ANYTHING GOES!

Using THE MESSAGE again this a.m. for my journaling, I ran across 1 Corinthians 10:23which reminds me, "Anything goes. Because of God's immense generosity and grace, we don't have to disect and scrutinize every action to see if it will pass muster."

Our daughter, Lynn, and son-in-love, Gary Bolmgren, from Richfield,MN are with us right now for a visit and we had just been talking about how important it is to not carry old burdens around, but to trust that God has dealt with them. We are to let old mistakes go and not continue to be bothered by them.

That having been said, I got into THE MESSAGE to do my journaling for the day. Because of the scripture and the earlier discussion, I felt I had to share this very important discovery about God which I knew about, but until I could link it to a very old unsatisfying action of mine, I had never really seen it.

This is the story: Many years ago, when I was a new Christian, I wanted to serve and obey God in whatever way I was asked. I began by being responsible for people to be in the baby nursery, toddlers and twos, and the three year olds. It involved lots of calling and assigning of willing mothers and dads, but was a great pleasure for me.

The lovely woman who helped us in the nursery had immigrated from the Black Forest area in Germany with her family, and was wonderful with our crib babies. The church sponsored them and was very lucky to have her serve there.

However, there was a problem that grew into a real costly situation for the church. Permeating in the warm nursery was the unmistable strong smell of body odor and the young families with babies refused to come. As the nursery volunteer arranger, I, frankly, didn't quite know how to handle it.

I spoke to the pastor and to the Sunday School Superintendent and we collectively weren't sure what to do, either. So, I volunteered to speak with this otherwise very lovely woman and arrange for a visit to her home.

The morning of this visit, I woke to a blizzard type snow-fall, but wanting to be obedient to the Lord, I headed out for this new development of homes quite distant from my home and the church. On the way, I slid and slid, barely moving through the wind-driven snow. "An old Minnesotan like me can handle this," I spoke aloud, trying to puff up my nearly absent confidence.

"Oops!" and away the car slid nearly hitting, barely missing a big tanker truck, heading the same direction as I, toward the new people in their new homes in the new settlement waiting for the new oil for their new furnaces.

"What am I doing out in this?" I thought to myself. But suddenly I was on the right road, in the right neighborhood, and there was the house, at last.

We gave each other a hug in meeting. She had made a strudel and it was delicious. We had a nice conversation. She had no "other" friends and told me I was the first to come and see her new home. Then, I remembered why I was there, and understood: In her cold home they were using very little heating fuel. Other country's bathing habits are far different than our own. The heat in the nursery made the poor woman sweat!! And now what was I to do? It was hard to admit why I had come, but I supposed that I must.

I had brought some little necessities with me for her. I didn't open the bag, but I began to speak to her about the situation in church. Her face was a blank, the smile having disappeared. But, I explained the best I could and told her I would help her any way she would ask. I told her that we loved her work and needed her in the nursery.

She didn't answer me, but sat in silence, staring straight ahead.

Soon, I thought it best to say goodbye, leave the small bag of necessities, and go.

I cried on the way home and many times after that throughout the years. Had God tried to stop me with the blizzard and the near accident? Should I have stayed home?
Maybe God hadn't requested me to go to her. What if it wasn't His will?

She and her family left the church.

For many years I worried about this lovely lady. Eventually, I looked up their unusual name in the phone book and called. I left a message asking her to forgive me for not being a better friend. She didn't call me back, but that's OK.

Then, yesterday, I read the scripture from 1 Cor.10, and something fell into place, just like those little metal balls that roll around and around and eventually fall into the correct slot. I can now believe that I did what God asked. I just didn't have a clue beforehand how God was going to use it! I also wonder, was the blizzard God saying, "Go back!" Or was the blizzard that tricky Satan who's always trying to trick us into thinking, "It's God talking!" Was it God's will and Satan's trick? Maybe. Maybe not.

At any rate, with God, "Anything goes! Because of God's immense generosity and grace, we don't have to disect and scrutinize every action to see if it will pass muster." I passed muster but, I'll not know for sure who did what until Paradise!

If any of you out there in internet land have a grief that's hard to let go of--I hope this reassures you. With our God, anything goes as long as His grace and generosity hold out. And that will be for forever.

Until the next time! jo

BELIEVE ME?

Hello, again!

In Galatians 1:11-12, Paul is emphatic! He's saying,"Believe me!" because the church in Galatia was listening and believing a "gospel" other than the truth, and Paul was indignant. He told them, "I didn't receive this news through the traditions, and I wasn't taught it in some school. I got it straight from God, received the message directly from Jesus Christ." (The Message) So, believe me!

It got me to wondering--are my words to the great outside believed? Are they worth believing? I, personally, followed no traditions. I wasn't taught these beliefs in school. I rarely went to Sunday School as a child to my regret. I wasn't churched as a youngster. I had three children before I came to know the truth about Jesus, that He died so the world would have a way to be reconciled to God. I have no scars like Jesus does to prove I know the truth. I have nothing to make anyone listen to anything I say.

Nothing but a changed heart, and along with it a passion. Here I am, the one who was faithless in believing that Jesus had power for me, for my life. I clung to my own belief--myself--for a long time. And repeatedly found myself in a streak of losses toward my goal of "being a good person." Then, Jesus beat me at my own game! I came to realize I wasn't ever going to be good in my own right, and that's one reason why Jesus came to this earth, why He died on the cross. Then, I tripped on my own pride so badly one day that I realized I needed Him, and His goodness.

So here we are, Jesus and me! He's the good guy; I'm His shadow, and sometimes His hands and feet, and I hope, His mouth.

And that's when I came to another truth--Because he's in my heart, and I in His, I could, at last, be considered good. Everything He has is for my use, even His goodness! And that's the truth! I hope you believe me!!

See you soon! jo

BELIEVE ME!