YOU and GOD

A Diamond Anniversary

On this date, 60 years ago, I grasped the hands of “the most beautiful girl on the face of God’s earth” and vowed to love her “till death do us part.” I never would have thought that, 60 years later, we would be alive to celebrate our “Diamond Anniversary.” But, to the praise of God and with grateful hearts, we do humbly bow before our Savior, thanking Him for His kindness to us these past six decades.

I want to share with you a poem that I wrote a few years ago—not on an anniversary, but since I have never published this one, I thought our 60^th was the time to let it see the light of day:

“My dearest Ellen, on this day, I want to come to you to say ‘My love for you will falter never, I’ll love you always, dearest, ever’!

It was a day so long ago, to my delight I got to know, a girl named Ellen from Wilkes County, a girl that brought to my life Bounty.

You’ve proven sweet, true, kind and dear. I’ll always want you ever near; your beauty takes away my breath,

I’ll love you always unto death.

Our hearts were knit and we are one, ‘til our life’s journeys here are done. It’s been a joyous trip in life;

With you beside me as my wife.

God blessed us with our children three; they made our hearts beat fast with glee; we’ve seen them grow before our eyes, to give us grandkids as a prize.

We have a home, a place of love, blessed with God’s favor from above. We’re blessed in riches that abide, in God’s great grace we take our pride.

We’ve loved and laughed and even lost; at times, we’ve had to pay great cost. It’s part of life to face stark death, but God’s pure love gave baby’s breath.

So, Ellen dearest, this I write, to praise you for your life and light. You’ve been a beacon true and clear—To all who’ve known you far and near.

I pray your days left here below, will gladness, pleasure, blessings know; I’ll love you ‘till I cannot breathe,

And only then from your side leave.

I thank you dearest, my sweet love; and I do thank my God above, that He brought Ellen to my side, so that we could here abide.”

Marriage: “Two volumes bound in one complete, with thrilling story, old but sweet: No title needs the cover fair, two golden hearts are blended there.”

“And said, ‘For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh. Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.’” (Matt. 19:5,6)

Pastor Stertzbach’s Story

The “You and God” blog of August 7 was entitled “My Heroes,” featuring a couple of men who impacted my life through their consistently faithful ministries. One of those was my father-in-law, Marvin Beshears, who pastored in North Wilkesboro, NC, for fifty years, and, who, though he had no opportunity to receive a “formal” education, knew the power of God upon his life in an extraordinary way—so much so that he “commanded” the respect of all who knew him or knew of him as being a real-life “man of God.” Upon reading this post, a pastor friend of mine, Dave Stertzbach, wrote to me sharing his experience as a young man in training for the ministry when he met such a man as Bro. Marvin. I want to pass this letter along, with Bro. Dave’s permission, believing that it will be a blessing to you as it was to me, with the thought that a ministry for Christ that will touch hearts has more to do with “Who you are” than” What you have.” Thank you, pastor Stertzbach, for sharing.

This hero’s article was particularly delightful to my soul. Thank you so much. I cherish it because of your love for Dr. Parker and your beloved father-in-law. It reminds me of one such hero of the faith that I met in the hills of Tennessee when I was a seminarian. It had a lifetime impact upon me.

Diane and I were newlyweds. She was finishing her senior year at BJU and, as a married student, I was doing my first year of seminary at BJU and working an almost full-time job. Diane wanted to go to Sparta, Tennessee, to see her great aunt, Lois Hutson, who lived in Happy Valley. Upon arriving there, Aunt Lois had cold sweet tea waiting for us and a warm welcome to her favorite great-niece. It was my first acquaintance with Diane’s cherished aunt, and she readily accepted me into the family, for which I was especially grateful!

Aunt Lois announced that she was going to church that night at her Southern Baptist church up on the mountain. Bro. Pate Ford was the itinerant preacher who was speaking that night. She offered to take us along, which we readily agreed to do. I had graduated from BJU with a B.A. in Bible and was now studying to get my master’s degree. I was pretty impressed with myself in those days and thought I knew a lot about the Bible, but that night was going to change me forever.

I briefly met the preacher before the service and Aunt Lois introduced me as, “This is my great-niece and her husband, David. He is in seminary at that Bob Jones University in Greenville.” I noticed that Bro. Ford was very cordial to this upstart young seminarian. And I viewed him as “just a country preacher” because of his simple vocabulary, his plain, out-of-style dress, and his soft-spoken demeanor. Then … he mounted the pulpit to preach, and everything in my mind and heart changed! He delivered a soul-stirring message from the Hand of God that was anointed by the Holy Spirit in a way I had rarely ever seen. His speech was plain and without the accoutrements of big theological terminology. His illustrations were folksy and heart-touching. And his exposition of the Scriptures was illuminating to the mind, heart, and soul. That night, I heard a true man of God preach the Word. He was a country preacher, but my respect for him was transformational indeed.

After the service, I was eager to shake hands with this new acquaintance. As I now warmly greeted him, I was anxious to know more about him, because he was obviously filled with the fresh oil of God. Since academia was so important to me in those days, I asked where he went to school. He already knew where I was, but this humble man of God lowered his head and said, “Bro. David, I only went to Caney Forks Preacher’s School for six weeks. I learnt the rest by just studying the Bible & letting God teach me everything else. I ain’t never really been to a college or anything.”

It was obvious that I was standing in the shadow of man who was taught by God, which was evident by the powerful preaching I had just heard. I was so ashamed of my pride and judgmental attitude that I went home and got on my knees, repenting of my pride and surrendering to God to be taught of Him like my new hero in the faith.

I never saw or talked to him again, yet he had a great impact upon me for the rest of my life. And I wanted to emulate his humble obedience to be a servant of the Lord. I went on to be pastor for 48 years, but after that day I took on a new moniker. I was thereafter “the Country Parson,” with a desire to only please the Lord, serve Him and His people, and to glorify the Lord like Bro. Pate Ford.

