Dear Family and Friends,

We’ve been receiving a lot of ‘kawaisou, oh you poor thing’ reactions from friends this past week. A few reactions have been hilarious, like: Oh my God, God bless you! Praying for you two. And we received two invitations for drinks.

What’s going on? Our grandchildren (plus their mother) are visiting from California. And they are staying with us for three plus weeks!

How’s it going so far? Let’s just say that before they came – – I rarely took afternoon naps…

Aileen and I agree that raising children is for the young. If God told us we would have a child when we were 100 and 90, like Abraham and Sarah, I wouldn’t laugh in disbelief. I would cry in belief.

After picking up their mess, consoling their hurts, helping them share and forgive, encouraging quiet time and reading, teaching life lessons when situations present themselves, and more… we’re exhausted.

But we love that we get to do this because we love them.

Do our grandchildren remind you of someone? Perhaps ourselves before God?

When God picks up our mess, it’s called redemption. Redemption is the act of saving someone from sin or evil.

Redemption is God turning the evil sale of Joseph into slavery by his brothers, into the rescue of Joseph’s family from famine and death.

I’m sure that if we spent enough time examining the bad events and poor decisions of our past, we would find God’s blessings.

Blessings that were dramatic like Joseph’s. Or much simpler ones, like lessons on – what not to do again.

And lest we forget, “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us.” Ephesians 1:7-8 NIV

Praise the Lord!

As today is Fathers’ Day, can we remember to do what Jesus commanded?

To “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” Mark 12:30 NIV

It’s quite easy to say, “Yes, we love God. He has done so much for us. He deserves all our love.”

But as our society becomes more and more non-Christian, I want to shout out a warning. Actually, it’s a warning Jesus gave as He described the Signs of the End Times.

“At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.”  Matthew 24:10-13 NIV

Let’s focus on just one short phrase – many will turn away from the faith.

We live in a time when Christians will be tempted more than ever to waver between the pursuit of God and the pursuit of a false god called happiness. The god of secular America.

The vast majority of Americans believe money or success or stuff will bring them happiness. It won’t, but they chase it anyway.

Many believe the pursuit of happiness as declared in our Declaration of Independence is the purpose of life. It isn’t, so they end up floundering like ships without rudders.

As Christians, we know better.

So why then do many Christians waver between God and this false god? Why did Jesus say many will turn away from the faith? Why do we no longer see many of the friends we once saw in church?

Perhaps it’s because their love of God is like the pursuit of happiness. Maybe their love of God is founded on how happy He can make them, by answering prayers, relieving pain and suffering, and granting their wishes.

This kind of love is quite frankly, inward facing and self-centered. And is bettered termed as gratefulness. An example would be, we are grateful for good service at a restaurant but the tip we leave is not called love.

Let’s spend some time reflecting and assuring ourselves that our love is not founded on an exchange transaction – love in return for what we receive. That our love is not conditioned on what He did and can do for us.

We don’t love our grandchildren because of what they do for us.

And because we try not to spoil them, I’m pretty sure they don’t love us because of anything we do for them. 

This is the loving relationship we strive for with our Heavenly Father.

A love for God just “because He first loved us.” 1 John 4:19 NIV

A love for God because He says,  “I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.”  Isaiah 44:6 ESV

A love for God because He is not only God, He is our God.

In love always,