ABC's of Victory

ABC'S OF VICTORY

Although things are not perfect

Because of trial or pain
Continue in thanksgiving.
Do not begin to blame

Even when the times are hard.
Fierce winds are bound to blow.
God is forever able.
Hold on to what you know;
Imagine life without His love,
Joy would cease to be.
Keep thanking Him for all the things
Love imparts to thee.
Move out of "Camp Complaining."
No weapon that is known
On earth can yield the power
Praise can do alone.
Quit looking at the future;
Redeem the time at hand;
Start every day with worship.
To "thank" is a command
Until we see Him coming
Victorious in the sky.
We'll run the race with gratitude;
Xalting God most high.
Yes, there'll be good times and yes some will be bad, but...
Zion waits in glory...where none are ever sad!

Prison Fellowship Hope Awards

Another group I support is Prison Fellowship started by Chuck Colson after he got out of prison for his role in Watergate with Nixon.  They have now started a new Hope Awards program out of their organization.  This is the link to the winners of this years Chuck Colson Hope Awards:

https://www.prisonfellowship.org/temp/2016tl/colson-hope-awards/

The Angel Tree founder, Mary Kay Beard, was one of the recipients:

The Restorer of Hope award goes to a person who, with sustained compassion for the terrible weight borne by the families of the incarcerated, has come alongside to help carry their burden, share God’s love, and offer hope for restoration. No one exemplifies that better than our inaugural award winner, Mary Kay Beard, whom we honor posthumously this year after her passing in April 2016.

After her own release from prison, Mary Kay joined the staff of Prison Fellowship as the director for her home state of Alabama. Remembering the mothers she had met during her incarceration, who carefully saved items like soap and socks in order to have something to give to their children during Christmas visits, Mary Kay created the Angel Tree program from scratch. She visited prisoners to learn what they would want to give to their children. Then she cut out paper angels, placed them on the tree at a local mall, and invited shoppers to help provide Christmas gift for prisoners’ children. The rest, as they say, is history.

More than 30 years later, millions of relationships have been restored and strengthened through Angel Tree, and entire families have been transformed through the presentation of the Gospel and the care of faithful, local congregations. Through her legacy, Mary Kay has lightened the load borne by an incalculable number of families—and given them hope for the future. The ministry estimates that more than 10 million gifts have been given to children on behalf of their incarcerated parents.

Mary Kay understood that when parents become prisoners, they retain their love and concern for their children. By creating Angel Tree, she helped them restore and strengthen their relationships with their sons and daughters. She respected their ongoing dignity as parents. In fact, the dignity of prisoners and their families was always at the core of Angel Tree. Prisoners were deeply grateful to her for giving them a pathway to reconnect with their families. When Mary Kay spoke at an Easter event with Chuck Colson in 2011, prisoners leapt to their feet and almost tore the roof off the prison gymnasium with their cheers and applause.

Mary Kay also involved countless other people in the ministry to prisoners’ families, equipping them to fulfill their potential. She wisely helped make volunteers and churches the central vehicle for ministry delivery, so that they would develop a heart for prisoners’ families and the greater picture of prison ministry. Thanks to her legacy, thousands upon thousands of churches have discovered that prison ministry is a core part of Gospel-centered presence in their local communities. 

Patty, Christian, Wendell, and Emily Colson takes great joy in nominating May Kay for the Restorer of Hope Award. In their nomination, they wrote, “We have a tender place in our hearts for the ministry of Angel Tree, which seeks to bless the children that society sometimes excludes, and for its founder, Mary Kay Beard, who died this year. Through our late husband and father, Chuck Colson, it was our privilege to know this extraordinary lady from Alabama, and because she has helped restore hope to millions, it is the Colson family’s profound honor to nominate her posthumously for this award.”

95 Examples of good deeds by Christians

Again from the World News Group an article that lists the 95 Hope Award Finalists from the last eleven years:

https://world.wng.org/2016/08/the_hope_95_examples_of_what_christians_do

From the article, "For our 2017 Hope Award competition we’ll give preference to groups from the 16 states that have never had a finalist. That means, from what we define as our Northeast region: Connecticut, Delaware, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, and West Virginia. From our Southeast region: Mississippi and South Carolina. From our Northwest region: Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Oregon. And from our Southwest region: Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah."

Keep a lookout for Christians doing good in the Dakotas and nominate them.  I know they are out there!

