Remarkable

A hometown view that never gets old.

Besides being nearly 40 degrees cooler and a ton less humid, the shocking crispness of today’s before-sunrise air triggered flashbacks of walks across campus to an 8 a.m. class in September. There is plenty of summer left, but it was a good vibration nonetheless because just being able to breathe deeply this morning made it, well… 

And then there was this never-gets-old scene across from what will always be known as Derby’s that was, well…

And as the sun began to creep its way over the hills, fleeting clouds turned pink then tangerine-ish then lilac, then suddenly stopped their stage performance, and it was all, well…

And just when I was fumbling for the right word, I turned to Centertown and there it was in a storefront sign: Remarkable. “Worthy of being noticed, uncommon, extraordinary.” Kind of leaves you wanting for more than that until you discover that remarkable has more than 70 powerful synonyms, like amazing and incredible.

King David knew the feeling of remarkable well. He once wrote:

“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the skies announce what His hands have made. Day after day they tell the story; night after night they tell it again.”
(Psalm 19:1-2)

David spent a lot of his life outdoors and “saw” many remarkable things that many may have taken for granted.

Duly noted.

And he would have loved it here…especially this morning.

Moon Gaze

Night hands off to day at Cunningham Pond.

“His kingdom will last before Me like the sun. It will continue forever, like the moon, like a dependable, reliable, faithful witness in the sky.”—Psalm 89:36-37

A favorite local author from childhood, the late Elizabeth Yates, once said of the early morning: “The silence is so intense that the striking of a distant clock comes into it like sounds from another world. How bright the stars are! How still the trees! Neither branches nor leaves are in motion. Everything seems to be waiting for something to happen. It is a time when the veil between the worlds is thin…”

If you’ve ever gotten up that early, you feel those words as your own. Because no matter what the season, one of the best things about waking up early is to be in that moment of intense stillness when night hands off the baton to day. Dark becomes light again. Another relay race is on! And there to cheer on the moment every time is the moon. Sometimes, it’s right in your face. Sometimes, it's a fingernail way up high. And sometimes, it’s to the left or to the right of where it was a few days ago, but it’s always, always there, making its comforting presence known.

The psalmist, who spent a lot of time outdoors, tells us something more—that God Himself is faithful, just like that moon. And it doesn’t have to be night becoming morning to see and receive that truth. Because on this new day, whether cloudy or sunny, it’s good to know that the Creator of heaven and earth is a type-and-shadow of that “dependable, reliable, faithful witness in the sky” whose kingdom still reigns beyond the blue or gray or storminess of all that we can see or feel. He’s got this.

Because just like the moon shines in winter, spring, summer and fall, faithful means God never goes away on vacation or leaves us to figure things out for ourselves. Better still, seeing the moon up there is a constant reminder that though we stumble often, doubt frequently, and rebel without even realizing it, God remains faithful to His Almightyness, His promises, and His name, without a hint of wavering...

His love toward us never quits, whether we feel it or not. It’s always reaching out, like a beam across the pond.

...And like the moon—sometimes appearing to be full in our heart, sometimes feeling distant and thin, but always present regardless of circumstance—God is tirelessly, joyfully, faithfully reflecting the goodness of all that He is in a world gone mad. His love. His mercy. His compassion. His grace… to any and all who will simply look Up and believe that the beautiful moon in the sky is much more than just a faithful moon. To be still and know that…

“He is perfectly faithful, because God is never partly anything.”—A. W. Tozer

Hope In the Woods

Like Robert Frost’s on a snowy evening, my woods are “lovely dark and deep” Even on a gray early morning like this.

And no matter the season, they are a window with a non-stop, open invitation to stop and pause…

And slow down and breathe deeply…

And be still…

And in the stillness, be thrilled to hear this day off in the distance the familiar songs of early spring birds.

The same ones you hear on a warm summer night!

To take time to fill your heart and soul with simple gratitude…

It’s a new day, “let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

To let your mind wander a bit to the day ahead,

And even a bit randomly, but perhaps perfectly, to ballplayers gathering under warm sunshine for spring training—where everyone is hopeful, no one has lost a game, and no matter what happened last year, all begin with a clean slate ready to be filled with dreams and goals.

So good.

But even better to find your thoughts suddenly shift to this:

That no matter how many faults and blemishes you can see in yourself,

No matter how bad your morning breath may be,

The God who made you and formed you for an abundant life loves you incredibly anyway.

(And besides, it is His breath in your lungs, so how can it be bad?)

