Where Are You?

The Lost Coin by James Tissot-Overall (Brooklyn Museum)

When it comes to money,     I don’t have much of value. All I have are ten silver coins,     but they all belong to me. Although each has the same value...     they are unique, you see? And now I’ve lost one of them. Looking… My eyes search the room...     for the coin which I have lost. Now hidden from my view, I ask...     What's happened? Where are you? I ask the question why, but really...     How can my lost coin reply? Tracing… Back my recent steps...     to where my coin could be. But still no memory, I can recall...     of how my coin lost me. Could it be under the table? Or in a corner of the room? Illumination… I fill the house with light...     enough for me to see. I’ll search each corner of my home,     to where my coin could be. Where are you little coin of mine? Please, come back now to me! Sweeping… Floor boards covered in a layer of dust...     the broom swings back again. I hear the whishing sound of bristles...     when will my efforts end? I’ll sweep this floor until its clean...     so I can find my friend. Puzzled… As I look around,     searching high and low. I’ll look until I find my coin...     I won’t give up, I know. Where are you little coin of mine? Let your silver show. At last! I found you, hidden there     right before my eyes. Call my friends and let them know,     my happiness and pride. Let’s celebrate my found lost coin...     the joy I feel inside. Poem by MTJ

Father God,

The thought of angels in heaven rejoicing when a person repents fills me with joy. I recall that day I repented and gave my life to Jesus Christ, so I join with the angels who rejoice over one who was lost. So often, You ask of us, "Where are you", but do we really hear Your voice? Do we truly understand the depth of Your love and concern for each one of us?

Today, I pray for that lost coin, the sinner on the cusp of a life-changing decision. Give them clarity of mind to choose spiritual life. May that person find support from the body of Christ, local Christians who understand that each of us is saved by grace and not by works. Salvation is a free gift we receive from You, not something we earn. Let each of us who call Christ our Lord and Saviour, encourage the newly repentant that they grow in grace and truth. Amen.

Note: This post is linked to Spiritual Sundays (hosted by Charlotte).

Lost and Found

The Prodigal Son's Turning Point, Luke 15:11-32, NIV

It’s quiet now, at the break of day,     not a sound, except my thoughts. As I drift back and think of all,     the evil works I wrought. I want what’s mine, I’ll have it now!     Give me what I’m due! My father stood there, listening to,     the vile things I would spew. So he gave it all to me,     my inheritance. I then went off, so far away,     til every coin was spent. Women, parties, drunken nights,     I was a Jew gone wild. I was that fool who didn’t know,     he was a prodigal child. Soon my belly craved to have,     food I could not buy. I went to those, I thought were friends,     their words just made me cry. I took a job, far out from town,     feeding the farmers swine. The slop they ate, it looked so good,     I’ll eat it just this time. As I prepared, to eat that food,     a thought came suddenly. How better off the hired were,     they lived far better than me. And so I left, and headed back,     to my father’s home. I’ll seek forgiveness from the one,     that I had never known. While I was, still far away,     my father spotted me. He ran up close to where I was,     to finally set me free. A robe, a ring, and sandals too,     forgave me for my wrongs. The fatted calf was also killed,     a feast was held with songs. My son was lost, but now he's found,     he’s now come home at last. He’s learned the lessons of right and wrong,     I forgive him of his past. Poem by MTJ

Father God,

The song writer said, "Amazing grace how sweet the sound... that saved a retch like me...I once was lost, but now I'm found... was blind but now I see."

How lost I am without Your Spirit to guide me! What can I do? Where can I go? What can I say, that exceeds Your lovingkindness extended to me? Do I need thee? Yes, Father God, I need thee! Every hour, I need You. You are the Great and Mighty I Am. The Sovereign God who chose to give His Son, to redeem us from sin and death. I rejoice in Your goodness. I'm thankful that I have salvation in Jesus Christ. Guide me with Your Holy Spirit, that my life will testify to the power of Jesus Christ, my Redeemer who lives and reigns as King of kings, and Lord of lords. In the depth of my despair, You found and rescued me. May the life I live, be pleasing in Your sight, Dear Lord. Amen.

Note: This post is linked to Spiritual Sundays (hosted by Charlotte).

The End of the Road

Two people at the end of the road, Courtesy of fotosearch.com

I was thinking about something I heard at a Men’s Meeting years ago; the speaker was Edwin Louis Cole. He shared that at a couples meeting when he was speaking only to the husbands, he asked the question,

"How many husbands here would say that their marriage was failing?"

Fifty percent of the men in the room raised their hands.

A while later when he was speaking to the wives, he asked the same question,

"How many wives here would say their marriage was failing?"

Seventy-five percent of the women in the room raised their hands.

Half of the husbands who thought they had a good marriage had no idea that their wife was contemplating or planning to end the marriage.

As I thought about that, I realized that I had no idea that my wife had lost all faith in me. It’s a sobering thought when you hear the words; it's time to end things between us. The reasons for our marital failure no longer matter. In her eyes, I had drifted away some time ago and now, she too had moved on. Failure and success in marriage does not hinge on one person; still, I groped for recovery. I believed we could still salvage it but this was not a shared belief. Hearing the words, you’re still the same, I don’t need ….

I found myself reading Maximized Manhood hoping to discover some principles I could recognize from Cole:

"I was standing in front of a table at the end of a meeting when an exuberant couple greeted me….the husband told me of the miracle in their lives…’If you ever want anyone to confirm what you said about God giving love, just call us,’ he said. ‘We are a miracle marriage. For years I made my wife’s life a hell on earth. Unfaithful, inconsiderate, dictatorial, selfish, all I wanted was for her to do what was necessary for me to enjoy life.’

‘Oh, I led the choir, we went to church, and everyone saw us as a fine family—but no one knew me privately. Not even she did. I was a first rate hypocrite for years.’

‘All she knew was that she had come to the end of her rope and was leaving me. That’s when I awoke to how and what I was.’"

I began to realize that in our society, marriages come and go. Couples lose compatibility; there are irreconcilable differences, or they find themselves living separate lives.

And then I read something that rung true:

"God commands us to love."

"According to God, love is not a feeling. Sometimes it doesn't even feel good. But, real love is always good.

Love centers in the will. That is why love can be commanded and why God can command love.

The American male, to a great extent today, flees from commandments. Or rebels."

As I read this, I recognized that the reasons why men and women end their marriage should not be dismissed; people get hurt, physically, emotionally and spiritually as a result of failing marriages.. It’s hard enough to deal with that kind of pain and then come face to face with some holier than thou do gooder (or self-righteous husband) hurling a scripture in your face. Just what they need added to their pain is biblical guilt.

I’ve been insensitive and ignorant to the pain I’ve caused my wife while in my mind, I loved her. I thought because she said nothing that things were fine; they weren’t. She suffered in silence.

I’m not writing this post for my wife, I’m writing it because God commands me to love her. Being married no longer matters now. Whatever she does, wherever she goes, I will love her. And though we are no longer compatible, she remains my friend. I pray that I can be the friend she has been to me.

Father God, I don’t even know where to begin except to say how sorry I am that I have failed so completely to love my wife completely. Forgive me please for lifting up pride and arrogance and paying such a tremendous price. I commit myself fully to you in the belief that I can change; not with a hidden agenda behind it. I simply want to change and be the man you want me to be.