That Day

When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock.  - Deuteronomy 8:10-15

Jen and I's wedding.  One Day there will be a great wedding banquet for all the saints.  Oh glorious Day!

5 years ago today I left Israel.  God had done a great work in me there.  I will never forget it.  It's also been about 4 and a half years since I last wrote in this blog, entitled "33."  I stopped at the 32nd post for quite some time.  I left off writing about an uncertain future, and not knowing where I was going to land.  I'm 38 years old now and it's time to write post 33.

A lot has happened in the last 5 years - and not just in my life but in the lives of some of the main characters.  I served as an elder at HomeFront Church for three years.  Jen and I were married and we bought a home in Alto, MI.  Once I finished my elder term it was time to say farewell to HomeFront as I no longer lived near it.  I really grew in my faith there, and learned a lot by serving as elder.  I miss and love all of them dearly.  But the Lord made it clear to me that it was time to go.

	Our New Home

Pastor Josh left, too.  In fact, his last day was also my last.  By coincidence, or divine planning, the last Sunday of my eldership was his going away party.  He shepherds Hillsdale United Brethren now.  He, too, was called away.

Matt has 2 children now.  He and Holly also were called away - back to their former church body.

Kenric passed away since I last wrote.  He lost a battle with Leukemia and is with the Lord in Paradise.

Mark actually was drawn by lots to serve in my place as elder after I left.  He has remarried as well and moved, although still attends HomeFront.

Like geese we fly together for a time and then we don't.  Our path isn't always the one we expect.  But ultimately, those found in Christ all arrive at the same destination.

So much has changed.  On the day my life fell apart I said to Pastor Josh that I felt like Job.  What I meant by that wasn't that my situation was the same as Job's.  I had explained that the first tragedy that happened in my life occurred when I was running the race at my fastest.  I decided never to curse God, but instead lean into Him.  The other day God reminded me of that thought as I looked around my land.  I had to laugh as I counted up all the chickens, ducks, pets and humans living in the house (the total was 24).  "Not quite the same as a thousand yoke of oxen," I mused.  But then I stopped and got serious.  "No, but to me it is.  It's the same."  An overwhelming feeling of God's provision and care washed over me and the only reasonable response was worship.

The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part.  - Job 42:12a

As I've said before, God heals people differently.  The way he healed me won't be the same way He'll heal you.  But I will tell you, that no matter what you are facing, if you are in Christ, eternal life is now.  You can have a joy despite the situation.  You can have a peace that surpasses understanding.

One of the coolest things I was able to do at HomeFront was give a sermon on anxiety.  It all started during the "You Asked For It" series when people could give Pastor Josh sermon requests.  As you will recall from my blog, I tested in the top 99% for anxiety among males.  Well, Josh needed some people to fill in for him for a couple of weeks while he was gone.  Kyle, one of the elders, suggested I give a sermon.  I was very surprised, but the more I prayed and thought about it, the more I realized that the Spirit was going to help me give the very anxiety sermon that I had requested.  While the Spirit's message that day helped a lot of people, it may have helped me the most.  I think it's so cool the lengths to which God goes to in order to look after his children.  Below is the service containing that sermon.

Since leaving HomeFront I have taken a respite.  I went about a year without attending a Sunday morning service.  Of course I did not give up meeting with my fellow saints.  A small group of us met regularly in what we dubbed "Life at the Table" during which we shared a meal and shared in what God was doing in our lives.  I also helped bring a series to Baker Book House called "Crux Mission" where we talked about our death to sin.  You can view the series on our website at www.cruxmission.org.  Despite these things, ministry has been more one on one.  It has been good.  Sometimes it has been quiet.  I meet with God in a varied and special way 7 times a day (not in a legalistic way, but because I love to).

At HomeFront I was doing tech booth, teaching in the HUB, running social media, serving as elder.  For a time I stepped aside in the woods of Alto.  As John the Baptizer said, "I must become less and less."  I live, I laugh, and I love.  I know God, and I have Him to enjoy forever.  As I tend to this 10 acres which we have dubbed "Heaven's Embassy" my life verse reminds me:

A person can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in their own toil. This too, I see, is from the hand of God,  - Ecclesiastes 2:24

Jen is pregnant!  We are due on Thanksgiving Day.  We have a lot to be thankful for in life.  We've started attending a local church body.  Who knows what the future holds.  We have dreams of using our property (which is built like a camp) to do foster care and have the youth group over for outings.  But who knows for sure?

How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone.  - James 4:14

So I toil on, with joy in my heart, knowing that That Day is coming, when the sky will roll back like a scroll, and every knee will bow.  Until then, the most important thing that God has taught me is to love all those He sets before me.

To anyone reading this who is in the same dark place I was, hold onto hope.  Hold onto Christ.  Lean into God.  Keep your eyes on Jesus, not on the waves.  Don't turn to idols.  Jesus can restore, heal, and make beautiful.

Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.  - 1 Peter 5:8-11

I look around at my life now and think, "I don't deserve any of this!!!"  I deserved 2013.  I deserved my old life and to be utterly defeated.  God's grace is more than I can express.  Despite what I deserved, God gave me 2014 and forever more.

If you do not know Christ, I know you have a God-sized hole in your life right now.  You try to fill it with temporary highs, but they never satisfy.  There's an emptiness that will not go away.  There is sin in your life that, try as you may, you cannot overcome.

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,  - Romans 3:23

Going through life without God is empty.  And on That Day, all your sin will still cover you.

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.  - Romans 6:23

You don't have to clean up your life to come to God.  In fact, without Him, you can't clean up your life!  You need Him first.

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  - Romans 5:8

There's only one way out of your situation.  Self-help is not the answer.  The way out is narrow.

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.  - Romans 10:9-10

That's the gospel message.  I'm not going to water it down.  Without Jesus you are lost.  And That Day will for you be the worst day imaginable.  But it doesn't have to be that way.  This is a free gift; Jesus paid for it in full.

 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  - Romans 10:13

If you want to learn more about this free offer, please message me.

So this is my 33rd and final chapter of my blog "33".  This is my testimony.  No one can take it from me.  The worst thing that I could have done would have been to keep it to myself and not share it.  Thank you, God, for leading me and never forsaking me.