A time to focus on that sun trying ever-so-hard to break through the cloud cover and remembering some favorite words…

“Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You. Show me the way I should go, for to You I entrust my life.” (Psalm 143:8)

Amen. Sometimes, simple prayers are the very best.

These woods that are “lovely dark and deep” at 6 a.m., and have an aroma of earth

That’s almost as intoxicating as the smell of cookies in the oven

Will likely be, according to the forecast, like Robert Frost’s later this week.

Such is the tease of late February and March in New England.

But “to everything there is a season,” even this one.

Because through all of its up and downs, this early morning pause is a reminder that life is good.

Because God is still faithful.

He hasn’t left the building.

And though the morning clouds have now covered the sunrise glow in the east,

In the stillness, my woods that are “lovely dark and deep” are nevertheless shouting encouragement:

“May the God of hope fill you with joy and peace in your faith, that by the power of the Holy Spirit, your whole life and outlook may be radiant with hope.” (Romans 15:13)

Here we go!…

Sticking With It

An early morning February fog on Grove Street.

"Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You. Show me the way I should go, for to You I entrust my life."—Psalm 143:8, NIV

In a classic Monty Python sketch, actor John Cleese explains his uneven cadence upon entering the Ministry of Silly Walks: "Good morning. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, but I'm afraid my walk has become rather sillier recently, and so it takes me rather longer to get to work. Now then, what was it again?"

It's how a person can feel greeting God during those seasons of the Walk when even though a new sunny day dawns, it is often, like February in New Hampshire, obscured in clouds. Not horrible, but lacking that certain sweetness and clarity.  And like Cleese, not free-falling backwards but nevertheless sometimes feeling stuck in neutral, or for every two steps forward, one step back or even sideways. What's with that? It's called being human. It's called the Walk of faith. And the solution, it seems, can be found by taking what some might consider another kind of silly but beautiful walk: Very early in the morning on a Saturday in the late winter when most sane people are still cozied up in their beds. Walking and observing and remembering...

"Hey, what's that aroma?" It's not the usual wood smokiness accenting a frigid day. It's...it's the fragrance of the south wind! — the same one that hits you in the face during t-shirt and shorts weather. It's coming!

"Hey, what's that sound?" It's not the usual wintertime cackle of a blue jay. Nope, it's a robin! OK, so it's a Canadian Robin, eh? But it's still the same sound that sings in your ear when kayaking on a still lake on a warm evening. Kayak...open water...warmth. It's coming!

"Hey, wait, what's that thing growing in February?" It's not the usual wintertime shrub, like the one right next to it still covered with protective burlap, but a lilac bush with some very fat buds — the same bush that every balmy spring explodes in all-too-short-lived color and fragrance. It's really going to come!

Not just an early morning walk in late February. Instead, one where it was good to remember that whether feeling sunny or in a feels-like-I'm-stuck-in-neutral fog, God's faithfulness and promises for another Spring and for every season of life are unshakeable. And when you don't really know what's going on or feeling a bit "off," it's good to remember that the Walk of faith often means going into a land you do not know, and like millions of saints before you, God will be with you still. It's good to know, too, that occasional forgetfulness of God's faithfulness and goodness every step of your way is not a sin but a frequently off-course rudder that requires an occasional early morning walk of remembrance to get back on track.

And out of His great, unfailing love for us, and how that He knows so very well how we tick, God will use whatever means at His disposal — everyday things like aromas, sounds, and sights from a walk — to remind us that His faithfulness never changes and His promises have no "sell by" date. Most especially, God will often drive it all home with His Word, even one that hit home so hard many days ago that you wrote it down and tucked away for future reference because you knew you'd need re-reminding in the future. Like now...

 

"Barricade the road that goes nowhere

I choose the true road to Somewhere

I post Your road signs at every curve and corner

I grasp and cling to whatever You tell me

God, don’t let me down!

I’ll run the course You lay out for me

If you’ll just show me how.”

—Psalm 119:29-32, Message

"The strongest kind of faith is not mountaintop faith but one that says 'I won't quit.'"

