Making Excuses

"But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.” Luke 14:18

I have a friend who I’ve known for almost 50 years. When we run into each other, she’s friendly and talkative and invariably ends the conversation with, “We’ll have to get together sometime.” For the first ten years of our friendship, I’d reply, “That’s a good idea. When should we do it?” My friend would say that she’d give me a call. After ten years of the call never coming, I decided to change my response to, ‘Well, let me know when you want to do that,” but didn’t expect to hear from her.

Now, you may ask, “Why didn’t I just initiate the invitation?” I have no good answer to that! The friend is a pleasant person who, I’m sure, would accept my invitation if I contacted her, but wasn’t the ball in her court since she was the first to suggest getting together? Did I really want to spend time with her? Was I afraid she would turn me down? Had this proposal to “get together” been exchanged too long to have sincere meaning? So many possible excuses.

A story is told about a man who wanted to borrow his neighbor’s ladder. His neighbor says,” Sorry, I can’t let you borrow my ladder. It’s holding up my wall and the wall will fall down if you take the ladder.” “Why that’s ridiculous, your ladder doesn’t hold up the wall!”  “That’s right,” retorts the neighbor, “but when you don’t want to do something, one excuse is as good as another.”

Making excuses keeps us from experiencing many things, both positive and negative. The invitation to “hit a few balls” with your new supervisor at work might lead to a long friendship formed around your mutual love of golf. Pleading, “I’d love to, but I promised I’d take the kids to a movie,” could be interpreted as not wanting to socialize with your supervisor and forfeiting future invitations. Excuses sometimes protect us from anticipated rejection; if I say no, I avoid the possibility of getting hurt. Excuses cover up our poor judgement; I didn’t want to eat that apple, but the snake made me do it! 

What about when God asks us to do something to further His kingdom. Do we take a chance and say, “Here I am Lord,” or do we give an excuse? Are we too old, too young, too fearful, or do we accept God’s invitation? Do we take our salvation seriously and make it a priority or do we miss out on the joy and peace that come with receiving God’s love by making excuses?

Prayer: Help us hear God’s call to accept his salvation not with excuses, but with an enthusiastic, “Here I am Lord.” We know we need to make the things that are important priorities in our lives. Give us the courage and strength to reach out and accept God’s invitation to eternal life without denials, excuses, or justifications for our hesitation. Amen

Carol McClain (reprinted from 2024)

October: Clergy Appreciation Month

 

May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.  Psalm 19:14

This scripture is the verse of the day on BibleGateway.com, which I often use to look up Bible verses. The first part is familiar to us as it's similar to the words spoken by our pastors in the prayer before the sermon in worship services.

October is Pastor Appreciation Month and we're asked to take action to let our pastors know how important they are to us. It doesn't have to be much-just telling them we appreciate them can be enough. Any of us who are employed probably wish we were thanked more often for our work. We have the chance to let our pastors know we're grateful for them.

I found a poem by Judy Crowe for pastor appreciation month, and the first and last verses state (with a little editing):

Have you ever walked in our pastors' shoes,

And gone where their feet have trod?

Have you ever thought of what they mean to us,

And on your knees, given thanks to God?

Eastridge is blessed with two pastors who have different gifts to share with us. Let us remember throughout the year to give thanks to God for their service with us.  

(And even though there is no staff appreciation month, let us remember and give thanks for the staff members who support the pastors.)

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for sending Melodie and Thomas to serve our church at this place and time. Help us to remember each day that they are here to guide us on our journey. And help us to let them know we are thankful for them. Amen.

Robin Hadfield (reprinted from 2018)

Autumn

Henry David Thoreau wrote “Summer passes into Autumn in some unimaginable point of time like the turning of a leaf.” 

A sugar maple tree wearing shades of red and yellow caught my eye on a hot day. I looked again – it can’t be fall. Fall follows summer and I have been cooped up in the house with temperatures over 90. It is supposed to cool, it can’t be fall. 

But fall is upon us. As a child, I hated to see the end of summer. School (which I liked by the way) would begin. But it was not school I hated to see coming, it was the end of freedom that I hated to see end. Summer meant barefoot running, frequent visitors to the farm where I lived. Some chores, but lots of time for talking to sisters, mom and dad and also time for exploring the woods and the fields surrounding our home. Just wandering in the countryside looking at God’s world. 

This year, it feels different. I am ready to put the flowers to bed. To add bulbs in new places. As the hymn says, “In every bulb, there is a flower!” I am ready to let this year slide from fall into winter. For, I know, there will be a birth in a manger to celebrate and then the promise of spring. Spring will come and when it does, those same bulbs will bring cheer and hope for more tomorrows. 

So I am tucking my bulbs into the dirt, getting rid of junk, preparing for this season and whatever will follow. After winter, spring will come and renewed life in our world. Jesus gave us that hope with his death on the cross. I watch the last of the butterflies drink again and again at the butterfly bush. They have traveled many miles and need this drink and I am happy to provide it.  

I am not returning to school but I will be wearing shoes and watching the world put on its beautiful autumn show. The season will cool and winter will come, but I know in my heart that life in the bulbs and belief in our savior will bring us back to spring. God is putting his world to bed and there is promise for a new tomorrow. 

