FORGIVE ISIS, MOMMY

       A May 19 story this year in London’s Daily Telegraph, reported that ISIS Jihadi fighters arrived at a home in Mosel, Iraq, and told the woman she had two choices. "Either you leave your home now or you must pay the Jaziya." (Jaziya is a tax imposed on non-Muslims in ISIS controlled territories and is calculated according to their estimated worth.)
       The woman told the Jihadis she would pay and asked for a few moments to get the money and also her child. Instead, the Jihadis lit the house on fire with both mother and daughter inside. The mother managed to pull her 12 year-old daughter from the burning house, but the girl died from burns a few hours later. Incredibly, the girl with her dying breath said to her mother, “Forgive them, Mommy.”
       How could it be possible for a girl to ask her mother such a thing? Because the girl and her mother were Christians. They knew what Jesus said about loving their enemies, and they were living their faith in Him.
       Jesus urged His disciples in Matthew 5:43-44, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.” But plainly, is not Jesus asking the impossible from us? How would this sweet, dying girl want her killers forgiven?
       More to the point, how can we forgive our enemies? Only by loving them. Love is the only answer to the world’s wickedness and bloodshed. And prayer is the only way to learn that love. We must pray, pray and pray some more.
       Sin and rebellion against Almighty God have taken over the very soul of mankind, and unless Christians pray desperately for help to love and forgive the enemy, their evil will triumph and they will overtake us all. From the cross Jesus prayed for us all, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
       A leading Baghdad cleric, Father Martin Dawood, said the country’s ancient Christian population could disappear within five years due to ISIS. He said he used to advise members of his congregation to remain rather than flee their country, but now he urges them to leave.
       Chaldean Catholics, Syrian Orthodox and Eastern Assyrian Christians numbered 1.3 million people 20 years ago, but are only 400,000 today. Father Dawood said: “We know not every Muslim here is a terrorist, but there is a culture rising, not only here in Iraq, but in the whole world, and we will be burned in this fire in the future.”
       So Christians there pray, and they teach their people to forgive. And so should we. Yes, we should pray fervently for our nation and its future, but our best prayers are to love our enemies and to ask God to turn their hearts from hatred to love Him, and us.
       My friend, Rev. Cliff Haberstock, wrote, "ISIS cannot stamp out Jesus. Without Him they can only live in fear and hatred." Let us pray for them to find Jesus, and for God to change their hearts. Let us also pray for our soldiers who stand in the gap between us and the enemy.

“Lord, teach us to love and forgive our enemies, at home and abroad. Amen”

Rev. Bob Tasler
www.bobtasler.com

HOW CAN GOD STAND IT?

Dear friends,
    During the past week, Carol and I had the interior of our house painted, so we had to take everything off the walls. While putting my office back together, I hoisted up my world map, concentrating on just where it would go to be straight, stapled it firmly to the wall, and then stepped back to look at my work. Something wasn’t right. The world was in exactly the right place, but it was upside down!
    That may be a better example of our present reality than we think. The news this morning tells us of yet another tragic mass killing, but still our leaders won’t admit why it was done. Instead of blaming the shooter and his motives, they blame what he used to shoot. And despite ISIS publicly patting the shooter on the back, we are told not to blame Islam, because what happened is called anything else except what it is, another Islamic terrorist attack.
    Once again, Common Sense is buried under the ever-growing pile of PC words. It’s probably because the world is upside down.
    John Walsh, in a commercial, stands at the top of a fifty story building and says, “Wouldn’t it be nice if you could go through life without having to worry?” Then he jumps off the building and lands with his parachute in the middle of a street. He’s selling “Great Call”, a service that can track us and take our calls for distress at home, car or anywhere, at any time. Our own personal GPS will take away our worries!
    As if just knowing where we are will keep us safe, or help us make good decisions. But location isn’t our problem, nor is our lack of another gadget. Bullets aren’t the problem either, nor is a gay night club, nor even our refusal to deal with a warped view of an eastern religion.
    Our world is upside down because of mankind’s rebellion towards God. And it spawns ideas like there’s only one God with different names, and that notion that all roads lead to heaven. That that ain’t true, no matter who says it.
    Someone might wonder, “Where is God in all this tragedy?” Well, maybe He’s left us. After all, we’ve done a pretty good job of kicking Him out of government, school, morality and relationships. If we were treated as He is, would we want to stick around?
    It’s a really, really good thing that Jesus doesn’t pull the plug on us and walk away. Despite our refined human intelligence and our all-wise rulers, He’ll still be there forgiving our foolish sins, as well as our incredible cruelty and blind stupidity. I don’t know how He can do it. He said in John 6:37, “Whoever comes to me I will never cast out.”
   
