Harvested for Eternity

Is he is Heaven? That is my big question.

Who?

My late husband’s brother!

I just received word that he was harvested for eternity. But what was his destination? I don’t know! Many times I talked to him about getting his life right with God. But he wasn’t interested.

I told him he had his parents in Heaven, and also his sister and brother. Did he not want to spend eternity with them? He was just one step away! Did he take that step? It hurts me to think that maybe he never did.

I have to believe that my prayers were answered. My husband prayed for his brother all his adult life. Where those prayers in vain? It was up to Leif to make the decision!

Yes, Leif Lundkvist was his name.

One of the few childhood pictures we have of the two brothers

How do I know about his passing? Thanks to this blog the person in charge of the estate inventory found my name and contacted me. My daughter is the only family left. Leif was not married. There is no other immediate family.

Once again I have been reminded of the futility of life. We do not have a promise for tomorrow. The Bible tells us that TODAY is the day of salvation. You and I are still here. Are we ready for eternity?

I have many loved ones who are in the same condition that Leif was in. He used to tell my daughter Eva-Marie she shouldn’t let her missionary parents brainwash her. She would argue with him. She was not brainwashed. Eva-Marie had made a personal decision to follow Jesus. Fifteen years ago she was harvested for eternity. I have the confidence that she is with Jesus and soon we will meet again.

If it was your time today or tomorrow to face eternity, where would you go? There are only two places: heaven or hell. We have to choose. Jesus is the way to Heaven. No one comes to God without Him.

Leif lived in Sweden. He never left his hometown of Karlskrona other than for some vacation trips. Once he visited us in Springfield. He held my granddaughter Brianna when she was only two weeks old. That is the only baby he ever held!

Life is serious business. Death is not a myth. Death is as real as life. During the time I’ve written this entry, at least 6000 people have been harvested for eternity. An average of 150,000 people die each day.

And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. Hebrews 9:27,28

Are you eagerly waiting for Jesus’ return? We don’t have to face judgment! Jesus has paid the price for our sins so we can receive forgiveness and the hope of eternal life in Heaven.

Prepare yourself to meet God!

 

The Bearer of Good News

The Passion Week started with the generous Mary from Bethany anointing Jesus’ feet with her costly oil. It climaxed with the glorious resurrection and Mary Magdalene proclaiming the good news of the empty tomb.

Since Mary had been set free of the seven demons that tormented her, she had traveled with Jesus helping to take care of his needs. When Jesus was sent to the cross, she was there watching everything that happened to her dear Savior. She saw Joseph take his body down from the cross and she saw the grave where he put him. Together with some of her friends she went home to prepare spices and perfumes to anoint the body. As soon as the Sabbath was over, very early in the morning, while it still was dark, they headed to the garden where Jesus had been buried.

“Who is going to roll the stone away?” wondered the women as they approached the tomb.

It had been a miserable weekend. Their Master, the hope of the world, was dead, buried by a stranger, guarded by soldiers from the Roman army. I’m sure the women wondered why they had to guard the tomb of a dead man. The religious leaders wanted to make sure nobody stole the body and spread the word that Jesus had resurrected. That had heard Jesus say he was going to come back to life.

The disciples kept themselves under locked doors, maybe fearful that the religious leaders would do to them what had happened to Jesus. Judas the betrayer had hanged himself. Peter was devastated because he had disowned the Savior.

Who were the strangers that had buried Jesus? Mary had watched every move. She had put so much hope in Jesus—now all her dreams were shattered. But one thing was for sure. She was not going back to her old life. What Jesus had done for her was beyond description. To be free from the tormenting spirits was out of this world. The least she could do was anoint his body. That would be her last farewell.

What a surprise when Mary and the other women arrive at the tomb. It was open! The stone had been rolled away.

Luke 24:4-8
While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them,

“Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’”

Then they remembered his words.

Risen! Alive! Mary ran as fast as her legs would carry her. She knew where to find the disciples, all huddled up grieving their Lord.

“Peter! John! He’s gone! Someone has taken him. An angel said he’s alive!”

Peter and John also ran as fast as their legs would carry them. John, the youngest, arrived first at the grave, but Peter was the one to enter, not to a sepulcher like we are used to, but a cave.

What a sight! The grave clothed lay there neatly folded, as if someone had stepped out of them. They hurried back to the others. What could this mean?

Mary Magdalene stayed behind.

A man she thought was the gardener approached her. “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him,” she said.

“Mary!”

That was all it took. The voice of her Teacher—unmistakable.

Her Teacher! Her Rabboni!

