‘Til The Storm Passes Over
A big wind came through Monday night and made a mess. It was amazing to watch the power of the dark storm. The dark, roiling clouds passed through in less than thirty minutes. Trees that have been thriving longer than I have been on earth snapped off or were uprooted in the swift fury of the storm. Tomorrow we will hook our little trailer up to our little tractor and drive around the yard picking up the walnuts and the windfall limbs. We thank God nothing worse was damaged and pray for those who are without power or lost things precious and irreplaceable to them.
Before Charles Perlos sold us our place he had the trees, over 50 of them, all arbored up so they are not likely to be a danger to or little farmhouse or the carriage house we so cherish. We stood and watched and prayed the old prayer I remember so fondly from a song from my childhood, “Keep me safe ’til the storm passes by.”
One day Jesus will come in a great storm of judgement for those who have not turned to him from their sins. But there is mercy now for those who do. One day, maybe soon, He will come with his Saints and establish his Kingdom on earth. Are you sure you will be in it? What about those you love, those around you?
This weekend I will be in Wisconsin speaking to families at beautiful Camp Fairwood. I hope your summer ends sweetly and you have a chance to be around people you love. I hope you and yours and safe and well. The turning of the seasons is a good time to take time to give some thought to where you are with God.
We Live In A Nice Place
We live in a nice part of our county. Our road bumps into the Jackson Country Club. We live right on the edge of the place where doctors and dentists and lawyers and other well-to-do professionals live in large, beautiful, modern homes with professionally-groomed grounds. These people mostly live east of us between our little modest century-old farmhouse and the Country Club.
Out the other way, to the west, the road is lined with nice homes and farms. Almost all of them are tidy and well-kept. Trees arch over the way for miles along our country road. It’s beautiful. A real nice place to live.
There is this one fellow though. He’s a Christian. Everyone knows he is a Christian. There is no mistaking it. His place must have at least thirty signs of various sizes and they are all white with large bright red letters. He changes them continually. You can tell he is very diligent about his sign-making. They say things like, “As it was in the days of Noah,” “Repent,” “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ…”
The signs in is yard are true. They are usually quotes from the Bible. He doesn’t plant flowers. He doesn’t tend a lush lawn mowed in stripes. He doesn’t have any yard ornaments or matching lawn furniture. He is serious about putting his time and money into his sign-ministry.
I know what you are thinking. You probably think there are better ways to be a witness. To be honest, I have often thought the same thing. I don’t have any signs in my yard. I mow and trim and try not to embarrass the doctors and lawyers and such on the way home. I don’t stand in the road with a bullhorn and shout “repent” as they pass.
When I drive by his house I sometimes think, “I don’t really like his style, but what have I done today to make Him known to the good folk who live up and down our country road?” Sometimes I think that.
Truth is most people don’t appreciate calls to repent but there will come a day when they would give everything they ever owned and everything they ever did to have just one more chance to repent and turn to Jesus.
Jesus said it plain and clear, “Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)
Bittersweet Farm
September 1, 2022