— Steve Boyce

Backyard Wisdom

On a weekend like this, we could all use some wisdom from a warmer day…

…The red lantern was one of the few remaining things from my parents’ house that, for some reason, I held onto. I’m not a huge fan of red, and its fuel-burning capabilities had been dismantled. But I kept it because it was a fixture at their front door, hanging off to the side as a symbolic beacon of welcome to all who entered there. Several times, I’ve walked around my house looking for an appropriate place to put it, but it always looked out of place. Several times, I was ready to send it to the recycling center, until I walked out onto the porch one night this summer…

“This must be the place for it. Totally rustic like the rusty old lantern.” Except even here, there was no place to safely hang it, and having it sit on the floor or a table just looked…strange. So, I took that red lantern in hand, resigned once and for all to put it in the garage next to the other recycling center things awaiting the next trip. I decided to take the more pleasant short cut to get there—out the screen door to the backyard. And there it was—the perfect spot, even though it had been probably staring at me for months:

On the top step leading to the porch. A beacon of welcome to all who entered there, even if that “all” in the backyard would be me nine times out of ten. I don’t think that was coincidence. And I don’t think family nostalgia was the story ending that God had in mind. Because as I tucked the lantern into the corner away from the elements and door slams, while there was no thunderous voice from heaven, I sensed something quite loud and familiar from within…

“Your Word is a lamp for my steps; It lights the path before me.”—Psalm 119:105

And now at home on that top bakyard step leading to the porch, that old red lantern now has a small LED within it, helping to remind me that:

• God’s guidance, protection, wisdom, discernment and direction are gifts…but I also need to walk them out every time I step out the door.
• I have a purpose every single day…Every routine, every conversation is an opportunity to make a difference because I carry the Light within me wherever I go. To remember what Jesus said and still says: "You are like that illuminating light. Let the light shine everywhere you go, that you may illumine creation, so men and women everywhere may see your good actions, may see creation at its fullest, may see your devotion to Me, and [who knows?] may turn and praise your Father in heaven because of it.” (Matthew 5:16, Voice)
• I carry a weapon of hope and praise…because that Light can break through someone’s dark and heavy mood, and through all the negativities and unknowns of life.
• I have the world’s most reliable GPS…God’s words of life and His presence within me help me to see and trust for what is ahead, even on those days when I can’t see one step in front of me.

And unlike the LED inside it, that old red lantern on the backyard step nevertheless reminds me that though I grow weary at times, my Light never goes out, never needs batteries or solar power, and never loses power—the Light of the world is always true and right, sometimes piercing but always faithful, sometimes mysterious but never wavering, and always shining for my good so as not to hog it to myself but to lovingly reflect Him in some way to those along my path.

And so, to live in such a way as this:

“We can be the Light of the world without leaving our high beams on and annoying everybody.”—Bob Goff

What If I Just Yell?

Photo: StockSnap @pixabay.com 

“Lord, teach us to pray...”—Luke 11:1

What follows was originally written a couple of years ago, yet it could very well have been written a couple of days ago. The stuff near the end that happened back then is eerily similar to what happened this week when a country that may not have been sure about prayer stopped what they were doing anyway to lift Up a young football player fighting for his life. The organic power of it all, without formality or pretense, and the amazing encouragement to millions that has come from it, seem to be on repeat as if Heaven itself is waiting, longing for us to 'get it.' Selah...

Sometimes, like the persistent widow, prayer can be fervent and repetitive in seeking resolution to a really difficult situation. It can go on for days, weeks, and longer, and while there are often increasing glimmers of hope, it can also seem the answer is taking forever. And you know that you know that God is in it. These are the prayer situations when, as in my life, two wise and respected men of God (unbeknownst that the other had said the same thing) encouraged, “This story is not over!” Keep at it. God is listening, God is at work. Don’t quit.

This is how you pray.

But then, Jesus lays out the “how to” blueprint for His disciples: “Pray like this: ‘Our Father in heaven, Your name is holy. May Your holy nation come. What You want done, may it be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us the bread we need today. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. ‘Do not let us be tempted, but keep us from sin. Your nation is holy. You have power and shining-greatness forever. Let it be so.’" In other words, keep it simple, don’t make a show of it, and don’t just “say” the Lord’s Prayer either, but focus in on the multiple facets of who God is in your daily routine.

Ok, so that's how you pray.

But then, there's Anna the prophetess, the widow who spent day and night serving God by praying and fasting, the one who had been so in tune with the things of God that when she heard Simeon speak into the lives of Mary and Joseph about their newborn Son—“My eyes have seen the One Who will save men from the punishment of their sins.”—she knew it was true. And so she went and told everyone who was looking for some good news that Jesus was the One they had long been waiting for.

In other words, it’s good to dedicate your life to prayer so that you can get God’s heart on a matter, and know that you know that you know, so you can tell the world the Good News. Who wouldn't want that?

