Joy to the World, the Church, and Israel!

“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks by night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid, for behold I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people.  Today in the city of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.’ “  Luke 2:8-11  (NIV)

I really get fed up, hearing people grouse about Christmas being “so much work”.  Yes, even some Christians view shopping, gift giving, decorating their homes, and entertaining as “chores”. 

Also irritating are those dour-faced Christians who classify our wholesome Christmas traditions as something pagan to be avoided. 

Tragically these folks just don’t get it!  We have been given the greatest gift ever known to man, the gift of salvation–the good news of great joy!  How can we react with an over-burdened attitude or dour face to that?

Throughout Scripture, joy is commanded for those who love the Lord.  With God’s Holy Spirit indwelling us, our lives are to be an ongoing worship of thanksgiving and joy!  Doesn’t it then follow that we should celebrate our Lord’s birth with unreserved joy?

I have completed my Christmas shopping, something I’ve always considered to be a privilege–never a chore!  I spend within my means; fun and funky gifts do not have to be expensive, and useful gifts are reasonably available as well.

Over the past weekend, my husband and I decorated our Christmas tree and our small home.  (Yes, before Thanksgiving!)  We’ve begun hosting small gatherings, sharing our God-given joy with beloved family members and friends.  

When my energy wanes, I simply do less in the kitchen before entertaining.  We can buy pleasant food at a nearby deli, and the point is visiting with the people–not knocking their socks off with my culinary skills. 

As we approach Thanksgiving Day I’m tremendously thankful for people and earthly blessings, and most of all for our beautiful Savior whose birth we love to celebrate with joy!

This year I’m especially joyful as I anticipate the future of God’s people, the Jews.  Each day brings us closer to that time when, after the rapture and Great Tribulation, Christ will  return to earth and Israel will recognize Him as their Messiah.  Then the “joy to the world” will be complete as our Lord will reign in Jerusalem, as King.

“The Lord will roar from Zion and thunder from Jerusalem; the earth and the sky will tremble.  But the Lord will be a refuge for his people, a stronghold for the people of Israel.  ‘Then you will know that I, the Lord your God, dwell in Zion, my holy hill.  Jerusalem will be holy; never again will foreigners invade her . . . . ‘ “ Joel 3:16-17  (NIV)

Margaret L. Been–All Rights Reserved

The value of sparrows . . .

“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?  Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father.”  Matthew 10:29

Here is a current photo of our little patio and garden.  Our condo community is a very creative place.  We are free to embellish our outdoor as well as indoor space, and plant our gardens however we like.  Come spring I hope to create a charming English cottage garden of perennials and herbs in this little space.

Bird feeders and yard decor abound in our neighborhood, and the individual units are fun and interesting.  There is an electrical outlet on our patio, so at Christmas we’ll be able to have our lighted reindeer–or an outside tree to compliment the one we’ll decorate just inside the patio door.  When there’s space and freedom for creativity, I am one happy woman.

As you can see from this photo, the bird feeder will soon need restocking with seed.  We are blessed with a sweet flock of sparrows every day.  As well as feasting at the feeder, the birds love to graze on the ground below which I keep replenished with dried bread crumbs and chopped up bits of apple.

Sparrows!  Although we see a variety of birds in our neighborhood, the sparrows are the only ones who have, so far, graced our little plot of ground.  I love the sparrows, and oddly enough rarely saw them up north where so many wild birds gathered on our deck.

I love the way God’s Word singles out sparrows to illustrate His sovereign will.  Jesus could have mentioned the colorful beauties–cardinals, indigo buntings, rose-breasted grosbeaks, etc.–when speaking of how He cares for every living thing in His creation. 

But He chose what may be the most quietly garbed, commonplace bird of all:  the sparrow.  If no sparrow can fall apart from God’s will, how extremely valuable must you and I be as humans–made in the very image of God!

I can never underestimate my own value in God’s eyes when I remember the (not monetary but) intrinsic value of sparrows!

Margaret L. Been

In His time . . . .

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:  a time to be born and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted; a time to kill and a time to heal; a time to break down and a time to build up; a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to rend and a time to sew; a time to keep and a time to cast away; a time to keep silence and a time to speak; a time to love and a time to hate; a time of war and a time of peace.” 

“He hath made every thing beautiful in His time . . . .”