Forgiveness

"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you." (Colossians 3:13)

"To understand forgiveness we must realize what forgiveness is NOT:

• Forgiveness is not forgetting. Deep hurts can rarely be wiped out of one's awareness.
• Forgiveness is not reconciliation. Reconciliation takes two persons, but an injured party can forgive an offender without reconciliation.
• Forgiveness is not condoning. Forgiveness does not necessarily excuse bad or hurtful behavior.
• Forgiveness is not dismissing. It involves taking the offense seriously, not passing it off as inconsequential or insignificant.
• Forgiveness is not a vague notion of ‘tolerance'. This is, at best, a low-grade parody of forgiveness. At worst, it's a way of sweeping the real issues in life under the carpet.
• Forgiveness is not pardoning. A pardon is a legal transaction that releases an offender from the consequences of an action, such as a penalty.

In the New Testament we see Jesus, the Lamb of God, come into to the world to die for our sins. Through His shed blood we can once and for all receive ultimate forgiveness. This is the pure "gospel of grace." This forgiveness is a gift. We do not deserve it but God, in His grace, reached out to provide forgiveness to a dying world. 

Then we read in the verse above the impact of this on those of us who have received that forgiveness. Its ethical challenge parallels "love your enemies" and "pray for your persecutors." 

In the final analysis, forgiveness is an act of faith. By forgiving another, I am trusting that God is a better justice-maker than I am. By forgiving, I release my own right to get even and leave all issues of fairness for God to work out. I leave in God's hands the scales that must balance justice and mercy. I simply forgive others and leave them to God."

True forgiveness can be so foreign in today's world, but Jesus showed us the way and gives us the strength to do it.  Open Doors ministers to many people around the world who must learn forgiveness for horrible things done to them.

Blessed are the Peacemakers

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." (Matthew 5:9)

"With the possession of a meek spirit, we are equipped to step into the midst of conflict and be ambassadors "waging peace" that passes all understanding. The richness of the New Testament word "peace" describes a condition of perfect and complete positive well-being. It also describes right relationships—intimate fellowship and goodwill between human beings. Peace comes not from avoiding issues but from facing them, making peace even when the way is through trouble. Thus...

Blessed are those peacemakers who produce right relationships in every sphere of life, for they are doing a God-like work.

Such actions may involve laying down one’s life, like Jesus did, in order to reconcile men with God and break down barriers among men (Galatians 3:26-29). Are we willing to pay the price so that others might find peace with God? Are we willing to insist that all should hear the Gospel and believe? In some conflict areas of the world, Christians call this "waging peace."

Our brothers and sisters in Israel and the West Bank—where "peace" is sought but very evasive - remind us that Jesus’ high moral teaching is that we should not resist evil with evil (Matthew 5:39). Jesus is calling His followers not to respond in kind to the acts of injustice and dehumanization directed against them, but rather to respond with transforming initiatives. This unique perspective that He teaches contrasts with the "fight or flight" responses so deeply conditioned in human beings.

Dr. Salim Munayer is a wonderful example of such a peacemaker. The organization he founded takes groups of Christian Palestinians and Israelis on trips to the desert where they must work together in a situation that breaks down barriers and promotes trust relationships. Brother Andrew comments that this ministry doesn’t "just talk about the problem between Palestinians and Jews. It brings the two sides together and provides the means for them to reconcile."

"Waging peace" involves: promoting love not hate; fostering unity among brethren; being a witness of a higher kingdom; and following the non-violence example of Jesus."

Open Doors works in Israel.  I pray for the peace of Israel especially having been there years ago and meeting Jews, Muslims, and Christians living in close proximity to each other.

Blessed are those who Mourn

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." (Matthew 5:4)

"Mourning is the kind of grief that cannot be hidden. It can be a deep sorrow for our own unworthiness that leads us to trust the Lord as our total Provider, seeking His presence and counsel (authority). Such action is rewarded by the Father’s gracious comfort.

It can also be for grief over the sorrow and suffering of this world. Blessed is the man who cares intensely for the sufferings, sorrows and needs of others. And so again we can paraphrase this Beatitude...

Blessed are those whose hearts are broken for the world’s suffering and are deeply sorry for their sin and unworthiness, for they will find the joy and comfort of God."

Another email from Open Doors.  Bless all my friends and family who know what it is to mourn and give us the kind of comfort that leads us to come alongside those who suffer.