“Come to Me …”The accelerator (gas pedal) kept sticking on the old 63 VW Bug. When you wanted to stop and pushed in the clutch the motor just stayed revved up. The pushing down wasn’t the problem, letting off the gas was. You had to reach down, drive blind for a second, and pull it back with your hand, not a good or save idea.You ever feel like that? That your accelerator is stuck? That your life stays revved up? And even when you have a moment to stop your insides, your mind, your emotions continue to race? The questions, the anger, the frustrations, the worries, the fears, the pain, the being overwhelmed, and the thoughts just won’t return to idle? And it would be nice if it were as easy as reaching down to pull back the pedal, but you have no idea where the pedal is?Unfortunately we live in a culture that stays revved up, and if anything the RPMs are only increasing. Couch potatoes are glued to TVs, computers, and video games. Something seems to be always on, the music, the talk, and the images never stop. We are rarely disconnected; the phone is never off, always within reach. The I-Pod plays and plays, and all along more and more and more information. Our response as a society is to take more and more pills hoping to unstick the accelerator. We drink more, grow more pot, seek more distractions, and try anything and everything to unwind. Because we know, like that 63 VW Beetle, we are not built to run without idling. We are not meant to go through life with the pedal to the metal. If we do, we wear out, we get sick, we break down, and eventually we’ll blow up the motor.It’s the back of the gas pedal and the linkage that’s the problem. Those parts are worn out from use and a spring is missing. I came up with a temporary fix and then went online to order replacement parts. That’s so much like us isn’t it? We jump at the temporary fix because it allows to keep going, except it is, well, temporary and so we find ourselves back to square one sooner than later. Don’t you wish it were as easy as ordering a few replacement parts and installing them? Then again maybe it is?Ferdinand Porsche, who designed the VW Beetle, was by all accounts a brilliant guy. He knew that besides his design the car also needed a regular maintenance schedule for oil changes, valve adjustments, etc, and that the car should be regularly inspected to look for and fix worn out parts. And it needed to be driven right, understanding that it wasn’t a race car.God, who designed you and me, is without question more brilliant than all of the world’s geniuses, including you. He knows that there are things we regularly need to keep going. Weekly worship and rest, daily prayer, continual adherence to the operating and maintenance manual (the Bible), driving/living with gratitude, simplicity, generosity, compassion, humility, selflessness, doing good, and Christlikeness.If you own a VW Bug you can ignore Ferdinand, but don’t be surprised if your accelerator sticks and all kinds of things break prematurely and leave you stranded. If you have life and breath (since you read this far it is safe to assume that you do), you can ignore God, but don’t be surprised if your accelerator sticks, all kinds of things break down, and no amount of pills, alcohol, pot, fun activities, fancy vacations, metaphysical gyrations, or strange “spiritual” practices will bring you lasting peace and rest for your soul.When things are broken in your life, when things stick, when you no longer know how to slow or settle down, when anxiety, fears, worries, destructive habits, and a lack of inner peace are part of your reality, your life, it is a sure sign you need to remember and return to your Designer, your Creator, God, and His wisdom and ways for living.“Come to Me, all you who labor (are weary) and are heavy laden (burdened), and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30 (NKJV, parenthesis mine) To God be all glory, love you Pastor Hans
Why?
Why?!Why can just be curious, “I wonder why bald men are better looking?”Why can be an exclamation, “Why I’ll be, that kid does know how to clean his room!”Why can be accusatory, “Why did you do that?”“Well I thought it was funny.” (bad, very bad answer)Why can be mean, “Why you’re just dumb, you’ll never amount to anything.”Why can be filled with self-pity, “Why me (God)?”Why can be confused, “Why do the wicked prosper?Why can be mad, angry, “Why are you not saying anything? Speak to me when I am talking to you.”Why can be hurting, filled with pain, “Why am I suffering?”Why can be a combination, “Why did you let this happen God?”God is no stranger when it comes to our whys. In fact He is often at the end of our whys, especially when we suffer, are in pain, confused, hurting, and think things are unjust or not fair. When we do not understand why God who is all powerful and loving does not intervene, prevent evil from happening, come to our aid, or set things right.The pages of scripture are filled with people who asked, “why?” Habakkuk is known as the prophet who asked, “Why?”“Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds.Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong. Why then do you tolerate the treacherous? Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?” Habakkuk 1:3-4, 13 (NIV) God knows we ask, “Why?” confused, angry, hurting whys. I am glad I get to bring those to Him as well. In fact I have found God and Christ to be the best resting place for myself and my whys. If I don’t rest them there I will rest them somewhere else like in anger, or bitterness, or apathy, cynicism, and a host of other attitudes, behaviors, and destinations – none of which I care for and God has in mind for me for. So I pray you and I will bring our whys to God and rest them there and find God’s incredible peace in the midst of it all.To God be all glory, love you pastor HansP.S. On the flipside, how good are we at hearing God when He asks, “Why?
