⁹ Now when he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. ¹⁰ She went and told those who had been with him, as they mourned and wept.¹¹ But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it. – Mark 16:9-11 (ESV)

Shattered.

The disciples had to be absolutely shattered.

Try to imagine how the disciples felt on that Saturday.

They had spent the past three years with Jesus. They had listened to His teachings. They had witnessed so many miracles from His hands: the blind receiving sight; the lame healed and able to walk; healing the woman with the issue of blood; healing the Roman centurion’s son from a long distance away; pulling a coin from a fish’s mouth to pay their tax; feeding thousands of people to full with fives small barley loaves and two fish – with leftovers; calming the storm on the sea; walking on water; raising Lazarus from the dead.

Etc.

They walked into Jerusalem with Jesus riding a donkey, the people cheering Him and laying palm fronds before Him.

The people thought Jesus had come to overthrow the powers that be in Israel and take over.

Within days it all appeared to come crumbling down.

One of their own – Judas Iscariot – betrayed Jesus. His disloyalty was so great that, after that when anyone who shared his name in Scripture is referred to as “Judas (not Iscariot)”. Indeed, 2000 years later, betrayers are called Judases.

Jesus was arrested. After seeing Him slip away from the Pharisees and Sadducees so many times before, they saw Jesus put up no fight. In fact, when Peter acted to protect The Lord, drawing his sword and cutting off the ear of the Roman servant, Jesus responded with a strong rebuke, healing the servant’s ear.

There was Peter’s foretold thrice denial of knowing Jesus that came to pass as Jesus was in the midst of His horrific night of beating, scourging, kangaroo trials, humiliation, conviction, and crucifixion band death.

How could things have gone so wrong?

Mark tells us the disciples, overcome with grief and, probably confusion and fear as well. They had lost hope. They could not believe Mary when she told them Jesus was alive, and she had seen Him.

They couldn’t see the Truth for the “facts” around them.

Seeing the situation through their eyes, all hope evaporated.

But the real truth – the reality to be made obvious when Jesus appears to His disciples – would soon be revealed. The Holy Spirit would indwell them as promised. They would see Jesus ascend into heaven. These men who were, on this Saturday between Jesus’ death and resurrection, experiencing the lowest, most painful, most anxious time in their lives, would go out into the world, boldly sharing the message of Jesus Christ – all but one giving their lives for the sake of the Gospel.

On this Saturday, the disciples couldn’t see it. They couldn’t wrap their minds around all that had happened in such a short amount of time.

Their inability to comprehend the events of Friday had no effect on the glory of God coming to fruition in that sealed tomb early Sunday morning.

¹³ Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak, ¹⁴ knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. ¹⁵ For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.

¹⁶ So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self^[d] is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,¹⁸ as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. – 2 Corinthians 4:13-18 (ESV)

Rejoice! He is risen!

Scan not a friend with a microscopic glass. You know his faults, now let his foibles pass. – Sir Frank Crisp.

Judge not, lest ye be judged. – Jesus Christ.

For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. – Newton’s Third Law of Motion.

Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity, and the rod of his fury will fail. – Proverbs 22:8

Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. – Galatians 6:7-8

What am I reaping in my life? Better look at what I’m sowing.

Sow live, reap love.

Sow judgement, reap judgement.

I need to remember, before I speak, before a thought even develops in my head: I don’t know what I don’t know. And what I do “know” is highly suspect. Only God is Truth.

Love one another. Do not judge. We never know the whole story.

¹⁵ Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. – Colossians 3:15-17 (ESV)

Can I let you in on a little secret? Ok… it’s not really a secret . Let’s just call it insight – something God is still working on me about. I’m very stubborn and thick, so it takes me a little longer than the average bear to get a hint.

Thankfully the Lord isn’t going to give up on me.

Here’s my insight – and it’s very simple and obvious yet profoundly true.

Here it is: if we want to live a life of true, deep, lasting peace, the peace that passes all human understanding, we have to trust in Jesus fully and completely and live by the precepts found in God’s Word.

