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Every Avery Needs an Eleck

In yesterday’s blog I shared about how to be sensitive toward new believers. One person who did that was Eleck Hensley. As we approach graduation our thoughts naturally go to him. Last October when Eleck went to be with the Lord, I wrote this blog. I thought it fitting to share it again:

In Matthew 25 Jesus gives a surprising view of the end of time.  He pictures himself seated on a throne judging people from all the nations.  The people are separated into two groups–just like a shepherd would separate sheep from goats.  Jesus, the King, looks at the ones on his right and says, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”  Jesus continues, “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.”  The righteous people answer with surprise that they have ministered to the King like this.  “Lord, when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?”  The King answers, “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”

When I read this, I was not surprised at the outcome:  God has always rewarded faithfulness and obedience.  I was surprised at the surprise of the righteous people:  they had no idea they had ministered to the King Himself!  I think Eleck, when welcomed into the presence of Jesus the King, was just as surprised.

This weekend, I received an email from Avery Poteat’s father.  You may recall that Avery is the young man with autism whom Eleck nominated as homecoming king, campaigned for and celebrated when he won–just two days before he went to see King Jesus.  Alan, Avery’s dad, wanted us to know the rest of the story:

Dear Hensley Family,
I have heard many wonderful things about Eleck and I just wanted to add what he means to my family.
I asked my son to recount the first time he met Eleck. He said it was in Mr. Jones’ class in the tenth grade. He sat down and Eleck asked him his name. I remember when I asked him how his day had been he said he had met a guy in his class and his name is Eleck. My son sometimes struggles with names and so I challenged his pronunciation of Eleck’s name to which he insisted, “No! His name is Eleck!” Throughout that year when I would inquire how his day had been he would often say, “I had lunch with Eleck and some of his friends,” or sometimes he might tell me something Eleck had said or done. When the yearbooks were delivered that year, my son made sure to show me Eleck’s name. He then proudly said, “I told you daddy; I know my friend’s name.” The thing that I admire about their friendship is that Eleck chose my son, not because of what he could gain in the eyes of the world, but he shows the love and compassion of Jesus.
Moving forward to a couple of weeks ago, my son came in and announced that he had been nominated to the homecoming court. This past Thursday night we were completely surprised by the outcome. As we talked to one of Avery’s teachers it was stated that he had voted for Eleck. The teacher said that she was almost positive that Eleck had voted for Avery. It was then that I had an idea Eleck was the one that had thought so much of someone else that he deferred the possibility of homecoming king. I confirmed this when Brother Jerry was interviewed on WLOS. I would later find out that he had not only campaigned for him, but also stood up to those that would say negative things about my son.  Oh, that we all could have the kind of integrity that God gives and Eleck possesses.
I have used the present tense on some statements because I believe that there are some things left to this story. I cannot fully back this up with the Bible, so as Paul said I speak as a man. It is my deep desire, when I get to heaven and I have worshiped around the throne of God, if it be God’s will to allow me to remember this time, I am going to find Eleck and thank him so much for the love of God that he bestowed to my son.
The other thing that I believe will happen is when my son gets to heaven, if there is a welcoming party that Eleck will be there and say, “Hey pal, we’ve been waiting for you. Come on. Let me take you to see Jesus.”
I close with the words of a song from Andre Crouch.
It Won’t Be Long
It won’t be long… till we’ll be leaving
It won’t be long… till we’ll be going home.
Count the years as months,
Count the months as weeks,
Counts the weeks as days…
Any day now…We’ll be going home.
You all are in my family’s prayers.
W. Alan Poteat
Every Avery needs an Eleck.  Who’s your Avery?
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Kept By God

Slowly and deliberately pray this prayer to the God “who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy…”(Jude 1:24):

Jehovah God,

Creator, Upholder, Proprietor of all things, I cannot escape from your presence or control, nor do I desire to do so.

My privilege is to be under the agency of omnipotence, righteousness, wisdom, patience, mercy, grace.

You are love with more than parental affection; I admire your heart, adore your wisdom, stand in awe of your power, abase myself before your purity.

It is the discovery of your goodness alone that can banish my fear, allure me into your presence, help me to bewail and confess my sins.

