Good Friday is a Downer

     Good Friday is not an easy day to observe. For some, the Tenebrae service is a real downer. (I know, I know…it’s not supposed to be your typical joyful worship service or mass.) I’ve been to a few over the years that were so painful they made you want to throw yourself across a railroad track or off a bridge. Imagine what that must be like for someone suffering from depression.

     In spite of what many think is terrible, horrible news – What? They crucified the Lord? – there is a Gospel (good news) light that breaks through the darkness of the day.

     Today I went to the noon Good Friday service and was drawn into the pastor’s sermon – again. Pastor Rick has a talent for picking out the seemingly most innocuous points in Scripture and building a fascinating message around it. Last Sunday – Palm Sunday – he took an event* that, when it happened, probably lasted all of two minutes and turned it into a 25-minute sermon.

     But before you start to squirm at the thought of sitting that long, that’s probably nothing compared to the amount of time you spend in front of the television, the computer or the big screen.

     Pastor Rick’s Good Friday topic was about the Temple curtain…specially the torn Temple curtain.

     To provide perspective, it’s not your ordinary drape. The curtain in the Temple of Jerusalem that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies (where only the High Priest was allowed to enter, once a year, observing all sorts of strict rituals lest he be struck dead) was 60 feet high by 20 feet wide and as thick as a man’s hand; it required 300 men to lift it. So...?

     So, at the moment Jesus breathed his last breath, that curtain was torn from top to bottom. No one was in the Temple at that time…it was not the Day of Atonement, the only day the High Priest could pass beyond that curtain. God and God alone tore that curtain in the most dramatic object lesson ever.

     What does that mean? (Good Lutherans will chuckle at this. For the rest of my readers, it’s an inside joke.)

     Pastor Rick noted that the torn curtain symbolizes three things.

     First, a barrier had been removed. The physical barrier keeping all the people of Jerusalem from entering into God’s presence had been ripped from top to bottom, opening up the Holy of Holies for all to see. There was no longer anything between God and His people.

     Second, a road was opened. Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, there is nothing standing in a Christian’s way to come to God anytime, anywhere and as often as we wish. As long as we approach in the name of Jesus, we have instant access to the throne of God. That’s better than having access to the Queen of England and a whole lot easier...because Jesus paid the price and opened the way. All we have to do is believe.

     Finally, the hope of eternal life was confirmed by God Himself. Jesus became an anchor for our soul, lodged behind the curtain in the very presence of God, forever. One of the stanzas from the hymn My Hope is Built on Nothing Less says: “In every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil.” That veil is the Temple curtain.

     “The painful truth is that if we meditate too long on our sin that condemns us, we begin to doubt if we are really Christian. As long as our faith depends on us, we are in trouble. But if it depends on Jesus Christ, we have a hope that is greater than our shame. Our anchor will hold against the storm of our guilty conscience,” preached Pastor Rick. “Fear not. Do not let your sin keep you away from God for He has opened the door to heaven. The torn curtain is His way of saying “You are welcome to My family. Let nothing keep you away.”

* That event? When Jesus’ disciple Peter cut off the ear of one of the High Priest’s servants and Jesus restored it. Had he not healed Malchus instantly, Jesus and his disciples probably would’ve been killed on the spot by the Roman soldiers, thus avoiding the painful death of the cross. Far better for you and me that things worked out the way they did:

A Good Friday to you!

The Far Country

             I’ve read somewhere – or heard it said – that there’s really no new story to be written, that everything’s already been told. For example, Shakespeare supposedly took many of his ideas for his plays from the Bible. And don’t forget the countless number of popular books and movies are based on the “boy-meets-girl-loses-girl-gets-girl-back” theme. It’s in the twist of the re-telling that can make a story resonate with the audience.

            A lot of my inspiration for blog posts comes from sermons. As I furiously take notes I can’t help but start thinking of the spin I’m going to add or the point that I’m going to take further.

This morning’s sermon on “The Greatest Short Story Ever Told” (Luke 15:11-32) – as opposed to The Greatest Story Ever Told” (the entire Bible) – was a familiar one: The Prodigal Son.

