I’ve called our attention often to Paul’s command to pray for our leaders:

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. (1 Timothy 2.1, 2, ESV)

Recently, I got new insight into “all who are in high positions.” The Pope visited Iraq earlier this month, and his primary objective was the peace and security of Iraqi Christians – read, “that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life…” Hence, this historic meeting with Iraq’s top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.

When I think “all who are in high positions,” I think our president, members of Congress, the Supreme Court, governors, and leaders of other countries. But now, I’m thinking religious leaders as well. They command enormous influence, sometimes to the detriment of people who follow a religion different from theirs.

According to World Magazine, the result was positive:

In a statement issued by his office afterward, al-Sistani said Christians should “live like all Iraqis, in security and peace and with full constitutional rights.” – World Magazine, posted March 6, 2021

You can get more perspective on the visit in this article from Breakpoint.

My prayer list just got longer.

I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling. (1 Timothy 2.8, ESV)

Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, (Ephesians 6.18, ESV)

May your Kingdom manifest on earth. (Luke 11.2, TPT)

Last year the pandemic struck in mid-March, and we lost the most exciting event on the annual sports calendar, the NCAA Basketball Tournament. 67 games of “win and advance” or “lose and go home.” This year’s tournament has started with a bang including 15th-seed Oral Roberts University defeating a 2nd-seed Ohio State yesterday.

Of course that means ORU has to play tomorrow, and here’s what ORU coach Paul Mills said about that:

The reality is you have to turn around and you’re about to play another one, so the celebration better be pretty quick. If you spend all your time looking back at your wedding day videos, you’re probably not going to have a very good marriage.

That will preach!

But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3.13, 14, ESV)

We often hear that there’s no “retirement” in the Bible. Actually, that’s not quite true:

And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “This applies to the Levites: from twenty-five years old and upward they shall come to do duty in the service of the tent of meeting. And from the age of fifty years they shall withdraw from the duty of the service and serve no more. They minister to their brothers in the tent of meeting by keeping guard, but they shall do no service. Thus shall you do to the Levites in assigning their duties.” (Numbers 8.23 – 26, ESV)

So it’s not true that there’s no retirement. The word retirement isn’t used, but the Levites only serve in their official tabernacle duties until age 50. After that, they serve by assisting the others.

Some pastors keep going and going and going, preaching the same kinds of sermons to the same people, with no succession plan. Then they pass away at age 80 or more, everyone is surprised, and no one knows what to do. Some formerly good churches have been ruined by splits in these cases.

Some of us need to get out of the way! We can advise. There have to be the means for people coming up to get their shot. It’s right here in Leviticus.

I’m still serving, and I hope to continue for a long time, but I’m not running anything anymore (and I used to love to run things!). Jim Downing, Navigator #6, served 24 years in the Navy, and 27 years on senior staff of The Navigators. Then he “retired,” remaining active until shortly before his death at age 104:

Jim officially retired in 1983, but in many ways his ministry was just beginning. His retirement allowed him to travel the world to speak and teach. His practical application of Scripture, his warmth and wit, made Jim a popular speaker, especially among college students. – From A Life Well Lived, By The Navigators in Organization News, February 13, 2018. 

Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office. (Hebrews 7.23, NIV)

For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. (2 Timothy 4.6, 7, NIV)

So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom. (Psalm 90.2, ESV)

Tuesday I mentioned the “massive snowstorm” that we had Sunday, March 14. There have been bigger ones, but this one was enough to shut things down for a while. Here’s my deck furniture as of late afternoon Sunday with snow expected to fall until midnight:

The striking thing about this storm is that they talked about it for a week prior. It was 60 degrees here Monday and Tuesday, but they were talking about the upcoming blizzard. “Feet of snow” in some places, they said. The event was supposed to start Friday afternoon. Then they slipped it to overnight Friday. Snow didn’t actually start until 10:30 Saturday morning, and it was only a few inches before stopping. Is the blizzard really coming? Or is this just more over-reaction by the weather people?

Well it came overnight Saturday into Sunday…as advertised in every way. Some folks went out in it against official recommendations and got stuck. Many major highways were closed.

There’s a lesson.

This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.

Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. (2 Peter 3.1 – 13, ESV, emphases mine)

For all the hoopla and wild parties that some practice on March 17, the real story of St. Patrick is worth remembering. A friend and Navigator colleague who is from Northern Ireland summarizes it this way:

It’s important to remember that Patrick was a great missionary. He was an apostle to the Irish in the AD 400s and was used by God to convert the Celts of Ireland to Christianity, despite opposition from those who practiced the Druid religion.

There’s more to the story, including the fact that Patrick was taken from his home in Britain to Ireland and sold as a slave, escaping after six years. Then he returned, years later, to evangelize the people who enslaved him. A nice summary written by Chuck Colson in 2006 is worth the read and includes these paragraphs:

The Irish of the fifth century were a pagan, violent, and barbaric people. Human sacrifice was commonplace. Patrick understood the danger and wrote: “I am ready to be murdered, betrayed, enslaved—whatever may come my way.”

As it is with many Christian holidays, Saint Patrick’s Day has lost much of its original meaning. Instead of settling for parades, cardboard leprechauns, and “the wearing of the green,” we ought to recover our Christian heritage, celebrate the great evangelist, and teach our kids about this Christian hero. – Chuck Colson, as reported on Breakpoint, March 16, 2020.

…we and the people there urged [Paul] not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” (Acts 21.12, 13, ESV)

It was a year ago last week that we all started COVID lockdown mode. My first observations began on March 14 and continued through March 24. Who knew that one year later, our actions would still be driven by COVID concerns?

But more of us have been vaccinated, restrictions are being lifted, and we’re starting to take more in-person meetings. On March 7 we actually went to church in person and had lunch after with friends. Things to give thanks for. As our friends wrote, reflecting on the time, “We are blessed.” (We were back to Zoom church on March 14 due to a massive snowstorm in our area. Some things don’t change! Except…pre-COVID, church services would have been canceled. Now we switch to Zoom without missing a beat.)

There have been changes in plans. We lost two scheduled getaways to Estes Park: one to COVID in late March and another to two forest fires in early November. The Atlanta kids elected not to come on Thanksgiving. The China kids are still stuck in China. A scheduled speaking engagement in Spring Canyon was canceled.

People struggled. June’s piano teacher nearly succumbed to COVID in November, but, thankfully, she is fine now. One cousin in Texas had a serious bout with COVID including over a week in the hospital, but, thankfully, he is recovering, too. Our son David shares church piano duties with a lady who lost her husband to COVID.

It’s been a tough year – but way tougher for some than for others. We joked about not knowing what day of the week it was, and borrowing a line from a Pearls Before Swine comic strip, took to calling every day “day-day” because they were all the same. But June and I enjoy being together. Our house is in a pleasant location. I walked the dog and visited with neighbors outside. Knee surgery was postponed from May to July, but it got done.

Life and ministry continue, maybe under more favorable circumstances this year than last. But if not, God is still in control…

Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labor of the olive may fail, And the fields yield no food; Though the flock may be cut off from the fold, And there be no herd in the stalls–Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The LORD God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, And He will make me walk on my high hills. (Habakkuk 3.17 – 19, NKJV)

I have written often about our need to love our fellow believers and disagree agreeably if we must disagree. I had a chance to practice that the other day with a brother whose mailing list I’m on. He had listed some things he was really concerned about – calling them “crises,” including climate change (not a concern I share). I wrote to ask why he didn’t consider The Equality Act, about which I wrote yesterday, a potential crisis.

He responded first by saying that he was sure that he and I agreed on a lot more things than we disagree on. I said, yes, and what we agree on is more important than what we disagree on. So in the spirit of disagreeing agreeably, here is his take on The Equality Act:

I will say that I know several families with transgender kids, and it was agonizing for the kids and family in every case. It wasn’t something done lightly. It was a real identity crisis that involved suicide and real fear for the kids. There was bullying at school, etc. So I am very careful about transgender issues because of what I’ve seen personally. Perhaps there are some people who are not serious about transgender issues and try to flaunt laws, etc., but more often than not it is a full-blown confusing crisis that often involves fear of suicide because people don’t feel at home in their own bodies. I don’t claim to understand it, but I also don’t see these folks as threats in any way to my freedom or the freedom of others. Every family I know going through this has wanted to just keep their kids safe and to have some basic legal protections for their kids. But I don’t know enough about laws and such to comment beyond that. 

My response to him was:

Thanks for the personal insight on transgender. I also know at least one set of parents, one of whose kids was struggling. Compassion should rule the day, no matter what. As is typical with some government intervention, I believe The Equality Act will cause more problems than it solves.

