Family movie nights are great this time of year. All cozied up, under fuzzy blankets and wearing festive jammies. Surrounded by Christmas decorations, sweet smells of the nearby Christmas tree, and enjoying special treats. Earlier this month, our family watched The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. We have seen it many times. We've seen all the versions. It is one of the many, many movies we enjoy watching this time of the year.

“The Grinch hated Christmas!
The whole Christmas season!
Now, please don't ask why.
No one quite knows the reason.”

Let’s be honest, we all have times where we resemble the mean one who is as cuddly as a cactus and charming as an eel. You may not be a nasty, wasty skunk... but you do probably get occasionally grinchy. You're not alone. Overwhelmed by all the things we convince ourselves we have "to do" before we can enjoy the season. Indeed, we all have moments of “grinch-ness” during this time of the year; and there could be all sorts of reasons for it. Maybe it’s because we will not get the Christmas bonus we were waiting for. Maybe we are told that we will not get the one gift we really want this year. Maybe our Christmas tree has prematurely keeled over and lost all its needles. Maybe the one gift our kids/grandkids really want has us racing all over the place. Maybe the fun, old-fashioned family celebrations have gone awry. Maybe we are left to celebrate alone at home this year. Maybe our friends won’t let us play any games with them. Maybe we feel like we’re melting under the heat and pressure of all we still have to do. Maybe we are just sad that we can’t go home for the holidays or be surrounded by family. Maybe our spouse or child is a scrooge. Maybe the bells of Christmas are too hard to hear over the distracting noise of worldly politics and hardship.

​Maybe… Maybe… Maybe…
 
Whatever the case… let us find time to rejoice in the reason for this season. Mary was the first recipient of the Christmas story and after she heard and experienced it all she spent time to let it sink in. The angels, the shepherds, the birth of the Savior… “Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19) Take time this Advent season to treasure up and ponder the gift of Jesus. Open your Bible. Find a devotional booklet. Spend a few minutes in prayer. This will be worth the time and effort to fend off unwelcome grinch-ness during this Christmas season.

"Cheer up, dude. It's Christmas" (The Grinch)

This past Tuesday morning, while raiding the Walmart shelves of all their pre-built gingerbread houses, I was within earshot of two employees talking with each other. They were loud, and clearly not happy.  I have no idea what the context of their conversation was, but some of the phrases I overheard them say were: “How were we supposed to know?”  “That might be true, but I had no idea.” “Well, no one told me.” Their tones were clearly infused with much exasperation and annoyance.  Again, I have no idea what their gripe was about. I quickly carted up my gingerbread boxes and went on my way. Curious though I was, I did not want to eavesdrop on their frustrations. However, their complaints come to mind as we near our Last Sunday of the Church Year this coming weekend.  As I’ve mentioned in church recently, the last weeks of the church calendar focus on the return of Jesus.  “And He will come again with glory to judge both the living and the end, whose kingdom will have no end.” (Nicene Creed)
 
Jesus is coming. Again. In Glory. With a purpose. To establish His Kingdom and usher in a new creation. To sift the wheat from the chaff, to separate the sheep from the goats, to divide the righteous from the unrighteous.  In this moment, all who call on the name of Jesus will be saved. This is the beautiful, comforting promise of the scriptures. When will this be? Of course, no one knows.  Thus, in the meantime, we have a job to do.  The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 10:14, “How can people have faith in the Lord and ask him to save them, if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear, unless someone tells them?” (CEV) This is not a desperate plea only for the church to raise up pastors and missionaries. This is a directive for all of God’s people to be vocal about their faith. They echo the words of Jesus from a couple of Sundays ago urging His disciples to look for the opportunities around them to bear witness (cf. Luke 21:13).  As Christians, we have been declared righteous by God—only by His grace revealed to us in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.  This means that whenever Christ does return, we have nothing to fear. We are saved already and will be kept forever safe in the hull of His church. 
 
This is not an exclusive club; it is open to all. 
And... there is always room for more!
With the holidays approaching, can you invite a friend or neighbor to hear the Good News about Jesus, the Word made Flesh, with you? 

How about at our Thanksgiving Eve worship? Advent by Candlelight? Advent Luncheons? Live Nativity? Christmas Eve or Christmas Day worship? How about a local Christmas concert? A movie or play based on the Nativity story? A Sunday worship service (no matter where that might be)? Invite them. Sit with them. Take them out for a meal or hot cocoa afterwards.
 