So, my brother Slutz, you had your father-in-law, and I had Bro. Pate. Praise the Lord for the spiritual influencers that God sent our ways and used in such life-altering ways, in both of our lives! We are rich men indeed for such treasured servants in our past!

“Ye are our epistle, written in our hearts, known and read of all men…not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God….” (2 Cor.3:2,3)

Note: Pastor Stertzbach (david.stertzbach@gmail.com) is retired from senior pastoring and is now affiliated with the Interim Pastors Ministry of Gospel Fellowship Association, Greenville, SC, Dr. Marsh Fant, Director. (mfant@gfamissions.org)

My Heroes

I have heard two preachers lately make references to their heroes. One hero was a Bible character, and one a contemporary person whose life and labors were deemed so extraordinary that his admirer labeled him a hero. The dictionary defines a hero as “a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities.” There are a number of biblical persons who might qualify as heroes by that definition. And there is surely nothing wrong with having men and women, forefathers or living, whom we respect and admire so deeply that they are, in our thinking, heroes. Nothing wrong, that is, unless we deify these people, forgetting that they are men and women who also have “feet of clay.” We ought, therefore, to remind ourselves of the biblical injunctions that we “have no confidence in the flesh” (Phil. 3:3) and that “an arm of flesh” is no guarantee of victory. (II Chr. 32:8)

But since hearing the aforementioned pastors refer to their heroes, my mind was challenged to think of some of my heroes. Many come to mind, but here are two. Each impacted my life for good in the time that I knew him.

First, Dr. Monroe Parker—preacher par excellence, educator, and missionary statesman in the 20^th century. Dr. Parker was a staff minister and administrator at Bob Jones University, graduating in the first class of that school, which was founded so that young people could get a sound education without having their faith shattered by liberals who were bent on espousing Darwinism, so-called “higher criticism,” and other ideologies that have no basis in truth.

Dr. Parker was, for several years, president of Pillsbury Baptist Bible College and also a founding officer of Baptist World Mission, of which he was General Director when I joined that mission board in 1982. I had the privilege of getting to observe this southern gentleman up close and in person over many years; he and his wife were guests in our home—sometimes overnight guests—as they crisscrossed America in meetings.

Those of you who knew “the Monk” will affirm that Monroe Parker had a sense of humor that was, well, a sense of humor. His stories were endless, and his “punch lines” were never disappointing. He could make you laugh, and he could make you cry; his love and burden for lost souls was never absent in personal conversation or in his public ministry. Nothing about him was “affected”—he was transparent, discreet, and always in word and deed clothed in humility. When he was president of Pillsbury Baptist Bible College, the students there were singularly impacted by his chapel messages and his personal interest in them and in their ministry; scores of these young men under his tutelage went on to pastor some of our nation’s great Bible-preaching churches.

When I pastored my first church in Kansas and knew Dr. Parker only from a distance, I got tapes of his messages—the old reel-to-reel tapes—and played them to my folk in the evening training hour before the main service. Of course, the favorite was his “elevator trip to Hell” sermon. Later, I was blessed to have Dr. Parker speak at Thompson Road Baptist Church when I became pastor here in Indianapolis, and he was the first guest evangelist that I invited after I assumed the pastorate in 1979. Ellen and I, and our church family, will always cherish memories of Dr. and Mrs. Parker. They were, as it has been said, “the real deal!” He is one of my heroes.

The second hero that I would like to remember here is my father-in-law, Marvin Beshears. By the way, I have written previous posts on each of these men individually—“The Monk” and “God’s Man From Heaven Sent.”

I knew both men pretty well; and, although they were alive at the same time, they were worlds apart in most respects. But they shared an unwavering respect for God’s Word, an unabated love for souls, and a steadfast commitment to “preach the Word…instant, in season, out of season…reproving, rebuking, with all long-suffering and doctrine.” Ellen’s father was known all over Wilkes County, North Carolina, simply as “Brother Marvin.” He did not meet Christ as Savior until, during World War II, he failed a physical and was not accepted into active military service. So he went to Virginia to paint U.S. Navy ships that were sent across the oceans in military service. It was in these shipyards that Marvin heard the voice of Pastor Charles E. Fuller, preaching to packed congregations in Long Beach, California—filled with soldiers about ready to ship out to the war effort—pleading with these young men to accept Christ as their Savior. Marvin was not being shipped overseas, but God got ahold of his heart through the “Old Fashioned Revival Hour” preaching, and when he finally returned to his family in North Wilkesboro, NC, he was a new creation in Christ. He attended several of the many local Baptist churches looking for a place to grow in Christ, but in most all of them he noted men on the front porch smoking cigarettes. Sometimes these were deacons and even pastors. He just could not get past this, for when he got saved, he knew that such habits had to go.

Marvin got most of his education on his knees, with the book he revered, the Bible, opened before him. He was not able, in the difficult Depression years, to finish high school. He was working to help provide food and essentials for the family of nine children. He could not read with ease, mispronounced quite a few of King Jame’s English words, and spoke with a vocabulary unique to him. But anyone who ever heard him preach, or pray, could never forget the apparent “unction” of the Holy Spirit that was upon him! I was a ministerial student in Bible college when I became acquainted with Ellen’s father; but, in truth, I wasn’t even worthy to sit in the same classroom with this man of God.

He preached on the radio every Sunday morning, preached in prisons, preached in nursing homes all over Wilkes County. Mention his name and everyone knew “Brother Marvin.” He never had to sign a bank note—a handshake would seal any contract with this preacher, who lived what he preached until the day he died. I graduated from college and seminary with degrees, but my hero, Marvin Beshears, had the hand of God upon him in a way that I have never known. He was a mountain preacher—by the world’s standards, uneducated—but in truth he stood head and shoulders above most who were called “Reverend.” He was, by the way, also an astute businessman. He pastored the same church for 50 years and never received a salary or any benefits—but provided, with the help of a devoted wife, a living for his family, the benefits of which his children are still reaping. Yes, my hero, Dad Beshears.