Jesus doesn’t know when to quit, and I’m sure glad He doesn’t.

Rev. Bob Tasler
www.bobtasler.com

THE LOST IS FOUND

THE LOST IS FOUND
        We are having having most of our house interior painted this week, so everything is a mess. It almost looks like we're moving. So many things are where they shouldn't be, awaiting tubs and boxes for temporary storage. Our biggest irritation is the dust of fifteen years that is getting into our noses, making for some huge and comical sneezes. No matter how careful one is to keep it clean, a house accumulates dust invisibly until a project like this.   
        But something joyful happened. We found the key to our Arizona golf cart! It was right here on our Colorado key rack, right under our noses because we weren't looking for it here. I spent many hours last winter looking for that key in Arizona, but it wasn't going to be found in Arizona. For some reason I'd brought it up here, but thought it was down there. So the "lost" was not really lost. We were looking in the wrong place.
        We were pleased to find it because that company is no longer in business and the cart shop wasn't even sure they could order a new key system that could replace it. But it doesn't matter now, because the lost key is found. That has a biblical ring to it, doesn't it?
        The woman in Jesus' story in Luke 15 swept her house until she found the lost coin. She needed that coin and when it was found, told her neighbors to come over and be happy with her at her discovery. "Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost." (Luke 15:9)
        Forty-six years ago this summer I helped a family find their lost seventeen year-old son. He was angry at his parents and the world, and so ran off from his Minot, ND, home. After a few months being lost, he called his parents from Boston and wanted to be found again. They were so pleased that they invited me to meet him at the train station, and I got a Christmas card and a thank you from them several years afterwards.
        I can't remember his name now, but I do recall the look of joy on his father's face when he told me his beloved son was coming home. It must have been like the look on the woman's face when the lost coin was found. It is a true blessing of life to find something that has been lost.
        If you are ever lost, God will try to find you. He will because He loves and treasures you and wants you to be with Him always. That is His wish and His promise. God finds His lost children and wants them to come and be with Him.
        Our house is too messy for you to come over right now to celebrate, but we still want to share our happiness at finding something lost.

What have you found lately that is a blessing to you?

Rev. Bob Tasler
www.bobtasler.com

REMEMBERING WITH TEARS

       Last night Carol and I watched the National Memorial Day program held in front of our nation's capital. The grand music, proud citizens in uniform and touching remembrances of the sacrifices given our nation by its men and women of the Armed Forces made it nearly impossible not to shed a tear as we watched.
        The soldiers of today and past centuries can bring tears of pride, but also of sadness. We are proud that so many of our nation's finest have been and still are willing to place their lives on the line in order that we can enjoy our freedom. Yet there is sadness that the need for standing armies never goes away.
       There is honor and duty in serving our nation as soldier, sailor, marine, or airman. So long as we live on this planet, we must always have them to defend us. We must ever honor and thank them for what they have done and still do.
       We must always be ready and vigilant to defend our country. Mankind's weakness requires it. We humans have risen to such heights of achievement, invention and information, yet we continue to encounter those who would rob, kill and otherwise destroy us. Why?
       The answer is human sinfulness and its never-ending effect on our fallen, selfish natures that results in havoc and evil on others, evil inspired by Satan, the author of evil. The amazing thing is that God continues His grace and mercy upon us despite our sin. Jesus bids us love one another, including our enemies, a near-impossible task when evil comes close to home and loved ones.
       Jesus said, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." (Matthew 5:44) Yes, He wants us to love them and pray for them, even those who would kill us and our loved ones! I don't know all that it means to love them, nor do I have the strength to do so. But I'm sure praying for them is a good start, prayer that God would change their hearts toward us and our attitude towards them.
       Carol and I pray daily together and give God thanks for all those who protect us, especially those armed guards who stand between us and the evils of the world. We also regularly give God thanks for allowing us to live in such a great nation as we still have.

Thank You, God, for blessing America!

