 24 megaton bombs on a farm in North Carolina. They didn’t explode.

In 1980, a fix-it guy dropped a wrench which bounced off the ground with enough force to penetrate a hole in the Titan II missile while she sat on her silo in Arkansas. The top of the silo and the tip of warhead flung over 600 feet in a massive air disaster.

When I was about 5 or 6, I experienced my first near disaster. At the time I lived in Sparta, New Jersey in a suburban area with plenty of kids in my neighborhood. The key to being 5 or 6 and being happy was you had to own a bike, any bike. If you had a bike you were almost an instant member of the neighborhood bike gang.

Some may remember our bikes back then. They were all 1 speed bikes (unless your parents had money); banana seats with a sissy bar on the back; playing cards clipped to the wheel frames with clothes pins; big handle bars and some with a goofy horn or bell. These bikes were cool when we didn’t know what cool really was and we all had a special trick only we could do with our bikes.

At the end of my street, there was “The Hill”. The hill was a thousand miles high, well it seemed that way to us but actually was more close to maybe a thousand feet but steep. The hill was the highest point in the neighborhood and the road that ran up the center took you to another neighborhood.

The Hill was our starting point, we’d line up at the top and race down the hill. There were a few dangers mainly from cars but after 9 in the morning, this danger was minimized. Of course some of us had brake and tire issues but that never scared us, we were daring.

Which brings me to my first near disaster. This particular morning we were perched and ready to race down the hill. This particular morning I got a good jump at the start on the rest of the guys and took an early lead. As I got half way down the hill out of the corner of my eye I detected movement. Apparently, a little Weiner dog did not care for us racing down his hill that day and attempted to stop us.

He chose my bike to run in front of and I t-boned the Weiner dog. The next sequence of events are still blurry to this day. I don’t know whatever happened to the Weiner dog; I don’t remember what happened to my bike; I don’t remember what my friends did but I do remember the severity of the road rash when I flew over the handle bars from the quick stop. This was a near disaster to me.

The bible talks a lot about near disasters. It reveals that we all are going to face some before we breathe our last breath. But for those of us who trust in Jesus, we need not worry. The same Lord who takes care of the birds by providing them food, the same God who has every single hair on our heads counted, will be at work to protect us and our houses in accordance with His will.

Proverbs 3:1-18 my son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity. ²

Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.

⁴Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.⁶

Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil.

This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. ⁸

Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.

¹⁰My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline, and do not resent his rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in.¹²

Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding, for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold.

She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.

Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor.

Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace.

When you lie down you will not be filled with fear and your sleep will be pleasant. You will not be afraid of sudden disaster, or when destruction overtakes the wicked; for the LORD will be your source of confidence, and He will guard your from being caught in any trap.

Amen?

Runt of the litter

I had a friend named Mark. Mark believed in God but didn’t attend church. His reasoning was “There were very few good people that actually went to church.” He knew people that go to church who were liars, cheaters and hypocrites.  He refused to associate with those type of people. This bothered me because, I go to church. It saddened me because he missed out on the one of the most important reasons for going to Church, fellowship with the body of Christ.

Sometime later, Mark’s Female Boxer had a litter of puppies. They were so cute I had to have one. The runt of the litter was very small and white. A white boxer is considered an imperfection and some breeders have them put to sleep because it is bad for the blood line. I chose this puppy.

Mark asked, “I have 5 other puppies, in great health; perfect markings and not sickly. Why did you chose the runt?”

I simply stated, “Because she comes from good stock and I refuse to condemn her. When Jesus chose his apostles, he didn’t choose the cream of the crop; he didn’t heal the healthy and he didn’t hang out with the most popular people. His church was a work in progress…imperfect.” He chose me, the runt of the litter!!!

Truth: There are no perfect Christians and no perfect churches.

Philippians 3:12 Not that I have already obtained all this (Not perfect), or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

The Apostle Paul also said, this is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.  1 Timothy 1:15

So anybody who thinks he is a good person is only fooling himself. When we get saved, Jesus does not destroy bodily weakness. We still have sickness, pain, and many health problems. Our souls continue living in a corruptible body…..we make mistakes! All of us have moments when our hearts are not completely pure.

Here’s another truth: Church people should strive for perfection. When we are saved, we don’t desire to stay the way we were, we seek change. The word “press” in Philippians 3:12 means to follow after, pursue…like a runner in a race.

1 Corinthians 9:24 says: Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.

Notice it says we are to run the race…that’s all of us. There can only be one winner though but does that mean we give up running? NO! Does a Nascar Driver think he will win every race? He’d like to but reality is in he knows he probably won’t. He still runs the race though, why? Because winning a single race isn’t the only reward; because winning the Cup at the end of the year isn’t the only reward. He keeps running because there will always be another race.

We keep running because there is more than one race. Sometimes you win and sometimes you don’t. The accomplishment of running the race is doing your best to win, that’s all God wants. Each single race has a reward but that’s not the only goal.

Again, another truth: Saved people are not perfect, just forgiven. Every Christian; no matter how long you’ve been saved; no matter how close our relationship is with Jesus; has the constant need for the grace of Jesus.

1 John 1:8-9 if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

That word “confess” indicates that it is not a one-time thing. If it was a one-time thing it would be the word confessed. In other words, it’s a continual process! A continuous race.  We keep on “confessing” and God keeps on forgiving our sins! Forgiveness is a gift that we must receive daily from Jesus.

We are not judged on our ability to be good Christians. Our righteousness is based on our dependence on Jesus. Even the most holy; religious; evangelical; pastoral and obedient person’s lives are based on their dependence on Jesus.

We will NEVER be perfect in our Earth Suits….never.

We ARE forgiven through confession of sins.

The whole reason for this post is if you don’t go to church because of hypocrisy or people not being good enough or because you fault other Christians based on how they are living there lives. Quit providing excuses and holding people to a higher standard.

IT’S NOT YOUR JOB!!!

You should be busy “pressing toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of Christ Jesus”!

Do this and you WILL WIN the prize!!!