Therefore I go…

I’ve a question for you.  Are you willing to learn?  Most of us spent our childhood in school.  And while the purpose is for us to learn, the tests, homework, etc. get us into the mindset of proving what we know.  As we get older and move on into adulthood and the workplace, that mentality of proving yourself continues.  To get the raise or keep your job, you constantly feel like you must prove your ability or your value.

Wandering around Honduras, I’m slowly remembering to be a learner.  Rather than telling everyone what I know or putting in my “two cents.”  Today as I went to the reception at the front desk, I was reminded of this.  I happily showed the man at the hotel what I know, saying, “buenos dias.”  Then he made me a learner.  His response was “bom Dia (bōm gee-uh)”. I looked quizzically at him and he filled me in.  I had just learned my first phrase in Portuguese!

Sure we have a lot to offer others and life should be about sharing what we know.  But too often we are trying to prove ourselves, rather than learn what others can teach us.  Listening is far more important and you place far more value on others if you are willing to learn from them.  So be willing to learn, be willing to listen, and “in humility, count others more significant than yourselves.” ~ Philippians 2:3

As I strolled down the side road in Greystones, I started to notice a recurring theme.  The Irish folk, it would appear, also suffer the inundation of ads and pamphlets coming through their mail service.  “No Junk Mail” was posted on the mail slots at many houses along my route.  We all are discerning enough that we want to avoid the unrequested and unhelpful paperwork coming into our mailbox.  How many of us, though, are as discerning about what enters our eyes and ears?

Junk mail can be described as something unhelpful and unwanted, which distracts you from what is important.  In our lives, the “junk mail” might just be something we desire or some temptation placed in our way.  What is most confounding in the Christian walk, is that something which may be good in one context can actually be the very thing that distracts us from God at other times.  Perhaps it is a good, clean movie, but it raises in our minds unhealthy desires.  Perhaps it is something we like to eat, but we choose to have twelve helpings.  Perhaps it is a musician we like, but their new music has been “spiced up” with some vulgarities.  Or perhaps it is a friend whom we long to love and care for, but their lives and actions always take us down an unhealthy path.

Our “junk mail” can come from many sources, so we must always be on the lookout.  We must be our own watchman, or build around ourselves a group of faithful friends to be our watchmen.  Folks who, like Ezekiel, will warm you of the troubles in your path, the junk mail as it were.

“So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me.” – ‭‭Ezekiel‬ ‭33:7‬ ‭ESV‬‬

So find your watchmen, set up your boundaries, and if necessary, post signs to make sure you receive “no junk mail.”

While watching the news, the average person has a tendency to be surprised at the cruelty of mankind.  Some even believe that people are more evil or cruel now than ever before.  Such is not the case if you believe the Bible.  As the book of Ecclesiastes says, there is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9).

Before the nation of Israel was taken into captivity, people from Samaria to Jerusalem were offering their children as burnt sacrifices to other gods to be saved from advancing armies or to receive rain to end famines.  Today people around the world sell their children into the slave trade so the parents can afford to eat.  A multitude today destroy life with abortions, but in the time of the split kingdoms there were kings who violently murdered the pregnant mother with the unborn child (2 Kings 15:16).  And if you are surprised at the cruelty and murders within the family of North Korea’s leader, be appalled but don’t be surprised.  When Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took Jerusalem captive, he slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah king of Jerusalem.  Then he put out the eyes of Zedekiah, so the last thing Zedekiah saw was the death of his sons (2 Kings 25:7).

From the beginning to the end, the Bible teaches us that all of mankind has a heart of evil to do what is against the one true God (Genesis 6:5; Romans 3:23).  This inherent evil is a direct result of the sin of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden (1 Corinthians 15:22).  There are some who have been misled by the common ideology that people are inherently good.  As a result, they are surprised when they see the bad things that happen in the world.  But the belief that people are inherently good is opposed to what the Lord and his word, the Bible, has to tell us.  By God’s grace alone we are able to do good.  And by seeking salvation in Christ, we even desire to do good.

