Author: rogerbothwell_kiywit

I was taken aback and almost horrified this weekend when someone asked me to pray for them because he was sure God would be sure to answer my prayers over others.  While I was a bit flattered by the compliment nothing could be farther from the truth.  God does not play favorites with anyone.  “Then Peter began to speak: ‘I now truly understand that God does not show favoritism.’”  Acts 10:34 Nobody gets a special hearing.  Then again if God did have favorites, I would certainly NOT be one of them.
 
Prayer is a personal experience with our heavenly Father who loves each of us dearly and will do for each of us the best thing available.  At times I have wondered why we need to pray.  If He is, as Jesus tells us, our heavenly Father, will He not give us all good things without our having to ask?  I sometimes wonder if our situation is akin to Job.  Satan is waiting to accuse God of playing favorites and somehow by our asking we give God the ethical right to give us good things. 
 
One thing for sure is prayer is not magic.  There is no mantra needed to facilitate God’s attention and care.  There are no formulas or memorized rituals that fast track us to God’s mind.  In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said, “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”  Matthew 6.
 
It is no wonder the priests killed Jesus.  He made them superfluous.  No one needed them anymore.  Bypass the human and go straight to the divine.  That works for EVERYONE.

The drama is the same.  Only the stage and cast are different.   The politics of power have raged since a time before Genesis 1.  “And there was war in heaven.”  Revelation 12:7.  “I will ascend above the heights of the cloud, I will be like the most high.”  Isaiah 14:14.
 
The stage changed but the battle continued.  The politics of fear mongering – “If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and destroy both our holy place and our nation.”   The politics of practicality – “Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, ‘You know nothing at all! You do not understand that it is better for you to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed.’”  John 11.  The politics of smear by association – “Now all the tax collectors and sinners were gathering around to listen to Jesus. So the Pharisees and scribes began to grumble: ‘This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.’”  Luke 15.  The politics of half-truths and distortion – “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with human hands and in three days will build another, not made with hands.'”  Mark 14
 
Jesus said, “ . . . be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.”  Matthew 10:16.  Maybe, just maybe, wisdom would be for us to recognize that our high calling is to spread the Gospel, the Good News about Jesus, and to refrain from casting our pearls out on behalf of a cause so much inferior to the greatness of God’s Kingdom.   Perhaps the best use of our email, our Facebook accounts, our tweets, our influence, would be to spread love and forgiveness and leave the ugly for others.  Paul did say, “Whatsoever is pure, … Think on these things.”  Philippians 4.

The most beautiful thing in the world is a life well-lived.  Standards and ideals of physical beauty change with the seasons of a culture but goodness and unselfishness are eternally valued. We are told by hawks that gracious accommodations made to our enemies are signs of weakness to be misunderstood by our foes and thus embolden them to aggression.  But was it not Jesus who told us to turn the other cheek?  Was it not Jesus who never struck back when He could have called legions of angels to avenge Him?  Matthew 26:53.  It was the Prince of Peace who divided history.  True strength of character is manifested in compassion and understanding.  True wisdom is quick to apologize and to learn from words spoken in haste. 
 
The Sermon on the Mount is the manifesto for a life well-lived.  Paul follows with Ephesians 4,  “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.”  This is not psychological pabulum.  This is the secret of happiness.  To be quick to forgive is the power to heal one’s wounds.  Should someone take advantage of us shame on them, not shame on us for being kind.  Desires for revenge and plans for retaliation are toxins that eat away our vitality more ferociously than any cancer.  
 
I have yet to meet someone who wants to be ugly.  Yet so often we choose to be ugly by our allowing others to determine our behavior.  Some of the most physically unattractive persons I know are the most beautiful people in the universe.  They are not merely decorated but instead are fountains of eternal beauty.

If you are feeling guilty about not flossing last night I have good news for you.  According to the Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services there is no research evidence supporting the hypothesis that flossing is beneficial to dental and gum health.  The counsel we have received for decades has been based on a hunch.  But, that is what a hypothesis is – a hunch.  Many reasonable hypotheses have bitten the dust through the years for lack of supporting evidence. Until such evidence is produced we accept what seem to be many good ideas by faith.  Lack of evidence does not make the hypothesis wrong.  It merely means we do not have empirical evidence to support the hypothesis as being true.  So don’t throw away your floss.
 