Opportunities abound here at church, and in many other places this time of year, to engage people with the hope and joy of Jesus. Going back to the perturbed words of the Walmart employees… how else could they know? What if no one tells them?  Not about some new store policy or shelve-stocking mandate, but about the reason for our Christmas celebrations!
How will your dear friends and family know, unless you speak up and invite them?
 
“Love people, serve people and point them to Jesus when they ask why you care.” (unknown)
 
“I believe as we work, God will always give us opportunities to tell others about his Son. ... We are there to reach out to love them and to save them, and as a Christian, I do this in the name of Jesus Christ.” (Franklin Graham)
 
“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have, [doing so] with gentleness and respect…” (1 Peter 3:15 NIV)

Psalm 99:1 declares: “The Lord reigns; let the nations tremble.”   In every age, God’s people have looked around at the world and wondered what’s happening. Leaders rise and fall. Nations boast and threaten. Policies change. Uncertainty spreads. Divisions increase. Hostility gets louder. It can be easy to feel anxious or powerless as we watch the news or think about the future. But God’s Word reminds us of something far greater and far more certain: the Lord reigns. 

Our God is not surprised by the events of this world. He is not wringing His hands or trying to regain control. He is not shocked; He is not mocked. From His throne, He rules over all things — presidents, parliaments, wars, and economies. Even when earthly rulers seem powerful, their authority is only temporary and permitted by the One who holds all power in His hands. As the prophet Daniel said, “He changes times and seasons; He deposes kings and raises up others” (Daniel 2:21).
 
To be sure, much of our reality and God’s action is thus veiled in mystery. We cannot pretend to know or fully comprehend the works of God; so much remains hidden. We will never fully grasp all the things God allows to take place—whether we applaud them or are offput by them. Nevertheless, for those who belong to Christ, this truth is not meant to make us fearful but comforted. Because the same Lord who reigns over the nations is also the Lord who hung on the cross for our salvation. His sovereign rule is not cold or distant — it is loving and purposeful. He rules for the sake of His people, for the good of His Church, and for the glory of His name.
 
So… when the headlines seem heavy or politics seem chaotic, we remember—Jesus is still Lord. He always will be. God not only preserves His creation, but He is actively involved in caring for it. He exists in it. He is present in our modern-day context. Our crucified, risen King sits on the throne even now. His kingdom cannot be shaken, and His promises cannot fail.

• “This, therefore, is also essentially necessary and wholesome for Christians to know: That God foreknows nothing by contingency, but that He foresees, purposes, and does all things according to His immutable, eternal, and infallible will.” (Martin Luther)

 

• “For if you doubt, or are too proud to acknowledge, that God foreknows and wills all things, not contingently, but necessarily and immutably, how can you believe, trust, and rely upon His promises? … The greatest and only consolation of Christians in all adversities lies in knowing that God does not lie, but brings all things to pass immutably, and that His will can neither be resisted, changed nor hindered.” (Martin Luther)

 

• “Most Christians salute the sovereignty of God but live like they believe in the sovereignty of man.” (R.C. Sproul)

 

• ““If I go to Jesus, he’s not under my control. He lets things happen that I don’t understand. He doesn’t do things according to my plan, or in a way that makes sense to me. But if Jesus is God, then he’s got to be great enough to have some reasons to let you go through things you don’t understand. His power is unbounded, but so are his wisdom and love.” (Tim Keller)

God has a funny sense of humor.  After sharing with you all this past Sunday morning, how my family thinks I’m the G.O.A.T., I was quickly put back in my proper place.  Yesterday, at our NJ District Pastor’s Conference, I was given some very humbling news—at least for me and the rest of the preachers in attendance.  According to most recent research and statistics, pastors are the least effective persons when it comes to actually bringing outside people into church.  You read that correctly.  I am the least effective.

Apparently, I’m not as important as I think! People see a preacher coming and they run the opposite direction. For the most part, studies show that before a preacher can even begin a conversation with the intent to invite people to church, their audience is already compiling excuses in their heads and looking for a quick exit from the conversation.  Bummer! 
 
But… all hope is not lost!  The good news is that YOU are the ones who have the power. You are the effective outreach-ers to our community on behalf of our church. You are the effective bringers of the Gospel. You are the listened to inviters for our community. And you don’t have to go stand on a soapbox in the middle of a crowd; you can stay off the random street corners.  The same research shows that most fruit is gathered and collected as you engage people you already have relationships with—seeking to connect people to Jesus where you live, work, and play.  Jesus wasn’t joking when he said, “the harvest is plentiful” (Matt. 9:37). 

