Big congratulations to Amanda and Devon on the birth of their new bundle of joy: Micah David, born March 25th!
For those of you who don’t know, Amanda has been the camp office administrator for the last 4 years and only recently went on maternity leave. Devon is the creative force behind our website as well as many of our cool t-shirt designs!
Hey! It’s the day after Easter Sunday so I thought I’d chat a little bit about…the days after the original Easter!
You know those one page newsletters you can pick up at fast food joints and coffee shops called “Coffee News”? Well I picked up a copy the other day and read a short article titled “Devotion”. This is what it said:
Basanta Roy is 103 and has mourned the loss of his wife ever since she died in the 1990s. He was so devoted to her that he has spent six years lying in a grave that he dug for himself, right next to her grave. His commitment has become a tourist attraction in his remote village in India. When he isn’t lying inside the grave, he pulls weeds and grass from around the site. “He cleans his grave every day and waits for his death, which seems to be eluding him,” said Shyam Narayan Ram, a senior government official from Jharkhand.
Do you remember at camp, hearing about how Jesus died and then defeat death and was alive again after 3 days of being in a tomb? Well shortly after Jesus arose, we are told in the Bible about some followers of Jesus, walking down a road to Emmaus. Here’s the story (read Luke 24 for the exact story): As the two followers of Jesus were walking along, Jesus started walking with them, but they didn’t recognize them. When he asked them what they were talking about they answered that they were talking about Jesus of Nazareth and the events that had happened over the past few days. It doesn’t record it like this in the Bible, but I can just hear them in their heads thinking, “Where have you even been these past few days? With your head under a rock? Who doesn’t even know what’s been going on? Clearly, this guy’s a foreigner.” And then they explained that when some women went to visit Jesus’ tomb, Jesus was gone and an angel told them that he was alive. But when some of the others went to see the tomb, they did not see Jesus. Then Jesus (whom they still didn’t recognize) said, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” (v.25-26). Then Jesus explained what the Old Testament had to say about himself. When they got to the village the two followers asked Jesus to stay with them for the evening. When they had sat down to eat together that evening, they finally recognized Jesus and then they returned to Jerusalem to tell Jesus’ disciples that they had seen Jesus alive! Then Jesus was standing there with them and they were frightened and thought they were seeing a ghost (there seemed to still be some lingering doubt). So then Jesus again explains that he is not a ghost but alive and he has fulfilled what the Old Testament had said was going to happen: “The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” (v.46-47).
This man from India, Basanta Roy, is living his life to die. He has spent every waking moment mourning the loss of his wife for at least a decade! Right before Jesus left the earth, he gave the surrounding disciples the command to go out into the world, and spread the Good News that he is alive, that he conquered death for the forgiveness of everyone’s sins! When he was taken into up into heaven, the people stood around, staring intently up into the sky when two men in white stood beside them urging them to get a move on with what Jesus had commanded them…to spread the Good News of Christ risen! Do you know in your heart that Christ is risen? That he died for your sins, became alive after 3 days so that you might live eternally with him? If you do know this, how are you living your life? Are you idly staring into the sky wondering where Jesus went? Are you coasting through life, until you die? Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10b).
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20
There is a man in the Bible who has an entire book named after him. His name is Job and he has quite the story. The story is set thousands of years ago, so I thought I’d try to describe it as if it happened today.
Job was an incredibly lucky man. He had a beautiful wife, he was successful in his job, and he did a lot of work for charity, was a leader in the community, and managed to be really involved in his church. He was pretty much the golden boy of his town. He loved God very deeply. Of course, if anyone had life as easy as Job, it would be easy to love God so much.
One day, disaster struck. When Job woke up, his body was covered in painful sores. Job’s house caught on fire, and was burned to the ground. The company he worked for suddenly went bankrupt and he was out of a job. He received a call that while his children were vacationing at their beach house, a tornado hit and they were swept out to sea and drowned. Children would walk by, point and laugh at Job because of his terrible state. Job was a very broken man: a glowing life, very quickly turned tragic.
What would you do in this situation? What would I do? I would go to my spouse and friends, which Job did. Job’s wife however, did not encourage him at all. She told him that God was probably punishing him because of something bad he did. Job then sat down with a few of his friends, discussing what happened. His friends too, tried to figure out what Job had done wrong to receive this punishment from God. Amazingly enough, Job holds tightly onto the hope that he has in God. In Job 19:25-27, Job replies,
“I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!”
The word, Redeemer here can be defined as “one who saves, and defends”. I have trouble imagining that after so much hurt, and pain, and after my friends have been so discouraging that I would be able to lift my eyes up to God and still acknowledge Him as my Redeemer. But Job does. Through the darkness that is Job’s life, he knows that God is there with him and he yearns for God.
There are times in life that all of us will have to go through that are going to be difficult and dark. There are definitely times when we will not be able to feel God’s presence or see that He is working in our lives. But even if we can’t see or feel God, we need to know that God is very real and that He lives, and that He will save us and come to our defense. Maybe not immediately, but definitely in God’s timing. And when we look back, we will be able to see where God was in the midst of it all.
By the way, if you are curious to know what happens at the end of Job’s story, God blessed Job for his faithfulness. Whatever wealth and happiness Job had before, God doubled. God is faithful to us, and we in turn need to be faithful to God.
“I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted. You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer me.’ My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.” Job 42:2-5
Hey! We’re going to have a camp booth set up with other camps at different malls around the city. If we’re in your area, make sure you drop by, pick up a brochure and say hi! Here are the dates:
March 7-9: Garden City Mall
March 27-30: St.Vital Shopping Centre
April 4-5: Kildonan Place
April 6: Family Fun Fair