There are many things in life we accept by faith.  Some scientists would have us believe there is empirical evidence proving macroevolution.  There isn’t.   However, there is evidence supporting microevolution. Bacteria can morph and become resistant to drugs.  It is a huge problem.  We have to continue developing new drugs if we are to stay ahead of bacterial adaptation.  But macroevolution is accepted by faith.  There is a huge leap of faith accepted when one moves from microevolution to macroevolution.
 
Those who believe in creation by an intelligent being have not enough empirical evidence to prove our position.  We accept creationism by faith because to us it makes more sense than believing something as marvelous as we happened by chance.   We must never let anyone browbeat us into thinking our position of creationism is an inferior position.  Those who believe we are the product of a secession of favorable mutations are believers just as are creationists.  

I had lunch today with a friend who was enjoying a bottle of Nestles chocolate milk.  I was drinking vitamin water with zero calories.  When I mentioned his calorie intake he happily announced to me that he was following doctor’s orders.  As a matter of fact his doctor had prescribed chocolate malts to help him gain some weight.  You have to love a doctor like that.  I’m thinking about changing doctors because one has an obligation to follow doctor’s orders.
 
Often we call Jesus the Great Physician.   That He truly was.  At the end of the Gospel of John we are told Jesus helped so many people the world couldn’t hold the books that could be written.  He was a great diagnostician.  Just think about some of His prescriptions.   He told a woman to go and sin no more.  He told the rich young ruler to sell all his possessions and give away the proceeds.  He told a paralyzed man to take up his bed and walk.  He told wedding guests to fill some water jars to the brim.  He told a man to go and wash some mud off his eyes.  He told Mary and Martha to roll away a large stone from their brother’s tomb.  He told his disciples to pass out the loaves and fishes from a little boy’s lunch.
 
So what does Jesus prescribe for us?   He said to us, “Come unto me and I will give you rest.” “Take up your cross and follow me.”  “Let your light shine before others.” “Do not swear.  Let your yeses be yes and your nos be no.”  “Forgive others as you would have God forgive you.”  These are prescriptions from the Master Physician.  These are much better than chocolate malts.  These are prescriptions for eternal happiness.

Someone keeps knocking on my door but when I answer there is no one there.  I’m sure it isn’t a neighborhood prankster.  My dog, who thinks it is her god-given task to protect the house, goes crazy rushing to the door to fend off an intruder.  But there is no one for her to intimidate.  And yet the knocking persists.  At times I feel like Samuel answering the call in the night by saying, “Yes, Lord.”  But like all good mysteries we solved it.  Our knocker is a hairy woodpecker.  Whenever I go to the door he disappears only to reappear when the door closes.
 
But let me come back to Samuel.  God can be very persistent.  Jesus told His disciples He was going to send them a Comforter.  That was the Holy Spirit.  However, it has been my experience that the Holy Spirit is not always a comforter but can be a royal pain in the head.  He keeps knocking.  He is more persistent than a hairy woodpecker.  And thankfully, unlike the woodpecker, He does not flee when I open the door.  He is more than anxious to come in.  Jesus said, “I stand at the door and knock.”  He does so via the Holy Spirit.
 
A hundred years ago Francis Thompson compared the Holy Spirit to a hound dog in his famous poem entitled, The Hound of Heaven.  Once a hound is on the scent of a rabbit it just keeps going and going like the energizer bunny.  God is like that.  He is on our trail.  He is knocking at our door.  He is a lover pursuing the love of His life.  He wants you and will never ever stop knocking.  He will never stop chasing you.

His birth caused mankind to change the calendar.  His touch changed a leper into a whole, healthy man.  His gentleness changed a woman’s life after He told her to go and sin no more.  His command changed a grieving father’s sorrow into tears of joy when his little girl started to breathe.  His blessing changed a little boy’s lunch into a banquet for 20,000 people. His command changed a raging storm into a tranquil sea.  His silence changed a court scene into an out of control mob.  His call changed the rotting flesh of a man dead for three days into a vibrant, living soul.  His generosity changes us from lost degenerates into good, kind, loving citizens of His Father’s kingdom.  His love changes our sin-stained heavenly records into documents of impeccable righteousness.  His command will change this planet into the home for the New Jerusalem. 
 