JESUS CHANGES EVERYTHING

         Queen Elizabeth II is 90 years old this year, and she has been a fine example of humility and service during her reign, the longest in England’s history. She once visited Trinidad and Tobago, islands off the northeast coast of South America. When the Queen entered one small town, many of the missionaries and their families joined with hundreds of others who gathered to greet her.
        Adults and children waved small British flags and cheered as they watched the Queen and her entourage came down the street. There were soldiers, the mounted guard and a limousine from which the Queen waved to the cheering crowd. One young spectator later wrote that as soon as the Queen and her party left town, everything returned to normal. His exact words were, “Royalty came to town and nothing changed.”
        When Jesus of Nazareth came to Jerusalem before His death and resurrection, people put palm branches and cloaks on the road as He rode on His “donkey limousine” amid the shouting and cheering people. If anyone there could have seen what was ahead for Him in the coming days, they might have said, “Royalty came to town and everything changed.”
        Jesus continues to come into the lives and hearts of men, women and children, whenever they come to trust Him as their Savior. We all need a Savior, and Jesus gave His life in order to be ours. He took it back again when He returned to the Father and promises us now He will come again to take us to God in Heaven.

Has anything changed in your life because of Jesus?
Rev. Bob Tasler
www.bobtasler.com

WHAT DO WE HATE?

        In my childhood home my parents, especially my mother, discouraged us from hating. It was good advice, since hatred must be rightfully and carefully doled out and always in small amounts. Today, however, some people and even whole cultures seem to revel in hatred and even feed off it. Others have over-used the word until it has little or no meaning left.
        To hate means to have an extreme feeling of dislike towards something or someone. It is an intense feeling of revulsion, usually derived from fear or the possibility of injury. Modern usage, however, has expanded use of the word beyond this accepted definition.
        A “hate crime” is done against someone based on their race, religion or other beliefs. “Hate speech” is expressing hateful attitude toward a person or group with whom a person disagrees. “Hate mail” can come from those who disagree with an organization’s policies. To hate a person’s views, or to hate a vicious act, and even to hate ice cream all seem to carry the same value. Such uses dilute the meaning of hatred and equates all hatred as being equal in contempt.
        Such over-use of a more rightful feeling of hatred towards those who embody evil, such as the wicked tyrant, the violent murderer or the abuser of the innocent, no longer has meaning for which the word was intended.
        The Muslim extremist hates others with whom he disagrees enough to blow up themselves (or others they force to carry bombs) and the people around them, whether in the market, police station or religious ceremony. Those who have felt this violence can well come to hate the extremist.
        Hatred should be reserved for the heinous act, but not the perpetrator. Jesus urges us, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” (Matthew 5:44). By this He meant for us to care for people, but not the evil acts they may do. God hates sin, especially that which is carried out against the weak and vulnerable. Yet He also cares for His people, and He will have mercy on the contrite person who seeks mercy. Such grace may, however, still cost the perpetrator rightful consequences.
        “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,” our Lord said from the cross (Luke 23:34). Those words apply as much to the heinous criminal as to the arrogant, the self-righteous, the selfish, or the foolish sinner. We all need His forgiveness. But we also need an intense revulsion towards those acts that destroy humanity and fracture our relationship with God.

Father, forgive us when we hate sinner, rather than just the sin.

Rev. Bob Tasler
www.bobtasler.com

HOW'S YOUR MILEAGE?

        Is there a graduation gift you’ve purchased for someone this spring? Allen Swift (1908–2010) of Springfield, Massachusetts, received a remarkable gift from his father for his college graduation when he was just twenty years old. It was a brand new car. Many a man at that time wished he would have gotten such a graduation gift, but no one would have considered keeping and driving that car for the rest of his life.
        But that’s just what Allen Swift did. His gift was a new 1928 Rolls Royce Piccadilly-P1 Roadster, and he achieved the remarkable feat of continuing to drive it right up until  his death in 2010 at the age of 102. He was the  oldest living owner of a car that had been purchased new. His 1928 Rolls is a marvel of craftsmanship.
        When it  was donated by his family to a Springfield auto museum after his death, the odometer showed 1,070,000 miles on it. That’s 13,000 miles per year, or 1,100 miles per month. It still ran very well, almost like a Swiss watch, its engine quiet at most speeds and body in near-perfect condition even though it had been built 82 years before. They certainly don’t make them like this anymore, do they?
        How many miles does your odometer show, the odometer on your life? How many years have you held up, and how are you running? God wants us to take care of our bodies, but He doesn’t give us all the same kind. Men and women all have body types that vary. I’ve seen people at 85 who are in better condition than others at 65, and no matter how carefully some people take care to eat and exercise properly, their body deteriorates as fast as someone who doesn’t care for his as much.
        A car body certainly isn’t like a human body. God has given us the miracle of human life for a determined span on this incredible planet. When our time comes to leave, we then will all know what it will be like on the “other side.” Praise God that He promises eternal glory in His presence to all who believe and have faith in His Son Jesus Christ.

Give God thanks for the miles on your life’s odometer!

Rev. Bob Tasler
www.bobtasler.com