4-12-2019

Good Morning All,

              Acts 3:20; “Then times will come when the Lord will refresh you. He will send you Jesus, whom he has appointed to be the Christ”

    I thoroughly enjoy a good joke or even a bad joke.  I really like the ones that make you groan when you hear them.  Many years ago, one of my younger cousins used to tell jokes.  She would drone on and on and when she got done she would either forget the punch line, use the wrong punch line or she left out huge portions of the joke which made it funny.  A few years ago, I listened to her son tell jokes; he did the exact same thing.  It was fitting and hilarious.  I love humor; it is one of God’s gifts that refresh me.

    Yesterday, while reading the news on the internet, I ran across a joke that made me giggle and laugh.  It was long and drawn out and the sort of hit from the side kind of funny.  As I read it and giggled; I felt a lot better.  I think God used that joke to refresh me.  

    God truly does refresh us and our souls.  He does it for his redeemed children.  Your restoring may not be humor; it may be a visit from an old friend.  On the TV show “MASH” there was an episode when Major Burns goes a little off the edge; Radar calls Major Burns mother and has her talk to him.  His logic was, “Sometimes, you just need to talk to your mother.”  Sometimes it is just a day or so of relaxing and turning stuff off; the TV, the internet, the cell phones; turn them off and just let your mind clear.  Read a little Scripture and hear what God has to say to you.  Maybe you need to spend a quiet evening with your family.  Maybe you go for walk or a leisurely drive; listen to your body, listen to your heart and let God use his Word and his creation to restore your soul.

    I know that some of you don’t feel the restoring right now.  We go through events which can be very painful and causes us to feel despondent.  An illness that won’t go away, finance troubles that feel like we just keep losing ground, relationships that are strained, a death that was not even thought possible; all can cause us to feel pain and sorrow.  The very sad and very real truth is that these events are part of living in a sinful world.  We will experience them but we do not experience them alone and we do not have to see them as the end only a portion of life.  Through these events God wants to draw you closer to him.  As he does, he restores your soul and refreshes your spirit.

    This is part of what we talk about when we call Holy Communion a restoring or refreshing sacrament.  This is part of what we talk about when we hear the comfort and the consolation of the Gospel.  This is part of what we talk about when we say that God works through his Church and his creation to support this body and life.  God seeks to restore your soul.  So, if you have experienced this restoration recently; give thanks.  If you are still waiting remember that it is on the way.  God will restore your soul.

Dear Father, we give you thanks for the gift of restoring our souls.  For those who are in need we ask that you send your Spirit of comfort and restore them to the joyful life which the coming of Jesus gives to us.  In the precious name of Jesus, we pray. amen       

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret