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TerryLema

An Unusual Freedom

by TerryLema

My doctor of nearly two decades recently decided to leave. She was worn out from the pandemic that took a toll on many physicians and nurses. She graciously referred me to another physician she thought would be a good match for me.  I met that new physician a few days ago.

At our first introductory meeting she went over everything. Asked me numerous questions, re-did some of my medications. She was personable, listened, and explained. Everything you want in a physician.  Then she brought up the POST. I had no idea what a POST is.

POST stands for “Physician Orders for Scope of Treatment.” It is filed at the state level and the first choice on the form is about resuscitation. If you are without heartbeat or breath, do you want to be resuscitated or not? This isn’t just for hospital staff, but is available to paramedics, etc. She told me to think about it and we would go over everything when I see her in September. She did say that “at your age” you might want to lean toward the “Do Not Resuscitate” (DNR) response.

I walked out of the office with that form and wondered about “my age” at 75. (For those of you who have not yet attained “old age,” I should tell you that only the body feels 75, inside my heart I am 35.)

I walked out with that form and wondered about the DNR Response. It just felt odd thinking about it. Then I remembered it really does not matter what I put on that form. My God has already “filled it out.”

“Your eyes saw me when I was formless; my days were written in Your book and planned before a single one of them began.” [Psalm 139:16 HCSB]

Today is Independence Day in the United States commemorating our freedom. To know God knows all my days is true freedom. The day of my birth and the day of my death are no haphazard occurrence. Whatever I put on that form I need to remember that God has already “filled it out!”

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Length of Years

by TerryLema

Recently a 17-year-old by the name of Christopher Harding Jones from Georgia became the first person to successfully complete the latest American Ninja Warrior course.

This young man and his family were wearing tees that read “Living Wide.” This was a motto that the teen’s father lived by. Jones explained, “My dad built me a Ninja course. He started getting really excited about the prospect of me legitimately being on the show. But, about five years ago, my dad was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer and given only four months to life. It didn’t seem fair, my dad never smoked in his entire life. My family’s worry was that he’d sort of give up and shut down.”

Instead, Jones said that his dad did the opposite and “coined the phrase ‘Living Wide.’ It wasn’t about the length of your life; it was the width. ‘Living Wide’ ended up changing hundreds of people’s lives around the world. He entered these groups with people with terminal illnesses and encouraged them to live their life to the fullest. Not only did it change their lives, but it also changed our family …. He was given only four months to life, instead, he lived four years.”

As I read about what this young man had to say, I was reminded of a verse in Psalm 90:12. “Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts.” [HCSB]

Psalm 90 was a prayer of Moses. Moses had a lot of days, 120 years of days. I wonder what he was thinking when he wrote that we develop wisdom in our hearts when we learn to number our days? Think he would have agreed that “Living Wide” is much more important than simply “Living Long”?

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Acquainted with Grief

by TerryLema

That great Chapter 53 of Isaiah describes the first coming of the Messiah. We know that description fit Christ Jesus our Savior, who was rejected and brutalized by those He came to save. Part of that description says that He was “A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” [Isaiah 53:3 NKJV]

As I read through that chapter, I was drawn to those three words, “acquainted with grief.” To some extent, those three words describe life. At some point, all of us will become “acquainted with grief.”

 It may come sooner for some, or later for others, but grief is a certainty. I say that not because I am a fatalist or pessimist. In fact, I am an optimist! However, when sin and death entered this world as mankind rebelled in the Garden of Eden, grief became a certainty.

Grief becomes our companion when we lose a loved one. It walks with us when health is threatened. It abides in our aging. It flows through our sin (and the sin of others against us) as well as sin’s consequences. Once grief arrives, it never completely leaves.

But the one thing that I take great comfort in is those few words that precede “acquainted with grief” in Isaiah’s passage … our LORD is a “Man of Sorrows”, and He knows what it is like to be “acquainted with grief.”

 My LORD knows grief. And not only does He know it, but He can also provide comfort to us when grief threatens to overwhelm. Hear what Paul said:

 “Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For as the sufferings of Christ overflow to us, so through Christ our comfort also overflows.” [2 Corinthians 1:3-5 HCSB]

We may be “acquainted with grief,” but because of Christ Jesus, “our comfort also overflows.” Amen & Amen

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Perilous Times

by TerryLema

The events we see happening in our nation and around the world have brought up a lot of talk about the end times among Christians. Perhaps those “Perilous Times” that Paul wrote to Timothy have arrived. [1 Timothy 3:1-5]

I have read article after article talking about the events in the Book of Revelation. Authors are applying some of those ‘prophetic revelations’ found in Scripture to what we see broadcast in the media each day. Everywhere we turn people are talking about globalism and the Anti-Christ, the Mark of the Beast, and other such things.