And so, if you’re really serious about prayer, that's how you do it.

Except, there was that time when a situation comes out of nowhere that punches you in the gut with its potential ramifications. Everything within you says, “This is not going to end well.” Words are few. Thoughts are incoherent and spinning. There is no persistent praying, model praying, or dedicated praying. Not even close. Only a gasp, a yell of "God, help, please!" and an inner resolve that "God’s got this"—but that’s about it.

And a couple of days later, again out of nowhere, a dramatic, table-turning answer that no scheme, great idea, or modern technology could ever pull off. The only explanation: God heard, and God answered....  

After all these years in the Walk, I have come to the conclusion that I don’t know how prayer works. Just that it does. Prayer has no neat and tidy confining boxes because God in His great goodness doesn't have any either. And maybe, in all kinds of prayer, all of Heaven keeps cheering us on to stop sweating the method and simply cultivate this for every situation, big or small, in our everyday life...

“Prayer is what happens when the soul cries out to its Maker, and no matter what the words, no matter what the feelings, no matter what the method, when it happens, it is prayer.”

—Steve Brown, “Approaching God”

Hope On the Horizon

A recent jaw-dropping Christmas evening in Northfield, NH.

My gift of thanks and appreciation to all of you who have been reading and a part of the conversation this year and the past eight: Words of hope and faithfulness from the past year 's Sunday Morning Vitamin (and some favorite photos) to carry into a new year and beyond. Because in this crazy world, we can't be reminded enough of God's goodness to us in every season, so that we can seek to live it out before those on our daily path. To remember to always keep looking Up...because Hope is on the horizon!

Remember this, O my soul: Whenever you clasp your hands in prayer, whenever you lift your hands in worship, whenever you write, whenever you grip the hand of another in fellowship, whenever you create anything with your hands, whenever you play a song or paint a landscape, whenever you applaud in encouragement, whenever you dirty your hands to grow a garden, whenever you offer a hand to someone in need—your hands are a weapon of worship created to bring glory to God… “Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love.”—HANDS OF GOD“

Ah, Lord God! It is You who have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for You.” (Jeremiah 32:17_…It’s good to be reminded that this Journey is not always as super-spiritual as we try to make it, but, rather, it is life to the full — just as He promised —in the midst of all of its circumstances, and through them. He is in it all. It just takes two words to get the right perspective back…“If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is 'thank you,' it will be enough.” (Meister Eckhart)—WHAT’S GOOD?

Often, after I grab my coffee first thing in the morning, I’ll just breathe in deeply and thank God that it’s His breath in my lungs to live another day for His glory. It's “seeing” and feeling the Words on a page come alive: “This God is the One who gives life, breath, and everything else to people. He does not need any help from them; He has everything he needs.” (Acts 17:25) For the start of any new day, breathing that in always puts a lot of things in their right perspective. When you “see “ God, you see really well. With so much heaviness and troubles in our world and in the news, we all need that recalibration to remember that we are never alone and that He is always “God with us” and not off preoccupied with someone or something else more important.—SEEING

You are not “the Big Guy.” You are not “the Man upstairs.” You are not just a “higher power.”You are not just a lord to be respected but Lord of Lords—You are the plural of ALL majesty! You alone are ALL power, ALL authority. You alone are ALL-sovereign. You alone are maker of ALL heaven and earth. You alone are master and ruler over ALL-everything. And You alone own everything—and because I believe in You, that means I belong to You, too. I can cast ALL my cares upon You—ALL of them. The whole world—my whole world—even today, is in Your hands. And You love ALL that is Yours (even me at my worst). And You care for ALL that is Yours. And You alone are my only ALL-in-ALL protector, and provider, and Savior, and oh so much more. You never change—from everlasting to everlasting, You are Adonai Lord of Lords—a plural of ALL majesty! You are…worthy of ALL my praise, ALL my worship, ALL my life, for ALL of my days.”—THE JOURNEY OF BELIEVING ALL

There are few things better than the feeling of “git ‘er done.” But there is also this: "It is impossible to do everything people want you to do. You have just enough time to do God’s will. If you can’t get it all done, it means you’re trying to do more than God intended you to do…” (Rick Warren). Stay in your lane… Four of the most challenging words ever preached. But the smartest Man who ever walked the planet knows best and says it’s still the right way to go: “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and then all these things will be given to you, too. So do not worry about tomorrow. Let tomorrow worry about itself. Living faithfully is a large enough task for today.” (Matthew 6:33-34)—FINDING OUR LANE

