Friday Coffee with PJ

It's FINALLY Friday of a week that has seemed to drag on and on and on. Why so? I will tell you in a moment ... but first, pour yourself a cup of your favorite coffee and join me for "Friday Coffee with PJ."

1. This week has seemed so long due to my son's SLOW recovery from his abdominal surgery of last Friday (brought about by his diverticulitis). What started out as robotic surgery, finished with the surgeon having to make a 5 1/2 inch incision to finish the operation. So instead of being discharged as early as Monday of this week, Tim was expecting perhaps a Wednesday discharge. But no. His body had other plans. As I write this, he is awaiting a procedure that will insert some sort of catheter into the area of his spleen to remove fluid that has accumulated and formed an abscess. Earlier this morning I was with Tim and his wife, Kelly, as a parade of specialists came through. First, the nurse practitioner with the gastroenterology group arrived to give an update based on the the results of the previous evening's CAT scan. Next, the infectious disease doctor, with the surgeon hot on  his heels. As a result, we had a pretty good idea of the plan to treat Tim's abscess and to get him back "on the mend." As I left Tim's room to return to the office, I reminded him that he was "in good hands.: Of course, I had in mind these medical professionals - all of whom impressed me with their knowledge and expertise. But more importantly I was thinking of the Great Physician. He is the one that works through these human physicians to bring about the ultimate healing that we all need from time to time. Aren't you thankful for HIS care?

Friday morning update (as I wrote this post on Thursday): Tim actually ate a little bit last night ... first time he has felt like eating anything since the surgery. They want to wean him off oxygen today and get him moving more to prevent pneumonia from setting in. He is still in quite a bit of pain. Thanks again for your prayers!

2. Yesterday I tweeted a quote that Hillary Clinton said while addressing the Women int he World Summit. These words were spoken in the context of same-sex marriage. "Deep-seated cultural codes, religious beliefs, and structural biases have to be changed."  Did you HEAR that? She is suggesting that those of us who hold religious beliefs concerning homosexual "marriage" must change what we believe to accommodate same-sex marriage. So ... given this statement, do you have any question as to where religious freedom might fall in Hillary's priorities? Not very high! Bottom line (and increasingly so in our society) "gay rights" trump all other rights ... even the constitutional right of religious freedom. That my friend is down right disturbing.

3. Finally, if faith comes by hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ (Romans 10:17), then it surely is encouraging to know that the Gideons have just distributed their two billionth Scripture (whole Bibles and New Testaments/Psalms). Wow! That is downright incredible. To read more about this milestone, click here.  Read, rejoice and pray about and for the ongoing ministry of the Gideons!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Friday Coffee with PJ

It's Friday ... that means some random thoughts you can "dunk" in your favorite cup of coffee as you say "goodbye" to the work week ... and "hello" to the weekend (unless you work weekends, as I do!).

1. I have been struck this week at just how "green" everything is becoming. After a long and bitterly cold winter (that was reluctant to loosen up its grip!), it sure is great to look around at all of the new growth (even if that means back to cutting the lawn!). Of course, even as spring struggled with its identity crisis, we knew deep down that if we just waited long enough, warm breezes and blooming flowers would eventually arrive! And we have not been disappointed. As I thought about this, I thought about the return of Christ. It's been some 2000 years now since Jesus said, "Surely, I am coming soon" (Revelation 22:20). But even though the wait has been long (for us, not for God - see 2 Peter 3:8), we can be assured that just as we waited for spring to arrive ... so, too, if we wait long enough, Jesus will come again! Afterall, he is a promise keeper! When he comes, will he find us faithful to Him and His cause?

2. Yesterday I had to get my portable air compressor out to add some air to two tires on our van and to inflate two tires on one of our little kid bicycles. Underinflated tires on a vehicle really cuts down on gas mileage ... and non inflated tires on a bicycle makes it unrideable ... thus making it necessary to put the air compressor to work. What can we do, though, when its not tires that are in need of inflating, but our hearts? When I find myself "down" (and yes, I do get down), I preach the gospel to myself. By that I mean I remind myself of the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. But to truly appreciate this good news, we must first understand the really, really bad news about our fallen humanity. Simply put, we are born into this world as rebels. We are God's enemies (Romans 5:10), intent on going our way vs. God's way (Isaiah 53:6). As such we are dead in our sins and destined to face God's wrath (Ephesians 2:1-4). But God loves us IN SPITE OF who we are. And out of his great love, he showers us with his grace and mercy. The result being the condemnation that we deserve was taken by Christ. On the cross he paid the penalty for our sin ... a penalty that we in no way could every hope to pay. As a result, when we by faith alone trust in Christ alone to save us from our sin ... he saves us gloriously! So when I feel down, I remind myself of what God has done for me in the gospel of his son. It never fails to inflate my soul!

