On May 21, 1901, Connecticut became the first state to pass a law restricting the speed of vehicles—12 mph in town, and 15 out of town.  There had been speed limits as early as 1652, but those were for non-motorized vehicles.  Wagons, carts, and sleighs were not permitted to travel "at a gallop" in New Amsterdam (New York City).  The first paper speeding ticket seems to have been issued in 1904, to Harry Myers in Dayton, Ohio.  So it took about three years for someone to get caught breaking the traffic laws.  My, how times have changed.

               Americans in general have a problem with authority.  We are quick to ask, “Who says?” and just as quick to ignore the answer.  That is why you see all those brake lights on the road in front of you when the wolf pack of cars passes a trooper on the side of the road.  If we all recognized the authority of the government, we would not be breaking laws when we thought no one was watching. 

              People today are always talking about making Jesus “Lord” in their lives.  If our culture gets in the way in any area, it is this one.  We have no idea what living under a “lord” is like.  We vote our lawmakers in if we like them and out if we don’t.  We hold sit-ins, walk picket lines, and strike.  Actually having someone else tell us how to handle every area of our lives is not only something we have never experienced, it is something that would rankle and cause rebellion immediately, simply for the fact of it. 

              Jesus can be Lord in my life as long He will take me as I am, as long as He will be the kind, accepting, loving Lord who never expects any sacrifice on my part.  He can be my Lord as long as he helps me when I want him and how I want him, and leaves me alone otherwise.  He can be my Lord as long as I get to choose how I serve Him.  Our culture is getting in the way.  This is one thing those first century Christians could handle better than we can—they lived under an irrational tyrant.  Yet when Peter and Paul told them to obey the government they did, even when that government tortured and killed them.

              We show a complete lack of respect for authority when we disrespect God’s law.  I keep hearing, “This is how I want to do it, and God knows my heart so He will accept it.”  This comes from women who get mad at husbands whose gifts are “not romantic.”  “He should know what I want and want to please me,” even though they never spell it out in so many words.  God does spell it out but if it’s not what we want to give him, we ignore his desires. 

              It comes from men who make fun of the ties and after shave they get on Father’s Day.  They want season tickets to their favorite team’s game or some other “manly” gift or toy, but their wives “just don’t get it.”  I suppose God should accept those token gifts if we give them with all our hearts?  We regularly give God what we would never accept gracefully ourselves, what we would in fact, ridicule to our friends.

              Jesus said authority is important.  He said there are only two places to get it: “from Heaven or from men,” Matt 21:25, the point being that authority from God is all that matters.  In turn, God gives governments authority (Rom 13:1), husbands authority (Eph 5:23), parents authority (Eph 6:1), and elders authority (Heb 13:17).  Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment, Rom 13:2.  When the Israelites rejected God’s choice of judge as their ruler and demanded a king instead, God told Samuel, they have not rejected you, they have rejected me from being king over them, 1 Sam 8:7.

              Rebellion seems to be second nature to Americans.  But rebellion against God’s authority, or any God-ordained authority, is rebellion against God.
 
And seated [Christ] at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age, but in the one that is to come.  And he put all things under his feet, and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all, Eph 1:20-23
             
Dene Ward
 

If you have followed this blog for any time at all, you know that I have come up with a memory verse method for preschoolers using cards with rebuses and smaller cards with only a picture or two from the rebus after the verse has been memorized.  Parents are constantly amazed by the amount their children can memorize.  (See the gallery for pictures of these and the two posts, The Return of the Stick Man, parts 1 and 2 in the archives on the right sidebar on July 10 and 11, 2017.)

You also know that I use games in my Bible classes, games I make from scratch.  (See the David Game in the same archives on July 12, 2017.)  In the grade school classes where all the children can now read, I put those two ideas together and make a Memory Verse Relay Race.  Tell your students about it during the first class.  You cannot start the game if they have not had at least four or five lessons with accompanying memory verses and this gives them motivation for keeping up with their lessons and memorizing those verses.

This is a simple concept and involves no artistic talent at all.  Write out the memory verses on two one-inch-wide strips of construction paper with a heavy marker.  Cut the verse into four or five phrases.  Mix up the strips of paper and paper clip each verse together to keep it separate from others.  Use a different color of pastel construction paper for each verse.  Make two copies of each verse and keep each pile separate as well.

