You may have a document that says you own the land you’re living on, but the land don’t know that, nor does the wind, rain, sun, or snow know that you’ve got a piece of paper.”
–Lou Bradshaw (Blue Norther)
“So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.”
–Matthew 20:16(NKJV)
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Can you hear the “echoes” of those gone before? The thoughts, attitudes, lessons, and lives of those who have been a part of your life and now are gone–they are truly echoes that we should remember.
In saying that I want to remember two individuals who played a major part in my life who were both born on this day.
Marguerite D. Jones (1918-2011) b: Industry, KS d: Longmont, CO — my Mom
LaVern E. Adkisson (1923-2004) b: Williams, OK d: Cheyenne, WY — my Aunt Bern
These two ladies were very different, but in some ways similar. Mom liked to work because she enjoyed spending. At times in her life she worked three jobs. She was into her eighties before she stopped working. “Got to go make a dollar,” was commonly heard coming from her lips. Bern, she was a coal-miner’s daughter, and never married, but she took it upon herself to help raise me. Mom didn’t become a Christian until later in life, while Bern became a believer when she was very young, perhaps as a child. Both had their struggles, their burdens to bear–and they bore them.
So today I take a little time to remember them and how they influenced by life.
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The first day of December, another year almost gone. Hard to believe. I have a couple of thoughts to pass along today. I normally don’t borrow as much as I am today, but believe it will bless you.
Read the first chapter of Luke to get a background of the birth of John the Baptist. In our minds, we often think of him as a wild-haired man preaching from the desert and eating strange food. Max Lucado wrote this of John coming from Matthew 11:1-3:
“He was a child of the desert. Leathery face. Tanned skin. Clothing of animal skins. What he owned fit in a pouch. His walls were mountains, and his ceiling, the stars.
But not anymore. His frontier is walled out, his horizon hidden. The stars of memories. The fresh air is all but forgotten. And the stench of the dungeon relentlessly reminds this child of the desert that he is now a captive of the king.”
Here was a man whose life drastically changed. From complete freedom, living in the wilderness to being walled up in a dungeon cell. What was his purpose in life? It was to prepare the way of the Lord. Now that Jesus has come, he has been reduced to living in a cell. What do you think went through his mind? After all he was only human. Jesus said that he was the greatest born among women (Matthew 11:11). Living in a dungeon, ready to have his head cut off. What kind of a reward is that? But think, it will usher him into glory. His work was completed; he had been chosen and had finished his task.
Speaking of chosen, it is important to realize that we have all been chosen for some type of service in the Kingdom of God. When you have your woes, do not neglect to praise God. Remember John, his purpose, his cell, and his death, but also think of his place in the realms of glory. Too often we think that life should be a bed of roses after we are born-again. Hmmm, but remember even a bed of roses have thorns.
Perhaps you have been watching “The Chosen.” The story of Jesus and those whom He called–those He chose. But never forget He has also chosen you. You need to take on the task of a chosen one. Troubles, perhaps; sorrows, most likely; but chosen for a task, a calling, a life of service. William Barclay writes, “To be chosen by God so often means at one and the same time a crown of joy and a cross of sorrow. The piercing truth is that God does not choose a person for ease and comfort and selfish joy but for a task that will take all that head and heart and hand can bring to it. God chooses a man in order to use him.”
Christmas is coming and with that in mind remember that God gave us the greatest gift of all. He sent His Son to earth to complete a task. Take time to inventory where you are in your walk with the Lord and seek what He has chosen for you to do. No matter what time of life you are in, there are things that He wants you to accomplish for the Kingdom.