A chilling paragraph in Mark 14:

One of the twelve apostles, Judas Iscariot, went to the leading priests to inform them of his willingness to betray Jesus into their hands. They were delighted to hear this and agreed to pay him for it. So immediately Judas began to look for an opportunity to betray him. (Mark 14:10 – 11, Passion Translation)

People miss stuff! Judas missed it. The leading priests missed it. Jesus, the Messiah, was right in front of them. Judas spent years with him. They missed him.

Here’s a trivial example of not seeing what’s right in front of you, I enjoy trying the weekly crossword contest in the Wall Street Journal. It comes out every Friday (actually, online Thursday afternoon) and consists of a crossword puzzle and a problem, called the “meta” which is answerable from a process one has to discover. The process is different every week. Here’s the puzzle from last Friday. I highlighted the middle answer before the screen capture because I thought it would be the key to the solution. The puzzle’s theme was “Go with the flow,” and we were asked to find “a food.”

As I said, I thought “Under the volcano” was the key. I also thought “lava” would be involved since that’s a “flow” from a volcano. But I couldn’t find the four volcanos that were embedded in the grid right in front of me! See them? Look in the long across answers 17A, 26A, 48A, 56A: viETNAmese, carHOODs, LOAdupon, taKEAstand. I had seen Mt Hood, but not Mt Etna, Mauna Loa, and Mauna Kea. Anyway, if you look right under the volcanos, there’s your food: MOLT ENLA VAC AKE or “molten lava cake.” I should have solved this in 10 minutes or less. It took 3 days! I didn’t see it.

I’ve written about missing things before. But the topic bears repeating. Something I need to see can be right in front of me, but my preconceived notions, my prejudices, or just plain not paying attention all prevent me from seeing. There’s also an implication here for teachers. I’ll write about that tomorrow!

The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. (2 Corinthians 4.4, NIV)

As he passed by, Jesus saw a man blind from birth. (John 9.1, ESV, emphasis mine)

You may have heard by now that last weekend Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya ran the first sub-2-hour marathon: 1:59:40. It doesn’t count as an official world record because it wasn’t a race, it was more of a demonstration complete with world-class pacers, pace cars, and a cyclist providing him water and nutrition so he didn’t have to slow down for that either. You can read the details here.

Be that as it may, he ran 26 miles at just under 4:35 per mile. When I was at my best, about 40 years ago, I ran a 10K at a 7:00 pace, and I could run a couple 6-minute miles if I worked really hard. Once I was running on our track at an Air Force school that was marked out in tenths of miles. I sprinted all out the last two tenths, doing one in 28 seconds and the last in 24 seconds. If I could have held that 28-second-tenth pace for even one mile, it would have been a 4:40. And he did 26 of them at under 4:35! Unbelievable.

How did he do it? And why does he hold the official marathon record of 2:01:39? In the words of Dallas Willard, “Not by trying but by training.” And that’s exactly what the Apostle encouraged Timothy to do:

Train yourself for godliness. 1 Timothy 4.7

Blessed are those who listen to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at my doorway. For those who find me find life and receive favor from the LORD. (Proverbs 8.34, 35, NIV)

But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. (Luke 5.16, NIV)

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. (1 Corinthians 9.24, 25, NIV)

My friend Ray in New Hampshire was with a group of disciple-making leaders when they decided to share with each other their stories of how they came to faith. Upon reflection, Ray shared with them 1 Timothy 1.12 – 14:

Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. (1 Timothy 1.13, 14, NIV)

What’s the theme of all of our stories? That “I was once a …” [fill in the blank], but “I was shown mercy…and grace…and love…”

I saw the theme while reading Mark 14.3 and the note in the Passion Translation:

Now Jesus was in Bethany, in the home of Simon, a man Jesus had healed of leprosy. NOTE: We are all cleansed lepers, symbolized by Simon. Christ left the religious structure of the temple and went into the house of a leper. Former “lepers” are now the true temple of God.

I recalled the same theme from the story of the blind man in John 9:

The healed man replied, “I have no idea what kind of man he is. All I know is that I was blind and now I can see for the first time in my life!” (John 9.25, Passion Translation)

What’s your story? Here’s part of mine: Once I was a Christian legalist, known by what I didn’t do, and judging others as good people or bad by our narrow set of standards. But God in his mercy delivered me, helped me understand that Jesus loves me (and others!) and gave me the privilege of practicing and teaching relational disciple-making.

