Month: July 2019

For those of us who are directionally challenged a GPS is a gift from God. How can I calculate the number of gallons of gasoline I have wasted because I have turned the wrong way?  If I listen to the nice feminine voice that tells me which way to turn, I usually get where I am going without error. Note I did say “usually.” Sometimes she has to tell me to “Make a U-turn as soon as possible.”

Never would I have conceived of finding my way to an appointment because of a deep space object.  When I say “deep space” I really mean deep.  As all of us who have lived since Copernicus and Galileo know, our sun is not going around us.  We are rotating on an axis while orbiting our sun.  Our sun is in motion swirling around the center of our galaxy and our galaxy is moving somewhere.  We don’t know where.  All of that motion would make a GPS impossible to be accurate if it did not have an anchor point as a base for its mathematical calculations.   Therefore, scientists anchor our GPS to a quasar that is a billion light years away.  It is so far away it relatively does not move.  It is a fixed point.  Thus our GPS can tell us where we are and where to go.  A billion light years is very “deep” space.

We live in a post modern world that tries to tell us the only meaning we can have in life is what we invent for ourselves.  There is no anchor.  Thus we are philosophically lost beings.  Ah, the joy of being a Christian.  We have an anchor who gives us meaning.  He tells us who we are.  We are His.  He tells us where we are going.  We are going to be with Him.  Jesus is our anchor and He doesn’t even have to be in deep space.  He is close by.  He is with us; always.

Written by Roger Bothwell on November 4, 2009

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

rogerbothwell.org

 

A tiny piece of plastic, about a third the size of a kernel of corn, snapped off a clamp holding the CPU of my sister’s computer.  It was designed to keep the CPU pressed tightly to a heat sink.  Without it the CPU retained its self-generated heat and triggered an almost instant shutdown when started.  Being tightly connected to that heat sink was essential.

Being tightly connected to Jesus is essential.  Without it our sin generated guilt will shut us down.  If we expect to fully function we must transfer the fruit of our ignorance and stupidity to another.  That’s why we scapegoat others.  When a nation is failing it looks for a group, a political party, a neighbor nation.  Somebody has to be blamed.  It can never be our fault.  It started in Eden.  “Lord, the woman you gave me made me do it.”   We as individuals and as groups have been doing it ever since.  The problem is the blame game ends up destroying others and ourselves.  It is a no-win scenario.

But Jesus is perfect.  He says I’ll take care of it for you.  While He cannot accept the blame, our sins are not His fault, He can do something better.  Because of His sacrifice for all the sins of the world, He can blot out our sins and restore us.   Unlike us, who forgive but remember, He forgives and forever treats us not as forgiven but as if we had never sinned at all.  We do not have to grovel.   We can come boldly to the throne of grace and receive the privileges of being God’s daughters and sons.  Our sins and our guilt are removed.  We have a sin sink.

“Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”  Hebrews 4:16

Written by Roger Bothwell on August 13, 2009

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

rogerbothwell.org

 

I paid my city seven dollars this morning.  In return I got a metal tag to put on my friend’s collar.  She is number 485.  To the city she is a number. To me she is my friend. To the city she is an animal. To me she is my friend. As I put the tag on her collar this morning my mind flashed to another friend I had in Iowa.  She had a number tattooed on her arm.  To her Nazi capturers she was a number. To someone else she had been a wife and to her children a loving mother.  Numbers are cold. Numbers identify without identifying. Sometimes I grow cold when I need to put my social security number on a form. I am reduced to a set of digits – a cipher. I like my name. My name is me. I am not a number. My dog is not a number. My Jewish friend was not a number.

I am so glad God does not keep track of us by number. The only numbers He keeps track of are the hairs on our heads. But we are names. How interesting to read in Revelation that He will someday give each of us a new name.  It will be a name that truly fits who we are. But that does not mean we will discard our now names. When I meet you in heaven I will call you by the name that you are – the name you have now.

My sons are not number one and number two. They are Eric and Michael. Sometimes I call them by names we invented for them as children but one thing is for sure – they are not numbers!

Written by Roger Bothwell on March 18, 2009

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94578

rogerbothwell.org

 

Every once in a while I get the feeling I am being watched.  I try not to be paranoid or have an overly developed sense of being important but I have discovered we are being watched.  There is this very cheeky chipmunk who sits on the stump of a tree outside our breakfast room window and he (or she- I don’t know which) seems to enjoy watching us eat.  Finally my wife got out her camera to document this and he never flinched.   I am used to my dog watching me eat, but really now – a chipmunk!

