Bassically

 MAY 7, 2023

On the way home from preaching this morning, my truck suddenly swerved to the right, running off the road, fortunately into a driveway where I was finally able to get it stopped before hitting anything. When I finally calmed down and wiped the sweat from my brow, I noticed I was in the parking lot of the Frewsburg firemen’s pavilion where, miracle of miracles, they were hosting a musician’s swap meet. Talk about turning a bad situation into a blessing! Of course, such Providence meant I had to check it out.

Meeting an old friend at the door, I paid my $3 entry fee and chit-chatted for a couple minutes before checking things out. Guitars, mandolins, fiddles, banjos, drums, amps, equipment, even old LPs and a harp were on display and for sale. I was admirably impervious to their siren call. As I walked down one aisle, wonder of wonders, there before me were two—two; not one, but TWO old Kay basses lying on a table, one of which was an old Kay C1 just begging to be touched. Had I been thinking, I would have remembered the old yard sale dictum, “If you break it, you bought it,” and managed some cosmetic damage, but alas, my brain wasn’t in full gear after preaching earlier.

It was a beautiful old instrument, with plenty of dings and scars bearing testimony to a life well lived, and when plucked, responded with a resonant “boom” that was music to my ears. I was introduced to the owner, an 85-year old gentleman who used to play in a number of bluegrass bands over the years. As we talked, I told him I hadn’t expected to be there today, but was passing by after preaching in a little church down the road. His eyes lit up, and as we talked about playing in church, he introduced me to his wife. 

It is probably a good thing I hadn’t expected to see such a beautiful old bass today, especially one for sale. Had the requisite money been in my pocket, I would have had a lot of explaining to do to Linda. But between you and me, it would have been worth it! 

I ran into a Christian brother who was also checking out the wares. We talked, and I came away appreciating the fellowship of brother musicians. As I told the old gentleman who owned the bass, “I am living proof you don’t have to be good at music to enjoy it.” I don’t have the time or talent to play out at a bluegrass event, but rubbing shoulders with those who do scratches an itch that occasionally needs tending to. 

I am grateful for this serendipitous half hour that was sandwiched in between meeting new people and preaching in the little Methodist church in Akeley, PA, and sitting at the dinner table with my family around me, eating, talking, and laughing in family and Christian joy. It’s been a good day, and if anyone wants to contribute to the Bailey Bass Fund, you can PM me. Just don’t tell Linda!

Strangely Familiar

 May 6, 2023

“I’ve been here before.” Linda and I were driving from the wedding to the reception on unfamiliar roads when we rounded a bend and I knew what would be just down the road. A beautiful brick house on our left, followed by an antique store in an unusual-looking building with a covered porch around two sides. A short while later, I commented, “I know that place!” 

It’s an odd feeling, being familiar with a place you’ve never before seen, at least to your knowledge. It got me to thinking. 

When the children of Israel entered the Promised Land, Joshua gave them specific instructions, saying, “You haven’t passed this way before.” Much of life is like that, which is why we Christians read our Bibles. It’s like reading a map drawn by people who have been there before us. It’s always good when in unfamiliar territory to have a map to keep us from losing our way. The wedding today was preceded by premarital counseling, given by the pastor who has been down the marital road to a young couple before whom it stretched as unfamiliar territory. The day will come when they are expecting their first child and will be looking to those who have traveled that road for advice and counsel.

There is another side of it though. There are times in my life when what should be foreign to me seems strangely familiar. Like our drive today, every so often in life I get the feeling that I’ve been there before. It’s not an occult thing; it’s the sense that this path leads home; it feels right. I think it’s an internal GPS that God has placed inside me, guiding me even when I’m not aware of it. St. Paul puts it this way: “The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Romans 8:16). 

Years ago, John Denver sang of this internal sense of belonging: “Gee, it’s good to be back home again. Sometimes this old farm feels like a long-lost friend. Gee, it’s good to be back home again.” If you feel lost and disoriented, Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Because of our sinfulness, at first, this Way seems foreign and strange, but it doesn’t take long before deep inside you know that there is something familiar about it. It leads us Home, where we belong.

Full

 May 5, 2023

It’s nearly 10:00 pm. Linda and I have cleaned up the kitchen, put the leftovers in the fridge and the dishes in the dishwasher. We’re both tired, but it’s been a good day. Friends for dinner, conversation, and prayer is hard to beat. As we wrapped up, we noted that we’ve been meeting like this since December ‘04, nearly every month. In that time, we’ve seen God answer prayers, sometimes quite slowly, but faithfully as we kept bringing the same names and situations before him over the years. Sometimes when the answers are not immediately forthcoming, it’s tempting to wonder if our prayers make any difference. At the very least, they shape the way we look at life, how we interact with people. Sometimes circumstances change; always, we change.