No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we [good, religious people] are saved, just as they [unchurched unbelievers] are.” (Acts 15.11, emphasis and explanation mine)

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6.9 – 11, ESV, emphasis mine)

My friend Mike Oldham told me about a wonderful story that aired on Jane Pauley’s “Sunday Morning” show on October 6, 2019. I watched it on cbs.com. Here’s the story:

Dennis Valstad of Ripon, Wisconsin, a town of fewer than 8,000 people, died recently at age 65. He had no wife or kids and owned one of the town’s dry cleaners. 

Dennis was perceived as a loner of modest means yet 270 people attended his funeral at Immanuel Methodist Church. That’s a lot of people to attend a funeral. Here’s the kicker: his will specified that each person who attended his funeral get an equal share of his $500,000 estate! (It came to just over $1850 per person!)

Of course, no one who attended the funeral knew that in advance. They attended because he “was endlessly kind.” His executor also shared that among his New Year’s resolutions for this year were:

• Live a life pleasing to God
• Find true friends

It sounds like he accomplished his resolutions! And as Matthew Kelly writes in The Biggest Lie in the History of Christianity, “There is nothing more attractive than holiness.”

[Jesus said, ] “Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5.14 – 16, MSG)

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Colossians 3.17, ESV)

A friend of mine, I’ll call him John, is trying to make amends with someone who is holding something against him. Making amends is something commanded by Jesus himself:

So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. (Matthew 5.23, 24, ESV)

The sad thing is that the events that precipitated the offense occurred over four years ago. John didn’t even know the other fellow was offended until a recent chance meeting when the fellow said, “We still have this issue…” And John has no idea exactly what he said or did in the context of their many discussions as members of the same church leadership team (John was the pastor). 

The reason this is sad is that the other fellow could have let this go a long time ago. Instead, he’s been carrying it around. 

See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled. (Hebrews 12.15, ESV)

I like Larry Christianson’s concept of “unilateral forgiveness,” which he describes in The Renewed Mind. We have the right, yes, the responsibility to forgive someone whether the other person knows they’ve offended us or not. And if we’d rather just hold onto offenses, then we’re not as mature as we think we are.   

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. (Colossians 3.12 – 14, ESV)

I talk a lot about sowing seed, particularly about investing time in people so they can follow Jesus and help others do the same. Sometimes we see results and sometimes not.

We had a pleasant surprise a few days ago when Steve and Mildred McNair of Clinton, Mississippi, called us because they were in Colorado Springs and wanted to see us. We all scrambled, but within two hours of the initial contact, we were sitting down to dinner together.

Why did they and we want to get together? Because in 1971 Mildred and her twin sister Marian were high schoolers in Biloxi, MS, when we arrived there for an Air Force assignment. We (mostly June!) were privileged to spend time with them, studying the Bible together, helping them walk with God and plan for the future. Here’s what I just heard from Steve:

I just wanted you to know how much Mildred and I appreciate the time spent with you in Colorado Springs on Sept 27.  Mildred knew she wanted to make contact. We had a good time talking about her knowing you both in Biloxi back in the early ’70s.  The obvious, most important thing is that you connected with her and Marian and they profited from your instruction in the Word.  God inspired Mildred early in her life to pray for an eventual marriage to a Christian man.  God answered my prayer for a Christian wife.  We were talking in the car about Psalm 19. ‘The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul.’  I connected Jesus’ words about the great commandments in the law to that Psalm verse in the following way: ‘you shall love your neighbor as your self’ is substituted into the Psalm 19 verse (almost like algebra).  Your Christian love for Mildred, back in time and currently, revives the soul!  More simply, perhaps, the love that believers show for one another revives the soul. The Savior would have it that way.

That’s encouraging! And thought-provoking: “Love that believers show for one another revives the soul.”

But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you. Therefore, brothers and sisters, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith. For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 3.6 – 8, NIV)

I wrote on Tuesday about the importance of warnings. By the way, the weather Wednesday was a balmy 70+ degrees all day. Today it hasn’t made it to 20 degrees, and it’s snowing…as we were warned! Just like Jesus warned us:

Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch. Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: “Watch!” (Mark 13.33 – 37, NIV, emphasis mine)

I quoted this on Tuesday, but I didn’t really specify what living by Mark 13’s warnings might look like. But today, my friend Ray referred me to Deuteronomy 4.9, which speaks perfectly to what keeping watch might include. Here it is in The Message, with bullet points so we don’t miss any of it:

• Just make sure you stay alert.
• Keep close watch over yourselves.
• Don’t forget anything of what you’ve seen.
• Don’t let your heart wander off.
• Stay vigilant as long as you live.
• Teach what you’ve seen and heard to your children and grandchildren.