God says love our enemies and pray for them, so we have to love and pray for them.

God says seek His kingdom first, so we need to set aside our own agendas and seek the Lord”s will first.

God says trust in Him with all our hearts and lean not on our own understanding, so we need to stop trying to figure everything out and trust in His absolute sovereignty.

God says don’t worry about anything, so we must set those anxious thoughts and, instead,focus on the Lord and what He has to say about life and our situations, for that is Truth.

God says forgive, so we must forgive.

God says love Him above all else and love others, so love.

God says be generous of spirit, so give yourself with much love and joy.

God says pray, so pray.

God says follow Jesus, so follow Jesus.

It only makes sense that, if we want the peace only Jesus gives, then we need to follow Him in faith and let Him form our thoughts and opinions, light our path, and make us salt and light.

You are so loved, dear friend. Rest in the Lord and sleep well.

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.” – John 14:1 (ESV)

We have choices.

Multiple times a day we are faced with opportunities to make choices. Most are fairly inconsequential.

Should we have pizza or tacos for supper?

Should I watch an old rerun of Gilligan’s Island or that video on YouTube about the history of dental floss?

Should I buy a Mounds bar or an Almond Joy? Do I feel like a nut or not?

However there is one choice that should always be obvious to believers in Jesus:

¹⁴ “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. ¹⁵ And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” – Joshua 24:14-15 (ESV)

Choosing to follow the LORD seems obvious, but isn’t necessarily easy. It requires us to set aside our cares and plans and doubts and make a conscious effort to relinquish control and trust in God’s plan for our lives.

Even when it makes no sense.

Even when we’re scared to let go.

Even when we’re trying to work our way through life’s challenges on our own.

In John 14:1 Jesus says, “Let not your hearts be troubled. Trust in Me.” I love the words “let not”. That means we need to choose to not give in to fear, anxiety, worry and doubt. Rather, we need to chooses to believe in God.

Rest in His mercy and peace and goodness and strength and love and wisdom and absolute sovereignty over every minute detail of our lives.

Instead of believing in the worst possible outcome, or dreading what lies ahead, or fearing anyone or anything, we need to recognize Who God is (our Father) and put our full trust in Him.

Regardless of circumstances.

At all times.

Tonight, if anxious worrisome thoughts begin swirling around in your head, make the decision to trust in the Lord instead listening to the fear. It may take some effort. But it’s well worth it to trust in Jesus and simply take Him at His Word.

Rejoice in the LORD, and again I say rejoice!

This is the beginning of one of my go-to passages of Scripture when I’m feeling stressed, or anxious, or low, or worried, or troubled, or any combination of these wonderful emotional roller coaster rides .

I never liked roller coasters. I rode one once.

Once.

It took my left kidney a week to dislodge from behind my tonsils and settle back where it belonged.

And yet, I find myself riding a roller coaster of sorts far more often than I care to admit.

Oh! That awful feeling. The clickity clack of the track beneath as your emotions slowly rise. Tension builds. Stomach knots. Nerves get shaky.

Then, finally, you crest the top of the ride and find yourself plunging into what feels like an out of control free fall. The clickity clacking gets louder and faster. You hear someone screaming like a 13 year old girl on helium at a Taylor Swift concert.

And you realize you are the one screaming.

Ok, maybe not actually screaming . But you feel like it.

When you’re on the emotional roller coaster, the last thing you feel like doing is rejoicing. But, therein lies the rub. You see, feelings can often be dishonest. They aren’t a very accurate gauge of reality.

For believers in Jesus, here is our reality: God is sovereign over everything.

Every situation.

Time and again God”s Word reminds us to fear not, to not worry, to not be anxious. Rather, are called to trust in our Heavenly Father, who works all things for good for those who love Him and follow His Word.

This is why Paul says with great emphasis to rejoice in the Lord always. God is the source of our joy and peace and supply. Always.

So we need to rejoice in the Lord always! Not just when we feel like it. Because, feel it or not, you are in God’s grip.

Embrace that reality. Seek Him first. And quit listening to the clickity clack beneath you.