Maybe we need to back up a bit here. 

When John was exiled to the Isle of Patmos Jesus appeared to him and showed him what John would later record as the Book of Revelation. Jesus did not start with the Anti-Christ or the Mark of the Beast. He did two things first: 1) He gave a revelation of Himself, and 2) He spoke to the churches about what was right and what was wrong within them.  Only after that did He speak of the difficulties that would arise as God reclaims all that is His by His Authority as Creator, Redeemer, King of Kings, and LORD of Lords.

If we are in the last days now – and we are certainly closer to the coming of Christ than any generation before us – then maybe, we should do it Jesus’ way. First, we need to reclaim a true vision of Him. John said we would be blessed simply by reading the Book of Revelation, so start there … at the beginning.

Rev 1:12-18: “I [John] turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone ‘like a son of man,’ dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: ‘Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.’”

Want a double blessing today? Read that again!

Let us focus first on Christ Jesus our King. Let us do the ‘end times’ His way!

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One More Step

by TerryLema

My California kids gave me a Fitbit for my birthday a few years ago. I love it. I had another cheaper brand that tracked my steps and such, but this Fitbit watch does it all, steps, exercise, heartbeat, tells me who is on the phone, shows me my email, etc.

I like to walk and get my steps in each day. That has been difficult to do in recent years because of my physical condition (and my bout with that nasty virus.) While I have not returned to my “old self before auto-immune,” I am working to increase the distance in my walks and increase my daily step count.  That means I watch my Fitbit a lot each day to see how I am doing.

The other day I noticed that my step count was increasing even though I was not up walking. I was sitting in my rocker reading. Apparently, if I hold my arm a certain way, my Fitbit registers steps when all I am doing is sitting and rocking. What a delightfully easy way to get my step count up! Except, that does not do anything good for my body. It just looks good on the outside record.

Ah, LORD, are you trying to tell me something? What am I most concerned about – my outside appearance to others or the inside spiritual condition of my heart before you?

Too often we care more about how others see us than we do about what our LORD sees in our hearts. When that happens, it is good to pray David’s prayer.  “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.” [Psalm 19:14]

We must let God do His work in us—even though that work demands we get up and move with Him. We cannot “sit and rock” our way into spiritual health.

 Amen & Amen.

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Count the Cost

by TerryLema

f we are going to do this Christian walk correctly, it’s not going to be easy. What is “freely given” – our salvation – costs a lot! Jesus even warned His followers that they needed to “count the cost.”  [Luke 14:28]

Paul commanded his readers to “live a life worthy of the calling you have received.” Then he told them what that would cost to do so.  “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” [Eph 4:1-3 NIV]

That means it’s going to cost me my arrogance (to be completely humble) and my anger (to be gentle.)  I’ll need to throw in my irritation (so I can be patient), and my indifference (so I can bear with others in love.)

And if I am going to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace, that will cost me my divisiveness, murmuring, gossiping, envy, and resentment.

Paul didn’t stop there either. He came right out later in his letter and identified even more cost!

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.”  And finally, He said we are to “be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ in God forgave you.”  [Eph 4:31-32 NIV]

It’s going to cost even more when I must get rid of my rudeness (so I can be kind), my heartlessness (so I can become compassionate) and finally my unforgiveness (so that I might reflect the forgiveness I received in Christ).

Yes, to do this walk right will cost quite a bit.

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Don’t Be Surprised, Part 2

by TerryLema

While we are living in this world most of us have experienced what Jesus warned us about: “In the world you will have tribulation [trials].” [John 16:33 NKJV]

Jesus wanted us to understand that it is not about “if” we are going to have trials or tribulations, it is “when” we are going to have them. It’s a given; trials do come.

Yesterday we saw that James gave us a blueprint for handling our trials when they come. He said we are to “Count it all joy when you fall into various trials.” [James 1:2]

There are two parts of that blueprint that are crucial. The first is the command to Count.  Count means to evaluate. It’s a financial term. We are to determine if the trial goes in the asset or the liability column.

The second crucial part is the timing of that accounting.  Do we wait to the end to see if God really does work all things to our good?  Or do we do it at the beginning?

