Sweet Words from Maine

Beyond the Glorious

Surf at Schoodic Point, Acadia Park, Maine

Do you ever wonder what people might be thinking as they sit mesmerized by the rising surf and rhythmic pounding of breakers slamming the rocky coast or by waves gently lapping the shores of an in-land lake or by long, open vistas of plains and mountain and valleys? Do they see beyond the glories of nature as Max Planck (Nobel Prize laureate in Physics) intimated that scientists do? He was quoted as saying, “…we always look for the basic thing behind the dependent thing, for what is absolute behind what is relative, for the reality behind the appearance and for what abides behind what is transitory.”

While observing the powerful workings of nature, the Psalmist heard God’s voice: “Be still, and know that I am God. _{( Psalm 46)} Unexpectedly being confronted with creation’s glory and “bigness” may induce strong emotions and an awareness of God. But not everyone hears that voice! Atheists have no room for God in their words or their equations and theories about creation. Scientists struggle with interpretive difference about what scientific data means regarding the structure, order and origins of the cosmos. Some Evolutionists and Creationists attempt to find middle ground for the creative process. Philosophers and social scientists probe the development and debate the purposes, ethics, and behaviors of mankind-sometimes from personal bias. But all marvel and desire to know the how and why of the earth and its inhabitants!

Old Testament patriarch and prophets were overwhelmed by the glories of creation and saw them as mighty manifestations of God and his power to save them. _{(Deuteronomy 10:14, 3326-27)} Job discovered the incomparable wisdom of God through consideration of nature._{(Job 38-40)}Isaiah believed creation to be proof of the existence of God. _{(Isaiah 40)} The Psalmists repeatedly marveled at the strength and orderliness of nature and responded with gratitude and joy because they knew their mighty Creator was steadfast and loving and powerful and could grant them their prayers and forgive their transgressions. _{(Psalm 65:1-2)} And the Apostle Paul said that creation makes plain not only God’s existence but demonstrates His power and divine nature. _{(Romans 1:19-20)}

We are awed and humbled by our vast and magnificent world, but what do we see when we look into the huge expanses of space, or stand before the vast wonders of the earth, or probe the strange world of ocean depths? When Jeremiah looked “for the reality beyond the appearance,” he saw God and exclaimed ,”It is he who made the earth by his power, who established the world by his wisdom, and by his understanding stretched out the heavens.” (Jeremiah 10:12)

Do we think about the mysteries of a Creator who can form both expansive galaxies and tiny beautiful flowers or engineer the complexities of a human cell and a weird looking fish? Do we look deep beyond the glory and see God’s power, wisdom, and understanding in our surroundings and circumstances?

A Treasure Hunt

Maine is a beautiful “kingdom” in a beautiful part of the world. Some of Maine’s allure is buried in Aroostook County’s beautiful, rolling fields which yield their treasures as they begin to produce their fruit: oats and barley, potatoes and broccoli , alfalfa and canola.

In Matthew 13, Jesus told a series of parable about the Kingdom of heaven. Among those stories is a short but profound, one verse parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.( Matthew 13:44)

As with all parables, the intent is that one insert oneself into it and discover the personal application. We easily identify with this one because we are all searching for something that we think will be personally rewarding. King Solomon said that God has set “eternity” in or hearts! So, what could be more rewarding than finding the Kingdom of heaven? It seems we were made for that!

The man in the parable undoubtedly was restless and not quite satisfied. He was seeking something of more value than what he had, something that would bring greater meaning or purpose or joy to his life. Maybe, he didn’t know quite what he was looking for but knew it had to exist and was hidden from him; it was not obvious or identifiable or immediately available.

It isn’t clear how long or how far or how hard this fellow looked for this treasure. Maybe he just stumbled upon it! But we do know the treasure was discovered in a specific field. We do know he was a “man”; so, he had the power to reason and decide and choose. Interestingly, upon discovery, he did not act immediately; he “covered (it)up”; he thought about it, considered it. Then “eureka!” The impact of his discovery hit him. He realized, this was it! This was what he had searched for. It was a treasure of such great proportion that he joyfully gave all that he had to attain it. He gave up his old life for a new one! He had found the kingdom of heaven!