I can’t help but think of our Cuban brothers and sisters as we filled the fridge with our leftovers. Gas and diesel is almost unobtainable, and what is available costs $5/liter. This, for people whose monthly income is less than $30. A pound of rice eats up a quarter of their monthly income. Their economy is groaning to a complete halt. Leftovers in the fridge are a luxury we take for granted, but they haven’t known in years.

So tonight, I go to bed with a full stomach and heart. My friends may have the full heart, but not the stomach, and many of my friends have the full stomach but an empty heart. If you have both, you are doubly blessed. And if you only have the one, pray for the other, not only for yourself, but for all those who stand in need of the full blessing of God.

Continual Crying

May 4, 2023

I remember it as if it were yesterday instead of last year. The text came as I was sitting in the small courtyard of his house with my friend pastor Daniel Ibaceta. I was in Cuba at the invitation of his son David Daniel for his wedding. The text from Linda simply said, “Call me right away.” I did so only to learn that our son had been taken to the hospital with a brain bleed. 

I know I prayed all that afternoon and through the night, but my prayers had no words. In his letter to the Roman Christians, St. Paul told us that the Spirit of God prays for us “with groanings that cannot be uttered.” I used to wonder about that phrase, but I understand it now. I slept fitfully that night, praying wordless prayers when awake, and also, I believe, when I dozed off.

My Cuban friends arranged a flight home the next day, and that evening Linda and I were in Buffalo General Hospital visiting Nate, who was sitting up, witnessing to his nurses, laughing with us. They stopped the bleed and discovered the tumors in his brain for which he has been receiving treatment ever since.

These days, you wouldn’t know from looking at him that there was anything wrong with him. He gets tired more easily than before, and if you ask, will tell you of the brain fog he deals with. This semblance of normalcy is insidious and deceitful, and deadly to prayers if I am not careful.

This morning’s reading came from Jesus’ story of the unjust judge who wouldn’t listen to a woman’s cry for help. Undeterred, she kept at it till he granted her an audience. “Will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily” (Luke 18:7-8). But what if, unlike this woman, our prayers slow down, our fervor fails, and we lose our desperation for God to hear and answer? What if prayer becomes simply routine, without any expectation of results?

In the Garden of Gethsemane on that last earthly night, Jesus prayed desperately, “Father, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not my will, but Thine be done.” The gospel tells us that his prayer was so intense that he sweat blood. Meanwhile, the disciples’ eyes grew heavy as they dozed off. “Couldn’t you watch with me for one hour?” Jesus asked. “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation.” 

Still, they slept, and before the night was over, they had all deserted him. I wonder about my prayers. How many answers do I not receive because I have lost that sense of urgency I felt about Nate last year? How many times have I fallen to temptation because I couldn’t wait with Jesu for even an hour? What have I missed out on because I couldn’t be bothered to cry out to God day and night? I was in continual, if wordless, prayer for my son. God heard our cry, and Nate is still with us, blessing us with his faith and faithfulness. 

The promises of God are of no effect if we fail to act on them. “Will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily.” That is God’s promise. The prayer is up to me. 

Give Me the Mountain!

 May 3, 2023

It’s been awhile. I don’t get to preach as often as I once did, so when the opportunity comes, there’s a part of me that hesitates. I know how much work it is. But there is also that part of me that tingles with excitement at the challenge of presenting the Word of God to the people of God. It’s a daunting task; these days, I’m asked to fill in for vacationing or ill pastors in churches where I don’t know the people, their hopes, dreams, fears, or failures. Discerning what needs to be said to people I don’t know is the hardest part.

But if the Scripture I proclaim is true, then I must believe that God has truly given me everything I need for life and godliness, including the wisdom and ability to hit the target of his people’s hearts. I get my chance Sunday.

I’ve been thinking about Caleb. By the time Israel finally got into the Promised Land, he was an old man—85 years, to be exact. But his enthusiasm hadn’t diminished from 45 years earlier when he, along with Joshua, came back from their spying expedition to say, “Let’s go! We can do this!” The bad report of the other 10 spies torpedoed things back then; Caleb must have been extremely disappointed. Other people’s unbelief kept him from getting what he wanted and could have had. For 45 years, he dreamed of that land. And now, he gets his chance.