James says we count our trials as all joy “when [we] fall into” them.  We aren’t to wait until we can look back and see how the trials benefited our walk with the LORD, but we are to put the joy at the beginning of the trial.

Our outlook, or attitude, will play heavily into the outcome. We are far more likely to mature in our Christian walk if we go into a trial with joy, expecting to draw closer to the LORD in it, than if we murmur and complain through the experience.  Not saying it’s easy. Just saying it’s necessary.

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Don’t Be Surprised!

by TerryLema

Everybody has them. Nobody likes them, I’m sure. They pop up at the most inconvenient of times. They are trials.  Some are small, others are overwhelming, and they come to us from different sources.

Some trials come from the fact that we are fallen. We make mistakes, we are foolish, irresponsible, or we allow sin in our lives. When those trials come, repentance must happen before anything else.

Some trials come because we are human. Our bodies age, we acquire a disease or illness, we are involved in an accident, or we lose our jobs or find ourselves economically unable to keep up.

Some trials come because we are Christians. Peter reminded his readers, “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.  But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ.”   [I Peter 4:12-13]

So, if we are going to have trials anyway, why not use them to our advantage? Why not use them to grow closer to the LORD? James says our outlook can determine the outcome. His blueprint is to “Count it all joy when you fall into various trials.” [James 1:2]

 I seldom put “joy” and “trials” in the same sentence. James, however, wants us to count our trials as “all joy.”

There are two words in James’ blueprint that are crucial. We will look at those two words tomorrow.

(Part 2 Tomorrow)

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Storms in Life

by TerryLema

Spring and summer in the Treasure Valley in Idaho are a constantly changing weather picture. We can be cold one day, blazing hot the next. But the best are the thunderstorms that just seem to appear out of nowhere.

A couple weeks ago such a thunderstorm hit us. The sky grew dark, and the wind began to howl. It began to pour. I could hear the thunder and lightning accompanying the noisy wind. Water came off the roof in buckets. It was great.  I stood in the doorway and watched the clouds race across the sky.  And then just as suddenly as it came up, it was gone. Weather peace descended again.

Everyone has storms in life. Sometimes they come up just like the Treasure Valley thunderstorms that dot our weather pattern in spring and summer.  It is when the storms are buffeting us that we need to remember that Jesus is our song amid the storm.

There is a marvelous song that I listen to during my worship walks, “Let It Be Jesus.”  It begins with these words, “Let it be Jesus. The first name that I call. Let it be Jesus. My song inside the storm”  

My song inside the storm of life is this, “for me to live is Christ.” And one day when that final storm wins its battle over my body, I shall know firsthand that “to die is gain.”  [Philippians 1:21]

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Highway to the Danger Zone

by TerryLema

In May 1986, a movie was released that became a modern-day classic.  The story line was a bit unbelievable. The young actors would never be invited to play Hamlet (but girls sure swooned over the volleyball scene!).  Recently a sequel to this movie was released. This time there was no beach volleyball scene, but a football one instead.

The dialogue in both is a bit ordinary, but the soundtrack in both is captivating. Most people who hear the song, “Highway to the Danger Zone,” immediately think of that movie from 1986 “Top Gun,” and now the sequel “Top Gun, Maverick.”

May I be so bold as to suggest that when we step out in faith with God, we embark on the true “highway to the danger zone.”  It’s risky to be fully submitted to God and moving in the power of the Spirit. Too many of us want a faith that is safe, one we can put in a box of our own making.  We want a comfortable God, but our God is neither safe, nor contained.  And often He’s not very comfortable either. Ask Moses, or Joshua, or David, or Jeremiah, or Peter, James, John, or Paul how safe and comfortable it is to serve God.

At any moment, the Spirit of God can ask you to do something that is very uncomfortable.  He might send you somewhere you never wanted to go.  He might ask you to speak up when you are trying to remain unnoticed. He might ask you to give more than you planned.

Paul gave a description of his experiences in the “danger zone” in 2 Corinthians 11:23-33.  Daniel described his in Daniel 6.  If you get a chance, read those passages today; they are an interesting contrast. Daniel escaped unscratched; Paul was scarred by 195 lashes.  Yet, each stood firm in their faith.  I am sure that each would admit that being fully submitted to God is a wonderful, exciting, “danger zone” adventure.

Father, lead us on this adventure by Your Holy Spirit.  Move us out of our comfort zone and into the “danger zone” of dynamic faith and the power of Your Spirit.  We don’t want to be comfortable … we want to be alive!  Amen.

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