Body of Christ – The Arrow Preacher

The Long Days Ahead

Some days it’s hard not to feel lonely in these days. The constant drone of the same endless news. With no new TV shows, the same repeats flood the airways. When the sound is all turned off, the silence is just as loud. The effort to quiet the loud buzzing inside my mind is both physically and mentally exhausting. The only reprieve is the time I spend with the Lord which has been more and more often during this time of isolation. While the world is social distancing, it seems the social part has been taken literally by many. The masses are busier now than they were before, it’s just a different kind of busy. In the new normal, there’s so many changes, and while there are some wonderful changes, the weight of isolation is crushing. The hope however remains knowing that God’s Got This. Knowing that Jesus is here with me gives me comfort. Knowing that some day this will end, and while it may be weeks, or months, or Heaven forbid, years, I know that Jesus will stay with me during every wakeful night. I know that Jesus will be with me during every long and lonely day. I know that Jesus will remain with me as I have watched all my plans, all my hopes, all my dreams for this year have fallen in ash as it’s been burned like a wildfire. There is no going back, no way to salvage the losses, but knowing that a new plan will emerge from the ashes.

We have all lost so much in these dark days. Businesses have closed. Jobs have been lost. Dreams have been crushed. Lives have been lost, and families destroyed. Some families have been so completely devastated by this dreadful virus, it’s hard to imagine. As I have remained in solitude to do my part to stop the spread, to slow the spread, to at the very least not be a part of the problem I have to acknowledge the struggles. I can’t be the only person feeling this way, in fact I know I’m not. On the flip side, I know that how I feel is not nearly as severe as others even in the sphere of knowledge.

Lamentations 3:22-24

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;

his mercies never come to an end;

23 they are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness.

24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,

“therefore I will hope in him.”

We know that the Lord is over all things, and while we may not know or understand the nature of God, why things are allowed, or why things happen, we know this His ways are perfect, beyond what we can understand, and we have to have faith and trust in His perfect will.

Romans 5:2 (ESV) 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith[a] into this grace in which we stand, and we[b] rejoice[c] in hope of the glory of God.

It’s so important in these days that we are there for one another. It’s so important that in our solitude we have people we can reach out too, and talk too. It’s so important to show the Love of Christ to one another. It’s easy to forget, but not everyone manages isolation well. Not everyone manages the silence well. Even the most introverted of people are struggling today. The loss of income and for some, the loss of hope will lead us in this country to record number of suicides, and mental health crises. We must do more as the Body of Christ and we need to be showing abounding love to everyone we can think of. A text, a message, an email, a card, anything helps right now. Please don’t think you reaching out doesn’t matter. Reaching out may be all the difference for someone. A simple act of kindness goes a long way right now with how people are feeling.

Keep hoping in the Lord. Keep your faith, and plug in to be spiritually by watching a church service online. You can also find me on The Arrow Preacher on YouTube. Be safe, and be well.

The Table

A man of authority asks you kindly to join him at his table for good conversation, good food, and one more thing, eternal salvation. The price for this salvation is only your trust and heart to this man. This man has an open invitation and all are welcome. This man’s name is Jesus Christ. All are welcome, sinners, and saints alike. This invitation has no ethnic restrictions; no restrictions of class, or wealth, all are welcome. We aren’t perfect by any means, and even with our imperfections, Jesus Christ despite the constant abuse and attacks by the Sanhedrin, Jesus Christ would consistently tell them the only Judge who could pass judgment on sinners was God almighty.

I don’t deserve a place at this table with the king but I’ve been invited. I do not have to sit. Those who sit will eat the bread of life. Those who sit will drink the cup of the spirit. We do not have to take the bread, and we don’t have to take the cup. We are not only invited to the conversation which we don’t have to enter into, but we are then invited further to eat and dine with the Savior of all of our sins. Our savior doesn’t want slaves. He wants a relationship among friends.

I’ve recently found that there are a lot of misconceptions about who Christ is. While I’m not going to get into an education lesson here, I will say 11 men saw what they saw and were willing to die horrible gruesome deaths, that started with the worst kinds of torture the Romans knew how to inflict at the time. Who goes through that for a lie? Who’s willing to give up their life for a lie, and even if someone would, you would have thought that one of the 11 would have. No one, not one single man recanted his eyewitness account of Christ. The table that was offered to those 12, before Judas betrayed him, was open to all who would follow.

I for one know, I’m not perfect, but I know where I want to sit. I want to accept the invitation of my King to eat, and enjoy paradise for eternity. I want to be with my savior in Heaven, and the only thing I need to do is accept my Lord and Saviors invitation. How hard is that? I’m an imperfect sinner, unworthy of God’s love and grace, but I have it regardless of the fact I’m not deserving of it. That is grace, and that is love. When you give love so freely, so willingly that you are able to look beyond someone’s imperfections to allow into your perfect home, we are the beggar in filthy rags about to sit on a $5000 couch in the most pristine immaculate mansion on the planet and we still wouldn’t paint a picture of what our sin would look like in Heaven. Thankfully before we get to sit down at Christ’s table we are washed with the waters of the Holy Spirit, washed by the Blood of Christ and we are made to be a new creature.

I intend on going to Heaven to sit down with my Lord and Savior and accept his invitation into perfection. I hope each and every one of you will join me in Heaven. I hope each and every one of you knows why Jesus died on the Cross, and why he rose again. We have the dinner invitations, and the angels are singing Be Our Guest. Will you be going to the party, or am I going alone? You decide.