They Sure Did Cry

Even though it has been almost 25 years ago since I lived there, I still miss living in the North Carolina mountains. I particularly miss the people that I had the priviledge to know and serve in that beautiful part of the world.  One of those people is Wylene Graybeal.   She was filled with stories of the people and events of those mountain villages and towns.   One day, she told me a story about one of her school teachers who got the idea that she wanted to test the Bible knowledge of her students.  As she called the roll in class that school morning,  she asked the students to not say “here” or “present”, but to recite a Bible verse.   One student recited that passage that begins “God so loved the world…”   Another student recited the first words of Psalm 23 which say “The Lord is my shepherd…”.     When they came to Ernest, he recited John 11:35 which is known as the shortest verse in the Bible.  “Jesus wept.”     As the name of the next student was called,  he apparently had limited knowledge of the Bible for when the teacher called his name he exclaimed “He sure did.”

“Jesus wept.”    He certainly did.   While that verse in John’s gospel is perhaps best known because it is the shortest verse of the Bible,   I believe that there is much that is said in those two words.     The fact that Jesus wept shows the humanity of Jesus.  The fact that Jesus cries shows that truly he was God and man, divine and human.  I recall watching an old western on television many years ago.   Like some of the old westerns in years past, it had this underlying theme from some of the characters that native Americans were “animals” and “savages”.   There was a scene near the end of the episode where one of the native American characters is experiencing the loss of their family members.   As tears stream down the cheeks of this native American character, the hero of the western exclaims,  “You call this man an animal or savage.   No, his tears show that he is as human as you and I.      There is not a human alive who has not cried or shed tears.   The tears of Jesus show that truly he knew the fullness of the human experience.  

Jesus wept.  He sure did.   That passage also shows the truth that God weeps with us and for us.   That passage in John 11 is a part of the story of the raising of Lazarus from the dead.  As God and man, Jesus knew the “rest of the story” that in a matter of minutes Lazarus would be raised from the dead.  Yet, in that moment he cries with his friends, Mary and Martha,  knowing their sorrow over the loss of their beloved brother, Lazarus.  What comfort to know that in the midst of our grief, loss, trouble, trial, and heartache that the God we know in Christ Jesus weeps with us and for us.  May that truth bring hope and comfort for us when sadness comes our way.    Have a joy-filled week.-   Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   Living and loving God, we give you thanks that because Christ Jesus lived among us that you understand the full human experience.   We pray for those this day who know heartache and trouble.   Help them to know the truth that you are with them and that you understand;; through Christ our Lord.   Amen. 

A Thank You That Might Be Too Late

A few weeks ago, I was in the Raleigh Durham area.   Though I only travel there now from time to time,  40 years ago I lived there.    I was in seminary at the time at Duke and served part time as pastor of two United Methodist Churches in the Raleigh Durham area.   While I was there,  I took a pilgrimmage to some of the places that were a big part of my life then.   As the sun set, I rode  by the church parsonage that I called home for 4 years.   While  fields and woods used to surround the house,  it is now surrounded by a housing development that has been built by Del Webb in recent years.   I rode up the road from the house where I used to live and turned into the parking lot of Andrews Chapel United Methodist Church where I served as pastor.  As I stood there taking a picture of the church,  I remembered events that happened while I was pastor there:  the day the dog came in the open front door and watched me as I preached after he had sniffed the money in the offering plates… the church dinners and auctions we had in the fellowship house next door… the day that a crane put a steeple on  the “steeple-less” church roof… the Sunday when my oldest daughter, Heather, was baptized.  

As I stood that Friday evening in the church parking lot, I looked at the house across the street where the O’Neal family used to live.    There was Rufus, Lora, Dora, Vera, Margaret, and Lester.   None of them had ever married.   Vera was one of my favorites of the family largely because she and I shared the same birthday.   She was also one of my favorites because she was a servant.   Every week, she would see that the church was cleaned for church activities and that the heat or air conditioning was turned on as needed.   Vera never got any pay for what she did for the church and I suspect that this pastor probably only showed her his appreciation only now and then. 

I shared the story of Vera because it is a story that can be repeated over and over again in churches large and small across this land and across our world.    The work of Christ and His Church goes on not so much because of the skills of its pastors, but  because of a core of volunteers and servants like Vera.   They do what they do on Sunday and every day of the week in Sunday School classes, church dinners, and behind the scenes because of their love for the Lord and their love for His Church.    

 

Vera died many years ago.   She has gone on to her just reward.   I can’t thank her anymore for what she did for Andrews Chapel Church and for the Lord, but I can say thank you to you and people like you who serve the Lord behind the scenes and without pay every day.   Thanks be to God for you.   Have a joy-filled week.-  Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   O God,  we give thanks that you are working still in our world today as you use people  like us as instruments  to do your work and will.   Thanks be to God for those who serve in ways known and unknown simply because they love you and love their church;  through Jesus Christ our Lord.   Amen. 