We should be appalled at the evil we see.  We should not be surprised.  We should not give up because of the evil we see (Matthew 24:12).  We should, instead, do whatever we can to overcome evil (Romans 12:21).  Pray that the Lord will use you to overcome evil in this world; knowing that those who call on Christ will prevail (John 16:33; Revelation 17:14).  Do not be surprised, but rather take heart in the promises of God, be strong in the face of the evil we see, and continue to do good to overcome the evil surrounding us.

Have you ever put in a full day at work and then, just when you’re getting ready to call it a day, your supervisor comes and asks you to work a few extra hours, or even an entire additional shift?  Our willingness to do what is needed when called is a big gauge of our loyalty.  Generally, there is some reward for going the extra mile.  Still, it’s hard to continue when we thought ourselves finished for the day.

That is exactly what Christ asked of Peter.  After working all night casting and drawing in large fishing nets, Christ told Peter to go back out and cast the nets again.  Jesus told Peter to work overtime after the whole night shift yielded no results.  On top of all of that, Peter and the fishermen had just finished washing their nets.  Amazingly, Peter accepted the Lord’s command.  Though they were undoubtedly tired, Peter and his crew cast their nets and they received a great blessing.  Peter the rock, Andrew his brother, and James and John, the “sons of thunder,” received two ships so full of fish they nearly sank.  And then they all became disciples of Jesus Christ and followed him that very day (Luke 5:1-11).

When your work is difficult, you have given it your all, and you see a break coming, don’t get premature relief by planning to take that break.  You may be upset when your plans are changed.  Be ready, instead, to serve the Lord even more at the moment when you’re growing weary and your strength is waning.  At just that moment, God will give you the strength you need.  Our Lord loves to show people that his followers can continue in his strength when others would call it quits.

Since last Thursday I’ve been battling my first illness in Chad.  But no worries, it’s just our lightweight nemesis the common cold.  The kids at the school where I work wanted to greet me and shake my hand like normal, but I was pulling back and teaching them to stay healthy and not to shake hands with sick people.

But throughout the day, several of these kids won my heart.  One literally held out his hand and said “greet me”, after I’d explained the illness.  One said, “I’m sick too”, and another, “I’ve been sick since last week.”  Quite honestly, human kindness, human touch, and a child-like willingness to share both, even though we may catch a cold, are the sorts of things Christ was talking about when he said, “as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.”  And as Paul wrote, “in humility value others above yourself.”

There are many heartfelt stories of faithful men and women serving those suffering from dire illnesses at the risk of catching the disease.  There are stirring tales of missionaries bravely serving in leper colonies and, in some cases contracting leprosy themselves.  But like many grand or harrowing accounts, these stories have an everyday counterpart which is much more common and applicable to far more people.  Sharing kindness at the risk of catching cold.

I’ll still endeavor to minimize human interaction until I’m healthy once again.  But when I’m healthy again, and if you’re healthy, let’s not be afraid to get sick, let’s stock up on hand sanitizer and cold medicine, and let’s get out there and humbly share Christ’s love and compassion as we would like to receive it.  And please, pray with me that none of these bold children get sick on my account.

How do you react to change?  For some of us, changes are enjoyed and appreciated.  We actually struggle when there is a season of consistency.  For others, change is an enemy.  They are perhaps thrown off guard and don’t know what to do when change comes.

At work last week I began to hear the leaves rustling in the breeze and fallen, dried leaves were skittering across the tin roof of my office.  It is an enjoyable sound for me, which announces the changing of a season.  In Chad, Africa, where I currently work, the reason for the falling leaves is different than in the Midwestern United States where I come from.  Here the leaves fall because our last rain fell weeks ago.  The dry season has started, the days grow cooler, and I am told there may not be any rain until next June.  A little different than the deciduous trees going dormant for our Indiana winters.  Where the precipitation falls after the leaves so deep we wonder where to put all the snow.

