Nick’s Walk

18 “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. I came across a fascinating article by a nurse who took care of dying patients for many years. She listed five regrets that, she observed, were most common among her dying patients. I feel sure that the nurse accurately recorded the regrets as expressed by these patients. However, I really wonder if those patients really “got it” even after a long a full life, or if the nurse really correctly summarizes the basis for the “regrets” she observed. 1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me. It’s truly sad to live a life trying to fulfill the expectations of others. It’s great to have dreams and try to live out at least some of them; but isn’t it most important to discover the purposes God has for our lives and strive to fulfill those purposes? On my death-bed I hope to feel that I spent enough time with God […]

He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. Psalm 91:4 We have had an interesting nature lesson this spring. A cardinal made a nest at the top of the umbrella over our patio table. We watched with interest as the baby birds grew. One day they were gone. We’re not sure if they matured and flew away or if one of the many creatures that haunt our back yard got them. One of the most difficult things for a parent is moving from having our children dependent on us to a point of independence. Many family problems can be traced to a failure to parents and children to execute this change from dependence to independence. With us as children of God the problem is different. Our proper place is a permanent point of dependence. As His prideful children, we struggle to be independent. Our safety and place of growth is under His wings, but we work to be free only to discover that the world is dangerous and we are ill-prepared to live safely on our own. I have found in life when I […]

16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4 It’s a bit disturbing to look in the mirror these days. There’s skin where there used to be hair. The beard doesn’t really cover the wrinkles. That’s just looking in a face mirror; I avoid full length mirrors at all cost. As we age, we are certainly wasting away, even if the scale denies it. Spend a few minutes watching television or thumbing though a magazine and it will be clear to you that our biggest industry may be fighting the effects of aging. It’s an expensive fight and a losing battle. It’s easy to lose heart. What the young don’t understand and what is one of the great frustrations of aging, is that inwardly we are being renewed day by day. Our minds aren’t wasting away, at least not yet. We have the same […]

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Matthew 6:26 Yesterday I had a colonoscopy. Everything turned out fine.  A few years ago I had one in which a growth that the doctor described as “the kind we worry about” was found. I spend a week waiting for the growth to be tested. It turned out to be non-cancerous, but this put me on the fast track for more frequent testing. I have to admit to being a bit worried before the test. I found out that a couple of folks who love me were also a bit worried. I suppose the quality of your life can be measured by how many folks you worry about and how many worry about you. I see movies and read book about people who are loners, who don’t have anyone to worry about or to worry about them. They are usually portrayed as happy in their circumstances. I can’t believe that. We would like to be like the birds or flowers and never worry. We are not. […]

I am not a meeting person. Eleven years in the military and many years in a law firm groomed me to be a meeting hater. I can’t get into the “getting everyone on the same page” agenda. I have no patience for the need to smooth egos and set up pecking orders which seem to come with meetings. I nevertheless recognize the need for meetings. I usually try to push them to as quick an end as possible. Meetings are part of the behind-the-scenes activity that is necessary for the success of any organization. As meeting hater, I was reluctant to accept a place on my church  board. After a year of service, however, I have to admit that the board meetings are among the best I have every had to endure. There is a sweet spirit of fellowship and coöperation in each meeting. Everyone present seems intent on finding and advancing God’s intention for our church. There is much behind-the-scenes activity in church. I know we all tend to think of church as something that happens in a couple of hours each Sunday morning. There is so much more to it and so much more than we can […]

We had our over-fifty meeting at church last night. It was great as usual. Good food and fellowship and a great teaching. Ivan Diaz, our leader, gave the teaching. He handed out  two pages filled with familiar bible verses about learning to be a slave, vines and branches, and loving one another. He did a great job of explaining the verses. That wasn’t the best part of his presentation. That came with his personal testimony. Recently his wife has struggled with medical issues and he came to a point where he could no longer handle it alone. He had to accept help from other members of the church. He spoke about the difficulty of doing that, receiving love. In many segments of the world the church isn’t doing very well. In others, it is flourishing. I have long  believed that the church is doing best where it is being persecuted. It may also be true that it is doing best in those places and in those situations where it’s members recognize the importance of the body and the need of each person to receive the love the body offers. That occurs in areas of persecution, but it occurs in […]

We had our over-fifty meeting at church last night. It was great as usual. Good food and fellowship and a great teaching. Ivan Diaz, our leader, gave the teaching. He handed out  two pages filled with familiar bible verses about learning to be a slave, vines and branches, and loving one another. He did a great job of explaining the verses. That wasn’t the best part of his presentation. That came with his personal testimony. Recently his wife has struggled with medical issues and he came to a point where he could no longer handle it alone. He had to accept help from other members of the church. He spoke about the difficulty of doing that, receiving love. In many segments of the world the church isn’t doing very well. In others, it is flourishing. I have long  believed that the church is doing best where it is being persecuted. It may also be true that it is doing best in those places and in those situations where it’s members recognize the importance of the body and the need of each person to receive the love the body offers. That occurs in areas of persecution, but it occurs in […]

We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check. James 3:2 A couple of nights ago I had a dream about a former televangelist who had a notorious fall from grace. I don’t know what made me dream about him. I hadn’t thought about him for years. After the dream, “James 3:2” came into my mind, not the verse but the citation. I had no idea what the verse was. When I awoke I stumbled to my bible and looked it up. It was very proper for the dream. Public figures are easy targets for criticism. Christians in the public eye are even bigger targets. The world is eager to point out failure in the church. Regretfully, there has been plenty of opportunity to do that. The danger exists equally for those of us who are much less famous, but are known in some circles as followers of Christ. People are looking for stumbles. The stumbles most often come in what we say, or these days, in what we post. I follow lots of “Christians” on Facebook and Twitter. They often post […]