Once again she was off running. “I have seen the Lord!” was her message. No one could take that away from her. And no one can take that away from you and me. To meet the risen Savior, to have him call your name—nothing compares to that!

Mary was in the forefront of millions that throughout the centuries have proclaimed,

“I HAVE SEEN THE LORD!”

I hope the Easter season of 2016 has brought new meaning to your heart. I hope you have a new appreciation of the Savior. I hope you see him in a new light.

I hope you can proclaim as Mary Magdalene,

“I have seen the Lord!”

A Bride Prepared for her Bridegroom

In Memory of my Daughter

Eva-Marie Elizabeth Lundquist

March 27, 1970 – December 13, 2001

She was born on Good Friday 46 years ago. On Easter Sunday I want to honor her memory with a message inspired by her. You’ll see!

______________________________________________________

I remember how exciting it was to prepare for my bridegroom! I had met the love of my life on a visit to Sweden. My parents and I were missionaries in Peru and we saw the need for me to have a husband. They were praying that I meet someone that would want to take up mission work together with me in Peru. Close to the end of my visit in my home country, I met Bengt. I could have stayed and traveled together with him to Peru, but I felt responsible for the expanding children’s and youth ministry we had, so I went back to Peru as planned. My Bridegroom was to follow some short months after and we would marry there.

I was in love. I was excited. I couldn’t wait for the arrival of my future husband. I prepared for his coming. I counted the days. When he arrived and we were married, my joy was complete!

WE ARE THE BRIDE OF CHRIST

These last few days God has spoken to my heart about being the Bride of Christ and the imminent return for my Bridegroom. Am I as excited about His Coming as I was when I awaited Bengt’s coming to Peru? Am I preparing myself for the great wedding day? Do I await His Coming every moment of the day? How excited am I?

I have a daughter in Heaven. Among the things I keep as memories, is her first sermon, preached (or just written, I don’t know) when she was 10 years old. It feels like a greeting from the grave, confirming the subject God is speaking to me about.

Sermon by Eva-Marie Lundquist (10 years old)

I want to read from the book of Revelation chapter 21. We who are Christians know that it’s good to have Jesus in our heart. We Christians will see a new heaven and a new earth. You may not understand what I mean by a new heaven and a new earth. When Jesus comes in the sky and takes His Bride home then we will see a new heaven and a new earth.

Those of you who have not received Jesus as your personal friend, you cannot come to the new heaven and the new earth. I can’t even say how exciting it is to have Jesus in your heart! You might think that you have to be healthy to believe in Jesus. But it’s not so. I’m sick and I believe in Jesus.

You must be saved. You can also say that you are born again. I have witnessed since I was 1 year old. Now it’s the first time I will preach. Now let’s turn to the sermon.

I was baptized in Kristianstad in Sweden. I was baptized in the Holy Spirit in Sweden.

The Bride, Carina my little sister said that it’s not so easy to understand it. If we are Christians, we are the Bride that Jesus will come to take home. You cannot be without Jesus. It is the last minute now before Jesus will come and take His Bride home.

If you want to receive Jesus, you can say: Jesus, I want to be yours. I want to get to your heaven. You can do it now. If you want to receive him, you can raise your hand. Then I will pray for you. But you do not have to raise your hand, for Jesus sees you now. Let us pray. If you have been saved now, God sees you every day.

THE TEN VIRGINS

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. ² Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. ³ For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, ⁴ but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. ⁵ As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.

⁶ But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ ⁷ Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. ⁸ And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ ⁹ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ ¹⁰ And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.

¹¹ Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ ¹² But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ ¹³ Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” Matthew 25:1-13 ESV

Are we a bride prepared for her bridegroom? Are we ready for the day Jesus will come to take us home? There is going to be a wedding feast.

We cannot imagine what a great feast it will be!

When I was in Peru preparing for my wedding I was mindful of every detail. First and foremost we had to get permission to get married from the authorities; there was paperwork to be handled. I had to sew my wedding dress, I had to decide who was going to be in the wedding party, I had to make dresses for the girls, I had to rent tuxedos for the boys and the groom. There was the cake to plan and make, together with all the pastries. Three hundred people attended the wedding so it was a big task. Every detail was done with love and expectation!

A BRIDE WITHOUT SPOT OR WRINKLE

Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. –Ephesians 5:25-27

Jesus gave up heavens glories to come to Earth and get his bride. He led a holy and pure life but took on all the sin and shame of the world when he went to the Cross. Jesus gave himself up for the church, so that he might present us –his Bride—in splendor, “without spot or wrinkle or any such thing.” Jesus wants a holy Bride, without blemish.