Max, Coach K, and Jim

A few weeks ago, I watched like many of you the “March madness” men’s basketball games.  It was good to see as one of the television commentators Jim Spanarkel.   When I received my graduate degree from Duke, Jim received his undergraduate degree from Duke where he played on the men’s basketball team.   While we did not know each other, I would see him on campus from time to time.  Seeing Jim Spanarkel on television reminded me of a true story.  

Most of you know the name of Duke University men’s basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski.   You probably know that he is the winningest Division I coach in history and has many championships and other accolades to his name.  But most of you probably do not know the name Max Crowder.   Former Duke University basketball player Jim Spanarkel called him “Clam Crowder”.  Max Crowder died back in 1992 of lung cancer.   Before his death, he was the Duke University athletic trainer at Duke from the days of Vic Bubas to Coach K.    

While you may or may not  have heard the name Max Crowder, you probably do not know that for many years Max actually lived on the Duke University campus next to Cameron Indoor Stadium on the third floor of Card Gym in a room overlooking the tennis courts.  It  was the home and private sanctuary for Max Crowder though  few Duke students or staff ever visited him in that place.    Max Crowder not only worked for Duke, but he lived at Duke.  

I share that story to make a point and it is this.  One of the best known psalms to Christians and non-Christians  alike is Psalm 23.  Some call it the “Shepherd Psalm”.     In the  last verse, Psalm 23: 6, the psalmist declares:  

Surely your goodness and love will follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.

I did not personally Max Crowder.  I have no knowledge whether he was a person of faith or not.   What I do know is that he was a man who devoted his life to Duke University and its athletic program.       He lived at Duke University, and he lived for Duke University.     “And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” does  not mean to me that the psalmist believed that he would spend all his days living in the “house of the Lord”.  No, what it means  is personified in the example of Max Crowder.   As Max Crowder lived at Duke University and lived for Duke University, so I want to live my life in the Good Shepherd and for the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ.   How about you?  Have a joy-filled week.-  Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   O God, give me a passion to live in you and live for you.   Remind me that life is not living unless it is found in you; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen. 

It is Empty, But Our Lives Are Not

There are some places you visit that you never forget.  One of those places for me is the Holy Land.   Though it has been 25 years since I was there, I still find meaning in that trip. Every now and then, I visit that place in my mind.  During the Lenten and Easter season, I go there often.    .  There are two sites around Jerusalem that are associated with the burial place of Jesus.   The first place is known as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.   It dates back to the 4^th century when Helen, the mother of Emperor Constantine  the first Christian monarch, came to Jerusalem in search of the place where Jesus was crucified and buried.   Thousands of pilgrims daily visit that site believing it is the site where Jesus died and was buried.

Not very far away in the same city of Jerusalem is a site known as The Garden Tomb.   It was discovered by a British archaeologist in the 1940’s named Gordon.  It is  better preserved than the Church of the Holy Sepulchre because it has not been a tourist site for many centuries.  Every day, thousands of people also visit that site believing that perhaps that is the place where Jesus was buried.  

The bottom line is that Biblical scholars do not know for certainty where Jesus was buried and there is no universal agreement on the question.   But the best news is this:  it makes no difference for Christians.   You see, followers of Christ Jesus are the Easter people.   We know the good news that (as the angel said at a tomb long ago)  “He is not here, for he is risen”.    There is no question that Christ Jesus walked the streets of Jerusalem and the village of Israel long ago.  And for the Easter people, there is no doubt that Christ Jesus lives today!    The tomb is empty, but our lives are not.   Hallelujah, and amen!  Have a joy-filled week.-  Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   Living and loving God,  we celebrate with joy that Christ not only rose from the dead long ago, but that he lives now.   Thank you for Easter and for the resurrection.  Help us to open our hearts to your presence in us and through us daily; through Christ our Lord. Amen. 

The Story of a Naked Rabbi

In Philip Yancey's devotional book, Grace Notes, he shares a story from a memoir written by Pierre Van Paasen of the years before World War II.   The story goes that one day an elderly Jewish rabbi is dragged into the headquarters of the Nazi storm trooper headquarters..   The storm troopers strip the rabbi naked and ask him to preach the sermon he had prepared for the coming Sabbath in the synagogue.   When the rabbi asked if he could wear his yarmulke, the Nazi grin and agree.  So, the rabbi proceeds to deliver his sermon about walking humbly with God before the hooting, hollering Nazis while one of his neighbors is beaten to death at the end of the room..   It is a sad and powerful story. 

I think of that story during  this week that Christians call “Holy Week”.   It is the week before Easter Day.  On Friday, Christians will head to a worship service or take a moment for silent reflection remembering that Jesus Christ was crucified and died  a criminal’s death on a cross outside of Jerusalem.