Have you ever had a dream so vivid you could almost taste it, a fire that burned within? And then had it blow up in your face because of someone else’s interference? That was Caleb, but instead of living in bitterness and thoughts of what might have been, he determined to be faithful till the end. And when he finally got his chance, his words were direct: “Give me that mountain!” He told Joshua he was as strong as he had been 45 years ago; I suspect that was his heart speaking for his body, which might have disputed his sentiments. But it is the condition of the heart that wins the day. 

He told Joshua that the word he had brought back 45 years ago was what was in his heart Joshua 14:7). In 45 years, that word had never left him: “We can do this!” That’s how I feel tonight. I’ve not had to wait 45 years. 45 days is enough, and I am eager to conquer that mountain. As long as I feed it, the fire burns as brightly as ever, so I am diving into the Scriptures and digging into prayer. My prayer is simple. “God, give me that mountain!”

Promises

 May 2, 2023

“Faith turns the promise into prophecy.” I love a good turn of a phrase, and this one to me is among the best. I found it in an old devotional book of my mother’s, marked and annotated in her tiny, precise handwriting. “Springs in the Desert,” by (as she called herself) Mrs. Chas. E Cowman. 

The rest of the paragraph is instructive: “While it is merely a promise it is contingent upon our cooperation. But when faith claims it, it becomes a prophecy, and we go forth feeling the it is something that must be done because God cannot lie.” She continues, “I hear men praying everywhere for more faith, but when I listen to them carefully and get at the real heart of their prayer, very often it is not more faith at all that they are wanting, but a change from faith to sight.”

Praying in faith doesn’t always make things turn out the way we want, but it does lay hold of God’s promises so as to keep us praying when we would otherwise give up. Seen this way, I shudder to think of how often I’ve quit praying because I didn’t see the expected result in my expected time. I can be a bit dense, but I’m slowly learning to wait on the Lord. That word “wait” means exactly what we would think; I pray for wisdom and guidance, over and over, not sensing any certainty about what I should do, but I don’t stop praying, and eventually the haze begins to lift and I see the outlines of God’s plans slowly coming into view.

God has promised much in his Word, but we miss so much of it because we haven’t seen it as promise, or more precisely, we haven’t seen it as a promise for us, and sometimes, we take as promises that which God has not offered. Today I read in Matthew 24 the promise of tribulation, betrayal, and suffering, In the midst of this promise is another: “I am with you to the end of the age.” I believe this; so it’s not only a promise, but a prophecy that is being fulfilled even as I write, even as you read.

Who Is Worthy?

May 1, 2023

Who (or what) is worthy of our best time and attention? As a Christian, the answer should be the Lord Jesus Christ, but in reality, does he get the best time and attention from me? Consider a normal day.

I get up, go to the bathroom for my morning routine. But I grab my phone on the way so I can eliminate all the junk emails. When that’s done, I’ve been in the habit of checking the responses on my Facebook posts. This morning as I showered, the thought occurred to me (which means God spoke to me) that checking those responses before I checked in with God was tantamount to worshipping myself instead of God. In doing so, I am looking for fulfillment in people’s responses instead of in hearing from God. 

When Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness, he showed him all the kingdoms of the world, saying, “All this is yours if you bow down and worship me.” The temptation is subtle, but very effective: “Get your satisfaction, your ego boost from whatever the world has to offer.” For the past ten years, I’ve been consciously working on changing my perspective on life. It began with learning to give thanks in everything. To do that, I had to consciously focus on the good in life and to tune out all the garbage of the world.

I’ve found that it’s easier said than done. When I was a kid, we had an encyclopedia in  the bookshelf at the foot of our stairs. Whenever we were given history or scientific research assignments, I would pull out one of the volumes and begin to read. The problem was, once I found the information I was looking for, another article beckoned; then another and yet another. Before I knew it, an entire afternoon or evening was gone. It’s still a problem for me. There are so many interesting articles online that it’s easy for me to go from one to another, eating up time. 

But online articles aren’t necessarily God-focused, and the news, from whatever source it comes to us, is designed to unnerve, stir up fear and/or anger. It can be addictive, and it almost never is edifying. Instead of fulfilling, like a drug, it keeps us craving more. 

So…I’m engaging a new discipline, eschewing Facebook articles and even comments on mine, at least until after I’ve gotten my spiritual bearings from the Lord. There is nothing in this world worth worshipping, nothing worth my first and best attention. Jesus’ answer to the devil’s temptation is as true today as when he uttered the words, “It is written, “Worship the LORD your God, and him alone shall you serve.””