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, 11a

Who can even begin to mine the depths of these words?  This passage comes to me frequently, as I reflect on past years and the events of recent weeks. 

In a short span of time, my husband and I have left one beloved home and settled into another.  We’ve plucked and planted, wept and laughed, mourned and danced, broken down and built up. 

Metaphorically speaking, we have cast away stones and gathered stones together.  Now Joe and I are experiencing a time of serenity and great joy, as we are embraced by people we love–and still surrounded by the beauty of God’s creation.

My entire life has been a time of blessing in all seasons–many wonderful and some challenging.  The goal for my remaining years is to share God’s love, grace, and serenity wherever I am–under whatever circumstances God has ordained for me.

“He hath made everything beautiful in His time!”

Margaret L. Been

Removing the pins . . . .

“But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”  Philippians 4:19

Seventeen years ago, I dislocated my left wrist and (at the same moment) broke my left arm in two places.  This injury required a surgical reduction followed by the insertion of several pins to hold the broken mess in place.

I managed with a cast for six weeks, but all that time I had a nagging worry; I was sure that the removal of the pins would be an excruciatingly painful procedure.

Then I discovered that it is silly to worry.  When the pins were finally removed, I did not feel a thing!  They just slid out–leaving me with an arm that was for all practical purposes healed, although shriveled and shrunken looking from six weeks in a cast.

Now I’ve been fighting that same fallen human tendency, worrying unnecessarily about something that lies ahead–something I cannot avoid.  During nearly eight weeks of packing up our household, I’ve been concerned about the emotional moment (coming up in a week) when we’ll drive away from our present home for the last time before moving into our newly purchased home. 

At that moment we’ll be ending a beautiful phase of life, to begin a new and very different adventure.  Metaphorically speaking, we’ll be “removing the pins”.

But our Lord is faithful.  Just as He would have fortified me had the removal of the surgical pins been painful, He’ll strengthen me for that moment when we drive away from our home.  Our God will supply our need, according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus!

Margaret L. Been

“Be anxious for nothing . . . .”

Philippians 4:6-7  “Be anxious for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.  And the peace of God, which passes all understanding will keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.                                                                                   

Our grandsons, Joel and Nathaniel (with the tie-dye shirt) are visiting from Colorado for a week.  They have come every summer for the last 6 years, and their visit is a highlight of our year.

Nathaniel arrived with an ear ache.  After a couple of days the ear ache got worse, and we made the 55 minute trip to our nearest Urgent Care clinic.  At the clinic, we discovered something we had never known before:  in the state of Wisconsin a minor individual cannot be treated without written and signed permission from one of the parents or a legal guardian.

The receptionist explained this to us, and all our pleas were of no avail.  She said, “It’s the law!”  So we left messages along with the clinic’s phone and fax numbers on the boys’ home phone in Colorado, as well as on their parents’ cell phones.  It was a Saturday afternoon, and no one was near a phone at that moment.

As I sat in the waiting room with Nathaniel, waiting for a phone call, I was tempted to panic.  Only God’s Word could make a difference.  Through mounting concern, I thought of the Philippians verse and prayed with thanksgiving for God’s answer to come.  Suddenly the receptionist came out to talk to us.  She said she’d asked her supervisor if an exception could be made, and the supervisor said, “No.  It’s the law.”

But then the receptionist explained that she asked the doctor who was on duty, and he said he was willing to take the risk and see Nathaniel.  What a blessing:  a physician who placed a young person’s welfare above the harsh, uncompromising spirit of the law.  And to make the answer to prayer complete, the doctor was a pediatrician.

Almost simultaneously, the parents did pick up one of the phone messages and we were able to talk to them.

Nathaniel was diagnosed with swimmer’s ear, and drops–a combination of antibiotic and a steroid–were prescribed.  By later that evening the pain had eased, and the inflammation and pain were nearly gone the next morning.  As of now, Nathaniel is symptom free.

Our Lord is faithful!  I can’t imagine getting through a single day without prayer and supplication with thanksgiving!

Margaret L. Been

God is in the little things!

Psalm 107:31  “Oh that men would praise the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men.”  

Most people who profess to believe in God will admit to seeing His hand in creation.  But often I hear individuals (even Christians) say, “I can’t bother God with little everyday details.  He’s too busy with important matters.”