3. Finally on a more personal note, a request. Today my son is undergoing surgery for his diverticulitis. I would greatly appreciate your prayers for him ... for the surgery and his subsequent recovery. Please pray for his wife and their two young daughters. Your prayers are much appreciated! For where our prayers focus, God's power falls (2 Corinthians 2:11)!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Timothy Keller on The Power of Prayer

Every once in a while I come across a book that upon finishing it I think, "this is sure to be a classic." Timothy Keller's recent book, Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God, is one such book. Here is an extended quote that really grabbed me. I hope it grabs you, too!

"The power of our prayers, then, lies not primarily in our effort and striving, or in any technique, but rather in our knowledge of God. You may respond, “But God spoke audible words to Job out of a storm. I wish God spoke to me like that.” The answer is— we have something better, an incalculably clearer expression of God’s character. “In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son . . . the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being” (Heb 1: 1– 3). Jesus Christ is the Word of God (John 1: 1– 14) because no more comprehensive, personal, and beautiful communication of God is possible. We cannot look directly at the sun with our eyes. The glory of it would immediately overwhelm and destroy our sight. We have to look at it through a filter, and then we can see the great flames and colors of it. When we look at Jesus Christ as he is shown to us in the Scriptures, we are looking at the glory of God through the filter of a human nature." 

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Friday Coffee with PJ

C.S. Lewis once wrote, "You can't get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me." Now who am I to correct a C.S. Lewis quote? His words will be quoted long after my name is forgotten! But I feel he falls short here. I think he would have been far more eloquent and sophisticated and wise if he had said, "You can't get a cup of COFFEE big enough or a book long enough to suit me."  With that said, go ahead and pour yourself a cup of your favorite brew and join me for a couple of random thoughts.

1. The other day my wife asked me if our trip to Aruba and back seemed like a dream. I admitted that it did. Hard to believe we were there, enjoying the warm breezes caressing our faces and the white sands tickling our toes (not to mention the water's various shades of turquoise and blues too beautiful to describe with mere words). But even more hard to believe is the generosity of our church family to send us there (and back!). Generosity. That's a good word. It's an even better deed. I am thankful for our church's generosity toward us. I am even more thankful for God's generosity! He who did not spare even the life of his one and only Son, is indeed MORE THAN GENEROUS! God calls us to follow in the footsteps of that Son. And just as Jesus continually manifested the generosity of God toward others, we need to be doing the same. I challenge you today (I chose the word "challenge" because the word "invite" isn't strong enough!) to reach out and show some generosity toward someone in your network of relationships. Perhaps you can offer to cut a neighbor's lawn or prepare a meal for a harried  mother of young children or even pay for someone's purchase at the grocery store checkout. Keep your eyes (and heart) open. You won't have a problem finding someone to shower with a good dose of generosity today!

2. Tim Keller, well known author and Lead Pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in NYC, recently pointed out that we are the most overworked society in the history of mankind. What he has to say on this topic is well worth reading and thinking about (AND hopefully responding to with some life changes!). Here's what he said in his sermon, "Work and Rest:" 

The most workaholic culture in the history of the world (that’s us!) dare not turn up its nose at any effort–even misguided efforts–to giving to people one of the things most crucial to making life even human, which is rest…The modern situation means that the eternal human need for rest is enormously aggravated. Let me give you four trends:

A. More and more, at least in Western culture, jobs are insecure. Jobs, whole departments, if they don’t perform and if they don’t turn profit, they’re eliminated. There has never been a culture where job security has been so bad.

B. There has been a lot of research done on the fact that where it used to be that people at the top of the company used to make maybe 10 or 20 x what people at the bottom of the company make; now, it’s more like 100 to 200 x. And partly as as a result of this, to some degree, increasingly, people who make large amounts of money and it’s expected to put in

enormous numbers of hours–it’s just expected. If you don’t want to do it, there’s a line behind you. Whereas people on the bottom are having to take multiple jobs. So everybody’s overworked. It doesn’t matter  where you are on the scale. In order to make ends meet, they have to take multiple jobs.

C. Technology. Ah, technology! You can work anywhere, which means now, we work everywhere. It means you can’t stop work from spilling out of every nook and cranny of your life.

D. Whereas traditional societies said that you got your meaning in life from your family, and through fulfilling a fairly prescribed social role–. And work wasn’t as important as that.  You define yourself. There’s never been more sociology and emotional pressure on work.

So .. if you want to take some time to get alone with God, or spend some time with your spouse or family ... you had better keep it short because there's always something you need to be doing, according to the culture in which we live.

So ...lots to chew on (after, of course, you have dunked these nuggets of wisdom in your coffee)!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Please Continue to Pray for the Central African Republic!

Although the C.A.R. is no longer being mentioned by the U.S. news media (not that it ever was all that much!), this does not mean that all is well in this war torn African nation in the heart of the African continent. Here is a recent update from someone who was recently in that country.

"Currently in the country there are armed robberies in areas where the rule of law does not apply, mounting arrears of salaries and student grants, mortuaries overflowing with dead bodies--all these ingredients are there for explosive, social upheaval. The precariousness  of every day existence is leading to promiscuity. Pray that GOD’s grace will abound during these times of uncertainty in the Central African Republic."

Thanks for praying ... and thanks for stopping by . . . 
pj

PS - If you want to pray for a leader in the Central African Republic who is striving to make a difference, please check out the Friends of CIDEL website. 

Friday Coffee with PJ

It's Friday ... so grab a cup of coffee and join me for a couple of random thoughts.

1. This morning I walked into Darrenkamps Market, a grocery store that sits adjacent to our church. The place was mobbed. At first I was quite puzzled. Darrenkamps does a solid business, but the only time I usually see it as packed is the day before a holiday or a snow storm! Then I recalled that Darrenkamps was holding their Spring Food Festival. As their flyer for the event proclaimed, "Over 30 stations for sampling a wide variety of products including Darrenkamp's signature items. Come hungry, we will have plenty of great food samples."  Certainly a great marketing move by the store. If you offer something for nothing, people will come! In reality, these food samples are not "free." Someone is picking up the cost of the food. And so it is with the gospel. The gospel offers us something that is indeed FREE to us: the forgiveness of sin and a restored relationship with the God of the universe. But someone payed the price to make that possible. And that someone is Jesus Christ. He paid for our sin and rebellion with his own blood. So although our salvation is free to us it cost God dearly. Have YOU accepted this free gift that he offers (Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23)? If you have not and need some clarification, please take a moment and check out Two Ways to Live: The Choice We All Face. 

2, When we arrived at our resort in Aruba, our room was not ready. So we checked our bag with the bell hops and decided to take a walk to check things out. We were not very far into our walk when we were startled by a large iguana that crossed or path. Now if you have ever had this occur, you know iguanas are fear inspiring creatures (see picture). So as it scurried in front of us ... we stopped  ... and waited ... until it was gone. As we proceeded, we were watching from side to side to make sure we were not attacked by one. Fast forward to our last day in Aruba. By this time, we were looking for the

iguanas. We were no longer afraid of them ... rather we had become enamored by them and their behaviors. The resort actually threw out lettuce leaves in particular places around noon each day. This would draw in quite a few iguanas ... for apparently, they really like lettuce! All this to say ... we went from being fearful of these creatures to becoming quite comfortable with them. Reminds me of how we respond to sin. Early in our faith walk, we can be very sensitive to sin and it's "ugliness." But if we are not careful, if we allow sin to go unchecked in our lives, we can become quite comfortable with it. And that is NOT a good thing! I encourage you to prayerfully read the two psalms of confession written by King David (Psalm 32 and Psalm 51). Ask God to give you David's perspective on sin. You will be better for it.

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Back from "chill'n" on vacation!

The view from my beach chair!

A trip that had first been scheduled for last October, finally became a reality for my wife and me last week. One week ago today, we boarded Southwest airlines flight 1840 at Baltimore Washington International Airport. Our destination? Aruba! Our church, in celebration of my 25 years of ministry, gave us the very generous gift of a vacation in Aruba (and the fact that they gave us round-trip tickets was a real encouraging sign they wanted us back!). Now the reason we were unable to go last October was due to the arm surgery I underwent in September. Although we were quite disappointed at the time, we sure enjoyed Aruba's bright sunshine and warm tropical breezes all the more after the long frigid winter we endured here in the mid-Atlantic. It was indeed an experience worth waiting for! So thank you, Grace Church family and friends for your gift. It means more to us than we can express with mere words.

I learned a number of interesting things about Aruba while there. The weather doesn't change very much from day-to-day (see picture below of the weather forecast). I think it would be quite boring to be a meteorologist in Aruba! Now some of you might look at that weather forecast and noting the real feel temperatures in the upper

90s you might think it would be very hot in Aruba. And you would be both right and wrong in your assessment. Indeed it is hot when you factor in the warmth and humidity. But the consistent trade winds that blow across the island (close to 20 mph sustained with some stronger gusts) serve as a huge fan that makes it feel much cooler than what the thermometer reads. If it were not for these tradewinds, Aruba would not be the popular tourist destination that it is.

I also learned that the island is populated by some very friendly people. Rarely does a person walk by without offering up a cheerful greeting. And the employees at the resort we stayed in would often go the extra mile to help you out. As I thought about that, I thought we as Christ followers can learn much from their example. Being friendly, being willing to serve others to meet their needs, should indeed be a part of who we are! And as we get our focus off of ourselves and onto others, I believe God will open the doors for us to share with those around us the gospel of Christ. So as you go about your day... today, tomorrow, the next day… Remember to put a smile on your face and ... don't be afraid to get your hands dirty.

Thanks for stopping by,
pj