            The minister prefaced his remarks with the note that this would be another one of those “squirmin’ sermons”. I’m not going to share his sermon word for word, but there was one part of it that really hit home: how the Prodigal Son got to the Far Country and then came back.

            There have been a few times in my life when I regretted making a particular decision. Most were non-moral decisions, like deciding not to study for my Master’s degree and, instead, choosing to start a career. There’s no direct guidance in the Bible for that. It’s those decisions that took me to the Far Country, however, that caused more than a little personal suffering. That’s the place I went when I stepped outside of God’s Will.

            How did I get to the Far Country? Although there were five steps that led to the Prodigal Son’s downfall – selfishness, haste, reckless wastefulness, leaving those to whom he was accountable, and making bad decisions – it only took one for me. While I could easily blame my youth – it was the period between age 17 and 25 – I know that some regrettable decisions I made were due to having separated myself from all my significant relationships. (You know, the ones that hold you accountable.)

            I’m not going to go into the details, but I allowed other people to put me in compromising situations that could tarnish my reputation. That was a time when God allowed me – a child of the faith – to head toward the bottom so that I got scared enough to want to go Home.

            The way back included these same steps that our pastor shared today: first, coming to my senses (my awakening); second, changing my mind about the direction I was headed (repentance); third, ceasing to make excuses for my lifestyle (honesty); fourth, making no deals with God (humility) and finally, taking the first step towards Home (resolve).

            I think it may have been that point in my life that I first embraced His grace – and have held on to it fiercely ever since. It’s no coincidence that our boat is called Pure Grace.

            If you, a child of God, have drifted away from Him – perhaps you have been deeply hurt by someone or defeated by personal failures or just made some wrong choices – come back. Here’s what awaits you, according to today’s message: your Father’s kiss of forgiveness; a robe of honor; a ring of authority, sandals of freedom and a feast of welcome.

            One last note: ignore the “older brother”. That is, for those who feel you aren’t worthy of the welcome, their selfishness is the first step into their own Far Country.

The Cat's on the Roof

     A businessman has to go out of town unexpectedly for a length of time so he asks his neighbor to take care of his cat while he is gone. The first evening he is gone the man calls his neighbor to check on the cat.

     “Your cat is dead,” said the neighbor.

     The businessman is thunderstruck and upset. “How can you give me such bad news so baldly?” he exclaimed. “You should have prepared me for this. The first night you should tell me ‘The cat’s on the roof and we can’t get him to come down.’ The next night you should tell me that the fire department tried and couldn’t rescue the cat. And so on for about a week, until you tell me ‘The cat died.’”

     Several months later, the same man has another business trip and this time asks his neighbor to stop in and check on his elderly mother. The first night on the trip he calls his neighbor to see if everything is alright at the house.

     “Your mother’s on the roof,” said the neighbor.

     Bad joke, huh?

     I was reminded of this joke, though, this past weekend when I shot some photos at the city-run animal shelter and saw a sign on one of the dog cages indicating that it was the last day of life for that particular animal…unless it was adopted. 

     

     Because this is not a no-kill shelter, that dog was “on the roof.” It was sad to see the dozens of bulldogs, Rottweilers, and terriers that had been discarded, apparently after they lost their cuteness. Although the no-kill shelters do try to take up the slack, when they are at capacity also there is little that the city shelter can do.

     The young woman at the right, with both physical and mental special needs, chose a very rambunctious, medium-size dog to love. On the way out the door "Breezy" pulled the girl's mother right on to the floor. Yikes, not a good way to start a relationship.

     This large  furball  was going home with three small boys and their mother.

     A tiny little Maltese dog was brought in while I was there and then adopted out immediately. Its new "mom" looks very happy.

     During the short hour that I was there right after the shelter opened on Saturday morning, three dogs and one cat were adopted. Right as I was leaving the girl in the photo below brought in a puppy that she tried to foster for one night but said, “It kept me up all night. I can’t do this.”

