Joel 2:25 And I will restore to you the years which the locust, and the bruchus, and the mildew, and the palmerworm hath eaten; my great host which I sent upon you. (DRB)

It seems kind of hard for me to believe that it is 2019 already.  Actually, it seems hard for me to believe that it is already 1982… Time has flown by.  There have been so many tangible things that have been lost; roads not taken; promises left unfulfilled.  There have been so many dreams that have slipped away; so many words left unspoken; so many battles not fought; so many hopes that have been dashed; so many plans undone; so many apologies never made; friendships that seemed to have slipped away; so much time that has been lost.  That is not to say that there has not been a trove of wondrous and awe inspiring people and events that have happened to come my way through the years.  Yet, so often I have not reached the fullness that seemed within my grasp nor have I given my very best in so many areas.

While it seems I can never regain those lost opportunities and times, I must take solace in this scripture.  The Lord says that He will restore the years that have been lost.  Perhaps this year I will move forward. Perhaps this is the year that I can press toward the mark of the prize.  Perhaps this is the year a fire will burn within me.  Perhaps this is the year that these dry bones will come alive.  My prayer for this New Year: for myself, my family and friends, and all that read this post; I pray the restoration of the Almighty in our lives, our situations, circumstances, and in our life’s purpose.

John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but to steal and to kill, and to destroy.  I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. (KJV)

Sherri has been tearing down vines from the trees and off some of the brick and stone walls on structures where we live.  Those vines have actually choked off the life in some trees and are killing them.  Walls and foundations are at risk of crumbling.

When Sherri does something, it is rarely half way.  Whether or not you agree with what she happens to be doing at the time, she goes out and does things like the Lord told her to do it.  So she has been tearing down these vines and poison ivy like a Blues Brother.  (She is on a Mission from God).

My next to youngest daughter said to me, “Mom seems to think that vines are bad, but didn’t Jesus say that He is the vine?”

This is a good point.  John Chapter 15 is where we get the reference that Jesus is the vine.  The chapter begins by Jesus saying, “I am the TRUE vine.”  I looked it up in thirty-two different translations of the Bible.  Every translation says “true vine” (except the Good News and The Message and they both say the “real vine”).

If Jesus said that He is the true vine that would seem to indicate that there is another kind of vine.  How do we tell what is Jesus in our life and what is not?  We encounter all kinds of things in this world.  Some twist and twine themselves into our lives.  If we are not careful we can have the life choked out of us or our sound foundations attacked, cracked, or broken.  Just like these vines that Sherri is tearing down.

If the things in our lives do not bring life, but rather, kill, steal, or destroy, good chance they are not a working from God.  Jesus told us that if branches abide in the “true vine,” they should bear good fruit.

Digging deeper, I discovered that ivy vines don’t normally destroy rock or brick.  However, if there is a crack or crevice or other opening, they can play havoc on a structure.

I think it’s time to check my foundation and make sure that I have dealt with the cracks and crevices in my life; take a good solid look at the vines that are growing.  If there isn’t good fruit, it may well be time for some pruning.

Romans 11:29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

I was always fascinated by a rather short-lived BBC series from the 1990’s.  It was called simply “Mulberry.”   Mulberry is the son of Death and Springtime.  He is appointed to escort a particular cantankerous old woman into the next world.  However, he can’t quite bring himself to do the job.  He convinces his father to give the woman a few extra months.  During that time, Mulberry helps her to live out the end of her life with gusto, a bit more happiness and forgiveness, less bitterness, and a chance to redo her relationships.

It was the theme song of “Mulberry” that might have touched me the most with strong images, sadness, and sweetness.  It says that these are “Mulberry Days.”  Whenever, I would see a mulberry tree, my thoughts of “Mulberry Days” would pop into my head.  Why?  Is there a deeper meaning at work here?

As I have reached a point deep into life’s journey, I believe I have the answer.  A particular strain of mulberry bears its fruit in the late summer and autumn.   This is much later than most berries.

Many of us have dreams deferred, hopes abated, talents wasted, and targets that have been missed.  For those who are like me, where aging has become a problem that we no longer can ignore, there still can be an expectancy that our mission in life will not go unfulfilled.

We may have chased after degrees, careers, houses, bank accounts, and estates.  We may have flittered away the hours and the years.  We may have outright missed the mark.  However, this one thing I know: the legacy that the Lord God Almighty had in store for us has not changed.

According to news articles of the time and legend, the band on the Titanic played “Nearer My God to Thee,” as the great ship slipped beneath the icy waters of the Atlantic.  I doubt if there are many that remember what those band members accomplished during their lifetime.  Yet, with their very last act, they attempted to give solace to the dying and hope to the remaining survivors.  In the process they made their mark in history and etched their place in immortality.

Some of us may well be in our Mulberry Days, but God has not changed His mind on what He wants us to do.

Psalm 51:2,3 Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.  For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.  (NIV)

Do doctors ever get sick?  Do mechanics ever have car problems?  Do dentists ever have a tooth ache? Do plumbers ever have a clogged drain? Do Christians ever sin?

The answer to all of those questions is: of course.  If we catch the flu, we normally wouldn’t say it was the fault of all doctors.  If a mechanic’s car breaks down, we usually would not say that he is a hypocrite.  If a dentist has a wisdom tooth coming in wrong, we would not expect him to pull his own tooth.  If a plumber has a clogged drain, we would not think indoor plumbing should be avoided.