This is what we as His Bride have to look forward to:

THE MARRIAGE SUPPER OF THE LAMB

Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,

“Hallelujah! For the Lord our God
    the Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
    and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
    and his Bride has made herself ready;
it was granted her to clothe herself
    with fine linen, bright and pure”—
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

… Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb. Revelation 19:6-9 ESV

THE FRAGRANCE OF THE BRIDE

There is a beautiful love story in a short book of the Old Testament, called Song of Songs. Read it as if it was a love story between you and Christ. The Lover longs for her Beloved.

Do you long for Jesus, your Beloved? Are you adorning yourself as a Bride for her Bridegroom?

The Church of Jesus Christ, his Bride, is divided; she is tarnished. There is bickering, anger, jealousy, rudeness and self-seeking going on. How it must pierce our Lovers heart when we as His Bride can’t get along with each other!

I was called this year to write about spreading the aroma of Christ, about the fragrance of his love. I pray that every word that I have chosen to go with this teaching will bring us closer to our Bridegroom. I pray that they will be jewels we adorn ourselves with in preparation for receiving our King and Savior.

Jesus wants to sanctify us through His Word. “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth” prayed Jesus before going to the Cross (John 17:17). Love, Kindness, Compassion, Forgiveness, Generosity, Humility, Integrity… These are some of the themes we will study.

Pray that you will have a renewed love for the Bridegroom; that you will prepare for His Coming with anticipation.

Without spot or wrinkle… let those words sink in deep in your soul. Jesus wants to present the church to himself in splendor.

This is a message for young and old. I marvel at the memory of my daughter, who at ten years of age was very aware of being the Bride of Christ, who spoke of the new heaven and the new earth. She is so blessed to now be with Jesus in Paradise!

Let Jesus sanctify you through and through. He is the one who will prepare you to be presented to him in splendor. Fall in love with him over and over. He loves you like no words can tell. He will work in you his Love, Kindness, Compassion, Forgiveness, Generosity, Humility, Integrity…

May we be a Bride prepared for her Bridegroom!

Two Secret Disciples

Jesus was born like the lowliest but buried like a King. He even had a guard of soldiers watching his body.

For Joseph of Arimathea it was time to come out of the shadows and take a stand for Jesus. He was a secret disciple, but at this dark hour he could not keep it secret anymore. He had his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock, and that is what he was going to offer Jesus. Nicodemus also took his stand for Jesus!

Mark 15:42-46; John 19:39-42

It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph.

He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

The custom was to wash the body and then wrap it in strips of linen mixed with sweet smelling spices, starting from the feet and then up through the neck. The head was wrapped separately. Seventy-five pounds of a mixture of myrrh and aloes seem quite a lot. But some historians tell us that when King Herod died some five hundred servants carried the spices used in preparing his body. There were not so many preparing the body of the King of kings.

Two secret disciples preparing Jesus’ body for burial

Joseph was a secret disciples for fear of the Jews; but on that day he made a very bold and public confession. Joseph dared to ask the Roman governor for the body. And his request was granted.

A secret disciple? You cannot be a secret follower of Jesus; not in the long run!

Jesus said, “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven” (Matthew 10:32-33).

Due to persecution many followers of Jesus keep it a secret. In the first century the Christians in Rome lived in catacombs. Today in many places Christians have to go “underground” and meet secretly. Many are imprisoned or killed because of their faith in Jesus. In my eyes these brave brothers and sisters are heroes.

God chose Joseph, a “secret disciple,” to give his Son Jesus a burial place. The closets disciples hid and locked the door, probably fearing that the Jews would come after them, and maybe do the same they had done to Jesus. But Joseph was bold, and thus Jesus was buried in a beautiful garden.

Nicodemus brought the spices needed to wrap the body for burial. Seventy-five pounds is quite a substantial amount! A week before, Mary of Bethany had anointed Jesus with fragrant perfume. Might the fragrance of her selfish love-offering still have been lingering?

I pray that we be bold in acknowledging our Savior! I pray that each of our lives be a fragrant aroma that will attract men and women to Jesus.

May we be brave in spreading the aroma of Christ!

Entrusted with the Dearest

Do you think Peter followed Jesus to Calvary, after his defeat at the courthouse? Maybe he was too overcome with grief because of his cowardly denial of Jesus.

But John, his friend and ministry companion, was there. Others, whose names we don’t have were there. But reading the Gospel accounts we find several of the women named:

• First and foremost: Mary the mother of Jesus
• Jesus’ aunt, Mary’s sister
• Mary the wife of Clopas
• Mary Magdalene
• Mary, the mother of James and Joses
• Salome
• The mother of Zebedee’s sons

Luke tells us that all who knew him were standing at a distance. John was brave; he stood at the feet of the cross.