When I review my past guilt and am conscious of my present unworthiness I tremble to come to you, I whose foundation is in the dust, I who have condemned your goodness, defied your power, trampled upon your love, rendered myself worthy of eternal death.

But my recovery cannot spring from any cause in me, I can destroy but cannot save myself.

Yet you have laid help on One that is mighty, for there is mercy with you, and exceeding riches in your kindness through Jesus.

May I always feel my need of him.

Let your restored joy be my strength; may it keep me from lusting after the world, bear up heart and mind in loss of comforts, enliven me in the valley of death, work in me the image of the heavenly, and give me to enjoy the first fruits of spirituality, such as angels and departed saints know. (The Valley of Vision, page 106-107)

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The Wedding

So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And he went in to her, and the LORD gave her conception, and she bore a son. Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel! (Ruth 4:13-14 ESV)

Years ago I was invited to a wedding in a small town in South Carolina. When I arrived at the local First Baptist Church I realized this wedding was the social event of the year in this small town. The church was filled for the 6 pm formal event. The main floor and the wrap-around balcony was packed. The groomsmen walked in–appropriately attired in long tails. The bridesmaids wore diamond necklaces–because that was only fitting for such a formal event. Once the wedding finished the bride and groom processed to the bride’s family antebellum home for an unbelievable reception. As an outsider to this small town I have never forgotten that evening.

Boaz and Ruth’s wedding most likely created no small stir in the town of Bethlehem. The serious student of the Bible cannot miss the foreshadowing. The LORD gave Ruth conception and she bore a son. Conception was the first act of God, the fact that her child was a boy was the second act of God. The fact that the boy born would redeem Naomi was the third act of God. Obed, whose name meant servant, was an promising foreshadowing of another Redeemer.

Jesus, like Obed, would be born of an unlikely couple. Like Obed, Bethlehem was his birthplace. And better than Obed ever thought about doing, He would redeem his own mother and step-father, and every other person who would place their trust in Him.

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Under His Wings

He said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over your servant, for you are a redeemer.” (Ruth 3:9 ESV)

At the very heart of God is His desire to cover you. God’s wings protect you from life-threatening enemies.

Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings, from the wicked who do me violence, my deadly enemies who surround me. (Psalm 17:8-9 ESV)

God’s wings protect you from the destructive storm.

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by. (Psalm 57:1 ESV)

God’s wings give you rest.

Let me dwell in your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings! Selah (Psalm 61:4 ESV)

God’s wings form a canopy of praise when your life is good.

for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. (Psalm 63:7 ESV)

God’s wings shield you from nightmarish nights and difficult days.

He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday. (Psalm 91:4-6 ESV)

Jesus’s wings gather you from your wandering ways into the family of God.

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! (Luke 13:34 ESV)

Run to God. Hide under his wings.

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Your People Will Be My People

Turn up the volume on your computer or other device and take 3 minutes to remind yourself of how the timeless story of Ruth unfolds.

http://www.worshiphousemedia.com/embed/product/40235

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The Sorrow of Sin

So the two of them went on until they came to Bethlehem. And when they came to Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them. And the women said, “Is this Naomi?” (Ruth 1:19 ESV)

Sin disfigures. Sin destroys. Sin devastates. When Naomi returned to Bethlehem she was hardly recognizable. As an Ephrathite she was among Bethlehem’s elite, a member of the aristocratic class. Well respected when she left town, she comes home stripped not only of her self-respect but also visibly bearing the wear and tear of her stay in Moab. Naomi’s former friends didn’t even recognize her. As soon as they saw her the whispering began. “Is this Naomi?”

William Paul Young said, “Sin is its own punishment, devouring you from the inside.” Paul’s now famous words in Romans 3:23 echo Young’s statement: The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Paul used very familiar imagery so that his audience would get his point. Sin always writes you a paycheck and always pays you the same wage: death.

If sin is so deadly, then why do people do it? Why do people choose to live their lives in perpetual sin? Remember the hall of fame of faith? Moses demonstrated both the danger of sin and the delight of God.