When I was little one of my memory verses was Ecclesiastes 12:14.  “For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.”  I must admit to having an unhappy adolescence because of this verse.  What was the point of trying to be good?  Solomon definitely did not know Jesus.   Fortunately we do know Jesus.   Jesus came with a revolutionary message filled with good news.  It is true that God does see everything.   But the reason He is watching is so He can catch us doing something good.   It makes Him happy.   He doesn’t need to make a record of our bad deeds because one is enough.  Perfect is required for eternal life.  Now comes the great news.  The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life.  Once we accept the gift we skip judgment.  See John 5:24.  There is no need to go to judgment when we have already crossed over from death to life.  Once again see John 5:24.

Rejoice and be very glad.  You are being watched.  You are watched by someone who loves you so much He died for you.   As Paul says in Romans, “If this God is for us, who can be against us?”

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 29, 2009

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

rogerbothwell.org

 

 

Two nice looking young men stood at my door wanting to share their particular view of God and salvation.   As I listened it became evident that the underlying reason for their presence was to help me understand my relationship with God was flawed.  God could not accept me until I understood and believed as they.  Salvation was not the fruit of faith but the reward for understanding and accepting their truth.  This was salvation by rightness instead of salvation by the righteousness of Jesus.

While I do not want to put down on the importance of truth, it is important to understand in the realm of faith interpretation is.  At some point everyone who chooses to believe does just that.  He or she makes a leap of faith.  Even evolutionists who try to convince us their teachings are based upon hard scientific data at some point make a leap of faith.  Juries convict people and put them in jail because they believe the person is guilty.  They were not at the scene of the crime.  They didn’t see it.  They believe witnesses or the interpretation of evidence presented by a skillful attorney.

If we did not live by faith we could not function.  When I board an airplane I believe the mechanics got everything right.  I believe the pilot is skilled and the unseen flight controllers will put us at the right altitude out of the way of other planes.  When I drive I believe other drivers will stay on their side of the road.

We all live by faith in something.   So why not then be smart and choose to believe in a loving caring God?

Written by Roger Bothwell on January 8, 2009

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

rogerbothwell.org

 

I felt like I was driving the wrong way on a one way street.  After meeting an appointment at a local college I had an hour before my evening class began.  I couldn’t use my classroom because it was being used by some undergrads.   So I went to a city park to use the mile round walking trail. No where did I see any signs dictating you had to walk counter-clockwise even though everyone was.  I walked it clockwise.  I was the only one.  The advantage being that I got to greet everyone using the trail otherwise I would have merely stared at the back of the same person.  I enjoyed walking what was obviously the wrong way.

Many years ago on Candid Camera they waited until some poor guy got into an elevator.  Then a Candid Camera crew filled the elevator around him.  In unison they faced different directions every few moments.  Every time the Candid Camera crew faced a different direction he did it with them.  He couldn’t resist the psychological pressure not to conform.

Paul wrote the following to the Romans, “Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, . . .”   (12:2)   A paraphrase renders it like this, “Don’t let the world squeeze you into its mold.”    Actually it isn’t very difficult to be different among strangers.  It is the people who know us who can apply subtle pressure.  We develop a known persona and the people we know want us to stay in character.  It’s time to walk against the grain.  If you are a grump, start being nice.  If you are a gossip, quit it.  If you are wonderful, please stay that way.

Written by Roger Bothwell on September 24, 2009

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94508

rogerbothwell.org

 

The Easter Bunny left me a box of chocolate covered cherries.  How is it that she knew exactly how much I enjoy them?  Isn’t it grand to sink your teeth into one and have all that juice run out into your mouth?   One has to be careful lest it drip on one’s shirt.  I noted that the box hasn’t changed size since I was a boy.  But that is deceptive.  Now they put them in plastic trays with fewer holes.  The box looks like it can hold a dozen but it only holds ten.  Actually that’s good because that’s two less to eat.

Most of marketing is packaging.  One can put an excellent product in an unattractive package and go bankrupt, while some people put inferior objects in great packages and make a lot of money.  This, of course, makes me wonder about how we package Christ.  In recent years Christianity hasn’t looked very good.  It has appeared to be bigoted and restrictive.  Instead of proclaiming a message of freedom that we find so proclaimed in Galatians,  we find Christianity wanting to restrict other’s rights.  We just haven’t looked very appealing.