This crop is indeed ripe for picking, and it is filled with our closest friends, neighbors, and coworkers. And I’ve seen it happen here!  The evidence is in church on Sunday mornings, about 3-4 pews from the front, on the pulpit side of the sanctuary.  Longtime member Janet, about a year ago, invited her friend Ellen.  Ellen has been coming ever since.  Months later, Janet and Ellen invited Susan. Susan has been coming ever since.  All three of them have more recently invited other friends to join them—and they have.  Ellen and Susan will be in our New Member Class in the New Year.  Perhaps they’ll have a few other friends sitting beside them. These three ladies tell me that their goal is to “fill up an entire pew.” 

Praise God! 😊
What a wonderful, goal.
One that we should all have.
Let’s fill up these pews!

​I’m not sure about your neighborhood, but ours has been extremely “lit” the last few days!
 
Homes up and down our block are arrayed in bright, flashing lights.  Lamps and lanterns hang from the front porches.  Fireworks and sparklers go off late into the night, driving my poor dog into a restless panic. Men are dressed in special apparel and women wear dresses with bright colors and floral patterns. Sweets and gifts are shared with each other. Why?  All of our Indian neighbors have been celebrating Diwali. This is one of the most celebrated Hindu festivals (usually spanning about five days) and commemorates the desired victory of good triumphing over evil, knowledge over ignorance, and inner light over spiritual darkness. Specific tribes/regions additionally ascribe other various meanings based on their pantheon of gods. Diwali is a celebration and honoring of their many different Hindu gods.  Yet no matter which story is associated with Diwali, they all share the common theme of good defeating evil, a new beginning. Moreover, as I understand this celebration, it is all about looking inwardly to the self—to an inner “force” that pushes our own illumination of good over evil.
 
To be sure, looking inward is not a bad thing.
Deciding to do better is commendable.
Desiring a fresh start is not bad.
Being more intentional about doing good is admirable.
 
However, as Christians, we believe that no matter how hard we try, we cannot be the “light” that this world so desperately craves. Darkness is indeed a problem; but we are not the solution. We cannot put an end to the darkness and evil of our corrupted world.   No amount of well-intended soul searching will solve the problem of sin and conquer evil.  This is only done by Jesus; He is the redemptive illumination.  In John 8:12, Jesus says: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”  If the underlying story of Diwali, irrespective of its origin, is the victory of good over the forces of evil and the power of light that outshines darkness, followers of Christ can see strong gospel themes inherent in it.  In fact, we have the singular person who destroys evil and restores people.
 
While Christians can respect Diwali’s cultural significance or even celebrate the joy it brings to our neighbors, we should see it primarily as an occasion to point to Jesus. We don’t need to speak of victory in a general sense. Our new beginning is not something we still search for, but something we are certain of. Looking outside of ourselves, we look to Jesus. We find a certain guarantee that our victory over darkness is already done and accomplished—it is found in a singular person, with flesh and blood!  Jesus is the true Light who conquered all evil on the cross and shines forever through His resurrection. As followers of Christ, we look for ways to invite our Hindu friends to encounter the same Jesus—the one who, through his life, teachings, and bold claims, embodies the true meaning behind the symbolism of Diwali.
 
So, smile politely at your neighbors. Respectively wave as they go past. Graciously receive any gifts or treats they bring over. But also look for an opportunity to talk about the Light of Jesus. Find the common ground. Utilize our shared imagery. Take time to ask them about what light means to them. Then pray boldly that God will give you the courage and wisdom to show them the light of Jesus that lives inside of you. Talk about the “Light” that does not come from within, but from above!  “I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” (Psalm 121:1-2)
 
“This little light of mine… I’m gonna let it shine!”
 
“This is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5)

You're not good enough... and that's OK!

​Last night on the news, I heard a prominent, powerful person being interviewed by the press. They said they wanted to “do good things” so they can make God happy. They wanted to do good things so they could get to the next level, so they could get to heaven. 

​Good goal. Misguided intentions. Very bad theology.
 