By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward. By faith he left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood, so that the Destroyer of the firstborn might not touch them. (Hebrews 11:24-28 ESV)

Moses shows us how to avoid sin. He refused to be called the son of Pharaoh. There will be times you will simply have to say “no.” Moses also chose. He chose one option over another. Option #1 was to be mistreated with the people of God. Option #2 was to enjoy the fleeting pressures of sin–indulge the flesh one more time. Third, Moses considered. Moses had to weigh his options. He was set to inherit the treasures of Egypt. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt. In other words, Moses valued God above his own selfish desires.

Sin is serious. 3 quick questions:

1. What are you allowing right now that you need to refuse?

2. What decision (choice) do you need to make today?

3. What (or who) do you value more than God?

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God Waits With You

And Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined, and he was there in prison. But the LORD was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in the prison. Whatever was done there, he was the one who did it. The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph’s charge, because the LORD was with him. And whatever he did, the LORD made it succeed. (Genesis 39:20-23 ESV)

Joseph’s dreams have faded but his God hasn’t. Who would have thought that the road to God’s plan for His life would lead through a prison. But the LORD was with Joseph. Though Joseph didn’t have his dreams, He had God’s presence. Though Joseph was unfairly imprisoned, he was unconditionally loved. Though Joseph suffered unjustly, he worshiped unhindered. God showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. God went to prison with Joseph.

Quick question: If you had a choice of your plan without God’s presence or God’s presence without your plan, which would you choose? We’re quick to answer, “God’s plan, of course!” And when the rubber meets the road we question God’s timing, God’s involvement, God’s presence. We act as if God doesn’t know what He’s doing or why our lives are going the way they are.

God went to prison with Joseph. It is a helpful reminder that God went through your divorce with you. God endured the death of your loved one with you. God sat through chemotherapy with you. God was at the kitchen table when you sat there, heard your son scream profanities, and walk out.

And whatever he did, the LORD made it succeed. God was Joseph’s success.

Moses experienced this too. Israel had camped at Sinai and the time had come to leave. God instructed Moses to lead them to the Promised Land. Moses wanted to know who God was going to send with him. God’s answer to Moses may catch you by surprise:

And he said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” And he said to him, “If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?” (Exodus 33:14-16 ESV)

Moses didn’t want to leave unless God’s presence went with them. He’d rather stay in Sinai with God than live in the Promised Land without him! Why? Moses answers that question: Is it not in your going with us that makes us distinct?” What distinguished Israel was not their “Israelitishness.” What distinguished Israel was God’s presence.

And what makes you “you” is God’s presence.

God waits with you.

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All Before the Almighty

Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah (Psalm 62:8 ESV)

Waiting is more bearable when you trust the person you’re waiting for. Psalm 62 is all about waiting…waiting for God, longing for Him through the ups and downs of life. Advent is about waiting–400 years of silence separated the Old Testament prophets from the angel’s announcement that the Messiah was on his way.  Imagine a world without your favorite podcast, your Christian music stations, or a stirring worship service. Would you still trust God if you didn’t hear His voice?

To a longing soul the silences of God are almost unbearable. What do you do when God is silent? How do you react when silence is as thick as the darkness around you? David says, “Trust.” Trust in him at all times.

All means all. Webster adds, “the whole, total amount, quantity or extent of.”

In short, all means “all.” Trust in God at all times. This may surprise you but sometimes it is hardest to trust God when things are good. We are prone to think we accomplished something, we figured it out, we made it happen. We trust ourselves instead of God. Sometimes we trust others instead of God. We think our spouse can fill the emptiness, our friend can fill the void, or a new relationship is all we need.  At times we trust other things instead of God. We rely on our bank account, our success at work, our academic achievements.  Often we trust our health instead of God. We feel invincible, as if nothing can happen to change our current status.

None of these is ultimately trustworthy. Money fails. Health wanes. Friends disappoint. Work wearies.

It’s almost as if you can hear the pleading in David’s voice when he says, “O people; pour out your heart before him.” When God is silent, don’t stop praying. When your praying seems ineffective, pour out your heart before him. Don’t substitute others or other things. At all times pour out your heart before the Almighty.

