Yearly Archives: 2013

Eye Contact

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Those of us who love Jesus Christ look forward to one day living in the place he’s preparing for us. The greatest perk of our hope is not that it’ll be a fabulous, beyond-imagination place, but that we’ll be able to look at and talk to Jesus himself.

Scripture includes several passages where eye-to-eye contact with Jesus changed everything for people. The most famous was when he locked eyes with Peter the night before he was crucified, but there were others. Matthew, Mark, and Luke tell the story of another important look-see, this one between Jesus and a woman.

The Bible tells us she was a follower of Jesus, someone who believed he was who he said he was. She knew he had healing powers and since she was sick, she desperately wanted to connect with him. She’d been hemorrhaging for 12 years without a let-up, like a woman whose period just never ends.

This was a terrible state of affairs, because in biblical times she would have been considered unclean. Surely she wasn’t married, since no man would have been allowed to touch her, and my guess is she was anemic and weak from all that blood loss.

Reaching for healingShe made the bold decision to touch Jesus without him knowing it, and for some reason she was close to the ground. Maybe after losing so much blood, all she could do was crawl. Whatever the reason, the best she could do was finger the bottom of his robe. But that was all it took, and she was healed (though her encounter with him wasn’t over).

Jesus abruptly stopped walking, turned around, and looked for her. Of course he knew where she was, knew her name and health history, and had consciously acted to heal her. But he wanted to pursue the relationship a bit.

As he scanned the crowd, surely she was watching his face, and suddenly their eyes locked. Scripture says she began “trembling with fear,” probably wondering what Jesus might do to her for her sneaky scheme. Would he be angry? Or maybe curse her for such boldness?

She fell flat in front of him as the crowd made room, and the words of her story came tumbling out. Jesus responded with kindness and affirmation of her faith. “Take heart,” he said. In other words, “Cheer up! Don’t be afraid!” And then he let her know he’d healed her purposely as a reward for her faith in him. But that wasn’t all.

The lookBefore he left her, he gave this unclean, outcast woman a brand new label, one she badly needed: he called her his daughter.

So on that day she received 5 divine gifts: healing from her disease, words of encourage- ment, an affirmation of her faith, daughter-status, and that wonderful eye-to-eye look.

And now she’s enjoying that loving look, every single day!

“Jesus…. turned around in the crowd and said, ‘Who touched My garments?’ And He looked around to see the woman who had done this.” (Mark 5:30,32)

This is goodbye. (…written by Jack)

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Syd and JackTonight my girlfriend Sydney came over to spend the evening with me, and we had a lovely, peaceful time napping together on the floor. I refer to her as my girlfriend, though in reality she’s my cousin. But with dogs, it’s ok to date your cousin.

Sydney and I go back over 10 years. Although I’ve “robbed the cradle” in choosing her for my closest canine relationship, we would both be considered old. Syd is 12, and I’ll turn 11 in October.

Romping togetherJust like any couple, we enjoy doing things together, and we also love the same treats. We agree on our very favorite thing, too: running around at the beach. Both of us have perfected happy dances in the sand, rolling upsidedown in an effort to become part of the landscape. Neither of us mind getting sand up our noses or in our eyes, and when we do the dance at the same time, it’s absolute magic.

Although every day with Sydney is special, tonight was extra-special. Sydney had just had a bath and arrived in my living room still wet. I love it when she smells like wet dog, and the black waves in her shiny coat were absolutely fetching. But then something terrible happened at the end of our evening together. Sydney and I had to say goodbye…. probably for good.

Tomorrow morning my love is moving to Arkansas, and I may never see her again. Her family says that all the changes about to happen to her will be stressful and might put her at risk for an early demise. This upset both of us, but we didn’t let it spoil our last evening together.

Jackie Boy (2)I chose an appropriate going away gift for her, something I knew she would love: a big box of dog bones. I also made a card expressing my love and included a picture so she can look at me and know I’m missing her, too.

Saying goodbye is rough.

I guess that’s true for humans, too. Life will always be full of goodbyes, at least until we all end up in Paradise. I fully intend to go there, and I know Sydney does, too. Both of us have been taught that the God who made us looks into our hearts, so he knows the two of us are reflections of his unshakeable, unconditional love.

SydThough I may never dance at the beach with my girlfriend again, I know God will always be watching over both of us just as he watches over the humans we love. I also know that when Syd and I think we can’t take any more of being separated, God will comfort us. Actually, I don’t think he likes goodbyes any more than we do.

Sydney, I’ll always love you.

Sad Jack“For the sake of my…. friend, I will say, ‘May you have peace’.” (Psalm 122:8)

Perfect Paddling

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Lotsa kayaksIn the last few years, one of the most popular beachfront pastimes has been kayaking. These little boats can be maneuvered nicely even by amateurs and are designed to hold one, two, or three passengers. They come in a variety of colors, price ranges, weights, and sizes, some even light enough for a child to drag across the sand.

As popular as kayaks have been, though, this year a new beach craze took over: paddle-boarding. (I first called it water-boarding and was quickly corrected.)

Louisa succeeds

Birgitta starts outPaddle-boards resemble surfboards, though users tell me there are many differences: length, width, weight, rudders, materials. But on a calm-water day at our beach, we might see a dozen or more boards in action, looking every bit like those using them have learned to walk on water.

It’s no surprise that the younger the participants, the easier it is to watch them. As geriatrics climb aboard (like me), it’s not so appealing. “Wobble” is the operative word, and strange, staccato noises become part of the effort. “Oops! Yikes! Oh-oh!”

My son-in-law Adam brought his paddle board from Florida when his family visited this summer, and his command of the sport was impressive. He had a head start, though, having grown up on short and long skateboards, and mountain bikes. Now he’s passing along his skills to his children, who will probably grow into non-wobbly paddlers in short order.

Recently Linnea texted me a video of a paddler-wanna-be. Five year old Skylar was balancing perfectly on Adam’s wheeled long board, making her way down the road in front of their house with a paddle that looked suspiciously like a broom. Surely she was thinking, “Just like Daddy!” as she successfully moved along.

Children often follow the behavior of the adults in their lives, learning to love what they love. This works to their advantage when the object of their affection is positive, such as a love for water sports or any number of other good things. But the same modeling takes place with negative stuff, and if we’re not careful, children will adopt habits we’re actually trying to break. It’s devastating when they copy “our bad.”

Maybe that’s why God gives us unlimited opportunities to model good behavior in front of them. It’s much easier to clean up our lives when we know we might be copied, and God knew that. But he also wants adults to have models to copy, too.

His idea was to provide a perfect one for us, someone we could imitate without any negative consequences. So that’s what he did, and his name is Jesus.

*            *            *            *

A geriatric wobbleAs for my learning to paddle-board by modeling my efforts after Adam’s example, it didn’t happen. I think for me it will be better to “master” the sport vicariously….

through Skylar.

“Watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents.” (Ephesians 5:1)