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 13, 2022

Happy Easter!

LIFE IN THE FOLD

This past weekend we had some family come to our home for dinner. The weather was perfect, so the kids ran and played in our backyard almost the entire time they were here.

I had bought some cheap water guns last year, and some of the older kids found those and filled them with water and were squirting each other. Others were digging in the dirt; and some were just running around playing various things.

After dinner, most of the adults were sitting in our living room visiting. Suddenly someone came in through our backdoor and I heard footsteps walking towards us. This little voice hollered, "Retta! Can you clean me up?!" Mariah walked into the living room while she was talking, and her face and arms were covered in mud. Of course, everyone turned around to look and when they saw her, they began laughing. They didn't realize what had happened and that she was already upset. They also didn't realize that she is going through a stage where she doesn't like being the center of attention and people looking at her. In a angry little 3-year old voice, she said, "It's not funny! Stop laughing at me!"

I grabbed her up and took her into the bathroom and cleaned her up. While I was cleaning her up, she told me that one of her cousins (who is just turning 5) had thrown mud at her; and she was not happy. A bigger cousin came to the door and collaborated her story. I got Mariah cleaned up and she settled down.

It wasn't until a couple days later that I found out more details of the story. The wives of two of my nephews had been outside with the kids, but neither had seen what had happened. One happened to be Mariah's mom. Her daughter had told her who she thought had done it, so the mom went out and asked him about it and he said that he hadn't thrown mud on her -- that the older cousin, who had accused him, had done it.

I have my suspicions on what happened. I think the kids were playing and the older cousin thought it would be funny (she had a water gun and was probably making mud); but as soon as she did it, she realized that it made the little cousin mad and she knew that she would get into big trouble. I'm guessing that Mariah was busy playing and hadn't seen who had done it, but was taking the word of the older cousin (who very likely was falsely accusing the little boy). The 5-year old boy wasn't muddy or dirty when he came inside later; which he would have been had he thrown that much mud on his little cousin. The big girl though, could have ran inside and washed off before someone saw her. Maybe it happened like the girls said, but I have my suspicions!

Of course, after seeing that Mariah was so upset, the adults felt a little bad for laughing at her, when she came inside with a mud-covered face, arms and hands. Everyone thought she had been playing in the mud and had just got really dirty. They had no idea that someone had intentionally thrown mud at her, that she was already angry about that, and that their laughter made things worse for her.

This is just a simple illustration, but shows how easy it is for people to respond without knowing the details of a situation. And sometimes that response can cause embarrassment, anger, shame, hurt, humiliation, and so many other emotions. Often then, their reaction looks like anger; like my little niece when she yelled, "It's not funny! Stop laughing at me!" Her emotions were already triggered from what had just happened outside. Was she truly angry at all of the adults? Probably not. Her words were more of a response of how she was feeling at that moment due to a negative situation.

There are times when we may encounter people and they seemingly lash out at us, when in fact, it's not really us that they are angry with, but a situation that happened to them or perhaps bad news that they just received. It may be a family member, friend, fellow church member, or a stranger we see in a store. If we aren't careful, we then become offended because of their reaction to something we said or did, and end up with hurt feelings. The truth is, they may not even realize that they hurt us, because they are reacting from a hurt they've experienced. Sometimes we need to stop and evaluate the situation and ask ourselves, is there more to the situation than what we are seeing or know about. Instead of allowing our emotions to get involved, we need to listen to what they're really saying and be a friend. Perhaps we need to offer a word of encouragement. We may need to just pick them up and wipe the mud off their face. Or our responsibility may be to pray for them.

When Jesus came to earth, there were many times when He was misunderstood. Sometimes it was because people didn't truly understand who He was and His purpose for coming. Some didn't recognize or acknowledge Him as being the Messiah. His arrival wasn't as they thought it would be, nor did he look like they thought He would, and He didn't come as a King and royalty.

Jesus had a very humble life, born to a common couple who were your everyday, normal, working family. Scripture says that He wasn't handsome and nothing spectacular about His appearance (Isaiah's prophecy). He didn't walk around with a halo around His head or wearing glowing white robes. His feet got dirty and His clothes were like those of everyone around Him.

When Jesus began His ministry, scripture says that He wasn't accepted in His hometown, because the people saw Him as the son of a carpenter -- not as the Messiah. He was mocked, ridiculed, and the Pharisees were constantly trying to trip Him up and questioned everything He said.