Why? Because God is a refuge for us. He is a safe place. He can handle your cries. David also said…

You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? (Psalm 56:8 ESV)

God counts your sleepless nights.  God bottles your tears. God journals your fears.

O, people pour out your heart before him.

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But You, O Bethlehem

Micah had a resounding message: social injustice.  The rich oppressed the poor.  The haves dominated the have-nots.  I’m reading The Insanity of God by Nik Ripken.  Ripken served as a missionary to Somaliland after the country had been ravaged by civil war.  He describes unspeakable injustice:

I encountered one of the most lasting images of depravity when my Somali guides took me to see the compound that the current leaders had seized (after reportedly slaughtering the family that had previously lived there) to serve as military headquarters and personal residence.  Inside heavily armed gates, the war lord and his minions generated their own electricity, watched satellite television, and ate like kings.  Just outside was a mob of several hundred desperate children, bellies bloated by malnutrition, gathered around the walls of the compound.  The children were anxiously awaiting what was a frequent, though not daily, occurrence.  When the carcass of whatever animal had been slaughtered for the leaders’ supper was heaved over the wall, the starving children descended like locusts, tearing and ripping off chunks of bloody animal hide to chew on and find the little nutritional value that it provided them.

What would Micah say to these warlords?  In Micah 2:1-3 he says,

Woe to those who devise wickedness and work evil on their beds! When the morning dawns, they perform it, because it is in the power of their hand. They covet fields and seize them, and houses, and take them away; they oppress a man and his house, a man and his inheritance.  Therefore thus says the LORD: behold, against this family I am devising disaster, from which you cannot remove your necks, and you shall not walk haughtily, for it will be a time of disaster.”

And then Micah gives the unexpected prediction in 5:2,

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.

Through Micah God essentially said:  I’ll call the Messiah from an unknown town.  He won’t come from the rich, but from the poor.  My ultimate answer for oppression isn’t political reform, but an unlikely reformer who will come out of Bethlehem.  And how fitting.  Bethlehem means “house of bread.” Where else should the bread of life come from!

This Christmas don’t be surprised at how God brings justice to an unjust world.  And be reminded: God’s ultimate answer for all injustice is His one and only Son, born in an unknown town to an unknown couple, in an unknown cave to make known a great God.

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3 Shibboleths for Modern-Day Saints

shib·bo·leth

ˈSHibəliTH,-ˌleTH/

noun

noun: shibboleth; plural noun: shibboleths

  1. a custom, principle, or belief distinguishing a particular class or group of people, especially a long-standing one regarded as outmoded or no longer important.

I stumbled across this word. In Judges 12, the Ephraimites fought with Jephthah, God’s appointed judge. They tried to disguise themselves and Jephthah had one test for them: pronounce “shibboleth.” The Ephraimites couldn’t pronounce the word! They couldn’t make the “sh” sound and pronounced it “sibboleth.” It’s a simple word meaning corn, but it’s hard to pronounce. Talk about a spelling bee with a price–when they couldn’t pronounce it they were killed for trying to infiltrate God’s people!

Today would be impostors still try to infiltrate God’s people. I call them the “If-thens.” If God is good, then why…? If God is loving, then why…? If God is just, then why…?

Let me provide you with 3 modern-day shibboleths.

  • God will do whatever you need for as long as you need because He loves you. In Deuteronomy 31:6 Moses is encouraging his protege Joshua: Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you. Whatever or whoever is assailing you, God is with you.  He promises His presence and provision always.
  • God will only ask of you what is good for you and what is glorious for him. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (Jesus, Matthew 6:9-11) God knows what we need better than we do and will only give us what is ultimately good for us. I confess that I struggle at times to see the goodness in the path carved out for me. But it is a shibboleth I hold onto.
  • God will make all things right. When I struggle with the injustice and unfairness in the world, I cling to this. In Psalm 58 David is crying out to God against evildoers. His last words ring loud: Mankind will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on earth.” In a sentence David is saying that God rewards the righteous and punishes the wicked. This life cannot serve as a measure of fairness or justice. The wicked sometimes prosper and the righteous sometimes suffer. One day it will all be made right.

I carry these three statements in my planner. Every week I pull them out and read them.  I need to be reminded.  I’m writing to remind you today.