²³ And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. ²⁴ And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. ²⁵ And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” ²⁶ And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?”Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. ²⁷ And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?” – Matthew 8:23-27 [ESV]

As a child, I was afraid of thunderstorms.

I mean, really afraid.

One clap of thunder in the middle of the night, one flash of lightning, and I would shoot out of bed, straight to Mom and Dad’s room. (They were young back then. They didn’t need the sleep.)

The thunder was like a starter’s pistol at the Kentucky Derby:

BANG! “And he’s off! Here comes Stormy Terror racing into the straightaway, arriving at his parents’ bedside in record time!”

One evening a storm came through. Just your basic Indiana summer storm. No sign of Jim Cantore or any storm chasers around. My dad, no doubt hoping for a peaceful night’s slumber without being awakened by his terrified preschooler staring at from the side of his bed, decided now was the time to face this problem head-on.

He took me out on the front porch, thunder rumbling and rain pouring around us. “Son”, he’s said. “It’s just a storm. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

Jesus faced a similar situation. He’s in the back of a fishing boat, trying to get some shut eye. Up rolls a big rainstorm, sea swells slapping over the sides of the craft, filling the hull with water.

“Jesus!”, they cried. “Wake up! We’re going to die!”

These were grown men – fishermen for Pete’s sake! They should have known better! But… in fairness, without God, they had every logical reason to panic. At its deepest, the Sea of Galilee around 150 feet deep.

Not a pleasant way to go.

Jesus rebukes His disciples with a gentle, “O ye of little faith.”

Then He calms the storm, leaving the apostles in gob-smacked wonder.

This is point where my analogy falls apart a bit. You see, Jesus had the ability to stop the wind and the rain and the waves immediately. My dad… well, had a tornado dropped from that storm, we may well have ended up swirling around the edge of the vortex like the cow in The Wizard of Oz.

Here’s the points: I trusted my parents. They weren’t omniscient, omnipotent or omnipresent. But they protected me.

How much more can we protect our loving, sovereign Father God in all things, at all times? No matter the magnitude (real or imagined) of our situation, the LORD is always with His children. He will never leave us, never abandon us, never forget us. In the LORD we find our strength, our guidance, our supply, our wisdom, our protection, our direction…. After all, if is God is for us, who could possibly stand against us?

As for my early childhood years, I wish I could report to you that my fear of storms was instantly erased that night on the front porch. Alas there would be more mad dashes to my parents’ bedroom over the next few years.

But, just like the younger me of 50+ years ago, we need to remember to run to our Father when things go sideways, when life gets rough, when we just don’t know what to do. Stay connected with God through Jesus in both good times and bad, and remember to seek him first always.

The Israelites were home. Their long Babylonian exile was over. They were back in Jerusalem. They had a new temple.

But they had troubles.

They had neighbors who were less than pleased to have the Jews back in their homeland, The Jews were under threat from those around them (sound familiar)?

They needed protection.

They needed a wall around the city to keep the unhappy nations around them at bay.

Enter Nehemiah, upright cupbearer of the Persian king Artaxerxes, who allows him to go to Jerusalem and rebuild the city walls.

Which they did.

In 52 days.

After the work was complete, a celebratory festival was held. As part of this, Ezra gathered the Israelites around and read to them the Law.

They were convicted of their sin. They were saddened by the realization of how far they had fallen from God.

They repented. And they were reminded by Nehemiah: do not grieve: for the joy of the Lord is your strength.

I can only imagine these people were carrying a heavy load. Overthrown and subjugated by the Babylonians. Shell shocked to return to their ruined home city. Far from the LORD. Fearful. Exhausted . Depleted.

Have you ever experienced feeling ground down to practically nothing by the hardships of life? There is an answer.

Trust God.

Don’t trust in your ability. Don’t trust in others to set things straight.

Trust in the Lord. Give all your worries, all your fears, all your anxieties, all your cares to Him. All these things do is weigh us down, clog our abilities, sap us of our strength.

But when we throw off all those cares and place our faith wholly and entirely on the LORD, we find peace.