Jesus felt his responsibility as the oldest son. The disciple that he loved [John’s way of describing himself] was there and he entrusted him with the dearest.

John 19:25-27
Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother… When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

Wait a minute, I’m calling her “the dearest,” but what did Jesus say about his mother and his brothers and sisters?

Mark 3:31-35
Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”

“Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.
Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

We —you and I— are his dearest. That’s the reason Jesus went to the cross. Jesus entrusted John with the care of his dear mother. He has entrusted us with the dearest: THE GOSPEL, the Good News of Salvation.

Someone once imagined an angel in heaven asking Jesus after His return from earth how the world would know The Story. Jesus answered that he was depending on his disciples to tell it. “But what if they don’t tell The Story?” asked the angel, to which Jesus responded, “I have no other plan.”

We are HIS PLAN to spread the Word. Mary was also entrusted to spread the Gospel. She was one of the many that awaited the promise of the Holy Spirit. She was there when God empowered his followers. John was a young man at the time, and he stayed true to his responsibility. Thanks to him we have the Gospel of Love he wrote, we have three letters full of love, and we have the Revelation given to him by Jesus about things to come.

I’m writing this blog today to carry out what is dearest to Jesus, the spreading of the Good News of salvation.

Forty-six years ago, on a Good Friday, that was like they say in Swedish, a LOOONG Friday (Långfredag), God gave me a daughter. It’s always been very special to me that I was privileged to give birth on such a day. That precious girl is now with Jesus. I’m just waiting for the day when we will meet again!

The day that looked the darkest to the brave ones at the foot of the cross and all who watched at a distance; the day when it was dark at noontime; the day when the curtain in the temple was ripped from top to bottom; the day when my Savior gave up the breath and cried out, “It is finished!”… that is the most glorious day in human history. That is the day my sins were nailed to the cross.

John and Mary, and all the others thought it was all over, but it was just the beginning! On Sunday he would be raised from the dead to proclaim the victory.

1 Corinthians 15:54-57
Death has been swallowed up in victory.
“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory
through our Lord Jesus Christ.

What are we doing with “the dearest” that Jesus has entrusted to us? Jesus has no other plan for the spreading of the Gospel than you and I doing it.

Jesus has entrusted us
with the dearest to his heart!

Jesus entrusted John with the care for Mary.

We have been entrusted to spread the message of His victory on the Cross.

AT THE CROSS
Isaac Watts, E. Hudson, chorus

Alas, and did my Savior bleed
and did my Savior die?
Would he devote that sacred head
for such a worm as I?

Chorus:
At the cross, at the cross
where I first saw the light,
and the burden of my heart rolled away.
It was there by faith I received my sight.
And now I am happy all the day!

Was it for crimes that I have done
He groaned upon the tree?
Amazing pity, grace unknown,
and love beyond degree!

Well might the sun in darkness hide
and shut his glories in.
When Christ, the Mighty Maker, died
for man the creature’s sin.

But drops of grief can ne’er repay
the debt of love I owe.
Here, Lord, I give myself away.
‘Tis all that I can do.

 

Chosen with a Purpose

In the Roman Empire, when a man was sentenced to be crucified, he would have to carry his cross, from the prison to the place of execution. That would be a weight of at least 100 pounds on the shoulders of someone that had been brutally beaten. They would tie the heavy beam to the arms, resting it between the neck and the spine. If the prisoner stumbled he had no way of protecting himself from a fall.

More than the weight of the heavy beam on his shoulders, Jesus carried the weight of our sins.

Isaiah 53:4-7

Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows,
yet we considered him stricken by God,
smitten by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before her shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.

The weight on the shoulders of our precious Savior was too much. They stopped a man coming to town from the country, Simon from Cyrene, “and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus” (Luke 23:26). That’s about all we know about this man, except that he was the father of Alexander and Rufus.

How this affected Simon we don’t know, but later on the apostle Paul writes to the Romans about Rufus. “Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too” (Rom 16:13). At least we know it affected Rufus, and made him a follower of Christ.

Simon was probably never the same after that day. You’re never the same after an encounter with Jesus. Simon had been chosen with a purpose. In some way he alleviated the heavy road Jesus’ had to tread to the cross.

Simon from Cyrene

Each follower of Jesus is chosen with a purpose, chosen in the Lord. First and foremost we are chose for salvation, but then also for service. I will never forget the day I was “chosen” for service. At the early age of ten, God revealed to me that I was chosen to proclaim the Gospel to children. Jesus asked me in a vision if I was willing to go tell boys and girls about Jesus, specifically “brown” boys and girls. That is what I have done all my life, and my big passion to this day is to make teaching materials available so boys and girls in the Spanish speaking countries will hear about Jesus.