     This Siamese cat had a docked tail but it was hard to say if it was born that way or it was abused. This was the most vocal of all the cats and sported a “Most Entertaining” ribbon on its cage. Of course I saw several I would’ve liked to take home, but then I would be the one on the roof!  

Having Ourselves a Happy Little New Year

   
     When Bill started flying back in the late 1980s for USAirways he was often gone on Christmas. In fact, since he was a junior pilot, for many years he flew on all holidays. For people in the service industry, every day is Wednesday. There is no distinction unless those serving make it, like wearing a musical Christmas tie with his uniform, or reindeer antlers in place of the cap. Back in the day when flying "non-rev" wasn't so hard, I could join him on a holiday layover. We've spent Christmas Eve at a candlelight service in a small Lutheran church somewhere in Connecticut (or was it Massachusetts?), Easter Sunday at a church in Toronto, New Year's Eve in Boston (that was a neat "First Night") and once in Tampa (or was it Fort Lauderdale?).
     Then after Bill's mother couldn't make the annual Christmas trip to Pittsburgh we would go to Sun City, AZ instead, spending Christmas Eve at her church, followed by a late meal at Mimi's -- a really great French bistro chain in the southwest. The day after Christmas we would fly to Chicago and have a late Bouman family Christmas with my parents and sisters and their families, usually arriving back home in time for New Year's Eve.
     Since we are not late night revelers -- we've only done one "hotel style" New Year's Eve party in 31 years of marriage -- we've made that night our gift exchange night. Since neither one of us have been able to keep a promise to keep the gifts to a minimum, we can usually draw out the evening nearly to midnight.
     This New Year's Eve we're recovering from a vicious 24-hour stomach flu that -- fortunately -- hit us after we got home on Thursday evening. I shudder to think of two of us trying to cope with that on an airplane, even though it was a direct flight! Alfie is also a little worse for the wear after his stay at Pet Paradise; he came back with a cold and has been sneezing quite a bit. I had hoped we were finished with vet visits for a while.
     This past year had -- as they all do -- pluses and minuses, gains and losses, but overall we feel really, really blessed. We both have jobs we truly enjoy. Bill has always liked a) working with his hands and b) working outdoors, so getting the marina maintenance job in April when another employee quit unexpectedly was a godsend. After losing my job of 24 years in early September, I started freelancing as a reporter and proofreader for a community paper and in another case of being in the right place at the right time, was hired on as the editor in early December when the previous editor left for another job.

     We also rejoiced in the birth of twin grandsons, Hudson and Porter Smith, in March, adding to the four grandchildren we already have: Brogan, 6 and Griffin Smith, 3 (in Los Angeles) and Devin, 16 and Ally Shelton, 14 (in St. Louis). We mourned the deaths of Bill's nephew Matt Hallock (in July) and of my uncle Ray Schwab (in December).

     So this little blog at the end of the year isn't anything special or particularly funny or insightful. Just an opportunity to round off 2012 with one last wish for friends and family: May the Lord bless you and keep you. May He look upon you with favor and grant you His peace. Amen.

Having Myself a Merry Little Christmas

In a few short days we’ll take down the 2012 calendar and put up a new one. We’ll look at 365 long days stretching before us and wonder what 2013 will bring, ‘cause we sure had no clue that 2012 would end up like it has! When Bill and I ushered in the New Year, I was still gainfully employed and he was actively seeking a job. We started making friends with boaters who were here for the winter season, and joined a not-so-nearby Lutheran church, where I recently accepted the position of council recording secretary.

In late February we adopted a young cat, Alfie, who promptly battled a chronic urinary tract infection for the next six months. I didn't like having to put him on antibiotics every 4-5 weeks, so I did some research on homeopathic remedies. A combination of a daily dose of a cranberry powder plus three eye droppers full of water every day seems to be doing the trick as he's been "clean" now since September. Alfie’s a character and has quite a range of snorts, chirps, wheezes and grunts, especially when he’s sleeping.

At the end of March my sisters Beth and Patti and brother-in-law Daryl came to Florida for spring break, and we enjoyed a week at a luxury condo in Ponte Vedra Beach (courtesy of Beth’s employer) with several forays into Old St. Augustine and the outlet malls. I also joined a fitness club that month and started a lunch hour workout four days a week. In September I added a 3.5 mile walk every other day and finally started to lose weight in October, dropping 13 pounds and a size and a half in eight weeks.