Of course, this frame of mind is not unique to one individual. And though it is heart-wrenching, it is not at all surprising. About four years ago, a research article was published by American Worldview Inventory that said well over 50% of self-professing Christians believe good works will help get them to heaven. The study also found that “huge proportions of people” associated with churches whose official doctrine says eternal salvation comes only from embracing Jesus Christ as savior “believe that a person can qualify for Heaven by being or doing good.” That included plenty of Lutherans too.  Furthermore, only one-third of American adults (35%) continue to embrace the traditional biblical view that salvation comes exclusively through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Four years later, with church attendance and biblical literacy on the steady decline, I suspect these percentages have not gotten any better. It is a sad situation that half the Christian church (at least in our country) thinks they can earn their way into heaven.
 
So let me be clear, you can’t. You are not good enough.
Don’t even try.
You’re wasting your time.
It is not possible.
 
People are taught from childhood to work hard and be the best at what they do. As children they compete to make the team. As older kids they compete to earn the college scholarships. As adults they compete for the best-paying jobs. Hard work can bring rewards. Sometimes children and adults may win awards and ribbons in contests simply for trying or just for participation. In the places where we are employed, the reward is a paycheck. That is how things work in our world. Hard work may bring rewards, in trophies, ribbons, or wages.
 
But, when it comes to establishing a relationship with God, none of this hard work can accomplish anything. No matter how hard we try, we cannot make God meet us on our own terms. We cannot earn His favor or measure up to His standards. Last week during 1st Communion class, we read these words: “For there is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:22b-23)  This makes it pretty clear. We are not good enough. We never will be. No matter how hard we try, it is not possible.  Your best efforts are futile; your good intentions mean nothing. There are no awards for trying to earn forgiveness from Him. Even the most skillful business negotiator cannot reach a deal with God. We have nothing to bring to the table. “None is righteous, no not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. ” (Romans 3:10b-11). We can’t even win a participation award because “all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.” (Isaiah 64:6b)

You're not good enough. But that's OK. In fact, it is a prerequisite for God's grace. 
 
We are sinners. We fall short of God’s glory. We cannot make a deal that will save us. God alone can make that deal and He has done so in Christ. We are justified by God’s grace as a gift through faith in Jesus. It was not our work that saves us, but the work of Jesus Christ—His sinless life, His redeeming death, and His resurrection. This past Sunday, we sang these words, “Thy works, not mine, O Christ … they tell me all is done.” Everything has been done. We need not try to add anything more; there is nothing left to earn. It has all been given to us by the nail-scarred hands of our Savior. We have been reconciled to God because Jesus suffered the penalty of death that we deserved for our sins.
 
Make no mistake. It is still a good thing for us to “do good things.”  But remember, such effort never effects our salvation; it only reflects our new life in Christ.  Baptized into the Name of the Triune God, we have been born again to a new life. Now, dressed in Jesus’ righteousness, our work as His followers begins! We live to serve Him through serving others. Like living, thriving trees, through the work of the Holy Spirit we produce the fruit of good works. These works of love and service and witness glorify God and draw attention, not to us, but to our Savior, who alone can atone for sin.
 
“Thy works, not mine, O Christ,
Speak gladness to this heart;
They tell me all is done,
They bid my fear depart.
 
“Thy righteousness, O Christ,
Alone can cover me;
No righteousness avails
Save that which is of Thee.”  (LSB 565, stz. 1,4)


h/t to LHM Daily Devotion from 10.5.25

A couple of weeks ago, one of our members shared with me the attendance records of our church from the first ten years of its inception (1957-1967).  Apparently, there were a lot more Lutherans in New Jersey about sixty years ago!  For instance, during the year of 1966, the average Sunday morning attendance here was 327 people, with nearly 100 adults in Bible study—each week.  Not too shabby! 
 
We are not quite there yet, but we are trending in the right direction. Thank you for being so faithful in our worship together. At the beginning of this year, we encouraged each household/family from our church membership to prioritize worship at least two Sundays a month. Why? Because we are stronger when we are together—praying together, loving each other, helping each other.  We are a healthier and more faithful church—and can make a more noticeable impact in our community—when we worship and Bible study together!  Twice a month… not too daunting. So many of you have done that. You have shown up. Thank you!  And if you haven’t, it is never too late!
 