I went on to say that I have read many of his books and recommend them from time to time. He appreciated that.

With respect to The Equality Act, about which I hope not to write again, I believe that people who don’t feel at home in their own bodies should get help to feel at home. Frankly, I think we should do more teaching on the wide range of personalities and behaviors within genders. Some women are jocks; some men are artists; not all men are big and burly; not all women are small and dainty; etc., etc.

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13.34, 35, ESV)

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. (1 Thessalonians 5.11, ESV)

No, not Pie Day, Wednesdays at Village Inn, but Pi day, March 14, in honor of pi’s numerical value 3.14159… The three dots are important. The digits go on forever without repeating: it’s what mathematicians call an irrational number.

Pi’s irrationality didn’t stop the Indiana Legislature from attempting to pass a law fixing the value of pi at 3.2 (not even good rounding!). It was February 6, 1897, and the statehouse actually voted in favor. Fortunately, before it became law, a professor from Purdue who just happened to be in the Capitol building that day, talked them out of it.

Passing a law fixing the value of pi to one decimal place is akin to attempting to repeal the law of gravity. Some things just are…and can’t be changed by laws.

I’m reminded of the current effort to pass The Equality Act, which includes:

An individual shall not be denied access to a shared facility, including a restroom, a locker room and a dressing room, that is in accordance with the individual’s gender identity.

Does a man become a woman just be declaring himself to be one? If so, women’s sports are dead and so is a woman’s safety in a public restroom.

I keep praying that our government will come to its senses.

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. (1 Timothy 2.1, 2, ESV)

He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female?” (Matthew 19.4, ESV)

We’ve been exploring Romans 2 and the four points that Paul was making to the religious Jews of his day:

• Knowledge without action is not enough.
• Teaching without lifestyle is not enough.
• Ceremony without heart change is not enough.
• Heritage without obedience is not enough.

Today, we’re looking at Heritage without obedience is not enough. (Romans 3.1 – 8)

Yes, I can see that we’re in Romans 3, not chapter 2, but Paul is just finishing up by affirming that it’s good to have a heritage, but that the heritage without obedience isn’t enough:

What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? Much in every way! First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God. What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? (Romans 3.1 – 3, NIV)

John the Baptist made that point clear to his Jewish audience, and the Cotton Patch translation makes it clear to some of us. The Cotton Patch translation was done by Clarence Jordan, who lived in south Georgia and operated a co-op farming community where (poor) blacks and whites lived together. Dr. Jordan was way ahead of his time. He paraphrased a few New Testament books to help people get a feel for the life and times of Jesus: Jerusalem became Atlanta and Jews were white people. John the Baptist’s message about heritage sounded like this:

This guy John was dressed in blue jeans and a leather jacket, and he was living on cornbread and collard greens. Folks were coming to him from Atlanta and all over north Georgia and the backwater of the Chattahoochee. And as they owned up to their crooked ways he dipped them in the Chattahoochee. When John noticed a lot of Protestants and Catholics showing up for his dipping, he said to them, “You sons of snakes, who put the heat on you to run from the fury about to break over your heads? You must give some proof that you’ve had a change of heart. And don’t think that you can feed yourselves that ‘we-good-white-people’ stuff, because I’m telling you that if God wants to he can make white folks out of this pile of rocks! (Matthew 3.4 – 7, Cotton Patch Translation)

Don’t be content with a good heritage (if you have one) or with having the Bible in your house. Read it! Spend time daily prayerfully reading and asking God what he wants you to do with what he just told you.

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3.16, 17, NKJV)

We’ve been exploring Romans 2 and the four points that Paul was making to the religious Jews of his day:

• Knowledge without action is not enough.
• Teaching without lifestyle is not enough.
• Ceremony without heart change is not enough.
• Heritage without obedience is not enough.

Today, we’re looking at Ceremony without heart change is not enough. (Romans 2.25 – 29)

For us, ceremony might include the way we do communion or how our church administers baptism. For the Jews, it was circumcision, and there are three explicit verses on circumcision in which Paul clearly makes the point that ceremony without heart change is not enough. Rather, it’s obedience, faith, and new life in Christ.

For neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but keeping the commandments of God. (1 Corinthians 7.19, ESV)

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love. (Galatians 5.6, ESV)

For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. (Galatians 6.15, ESV)