In April Bill got hired by the marina as a handyman, for whom no project is too large or too complex to tackle. He started by power-washing the docks, of which there are four, but barely finished the first one when he was re-directed to other projects. It took nearly six months before Docks A, C and D were clean and the fourth (ours) is still waiting for a lull in his projects.

Summer in Jacksonville was quite unrelentingly hot, which Bill enjoys, me not so much. [We did make use of the pool, which is where I got to know the publisher of the local community newspaper.] I think Bill lost 20 pounds through sweating as he built a pergola, a garbage corral, a bicycle parking lot and tackled numerous repairs inside and out of the condo units that were on the market. [Aside: the marina has an 8-unit condo which was built in 2007 and never completely finished. As buyers were found, Bill got punch lists a yard long that needed to be addressed before closings.] Here Bill is painting the deck posts for Unit 301; he also had to replace a window in the front of the unit.

Shortly after Labor Day, my boss of 24 years flew down with the unhappy task of having to lay me off. The company had lost some major business and as a remote employee, I was easy pickings. I immediately created Pure Grace Consulting, registering it in Florida as a limited liability company. A former co-worker, Kris Praskovich, designed my logo. I've done a few small jobs here and there for my former company and for a Lexus dealership, and applied for almost a dozen jobs in marketing and communications here in Jacksonville, to no avail.

Fortunately my connection with The Resident News resulted in working as a stringer (aka freelance reporter), picking up several assignments each week. Getting back into reporting, writing and editing to use my journalism degree has been great fun, plus I’ve been getting to know the city very well. Many of the assignments were business profiles (aka  paid advertorials) for hair salons, gift shops, jewelers, bakeries and restaurants, an electrical engineering firm and a builder. I also covered social register events, and got to meet the former owners of the Jacksonville Jaguars, J. Wayne and Delores Barr Weaver.

Right before Thanksgiving the paper’s editor took another job and I was offered a full-time position on the editorial staff. I start on January 2nd as copy editor / reporter with a flexible schedule that will allow me to continue my morning walks and noon workouts. We are both so thankful that we have jobs we love!

Thanksgiving was a traditional turkey dinner with all the sides, as a potluck. Nineteen boaters came together to enjoy the day. Bill made his famous apple crumb pie and I assisted with setup and cleanup. On Black Friday Bill started the chore of putting up over 7,000 lights on the marina clubhouse for the holidays, and setting up trees in the clubhouse and in the condo lobby. Somehow I got roped into decorating both trees!

We are celebrating our second Christmas on Pure Grace; it’s hard to believe we’ve been full-time live-a-boards for 18 months now. Every now and then I’ll wish I had a kitchen item that’s still in storage in Pittsburgh but mostly we’ve made do with what we have. One of these days we’ll have it all moved down here and put into storage after culling out those items we can absolutely live without for the rest of our lives.

Be sure to look us up if you’re ever in northeast Florida. Jacksonville is every bit as lovely, interesting and historical as Pittsburgh! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

It's Outrageous!

Grace is very important to me. You probably think I fixate on it. But without grace, we would be miserable creatures now, and doomed for eternity later. Following is a great message from our senior pastor, Rick Engel, who shares why grace is so outrageous:

It is commonly said that Christianity is supremely a religion of grace. And that is certainly true. We sing about grace … we write poems about grace … we name our churches and sometimes our children after grace. If you ask us … we certainly believe in grace. But outside our worship services … the word is rarely on our lips. Think about it.

Part of our problem is in the nature of grace itself. Grace is hard to accept … hard to believe … and hard to receive. We all have certain skepticism when a telemarketer tells us, “I’m not trying to sell you anything. I just want to offer you a free trip to Hawaii.” Automatically we wonder, “What’s the catch?” … because we have all been taught that “there is no such thing as a free lunch.”

The truth is grace shocks us in what it offers. It is truly not of this world. It frightens us with what it does for sinners.