I am out of space for now; maybe I will write about two more heroes next time. Stay tuned.

“And when the Chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.” (I Pet.5:4)

“It Is The Last Time” (I John 2:18)

Those were the words of the aged apostle John when writing to his “little children” in the faith—the last of his epistles, penned when he was in his 90s! He was no doubt aware of what Paul had written to Timothy twenty-five years earlier, shortly before his martyrdom, when he said in that second epistle to his young protégé, “Know this also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.” (II Tim.3:1) John also had a vivid memory, no doubt, of that time on the Mt. of OIives when Jesus, heading for the hill, Mt. Calvary, to be crucified a few days hence, responded to the disciple’s query, “What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” (Matt. 24:3) In Matthew 24 and 25 Jesus gave a lengthy answer to those questions, climaxing in Matthew 25:31ff. with a statement concerning His age-ending second coming, in power and in great glory.

There always has been—and there is at this present hour—an interest in the cataclysmic climax of history, the world, and time as we know it. There is—even on the part of unbelieving peoples—an apocalyptic awareness that time can hardly continue as it has, with all the world powers having “red buttons” at their fingertips and at each-others’ throats daily. And, the “birth-pangs”—beginning of sorrows—signs that Jesus gave to the apostles’ questions about the end of the age/world have only intensified the past couple of millennia: with a multiplicity of antichrists; wars and rumors of wars; nations rising against nations; famines; and earthquakes in divers places. Doomsdayers have the small hand on the clock at midnight and the “minute hand” a few minutes before midnight.

With all of this in mind, here is a brief overview of what the Bible says about “things to come”:

The Rapture (catching up) of the Church is next on the timeline of history that is yet future. Believers who are “in Christ”—members of His Body, the Church—will be resurrected and caught up to meet Christ “in the air,” while believers who are living at the time of His return will also be caught up (“raptured”) to and with them to enjoy, following the Judgment Seat of Christ, the marriage supper of the Lamb. (I Thess. 4:13-18; II Cor. 5:10; I Cor. 3:13-15; Rev. 19:7-10)
The Seven-year Tribulation. Daniel’s 70^th week, during which three waves of seven divine judgments will be poured out upon the earth and its inhabitants, the last three and one-half years of which the Antichrist (Beast) and False Prophet, with Satan, will deceive the world with wonders, convincing millions to receive the “mark” of the Beast, conforming to the one-world religio-politico empire. (Daniel 9:24-27) The last of the 21 rapid-fire judgments will be marked by 100 pound hail-stones falling from heaven, resulting in the earth’s inhabitants blaspheming and cursing God. (Rev. 16:21)
The Second Coming of Christ will occur as Satan, the Beast, and False Prophet come together to make war with the Lamb in Megiddo, waging what is known as the battle of Armageddon. Commercial-religio Babylon will fall to destruction and Jesus Christ, riding on a white horse, with a sharp sword out of His mouth, will smite all the nations gathered against Him, and He will be established as KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. (Rev. 19:11-16). The False Prophet and Beast will be cast into the Lake of Fire, and Satan will be bound and cast into a bottomless pit, where he will remain for a thousand years.
The Millennium. This 1,000-year period, during which Christ will reign on David’s throne in Jerusalem, capitol of the renovated, Edenic-like universe, will be a period of universal peace and prosperity. (Isa. 65:17-25) At the end of this period, Satan will be loosed from the pit, where he spent a thousand years; and, incredibly, he will go out one more time and assemble an army of unbelieving people from all the nations of the world—an army the number of which will be like the “sand of the sea”—to oppose the rule and reign of Jesus Christ. That unholy challenge to the King and Kingdom of God will, of course, be defeated, and Satan, along with all unbelievers (Great White Throne Judgment, Rev. 20:11-15) will be cast into the lake of fire, their eternal abode. The millennial earth will be destroyed by fire and replaced by a “new heaven and new earth,” which will come down from God out of heaven, the almost indescribable glory of which is recorded in Rev. 21,22.

One more thing: John saw Jesus in his vision, and saw a preview of His coming in glory, recording that when He comes, “every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him (the Pharisees who would settle for nothing but Christ’s crucifixion), and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him.” (Rev. 1:7) Jesus, in the Mt. of Olives discourse, had told His disciples that he who endured to the end (of the tribulation) would be saved. (Matt. 24:13) Paul, in his “peek” into the future, revealed that when the fulness of the Gentiles had come, the blinders of His people would be lifted and “all Israel shall be saved.”(Romans 11:25,26) When they behold Him whom they (as a people) pierced, they will in mass wail in repentance—and, on the spot, accept Christ as King and Savior, thus entering into the Millennium as the Redeemed of the Lord.

Unlike the Second Coming, which must be preceded by the gospel being preached to all nations, (Matt. 24:14; Rev. 14:6) nothing must occur before the imminent rapture of the Church. We who are His Bride are waiting for the sound of the shout and the voice of the archangel of God, announcing to the dead in Christ that it is time for them to rise, followed by the catching up together with them in the clouds of those who are alive at His coming—and so shall we ever be with the Lord. “Even so, come Lord Jesus.” Amen.

“Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness….” and, “Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of Him in peace, without spot, and blameless.” (II Pet.3:11,14)

On Being Kindly Affectioned

A few days ago, at a warehouse shopping center, as I was approaching rows of shopping carts to pull one loose for my wife and myself to use as we made our way from aisle to aisle inside the huge store, a lady who was approaching the same rows of carts reached her cart first. In a total surprise to me, she said as she pushed her cart toward my still empty hands, “Here, take this one.”