These changes are normal.  They remind us that in the ebb and flow of our days, things will not remain the same.  But again, how do you react to change?  Today at work I had a list of plans, items to discuss and things to do with my coworkers.  Two key employees in that list, though, were gone for most of the morning.  So how did I react when my plans were all delayed by several hours?  Patience, humility, and my faith in Christ guide me.  If things are not the way I planned, I know that they are the way God has allowed them to be.  So, I used the time to write some reports, check in on my high school students’ progress, and revise the plans for the day around the unplanned changes.

We cannot control all of our world.  Much as some human beings like to think so, the universe does not revolve around us.  Some may not like to hear it, but the universe was created by God, and he is the focus of all that happens in it.  For those of us who believe this, our reactions to change and to circumstances of life become easier.  We know that no matter what difficulties we face, there is a plan that is in place that will not change.  We anchor ourselves with faith in the one who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  And as a result, we realize that the man who cut us off in traffic really does need to be in front of us and teaches us to be patient, the electricity that is cut is an opportunity for us to accept help from neighbors and friends and teaches us humility, and the loved one who perishes is to be missed and mourned, but teaches us to hope for a future reunion in eternity together with Christ.

I pray that you too are open to change and not sent into a tailspin when things do not go as you planned.  I hope that you have a relationship with Christ that gives you the same eternal hope that I have.  And may the God who created the universe and all that is in it keep you patient, humble, and hopeful.

There’s an old adage that between you and anyone else in the world there are only six degrees of separation.  In the Keirn household, when we strike up a conversation with a stranger we tend to have a rather uncanny two degrees of separation.  Now for the average non-believer this is coincidence, luck, or some other ethereal bit of chance.  For the Christian, we know that our God works all things together for the good of them that love God – Romans 8:28.

There are no coincidences in this world, which is under the loving and guiding hand of the creator of all things, the God of the Bible who raised Jesus Christ from the dead.  Don’t get me wrong, though; while I truly believe this, I am still amazed at how the Lord works and the connections he makes in my life.  This week I went to a birthday party down the road from where I’m staying in Chad, Africa.  There at the party I was surprised to meet Gabriel, who is married to the sister of my friend’s mother.  Turns out Gabriel is also friend of one of the families from the school where I am working over here.  That’s a pretty far reach though.  Counting the man who invited me to the birthday party to meet Gabriel, there are four degrees of separation to Reuben’s mother, whom I also count as a friend.

Today it got a little closer.  I met Prosper, the father of one of the girls from the school where I’m working.  He is the cousin of Reuben’s father, who I also count as a friend.  Now we’re talking Keirn style community.  I know Prosper, and Reuben’s father is a brother in Christ…we’re family.  I met a cousin in Christ today!  Our Lord makes great connections in our lives.  Sometimes God makes us work at it, like with Prosper who only speaks a little English and I only speak a little French.  But if we accept the challenge and we are willing to step out and make conversation, God may be faithful to build community around us.

All of this got me thinking about people who are lacking good, solid relationships.  Go to blueletterbible.com and look up the word faithful in the Bible.  Most of the time it is about how faithful the Lord is, and when it’s about people it is a less than glowing report.  The church is a place full of sinful people just like the rest of the world.  But I remembered an Our Daily Bread devotional from earlier this summer that said “Community is the place where the person you least want to live with always lives, says Henri Nouwen. Often we surround ourselves with the people we most want to live with, which forms a club or a clique, not a community. Anyone can form a club; it takes grace, shared vision, and hard work to form a community.”

If you’re feeling alone in the world, build a relationship with Jesus Christ through a local Bible believing church…then take a few chances; strike up a few conversations.  And see how the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth (Isaiah 40:28) will build a community around you; and maybe even give you a few cousins in Christ.

