PLUS

II Timothy 1:7 “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke unto you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart:  and ye shall find rest unto your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden in light.”

Coronavirus panic has impacted the world’s population.  Humanity is on edge.  The COVID-19 pandemic has raised fears to a fevered pitch (with no pun intended).  People are rightfully uneasy and concerned in the absence of a clear way forward while facing unprecedented global uncertainty about their health and well-being.  Policy makers across the globe are scrambling to calm the masses and create safety, while stores are running out of stock and patience is running low. 

People are fearful and heavy laden.  They are looking for rest in their spirits and peace in their souls.

Christians don’t have the vaccine to the virus, but we do have a counter to the concern and an antidote to the anxiety.  We have the means to prevent the panic, soothe the spooked, and calm the chaos.

Christ wants to bear our weighty burdens.  He offers rest unto our souls.  He looks to replace fear with power, love and sound minds. 

As we represent Him in a world characterized by the heaviest of burdens, may we be extra sensitive to those who are looking for peace-providing answers.  May we live through His power, exude His love, and exhibit sound minds.  These characteristics will stand in sharp contrast to a world that is feeling weak, abandoned, and frantic. 

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE SAFETY OF HUMANITY AND THE UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPRESS CHRIST’S PEACE TO A PANICKED POPULATION.  The Lord desires to give rest to a heavy laden humanity.

I Corinthians 1:27-31 “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:  That no flesh should glory in his presence.  But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:  That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.”

My wife and I have perpetual disagreement over which scientist is the most impactful in history – Isaac Newton or Albert Einstein (we are geeky, I know).  My wife is an Einstein gal, and I am a Newton guy.  Einstein is well known for his ground-breaking work in relativity and quantum mechanics while Newton is renowned for his foundational work in classical mechanics and calculus.  Clearly, I’m right.

We recently came across some information about Einstein that partially swayed my wife towards my position, and that illustrates an important spiritual truth.  In spite of his academic brilliance, Einstein’s personal life was filled with challenges.  His first marriage ended in divorce after he lived apart from his wife for several years.  This first marriage ultimately crumbled as a result of his adulterous relationship with his cousin.  In fact, Einstein married his second wife Elsa only months after his first divorce.  Elsa was Einstein’s first cousin on their mom’s side (their moms were sisters), and Einstein’s second cousin on their dad’s side (their dads were first cousins).  In fact, she was born Elsa Einstein and only had a different last name at the time of their marriage because she had kept the last name of her first husband (who was not her cousin).  Yikes!  Academic brilliance does not translate into spiritual or relational discernment. 

There are people around us who are wise and mighty according to the world’s standards.  Their wisdom and might can intimidate us and conceal their deep spiritual gaps.  Yet, their greatest need remains the wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption that can only come from the Lord through Christ.  Only in Him should we glory.

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO PROPERLY PRIOIRITIZE THE CHARACTERISTICS THAT CAN ONLY COME FROM THE LORD.  The foolish things of the world confound the wise, and we need to serve God by helping to illuminate the real source of wisdom … even to those who appear wise and mighty.

John 3:3 “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

John 3:6-7 “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.  Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.”

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Leap Days are a chance to consider God’s marvelous creation.  The earth travels around the sun at a pace that is almost exactly 365.25 days.  Our solar calendar requires a Leap Day every four years (with a few exceptions) to keep our dates aligned with our seasons.  But for some, it creates an interesting dilemma related to the date of their birth.

Those born on a Leap Day only see their actually birthday date every four years.  Unlike some fictional plot lines, these individuals don’t actually age much more slowly than the rest of us.  But legally, when is their birthday?  Do they reach the status of full adulthood on 28 Feb or 1 March?  Are they legally able to drive on the last day of February or the first day of March?  The answer to these questions differs depending on the nation whose relevant case law dictates the answer.

Regardless of the date of your physical birth, there is an even more important date – the day of your spiritual birth.  Jesus Christ reminded the Pharisee leader Nicodemus that a man must be born again to see the kingdom of God, not by being physically reborn but by being born of the Spirit.

