THE NEW EWE

"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'"

Luke 15:4-6

April 8, 2020

Happy Easter!

LIFE IN THE FOLD:

A week ago this past Sunday, a good friend and wife of my cousin preached a sermon titled, "A New Normal". I have thought about it off and on ever since.

Since people have been homebound during this COVID-19 pandemic, I have heard and read comments from people along the lines of, "Hang in there, things will be back to normal soon;" or "I cannot wait until things get back to normal."

The truth is, do we really want things to go back as they were before? I have seen families come together in a way that they've not done in many years. Pastors are finding ways to minister to their congregation and reach out to share the gospel in ways that they've never done before; even when they are technology challenged and have had difficulties figuring out how to do so. Churches are standing up and being open about their faith and finding ways to pray and show kindness and be bold in ways they hadn't done before now.

The truth is, in our lifetime we've not been tested in the way in which we have been the past few weeks. It's been a time of seeing what is inside our heart and having it come out. It's been a time of seeing how strong the faith of christians truly is. It's been a time of resting and learning to be quiet. It's been a time of not having everything at our fingertips, of not having all the luxuries that we've been accustomed to; running to eat out whenever we wanted, running to stores and expecting everything we wanted to be in stock, or being able to come and go as we wish. We're learned that we really can do without things that we have been spoiled to. We've learned how to reach out and be "the Church"; even though church doors are closed all across America. The Word of God is going out as never before, and christians are standing up and actively being the Body of Christ, outside the church walls.

More and more I've begun hearing people starting to comment along the lines that they don't want to go back to how things were before. They don't want to just minister inside the walls of a church building. They don't want to go back to the craziness and busyness and stress of how their lives were prior to this happening.

There are many different directions that I could go with this; but I want you to think about it and pray and ask the Holy Spirit to show you what God is doing during this season and how He wants to use you.

There are just two points that I'm going to make. First of all, I've been contemplating Matthew chapter 24 where it talks about the signs of the end times. There are many things that need to happen; and we see many of those things happening right now.

I've heard this particular chapter in the Bible preached on many times during my lifetime. I believe that we are seeing the fulfillment of this coming to pass.

The truth is, we want Jesus to return.... we really do! We are anxious and excited and ready to be with our Father forever in heaven; to be reunited with loved ones and to experience all that eternity has in store for us. Our hearts long for it. But we don't want to have to endure hardships so that prophecy will be fulfilled for these things to happen. We like our comforts! We like our ruts, because they make us feel safe and we know what to expect (somewhat). But then when something like this sweeps the earth, it is easy to get distracted and complain and long for how things used to be.

I've wondered if life will ever go back as it was before this virus swept the world. Perhaps people will refer to prior to 2020 as being the "good old days".

But wait! Perhaps we need to hold onto hope and lift up our heads, knowing that our redemption draws near. Life with expectation and excitement, knowing that very soon we very well may see Jesus face to face.

Secondly, I believe that we need to be careful that when we get through this pandemic, that we don't become as the Israelites. They were excited about leaving Egypt and going to the Promised Land. They wanted to leave the heavy burden of slavery that they had been under, and were filled with hope and expectation of finally being freed and going to the land which had been promised to them by God.

Then circumstances happened and they faced difficulties and things didn't go as smoothly as they had expected, and it didn't take long for them to grumble and complain. They began to doubt Moses' leadership and lose faith in God. "Oh that we were back in Egypt!" They quit looking at the promise and started focusing on their hardships, to the point that they longed to go back to their lives of difficulties and slavery.

Even when they had the opportunity to finally enter Canaan, they believed the spies' report of giants and how they would be crushed, and refused to go in and conquer the land that God, Himself, had promised to them. If God made them this promise and provided a way for them to enter in, don't you believe that He could have brought about protection and helped them defeat every enemy that they faced? Absolutely, He would have!

We need to be careful that we don't allow fear to conquer us and that we become sidetracked by whatever may come our way, believing that the "giants" are bigger than the promise of our Father. We need to hold fast to the promises of God's Word, keeping our eyes on the prize that lies before us. God promises us eternal life, and we will receive that promise, if we endure to the end and hold fast to our faith.

So don't be discouraged or depressed or fearful. Know that God is with us! Know that even before the creation of the world, God saw this on our timeline and has been aware all throughout numerous generations that in 2020 this would come to pass. He's not surprised or panicked or struggling to figure out a plan on how to get His children through this. He's got a plan! He's not changed! So keep your eyes firmly upon God and establish your faith in Him, declaring that whatever may come, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!"

Easter celebrations this coming Sunday will be as never before. Churches won't be filled with people dressed in their Sunday best. Those who attend church only on special holidays won't be able to attend church. Pastors won't be preaching from their pulpits. We won't be able to fellowship together, within a church building, and celebrate the resurrection of Jesus.

But even though it may be different from what we've ever known, we can still rejoice and celebrate our risen Lord!! Perhaps now, as never before, we take the quiet time that we've been afforded, and re-read those verses about the death and resurrection of Jesus; taking time to really think about it and give thanks for the gift of God sending His only Son to earth to die for me and you.

Even though we may not be in a building with our brothers and sisters in Christ, we can still worship together on Easter as we listen to sermons from pastors and worship and celebrate our Jesus Christ, our risen Lord! Let excitement and joy fill your heart as you remember the price that was paid for your sins, and the hope of life eternal that we have awaiting us!

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

I wonder if years from now, we will call 2020 "the year everything changed".

By the way, I don't mean to reference the book by that title. In fact, I didn't know there was such a book till I did a search to verify the quote from Babylon 5. Neither one is really relevant here.

We may see a lot of permanent changes. Families who barely spent more than 30 minutes together each day might find themselves wanting to spend more time together. Hospitals and medical facilities may get the funding they need to keep face masks and other necessities stocked up. We may learn to stock up on groceries and toilet paper before there is an emergency. We will probably start using video conferencing instead of travel more and more.

We may attend one church service live, but watch other services each week as well. As a nation, we may learn to go to God in emergencies, or more importantly, in celebrations and in peace.

But there is one thing I won't allow to change. As Loretta quoted, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!"

ON THE MENEWE:

Frito Salad

Mix all of the ingredients together; adding the Fritos right before serving.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

This is an idea that I've seen various people posting on Facebook, that I think would be very good; and I plan on doing this, if I can find some red ribbon.

In Exodus we read how the Israelites painted their door posts with the blood of lambs as an act of faith that the plagues of Egypt would pass over them.

People are being encouraged to help flood their cities with the power of the blood of Jesus -- in the form of a red ribbon. Get a red ribbon of some sort. Pray over it. Then place it on your front porch, mailbox, etc. If you don't have a red ribbon, be creative. Use a red scarf, red belt, red pillowcase, red fabric... whatever you have. As Easter approaches, do this as a sign that you are trusting God to protect your home and family and that this virus will pass over your household.

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

Today the devil whispered in my ear, "You are not strong enough to withstand the storm."

I whispered, "6 feet back, Satan!" - tobymac

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org