Then there is the package we see in the mirror.   Repeatedly Paul makes references to our being in Christ and we being the temple of the Holy Spirit.   Are we an attractive package?  Do we inspire others by our care and love?  Do we make people want what we have?  We come in all manner of shapes, ages and colors.  However, each of us no matter how wrinkled and shopworn can still be a great advertisement for the abundant life.

Written by Roger Bothwell on April 14, 2009

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

rogerbothwell.org

 

This afternoon I was transported to a foreign country.  We were at a mall near Boston and I inadvertently wandered into a store with a name I had never seen before.  Walking down a dark hallway I entered an even darker world filled with tables selling thirty five dollar t-shirts and eighty-five dollar sweat shirts or should I say “hoodies.”  None of the sales-help asked if they could assist me.  I think they knew it was pointless, most likely from the reaction of others my age who had entered this world of distorted values.  I saw faded and torn blue jeans with two hundred dollar price tags.  Excuse me, but why not visit the Salvation Army where they are only ten dollars and the money goes for a good cause and not into some  …’s (fill in the blank) pocket.   Forgive me for that but even Jesus found the thieves in the courtyard offensive.  I have now officially passed over the threshold of old-foggism. I am no longer swayed to think this is “cool.”

At first I was tempted to think Jesus must have been equally appalled upon coming to earth.  But then I realized He was always here.  He was on Mount Sinai.  He was in Noah’s ark.  He was at Solomon’s dedication of the temple. There has never been a moment when He hasn’t been with us.  I doubt if there is any human behavior that surprises Him.   He has seen it all.  That is why I am so amazed that He still cares for us.  He even cares for the proprietors of that store.  Maybe I am being overly harsh.  Maybe they give their profits to the “Feed the Children” fund.  The truth is I don’t know and should hold my tongue.

Written by Roger Bothwell on November 24, 2009

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

rogerbothwell.org

 

We had two of the most precious little red squirrels in our backyard.  They were beautiful little animals.  Unfortunately in addition to being lovely they were too smart.  They figured out how to eat out of our “squirrel proof” bird feeder.  It was amazing to see their ingenuity.  However, they were eating me out of house and home.  They could consume five dollars of seed in a single day.  They now live miles from here.  Our “live-trap” did the job.  They outgrew their welcome.

I have seen people do the same. It often happens in the work place.  My father told me to leave while I am still wanted.  That wasn’t bad counsel.  Most of us have seen that in church.  At some point it is often wise for the pastor to move on.  Unfortunately sometimes that happens after about a month!  It is hard on the pastor’s family.  They never get a new pastor.  I used to worry about my boys.  That is one reason I tried so hard.

There are some things in our lives we need to make unwelcome.  We need to recognize those things that harm us and tear away the fiber of our character.  We need to have the courage to own up to the need to expel them from our lives.  It’s time to make selfishness, envy and downright meanness no longer welcome in our behavior.  When we snap at people or belittle them or try to make ourselves better than they, we manifest behaviors unwelcome in heaven.  If we really want to live forever with our Lord we need to summon His help in making all that will be unwelcome in heaven to be unwelcome here and now.

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 8, 2009

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

rogerbothwell.org

 

Just before highway I-84 crosses from Connecticut into Massachusetts there is a wonderful restaurant that gives away free books.  While one waits for one’s food one can browse the shelves and select up to three free books. Rarely do I find three worth carrying home but usually I find one I like.  Late this afternoon I got one.  I also like sitting at the window and looking out upon a life-size wooden moose.  This evening he was covered with snow.  I think he is huge but two weeks ago my wife and son from California were in the forest here caching and came upon two very real, very alive moose. (Mooses? Meese?)  I am so envious.  I have spent fifteen years wandering about our forest and have never seen even one.   She tells me the wooden moose at the restaurant is small compared to what they saw.

Life is a wonderful adventure.  Each day brings something new to experience and enjoy.  When I read the first two verses of the Book of Hebrews I get excited about our future.  “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds.”

It is the plural on the word “worlds” that lights my imagination.   Surely this is not speaking of the other empty planets in our solar system but wonderful worlds spread all over God’s vast space.  Paul also wrote in Ephesians 3, “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end.”

Written by Roger Bothwell on December 7, 2009

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

rogerbothwell.org