As we consider the interesting anomaly of Leap Day, may we consider the weighty truth of being born again.  As we talk about Leap Day to others, may we use it to discuss the significance of Jesus’ mandate – ye must be born again.

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE SPIRITUAL TRUTHS WITH THOSE AROUND US.  The day of your physical birth is a day to celebrate, but the day of your spiritual birth is a day to rejoice in our Saviour, whether it is on Leap Day or during the rest of the regular calendar.

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Matthew 9:36 “But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.”

Mark 1:40-41 “And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.  And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will:  be thou clean.”

It is a magnificent thought to consider that Christ came to be the Saviour of the world.  It is amazing that Christ is moved with compassion on the multitudes.  He deeply and compassionately loves His human creation.

Yet, it is a supernaturally stunning thought that He deeply and compassionately loves us as individuals. He is moved with compassion by us – not just us collectively but us individually.  He loves the world, but also loves the whosoever.  He came to save the world, but that means saving individuals.  Our Saviour is personally and intimately interested in us, no matter who we are and what we have done. 

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO BE MOVED WITH COMPASSION BY THE STRUGGLES OF THE INDIVIDUALS AROUND US.  Our Saviour is moved with compassion by the challenges of the lowliest among us – so must we!

(Guest contributor – Chaplain Scott Foust)

Matthew 20:28 “Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.”

In 2015, while serving at Ramstein, Germany, I received an assignment notification, indicating I would be reporting to … drumroll … the 11th Operations Group at Arlington.  I wondered two things: 1) Why am I being downgraded from a Wing to a Group?  2) What Air Force base is in Arlington, TX?  Come to find out, it was not Arlington, TX; it was Arlington, VA.  Furthermore, it was definitely not a downgrade; it was a special opportunity to serve at Arlington National Cemetery.  I was not even aware that we had Air Force chaplains at Arlington, but we do!  The Arlington mission is basically all about conducting funerals for Air Force members and their dependents.  It may sound depressing, but I spent three of my favorite years at Arlington, and I would be open to returning, should the United States Air Force ever decide to send me back!

Whenever an officer is buried at Arlington, he/she is eligible for a “Full Honors Funeral,” which includes not only a team of pall bears, a rifle team, and a bugler to play “Taps,” but also something like a “parade,” which involves a military formation—to include the Air Force Honor Guard, the Air Force Band, and a caisson (a spectacular-looking horse-drawn carriage)–marching approximately one mile from what’s called a “transfer point” somewhere in the cemetery to the burial site.  Our marches often took us past Section 1 of the cemetery, where you catch a glimpse of how officers from early on practiced a version of one-upmanship, when it came to choosing their headstone.  The headstones were getting bigger and gaudier until the government stepped in and began regulating them.

One of the heroes buried at Arlington is General John “Black Jack” Pershing.   You know why he’s called “Black Jack”?  Because in 1898, during the Spanish-American War, he led a cavalry of black troops, who took San Juan Hill.  This helped propel Pershing to notoriety.  Eventually, General Pershing was promoted to Commander of the American Expeditionary Forces during World War I, and then to General of the Armies.  Until that time, the only other person with that rank had been George Washington!

Pershing died in 1948, at the age of 87.  Before his passing, he picked out his headstone.  If anyone could have gone big and gaudy, it was General Pershing.  But, that wasn’t his style.  Instead, he asked for a standard government-issue headstone, the same as any private.  Moreover, he could have had been buried at any of the prime locations within the Cemetery.  Yet, he pointed to the section where his enlisted troops had been buried and made the following request: “Here let me rest among the World War veterans.  When the last bugle call is sounded, I want to stand up with my soldiers.”

My prayer is that those of us who’ve been called to lead God’s children will never view ourselves as being “above” them or “beyond” them, but that we will live and lead—and even be willing to die—”with” them!  PLEASE PRAY TO BE A MINISTER TO THOSE AROUND US.  Always be willing to proudly stand up with our life’s fellow soldiers.