FATHER'S AND SONS TOGETHER

        Yesterday son Chuck and I were privileged to present the Father’s Day message at Christ Lutheran, Phoenix, where Chuck teaches. He and I presented a dialogue, “Fathers and Sons Together”, at their four Sunday morning services. Since I’m weary from the “red-eye” weekend flights, I am not going to write something new, but quote some of what I said.

        “As earthly fathers, we make mistakes, plenty of them. But our children can learn a lot from how they see us handle our mistakes. Psalm 103 says God knows us inside and out and still loves us anyway. Fathers and sons are grateful God does this for us. Following Jesus helps us be better persons. God loves us in spite of our sins and forgives us because of Jesus. He loves us no matter who we are or what we’ve done, and for that we are most thankful. 

        “Father’s Day is a good time to give thanks for our families, and also to remember we have two fathers, an earthly father and a Heavenly One, too. 1 John 3:1 says, “See what love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” God knew even before we were born that He would bring us into our earthy families as well as His holy family in the Christian Church. All this is from His amazing grace, and it has given us incredible blessings here on earth and hereafter in eternity.”

        God has blessed me with two fine sons, and also two loving families, our earthly dear family and our spiritual church family. Chuck was my “driver” Sunday, as I also helped install a new pastor at our winter congregation, Christ Lutheran, Coolidge, AZ. Being with my son, his wife and children, and presenting the Gospel during worship made this Father’s Day memorable, a once-in-a-lifetime event. 

Thank You, Father, for giving us two families,

Rev. Bob Tasler, www.bobtasler.com

THE TIMES AREN'T A-CHANGING

      There is a saying: “What goes around comes around.” I think that means what we do now may come back to haunt us. It could also mean what the Bible says about the sins of the fathers being visited on the children. It could even mean something questionable done long ago returns again, this time as fashionable.

      When our boys were born in North Dakota during the 1970s, we had to drive sixty miles to the Bismarck hospital for their delivery. When Brian was born, his older brother Charles wanted to play with his Mommy on the way home, so little Brian was relegated to sleeping in a cardboard grocery box in the back seat for the trip. 

      This morning I read a trend has now become fashionable in Scandinavian countries, hospitals giving new parents baby items in a box that can double as its first bed. Several American states are starting their own baby box giveaway programs as well, with, of course, advice and instructions on safe box usage. We can all be sure there are already rules drawn up so the government can regulate our baby box use. Maybe this will even merit a new Cabinet position.

      Imagine the horror expressed if anyone today did what we did back in 1974 - drove those sixty miles without little Brian being strapped into an approved car seat! In those days seat belts and car seats were seen as optional. And while I’m certainly not advocating that practice again, it illustrates another use of the saying, “What goes around comes around.” 

      I just published The Searching Disciple, a study on Ecclesiastes which begins with the words, “There is nothing new under the sun.” (Ecc. 1:9) In it, the writer says history just repeats itself, so don’t get your hopes up. But his thinking is tainted by his cynicism and especially by not knowing there is a Messiah to come who will deliver us from the sins of the past. As we learned back in the sixties, “There’s no new morality, just old immorality in a new form.”

      Give thanks today that we see our Savior Jesus in our rear view mirror, forgiving us for our foolishness of the past, and giving us hope as we face today and whatever the future road has in store for us.

“The times really aren’t a-changing all that much.” (This Bob, not the Nobel Laureate)

Rev. Bob Tasler, www.bobtasler.com

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME

        Life is short. I once asked my aged father what interesting things he remembered happening in life, and he said he wasn’t sure because it all happened so fast. Born in 1898 and died in 1995, he was alive from the Wright Brothers through the World Wars, to man walking on the moon, to laptop computers. Back then he didn’t know or care much about laptops, but if he were alive today, I think he’d find them fascinating, especially the tiny ones we call “smartphones.” You know - those hand-held things that run out of battery just when we need it.

        Whatever we may have experienced in life, we must all admit life is short. There is little that is truly constant and invariable in our human experiences on earth. Einstein taught us this with his theory of relativity. Just realizing how long some moments can be, or how fast a life slips away, gives us insight how time moves so fast or so slow. 

