daily life as life goes on . . .

What a joy!

Time spent with a new friend.  We toured his yard and shop.  Drank “coffee” and chatted about the revolution in life when a full commitment is made to Jesus.  Since April this new brother-in-Christ has sold out to Jesus.  When  you hear the words and watch the actions, you know something is different.

And that’s a new kind of life from what he was living.

Well worth the change, and I’m looking forward to continued changes.  The long road of obedience starts at one point and the road stretches out in front of us.  One step at a time with your eyes on the future – your eyes on the maker – your eyes on Jesus.

A friend of mine, Herman Ruff, had written in his Bible this quote:

“Becoming Christlike involves” – a little horse-sense – we need to be stable-minded and able to say “Nay”.

For more than 35 years I was privileged to have a guiding light in my life.

My first wife was born on July 1st – the Canada Day baby (or Dominion Day as it used to be called)! 

She quickly became a light of hope for those around her – she fought a congenital heart problem for her whole life.  In 2012, With almost 59 years of life and light experience, she moved to a new existence upon death into eternal life.

Jill’s light was evident amongst her friends, her acquaintances and those who heard of her.  Perseverance accompanied a lady whose surgeries and limitations were obvious.  The week before she died, she hosted a meal with a crowd of seniors.  She talked faster than anyone around her – and made perfect sense to those who listened.  In spite of physical limitations she helped raise two children into independent adulthood, depending on their mother for love and support.

Music lit up the room when Jill was there.  She played piano, sang and composed.  Her heart was in her music.

And her heart was for Jesus.  Where her true light originated.

Though no longer here, the rays of her light are still bouncing around amongst us.

When imposed becomes tiresome, we tend towards rebellion.

I think it is just a way to react when our expectations of a quick resolve to a problem are dashed.  The conundrum of COVID has been the quickly changing goal posts.  When our vision for the future is no more than a day at a time, most of us have not been trained in the etiquette of daily reorientation.

Our go-to is to look around the limitations and find the loop hole.  What has been called living by the “letter” of the law and not the “spirit” of the law.  OR . . . we just decide the law is wrong and we disregard the limitations and the consequences.  We want to get to our goals and no external force is going to stop us!

Except it did.  At least for the majority of us in small churches.  For all the marvelous plans we have or had, we are now in a new state of planning.  Whereas we used to figure on a stable environment, now we figure on instability to be the new norm.  Our plans are always contingent.  We used to plan with surety. 

Exiting COVID restrictions does not mean exiting a planning environment.  We will still plan.

The question is – what approach to the future will we pivot on – contingency or surety?