You must have two adults in the room who also know the verses, and it is easier if the students are sitting at a long table, one team on each side, but I am sure you can come up with other configurations with just a little thought.

To start the race, the student on the near end chooses a clipped together verse from the pile next to him.  He puts the verse strips in the correct order, then raises his hand so the adult on his side of the table can check it.  When she gives the OK, he must mix it up, clip it back together and pass it on to the next student before grabbing another.  Now you have two students putting verses together.  When a hand is raised, check the verse. If it is correct, that student will also mix it up, clip it and pass it on.  Once you have three or four verses going you have to be on the ball about checking.  If a student's verse is not in the correct order, tell him so and let him try again.  After three tries, pass it on.  (You can come up with a penalty if you want, but actually I never had it come to this point.  Sooner or later, the student got it right.)

Meanwhile, the same thing is happening on the other side of the table.  It should be obvious why you need two adults for this to work.  The team that finishes all the verses first, passing verses instead of batons all the way to the other end of the table, wins.  As the quarter continues, you will add more verses until by the end, you have thirteen.  All my students loved this game, and I bet a lot of them still remember those verses.

This is exactly how simple making up games can be.  As long as they reinforce learning the scripture, there is nothing wrong with a little fun in Bible classes.
 
“And as for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the LORD: “My Spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children's offspring,” says the LORD, “from this time forth and forevermore.” (Isa 59:21)
 
Dene Ward

Go back about 12 years and read about the bird feeder Keith built for me next to the window.  When I remember those first few years I want to laugh at my ignorant self. 

             The first birds that showed up were cardinals.  Those I knew, and I was thrilled to be able to see them so closely for the first time in my life.  What was less than thrilling was seeing those ugly females.  They did not look like the pictures in the books, smooth olive green with red tinges on the edges of wings and crest.  Some of these were a muddy brown all over.  Some were mottled gray.  And the crests looked like a bad hair day times ten.  When the juveniles first appeared, they looked even worse—a little bit like human adolescents, lanky, lean, and awkward with spiky crests that never laid back straight, and splotchy, molting feathers as the young males began to grow their signature red coats.  But at least I knew what they were.

             When the first tufted titmouse arrived, it took me over a week to figure out what it was.  Ignorance in the bird watching world means you have to look at page after page after page and when the bird tires of eating and flies away, you no longer have anything to compare it with.  For several days I was sure it was a gray gnatcatcher, and proudly told everyone else who sat at my window and showed some interest.  I really do not remember when I finally learned the truth.  It probably was a matter of getting more and more information and seeing more and more pictures until finally the real identity of this bird became apparent.
 
            After a while I learned what to really focus on, not just colors, but also things like crests, eye rings, and wing bars.  The details make the difference when it comes to some species. Otherwise they look exactly alike.  It also helps to have photos instead of drawings.  As careful as I know the wildlife artists are, they still have a tendency to draw the ideal version of that particular bird.  It's like the difference between a glamor shot and a right out of bed before makeup shot.

            Then I got a book containing only Florida birds.  It cost a pretty penny, especially for something the size of a large wallet, but it has made all the difference in how quickly I can locate and identify a bird.  No more being "absolutely certain" only to discover that the bird in question never flies east of the Mississippi.  This particular book has only photographs, and it also explains things such as their flying patterns and activities that can help you identify the bird, plus which other birds bear a close resemblance and how to tell them apart, and whether they are only here for a season or all year.  If the book says this particular bird is only around in winter and here it is July, you know you are looking at the wrong picture.  The book also divides the birds by their color, a real boon in saving time.  Identifying birds has become much less work and much more fun simply because I am not so stone cold ignorant as I was in the beginning.

            Unless you plan to be an ornithologist, you can learn most of what you need to know about birds like I have—reading, looking at pictures, and especially, watching the birds themselves.  Now when I sit and watch, I know what to look for, I have a general knowledge of when to look for certain ones.  We only have goldfinches for a couple days in the fall when they migrate south and in the spring when they head back home.  Although we have sparrows and catbirds around all year, they will only come to the feeder between November and April.  Otherwise they like to fend for themselves, thank you.  That bird that always sits on leafless limbs, then flies down to the ground and back up to the same limb over and over is a phoebe.  And that behavior is called hawking.  See what I have learned because I really wanted to?