        God’s Word in the Bible gives us something to hold onto, however. Our Creator God cares for us and has given us this fascinating world in which we can live, move and have our being. His presence and mercy are our constancies. We believe God and His good will are unchangeable, but, of course, people certainly aren’t. Tainted by sin, our fickle natures and opinions last only as long as the next idea comes along. 

        We often preface what we say with, “if only…” “If only I were out of school. If only I had enough money. If only I could be married. If only I had a better job. If only I could retire.” Then when some or most of those things do take place, we wonder where our short life has gone. 

        Carol and I took our family of twelve on a short Bahama cruise this past weekend and enjoyed seeing our people get to know each other better, experience some new things, eat some fantastic food and then go our separate ways at the end, till we meet again. Carol and I eventually got home, despite a plane change, and we both agreed once again that our favorite part of any trip is the homecoming. 

        My Dad’s eternal home going was blessed after so long a life. Our earthly home coming last night was blessed with familiar bed and sounds. When we see our loved ones again, we will enjoy the familiarity of laughter and joy and growing up and growing older. 

        When we know Jesus is Lord of our life, we can handle the brevity of life because we know in Him it never really ends. It enters a new stage here and there until we live with Him in eternity. But of this we can be sure: Jesus’s Words of comfort, “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.” (Hebrews 113:5)

Home is the best place to be, our home here or our home in heaven.

Rev. Bob Tasler

JESUS NEVER LETS GO

        One of the great things about being a Christian is that no matter what problems today may bring, there is a better future for us tomorrow. No matter what evil may happen today, there is something better to look forward to. The present is not all there is to life. We see the troubles of life, but we know God is with us every step of the way. As God bids us to do Psalm 50:15, “Call upon me in the day of trouble. I will deliver you and you will glorify me.”

        We acknowledge sin in the world and in our personal lives, but we know Christ has overcome it. We look backward with gratitude but look forward with joy. As Mrs. Ruth Graham said from her wheelchair before she died, “So many wonderful memories, and so much to look forward to!” Believers in Christ are able to see past the tragedies of today, and look forward to the wonder and joy of what God has in store for us in our tomorrows.

        Corrie Ten Boom, survivor of a WWII death camp, often said, “When the Lord takes your hand, He holds you tight. When He holds you tight, He leads you through life, and when He leads you through life, He brings you safely home.”

        1 Peter 3:15 says, "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have." Earlier in life Peter had almost lost all hope because he’d let go of His Savior’s hand. But Jesus had not let go of his hand. In the middle of all Peter’s troubles, Jesus held his hand and brought him safely through the most critical time in his life. That’s what Jesus does for His people, even when we may feel we have lost hope. Jesus holds our hand and doesn’t let go. Praise Him that He doesn’t.

        

May you hold the Lord’s hand tightly every day of your life.

Rev. Bob Tasler

www.bobtasler.com

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RIDING THE RAILS FOR JESUS

      Yesterday son Brian and I attended our annual Father-Son Birthday Baseball Game and saw the Rockies rock the AZ D-Backs handily. Despite the rock-n-roll weather (game ended with a storm and a big scramble for cover) we enjoyed the afternoon. 

      A special event for me came as Brian dropped me off at Union Station to board the Denver Light Rail and ride it twenty miles south to where I’d earlier parked my car. It was an adventure! Union Station was a beehive of a thousand people in the Depot and in the dozens of shops and restaurants. I found it a comfortable and safe experience, although it might have been different had it been late that night.

      After securing my ticket, I hunted down the boarding intersection to the north, hidden among a half dozen construction sites. For this I was aided by a kindly older lady with a huge umbrella who walked me a block and a half north to make sure this confused old traveler got to the right street. 

      The train ride was noisy with laughter from young adults who’d also attended the game. The car was muggy and bouncy, interesting and enjoyable. A courteous young man I asked made sure I got off at the right station where I found my car and drove home. Back on the freeway, I gave thanks for the peace and quiet of a smooth ride those last ten miles. We may use Light Rail in the future, so this ride was part adventure and part investigation.

      The Apostles had no trains or cars as they took the message of Jesus out into the world. Just their feet and occasionally a boat got them there. What amazes me is how hugely successful they were. Biblical history tells us that within a mere two to three months of His resurrection, perhaps ten thousand people became followers of Jesus. The Holy Spirit inspired the early witnesses who saw Jesus alive again, and their words spread like wildfire, moving masses of Jews and Gentiles to leave their old religious ways and follow Jesus.