When I was in seminary many years ago, one of the faculty members at Duke Divinity School was Charles “Chuck” Robinson.   He was literally a “long tall Texan” who often would wear his cowboy boots to class.   What I remember most about Professor Robinson is that when he would talk about the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, this tall  Texan would start crying. 

When you think about not only the death of Jesus Christ, but the events surrounding his crucifixion it is enough to make you cry even as the thought of a naked Jewish rabbi preaching his sermon before a group of jeering Nazis brings tears to my eyes.  Christ Jesus was betrayed by one of his own, Judas;  the one that Jesus said would be the “rock of the Church”, Simon Peter, denies him three times even as the other disciples run and hide.   His own faith leaders saw him as a “problem” and sought his execution.   He was stripped and beaten by soldiers and was the subject of their wrath.    And what is most touching to me is to think that Christ Jesus died there for people like you and me.  

Whatever busyness and activities this week holds  for you,  I encourage you as I encourage myself to stop and contemplate the horror of what Jesus faced in the events of the crucifixion long ago and the wonder of the fact that he faced it because of a holy love for you and I.  Have a joy-filled week.-   Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   God of all, we are in awe at the wonder of your love for us as we face another Good Friday and consider the death of Christ Jesus our Savior.    Thank you for your amazing grace and your redemptive love.  We yearn for the hope of Easter;  through Christ our Lord.  Amen. 

The Day You Were Saved

In Philip Yancey's devotional book, Grace Notes, he tells a story about a time when 20th century theologian Karl Barth was asked about when he was "saved".    After thinking for a moment, Barth replied,  " It happened one afternoon in A.D. 34 when Jesus died on the cross."    

There are a lot of folks who  point to a specific day, time, or month when they gave their life to Christ and were "saved".    Some share about it proudly, and others shared about it with great humility.     When you get right down to it,  it,  the day of our salvation was not a few months, few years, or few decades ago.  As Barth stated, the day that we were "saved"  was the same day for all of us.   It was that day  thousands of years ago when "while we were yet sinners Christ died for us."    That day is known by Christians as "Good Friday".   While   some perhaps wonder how folks can consider a day of death as  a "good day", it is a good day for all who know the forgiveness and grace that is found in Christ Jesus.  

I am aware that we live in a world where not everyone is a Christian or claims that Jesus Christ is their Lord and Savior.   I submit the idea  that they also were "saved" that day long ago when Jesus died on the cross.     The difference is that they have not accepted that fact.  Have you accepted the fact that you were “saved”?    Have a joy-filled week.-  Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   Lord God, we thank you for the forgiveness and grace that is found not in what we have done, but what Jesus did on the cross long ago when he died for the sins of the whole world.  Hear our prayers of gratitude and thanksgiving; through Christ our Lord.  Amen. 

The Power of One

One of the courses I took in my high school days at the suggestion of my mother as an elective was typing.  I was not a good typist despite the best efforts of Karen Brown, our teacher.  To be completely honest, my grade in typing was a “C”.  It was one of my lower grades in high school.  Though I was not a good typist, it was one of the most useful classes I took in high school with the advent of the personal computer.  I spend time daily at a keyboard (though not at a typewriter anymore).   Though I am a better typist than I was in my high school days, my fingers still  do not always type what I want to say.  If you are a regular reader of this blog, I am certain that you have seen some typing or spelling errors at times. 

I was looking over one of my sermons recently and I noticed a major typing error.   I had wanted to type the word “immortality” but mistakenly left out one letter:  the letter “t”.   So, instead of typing the word “immortality” I had typed the word “immorality”.     There certainly is a lot of difference between the word “immortality” and “immorality” isn’t it?  One letter in a word can make a lot of difference, can’t it?   The addition or the omission of one letter can give a word a totally different meaning, can’t it?    For example, most of us will say we “ate” lunch today.  However, add the letter “h” and it changes the entire word to the phrase “hate”.    If you say you “ate lunch today”  it means something totally different than saying you “hate lunch today.”  Oh, the power of just one letter.

During these days of Lent, we encounter the power of one in other ways.  Lent is a time that causes us to pause and look at our actions past and present.  Consider one thing you have done or not done. For example, one mistake can severely damage a relationship.  One act of unfaithfulness in a marriage can harm if not destroy the health of a marriage.   One outburst in anger to a friend or family member can leave wounds that last for years to come. 

At the same time during Lent as we look at ourselves in all our glory and in all our goofy attempts to love God and neighbor, we also look at the One who takes the sins of the world away, Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Through his death for sins that One did not commit, there is grace and forgiveness for all who come to him with penitent hearts.  Oh, the power of One named Christ Jesus  to forgive us and restore us.  Have a joy-filled week.  --  Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   O God, forgive us for the many times along the path of our life where we have failed to reflect your love.  Offer us anew, O God, your grace that frees us and forgives us through the One that takes away the sins of the world, Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.