Christian faith is like that, isn’t it? It is a process of search and discovery, of seeking and consideration, of coming to believe not only in God but that he holds the treasures of life. For some, there is a prepared heart that receives the immediate reality and impact of the Gospel’s Good News when it is discovered. For others, faith is a long process of revelation and realization, but Jesus had said at the beginning of his ministry that those who “seek will find”, those who “knock” will have the door opened to them to a kingdom where faith is lived out joyfully under God’s authority.

The field in this parable is the world, the treasure is the Kingdom of Heaven. Christ once said that one could gain the whole world but lose his soul and that life in the Kingdom is one of self-denial, of taking up one’s cross daily and following Christ, who shows and provides the way into the Kingdom through his teaching and his sacrifice for us. That realization became the reason for our treasure hunter’s commitment.

The Kingdom is waiting to be found by those who will commit to its truths.

A Good Harvest

Years ago, and many centuries apart, King Solomon (900’s BC) and the Byrd’s ( a 1960’s band) proclaimed the truth that “For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1) They were poetically repeating what God had promised Noah in the most ancient of times, “While the earth remains, seed time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.” (Genesis 8:22)

Maine is blessed with these special seasons of “seed time and harvest” and “summer and winter”. But fall is both magnificent and vitally important. Before the leaves flame out in glorious splendor, we reap the bounty of Spring seeding, the colorful fruits and grains of harvest time.

Earth’s seasons are a metaphor for our lives. It is God’s justice that we will reap fruit from seeds that we sow. (Galatians 6:7-9) That thought is a timely reminder for us in this contentious, reactive culture. Discord will produce discord, offensive words will be met with adverse reactions, and anger and distrust will cause rebellion.

New Testament writers tell us that “The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. (James 3:17-18) Those writers also encourage us to not tire of “doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” (Galatians 6:7-9)

There will always be differences of opinions and approaches, but tension can be beneficial and result in healthy compromise. However, World Views will clash with little chance of compromise because belief systems do not easily change and because we have difficulty understanding ideologies different from our own or why people think differently than we do. Those interactions are difficult to negotiate because often they are accompanied by pride, disgust or distain. There may not be a whole lot one can personally do to address the divisiveness and contentiousness we are experiencing in our communities, but we can do “good”. We can “sow in peace!” We can acknowledge and respect and help and bless instead of curse. We can follow God’s wisdom: “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. (Proverbs 15:1)

I Hope You Dance?

Looking at Mount Desert Island from Sullivan Harbor, Maine

Often when gazing to distant mountains, snippets of Lee Ann Wormack’s popular hit song “I hope you dance” pop into my mind. Of course, the song is typical country music genre and is about chancing love. However, the lyrics speak to a hopeful, enthusiastic approach to life in general! A few of the cherry-picked lyrics are as follows:

“I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance…”/ “Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance…”/ “ I hope you never lose your sense of wonder…”/ “May you never take one single breath for granted”/ “I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean”/ “Promise me that you’ll give faith a fighting chance/“And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance, I hope you dance.”

That is good advice: to step out into life with youthful vigor yet with humility, with a sense of wonder and amazement, with an appreciation for our place in the vastness and beauty of creation, and with faith that there is a purpose for our lives. It encourages one to “go for it”, to pursue our dreams and goals with courage and confidence, to let challenges energize us, and to not let limitations defeat us.

However, on that journey, it soon becomes evident that happiness is not the same as self-discovery and self-fulfillment or what we might consider success. Somewhere and sometime, we will begin to ask ultimate questions just as the Psalmist did. “Remember how short my life is, how empty and futile this human existence! What man can live and never see death? Who can deliver his soul from the power of Sheol?” (Psalm 89:47-48)

I have recently seen several lists of four or five “must read” books that presumably teach how to improve one’s life. Sadly, none of the lists included sacred Scripture, where God answers the Psalmist’s and our questions! Christ also spoke to the issue of happiness by declaring that spiritual well-being and happiness are possible despite one’s status or circumstance. What he said remains both as counter-intuitive and as counter-cultural as it was then.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Those are heart transforming attitudes and actions that lead to the distant mountains for which we strive, to the places where one can know both purpose and joy. Jesus said that those qualities will not only bring happiness, but they will make one as salt and light in one’s community. (Matthew 5:3-16) His words require thoughtful consideration because they are the music to which the soul dances.