I was never the same after that day. As a teen-ager I didn’t fool around, because I always had in the back of my mind, “I have been chosen!” I knew God had a special plan for me, and even before age fifteen I started fulfilling that plan.

If you are reading this and you love Jesus, you are “a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9).

If you are not yet a follower of Christ Jesus, today is your day to be “chosen”! Really, God chose you to be his even before the creation of the world.

Ephesians 1:3-8
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will- to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

Simon from Cyrene was seized and forced to carry Jesus’ cross. God does not force anybody to follow him and carry Jesus’ cross, so to speak. With love and compassion God invites you to come to him, to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, to be made his adopted son or daughter, to inherit his kingdom. Come to him today. You will never regret it

 

Bitter Tears of Regret

There are all kinds of tears, but I think the worst kind were the bitter tears of regret Peter cried after he disowned Jesus, not once, but three times! And he swore and he cursed (Mark 14:71). “I don’t know this man you’re talking about!”

Then came the “look”! A look can say more than a thousand words. When Peter had called down curses on himself and sworn that he didn’t know Jesus, the rooster crowed (just as the Lord had predicted), and Jesus turned and looked straight at Peter (Luke 22:61).

That was the look! I’m sure a million things went through Peter’s mind, not the least what had happened just hours previous.

Luke 22:31-34
“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”

But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.”

Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.”

He could never take back the denials, done was done. But there was the look, and only Peter knows what was in it. We can speculate… but let me tell you, Jesus has that look for each one of us. I am sure it was filled with the most love you can see in a look, because that is how he is our Jesus.

I’m sure Peter remembered the time when Jesus borrowed his boat to preach from, and then gave Peter the greatest catch of fish he had ever experienced. That was the time when Peter left everything and followed Jesus (Luke 5:1-11).

I’m sure he remembered the time when Jesus healed his mother-in-law. Some people joke about that and say that was the reason why Peter denied Jesus. Why is it people joke so much about mother-in-laws? Are we that bad?

He must have remembered when Jesus provided the money to pay for his temple tax, how he went down to the lake and found a coin in the first fish he caught (Matthew 17:24-27).

The transfiguration must have stood out clearly in his mind, when Moses and Elijah visited with Jesus on the mount and Peter suggested they stay there and make shelters (Matthew 17:1-8).

What about the time when his brother Andrew brought a little boy to Jesus that had a lunch worthy of a King, the one that Jesus multiplied to feed thousands (John 6:1-13)?

He surely must have remembered the time when he rebuked Jesus, when the Lord had told them about the suffering that awaited him, and Jesus said, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men” (Matthew 16:23).

Before that incident, Peter had confessed Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah.

What else do you thing went through his mind. For sure the time when he walked on water! And here he was, cursing and swearing that he didn’t know the man.

After the “look,” that pierced through his soul, Peter went out and cried bitterly.

For bitter tears there is Supreme Love

So we say, just like with Judas, How could you?

It’s time for soul-searching, because with our actions we many times disown our Lord. Jesus prayed for Peter that his faith may not fail. Jesus is still lovingly interceding for his own. “Christ Jesus, who died–more than that, who was raised to life–is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us” (Romans 8:34).

When Jesus came back to life an angel sent a special greeting to Peter, after telling the women that came to the grave that Jesus was alive, “Go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you’” (Mark 16:7).

I hope these words encourage you. Even when we have to cry bitter tears of regret there are loving arms ready to embrace us. Let the “look” of Jesus’ love penetrate your soul. He loves you more than words can tell.

Greater love has no one than this,
that he lay down his life for his friends.
John 15:13

The Kiss of Betrayal

This is a very special week, as we remember the Passion of Jesus Christ. Five years ago we looked at some portraits of people related to Jesus and the Cross. I want us to once again look at them and learn.

As I have already written about Mary and her extraordinary gift (February 12) I will not repeat myself. Without knowing it, Mary anointed Jesus for burial.

But there were complaints. When she poured the perfume at the feet of Jesus, Judas and all the other disciples were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. “This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor” (Matthew 26:8,9). Nothing we give to Jesus is a waste!

When Mary chose to sit at Jesus feet, Jesus had one word, “It will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:42). When you chose to be in Jesus’ presence, no one can take that away from you. Even as I write these words I feel the sweet presence of my Lord. It’s like what happened when Mary poured her offering on the feet of Jesus, that the whole room was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

I wish that we this week can “sit” at the feet of Jesus, and that after sitting at His feet we will spread the fragrance of His love all around us.