Why is this important?  Worship is not about filling a box on a spiritual checklist. It is not about impressing God. It is not about satisfying the pastor’s quota.  Worship is intended for your benefit.  It is the spiritual comfort that God offers to us in the Word of Absolution, the Good News proclaimed in the sermon, our mutual prayers, and the peace bestowed in the Lord’s Supper.  Worship is not what we do for God as we sing or kneel, but chiefly what God freely gives to us through His Word and Sacraments.  It puts us in the most profound Gospel reception spot, where our loving God comforts troubled sinners with the tender words that our iniquities are pardoned for Jesus’ sake.  The reason we attend worship with our fellow redeemed is so that together we can receive the comfort of God’s precious gifts.  Author Roger Pittelko writes, “The dictionary understanding makes worship our action or our response.  It turns worship into an anthropocentric activity that is measured and normed by what we do, by what we understand God to be.  The evangelical Lutheran understanding of worship is just the opposite.  It is from God to us.  It begins with God.  It is Him pouring into us, lifting us up.  Worship has its foundation and sources with God.” (Lutheran Worship: History and Practice) 
 
May our church, King of Kings, continue to be an open, welcoming place for all who walk in to hear the bold, unapologetic teaching of God’s Word. Let us be a place where people are comforted by the Gospel and uplifted by their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.  We haven’t quite hit 327 worshipers each Sunday (yet), but by His grace, we will get there! 😉
​

September… already.  This past Tuesday night, my daughter and I took the dog for a walk, crunching on the occasional fallen leaf resting on the sidewalk. Fall will be here soon. 

Time flies bye, way too fast. My oldest son, hopefully, gets his driver’s license the end of this year. It’s crazy. For some time now, we were hoping to turn my grandmother’s car into his first. It is a 2004 Hyundai XG350. Never heard of it? Not surprising. That’s because they don’t make them anymore. They haven’t for a while.  In fact, they only made them from 2002-2005. Though the car is old, it is in pristine condition. It is your typical “old lady car”—used almost exclusively to go back-and-forth to church and the occasional trip to the grocery store.  To get it tuned-up and prepped for our young permit driver, we dropped it off at a nearby Hyundai dealership. You should have seen the faces of their workers when I drove that car into the garage. They clearly hadn’t seen one of those in quite some time. Truth be told, most of the mechanics were probably younger than the car itself!
 
Unfortunately, after several weeks under the mechanical microscope, it has been decided that the juice isn’t quite worth the squeeze.  Quite frankly the car is just too old to invest the time, effort, and money to keep it running.  Because the car is 20+ years old, and has sat relatively unused for many years, there are many repairs and servicing that are necessary. Things need to be replaced, flushed, and restored. However, the car has long stopped being manufactured; and Hyundai itself does not even make the parts for it anymore. Safety features are obviously outdated. And beyond the long list of what we know needs to be fixed, there are also unknown issues looming based on signs and sounds we are hearing from an aged engine.  Bummer. It would have been nice. A great first car. Practical and Sentimental. Can't beat the price. Plus, it seems like a safe assumption that my son would have been the only kid in school with a cassette deck in his car. How cool is that?! Alas, it is not to be.

Call up Kars-4-Kids.
​Our used car searching begins again.
 
Too old. Hidden problems. Aging parts. Too many issues. Broken. Falling apart. Outdated. Not worth fixing. Can you imagine if our Heavenly Father looked at us with this mindset? We would all be done for. Hopeless. Destined for the spiritual junkyard. But instead, God looks at each of us and calls us His own. He doesn’t give up on us. In the waters of baptism, He scoops up our aged pieces and broken parts to begin building us anew. We are a “new creation” the Bible reminds us (2 Cor. 5:17).  This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!  Our God knows that we are in rough shape; but He refuses to let us rust away. To Him, we are absolutely worth saving. So much so that He invests His literal blood, sweat, and tears. Just as He promised, and purely motivated by His grace and mercy, our God has made us new again (cf. Rev. 21:5).  Purchased at the cost of His own blood, we have been given a second chance. In spite of the wear and tear we have from life in a bumpy, sinful world, we have a God that has no problem pouring the necessary TLC we need to endure. 

​We have that new-car smell again.  We are renewed, refurbished, and ready for the road!
 
“God made us: invented us as a man invents an engine. A car is made to run on petrol, and it would not run properly on anything else. Now God designed the human machine to run on Himself.” (C. S. Lewis)
 
“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and to carefully observe My ordinances.” (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

Last Friday, I drove my car over to my father’s garage to change the brakes. Four years since purchasing it, I still had my original brakes on. Not too shabby. They were overdue for a change.  The twists and turns of Sussex County roads and the stop-and-go of Route 80 traffic are far more taxing on car brakes then the straight, flat roads of the Midwest.  Upon closer inspection, my pads were much lower than I thought. Not dangerous or deadly, yet… but well on their way. They would have been screeching and squealing in no time.
 