Grace teaches us that God does for others what we would never do for them. We would save the not-so-bad. God starts with prostitutes and then works downward from there. Grace is a gift that costs everything to the giver and nothing to the receiver. It is given to those who don’t deserve it … barely recognize it … and hardly appreciate it.

It doesn’t take me long to realize … God is a lot more gracious than I am!

You know how I know that? Because He saves people I wouldn’t save if I were God. He blesses people I wouldn’t bless if I were God. He uses people in His service I wouldn’t use if I were God. Is that true of you, too?

Which is why I’m glad He’s God and I’m not. The Bible says that He is “the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness,” [Exodus 34:6] … and that is good news for sinners like me. VERY good news!

The doctrine of grace may be the hardest doctrine in the Bible to accept. It’s not that grace is hard to understand. We know what the word means. Our problem comes in the application. Grace asks us to accept two things we don’t want to accept:

First … there is nothing we can do to save ourselves.

And second … if God doesn’t save us, we will never be saved.

Nothing more clearly summarizes the true meaning of grace than the simple phrase found in Jonah 2:9, “Salvation is of the Lord.”  There it is … right out in the open.

That statement is both striking and humorous because it comes from the world’s worst missionary. But that’s the beauty of the story of Jonah … because he is not the hero of the story. God is! At the beginning Jonah is running from God; at the end he is arguing with God. In between he is praying and preaching. That’s no hero! But it is a man of grace!

This book of Jonah is about God. It’s obvious when you realize the great fish is mentioned four times … the city of Nineveh is mentioned nine times … Jonah is mentioned 18 times … and God is mentioned 38 times. This book is really about God and how great His heart is toward prodigal sons and daughters who run away from Him. God never gives up on Jonah … not when he runs away … and not when he sits under a vine and pouts.

Here is the take-away lesson for all of us: We are so much like Jonah that it’s scary. There’s a little Jonah in all of us … and a whole lot of Jonah in most of us. That’s why we need … not just grace … but outrageous grace!

Have a great weekend in the Lord … basking in the sunshine of God’s outrageous grace!

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.” [Ephesians 2:8-9]

Signing Up for Another Year

I actually meant to post a blog on November 2, the first anniversary of our arrival at the Marina at Ortega Landing, but I've been a little busy lately. How the tables have been turned from our respective statuses a year ago!

Then: I was telecommuting full-time, and Bill was taking care of everything: laundry, grocery shopping, Christmas shopping, cleaning (inside and out), and getting to know the area. I barely stepped out of the boat each day, and evenings often found me still at work. Bill was looking for work and not at all sure whether he would find anything.

Now: Bill is working full-time for the marina -- an lovin' it -- and I'm the one looking for full-time employment (maybe), and taking care of almost everything (I still resist waxing and washing the boat). I also spend a lot of time getting to know the area through my part-time reporting job and the long walks I take almost daily through the neighborhoods. And with some free time, I've been available to take on a project at our church and now serve as council recording secretary.

Who'd a thunk?

I ponder that had I lost my job much earlier in the year I would not have yet made friends with the newspaper's publisher that would result in this opportunity. The assignments range from photo coverage of 5K races, celebrity readings at the zoo, wine and food tastings at an art studio, an outdoor dinner in a park to business profiles (advertorials) of restaurants, jewelers, gift shops and salons. Most of the readership for this community paper are in the wealthier areas of Jacksonville. In Pittsburgh, it would be places like Fox Chapel, Sewickley, Edgeworth, Mt. Lebanon and Upper St. Clair. Although my reporting gigs barely pay for my monthly COBRA health insurance payments, I'm creating a new network here. I guess you could say I'm putting down roots and the branches are starting to bud.

On the advice of our accountant I created a limited liability corporation and a former co-worker designed an elegant logo for me. Pure Grace Consulting is open for business -- anything that has to do with words. Writing, editing, proofreading, fact checking. Check out the Facebook page, where I post writing samples.

So, I've signed up for another year of river living and waiting to see what new and exciting things God will put in my path. Who'd a thunk?