I’m sure that Mary, as she sat wiping Jesus’ feet with her hair, lovingly kissed those feet that for three years had trodden the dusty roads from Galilee to Judea, and from Judea back to Galilee. That was a humble kiss of devotion to the man who in a short few days would give his life for her. There was another kiss coming, a kiss of betrayal.

Judas’ Kiss of Betrayal

The first one to protest at Mary’s expressions of love and generosity was Judas, the man with the money bag, not because he cared about the poor, but because he helped himself to the content.

We think of Judas in horror. How could he betray Jesus? But how many of us can wash our hands in innocence?

Money! Money! Money! That was the word the little boys on the coast of the Pacific mastered with excellence. I was just a kid but I will never forget when our boat anchored at a port and the little boys would swim around it, crying out “Money! Money! Money!” to the travelers. As soon as someone threw some coins in the water they would quickly dive to retrieve them.

Money! Money! Money! From the youngest to the oldest we cannot live without it, but at the same time it can mess up our life big time, and we can be so bound by it that we let freedom elude us.

One of my Cuban friends tells the story about a lady that let freedom escape her, when there still was time for her to leave Cuba after the Castro take-over. She showed my friend some jewels, maybe valued at two hundred dollars, and said, “I cannot leave, because I will not leave these behind!” And she let the opportunity go, tied down by some earthly goods.

Money is NOT the root of all evil; but it is the love of money that is the root of all evil. We need to be free to be generous like Mary, to lavish on our Lord whatever earthly possessions we might have. Not that he needs them; he owns the cattle on a thousand hills (Psalm 50:10); but it’s one way to show our love.

The story that started so well, with the privilege of being one of the chosen Twelve, ended in such disgrace. The thirty silver coins Judas Iscariot was paid for handing Jesus over to the chief priests burnt in his hands. He threw the money in the temple and went and hanged himself.

I wonder what went through Judas’ mind as he approached Jesus to kiss him. Could it be that even at that moment remorse had set in? Oh, but the prospect of owing those silver coins erased all the scenes of his walk with Jesus for three years. One kiss, just one kiss… and he would be rich. He could travel that world! He could do his own thing! That’s when the words pierced him like a sword, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” (Luke 22:48).

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  –Matthew 6:19-21

God invites us to a generous life.

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make ALL GRACE ABOUND to you, so that IN ALL THINGS AT ALL TIMES, having ALL THAT YOU NEED, you will abound in every good work… You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.  –2 Corinthians 9:6-11

Judas, Judas… such a tragic end to a life full of promise!

Open your heart to the SON as a flower that seeks the sun. Jesus is the Bright Morning Star, “the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 22:13). Nothing can compare to his love!

When many of Jesus’ disciples turned back and no longer followed him, Jesus asked the Twelve, “You do not want to leave too, do you?”

Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”

Then Jesus replied, “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one of the Twelve, was later to betray him.) (See John 6:66-71).

“Lord, to whom shall we go?” Do not let any “silver coins” distract you to the point of betraying your Savior. Jesus has an abundant life in store for you.

No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived
 what God has prepared for those who love him.
1 Corinthians 2:9

Judas, Judas, how could you throw all that away?

Born for a Special Purpose

The beginning of Spring will always commemorate the birth of a very special boy in the city of Karlskrona, Sweden. He was the oldest of three siblings, but his sister went back to God at a very early age. His brother, Leif, still lives in Karlskrona.

Thirty-eight years of my life were connected to Bengt. Come Fall it will be nine years since he went to be with the Lord. Almost nine years since a part of me died with him. I was left with a hole that has not been filled. When we bury a loved one, we bury part of ourselves. Today I celebrate his memory once again

Matthew 6:33, about choosing God’s Kingdom first, connects us the most. That was our verse, and we practiced it.

Romans 12:18, about living in peace with everyone, was the verse Bengt lived by. His mother taught him that. In some ways she went to extremes (my opinion), because she taught her son not to defend himself. That made him a “hackkyckling” in school, someone who everybody picked on. Once again I’m going back to his Swedish roots. “Hacka” is to pick on and “kyckling” is a chicken. So he was a chicken that everyone picked on. Not fun at all.

I don’t know all the stories, but one that he would repeat time and again, especially when he had to start learning English, was one time at school when the teacher was trying to teach him to pronounce the word “hotel.” He didn’t say it to the teacher’s satisfaction. Every time he tried and failed the teacher got more upset and screamed at him. Bengt, of course, got more nervous and could not for his life get the pronunciation. What a sad way to treat a boy.