For most people, the fall season really starts to speed up our schedules. Relaxing days of summer are gone. No more lazy days. No more vacations. The lakes and beaches are nearly closed for the summer.  Back to reality. No more sleeping in. Time to set the too-early alarm clock again.  Back to commitments and obligations. We are once again bound to schedules and timelines beyond our control. School starts. Work meetings resume. Business travels are booked. Even our church calendar, as you’ll notice below, ramps up again. Fast paced. Our family calendar is once again quickly filling up with a color-coded array of school commitments, practice and game times, orthodontist appointments, and so much more.
 
I know my family is not alone. Living in northern New Jersey, we are no strangers to the “Go, Go, Go” mindset that is ever so prevalent in the upper northeast. All gas, no brakes. It is an unavoidable demarcation to living in this part of the country. Sadly, most people wear this rat-race mentality as a badge of honor; they see it as a good thing. Something to be proud of, a way to get ahead.  However, like the beaches along the Jersey coastline all of last week, allow me to raise the bright red caution flags!  There is a better way, a more balanced and healthier approach.  It would do us well to slow down and check our spiritual brake pads, or more aptly spiritual break pads.  We ought to make sure we take time to rest, time to be with the Lord, time to worship, time to pray.  Yeah, I get it… “Football practices, doctor appointments, visiting family, blah, blah, blah.”  As enjoyable as these things may be, these are merely excuses and distractions that the devil successfully uses to sidetrack and confuse us.  It takes our eyes off Jesus because we are so obsessed with keeping up with ways and expectations of this world. Before too long, we feel overwhelmed and overburdened.  We are careening down the highway of life, and we can’t stop.  Have to keep up. Have to “go, go, go” and we have no time to slow down. 
 
Listen up my friends… take heed, lest we crash and burn. Pull into our Heavenly Father’s garage. Sit down in His sanctuary. Turn off the proverbial car for an hour.  Let our graciously patient God check the pads, rotors, and everything else that’s going on under your hood.  Give Him a few minutes to work on you a bit. Let Him replace what needs replacing with His comfort and strength.  In Matthew 11:28, Jesus says, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”  What a beautiful invitation, and a much need prescription to prevent us from screeching and squealing our way through our chaotic calendars and our tumultuous timelines.
 
Slow down.
​Rest. Brake. Break.
 
Lay off the gas and allow God to recharge you in these weekly (daily) moments when life exhausts you.
 
 “To be fully alive, you need time with God to recharge.” (Craig Groeschel)
 
“He gives power to the faint and increases the strength of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall. But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:29-31)

Last week, our family intended to get away for a mini-vacation. Now that the youth gathering is over and our baseball season has finally ended, we wanted to get away for some family time during the small window before fall activities start up. Head north up to Maine where we have yet to go. We’ve heard so many good things. Unfortunately, and for a variety of different reasons, our plans never really came together. Acadia State Park will have to wait for now.  Bummer. Such is life. The best laid plans…
 
My family is certainly not the first to have our plans derailed by circumstances beyond our control. We are not the first to not take the vacation. We are not unique in having plans never come to fruition. Not the first, and definitely not the last.  We’ve all been there plenty of times before. Plans crumble, intentions fall apart.    The Old Testament reading for this coming Sunday is from the prophet Isaiah.  In this reading, we are reminded that in a world of trouble and unrest, idolatry and best-laid plans there is only one steady solution. The ways of this world may lead to disappointment and death, but the Lord provides the way out.

The verses prior to this reading paint a terrible picture of judgement against those who reject and mock the Lord; but we are then reminded that God provides a way of escape for those who trust in Him. He promises that while the many plans and efforts of men will be consumed by fire; those that remain faithful will worship the Lord forever. “And they shall come and shall see my glory, and I will set a sign among them,” the Lord declares (66:18).  Even hundreds of years before His arrival, the prophet Isaiah anticipated the sign. Jesus is that sign. In Jesus, the ultimate plan of redemption and salvation comes to fruition.  This plan is none other than God’s Himself and cannot be foiled. It cannot crumble or fall apart. What a beautiful, permanent vacation awaits us in the remade heavens and earth of our God!
 
“The LORD detests the thoughts of the wicked, but the words of the pure are pleasant to Him.” (Proverbs 15:26)