Just a bunch of cool-looking rocks holding up a corner of the old Granite Block building at the corner of Main and Grove in my hometown. Colorful, artsy foundation architecture for sure, but I remember when I took that photo a couple of years ago, it was intentional—to help practically illustrate a teaching on something mysterious that Jesus said about Himself many years ago: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the very stone—the cornerstone—that holds together the entire foundation.” (Luke 20:17). That's a great image to hold on to when you wake up every morning to a world gone mad, where all around seems shaken and unstable. The Lord who made heaven and earth and all that is in them is still the firm foundation of it all. —FOUNDATIONS

On this porch, to everything there is a season…A time to savor a warm breeze on a summer evening and time to feel the roar of a winter gale. A time to hear all of creation awakening the dawn and a time to to hear the deafening silence of a January night. A time to be grateful, and never a time to be ungrateful…“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!” He’s been faithful in all the rest, and He will be now.—THE PORCH AWAKENING

Before planning and scheming the day ahead, rejoice, even if just a little bit—which means don’t just feel gratitude, express it. Give Him praise from whom every single blessing flows! This day may seem full or it may seem like just another day, but don’t be fooled; Remember that every day is His day, and for His glory, and how I walk—even run—through it really matters. And even if (and when) I veer off course on this day’s journey, or my heart and flesh fail, remember to end the day as you’re doing now, even out of breath: Give Him praise from whom all blessings flow! This is living life in all its fullness.—FULLNESS AT TURN TWO

“One thing I have asked of the Lord, and that I will seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord—in His presence—all the days of my life, To gaze upon the beauty, the delightful loveliness and majestic grandeur, of the Lord…” (Psalm 27:4) That’s it! That’s the goal. In writing, in speaking or singing, and especially in photography, I knew that I knew that afternoon in the woods that the goal of my life was not retreat but advance—to gaze upon and then point to the beauty of the Lord that’s all around us “all the days of my life.” And then get out of the way. Yes, there is surely darkness and ugliness. The goal is not denial. But the goal is built on a promise that trumps all ugliness: “The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overpowered, defeated or understood it.” (John 1:5) Never has, never will.—THE GOAL

“The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty.” Still. He is not some quarterback in the stands watching the game unfold, wondering if the players will ever get it right as the game seems to get out of control. From the rising of the sun to its setting. Our Captain of our Salvation is unfazed by wind and cold and storm...and headlines. His decisions are always perfect and unwavering. And He often calls amazing audibles, and plays that are not in our playbook and that don’t make sense Until at just the right time, they do. Even if we don't realize it until we look back later.—THE CAPTAIN IN THE FIELD

Stop striving. Stop trying to win this battle on your own. Stop running away and run perseveringly to green pastures instead. Stop trying to live by performance and approval and instead find God’s grace and mercy in time of every need. Be still and remember that you have a Savior who is forever your advocate, no matter what. He was, He is, and He always will be your defender: “The Lord will fight for you. All you have to do is keep still.” (Exodus 14:14)—FIELD OF DREAMS

“A very present help in times of trouble.” Whether it's times of sadness, weariness, stress, uncertainty or confusion, I needed to hear for the gazillionth time that God is not only my greatest-ever defense and offense, He is always “very present.” Things you know but things you forget in the heat of the moment. But very? How can anything be more present than present? Perhaps it was the psalmist’s “I don’t have the words for this” way of saying, of encouraging us all, that no matter what the season and unlike any other friend on earth, God is: Always ready. Always listening. Always near. Proven. Trustworthy...Undefeated! That wherever we go, there He is. That whether we are stuck inside during a snowstorm, or halfway around the world, or “If I ride the morning winds to the farthest oceans, even there Your hand will guide me, Your strength will support me.” (Psalm 139:9-10)—VERY PRESENT

"Jesus stands at the door and knocks, in complete reality. He confronts you in every person that you meet. Christ walks on the earth as your neighbor as long as there are people. He walks on the earth as the One through whom God calls you, speaks to you, and makes His demands. That is the greatest seriousness, and the greatest blessing, of the Advent message.”—Dietrich Boenhoffer

Field of Dreams

A summer evening visit to an old friend: the Cheney Avenue field.

Whenever I drive by it, I can’t help but take my eyes off the road for a second or two. Whenever I walk or run by it—and that is often— can’t help but gaze at its rolling knolls and tall grasses and wildflowers. And whenever I walk through it, I can’t help but stand in the middle of it all and just stand, and be in awe, and rest, and breathe deeply, and find invigoration for the journey.