“I hope you dance!”

Of God and Dories!

There is something about a dory that lights up the imagination. These little boats lure us to bygone days which have been romanticized and influenced by lore and art. They draw one to Celtic ballads, Irish fiddling, and tales and tragedies of the hard scrabble life of cod fishing on the Grand Banks; They remind us of the harsh reality of life on the sea and Newfoundland’s struggling hamlets.

They conjure up Winslow Homer paintings of men in weather gear, fighting the elements, balancing their dories against sea swells while pulling nets filled with herring, or rowing their catch of large cod through dark, rough seas back to the distant fishing schooners whose sails always lie on the horizon.

They are reminders of the Galilean fishermen who became Christ’s disciples. Those men faced harsh seas and sudden tempests. They understood hard and sometimes disappointing work. However, when they met Jesus, their world views slowly changed, and the focus of their fishing altered radically. Jesus called them to be “fishers of men”, to no longer net fish into boats but to bring men into God’s Kingdom, where one might have thought they themselves would have been safe from life’s storms. However, their earthly lives darkened with waves of opposition, hatred, and persecution and ended tragically yet triumphantly! Following their Lord and “fishing for men” eventually resulted in their martyrdom or exile. Nevertheless, they persevered with confidence and with an unshakable faith, assured because they had “been with Jesus.”

The Apostle John, who walked with Jesus for three years, captured this thought as he spoke of Jesus:” We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us. We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy.” (1 John 1:1-4 (NLT2)

These Galilean fishermen were at the beginning of a ground swell that would sweep across nations and centuries. And amazingly, they are still fishing several thousand years later! God continues to use them to explain and proclaim the Gospel and help men and women enter His Kingdom. Even though their boats and nets are long gone, they have left an ongoing legacy for which all believers are grateful. The Church “is built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone …” (Ephesians 2:19-22)

Summer Fun

James Russel Lowell, lawyer, politician, writer, poet and New Englander, rightfully and wonderfully reminds us of the hope and joy of spring’s renewal with the opening words of his famous poem: “And what is so rare as a day in June?” However, in Maine, (Lowell lived in Southern New England), there is no day rarer than a beautiful , summer day in July or early August. Although fleeting, those days are much anticipated. It is when summer begins (and nearly ends). It is a time of summer fun- vacations, family time, camping, hiking, swimming, picnicking, beaching, backyard grilling and bocce ball, festivals, reunions and sailing!

We enjoy life but are also challenged by it. King Solomon should be our “go to” mentor about life. He had it all to enjoy– unrestricted in wealth, possessions, available work and hobbies, pleasures (wine, women, entertainment), knowledge, privilege and power. But none of that made him a happy man. He determined that his accumulations, aspirations, and achievements meant nothing in the eternal scheme of things… None of it would last. From that perspective, he garnered some principles of living that help guide us into satisfying lives.

First, “Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, “completely meaningless!” (Ecclesiastes 1:2)

Second: “There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God, “for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment.” (Ecclesiastes 2:24-25)

The King realized that pleasure and satisfaction comes “from the hand of God”. Sometimes we“toil” too hard for “happiness! A degree from an expensive, prestigious college may mean years of student loan debt. Work stresses and financial demands associated with large homes, multiple cars, boats, and other adult toys mean sacrificing time and investments in important relationships. Life is not meant to be so intense that it becomes burdensome, worrisome, and exhausting, Although there is nothing wrong with improving or bettering oneself or situation, there is the danger of losing focus, of not placing life in the context of God’s purposes. Pleasure seeking becomes folly and futile when achievements, power, privilege, professions, and wealth are our idols. So much of our striving is ultimately “meaningless”. The Psalmist also reminds us to consider this, “Remember how short my life is, how empty and futile this human existence!” (Psalm 89:47) We rob ourselves and don’t realize it!