            Guess what?  Bible study is similar to this.  When you don't know what you are doing, you make some ridiculous mistakes.  When you aren't familiar with the scriptures at all, you hardly know where to begin and how to make all the facts you uncover fit together into a coherent picture.  The only way to fix this is to keep at it.  I have been watching my birds for over a decade now, and only now can I recognize a couple dozen different birds, their sounds, and some of their activities.  Now I know that bird in the tree that won't sit still more than a few seconds is probably a bug-eater rather than a seed eater.  Bugs move and seeds don't!

            Bible study will only become easier for you when you have spent some time at it—and I don't mean a few minutes a day for ten years.  I mean many minutes a day for years and years and years.  It may be easy to understand the basics of how to please God, most of us were raised with that.  But when it comes to the details, it takes a lot more time than reading your chapter a day like a good girl.  When you have put the time into it, you will know what to look for and how to find it.  You will recognize allusions to other passages.  Maybe you will see the worth in spending a little bit of money on Bible resources.  Maybe you will overcome your timidity and ask someone to help you.  I know good solid Christians who would love to help you.  I would love to.  I go all over the place speaking to groups of women, and my husband would be happy to speak to their men. 

            And the more you know, they more things will begin to click, the more light bulb moments you will have, and gradually, the stronger your faith will become.  After all, faith does come by hearing the Word of God.  If you cannot find time to spend with God's message to you, how can you ever expect to have enough of that faith to overcome, to endure, and to please God?

            You may be just a beginning Word Watcher.  But you can become so much more.
 
How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.​  With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!  I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. (Ps 119:9-11)
 
Dene Ward

I don’t know where that sobriquet came from, but I think of it every time I read Matthew 6.
 
…Do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? …Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all, Matt 6:25-32.
 
              Jesus is making a point we often miss in that passage.  “For the Gentiles seek after these things,” He says.  The pagan gods were notoriously capricious, vindictive, and malicious.  The whole idea was to appease them.  The best a Gentile could hope for was that the gods wouldn’t notice him at all.  If he kept his head down, minded his own business, and made the required sacrifices, maybe he could stumble his way through life without too much trouble.  Certainly no one expected those gods to actually care enough about him to provide his needs.
 
             Then Jesus reminds his disciples, “Your heavenly Father knows…”  Did you catch that?  Your God is not a capricious god; your God is your heavenly Father.  If He is your Father, of course He will take care of your needs.  Any time we worry—just like the Gentiles worried—we are insulting God, calling Him no better than those heathen gods who didn’t love their subjects, and certainly never thought of them as beloved children.

              What would your earthly father have thought if, as a child, you came home from school every day and wondered aloud if there would be any supper on the table that night?  How hurt would he have been if you didn’t trust him to love you and provide for you any better than that?  Why do we think God would feel differently?  Why would He not only be insulted, but angry, and wouldn’t it be understandable?

              We may not have everything we want.  Some of us will be more comfortable than others.  But God is your Father, a Father who is able far beyond any pagan god to care for His people, and not only that--He wants to.  Don’t insult Him, treating Him like nothing more than an idol, and a spiteful one at that, by worrying about the necessities of life.
 
 As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust, Psalm 103:13,14
 
Dene Ward

Today's post is by guest writer Lucas Ward.

What is the job of a song leader?  I think a lot of us would say that he is the guy who stands up front and starts each song.  That's true enough, and it leads to the idea of starting us off on the proper pitch, keeping the congregation singing at an appropriate pace for the song and maybe even utilizing musicality to enhance the impact of the song.  All of that is true, but it doesn't encompass the entirety of the job of a song leader. 

What is the purpose of singing?  Again, many would answer, "To praise God!"  That is certainly one purpose of singing.  Moses and Miriam each separately led the Israelites in song praising God for their salvation through the Red Sea.  David danced and sang before the Lord.  Certain Levites were assigned to sing in the Temple, praising God.  In John's Revelation we see that in Heaven the saved sing praises to God.  Certainly praising God is a reason to sing; worshipping Him in song has a long history.  While acknowledging this, what does the New Testament teach us about the purpose of singing? 

