To Hover or Not to Hover - Martin Wiles

You have seen what I did to the Egyptians. You know how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Exodus 19:4 NLT

A mother hen had nothing on Sadie.

Sadie was a hoverer. I knew her from church and watched her hover—over the piano, over people, and over her two children.  

Instead of letting her teenage son sit with the other young people, Sadie made him sit on the front row—the row she sat on. Until he graduated from high school and left for college, he idled in the front row while Sadie hovered over him. By the time their daughter reached her teenage years, Sadie had relaxed her hovering—but just a little. Perhaps seeing her son rebel against religion and God during his college years explained the small amount of leniency that crept into how Sadie parented her daughter. Occasionally, she’d let her sit with the other young folks, but not often. Most of the time, she—like her brother—sat on the front row by her mom. 

Sadie’s hovering didn’t keep her children from rebelling, but at least she had the assurance that she’d done her best. God’s hovering didn't keep his children from rebelling either. No sooner had he delivered them from Egyptian slavery than they rebelled against everything he had taught them. 

My parents also hovered over me. Their hovering didn’t prevent my rebellious behavior. I thought I knew best. I needed to spread my wings and fly—to sow my wild oats. Neither did my hovering keep my children from rebellious acts. They, too, needed to fly on their own. 

What children do once they leave the nest is beyond a parent’s control. The fact that they might—and probably will—rebel doesn’t alleviate a parent’s responsibility to hover. God does, and we should too—but with caution and wisdom.

Hovering entails unconditional love. God has it, and all parents should, too. Parents should teach their children God’s rules and principles, but we must also love them whether they obey or not. Unconditional love includes discipline. God does it when we go astray—and parents should too. Like parents, I’ve watched hens, ducks, and geese scold their young when they wandered away, but they also worked diligently to bring them back. 

Hover lovingly over your children. As a parent, God gave you that responsibility. And believe it or not, your children will eventually appreciate it. 

Father, help me to bring my children up in the nurture and admonition of your commands, while loving them unconditionally. 

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Pictures of the Church - Martin Wiles

I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me. John 17:21 NLT

Some churches need to move into uncomfortable territory.

I’ve been in numerous churches. Older churches have common features. Often built of brick, they are rectangular, with a steeple on top. Two or three straight rows grace the inside with a stage up front where the spiritual leader—along with the choir—sits and stands. Attached to the rectangular structure is one or more additional structures containing classrooms. 

But not all churches look like the above. Some are circular and may have vinyl siding. Instead of pews, they might have chairs arranged in a half-moon shape. Increasingly, untraditional church structures are popping up—many in storefronts. Their outsides don’t look like the churches of old.  

The church, however, is more than a structure. It’s composed of the people who belong to it. Those who attend regularly, use their gifts and talents, and serve in Christ’s name in the community. Therein lies the rub. Getting them to do all those things in a spirit of harmony.

Jesus must have known getting his followers to work together would be a challenge. He prayed they would be one even as he and the Father were. If they didn’t work together in harmony, his name would be spoiled—and so would the church's testimony.

I remember a church leader who said, “I want there to be one place I can go where they aren’t.” The “they” were people from another race. Martin Luther King, Jr., said eleven o’clock on Sunday morning was the most segregated hour of the week. He was right. Most churches are homogeneous. We flock to our own kind—the same race, culture, social standing. Fill in the blank. 

Jesus wants us to be one. He didn’t create us to be separated or segregated. We are on the same journey with the same goal at the finish line. While Christ is probably proud of the great work his churches are doing, he would be prouder if we did it in a spirit of unity and togetherness. Doing so means moving out of our comfort zones, but doing so also moves us into God’s will.

Be willing to unite with other Christians to carry out God’s work. After all, we are all in this together. 

Father, unite your people in a spirit of oneness as we carry out the great work you’ve given us.  

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Identity: Was Versus Is - Martin Wiles

This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 2 Corinthians 5:27 NLT

I wasn’t sure who I would become, and I wasn’t always sure I wanted to remain who I was. 