We find hope.

We find joy. And, in that joy, we find strength through Jesus Christ. It’s why Paul was able to write:

⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. ¹⁰ For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. – 2 Corinthians 12:9-11 (ESV)

It’s time. Now.

Right now.

It’s time to cast off our heavy load of burden and sin and shame, giving it all to God. Seek Him first overall. Seek His forgiveness, His light, His will. Embrace Him wholeheartedly and trust God to take care of you.

Find His joy and, through the peace and calm our Father brings when we embrace Him confidently, we will discover the strength – His strength – to get you through everything in life.

¹⁶ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ¹⁸ Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. ¹⁹ This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.²⁰ Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. ²¹ But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God. – John 3:16-21 (ESV)

My grandma did not like the old hymn “The Old Rugged Cross”. She felt it was too dirge-like, too depressing.

And she was right.

Sort of.

We like to sanitize the cross and celebrate the empty tomb. And, again, we should celebrate the risen Christ.

The seal broken and the stone rolled away.

The neatly folded grave clothes sitting in His grave.

Jesus appearing to Mary Magdalene, not yet ascended but certainly very much alive!

But we need to also remember the horror of Golgotha. We need to remember what Jesus endured for us in his His last hours on earth.

The injustice of the kangaroo court trials.

The sleep-deprivation of being up all night, lugged from trial to torture to trial to the cross.

The unbelievable physical agony Jesus endured from the scourging He received from the Romans.

The utter lack of mercy from those around Him: the Romans, the Pharisee and Sadducee leaders, even the Jews in the crowd.

The mockery of the Romans who crammed a crown of thorns on His head and affixed a sign – written by Pilate himself in three languages (Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic) so all could read and understand the sarcastic wording: “JESUS, KING OF THE JEWS”.

The betrayal of the twelve, the disciples Jesus had walked with and taught over the past three years, now scattered after Jesus’ arrest in the garden (save the apostle John, who was at Golgotha with Mary). Actually hearing Peter deny any association with him.

The exhaustion from the massive blood loss, and from having to drag the heavy wooden cross up the hill called Calvary.

The sorrow of seeing His mother’s desperation as He hung from the cross.

I cannot imagine the pain, the stress, the weight of the whole event.

Why did Jesus go through all this? The false accusations and beyond cruel punishment beyond anything we can comprehend…

The answer is simple: one word, Love.

God so loves us that He sent His Son to be our propitiation – the substitutional sacrifice to pay the price we cannot because of our sin.

When we see the cross, we should see the blood-stains, the holes that held the nails that held His hands and feet tight to the wood, the place on the main beam where Jesus’ torn and bleeding back rubbed every time He attempted to lift His body up so He could breathe.

When we see the cross, we need to understand the reason He did all this, faced this utterly unfair trial, punishment and execution, was so we could look to Him and live.

Eternally.

Anytime we feel useless, worthless, unable to face life, we need to remember the cross,

Remember He went through all this for you.

For you.

Because He loves you.

Because His love for you is unfathomably deep.

Because You are His – and, thus, of great worth.

We need to look on the cross with gratitude. We need to understand deep in our souls just what Jesus did for us.

Remember the cross for what it is: that symbol of suffering and shame. His suffering to remove our shame.

Embrace the Lord with love and thanksgiving! Everything we have faced, He has faced. Every pain we have felt, He has felt.

Then look to the glory of the empty tomb. He is risen indeed! Still very alive. Still very present through the Holy Spirit Who dwells within every believer.

When you are low, remember Jesus.

When you are afraid, remember Jesus.

When you think your situation is impossible, remember Jesus.

When you feel you are beyond help, or unworthy of forgiveness or help, remember Jesus.

Consider the cross.

Consider the tomb.

Consider the might and glory and grace and mercy and great great love of the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁸ Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. ⁹ What you have learned^[e] and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you. – Philippians 4:8-9 (ESV)

There are quite a few people throughout my life who have made a big impact on who I am – teachers, pastors, friends, family – people far wise than me. I believe all of these wonderful folks were put in my life by God.