Happy days in Bengt’s life

Bengt was born and saved for a special purpose. He fell from the second story of their house and survived! Another time he hit his head very bad on the concrete (riding his bike) and his dad had to walk him to the health clinic with his head bundled up in a towel. They had no other way of getting there. Old times! Different times!

His special purpose was to be a missionary among people in the Andes Mountains. He fit in like a pea in a pod! And people loved him. Bengt was very friendly and liked to laugh and joke around.

He was not the Prince Charming of my dreams. God reminded me that he doesn’t look on the outside but at the heart. Bengt had a good heart. I remember my brother Pepe telling me that it didn’t matter if he wasn’t handsome, as long as he was kind. His kindness made him a very handsome man.

We were both born in Sweden but were cultures apart. I was raised in South America. We had moved quite a lot and I had gone to school in four different languages. Bengt never left Karlskrona. When we had married I once told my mother, “I think I’ve married a foreigner!” We had a lot of adjusting to do. It took many years. But we made it. At the end we were like two peas in a pod. And then it was time for him to bid me farewell and go on ahead to wait for me in Heaven!

Our oldest daughter is there with him. And he has the company of his mother, his father, his sister, and his mother-in-law! And best of all, he is in the presence of Jesus!

Do you have the hope that when your day comes to leave this life you will go to your heavenly home? Is heaven your home? This week we are celebrating Easter once again, the time of the year when we especially remind ourselves of the sacrifice Jesus paid on the cross to open the way for us to have peace with God.

Bengt received Jesus as his Lord and Savior when he was 20 years old. He never regretted that decision. It was the best thing he ever did. Because Bengt received Jesus in his life, ten years later I accepted to be his wife. Now our daughter loves Jesus and his grandchildren also love the Lord. What a blessed chain reaction!

I celebrate the memory of a very kind man –a peacemaker. A man that was born with a purpose! Later on this week we will talk about another man who also was born with a special purpose.

I don’t doubt that each person has a purpose to be on this planet. Very few find that purpose. Do you know what God has called you to be?

Seek first God’s Kingdom in your life and you will discover
the beauty of serving God.

 

“Lord, teach us to Forgive”

I’m standing at my kitchen window, my personal “prayer closet,” asking God to teach me to forgive. I have many times asked Him to help me forgive grievances. This time I’m going through hurts that hurt, and this prayer comes out of my hurting heart, “Lord, teach me to forgive.”

One time the disciples asked Jesus, “Teach us to pray.” They had seen the example of His prayer life and wanted the same prayer relationship that He had with His Father.

This is the first time I can remember asking God to teach me to forgive. As I say the prayer, I hear in my heart the answer, “How can I teach you, without hurts to forgive.” Any teaching requires practice.

The first thing children learn in school is the alphabet. How do they lean it? By practicing! Then they learn the numbers. And they practice math problems! And I’m sure we all remember how we learned the multiplication table. With lots of practice!

My granddaughter Brianna asks me to teach her to knit, to crochet, to sew, to do cross stitching. She is very ambitious in her plans for all this learning but she is not very much interested in the “practicing” part. I tell her over and over, “It takes a lot of practice!” She wants to master these arts at once.

I can hear my Father in Heaven talking to me about the forgiveness issue. How am I going to learn forgiveness? Will I learn it by writing 2000 times: I will forgive?

THE ONLY WAY TO LEARN FORGIVENESS

There is only one way to learn forgiveness, and that is through people. At present, I have several opportunities to learn. People that I love have hurt me. You probably have experienced the same thing; the more you love, the more you hurt.

• How about a child that you love, screaming in your face that she hates you?
• How about a friend that you loved and cherished telling you that her love for you is dead?
• How about having someone you have helped unconditionally turn around and show you disdain?

These are examples of things that hurt. If you want to learn to forgive, these are perfect “practice” materials.

I chose Fragrance as my word for 2016. I thought it would be a personal matter between me and God. Then the Lord spoke to my heart that I should share it. It’s now become a project of the complete alphabet in Spanish with words pertaining to spreading the aroma of Christ. There is going to be a lesson for each word, with visuals, PowerPoints and activities. All of this is becoming a matter of practice, because how can I write about love if I don’t practice it? So, God has sent me “material” to practice on. Guess what this practice material is? Yes! People!

When writing about kindness, that’s what I’ve had to practice. All my life I have made it a point to be kind, but now God is reinforcing it with “fresh” practice material!

Forgiveness is the word that is coming up when I get to the P in the Fragrance alphabet.
P is for perdón (forgiveness in Spanish). God has brought it up for me to practice long before I get to it on my alphabet list. My next word to tackle is Compassion. Sandwiched between Kindness and Compassion I need to put Forgiveness.