This time, when I saw another beautiful tree I just gloried in its beauty instead of moaning the loss of summer. Instead of being the end, I will take it as a beginning looking forward. 

Carolyn Olsen (reprinted from 2023)

Dancing With God

You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. Psalm 30:11-12 

Let them praise God’s name with dancing and make music to Him with tambourine and harp for the Lord takes delight in His people; he crowns the humble with salvation. Psalm 149:3-4

So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him: he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. (Parable of the Prodigal Son) Luke 15:20

One of my favorite TV shows is “Dancing with the Stars”. As I watch from week to week, it amazes me to see the improvement each celebrity exhibits as he or she becomes more confident in themselves and their ability to execute the dance with their professional dance partner. Some celebrities possess a natural ability to dance while others show more awkwardness. But even the most awkward celebrity shows progress as their professional dance partner guides and leads them through the steps during their daily practices in an attempt to put their assigned dance performance together. 

As I reflect on my life, I view it as a dance with God. At times, it has been as smooth and graceful as a Viennese Waltz while at other times it has been exuberant and joyful like the Lindy Hop or Jive. Still at other times, I have allowed my anger and haughtiness towards God to resemble the Paso Doble or take the form of the freestyle dance when I wanted to throw out all the rules and do things “my way”. Through the years, I’ve even allowed myself to drift away from God’s arms, all the time knowing, God’s arms would be open wide and ready to accept me back into His loving and guiding embrace at a moments notice. 

Prayer: Dear God: Thank you for being my dance partner in life and, ultimately, in death. Open my heart to feel your guiding hand each day as we move together through our ups and downs and joys and sorrows. May my trust in you increase daily knowing you have a plan for my life if I just will take notice and feel your gentle, guiding touch.  Amen 

Patty Niemann (reprinted from October 2009) 

A Prayer for Today

A recent prayer shared by a member of the Wednesday Bible Study group. 

God Wanted to Give us Faith

In Christ we are set free by the blood of his death, and so we have forgiveness of sins. How rich is God’s grace, which he has given to us so fully and freely. God, with full wisdom and understanding, let us know his secret purpose. This was what God wanted, and he planned to do it through Christ. Ephesians 1:7-9

I mean that you have been saved by grace through believing. You did not save yourselves; it was a gift from God. It was not the result of your own efforts, so you cannot brag about it. Ephesians 2:8-9

Henry Morris says in Days of Praise, “Faith preserves and protects us. Jesus insisted, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life (John 5:24) This is an absolute change and eliminates the possibility of hell (John 10:28-29).”

I lost my best friend this spring. She lived a few doors from me. I could talk to her late in the evening and bring all my questions about life to her. She understood our Lord Jesus so well.

She was the strongest Christian I have ever known. I know Jesus welcomed her into his heaven.

Now, I have a friend that heard yesterday her grandson’s father passed away. The family is in the middle of lots of struggles. The grandson had left home as a junior in high school because of struggles between him and his mom. The father had a part of 30 acres of land on a plantation in the southern U.S. with some other relatives and they don’t know what will happen with that land. He was found dead on the land, and they do not know why he passed away. He had been divorced from the grandson’s mother for the majority of the son’s 17 years. 

However, they knew the last few months or maybe longer that he had been reading the Bible. He may have found Jesus and is in heaven! How wonderful!

Do you know if you are baptized? Parents today often baptize their infants before they talk.

Philip says to an officer in Acts 8:37, "If you believe with all your heart, you can be baptized". The officer said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” If you can say these words, you will receive the saving grace of Jesus, and we will see each other in heaven. Jesus said in John 6:63: "The words I told you are spirit, and they give life." You can say these words today!

We get our new life from the Spirit, so we should follow the Spirit. We must not be proud or make trouble with each other or be jealous of each other. Galatians 5:25-26 

Sandra Hilsabeck

Psalm 22

My God, my God why have you forsaken me?

Why are you so far from saving me.

O my God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer,

By night, and am not silent. Psalm 22:1-2

Some nights when sleep escapes me, I hear myself say, “Where are you God?" But then a gentle reminder comes to me - not all is good - not all is bad. Think of what you have – children, grandchildren, friends, a comfortable home and no hunger.  I may not sleep but I am more content. 

But not long ago, a terrible windstorm arrived in Lincoln and the world we know was very ugly.  A dead limb still hangs in the ash tree near my property spewing seeds and dead leaves each day. Great gashes remain in the tree down the street and where many stately trees stood, now only gaps remain. So is everything God does good?

My mind does wonder that often as I think of the many loved ones I have lost and babies crying from hunger. People running for their lives and others living on the streets. 

On page 15 of “Prayer In The Night” by Tish Harrison Warren, we read the author saying, “Where are you oh God? Is anyone watching out for us? Does anyone see? And tell us why? Why this evil, this heartbreak, this suffering?”  

I agreed with the author but then as I drove through the neighborhood just the other day, I saw the world back together again. Trees have been trimmed, yards are greeting fall with color and green trees are suddenly sporting bright yellow leaves and a sugar maple suddenly answers all my questions. Beautifully attired on one branch, it has turned into fall colors of red, yellow and orange. 

God is here, he loves us.  Amen

Carolyn Olsen