"I Don't Mind Not Having The Money"

Danny sits on the sunny side most noon hours. I see him at the adult day care building when I walk to a local deli, and I wave to him. Lately I started calling out, “Hey Danny!” And Danny would smile his big smile and wave back with his one arm that moves.

About forty years about Danny was walking home from work along a highway when a car struck him.  He was rendered a quadriplegic, with some brain damage. Danny was my first personal injury client.  I put my heart and soul into his case but I was 25 and made some rookie mistakes.  The jury said Danny was entitled to a million dollars.  But, the jury also said Danny was mostly at fault and in Wisconsin that means you get zero dollars from the verdict. We didn’t talk again until Friday.

I was preparing a sermon about how when we welcome the ‘least of these’ we are welcoming Jesus.  I had avoided telling Danny who I was in his life, because, frankly, for forty years I have felt guilty about not figuring out a way to help him. What would be the point of reminding him of the trial?  He probably doesn’t remember. He looks happy. So I just walked by, waving.  Now, there was Danny in his wheelchair, one of society’s ‘least of these.’  I decided to walk up to him and confess my guilt.  I told him my name. He said, “Yeah, Te Winkle handled my case.”  I told him how sorry I was that I lost his case. He asked how much money he would have received. I told him it was a million dollars.

He looked up at me and said, “I don’t mind not having the money. God doesn’t want us to have so much money.  He wants us to love people, to love everyone.  I believe in Jesus. He is coming again, in the sky, way up there,” he said pointing to sun. “And we all get to go meet him, in the clouds. I can’t wait.” (Pause, reflecting) “It’s going to be so cool.”

“And then,” he continued, “we go to heaven, to be with Jesus, way up there, farther than the sun.” Boy, did he smile.

I could feel the warmth.

My Father's Name is Abraham

I am Ashkenazi Jewish. It is in my DNA. Literally speaking, I am 1.7% Ashkenazi Jewish, according the lab results which studied my saliva. Now, this is good news!

All my life I told people I was ‘100% Dutch’.  I am happy to report that this is not close to the truth.  Somewhere in the not so distant past, between 1710 and 1800, I most likely had a grandparent who was 100% Ashkenazi Jewish.  My other past generations of grandparents were Scandinavian, French & German, British & Irish.  I have so many new holidays to celebrate and cultural traditions to learn!

Being Ashkenazi Jewish allows me to claim a heritage with Abraham. Yes, that Abraham, in Genesis.  You remember the scene: it was a dark, clear night. Abram stands outside his tent and God promises him that not only will he have a son born to his wife, but he will have more offspring than the stars in the night sky.  And here I am to prove it.

Sharing the DNA of the Jewish people does not make me a member of the Jewish faith, however.  For that, my mother would need to have been 100% Jewish, and I am not going to ask her to take a DNA test at age 88 (though it is tempting).  I am and will remain a Christian, thankful for that call on my life.  But I am equally thankful for the promise of Scripture that the Jew and the Gentile (everyone not Jewish) will dwell together with God. (Read Ephesians, among other sources).

It took a Greek-speaking Lebanese woman to show the Jewish Jesus how wide was the wide expanse of God’s love for all of humanity. (Mark 7:24-30)  So, for those Jewish by faith, those who are Ashkenazi Jewish by blood, and for those who share no Jewish DNA, God’s love is the same. 

And your father’s name is Abraham too.  Let’s have a family reunion! 

"I Weigh More Than the Orangutan"

We were watching Tommy sit in the corner of his home, getting groomed by his friend, picking away at the bugs hidden in the heavy fur coat.  We read the information sign which informed us that Tommy likes yogurt, nuts and popcorn. I talked about how I could live with Tommy and be quite happy. I love yogurt and nuts, and especially popcorn.  There’s a nice hammock to sleep in, and you get lots of visitors. What a life I could have with my buddy, Tommy.  We laughed about scenarios of me living with Tommy at the zoo.

And then my twelve-year old grandson read out loud how much Tommy weighs and, without missing a beat he asked me, “how much do you weigh?” (Slight pause, as a wave a realization comes over me) “Well Wil, I weigh more than the orangutan.”  He looked up at me with a face that said something between ‘wow’ and ‘you’re kidding, right?’

Moving on toward the dinosaur exhibit we came across a popcorn stand.  You cannot walk past a popcorn stand in the middle of an hours long excursion through the animal kingdom.  I shared my popcorn with Wil, and after we got through about half of the bag he commented, “You should go back and give the rest to Tommy.”  I don’t know if his concern was more for Tommy or for me.