Eph 5:18-20  And be not drunken with wine, wherein is riot, but be filled with the Spirit;  speaking one to another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;  giving thanks always for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father; 

Col 3:16  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts unto God. 
 
We are to be speaking to one another with these songs.  The Word dwells in us when we teach and admonish through song.  Our song service is not just a time to praise/worship, but is also a time to teach, edify, and encourage each other. 
 
Understanding that our singing is meant to be a teaching tool what, then, is the job of a song leader?  He should be choosing songs that teach, edify, and encourage (and maybe even rebuke), as well as songs that praise God.  With very little effort, he can choose songs that all follow a single theme, and thereby reinforce the teaching that is being done in song.  All modern songbooks of which I am aware have topical indexes in the back which group the songs by theme.  Therefore, it takes little time or effort to choose a list of songs for a service all of which follow a theme:  the Christian life, or assurance of hope, or our love for God, or His for us, or exhortation to be about His work, or any number of other themes.
 
For example, one might begin a "traditional service" (you know, two songs, a prayer, a song, the LS, a song, the sermon and an invitation song) with "I Want to be a Worker for the Lord" and then sing "O the Things We May Do" before the prayer.  Any Lord's Supper song you like would follow that and then maybe "We'll Work til Jesus Comes" before the sermon and maybe even "Room in God's Kingdom" as an invitation song.  If you're thinking, "wow, that's a little on the nose", then I'd sadly say that you must be unaware of how little attention the average pew-filler pays to what he/she is singing.  It takes being that obvious for the message to seep in and the person to think, "hey, these songs follow a theme!"  I can't tell you how many times I've done this and then asked someone afterward if they had noticed, only to get a dull look and a negative response.  Once, ONCE!!!!! someone said to me, "your songs always seem to follow a theme."  Yes!  I wanted to dance a jig right there in the building!
 
Even if a majority never notice, a strong minority will, and will appreciate the effort the song leader has made to enhance the service by choosing songs that actually teach and that reinforce the teaching through following a theme. 
 
With a bit more effort, the song leader can set out themes that don't just follow the topical index.  When teaching the Psalms on Wednesday night several years ago I noticed that one psalm praised God simply by listing His attributes.  The next Sunday we sang "Great is Thy Faithfulness", "Grace Greater than All Our Sins", "He Loves Me So", and "Holy, Holy, Holy". 
 
Recently on a Sunday evening I led "The Rock that is Higher than I", "Dare to Stand Like Joshua", "This World is not My Home", and "On Jordan's Stormy Banks".  On the surface, that may not sound like a themed song service, but "The Rock that is Higher than I" is about the difficulties of this life and our reliance upon the Lord to get through it, then "Dare to Stand Like Joshua" is about making the decision to follow God no matter how hard it is.  That being followed by "This World is not My Home" shows the maturity of a Christian who is no longer tied to this world and is waiting anxiously for the reward while "On Jordan's Stormy Banks" is a declaration of the reward being sure.   Picking a list like that still isn't hard, but it does take a few moments of thought, and an understanding of what each song is about and what it teaches.  While the average Christian may not catch the fulness of the theme in a service like that, he/she is singing through it and some of those ideas will stick.  Oh! and notice that how fun the song is to sing or how musically challenging it is has NOTHING to do with a leader choosing songs which help his congregation in "teaching and admonishing one another". What matters is the message, the words we sing, not the catchy tunes.
 
Often, when I'm preparing to lead I'll have a song I want to sing and I'll just pick other songs that fit the ideas expressed in the first song.  If I know the preacher has been doing a series of lessons, I might pick songs that fit his topic.  Other times I'll pick songs that fit with some idea I've been mulling over, praying and studying about.  It rarely takes me more than 5-10 minutes to get a service ready (after all, I'm not writing the songs) but that is time well spent in leading the people to let the word dwell in them richly.
 
Not every song service needs to be thematic.  There are certainly times for great songs which mean a lot and cross into several areas of Christian life.  Every song should be carefully selected for what it is teaching, however, and what its impact will be on our brothers and sisters. 
 