This kind lady was maybe twenty or thirty years younger than me, and she no doubt noticed that I was pretty old and somewhat unbalanced in my stride (due to cancer chemo, neuropathy, and/or side effects from meds), so she thoughtfully wanted to spare this old man the sometimes bothersome task of pulling a cart loose. I must admit, my first thought was to thank the lady and say something like, “Oh, that’s very nice of you, but I have always believed that a gentleman should first help a lady, and not vice-versa.” But, lo, I somehow got the “grace” to smile, thank her, and take the cart she pushed my way. I don’t know if I would react the same way tomorrow; it cuts against the grain of every ounce of manhood and dignity in me—to let a woman help me with a simple task. But I did this time, and I am surely grateful for a nice lady who could see that someone might need a helping hand.

That incident happened about the time that I had been studying for a lesson on Romans 12:10a: “Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love.”

There are a good many biblical exhortations in the New Testament that mandate believers to act kindly, including Col. 3:12: “Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind”; and II Pet. 1:7: “And to godliness (add) brotherly kindness”; and the classic admonition in Eph. 4:32: “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”

In the Old Testament, there is the covenant between Saul’s son, Jonathan, and the anointed but not yet crowned king, David. Jonathan asks his soul-mate, David, that he would “while yet I live shew me the kindness of the Lord, that I die not.” (I Sam. 20:14) Further, he adds: “But also thou shalt not cut off thy kindness from my house forever.” (v.15) Twenty-some years later, after David had escaped the sword of Saul—having been driven to the caves and forests for safety—and was finally sitting on the throne as king in Jerusalem, he said, “Is there yet any that is left in the house of Saul that I may shew him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” (II Sam. 9:3) The king was told that Jonathan did in fact have a living son, lame in the feet—Mephibosheth of Lodebar—and David instructed that Mephibosheth be brought at once to the palace. When the grandson of Saul was ushered into the king’s presence, he fell on his face; whereupon David said, “Fear not; for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father’s sake, and will restore thee all the land of thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually.” Mephibosheth, no doubt overcome with wonder, could only say, bowing, “What is thy servant, that thou shouldest look upon such a dead dog as I am?” (II Sam. 9:8)

In Isaiah 54:8, God tells his estranged, rebellious people that though He had hid His face from them for a moment, “with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee” and “my kindness shall not depart from thee.” (Isa. 54:8,10) Nehemiah 9:17 says that God is of great kindness; Ps. 117:2 speaks of His kindness being merciful; and Titus 3:4 declares that “the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared.”

Two days after I was humbled by the incident with the shopping cart, Ellen and I were eating in a restaurant with some pastors and their wives. Ellen said that one of the wives suddenly excused herself from the table and went toward the restrooms. Sharing the story later, she said that she had noticed an older woman sitting in a booth eating by herself. At the end of her meal, the server brought the woman a piece of birthday cake, as is the custom with some restaurants when a customer is celebrating a birthday. The lonely lady had made her way to the restroom, followed by the pastor’s wife, who—when entering the restroom—introduced herself and explained she could not help noticing that she was eating by herself. She then asked, “Are you OK? Is there anything I can do to help?” The surprised lady replied, “Oh, no, I am fine. It is my birthday, and I have six children, but they are all hither and yon, so I am celebrating by myself today.” Then, the lady added, “But I am not alone; the Lord always sends someone my way that shows kindness to me, so everything is all right.” Kindness was shown that dinner hour; and kindness was received. Such mundane meetings—two ladies in a restroom at the same moment; one desiring to show some kindness, and one in need of some kindness. God is so very good—all the time!

There is a striking statement in Proverbs 19:22, where Solomon says that “The desire of a man is his kindness.” That obviously doesn’t mean that a man desires kindness, but that what makes other men desire to be in the company of certain men is the kindness that they demonstrate. Kindness to his wife, his children, his associates at work, his neighbors. So many people today react angrily at the drop of a hat, so to speak. We hear about road rage and mass shootings over seeming trivialities on every evening news broadcast. Where is the man whose first and unfailing response—even to stressful situations—is kindness? It costs nothing, but surely reflects the attitude of our Savior who, when a woman taken in adultery was brought to her by wicked men expecting that Jesus would have her stoned, was told by the Lord—after all her would-be accusers left the scene, when Jesus said that the one without sin should cast the first stone—“Neither do I accuse thee; go and sin no more.”

No lecture; no Old Testament verses of the Law recited; just a kind word to the broken, believing woman: Go, sin no more. Kindness emulated from the kindest of the kind! Selah.

“That in the ages to come He might shew the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.” (Eph. 2:7)

You And Your Abilities

Text: “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” Phil. 4:13

This is an oft-quoted verse from the pen of the apostle Paul, a God-called missionary who was put into situations that, apart from the grace of God, would have destroyed the man, his mission, and ministry. His opposition was fierce, but his faith in God was greater than any foe, so that he could say, with no hint of boasting, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

You can too, servant-son of God: all that He has called you to do; all that He has commanded you to do; all that He has commissioned you to do. With the empowerment of God the Holy Spirit indwelling you, and with the promises of God the Father propelling you; and with the person of God the Son compelling you, you can do “all things through Christ.”

With that in mind, note with me:

Your Potential
All things. God and you make a majority in any community, the old evangelist used to say. (Dr. Bob Jones, Sr.) To prove it, Gideon, who claimed to be the “least” in all of his family in ancient Israel (Judges 6), was directed of God to take on the Midianites, who had trodden down Israel for seven years. After Gideon had wrestled with God’s will, raising objections and floating fleeces, he finally marshalled an army of 32,000 Israeli soldiers to go to battle. God told Gideon, though, that 32,000 was far too many; so, after giving any soldier who was fearful an opportunity to return home, Gideon was left with 10,000 men for war—still far too many, God told Gideon. Instructed by the Captain of his hosts, the Lord, to take the army to water’s edge and send home any soldier who did not lap the water—like a dog would with its tongue—with an alert eye on his surroundings, Gideon was left with 300 men of war. And with that incredibly pared-down number, God through Gideon defeated the Midianites. The lesson that God did not want Gideon or anyone else to lose was that it was not Israel winning by “mine own hand.” Instead, it was the power of Almighty God doing through this once fearful farmer what only God could do—so that Gideon could also say, “I can do all things through God which strengtheneth me.” And so can you!
Your Purpose
Our purpose in all and any service of the Lord Christ is to demonstrate what is the will of God concerning us (Rom. 12:1,2). And Paul defines (not describes) what is the will of God: that which is good, that which is acceptable, and that which is perfect (i.e., lends itself to our perfection or maturity in Christ).

