Moving Night

If you ever believed that God put you somewhere and it was as if he was talking directly to you, that was me last night. Our church had their lent study program called On Earth as it is in Heaven. It was about what God promises and what we have to look forward to when we leave the life here on Earth for Eternal life in heaven. It is so unfathomable by so many of us to think of Eternal life and what happens when we die. Of course with the loss of George Hugh and I have been having our ups and downs dispite our strong faith and support.

The man running the program was just wonderful and you could see the faith he had just as he spoke. We went over the basics of church and how it has changed over the years all the way down to the physical structure of the places we worship. At first I was kind of bored by that part until it just hit me about the very meaning of the progress of church an faith across the years. He talked about how initially churches were built with a partition of the congregation from the altar. Some of the structures were very heavy an yet as years went on it all changed to even that not being something there at all.

What I took from that is the fact that these are man made things and how it represente our own path as a church community to move forward and also as individuals in on our own path to finding Christ and eternal life. As time goes on each of us struggle to understand faith. In the end it is only man's own desires that keep him from God and knowing Christ. The further you get in your faith the closer you are to knowing Christ and the eternal life he provided for each of us. In a way it is symbolized just by looking at the architecture of the church and how it has progressed over the years.

Man use to be kept from getting close to the actual ceremony and practice of faith across the years. This has slowly dwindled as now modern churches can be found to make no seperation between the congregation and those serving durning the ceremony. The church and beliefs have changed across the years just as those of us seeking answers and faith move in our own faith. Man is what keeps us from knowing God and our own spiritual growth and progress will make it so that when our day comes we can stand before Christ and be allowed into heaven.

We split off into groups with questions to work on that referenced passages in the bible that gave guidance and promise of being accepted into heaven. One of the passages caused some questions and that one passage surely needed more then the hour they had to truly understand and go over. It was about how finding one lost sheep caused such joy in heaven. One of the members of our church raised her hand and said she had a problem with that because it was not fair that those who are always good did not bring the same joy. I didn't get the assage myself at firts either.

It then begs you to think about how a flock of sheep works and the actual art of shepharding. First of all, shepharding is not an easy job. You are constantly walking up an down hills but having to overcome many obstacles along with good and bad weather along the way. It is very much like life and I now understand why they refer to Christ as a shephard.

Shephards and hearders have tools of the trade they use to help them. Branding is something not uncommon so there is no confusion as to who owns the sheep. It is painful but once you have that imprinting there is no going back and no one can mistake you for anything else dispite how far you may wander from your flock. That is just the way it is when you have accepted Christ as your savior. The road to get there is not easy and it is not promissed to be pain free. Once you have been called and accept that call, there is no going back because you are now one of God's children.

Then there are the sheep. Most of the time they stay together but keeping them all together is not easy and from time to time one will go astray dispite your best efforts to keep them all as a group. None of them walk the same steps to get where they are going but they get there eventually together as a group with lots of guidance along the way. It is by no means an easy road and some will be hurt or sick along the way an every effort is made to get them to the place made for them.

You then ponder about that one sheep that happens to go astray. It isn't always an immediate recognition that the sheep is missing and it is not always an easy task to bring that sheep back to the flock. That sheep is all alone out there and subject to the elements with no one there to watch it. Predators are all around willing to take advantage of the fact that sheep is alone. The sheep falls and falters getting scratches and bruises.

The shephard realizes that the sheep is gone and is out there searching high and low for that one sheep. It is the same way that a father or mother would look for a missing child...they would never give up until they knew what happened. He left the whole flock in order to find the one missing knowing they were together and in greater numbers they have more of a chance to get there together rather then that one sheep who has no one to be there and guide them. To me that is sort of like the fact we as a church learn together and support one another on a regular basis. Later you realize that someone has stopped coming or is just really struggling. Sometimes you never notice but that is why God is there. He is keeping track of the whole flock as the shephard does with his sheep.

Thinking back to the lost sheep. If the shephard does not find him in time, he will be left to become the prey of some other animal or terrible fate. If the sheep is found then that sheep is brought back to the flock. He still has all his wounds and although they may be treate or healed, the scars will always remain and will cause to make that sheep more suceptible to falling behind or being lost again some day.

We are all lost sheep at some point in our lives. The woman at our church did not care for the fact or think it was fair that the sheep that stayed together were left and that heaven did not cheer for them but rather the one lost sheep. THe thing is that we are all sinners. No one sin is worse or better in God's eyes then another. Sin is sin and we are all sinners. THe bible also states that it is how we handle those moments when we falter that are what Christ looks at on our judgement day. He is merciful and that is why he is the one we stand before in judgement.

One of the most touching moments was when he played the song Taste and Eat and played the slides from the presentation. It was then that I realized my little boy already had his judement day and stood there in front of Christ. It made me think of the gretness of that and my heart just swelled with that very thought and tears ran down my face. He was pure and was used in such a great way.

I remember years ago as I was trying to find my faith. My search for faith was a long and difficult road and I could not realize why I just could not come by that feeling so many people talked of. It was only when I realized my own personal hang up. I remembered thinking that I did not deserve to be forgiven. So many poor choices I had made and things I had done just made me unworth of Christ's sacrifice. THat very thought made me know that there was a greater purpose and that we all fall from grace. I was the one who had put on the expectations on myself and it was then that I knew all I had to do was believe in Christ and my sins were forgiven. It sounds simple but it isn't just that easy.

I don't profess to be perfect, I am as human as they come and I fall from grace just as everyone else does. It is that fact that Christ gave his life for our sins that is so much grater but also the same thing that gives me comfort in my son's death. I know some day I will be there with him and if he could do this and has already met his judgement then I am not afraid of that moment myself. I also belive that God used my son as he did his own to bring people to him and I cannot think of a greater purpose that someone can have on this earth and to be so honored that he chose my little boy.