This includes the only pastor who ever physically assaulted me. (At least so far.)

Larry Hodge was part of our lives for only a few months, when we attended his church in Aurora IL. This was a particularly difficult time in my life.

I remember Larry as a gentle, loving soul. But he also knew when and how to be tough. One Wednesday night at church (remember Wednesday night church services?), he was giving a message on Philippians 4.

And, honestly, I was in no mood to hear a message about being joyful. I was way too busy wallowing in self-pity and doubt to take in any words of hope. The message simply bounced off my hard head.

My face must have resembled the above grumpy lump of sourdough.

As he continued to teach about rejoicing, he stepped away from the podium and made his way to the pew where I was sitting. When he got to me, he smiled, exclaimed “Be ye glad!”

And poked me in the chest with two fingers.

Hard.

As in “left a mark” hard.

Without skipping a beat, the pastor strolled back to the podium.

This moment – now 26+ years ago – made an impact on me (both spiritually and literally). His message was loud and clear.

Be glad regardless.

Be glad because you have Jesus, a gift greater than any earthly thing.

Refuse to let the world get you down.

Refuse to take the bait of anxiety and self-pity.

Latch onto God Who transcends our circumstances.

The only reason we left Pastor Hodge’s church is because we moved to Minnesota. The 6-hour one-way trek to church was simply unsustainable.

He was in our lives for such a short time. But he made such a difference in my life. When Larry Hodge left this earth five years later, the world lost a wonderful man of God. I can only hope he knows the impact for Christ he made on people. He certainly impacted me.

Are you ready to impact those around you for Jesus? Are you set to love others with grace and truth? Are there any Sourdough Pew Fillers in your life who need the love of Jesus? Today I want to encourage you to encourage those around you with the love of the Lord.

No judgement.

No division.

No preconceived notions.

No assumptions.

Just love in Christ. Just encouragement to keep trusting and following Jesus Christ.

Just that simple.

Thank you Larry Hodge, and all of you who have been – and continue to be – such a blessing to me and my family. Moreover, thanks be to God for putting all of you in my life.

¹³ Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus – Philippians 3:13-14 (ESV)

Living in the past. A great title for a toe-tapping, flute driven 1969 hit for the band Jethro Tull.

But not a great way to walk through life.

For some, the past holds accomplishments and glories from much younger years. Successes outgrown. Trophies now irrelevant.

Some hold on tight to nostalgia and sentimentality, lost in the misty fog of bygone days, memories of people and places long gone, never to return, yet yearned for.

For others , the past is painful. It’s filled with painful memories, scars from past traumas, shame and guilt and regret from events or circumstances or mistakes that you just cannot shake. Awful tragedies entirely out of control.

Living in the past is a problem.

It can keep us trapped in a longing for the “good old days”that robs of the joy Jesus offers us today.

It can keep us imprisoned by unforgiveness, regret, anxiety and fear.

Our past can easily rob us of living a full life in Jesus.

This isn’t to say we should never look back on the good things from back then: memories of childhood or family and friends etc. that warm our souls and put a smile on our faces.

It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be mindful of the lessons learned from mistakes.

What it means is you can’t stay there. The past is gone. As the Grass Roots once sang: sha-la-la-la-la-la-la-la live for today.

Be present.

Be here now.

Love those the Lord put in your life now.

If you’ve repented from past sins to God and asked His forgiveness , quit beating yourself up. God’s forgiveness means, in His eyes, your record of sin has been expunged. You are forgiven and free!

If you can’t seem to let go of past hurts, seek help. Don’t continue to believe the lies you tell yourself. Your worth in God’s eyes is so great that His Son Jesus lived and died on the cross for you.

As God said to Isaiah,:

¹⁸ “Forget the former things;
    do not dwell on the past.” – Isaiah 43:18 (ESV)

God is in the business of restoration. It is important that we let go of the things that have gone so we can grab hold of Him, moving forward and upward for the prize of Jesus!

Seek first God’s kingdom. Don’t stare at the past. God has an amazing plan for you!

You are loved to an unfathomable depth by God.