Second, our purpose as an enlisted volunteer in Christ’s army, is to abound in His work: “Be steadfast, always abounding in the work of the Lord.” (I Cor. 15:58)

And, too, our purpose is to always obey His Word: “Only be strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do all the law…that thou mayest observe to do all that is written therein…for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” (Josh. 1:7,8)
Your Practice
▶︎It is with accountability, Rom. 14:12: “So then everyone of us shall give account of himself to God.”
▶︎It is with adaptability, Rom. 14:10: “But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.”
▶︎It is with availability, Isa. 6:8: “And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I Lord, send me.”
▶︎It is with believability, John 11:26: “And whosoever liveth and believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.”
▶︎It is with compatibility, Mark 9:40: “For he that is not against us is on our part.”
▶︎It is with dependability, I Cor. 4:2: “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.”
▶︎It is with desirability, Mark 5:24: “And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him.”
Your Pitfall
I Pet. 5:6: Every servant of God will be challenged with a problematic pitfall. It will not necessarily be an insatiable lust for power, or pleasure, or possessions—but it will doubtless be the “snare” of Satan, which is pride. (I Tim. 3:6,7)
Your Prayer
Phil. 3:10-12: “That I might know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being made conformable unto His death; if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.”

“Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine…Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all. Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.” (I Tim. 4:13, 15, 16)

“Inside the Eastern Gate.”

John and Rose Aker

I am posting on this “You and God” blog today a devotional by a dear friend of mine, John Aker, whose writings have blessed and encouraged me for many years. John has had a storied life, including time in a monastery (before his conversion) as a young adult preparing for the priesthood; time serving our country in the United States Army; time serving several churches in successful pastorates and time serving as a CEO of health-care ministry. Most of our relationship has been through the printed page, but I admire his love for Christ and his ability to express his heart through the print medium. I think you will, too. I especially was moved by his tribute to his wife, Rose, in this blog, and by the hymns which he shared with us. If you want to receive John’s weekly “Thoughts for the Week,” contact him at: jba@akerjba.com

Ecclesiastes–Although I have preached certain of its passages, so wise and wonderfully favored, I have never preached through Ecclesiastes in its entirety. Of late, I have been enjoying the privilege of being able to teach (but I do slip into a preaching quite often, I am sure) this challenging, and sometimes controversial book, verse by verse. I am learning and loving it as I go. For reasons prompted by our singing during Morning Worship last Lord’s Day, I’d like to share thoughts that linger with me…

Although people typically associate Ecclesiastes with Solomon’s words, Vanity of vanity; all is vanity, this phrase is so often taken out of context . Without understanding that Solomon is writing from man’s perspective and not as God sees and intended it, life can be so meaningless, even mysterious–so much chasing after wind. Yes, he does speak of the monotony of life, the vanity of wisdom, the brevity of pleasure, the futility of wealth, and the triviality of power–but only for those who fail to recognize the necessity of God!

Solomon challenges his readers to take a good hard look at life. This wisest of all men says, Look above (3:1-8) and recognize Sovereignty…Look within (3:9-14) and reflect on eternity…Look ahead (3:15-22) and reckon with inevitability. Then, as if trying to prove his point, he finally challenges us to look around ourselves (4:1-16) and realize the insatiability, the insufficiency/inability of this world’s stuffs to satisfy. And so, we can rightly conclude, without understanding the necessity of God’s perspective and His purpose, and without His Presence in our lives, it truly is vanity and striving after wind (4:16). Because the inevitability of it all is the unavoidable reality of death and the inescapable certainty of judgment

Yet, in the midst of it, there is true comfort and hope. Tears, trials, and tribulations well describe the commonality of life as it is in the here and now. It can be so demanding, difficult, even dangerous when navigated alone. But Solomon says it need not be that way:

Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor;
for if one of them falls, the other will lift up his companion.
But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him!
Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm,
but how can one be warm alone?
And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him.
A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart…

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

During my monastic years, alone in my monastery cell, I often wondered what it would be like to be warm with another on those cold and lonely nights. After leaving the monastery, and while serving with United States Army Intelligence, I met and married a young woman working in Counterintelligence Analysis Branch. In just a few short weeks, Lord willing, we will celebrate, by God’s grace, our sixtieth wedding anniversary–and I have never forgotten the privilege of being warm together with my dear bride (and her cold feet). There are so many nights, overwhelmed with love and joy, I reach out and place my hand softly on her head as I thank God for gifting me with one so precious to me, who am truly undeserving and unworthy of my Rosebud–not sweet syrupy sentiment, just the truth! God knows…

We have become the two–here to help each other, here to be warm in our love–and on 30 March 1968, after three years of marriage, we repented and embraced Christ as Lord. He, and He Alone, is The Third Strand Who has kept our bond strong/steadfast.

In my eighties now, and married sixty years, the inevitable is ever before me–but we are all, each and every one of us, just a breath aways from eternity. There is nothing morbid in that thought. For those who love God and come to Him through Jesus Christ, in repentance and genuine faith, He has planned so much more! God has been so good to me–I could ask for nothing more.