I’ve been many things. I was a preacher’s kid from the time I was eight years old until my dad died when I was forty-nine years old. I was once a grandchild. That identity vanished when my last grandparent died. For a short period, I was an Orkin exterminator. Crawling under houses, seeing animals I didn’t care to see, hitting my head, and smelling odors convinced me I didn’t want that identity. 

For two years, I worked in a warehouse. Someone else decided I shouldn’t continue that identity when they laid me off and never called me back. Then I became a textile worker for four years. I went from weaver to floor sweeper to supervisor. When I answered God’s call to enter the ministry, I went from textile worker to preacher. Along the way, I also taught school. 

Those are positions I once held—labels I once carried—but they weren’t who I was. As a nine-year-old lad, I listened to my dad explain the plan of salvation. I asked Jesus to forgive my sins and come into my heart. I pledged to follow him as my Savior. In that moment, I became what Paul called a new person. Everything old passed into the past, and a new life began. I was a Christian who might be a preacher’s kid, grandchild, textile worker, Orkin exterminator, teacher, or preacher. My real identity, however, was bound up with Christ.

Another identity I left behind when I chose Christ was sinner. I love the song, “I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace,” but I question the theology. Yes, I was saved by grace, but the Bible doesn’t continue to classify believers as sinners. Instead, it classifies us as saints. We’re not perfect—and won’t be this side of heaven—but we are saints because Christ has given us his righteousness. We are God’s children, friends, and joint heirs with Christ.  

Knowing who you are is crucial. It will shape your actions and attitudes when you face life’s difficulties. 

Father, thank you for changing my identity when I trusted your Son as my Savior. 

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5 Flavor Pound Cake

 

Ingredients

3 CUPS PLAIN FLOUR

3 CUPS SUGAR

2 STICKS MARGARINE

½ CUP CRISCO

1 CUP MILK

6 EGGS

1 TEASPOON VANILLA FLAVORING

1 TEASPOON COCONUT FLAVORING 

1 TEASPOON BUTTER RUM FLAVORING     

1 TEASPOON LEMON FLAVORING

1 TEASPOON ALMOND  FLAVORING

Directions

CREAM BUTTER AND CRISCO.

ADD SUGAR AND BEAT WELL.

ADD EGGS ONE AT A TIME. BEAT WELL. 

MIX FLAVORING WITH MILK.

ADD FLOUR AND MILK TO BATTER, STARTING WITH FLOUR THEN MILK.

ADD A LITTLE AT A TIME, STARTING AND ENDING WITH FLOUR.

POUR INTO A GREASED TUBE PAN.

BAKE AT 350 DEGREES FOR ONE HOUR.

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Building a Lasting House - Martin Wiles

By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures. Proverbs 24:3-4 NIV

Houses are constructed; homes are made.

As a preacher’s kid, my daughter lived in several different homes. The trend continued during her college years. While living on campus, she stayed in several different dorms. Then, when she and a couple of her friends moved off campus, she lived in houses and apartments. After graduation, the practice continued. 

Each place was different. Some were large, some small, some cluttered, some neat, some filled with furniture and treasures, and some sparsely furnished. Growing up as a preacher’s kid—and being a preacher myself—I’ve experienced the same.

According to wise King Solomon, it takes wisdom, knowledge, understanding, and education to build a house, apartment, or any type of building. But we can’t measure, cut, and assemble these elements. I believe the writer had a deeper meaning in mind.

Personally, I’ve never built anything except chicken coops, hog sheds, and one small utility shed, but even those small projects required planning, buying materials, measuring, cutting, and putting pieces together if I wanted them to do the job I built them for. 

Through his parable of the wise and foolish builders, Jesus points to the importance of a good foundation—something the writer of these verses would probably agree with. The foundation Jesus referenced was more than a literal foundation made of wood or concrete. It was a relationship with him. 

While houses are built, homes are made by the lives of the people who live there. When inhabitants build their lives on a relationship with Jesus Christ and live with character, integrity, and principles, that home becomes a place that shines a light far beyond the walls holding it together. 

Commit to building your home with the right elements. When you do, it will withstand any storm that may come. 