Over the weekend I had an opportunity to relax by an inland lake.  For that, I must thank Jim and Judy for their gracious hospitality.  We swam, we ate, we enjoyed fellowship, and at one point we went tubing.  For those who have not gone tubing on a lake, it involves situating yourself on top of the large tire tube and floating there listlessly.  Moments after you begin relaxing on the water, the person in the boat hits the throttle and does their best to drag the tire tube out from under you by means of the rope attached to the tube.  Now, to give you a bit of hope, they’ve gone to the trouble to add handles, which do wonders to prolong the battle.  Eventually, in my case, the battle ended with the pilot of the boat succeeding and me floating in the water sans tire tube.  In truth, it is great fun.  It is also a great amount of work.  And so, in the morning pains and aches settled in.

This got me thinking of the dichotomy between the pleasures of this world and the joy that comes from our Lord.  With the pleasures of the world there may be pleasure for an evening, but in the morning, pain to the one who sought that pleasure.  Now tubing is a fun, recreational bit of exercise, so the pain that comes in the morning is not necessarily bad, it’s just my body rebuilding and perhaps adding to the muscles that were used.

But how different from the pleasure of the world is the joy found in our Lord Jesus Christ.  The Bible tells us that the God of the Bible is quite the opposite of the pleasures of the world in this very aspect.  Where some of the worldly things we seek pleasure in bring us joy in the evening and pain in the morning, Psalm 30:5 tells us that with the Lord there may be weeping in the night, but joy comes in the morning!

The way in which the world’s pleasures leave us lacking, wanting, or even in pain serves as a reminder that our greatest and most lasting pleasure will always come from the Lord.  Undoubtedly that is why John reminds us in his letter 1 John 2:17, that “the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”

How do you know when a calling is from God?  Answer; when it is not, not from God.  I know that’s clunky language, but it gets the point across marvelously.  It means, that we must test things; our ideas, suggestions from others, our goals, and our dreams.

Read Acts 17:10-12 –

The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue. Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. Many of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek women of high standing as well as men.

Why were the Bereans highly spoken of?  Answer; because they didn’t take Paul’s word for it.  Instead they examined the Scriptures, they examined the Bible in their day, to know whether what Paul said was from God, or if it was not from God.

Read Psalm 1:1-3 –

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

but his delight is in the law of the Lord,

and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water

that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.

In all that he does, he prospers.

What are the rewards if we know God’s word, if we know the Bible, like the back of our hand?  Surprisingly, not much!  But, if we know the Bible like the back of our hand, and we are obedient to it, then we will be to others as a tree planted by streams of water, fruitful in our work and ministry, and prospering in whatever we do.  I have to believe, that the rewards mentioned in Psalm 1 are due in part because we won’t find ourselves chasing after dreams, goals, or ideas that did not come from God.  Because if we know God’s word like the back of our hand and we are obedient to what the Bible says, we will not chase after things that cause us to be disobedient to God.

Blessings to you all, and may you be blessed to stay within God’s will,

Ben

It’s interesting sometimes seeing how the Lord works in our lives.  Case in point, I recently started working on aircraft drawings, doing engineering work for a company that modifies ag planes.  Earlier this year I started talking with crop dusters or, as they are now called, aerial applicators.  My goal was to start flying as a crop duster (think Disney Planes star Dusty, for those not familiar).  I would be able to use the off season for ministry while working in the US when the fields needed herbicide, pesticide, or aerial planting applications.

But then I had a Paul moment.  I had a trajectory in mind and a plan I was working on, but in the process of that plan God has worked to give me part time design work to help pay for flight training.  He has also given me a way to use my current abilities to gain footing in an industry built on experience and relationships.  The future may yet lead to the agriculture flying and ministry combination I had in mind, but for now I am content to work and be guided into this new experience which the Lord had planned for me all along.  And at the same time I will be watching for the ministry he has for me within this new group of friends and coworkers.

⁶ And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. ⁷ And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. ⁸ So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. ⁹ And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” ¹⁰ And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.  – Acts 16:6-10