      All those early believers did so at great risk to their lives. In the coming decades, they were arrested, tortured, fed to the lions and burned in the arena. A person isn’t willing to die for a passing fancy. Something about Jesus changed them and also the history of the world forever. That’s why Christians still gather to worship God, wherever believers hear and rejoice in the Gospel of the resurrected Jesus Christ. 

”For we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:20)

Rev. Bob Tasler, www.bobtasler.com

HAPPY MAY DAY!

      Today, May 1, is May Day. In simpler days, May 1 held a charming tradition. People wrapped flowers in pretty paper, along with a small gift or piece of candy, and hung it on the door of friends and neighbors. While attending Country School in the 1950s, my classmates and I always brought May Baskets to school on this day.

      It was also a way for a romantic young fellow to let a girl know he cared. He would hang his May Basket on her doorknob, knock on the door and then run away. If the girl liked him, she would try to chase him down and give him a kiss. If he saw her coming, he would not run very fast.

      Some awkward scenarios happened among the young. A 1889 Boston newspaper reported that one unfortunate fellow walked a mile and a half to present his May Basket to his sweetheart, only to find someone else’s basket already hanging on her door. Louisa May Alcott described May Day in her children's book, Jack and Jill: 

      "Such a twanging of bells and rapping of knockers; such a scampering of feet in the dark; such droll collisions as boys came racing round corners, or girls ran into one another's arms as they crept up and down steps on the sly; such laughing, whistling, flying about of flowers and friendly feelings—it was almost a pity that May Day did not come oftener."

      This custom is unfamiliar to youth and most adults today. But just being old-fashioned shouldn’t keep us from making an effort to show people we care for them.

      God showed His love for us by the gift of His Son Jesus, and the Son showed us His love for us by giving His life on the cross to earn our forgiveness. Yesterday I ended my service to the people of Christ Lutheran, Coolidge, AZ, and we all partook of the gift of His Body and Blood under bread and wine. This is a blessed custom I hope and pray will never be lost in the hustle and bustle of our modern age.

“Do this is remembrance of Me.”

Rev. Bob Tasler, www.bobtasler.com

WHAT WILL THE RESURRECTION BE LIKE?

      "She was standing not five feet from me, smiling, and then she was gone," the old man said through watery eyes. "She collapsed and I don't think she took another breath. Married all those years and now she's not here. It just doesn't seem possible." 

       People often speak glibly of wanting to die quickly, with no suffering or lingering, here one moment and gone the next. That may be what we'd like, but we probably won't have a choice in the matter, at least not a God-pleasing one. Job was willing to take what the Lord gave him. ”The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord." (Job 1:21)

      I sometimes wonder what my death will be like. Will I know I’ve died or will it be like sleep, awake one moment, then suddenly awake in another? Will I be awake after death, or will I experience some kind of "soul sleep"? Will I see things happening or will there be nothing? 

      Some nights I don't sleep well, lying there thinking of what happened that day or what's to come tomorrow. Someone said before sleep we shouldn't think of anything but that's hard to do. An over-the-counter sleep aid may knock us out awhile, but then we wake up again, surprised we've been unconscious. 

      I’m working on a Bible Study of Ecclesiastes and calling it The Skeptical Disciple. Chapter 7:1 says, “A good name is better than precious ointment, and the day of death better than the day of birth.” The Preacher has had it all in life and looking back has decided it’s better to die to be with the Lord than to struggle getting and spending and never answering all his questions. 

      Death for the Christian, I think, is like being asleep, then being awake again, all in an instant. Waiting for the end can be a struggle, like the weary old fellow who wants to go but knows it's not his time yet. Sleeplessly he prays for it and tries to imagine what his leaving will be like. Then suddenly he's awake in the resurrection with its new heaven and new earth! He's back and didn't even know he’s been gone. 

      And now he has no questions, for He has been with God and that’s all he’s wanted all along. Being with God is good enough - in fact, it’s been the absolute best of all. When my time comes I pray I will be ready with faith in my Lord and Savior. I pray you will be ready, too.

He is risen, and so also are we!

Rev. Bob Tasler, www.bobtasler.com