That is a sad statement.  More times than I can list or even remember, God has proved that He is involved in every detail of our lives.  He is here, and He is in control.  Although things frequently don’t go as we have planned or wished, God is sovereign and omnipresent.  Nothing is “too little” or “too unimportant” for God!

I experienced God’s presence in a “little thing” yesterday.  I was headed for town to meet some friends for lunch, and I left early in order to go to the post office and grocery store.  At the post office, I mailed letters and filled out a change of address form in view of our upcoming move to Southern Wisconsin. 

Then I got back in my car, thinking I’d shop for groceries next.  Absent- mindedly I touched the back of my head, and immediately realized that I had a rubber band in my pony tail but no scrunchie (those decorative elastic fabric thingies). 

Now I never go without a scrunchie, or some kind of hair ornament to cover the rubber band.  Since I carry a spare in my handbag, I began digging to find the extra scrunchie.  In the process of digging, I discovered that my wallet was not in my purse!

Doing mental gymnastics, I reasoned that I must have left the wallet at home–since I’d paid bills at my desk just a day ago.  I had not bought stamps at the post office, so I figured the wallet couldn’t possibly be there.

Since there was plenty of time to spare, I made the 20 minute trip back home–praying, yet confident that the wallet would be waiting for me on my desk.  But guess what!  When I tore into my office I was greeted by an empty desk–with no wallet.

Now a wallet is really a little thing!  Yet losing this “little thing” can make a person feel sick!  In that little thing we keep our driver’s license, check book, credit card, and all our necessary insurance and medical provenance–to say nothing of the possibility of a significant amount of cash.  My recorded identity goes everywhere I go, in my wallet.

So I sat down, feeling ill.  I said, “Okay, Lord!  I know you are here, and you are in charge.  It’s in your hands.”

After more searching in my office, I thought of glancing at the telephone, in the outside chance of the postmistress having called to say I’d left my wallet at the post office.  The absence of a blinking red light on the phone told me there’d been no calls. 

More prayers issued from my sinking frame!  I felt I didn’t need a lost wallet, after 6 weeks of packing and preparing to move our life.  But I kept saying, “Okay, Lord.  Whatever you will!”

Suddenly the phone rang.  I picked it up and saw “U. S. Post Office” on our caller ID.  With a rush of gratitude I heard the postmistress say, “Your wallet is here.  I didn’t call right away because I knew it would take you awhile to get home.”

You can imagine my relief and joy as I drove back to town to retrieve my wallet, shop, and meet my friends for lunch.  I drove along, trying to sing “Amazing Grace”–but my voice cracked up, and I cried tears of thanksgiving.

Then I began to reflect on the “little things” that had happened over the morning.  I’d gone to town without a scrunchie in my hair, something I simply never do.  If I hadn’t noticed the missing scrunchie, I wouldn’t have dug in my purse and realized that my wallet was missing.  I’d have gone to the supermarket and bought a huge load of groceries before discovering that I had no cash and no credit card with which to pay. 

If I’d met my friends for lunch without my wallet, I’d have had to lean on their charity–not the end of the world, but embarrassing to say the least. 

And it would have been extra hours before I’d gotten home to find the message from the postmistress–extra stressful hours of thinking I’d have to cancel a credit card and order replacements for my driver’s license and insurance cards.

Some might chalk these details up to coincidence or luck.  But the words “coincidence” and “luck” have no part in my vocabulary, because I don’t believe in them.  God is in the little things! 

Margaret L. Been 

The Oil of Hospitality

 

“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”  Hebrews 13:2

Now that we’re in the process of moving, I won’t be setting a table like the one pictured above at this moment.  But company is expected today, and I’m as happy and eager for guests to sit and chat with us among the packing cases as if I were rolling out the sterling silverware, fine dishes, and “the whole nine yards” of linen and lace.

The guests who are coming today are not strangers, but good friends.  If God’s Word tells us to entertain strangers, how much more are we expected and privileged to extend hospitality to friends and family members–those loved ones we know?!

In this electronic age, it’s easy to forget that some things on earth still need oil–or at least a metaphorical facsimile thereof.  Like most old fashioned machinery, we humans need oil in order to function smoothly with a minimum of wear and tear:  the oil of hospitality!

Even (and perhaps especially) when inundated by extra life events such as moving, home remodeling, or dealing with a crisis of illness, we’re blessed when we slow down for visitors.  We are refreshed in turn, when we offer refreshment to others–be they strangers, angels unawares, family members, or friends. 