A song leader's job is more important than most Christians think.  We spend almost as much time leading the congregation in teaching and admonishing as the preacher does is "reproving, rebuking, and exhorting".  While the average Christian may have trouble remembering what the sermon was about on Thursday, that same Christian may still be humming one of the songs we sang.  Song leaders need to take responsibility and be aware that we are to do more than just start the song on the right note. 
 
Lucas Ward
 

My brother-in-law has finished his long journey.  Maybe it was because both of us were the in-laws, but for some reason he was especially kind to me, and I felt comfortable with him.
 
           Mike came a long way in his life, all the way from atheism to Christianity.  Keith had a special hand in turning him around.  Unfortunately, discouragement set in and he lost his way again for awhile.  When this illness hit him, with some words from his wife and Keith, he made the determination to come home.  Unfortunately, he never had the chance to sit in a pew again and commune with his spiritual family after he made that decision.  Things progressed too quickly and he was gone far sooner than anyone expected, including the doctors.

            When I read the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15, I notice something important.  The Father was out there looking for his lost son.  It wasn’t just a casual glance—he saw him “afar off.”  This was a Father who wanted to see his son coming home, who wanted to welcome him back.  He stood there looking long and hard for the first sign of that figure trudging down the road.

            Mike’s Father was looking for him too.  Mike had made that determination—he was well on the road home, even having mentioned it to some brethren who visited.  Who is to say that he wasn’t close enough for God to see him coming?  Who is to say that God hadn’t already started running down the road to welcome him home?

            Probably some older brother, that’s who.  I have some of those—brethren who not only expect that long march down the aisle (as if there is a verse requiring that in the New Testament) before they will even consent to forgiving, but who won’t even look down the road in the first place.  I have brethren who are not thrilled with the return of a lost brother but just as grieved as the prodigal’s older brother was.  I have brothers and sisters in Christ who actually seem to enjoy being cynical—“it’ll never last.” 

            But I praise God that He is a Father who is merciful, who wants to forgive, who actually looks for reasons to forgive, instead of reasons to condemn.

            None of us deserves God’s mercy.  Perhaps if we remembered that, we would be eagerly looking to forgive too.
 
Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful, Luke 6:36.
 
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some count slackness; but is longsuffering to you-ward, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance, 2 Pet 3:9.
 
Dene Ward

We do not have your average watchdog.  Every other dog we have ever had barked when someone drove up to the house.  In fact, they usually started barking as our visitors drove through the gate a hundred yards away.  But not Chloe.

              We were expecting guests one evening recently, and we knew exactly when they drove on to the property.  Suddenly, Chloe went tearing by the window—in the opposite direction.  I am not sure if she actually made it all the way around the house and under the porch to hide before they drove up or not, but she made herself scarce as soon as they exited their vehicle.  At least we knew to go open the door when we saw her tearing across the yard.

              Sometimes we need to learn a thing or two from Chloe.  The Lord expects us to fight, to stand, and be firm—but not always.  At times, the thing we are fighting is too dangerous to get that close.  In those cases he does not want us to be foolhardy daredevils.  He tells us to just run.

              Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. (1Cor 10:14)  You may think this is no problem for us.  You would be wrong.  In a culture that worships celebrity, we are just as prone as those first century Christians to follow the pagans in their exciting festivals and sacrifices.  For us, it's falling into the temptation of thinking more highly of people than we ought (Rom 12:3)—just look at the disparity in wages between actors and athletes versus first responders and schoolteachers.  Our skewed sense of values is shameful.  We, too, fall into the temptation of fashioning our lives after popular idols instead of Christ—clothing, lifestyles, recreation, and other things which may not be appropriate for a child of God.  And that is only one of various forms of idolatry our society participates in.

              But as for you, O man of God, flee these things... (1Tim 6:11)  Check the context immediately above this verse and you will see that Paul is warning Timothy about the corrupting nature of wealth.  If ever a culture needs that warning today, it is ours.  We spend too much of our time on it, too much of our energy and thought.  Just compare what you spend on entertainment (TV, movies, vacations, etc.) in a year with what you spend on spiritual things, including your Sunday morning contribution, and see where you stand.  And so like everyone else, we dream of being rich because if we had all that money, we would be different!  It would not be a problem for us to handle it.  If you have ever thought such a thing, run!  You are in danger.  Don't even try to stand and fight it.  It will swallow you whole.