He has saved me and entrusted me with so many treasures to enjoy–my godly parents who led us to The Lord…my brothers and sisters, Alan and Irene, Larry and Judy…our three lovely daughters, Laurie, Natalie, and Jana…sixteen beautiful grandchildren–eight of whom are married, another soon to be…twenty-two great-grandchildren…my furry friend, and constant companion, Rusty…and, most precious of all, my bride of sixty years–who has loved me, inspired me, and dared to stay with me in spite of me–my Rosebud! I have been, I am, richly blessed…

But, the inevitability of life is fast approaching (but holds no fear because my Great Shepherd, The Lord Jesus, has promised, short of His Second Coming, to walk me through the valley of big shadows and bring me Home) and ever before me. Now back to the past Lord’s Day and the singing mentioned in my opener above…

I truly enjoy praising God in song with our Church Family that so obviously loves to sing. I delight in the hymns, so lofty in their rich theology, and I enjoy the great gospel songs, so lively in their soteriology. For some reason, each selection took us beyond our now to time with our loving Father for all eternity. At the very heart of each message was heaven. As you read on you might find yourself remembering their almost forgotten words and melody:

Jesus has a table spread
Where the saints of God are fed
He invites His chose people
Come and dine…

And…

When we all get to heaven
What a day of rejoicing that will be
When we all see Jesus
We’ll sing and shout the victory…

And…

O they tell me of a home far beyond the skies
O they tell me of a home far away
O they tell me of a home where no storm clouds rise
O they tell me of an unclouded day…

More…

There is coming a day
When no heartaches shall come
No more clouds in the sky
No more tears to dim the eye
All is peace forevermore
On that happy golden shore
What a glorious day that will be…

And why that glorious day…

Face to Face with Christ my Savior
Face to face what will it be
When with rapture I behold Him
Jesus Christ Who died for me

Face to face I shall behold Him
Far beyond the starry sky
Face to face in all His Glory
I shall see Him by and by..

And in each of these the tears in my eyes and the pause in my singing reminded me of how glorious that day will truly be. But, in the midst of the joy of such promise, such praise, there was a moment of pain, of sorrow that the truth of each these signaled the inevitable: that as I reach out to grasp the Hand of my Savior, I must also let go of my dear Rose’s hand…

But the choir selection, a song I sang often with my staff in Tucson, almost dissolved me in tears:

I will meet you (in the morning, I will meet you (in the morning)
Just inside the Eastern Gate over there.
I will meet you (in the morning, I will meet you (in the morning)
I will meet you in the morning over there.
If you hasten off to glory
Just linger near the Eastern Gate
For I’m coming in the morning;
And you’ll not have long to wait.

It will be a glorious day! To be with Jesus–and all the saints, our saved loved ones who have gone before. And The greatest joy will simply and truly be that of being with Jesus…and then knowing our saved loved ones will be there. I do not know definitively what relationships we might enjoy with family and friends–but I anticipate enjoying The Presence of our great God, the beauty and personality of Our Loving Father, The Son, Our Lord and Savior Jesus, and The Holy Spirit Whom we have known through His whispers of love–and all this with my Rose…

It is not death that bothers me–it is the thought of leaving this one who has loved me so selflessly, so faithfully, and so unconditionally. It is of her I think , with an ache in my heart, tears in my eyes, and a catch in my throat, when I hear those words…

I will meet you (in the morning), I will meet you (in the morning)
Just inside the Eastern Gate over there.

But there is still so much more inside The Eastern Gate:

But as it is written:
Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor has it entered into the heart of man
All that God has prepared for those who love Him…

I Corinthians 2:9

And it will truly be joy unthinkable, love unspeakable…

And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying,
Behold, the tabernacle of God is among the people,
and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them
and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death;
there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain;
the first things have passed away.
And He who sits on the throne said, Behold, I am making all things new…

Revelation 21:3-5a

Until The Eastern Gate,

John

Jason’s Story

He is my nephew, the son of Ellen’s sister and brother-in-law. They are North Carolina “Tar Heels” to the core. Living for the best part of their lives in Asheville, they now live close to where it all began for these descendants of Marvin and Carrie Beshears—in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, at the foot of the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains.

Jason has lived the life of many an offspring of Christian parents. He is the product, for the most part (grades K-8), of a Christian-school education. He grew up attending fundamental, Bible-preaching churches. He made a profession of faith as a young child, whereupon he followed the Lord in believer’s baptism. He was a good student, an obedient (only) child, and before graduating from high school he had achieved a license to fly a small aircraft, solo. Upon graduating from high school, he attended college and pursued and achieved a license to fly planes commercially. Jason lost his desire to become a commercial pilot, met and married his wife while in his mid-twenties, and fathered two sons, all the while still attending church services.

For the next 20 years, Jason supervised the operation of a popular, family-oriented outdoor amusement park in Orlando. His marriage suffered some rocky, violent storms and eventually ended in divorce. Jason dropped out of church and, for several years in the early 2000s, “lived as though there was no God.” He drank alcohol but says, for him, it was not an addiction but only a “means to an end.” He devolved for several years deep into sin, abandoning his fellowship with God and burying, or trying to bury, any moral moorings that he had once adhered to for stability in his life. He was valued by his employer, made lots of money during those years, and traveled extensively—all in pursuit of some fulfillment which, of course, was always still awaiting him. He never was happy, and there was some sense that a “shoe was going to drop” at any time.

What I have described many people who are reading this can, without doubt, identify with. A child, a friend, a once fellow, faithful church member who hit the skids spiritually and dropped out of everything that had to do with God, church, or the Bible.

The story has been and is being repeated ad nauseum in every Christian community, church, fellowship—and in far too many Christian homes.

But thankfully, Jason’s story did not end with the dropping of the shoe, even though some really hard times came to him and his family. I will not spell out the details of those events.

One of Jason’s sons attended a Bible college in Florida, and since it was a short drive from where Jason lived and worked, he drove to the Bible college and attended the Sunday worship services with his son. Through the strong, faithful preaching of the pastor-college president, Sunday after Sunday, Jason’s spiritual sensitivities were awakened. He knew that God was dealing with him, and he made a decision, in 2020, to return to his roots in North Carolina. His boss wept when Jason tendered his resignation. While making two trips back to North Carolina as he moved his belonging via a U-Haul, he tuned in to a Christian radio station and heard more Bible preaching. Jason’s life was changing moment by moment.