Even when we can’t roll out the whole nine yards, we can still serve a cup of cold water in the Lord’s name!

Margaret L. Been

Living each day . . .

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness . . . . Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its own.”  Matthew 6:33a-34 NIV

My husband and I are in the midst of a life changing move.  We’re leaving our home in our beloved northwoods, for a condo 290 miles away in Southern Wisconsin where we’ll be near family and lifelong friends.

It’s a happy move, in the sense that we are “going home” to the area where we lived nearly forever.  We have missed our family members in the years we’ve lived up north.  Soon we’ll be within minutes of loved ones.

But the move is unsettling as well.  For the last 29 plus years we’ve enjoyed a secluded lifestyle–in homes set in deep woods–21 years in the Kettle Moraine State Forest in Southern Wisconsin and, most recently, 8 years in the wild north.  Now we’re moving to a condo!

There are wonderful things about our new home.  It’s less than 2 miles from the home of one of our daughters.  The condo is set on the edge of a quiet, quaint village–close to farm country yet only 40 minutes from downtown Milwaukee.  Close by are charming communities with leisure time amenities–galleries, cozy bistros, good restaurants, studios offering lessons in a plethora of arts and crafts, antique shops, etc.

The church we attend with our family members in Southern Wisconsin is 3/4 of a mile from our future front door.  On a warmish, sunny day we’ll be able to walk to church!

We can have our precious Baby Dylan (Pembroke Welsh corgi) in our condo, and our patio and front door look onto a pleasant dog walking park.  On every visit to the complex of condos where we’ll be living, we’ve seen people walking their dogs. 

We know that an easy maintenance condo will free us up, affording us more time for family, friends, and hobbies.  God has provided for this sensible move.  A year from now we may wonder why it took so long to decide on a change!

But now, especially when I’m weary from packing, I catch myself fussing about the weeks ahead.  I’m tempted to fret over the details of moving–wondering what we will do when, and how!  Taken as a whole, the logistics of moving and settling can seem overwhelming!

Our Lord tells us to focus on Him, to trust Him rather than worry about tomorrow.  I gird up my will, to focus on His command.  There’s plenty to do each day.  To fret about tomorrow would be rank disobedience on my part. 

Shoving tomorrow far from my mind and heart, I find joy in living each day!  Refusing to worry about tomorrow turns moving into fun.  Nearly every item I wrap has a story behind it–a memory of family gatherings and adventures with loved ones.  I muse over the memories, and thank God for a lifetime of blessings! 

Every box, filled and neatly stacked in a tower of cartons, takes us one step closer to the new adventure which God has planned for my husband and me.  Meanwhile, we are living each day.

Margaret L. Been

My Jewish Family/My Jewish Heart

“And so all Israel shall be saved; as it is written, there shall come out of Zion the Deliverer . . . .” Romans 11:26

“The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of they feet; and they shall call thee, The City of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.”  Isaiah 60:14

Try backtracking to November of 1945.  Imagine that you are 12 years old, in the 7th grade.  However, you’ve only attended 10 days of school so far during that entire semester.  In September you picked up a cold that mutated into a strep throat, hanging on for weeks and finally resulting in pneumonia.

You lived in a small Wisconsin town with no hospital, 8o miles north of Milwaukee.  You were sent to Columbia Hospital in Milwaukee where a new miracle drug, penicillin (having been used in the armed forces  during World War II), had recently been released to that hospital for civilian use.

You were a human guinea pig alias pin cushion.  Every 3 hours around the clock a nurse came at you, wielding something that looked like it could innoculate an elephant.  The needles hurt, and the serum was bulky and painful as it was administered into alternating buttocks. 

This delightful scenario lasted for 2 weeks, after which you were well enough to go home where you continued penicillin treatment–inhaling the drug through an apparatus that looked like a hookah.

I was the guinea pig/pin cushion.  Praise God, I lived to tell about my introduction to penicillin.  But what does my story have to do with the above-pictured Star of David?  Only this:  those 2 weeks were turned into a happy adventure by a loving Jewish family.

My hospital roommate was a middle-aged Jewish lady.  I don’t remember her name, but I can still see her face and hear her voice in my mind.  She was a tranquil, friendly lady and she talked and listened to me a lot.