              Flee fornication. Every sin that a man does is without the body; but he that commits fornication sins against his own body. (1Cor 6:18)  I have seen too many good strong men and women fall by this very sin, people you would never have thought would do so.  Elders, deacons, Bible class teachers, even preachers.  This is so dangerous that even that great hero of faith, Joseph, did not try to fight it.  He simply ran (Gen 39:12).  Do you really think you are stronger than he was?  Don't do anything that will leave you in a vulnerable position.  It isn't exciting, glamorous, or romantic—it is sin.  Period.  Just ask yourself the same question Joseph did:  "How can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?"  If you want to know how you can, then stick around like a fool and you will find out soon enough.  If you want to save yourself—run.

              But flee youthful lusts… (2Tim 2:22)  Timothy was not all that young when Paul wrote him these words, probably in his late thirties or early forties.  That tells you that "youthful" lusts are dangerous to everyone, not just young people.  Do you want to see youthful lusts in action?  Watch that white-haired man drive down the road in his Corvette convertible with that twenty-something blonde in the passenger seat.  Mid(and later)-life crises happen when people decide they have not been able to do everything they ever dreamed of.  Instead of enjoying life with the wives of their youth, becoming a child again with their grandchildren, and spending their golden years serving God in ways they never could earlier, they have decided that selfishness is the way to go.  It is easy to see the draw.  It is harder to turn away if you stand there too long.  Run, run, and keep on running.  Those youthful lusts would have ruined your life then, and they can ruin what's left of it now.

              So yes, once in a while it's okay to follow Chloe's example.  Running can be good for you, and not just for the exercise of it.  Running can save your soul.
 
Save yourself like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the hand of the fowler. (Prov 6:5)
 
Dene Ward

I am sitting here on the back porch of my children's new home, less than ten miles from the place I spent most of my remembered childhood.  Funny how the memories come flooding back.
 
             The sun seems much brighter here than in north central Florida, where I have spent the majority of my married life.  This may be only 120 miles further south toward the tropics, but I can barely stand to even look out the window without sunglasses on down here.  I remember that bright sun reflecting off the pavement wherever we went.  It almost made you wish for black tar roads—until you tried stepping on those barefoot and came away with something much worse than a sunburn.

              The spring breezes down here are cool and pleasant, but without that underlying chill that demands a sweater at the ready just that little bit further north.  We reveled in those almost perfect days when I was young because all too soon they were gone. 

           The summer heat is still that brutal slam when you step outside, but even so much closer to the coast here in Tampa, the humidity is less than that smothering blanket in the northern interior.  I don't ever recall having to deal with pouring sweat at 8 am.  As a child, I never felt like I might drown if I took too deep a breath!

              And the clockwork arrival of a summer afternoon thunderstorm every day, usually at 4:00.  Gray clouds nearly as dark as night, lightning streaking across the sky, thunder like an explosion, winds that increased 20 or 30 mph and temperatures that dropped twenty degrees in mere minutes, followed by a deluge that had traffic pulling off the road to wait it out, and those unfortunate souls caught outside, drenched in only a few seconds.

              I remember all these things from a childhood of walking three blocks to and from the bus stop, standing outside the locked school doors waiting after the bus had dropped us off and returned for a second route, raking up lawn clippings after my daddy mowed the yard, and swimming at a friend's "lake house."  The feel of this place hasn't changed a bit.

              But the details?  The traffic is thicker and louder.  The outlying areas, including the trailer park where we spent our first year of marriage five miles "out of town," are more densely populated and congested.  What used to be pastureland or strawberry and tomato farms is now subdivision after subdivision, "walled off" from the highway by a white board fence.  As Thomas Wolfe said, "You can't go home again," but really, you can, if your memories are strong, if you can sit still and think and feel all those things from so long ago.  That part hasn't changed a bit.

              I find myself remembering my early years more and more lately.  As good friends, some older but some exactly my age, pass on, those memories wake you up to what is really important.  Now I can look back and realize that I had a great childhood. 