Third: Solomon concluded:”The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)

So, our relationship with God is central to happiness! Respect, reverence, recognition of God’s authority and maintaining God’s principles by which to live are not only the “whole duty” of man but are the best, most pleasing way of living. Having good but misguided goals is way too easy. Neglecting God is way too easy! Carving out idols is way too easy! Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, understood this about his people who had given themselves to idolatry. He grieved for them and agonized, “My grief is beyond healing; my heart is broken ” because they had recognized their folly too late and lamented, “The harvest is finished, and the summer is gone, yet we are not saved!”(Jeremiah 8:18-22)

July and August in Maine can’t be beat, but the summer passes quickly and suddenly harvest is upon us! Metaphorically this raises a serious question? When our summers have gone and our harvest is finished, what will we have produced? Anything of eternal value? Have we just entertained the idea of God or have we included Him in our lives? Have we discovered that God cares enough about us to redeem us and that He is the ultimate source of all that is good and, therefore, our happiness? Do we realize that “for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment?”

Creation Speaks

Another awe filled Downeast sunrise brings thoughts of Creator God and how beautifully He reveals Himself to us..

“For what can be known about God is plain (to people) because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So, they (people) are without excuse.”( Romans 1:19-20)

That statement affirms the Psalmist’s ageless poetry declaring that God is everywhere revealed to all people through creation:

“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.
Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.” (Psalm 19:1-6)

The song continues to builds into thoughts of how one can know God and His purposes for us.

“The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward…” (Psalm 19:7-14)

That God’s revealed Word revives the soul, brings wisdom to one’s life, rejoices the heart, and enlightens the mind are bold and powerful assertions that run throughout both Old and New Testaments.

“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17) For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

Furthermore, and even more breathtaking than discerning human faults and bringing wisdom to life, Scripture offers a redemptive solution for our sinful souls. “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.” (Romans 10:9-10)

Such claims are quite unprecedented and unique , have persisted for thousands of years, have changed the lives of millions, and do warrant thoughtful consideration and evaluation by each of us during all the sunrises that we will ever have!

Fiddleheads and Grace

Eating “Fiddleheads” is a Maine culinary experience which dates back to early Native American days. A “Fiddlehead” is a curled fern frond which can be found for a brief time in the Spring before it unfurls to become a mature fern leaf. Time changes “Fiddleheads” to ferns.

Oddly enough, this picture takes me back to Freshman College English!! (And that was not yesterday!!) We discussed “Fern Hill”, a poem by Dylan Thomas, in which he personifies Time, speaks of the innocence of youth (“lamb white days”), and laments the eventual changes that Time brings to him and to his childhood farm, “Fern Hill”.

He longed for those carefree days of childhood: ” Time let me hail and climb Golden in the heydays of his eyes,”/… “In the sun that is young once only, Time let me play and be Golden in the mercy of his means,”/…“Under the new made clouds and happy as the heart was long, In the sun born over and over,I ran my heedless ways …”

His early years were like the Garden of Eden to Thomas: “Shining, it was Adam and maiden…” Not all of us can personally relate to such a burden free childhood filled with natural beauty, fun, family, friends, and playful frolic. Although we may not lay claim to an idyllic youth, we still sense loss as we take on the heaviness of adulthood. We “… wake to the farm forever fled from the childless land.”

Like a Pied Piper, Time briefly plays the songs of youth and then leads us out of the garden of innocence. “Before the children green and golden Follow him out of grace…” Thomas likens our progress through adolescence to mankind’s fall from grace in Eden. When man chose the knowledge of evil over a state of goodness, spiritual danger and suffering entered Eden. Mankind became troubled and challenged with moral issues and with decisions about ways to conduct one’s life—with either integrity or duplicity, selfishness or generosity, aimlessness or purpose, with God in the mix or not. At some point our thinking and behavior require accountability, and willful moral errors bring consequences.

Youth doesn’t last forever. Time unmercifully forces us forward into culpability. The good news is that, although we outlive Time’s grace, we cannot outlive God’s incomparable grace, His free and unmerited favor, His mercy, forgiveness, and presence. Restoration to God through Christ’s redemptive work is available at any point we are willing to accept the offer, and our moral slate is wiped clean forever. We can confidently live with the knowledge and promise that ^“There is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1).