After settling back into the Wilkesboro area, Jason began searching for a church to attend. One Wednesday night he visited a church, tucked away in the mountains, near to where his great-grandparents had lived decades earlier. It “so happened” that the pastor of that little white-framed church was a second cousin of Jason’s—they only knew each other as acquaintances. This became home to a prodigal son that, once so very far away from God, was given an opportunity to come back to a loving Savior who was waiting with opened arms.

Jason grew much in Christ the next few years. Today, he is an adult Sunday School teacher in his church, and also the pianist. He never dreamed of teaching a Sunday School class or of playing the piano in the services. He had taken piano lessons all the way through school, but when wandering in the fields of sins, the piano was not on his “radar screen” in any sense of the word. When he finished high school, he was quite proficient in piano; when he came back to Christ and His church, he couldn’t even identify the keys. But he is taking lessons, and since there is a need, he is willing to do what he can, and the piano is coming back to him without too much effort.

Jason’s story has not concluded yet, obviously. But when asked what one event occurred in his life that caused him to abandon the world’s “pigs-pens” and return to his Heavenly Father, Jason says it was hearing the messages when attending church on Sundays, just to be with his son, plus the messages on Christian radio that he heard when moving back to the Carolinas. He knows, too, that the Holy Spirit was always “dogging” him, and that the prayers of many people followed him at every turn.

So, friend, parent, grandparent, church member, pastor—do not give up on that prodigal child who seems so impossibly far away from God. No one has drifted further than Jason did from his moorings, teaching, and training. God’s Spirit is not limited by time or space. He can follow your loved one to places you would never dare to go. His arm knows no limits. Prayer, love, and patience can win them back to Jesus. Do not give in; do not give up. With God, nothing is impossible.

“I was sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore; very deeply stained within, sinking to rise no more; but the Master of the sea, heard my despairing cry, from the waters lifted me, now safe am I! Love lifted me, love lifted me—when nothing else could help, love lifted me.”

(James Rowe, Howard Smith)

“But he that lacketh these things (faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, charity) is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.” (II Peter 1:8)

“Is It Nothing to You?”

It is agonizing to read the first chapter of the book of Lamentations—Jeremiah’s pensive pleas—in light of the destruction of the city of God, Jerusalem, aka the city of David. The prophet mourns the plight of his people and cries his eyes out, confessing Judah’s sins and affirming God’s righteousness. The most heart-rending outburst in this brief book, sometimes called the “Wailing Wall of the Old Testament,” is found in verse 12, chapter 1: “Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by?”

Jeremiah was torn to pieces with despair over his beloved nation’s destruction. The general public’s attitude though, as evidenced by passers-by, was indifference. What had happened in fulfillment of the warnings of God through Jeremiah—and many other prophets—had not impacted everyone as severely as it had him. Most people were willing to shrug it off, if it had not personally touched them or their household. The attitude of those left in Jerusalem seemed to be: “Well, there’s always our friends to the south; Egypt will surely come to the rescue; if not, we can always emigrate there for shelter.”

The magnitude of the major message from heaven to Judah had not yet sunk in, causing the broken-hearted prophet to bellow out: “Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by?”

We live 2,500 years later. Most who read this are members of the Body of Christ, His Church; and we are affiliated with a local appendage of that Body, a local Christian church. Many believe that these are the perilous times of which Paul warned in II Timothy 3, the perilous times of the last days. Were we to step back and give an honest assessment of the “wellness” of the 21^st century church, we might be driven to cry out: “Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by?”

Here’s how pollster George Gallup, Jr., characterized today’s practice of religion by those who considered themselves “born again,” as reported in Christianity Today some years ago: “Comfortable and titillating, but not challenging.” He explained: “There is a lack of awareness of Christian doctrines of atonement, redemption, and grace.” Gallup further opined that “one danger is that Americans tend to separate church participation from their own personal relationship with God. We have a faith illiteracy problem. People are not solidly grounded in their faith, and therefore vulnerable to hedonism, materialism, and the new spiritual movements that glorify self.”

Gallup offered those conclusions more than two decades ago, and the subsequent years have confirmed that the concerns were well-founded. We have lived to see the age come to full bloom. But the question I want to raise is: “Who cares?” Much of 21^st century Christianity, especially in America, seems to have blended in with the spiritual apathy that Gallup depicted at the turn of the third millennium AD.

A minister began his sermon: “I’d like to make three points today. First, there are millions of people around the world who are going to Hell. Second, most of us sitting here today do not give a damn about it.” After a lengthy pause he continued: “My third point is that you are more concerned that I, your pastor, said the word ‘damn’ than you are about the millions of people going to Hell.”

Some years ago, Dr. Paul Dixon, chancellor and formerly president of Cedarville University, told the story of A.T. Pierson, pastor of a large Presbyterian church that burned to the ground. Everything was destroyed, including 20 years of sermons. The church was forced to meet in a theater and had to abandon their long-standing “pew-rental” system. But, during that time, “common folk” began finding their way into the auditorium and, reportedly, more people were saved in 20 months than had been saved in the previous 20 years. Dr. Dixon asked: “What will God have to do to you?” Apathy, indifference, comfortable, club-meeting Christianity is hard to break away from.