We are hearing much about change these days.  If you are looking for change, real change, look no further than the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  We are told that the more things change the more they stay the same.  That’s true in politics.   But we are not talking about the selfish ways of men.  We are talking a real change that will not be the same old, same old.  The change Jesus brings is real and eternal.  So if you are tired of ageing, tired of disappointing yourself and others, tired of the gruesome news of the day, tired of being separated from loved ones by death, then change your life right now.  Change to Jesus’ side and life will be an endless adventure of change as you grow more and more like Him.   That is awesome change.

I just came from Penney’s.  If I owned stock I would sell it just as soon as the markets opened in the morning.  If they wondered why I was the only customer there, they should note they are selling t-shirts for $90 marked down 40%.  That is still $50 for a t-shirt.  Surely the only person who would pay that much for a t-shirt is someone who just won the lottery and is still stupid giddy over being rich.  The t-shirt didn’t even have a Patriot’s logo on the front or back.
 
Now I do realize they are not marketing to someone my age.  No one markets to people my age, well maybe the guy who called last week peddling cemetery lots.   Wait I have to take that back the drug dealers, who instead of standing on street corners, market to me during the network evening news broadcasts at 6:30.
 
Smart marketing is the secret ingredient for any successful endeavor.  I am marketing to you right now.  I want you to buy something guaranteed to never wear out, never to fray, never to fade and always will hold its value.  I want you to buy from me something that will restore your youth and return you to the arms of lost family. “I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.”  Revelation 3:18.
 
You can’t buy it with cash.  You don’t have enough cash so instead it is free.  Well, not really.  It will cost you your loyalty and love.  It’s a bargain at any price.

Ah the sweetness of a summer evening.  It’s been over 90 degrees today and the soft gentle breeze lilting its way across the oak and maple covered mountains brings refreshment akin to an icy drink.  The sound is a symphony of almost silence.  I heard my first cicada of the summer this evening.   It is still a bit early for katydids.  They should decorate our evenings in mid-August.  The bats are here gobbling up the mosquitoes, making it more pleasant to be outside. Neighbors are out and so our evening walk was a social event.  Just a tad of rain fell on us.  It wasn’t enough to blur my glasses.  But it was enough to fill the air with that wonderful smell of an approaching storm that never came. 
 
Every state has its specialness.  We used to live in Iowa and the summertime sound of corn growing was the sound of prosperity.  While we did not have seasons in Africa there were the days when the coffee trees were in bloom.  The scent was not that of Starbucks but rather of cherry blossoms in Washington, D.C. 
 
George Gershwin and DuBose Heyward left us with “Summertime when the living is easy.”  It has been recorded by different groups and soloists over 33,000 times.  It is part of our social fabric. 
 
In Jeremiah 8:20 Jeremiah laments for his people, “The harvest is past, the summer has ended, and we are not saved.”  Let that never be written for us.  If you are not yet sure of your salvation do not let this summer pass without believing that our God is a God who keeps His promises.  In John 5:24 He promises if we will believe in Jesus we will immediately cross over from death to life.   Summertime is a sweet time!

House sparrows count.  They know the difference between two and three.  Our squirrel-proof birdfeeder (it isn’t) closes when three sparrows sit on the perch.  Two sparrows can feed as much as they want, but when a third sparrow tries to land, resulting in closure for all, the two sparrows already there will chase the third away.  The feeder will stay open for one cardinal and one sparrow.  But when a second sparrow tries to land the one sparrow will chase it away.  Two is good.  Three is bad.
 
Since I am skeptical about the ability of most sparrows to count I have to conclude that my sparrows are smarter than your sparrows just as my dad can beat up your dad and my church is better than your church. 
 
Aren’t we amazing creatures?  It usually has to be about us and how smart we are and how intellectually needy others are.  We are the center of the universe.  Me first.  My grandchildren are more everything than yours.  This must have driven Jesus crazy as he observed the behavior not only of His nation but of His disciples.  Thus, Jesus calls us to servant ministry and for Paul to say in Romans 12, “Love must be sincere. . . . Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Outdo yourselves in honoring one another.”  It is difficult to do this and remain self-centered.
 
It’s nice to be somebody.  It’s even nicer to be nobody.  It’s a difficult lesson to learn.  But once learned life becomes so much richer.  As Jesus said, “The first shall be last and the last first.”  Matthew 20.  “Ask not what your neighbor can do for you, ask what you can do for your neighbor.”  It works on every level of life.