             No, it wasn't perfect.  No, my parents did not do everything exactly right.  Neither did I as a parent.  But I am so grateful to them for teaching me right from wrong and respect for authority, for demanding I take responsibility for the things I said and did, for showing me how to keep on working until the task is done, for refusing to give in to pain, belittling comments from worldly acquaintances, and debilitating disease, but to keep on plugging for the Lord as long as you can draw a breath. 

            I am grateful that they made me go to church, do my homework, and even brush my teeth and clean my room.  I love that they taught me to treat honesty as a lifestyle instead of a sometime convenience, and that I learned from them how to manage both my time and my money.  I am grateful that I saw them respect others' opinions rather than running them down for doing things differently than they did and that they never thought the rules, even the unspoken ones, were for everyone else.  I was more than blessed in the age and place I grew up in to have parents who taught me to be color blind and to glorify God whenever an opportunity came to teach and/or help those who were different from us, and for showing me the examples of kindness and generosity, especially to the innocent and needy.  And most of all, I am indebted to them for raising me to be a God-fearing, obedient servant of the Lord.  I hate to think what my life would be like otherwise.

              And then—what my children's lives would be like otherwise, and my grandchildren's.  Don't ever think that what you view as a dull, routine life did not matter.  Your children and your grandchildren and, should you live that long, your great-grandchildren will carry the memories you helped them make.  It is gratifying that my grandchildren will have memories a whole lot like mine, based not only on where they live, but how they live. 

            And it all started generations before them with simple people struggling through as best they could and, we hope, will continue on for generations to come.
 
As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more.  But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children's children, to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments. (Ps 103:15-18)

Dene Ward

Rahab was a harlot, what we would call a prostitute.  I have come across many commentators who have tried their best to turn her into an “innkeeper,” but the word just won’t allow it.

            The Hebrew word in Josh 2:1 is zanah.  It is also translated commit fornication, go awhoring, play the harlot, play the whore, whorish, whore, etc.  It is used in Lev 19:29; Hos 4:13; Ex 34:16; Isa 23:17 and many other places where the meaning is quite clear.  In the New Testament, the word is porne, in James 2:25 for example, and I do not imagine I need to tell you the English word we get from that Greek one.  This same word is translated whore in Rev 17:1,15,16; 19:2.  Rahab was a harlot, no ifs, ands, or buts about it.

            So what is the problem with commentators who insist on “innkeeper?”  The same one the Pharisees had.  If Jesus was the Messiah, how could he possibly associate with publicans and sinners?  If Rahab was a harlot, how could she possibly be in the genealogy of Christ?  Yet they talk about the grace and mercy of God like they understand it better than we do.

            And sometimes we are no better.  Whom do we open our arms to when they walk through our doors?  Whom do we actively seek and label “good prospects for the gospel?”  Yet the people we choose to shun are the people who understand grace because they understand their need for it.  We are a bit like the rich, young ruler, who, though he knew something was missing in his life despite all the laws he kept faithfully, still thought his salvation depended upon something he could do.

            Rahab showed her dependence on God with a scarlet line she hung from her window.  Did you know that word is only translated “line” twice in the Old Testament, counting this occurrence in Josh 2:21?  The other translations are expectation (seven times such as Psa 62:5), hope (23 times, such as Jer 17:13; Psa 71:5), and the thing that I long for (once, Job 6:8).  I do believe it was a literal rope of some sort, but it seems more than passing coincident that the word most of the time has those other meanings.  I have often wondered what her neighbors thought of that cord hanging there, but every day Rahab was reminded of the salvation she did not deserve, that she hoped for, longed for, and expected to receive when those people marched into the land. 

            When we get a little too big for our britches, a little too proud of our pedigree in the kingdom, maybe we need to hang a scarlet cord in our windows to remind us what we used to be, and what we have waiting for us in spite of that.
 
But when the kindness of God our Savior, and his love toward man, appeared, not by works done in righteousness, which we did ourselves, but according to his mercy he saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, which he poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that being justified by his grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.  Titus 3:4-7
 
Dene Ward

Historical events always have two dimensions: the earthly, where humans act with genuine freedom, and the heavenly, where the sovereign Lord exercises full control.  When human beings fail to take the theological dimension into account, disaster is inevitable.  (Daniel J. Block, The New American Commentary, Judges and Ruth) 

…Until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomsoever he will. (Dan 4:17, 25,32; 5:21)