Father, give me the courage to construct my home with lasting materials. 

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Love Fulfills - Martin Wiles

For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:14 NLT

In a split second, their lives were changed.

Bobby and Jackie were a young couple with a small child. He had been called into youth ministry and was serving in a little church not far from Jackie’s home. Things were going well—until the accident.

Out of nowhere, a truck slammed into their vehicle. Jackie and their infant daughter weren’t seriously injured, but Bobby’s life was changed forever. The wreck placed him in a vegetative state for the remainder of his life. 

I was told the story when I became Jackie’s pastor. Now the daughter was a young child without a father; Jackie was a young wife and mother who, for all practical purposes, had no husband; and Bobby lay in a nursing home fifty miles away. 

I visited Bobby once a month, and every time one of his family members was present. They all took turns caring for him. Bobby was fed through a tube, but he still needed constant attention. Coughing spells racked his body. Fluids drained from his mouth and nose. 

As I watched Bobby’s family tend to his special needs, I realized what the apostle Paul meant. For the committed Jew, the law consisted of the Ten Commandments, the ceremonial laws, and the laws added by the religious authorities. For Paul, it was simply God’s moral laws, and all of them could be obeyed by merely loving one’s neighbor.

I’ve seen enough love for the wrong reasons. The consequences are never pretty. But loving for the right reason paints a beautiful portrait. We can experience and demonstrate love because Christ has loved us. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us and now gives us the opportunity to love others for him.

Loving others sets an example. As I watched Bobby’s family perform the unpleasant parts of caring for an invalid, I was reminded of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet. The example was inspiring. Loving others sets an example for those who desperately need to see love in action. 

When we love our neighbors as ourselves, we also point them to Christ. Our words may not crack the hard shell of someone who doubts or disbelieves in Christ, but it's hard to argue with acts of love. They say what our words can’t adequately speak. 

Just ask, and God will give you myriad opportunities to put love for others into action.

Father, give me the fortitude to love others as you love me so I might point a hurting world to a healing Savior. 

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Fear Not - Martin Wiles

But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 19:14 KJV

Fear kept him from going where he wanted to go.

One of my family’s favorite things to do during the Christmas season is looking at lights. One Sunday evening, my wife, daughter, her two sons at the time, and I decided to ride to a neighboring town where the local park was decorated. And where Santa sat in a Boy Scout hut giving out candy, asking children what they wanted for Christmas, and letting them take a picture with him. The grandkids were excited.

Our one-hour drive had given our grandsons time to fall asleep. Waking them brought tears, whines, and a reluctant agreement to get out and see the lights and Santa. As we stood in line outside the small hut, they screamed, whined, and growled. Our daughter finally had enough and said, “Let’s go.” No Santa.

Both boys calmed down after a stroll around the park, so we decided to try the “Ho Ho” thing again. This time, they were excited. But when we made it inside the hut, only one remained excited enough to sit on Santa’s lap. The younger one wanted to get close enough for a candy cane but wasn’t about to sit on Ho Ho’s lap. Excitement drew him, but fear drove him away.

Jesus must have been a little different than Santa. Since the disciples were trying to keep the children away from him, the children must have been flocking to him—sitting on his lap, gathering around his feet, asking him questions, wanting him to tell stories.

Some maintain the Old Testament God is different than the New Testament Jesus. I beg to differ. The writers of the Old Testament tended to emphasize God’s holy nature. He cannot look upon sin and will punish those who choose to rebel against His standards. Thus the fear—or holy reverence—of him.

Jesus, however, showed us God’s loving side. Yes, he has standards, but his love reaches all people—and so does his offer of forgiveness. Like the little children and the crowds, God wants people to flock to him. He created us for a relationship with him.

Don’t let fear keep you away from God. Like Santa, he wants you to sit on his lap, spend some time with him, and get to know him. It’s a decision you won’t regret.

Father, take away my fear or unconcern so that I will come to you for comfort, encouragement, guidance, and forgiveness. 

If you seek hope and healing because of hurts you have faced, then Hurt, Hope, and Healing is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.