Junior, Shaheed, peace, and a short list
It has been a trying few weeks for Susie and I. Our Grandson, “Junior,” was abused so badly by his Dad, our son, that he went into cardiac arrest and ended up at Oakland Children’s Hospital with catastrophic brain injuries. We often referred to Shaheed as our bonus son, because God placed him into our family when he was almost fifteen. He presented us with lots of “challenges” that stretched our love thin more than once, but nothing like this. A few days into the ordeal Shaheed finally confessed, was arrested, and is now jail waiting for the judicial process to take its course.Anger, such anger, confusion, deeper than deep disappointment, shame, questions, so many questions, disbelief, shock, broken-heartedness, sorrow beyond words, yes, overwhelming sorrow and grief have filled our days. How could he? Why did he? The lies. The brutality. The caring for nothing but himself. The utter absence of excuses. The senselessness. The pain, Junior’s pain, his Mama’s pain. Hoping for a miracle, constant bleak medical outlooks, praying that this will not end with Junior in a long term vegetative state. Changes that look good and seem encouraging and yet might not be at all. Weariness. Sorrow. Our hearts and minds like parched ground yearning for drops of peace, that peace of God beyond understanding.I haven’t taken his calls, not willing to pay $15 per call, afraid I’d say things I’d regret. A letter is as far as I have gotten. I have gotten various unsolicited advice though, which I am sure was meant to be helpful but if I am honest was hurtful.I was sitting on our back deck a few days, in the coolness of early morning, thinking, praying, wondering how to navigate through this in a godly, Christlike way. So I reviewed in my mind sure directives from God’s word (the Bible), things I knew applied regardless of how I felt, words I could fully trust to be of the Holy Spirit. It didn’t take long before I had a short list, and surprisingly that list poured peace into my heart, settled my mind, refreshed my soul. I believe that moment to be an answer to the many prayers friends, brothers and sisters in Christ, have lifted up on my behalf. I believe that moment God wept with me and let His mercies and compassions, which are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23), fall on me.Maybe you are wondering what the list mentioned above entailed? Here it is:
- I have to forgive, forgiveness is not optional for a follower of Jesus.
“Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you” Ephesians 4:32 (NASB).“And forgive us our sins, For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation” Luke 11:4 (NASB).
- I have to love, it too is not optional for Christian.
"This I command you, that you love one another” John 15:17 (NASB) “We love, because He first loved us. If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen” 1 John 4:19-20 (NASB)
- I have to be careful not to let bitterness take a foothold in me.
“ Make sure that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness springs up, causing trouble and by it, defiling many” Hebrews 12:15 (HCSB)
- I am allowed to be angry, but I am not allowed to sin in my anger.
“ BE ANGRY , AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger” Ephesians 4:26 (NASB).“This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God” James 1:19-20 (NASB).
- I need to guard my tongue which means I need to guard my thoughts.
“ Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” Ephesians 4:29-30 (NIV).Thank you for all your praying, caring, and loving.To God be all glory, Pastor Hans
Numbers
NumbersI have a social security number, passport #, alien registration #, a medical record #, driver’s license #, three telephone numbers, Flying Blue #, student I.D. #, and a AAA number. There are also credit card numbers, PIN #s, bank account #s, power, water, phone, insurance account #s, tax assessor #, and our street number. All of our cars have both a license and VIN #. Every appliance in our kitchen, anything electronic in house, each power tool in my garage has at least a model and a serial number. Heck even our dogs have a number on their tags.Some of these numbers are pretty important. If they fall into the wrong hands your identity can be stolen, your money can be drained from your accounts, your life turned into a mess.What about if you are assigned a number, or if you have to take a number? When you are reduced to number, when your name is no longer important, when who you are is no longer important?How about if some has your number, when they have you figured out? If they don’t love that can be scary, frustrating, and filled with pain.And what do you do when your number is up. Nothing I suppose, because we don’t decide when that is.Some keep waiting for their lucky number to come up, for some machine to spit out some balls with numbers they picked and paid for. Waiting and hoping to beat the odds, to have enough money for paradise now.There are haunting, weeping numbers like the number of children who went to bed hungry today, the number of lives snuffed out by war and violence today, or the number of women and children abused today, the millions who are enslaved, aborted, forgotten, discarded, and spiritually lost..There are shameful numbers like our National and individual debt, the number of pounds of our collective overweight, the number of children killed by abortion, the amount of money spend on gambling, porn, self-indulgence, decadence, and war and destruction vs. what is spend on doing good.There are also glorious numbers. Like the number one, when one sinner repents, or when one person returns to give God thanks (Luke 15:7, 17:114-15). Or the number of the acts of compassion and kindness that qualify for what Jesus said, "…, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me” Matthew 25:40 (NIV).One thing is for sure, no one knows the numbers better than God. He knows the number of birds flying, the number of the hairs on each head. To him we are never a just a number, He knows our names. If we are not careful we will care about the wrong numbers, or fall prey to the way numbers can depersonalize and keep from caring.So what do your numbers say about you? What are the numbers you care about? And how do your numbers square with what God cares about?To God be all glory, love you, Pastor HansP.S. Why did God have the Israelites count so much in the book of Numbers if He already knew the numbers? Send your reply to dergermanshepherd@gmail.com, Pastor Hans, 4175 Abeto Street, La Grange, Ca 95329.
02-19-12 A Knocked Out Hummingbird
The little thing hit the window hard. So hard it knocked itself out. Luckily my daughter Andee was close by and picked up the unconscious little Hummingbird before our dogs noticed.Hummingbirds, in spite of their size, are amazing creatures, flying acrobats. No other bird can do the areal maneuvers they are capable of, able to hover, fly backwards, sideways, or straight up and down. They slow their heart rates when resting, and if you and I were to burn calories like them we would need to eat 30,000 a day.I have often watched them at the feeders in front of our large living room window, sometimes, when the light hits them just right incredible colors light up, especially on their heads and throats. And those little guys fight, they have fierce air battles and high speed chases. But for all my Hummingbird watching have never seen one as up close as the little knocked out one in my daughter’s hand. What a beautiful creature it was, delicate, feather light, and covered in bright, almost neon green feathers that had sparkles of silver; a true work of art, a testimony to the creativity, imagination, and sense of beauty of God, its maker.Equally amazing is the fact that this bird’s crash not only was noticed by Andee. Almighty God saw it all even before she did, and who knows maybe that’s why she found herself in that spot at that time so she could scoop up the little flyer and care for it until it recovered and flew off. “Aren’t two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father’s consent” Matthew 10:29 (HCSB). “Look at the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they?” Matthew 6:26 (HCSB). It is astounding to me how much God cares for every single creature He designed and gave life to.Birds, however, are not the only ones who crash, who knock themselves out, we do as well. Although no one might notice, God does. Though our world of resembles the dogs on my front porch, who have neither mercy or compassion for an unfortunate ( maybe even foolish bird), God wants us to remember that no one is more aware of us than Him, no one cares more about us than Him. Oh, all the things God has to tell us, remind us of, even through a Hummingbird’s crash.The moment the little guy (or was it a girl?) flew off we lost track of him (her), but God didn’t. Even right now he knows the exact location and condition of that, and every other, Hummingbird – and ours as well. Jesus obviously thought it important to remind us of this truth, to help us with regular life, when we crash, when worry, and when we are afraid.This week, “Look at the birds of the sky …” To God be all glory, love you Pastor Hans