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
Ephesians 4:32

You cannot be kind and compassionate without a heart full of forgiveness. And for me to write about these things, I have to do a lot of practice. I don’t want my writings to be just words on paper or on a computer screen. I want my words to hit as darts, full of the love and compassion of the Holy Spirit.

PRACTICING FORGIVENESS

I was not even two years old when my mom used to play this little game with me. She would say different words and I would repeat them. At certain intervals she’d insert the word “förlåt”, which means “forgive me” or “I’m sorry”, but I would refuse to say it! As I’ve been told by my parents, I had a very hard time asking for forgiveness, and I suppose even forgiving. Many times it’s been a struggle for me.

I’ve had many opportunities to practice what I call “the art of forgiveness.” One time when we came home from the mission field and my late husband was suffering from a deep depression, we had hoped the pastor would counsel Bengt and give him the encouragement he needed; but it did not happen, and we were very disappointed. The board members didn’t understand our vision for the future and they kind of marked us as damaged goods.

My struggle at that time was so deep that I didn’t want anything to do with God’s children, but in no way could I leave the Lord. With bleeding heart and tear-filled eyes I would tell Jesus that I could never stop loving Him, because He had done me no harm. It was his children that had hurt me. My biggest pain was that I thought my life as a missionary was over. But in due time God would open amazing doors, such as we never could have dreamed.

A “TRIAL BY FIRE” IN THE SCHOOL OF FORGIVENESS

After some time I was invited to be the main speaker at a children’s event at the church. It was a “trial by fire” in the school of forgiveness. I’m so glad God gave me the grace to accept the invitation, and what greater subject to speak about than forgiveness? I started my presentation singing a song about forgiveness. Waves of soothing balm washed over me as I sang, a song about the most wonderful word: forgiveness.

The children I sang for had not hurt me, neither had their parents. It was the board members that had misunderstood us, and I don’t remember if they even were present at the event. That wasn’t important! What mattered is that I publicly offered forgiveness. It hurt deeply to sing each word of the song, but there was wonderful healing power in doing it.

In years to come I learned many lessons in forgiveness. It was always hard for me to ask for it or to offer it. But anytime I could not bring myself to forgive, the Lord was my help. He’s heard many a prayer from me, “Father, I cannot do this. I put the matter in your hands and ask you to forgive through me.” And He has never failed me.

Now my prayer is, “Lord, teach me to forgive.” Should I not have learned it in the course of more than six decades? Forgiveness is something we continually have to practice and learn!

If Mom were here today and could play her little word game with me, she’d have a reason to be proud. Loud and clear I would say the word “förlåt”, because life has taught me that nothing brings such peace and joy to the heart as forgiving and forgetting the grievances.

THE ULTIMATE EXAMPLE OF FORGIVENESS

Jesus gave the ultimate example of forgiveness on the Cross, when he asked the Father to forgive those that were brutally hanging him on the tree.

“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).

Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example, so that we should follow in his footsteps. “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”

When people hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats (see 1 Peter 2:21-23).

He taught us to pray: “Father forgive us… as we forgive.”

Here are some serious words to consider:

“For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”
Matthew 6:14

“And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”
Mark 11:25

“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.”
Matthew 5:23-24

FORGIVING AS GOD FORGIVES US

We are to forgive as Christ has forgiven us.

“Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”
Colossians 3:13

Forgiveness ought to be like a cancelled note — torn in two, and burned up, so that it never can be shown against one (Henry Ward Beecher).

I’ve had many situations that needed forgiving during my life. One time a friend gave me this timely advice: “Whatever happens, don’t get bitter.” You’ve probably heard it said that instead of getting bitter we should get better. I’m glad to say that with God’s help I didn’t get bitter.

The Apostle Paul advises us that we should “make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many” (Hebrews 12:14-15).

“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
Ephesians 4:30-32

There are many hurts in my life that I would like to be healed. Someone said that the best part of having a fight was the making up afterwards. Sometimes one of the parties involved doesn’t want to make up. Then the broken relationship is in jeopardy.

These are some words I heard a preacher say:

Betrayal is what other people put on you.
Bitterness is what you put on yourself.

We can’t get away from hurts. When we least expect it somebody is going to hurt us. We can put the salve of God’s love on the wound and move on in the name of Jesus!

My prayer by the kitchen window is deep and cutting. As I ask God to teach me to forgive, I have to be willing to put into practice the lessons He gives me.

Will you join me in asking God to teach us one of the most valuable lessons in life, to forgive even the most hurtful hurts?

“Lord, teach us to Forgive.”