Especially if you’re from around here, in a land filled with woods and mountains, there is something about a wide open field that is magnetic—something that makes you want to pause from the chaos, busyness and to-dos and pull off the road for a second and just take it all in. What’s with that? Perhaps it is as simple as God’s DNA in all that He has made—fields, creation, and we creatures that He loves—that is bubbling to the surface, and we don’t even realize it. Bubbling up and begging for attention amidst all the 24/7 noise. Not unlike what the psalmist famously discovered many years ago:

“The Eternal God is my shepherd, He cares for me always.

He provides me rest in rich, green fields beside streams of refreshing water.

He soothes my fears;

He makes me whole again,

Steering me off worn, hard paths to roads where truth and righteousness echo His name…” (from Psalm 23, The Voice)

And sometimes, those “rich, green fields” can even show up as a field of dreams…

One morning not long ago, I awoke to words from a song I had not heard in awhile:

“And all I did was pray

And all I did was worship

And all I I did was bow down

And all I did was stay still…”

Strange. I wasn’t sure where that came from or what I had been dreaming about, but I did know I had a lot on my mind and lots of loose threads to corral. And I had to wonder that if instead of mere coincidence, God, who neither slumbers or sleeps, saw that as well. Perhaps those random lyrics weren’t random after all and were simply a loving reminder that I needed to hear to start the day:

“I AM still here.”

And as I peered into them, I realized that those lyrics in the night weren’t strange at all but were the formula for getting through just about anything in life, including all those loose ends that need corralling:

Stop striving.

Stop trying to win this battle on your own.

Stop running away and run perseveringly to green pastures instead.

Stop trying to live by performance and approval and instead find God’s grace and mercy in time of every need.

Be still and remember that you have a Savior who is forever your advocate, no matter what.

He was, He is, and He always will be your defender:

“The Lord will fight for you. All you have to do is keep still.” (Exodus 14:14)

And whenever you need a reminder, go take a walk, or go for a run…

To that familiar place nearby where you can’t help but gaze at its rolling knolls and tall grasses and wildflowers. 

To go stand in the middle of it all and just stand, and be in awe, and rest, and breathe deeply, and find invigoration for the journey.

And remember once more, for the thousandth time:

“Let be, and be still, and know, recognize and understand,

that I am God.” 

(Psalm 46:10 Amplified Classic)

The Captain In Our Field

Autumn in the field, Elmwood Road, Hancock.

 “In every situation, no matter what the circumstances, be thankful and continually give thanks to God; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.”—1 Thessalonians 5:18, Amplified

In times like these, it is good to remember that scripture doesn’t say to be thankful “for” all things but “in” them.

Because while many things in our world are upside down and chaotic...

“The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty.”

Still.

He is not some quarterback in the stands watching the game unfold,

Wondering if the players will ever get it right as the game seems to get out of control.

In a type-and-shadow sort of way, He is like, well, the way running back Damien Harris describes Patriots quarterback and captain Mac Jones:

"He's a great leader, he's a great player, he's an incredibly hard worker and he's an even better friend. So, whenever you take all of those attributes and you put them into one person, it's easy to see why so many people gravitate towards him, and why so many people want to be around him and want to follow him.”

And better than that, even (of course!) because our God is the faithful, 24/7 unseen Captain on our daily field in this crazy world,

From the rising of the sun to its setting.
Our Captain of our Salvation is unfazed by wind and cold and storm...and headlines.

His decisions are always perfect and unwavering.
And He often calls amazing audibles, and plays that are not in our playbook and that don’t make sense
Until at just the right time, they do.

Even if we don't realize it until we look back later.

And they always will...

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28)

Even in the midst of things, we can be thankful for our Captain in our field because of these promises and so many more:

“You shall call His name Emmanuel, which means God with us.”

“I will never leave you or forsake you.”

“Lo, I AM with you always…

“Jesus...the same yesterday today and forever.”

“God, God, a God of mercy and grace, endlessly patient—so much love, so deeply true—loyal in love for a thousand generations, forgiving iniquity, rebellion, and sin.”

“Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.”

“Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary.”

Mac Jones is terrific (and so is Bailey Zappe)

But there is no Captain like our Captain

Which means no matter how nuts this life or this world gets, we can always grab ahold of the Hope that is never wishful thinking

And follow His lead 

And give thanks that He is never watching from the stands.