This is enough to keep us busy, and a further warning to us is that the Israelites didn’t keep watch, and the nation suffered for it (read the rest of the Old Testament!).

And all that generation also were gathered to their fathers. And there arose another generation after them who did not know the LORD or the work that he had done for Israel. (Judges 2.10, ESV)

Have you given thanks for mail service lately? I haven’t until now.

I’ve been corresponding with a young pastor in Cameroon to whom I wanted to send some books. When I tried to buy a Kindle book for him, a little notice popped up saying I could only give an e-book to someone in the U.S. So I asked for his mailing address. He sent me his email address. I asked again, explaining that I couldn’t send an e-book, but I was willing to mail him a paper book if he would please provide his address. Again, he sent his email address.

Thinking we had a communication problem since he is a native French speaker, I carefully explained that I was looking for a mailing address and gave him mine as an example. Then I said, “If I wanted to mail something to you, how would I address it?” Then he wrote back: 

It’s now okay for now. I don’t have any box but when I will have some money I will go and open it. Thank you for all the time you took to explain may God bless you.

He doesn’t have a post office box and can’t afford to open one!

We complain about the junk mail we get delivered to our homes for free! And if we wanted to rent a post office box, we could do so for a nominal fee that we wouldn’t think twice about. 

For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills, a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. (Deuteronomy 8:7 – 10, ESV)

It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night… (Psalm 92.1, 2, ESV)

Few passages are as difficult to interpret as Jesus’ words to his disciples on the Mount of Olives right before his crucifixion (see Matthew 24 and 25, Mark 13, and Luke 21). But the primary application is clear: be on guard! Be aware! Keep watch!

Jesus answered, “At that time deception will run rampant. So beware that you’re not fooled! (Mark 13.5, Passion Translation)

Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch. Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: “Watch!” (Mark 13.33 – 37, NIV, emphasis mine)

It’s October 8, and the weather couldn’t be nicer. Clear skies, a gentle breeze, highs in the 70s today. But look at the forecast for Thursday (the Red Flag Warning is for high fire danger Wednesday because of dryness and high winds):

As I said, it’s in the 70s today, with the big change coming Wednesday into Thursday. Overnight low Thursday morning is 21, and Friday morning is 7! 1-3” of snow on Thursday. So what?

• Bring the flowers in!
• I’ve already put the lawnmower to bed for the winter and moved the snowblower to the ready position.
• Be sure the generator is ready in the unlikely event we lose power.

In general, a warning should cause us to act! Often we are tempted to get tied up in the complicated interpretations of prophecy, but the purpose of prophecy is always a warning to act whether or not we know all the specifics.

When my kids were still at home, and we were going out for the evening, I might say something like, “Please finish cleaning up the kitchen before we get home or there will be consequences!” What I did NOT want to hear were questions like, “When are you coming home? What are the consequences if we don’t do it?” No! I just want them to do the work.

The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near. (Revelation 1.1 – 3, NIV, emphasis mine)

Friday, Sputnik Day(!), we took our granddaughter Kesley to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in honor of her recent 14th birthday. (She was out of school that day.) The plan had been to pick her up from swim team Thursday afternoon, keep her overnight, go to the zoo, and drop her at her mother’s after. While at the zoo, the plan changed, and her mother asked that Kesley be taken to her other grandmother’s (Anna) instead. No problem.

When we approached Anna’s house we saw a small Yorkshire terrier that looked like our silky terrier, Babo, only smaller. He appeared to be unattended as he walked down the sidewalk. So when we got to Anna’s we asked some neighbors if that was their dog, and they said no. After a few minutes of following him up and down the street, I picked up the dog and gave him to Anna who took him gladly since he reminded her of a dog she had that died a few years ago. Anna said she would post something on the neighborhood web site. 

The short ending is that they finally went door-to-door and found the owner who was actually visiting from out of town. That family had been distraught over the loss of their dog and was overjoyed and very grateful when our granddaughter returned him. Kesley called June with the good news.

The point is that God orchestrated our day to be there for that dog. We weren’t planning to be in that neighborhood at all, and then we arrived at the precise time to see the dog. 2 minutes earlier or later, and we would have gone straight to Anna’s, dropped Kesley, and left. 

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. (Mark 10.29, ESV)

And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left. (Isaiah 30.21, ESV)