During visiting hours, our room filled with visitors–my roommate’s husband, her other family members, and friends.  Since my family members were miles away, this family “adopted” me instantly.  They included me in all their greetings and conversations.  They brought me candy and gifts, just as if I were their kid.

One day the husband (a large, jolly man) brought me a glass elephant–with a turned up trunk which pointed skyward.  He said he got it for me because the elephant’s trunk reminded him of my nose.  Since his nose was definitely not turned up, we all laughed hilariously about that.

As I grew older, the hospital experience faded into the misty realm of nearly-forgotten nostalgia.  But it left me with a priceless gift which I know is straight from God:  a Jewish heart.

Years later, shortly after becoming a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, I attended a Bible study on the book of Romans.  The pastor explained in detail the truths of Romans 11:  how the Jews have always been and still are God’s beloved, chosen people and how the Lord Jesus will return to reign as King in Jerusalem–when “all Israel shall be saved”.

My response to the truths of Romans 11 was drastic.  Love for the Jewish people welled up in me, and I did something I rarely do in public:  I wept.  As I sat there I recalled my Jewish family in that hospital room, and I reviewed the centuries of horrors endured by God’s chosen people–through the Holocaust, right up to the strife occuring in the Middle East at that very moment.

As a Christian, I realize that every moment of my life is known to God.  In Eternity Past, He knew me and planned my life.  The hospital scenario was no accident–it didn’t “just happen”. 

God knew in Eternity Past that I would choose to stand firmly with His nation, Israel, in obedience to His will as revealed in Scripture.  And years ago, God gave me a Jewish heart!

Margaret L. Been

P. S.  Yippee!  Whoopee!  Praises!  I just found out that the above entry won “Best Christian Blog of the Week” on http://bestchristianblogoftheweek.blogspot.com/    

“Peace with honor”? A Backward Glance

In early March of 1938, Adolph Hitler forced the resignation of Austrian Chancellor, Kurt Schuschnigg–replacing him with a Nazi “yes man”, Arthur Seyss-Inquart.  On March 12th, 1938, Hitler’s army marched into Austria–establishing the Anschluss, a merger of Austria and Germany to be controlled by Hitler.

The watching world should have been forewarned at that point!  But six months later, in September of 1938, leaders of Britain, Italy, France, and Germany met at Munich over the fate of the Sudentenland–a part of Czechoslovakia largely inhabited by ethnic Germans. 

Hitler wanted the Sudentenland to be part of Germany, and falsely accused Czechs in that area of abusing the ethnic Germans.  Because Hitler threatened war unless Czechoslovakia gave into his demands, the Czech president, Edvard Benes, sought aid from Britain and France. 

Had Britain and France helped Czechoslovakia, the nations of the world might have escaped World War II–and millions of lives, including those of six million Jews, would have been spared.

But history didn’t go that way.  The Munich Conference granted the Sudentenland to Germany–with an “Anti War Pact” between Hitler and Britain’s Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlin, stating that Hitler would demobilize when the Czech goverment fulfilled the terms of the conference.

Chamberlin returned to England, boasting that he had achieved “peace in our time”.  Large crowds followed Chamberlin from the airport to London, where he made a braggadocious proclamation:  “A British Prime Minister has returned from Germany bringing peace with honor.”

By March of 1939, the Nazis gained control of all of Czechoslovakia.  And on September 1, 1939 Hitler attacked Poland, launching World War II.

Why don’t we learn from history?  This very day, our American president is touring the Middle East on a mission of procuring what Chamberlin called “peace in our time . . a peace with honor”.

Just as Chamberlin’s “peace” affected God’s people, the Jews, in unspeakable ways, President Obama’s view of “peace” involves promoting unity with those Arab nations dedicated to the extermination of God’s nation of Israel.

But praise God, history will not end there.  God’s promise to redeem Israel stands, unaltered and irrevocable. 

In Romans 11:2a we read, “God hath not cast away His people which He foreknew.” 

Romans 11:26 assures us, “And so all Israel shall be saved, as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliver, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob.”

God will prevail, and His nation of Israel and the Holy City of Jerusalem will be spared–to flourish as the seat of blessing where our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will reign as Messiah for 1000 years.

“But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow into it.  And many nations shall come, and say, ‘Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths; for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem.’ “  Micah 4:1-2

For additonal input pertaining to the end times and Israel, please see my blog:  God’s Word is True:  http://hiswordistrue.wordpress.com/ 

Margaret L. Been