Time demands change. It may not be gracious to either”Fiddleheads” or to us. But God loves, pursues, and benefits all who follow Him. He is a gracious God who moves us from loss to eternal hope.

Changing Landmarks

Stonington Chimneys and Mark Island Light

^“Remove not the ancient landmark” (Proverbs 23:10)

Until recently, the alignment of these chimneys and their mossy roof with the chimney shaped lighthouse in the bay beyond had always been a landmark that caught my imagination. The old chimney is gone! Torn down. Now it has become a reminder of how time may shift our “markers”.

Landmarks, signs, and “milestones” help us identify places, people, and events; but if not tended or cherished or if misused, they change, deteriorate, crumble , and disappear like this chimney. Similarly, unless they are carefully protected, cultural ideals and sensitivities (the way or what we think and the way we behave) change over time.

Sometimes change is beneficial. Sometimes change is controversial and even divisive. Historic monuments or buildings are removed or renamed because they raise painful memories or affront groups of people. Our constitution is constantly under scrutiny by specific factions who encourage changes they believe would benefit them more than it currently does. Traditional cultural values shift focus to special or individual interests rather than what benefits society as a whole. Judicial rulings smack more of political bias than of concern for the moral or common good. Intolerance for hero status emphasizes the character flaws of respected national forefathers rather than the good they have done for our country and humanity. Such modifications alter our cultural landscape.

Whatever our response to”change”, whether we agree or disagree, whether it brings pleasure and joy or chaos and deterioration, there is an enduring beacon of Truth which may or may not be evident. It consistently shines in the background and is unchanged by what we tear down, rewrite, restate, redefine, or reinterpret. God is immutable. He is the “rock of our refuge.” (Psalm 94:22) He speaks Truth which makes sense of life and leads us to redemption. He is the One “who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and make manifest the counsels of the hearts; and then shall each man have his praise from God.” (1 Corinthians 4:5)

He has set the boundaries and has placed the landmarks for our cultural, intellectual and spiritual landscape so that we can have the best possible journey through this life of shifting ethics and circumstances. He lights the path with the Truth of His Word so we will recognize and be guided by those ancient, trustworthy landmarks.

“The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple;
the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; ” (Psalm 19:7-8)

Commending God

A new beginning in Prospect Harbor , Maine

Another beautiful day begins on the Maine Coast, where there is always something old to be taught and something new to learn …

Down east accents murmur and drift across the water as this old salt and his unseasoned stern man (maybe father and son) plan the day and begin their work adventure together. During the course of the next few hours, their conversations will shift from idle banter and gentle ribbing to long and comfortable pauses. They will vacillate from solving crucial, national and world political and social issues to a more practical, informal, but essential mentoring on how to lobster fish. At day’s end, the young stern-man may not have realized it but will have become more knowledgeable about the “where and how ” of lobstering. He will have received solid, time-proven information and skills that one day will help him be successful on his own.

Mentoring has been the “best practices” method of generational teaching since antiquity. Thousands of years ago, Moses stressed that the key to raising a successful nation was teaching children in their homes about the greatness of God, about His awesome efforts to save and restore people, and about His godly principles for living: “You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied……”. (Deuteronomy 11:18-21)

The Psalmist concurs: “Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable. One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts.” (Psalm 145:3-6)

“… tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the LORD, and his might, and the wonders that he has done….that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments; (Psalms 78:2-8)

Those commands are eternally important reminders that this sacred responsibility to teach and to model God to children and family primarily belongs to parents, not to Churches or Synagogues, Church Schools, Sunday School teachers, or sermons and catechisms. Those have important supportive roles to play but are not meant to be the primary ones.

God has given each of us unique stories of His goodness to share. As we live out and tell the accounts of our lives, hopefully we will consider and relate how God weaves His great redemptive love story through out all of history including our own personal histories. He pursues us to do good for us, to save us, and restore us to Himself. That narrative stretches throughout all generations, centers on the crucified and risen Christ, and will continue until time ceases. That message brings meaning and confidence to life. It is crucial that God’s unchanging story be shared so others may live in light of His love, purposes, and eternal hope.

“I will sing of the steadfast love of the LORD, forever; with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.” (Psalm 89:1)

We can do that even on a lobster boat!