Sometimes we think differently about Christians.  Sometimes we think differently about ourselves.  I would say in each of the above cases a real problem arose.   The person in question is not immune to those problems.  However, that person should have a better understanding of the problem and know better on what to do about that problem.

Christians do sin.  As Christians we should be well aware when we do.  We should also go to the One who can diagnose our issues, the One who can forgive and restore and help mend our ways.

John 3:17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

Sometimes it seems like we are taught that God sits up in heaven with some kind of huge bug zapper waiting for us to make a wrong move.

Zap! (They shouldn’t have done that).

Zap! (He shouldn’t have thought that).

Zap! (She shouldn’t have been there).

Don’t take this wrong.  There is truly a time of judgment and there is a reckoning (both on earth and beyond).  However, God’s desire is that none perish!  This is the very reason Jesus came to earth.

As Christians, we should be Christ-like as much as possible.  The Bible tells us that we should have indignation with sin.  We should have an earnest concern and readiness to see justice done. (See 1 Corinthians 7:11).  We also must note that Jesus said the weightier matters of the law are justice, mercy, and faith.  Where darkness abounds, grace abounds much more.  If these are the ideals of Jesus, as Christians should they not also be ours?

Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

David wrote this psalm after he committed adultery with Bathsheba and had sent Uriah to his death.  David certainly needed to start over with a clean slate.  David could not reverse his actions from which he was repenting.  However, he wanted to re-establish his relationship with God.

I had a friend who was once asked if he smoked.  Being a jokester, his reply was, “Absolutely not.  My lungs are clean.  It’s only my mind that’s dirty.”

We may not be able to have our lungs cleaned, though it would be nice if that were possible.  (What’s impossible with man is possible with God). However, it is possible to have our heart and mind cleaned.  The Bible says in the Book of Acts that “…He (God) cleansed their hearts by faith.”  In Romans, Paul writes that we are to “…be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

We may not be able to change the damage we have done to others or ourselves, but we can certainly change our thoughts and actions in the future (with God’s help).  Paul tells us that he was the worst of sinners. However, after a supernatural encounter with Jesus, he became one of the most prominent figures of the Apostolic Age; spreading the gospel far and wide; and writing a large portion of the New Testament.

Let us pray then that the Lord gives us a clean heart and slate (and where necessary – clean lungs) and renew our minds and spirit.

Hosea 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

This is probably the most commonly quoted scripture out of the Book of Hosea.  Well, part of it anyway.  “My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge.”  This part is often used to point out how lack of knowledge, wisdom, good sense, or information can doom a person, project or nation.

Some point out that this “lack of knowledge” is specifically a rejection of God and His Word, in particular among the ministers of God’s Word (remember: Peter wrote that we all are a part of the priesthood).

Both are true.  I think this is a perfect example how scripture is alive.  The Word of God works on at least three levels.  It means something for the people that it was given to at the time.  It brings forth a universal truth.  It means something to a given reader at a given time.  (That’s why the same scripture can drive home a particular point to you now, it meant something else when you read it years ago, and it will be applied differently in another situation to you in the future).

What is clear in any instance, for this particular scripture, is: when we reject God or the knowledge that God has provided, it will have a very bad consequence.

Thank God, He is merciful.

John 16:33 I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world. (NLT)

I believe everyone has heard the age old question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?”  There is a myriad of answers, questions, and tangents that we can go off on that subject.  Perhaps I will, at another time.

What I want to point out is something else.  Jesus, Himself, said this would happen.  We are going to face problems, sickness, suffering, sorrow, and death.  In this world, it cannot be avoided.  No one is gonna get out alive! (Not in the normal thinking anyway)

Jesus sacrificed Himself for our redemption and as an example for us.  What we have been promised is that we are not alone.  God is with us.  He is for us. He will aid us.  We are asked to be fearless, not be faint, be Christ-minded, and not be swayed from the work of God.

There is a curious thing about the above verse.  The Greek word used for overcome comes from the root word… wait for it … “Nike.”

The very nature of the word implies that for us to be victorious, to conquer, to overcome, and to prevail that there will be a battle.  Sometimes to do that, we must make sacrifices.  I guess we need to just do it.

Proverbs 3:5,6  Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. (NIV)

There was a man named George Muller who lived in the 19^th century. (Most of it actually, from 1805-1898).  He brought reforms to the orphan care system in England.  He provided care and education for some 120,000 children through the years.  He did not receive government support nor did he solicit donations.  All he did was pray.

Money and other types of donations always came, sometimes just in the nick of time.  By man’s understanding, this would not be the way to run such an enterprise.  I’m certainly not saying to do things exactly the way George Muller did except… Follow the path that the Lord has for your life.

In Psalms, we are told that the steps of a man are ordered by God when He delights in him… though he may fall, he will not be utterly cast down.  Throughout the Bible we are told to do what we can and then stand firm.

So what do we do?  Do all we can? Simply stand? Just pray?

The Bible says pray in all things; stand firm in faith always; Do what we can, but always as if it is unto the Lord.  During the times that I have slipped up (which there are too many to count) it usually happened when I thought I had a better idea or wasn’t doing those things.

Is this a guarantee for success?  Depends what our idea of success might be.

Luke 18:27  And He (Jesus) said to them, “The things that are impossible with man, are possible with God.” (KJV)