Apathy is not only easily observed in 21^st century church gatherings. It has been around for a long time. Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of India’s independence movement, reportedly began attending a Christian church during a spiritually restless time in his life. He discovered that the sermons were boring and the congregation not very devout—so much so that, at times, he found himself dozing during the service, only to find that several of the Christians who were in the service were doing the same. Worst of all, the Europeans snubbed Gandhi because of the color of his skin. He left that church and abandoned, for good, his inquiry into the Christian faith. He reasoned that if Christianity had not made any more of an impact upon those who were its adherents than what he had personally witnessed, he did not need what they had. Apathy. Indifference. Killers both. (David Watson, I Believe in the Church)

The Detroit Free Press ran an article with the headline, “OLD MAN LIES DYING WHILE HUNDREDS PASS BY.” It told of an elderly man who had fallen, severely bruising his head. The paper reported: “For 20 minutes an old man lay dying on the sidewalk of a busy downtown street. Hundreds of pedestrians walked past him. Some stepped over his body. Scores of motorists went by without stopping. One driver stopped to administer first-aid to the victim. And while he did, the crowds passed by, ignoring appeals for help. Finally, an ambulance arrived. The injured man was taken to the hospital. But it was too late. He was dead.” (copied)

The world lies crying and dying. Some whom we pass by regularly will one day die. After death, there will be judgment. For every being, the question rings out: Heaven or Hell? “Is it nothing to you, all ye who pass by?”

“For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:10)

“Take Over My Life!”

At about the time of the Great Depression, a woman attempted to deal with her unwanted pregnancy by what has been called a “back alley” abortion. She botched the attempt, and somewhere in New York City a baby girl, named Beverly, was born, the only child of a blind mother and blind father. The mother would succeed in her next abortion attempt, ending her pregnancy of what would have been a baby brother or sister to the sighted child of blind parents.

Bev’s mother was an accomplished pianist, at the level of a “concert pianist,” and her father was a skilled musician who played in a band, so their blindness was not such that they were unable to rear a child; the mother just did not want to. Nine months after the birth, the couple divorced, and her father took Bev to Indianapolis to live with an aunt and uncle. Bev’s father, who had remarried, returned to Indianapolis when she was four, and he and his new wife, also blind, cared for her until she graduated from Arsenal Tech High School. At the age of 17, Beverly met and married the man with whom she would bear four children—three girls and a boy. Her husband was a “functioning alcoholic.” After years of abuse and unfaithfulness, Bev was advised to seek a divorce. She did not know the Lord. At that time in her life, she was fighting life’s struggles with little to no help.

Custody of Bev’s children was awarded to her alcoholic husband in what appeared to be a legal “set-up,” in which all she was asked to do was sign her name on the dotted line. Leaving the courtroom that day, she was without a house, without custody of any child, and without a car. Because she had lost three days work at her east-side place of employment—spent in preparation for her appearance before the judge—she was also without a job.

She was lost and alone. Having attended a church occasionally, she had been “baptized” by a cult that taught that baptism had saved her. But she knew nothing of the Lord, nor of His saving grace.

At this low ebb in her life Bev picked up a Bible and began to read it, but she did not understand what she was reading. On one of these sessions, throwing herself upon her bed, she cried out to God:

“Lord, take over my life.”

He did!

In grace, God brought into Bev’s life, in time, Harvey B, a strong believer from Alabama whom she married and with whom she attended a church where the Word of God was proclaimed. It was at this church that a faithful Sunday School teacher, teaching from John’s gospel, chapter 3, carefully explained the meaning of the new birth. For the first time, Bev understood what had happened to her when God answered her plea to “take control of my life.”

Bev and Harvey moved back to Indianapolis and eventually found themselves under the Bible preaching ministry of Pastor Fred Moritz—who, upon her confession of faith in Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior, baptized Bev scripturally. In 1972, she became a member of Thompson Road Baptist Church. When Bro. Moritz resigned seven years later to enter full-time evangelism and I followed him at TRBC as senior pastor, Beverly was serving Christ, alongside her devoted husband, Harvey (leader of the “Amen Corner”).

So, for the next 40 years, I was granted the privilege of being Bev’s pastor. Harvey was called home to glory in 1984, and eventually Bev would marry a third time, exchanging vows with a dear friend of mine and long-time song leader at TRBC, Lonial Wire. The two would serve Christ faithfully until God promoted Lonial to heaven in 2010. Bev continues to serve her Savior devotedly week after week.

It would be a lengthy list were I to enumerate all the many ways in which she has ministered to others. Just a few would include: visitation, summer camp trips with the deaf to the Bill Rice Ranch, teacher, sign-language interpreter, choir member, bookkeeper, special music contributor, and on and on. It really would be simpler to list the ministry that Bev was never known to do: the nursery!

Because of the fractured home resulting from the court’s removing her four children from her custody, Bev’s son and daughters were, for all practical purposes, brought up by a stepmother; and their exposure to church ministry and to anything spiritual was (as with Bev for many years) a blank page. One summer, for instance, they attended the People’s Temple for Vacation Bible School. That was the church founded by and pastored by the cultist, Jim Jones, who eventually moved his church from Indy to California, then finally to Guyana, where he would mandate the mass suicide of 900-plus followers after his henchmen had murdered California Congressman Leo Ryan and a group that had traveled to Guyana to check this maverick so-called church leader out. Eventually, Bev would be able to re-establish relationships with her offspring, and she has tried to lead them and love them to Christ.

So, by the grace of God, this unwanted, almost cast-away baby, born to blind parents and reared by a step-mother who showered little if any love Bev’s way, was a trophy of grace to His glory all the while in the making. For the past almost six years, though I am not now her pastor, Ellen and I have still joyfully served alongside this godly woman at the same church in which she has served now for 53 years—and counting.

Bev Wire is now 92 and still seldom if ever misses an assembling together of God’s people. She is a bright light for her Lord, causing many to glorify Him for her good works.

Her life story serves as a reminder that regardless of how dark and dismal the days of your past have been, unloved and unwanted by even your father and mother, you can have hope and a reason for living. Just do as Bev did: find a place you can cast yourself upon His mercies and cry out, “Lord, take over my life.” It is no secret what God can do; what He’s done for Bev, He’ll do for you!

“When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up.” (Ps. 27:10)