Instead of people listening to His message and receiving it, many found fault and criticized. They may have heard His words, but failed to really listen. Perhaps some only came to hear Him speak so that they could find fault. They saw Him, but didn't really take the time to take His message to heart.

Then there were those who listened and received His word. There were those who received miracles of healing. They didn't just see the "dirt on His face" and laugh; but took the time to wipe it off and listen to His story..... so to speak.

Jesus was arrested, put on trial, beaten, and crucified. I'm sure that even though He had told His followers that He would rise again, when they saw Him hanging on the cross, doubt and fear filled their hearts and minds. They still didn't have a deep understanding of who He was and His purpose for coming.

I've watched loved ones die, and it's not easy to do. Even though you have the knowledge that they were believers and are now in heaven, there is something that happens that moment that they take their last breath on earth. You don't stand up and shout and rejoice and celebrate because they are with Jesus. You don't throw a party and dance and have fun remembering them, while laughing and having a good time. In that moment of death, sorrow fills your heart and that grief generally shows up with tears and sobs and heartbreak. That person's life on earth has ended, and we know that there will not be anymore conversations or hugs or phone calls. The moment they entered eternity, life on earth as we know it, changed.

I'm sure that Mary and the disciples and other believers felt that moment of grief and heartbreak the moment that they saw Jesus take His last breath. What they perceived as the end, was much different than what their minds could comprehend.

I'm sure that they mourned and grieved for the next three days. They probably had many questions. Things looked one way, but were really something else. They really had no idea what was about to happen!

Three days later when the women came to the grave to put spices upon the body of Jesus, they saw something unbelievable! The stone was rolled away from the entrance and the grave was empty. Jesus came and told them that He was alive and to go tell Peter and the others. During the next few days, Jesus appeared to speak with people and to give His last words of instructions to His disciples. Then He ascended back to Heaven, where He reigns today.

Jesus has risen and is alive! He came to earth to live and die, so that we could receive the gift of salvation and have eternal life with Him. Not only during the Easter season, but every day of our life, we can rejoice, because of that!

No matter what our circumstances look like throughout our life, or what the world situation looks like, we can hold onto hope and know that although it looks one way, we are more than conquerors and can live a victorious life through Christ Jesus. People may look at situations that we go through and feel pity for us, but we can endure with joy, knowing that Jesus is going through those times of trials and hardships with us.

Most importantly, we can hold onto that blessed hope that this life isn't all there is. But once it is over, our eternity begins. Just as Jesus ascended into heaven after His life on earth was completed, we too can go be with the Father when our race on earth is finished! There, we can life forever and ever with Jesus and our loved ones, who had a relationship with Christ. What a day that will be!

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

Even Satan misunderstood Jesus. He thought that by killing Jesus, especially in a horrific and humiliating way, would put an end to His reign. He was wrong. Jesus brought us forgiveness and freedom from our sins because He was killed.

Don't expect him to be fooled so easily again. Jesus will come again. And there will be a war. But we already know that Jesus has already won that war.

ON THE MENEWE:

Zippy Potatoes

(This makes a quick easy side dish, this is tasty!)

Cut potatoes into even sized, bite-sized pieces (enough to fill a medium-sized bowl; or adjust ingredients to fit the amount you need to cook).

Place potatoes in a microwave-safe bowl. Coat with approximately 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

Season potatoes, to taste. Instead of Lawry's seasoned salt, you can use a combination of salt and paprika.

Microwave for 8 minutes. Stir; check for tenderness. Microwave in increments of 3 minutes, until done.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

**Note: I ran across this story from 2010, when Devin was just 8 years old. Today, he is a tall, hard-working 20-year old!!

Last Sunday during Sunday School class, Devin's teacher taught about what Palm Sunday meant. So during the main service, the pastor had Devin and another girl who was in the class, come to the front of the church and tell what they had learned. This is a deaf church that my sister and brother-in-law pastor. Here is Devin's version of his understanding of Palm Sunday:

"The people throw their coats on the ground and wave leaves, and then Jesus rides over them [the coats] on a donkey. The people say, "Yeah!!!" Then PAR-TY; they have a birthday party!" (Birthday party?? That's Devin's translation of celebration!!)

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

Sometimes you are delayed where you are because God knows there is a storm where you are headed. - Toby Mac

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org