The Milwaukee Zoo is home to over 1800 species of animals and fish. According to one source, scientists have recorded 20,000 species of fish, 6,000 species of reptiles, 9,000 birds, 1,000 amphibians, and 15,000 species of mammals. According to another scientific estimate there are about 8.7 million species of life on the earth.  The numbers are overwhelming.

I find it easier to just think of the fact that God made Tommy, and me, and we both like yogurt, nuts and popcorn.  And that on the New Earth, I will be able to share my popcorn with an orangutan. And there will be no scales.

“God made the wild animals according to their kind…” Genesis 1:25a

"I Want To Be A Fireman!"

One of our grandsons was among the millions of little boys who was fascinated by firetrucks.  I recall clearly the private tour our firefighter friend set up for us so that Wil could sit try sit behind the wheel of the big red truck of his dreams.  Trying on the firefighter’s hat, he had this almost dazed look on his face, as if it was more than he could fully comprehend. If asked what he wanted to be when he grew up he would join the chorus of children declaring, “I want to be a fireman!” 

The early life fascination with the ‘uniformed’ professions, especially those who get to drive big, shiny vehicles, passes away in time as the same boys and girls instead dream of becoming famous athletes who get their pictures on the cover of video games. Yet some of the little boys and little girls do become ‘protectives’ as adults.  They do this, not because they get to wear cool hats and ride in shiny trucks, but because they care about saving people from danger.  Firefighters, police officers, first responders, they and so many more accept danger every day because they can make society a safer place, literally saving people from burning buildings.

People devote their careers to protecting others not for fame or fortune but because they love humanity.  As we are so tragically reminded every week, firefighters die fighting fires, police officers die taking the bullet which otherwise would kill someone else.  They accept the fact that in an effort to save others they expose themselves to giving up their own lives.

Why? The love of God spills out of the hearts of people called to protect society.  Thank God today for the little boys and little girls who grow up to become, to borrow Henri Nouwen’s phrase, ‘wounded healers’ for God’s children.

“Who can save a child from a burning house without taking the risk of being hurt by the flames? Who can listen to a story of loneliness and despair without taking the risk of experiencing similar pains in his own heart and even losing his precious peace of mind? In short: Who can take away suffering without entering it?” -Henri J.M. Nouwen, The Wounded Healer: Ministry in Contemporary Society (Source: InwardOutward.org)

The Exodus of the Wild Boars, Part 2

The rescue of the Wild Boars was not without tragedy. But it is in this tragedy that we find the definition of ‘courage’ and the meaning of ‘hero.’

Saman Kunan was a former SEAL who volunteered to return to duty in the rescue mission. In what turned out to be a prophetic moment, as he waited to board the airplane which would take him to the cave, he promised, “We will bring the kids home.”

The world was saddened to learn that he died after he was returning from placing air tanks along the roughly 3.2km route to the boys, the method for replenishing the air supply in the cave.  He died from a lack of oxygen, showing the necessity of his mission and the danger that lurked in the cave for the team and the rescuers.  He death could have served to frighten or discourage the rest of the rescue team.

Instead, as news of his death became public,  Arpakorn Yookongkaew, Commander of the Navy SEAL Unit was seen declaring, “I can guarantee that we will not panic, we will not stop our mission, we will not let his life be in vain”, as he sharply raises his right hand, piercing the air thickened with grief, an emphatic exclamation point on his resolve to bring the kids home. Still more prophetic words.

To Saman Kunan’s family, of course, he is still lost too young.  But, as with all those who carry in their being the courage to go where others would not go, to truly risk life for the sake of others, we pray that his family will see that, indeed, his life was not in vain. His life will live on forever in the memory of a world which witnessed prophecy become reality.

For reasons we cannot understand, sometimes sacrifice is the necessary factor to the success of a life-giving mission. Miracles often come at a great cost to one for the sake of the many.  While we cannot explain the ‘why’, we can continue to honor those who have the courage to ‘bring the kids home’, by remembering their sacrifice. These heroes model life’s perfect example. Romans 5:6-8.

"The Exodus of the Wild Boars", Part 1

“We are not sure if this is a miracle, a science, or what. All the thirteen Wild Boars are now out of the cave.” Thai NavySEAL Facebook post (July 10, 2018, 7:11 a.m.)

I clicked the ‘heart’ symbol, along with 343 thousand others from around the world.  This was an event which captured the minds and hearts of people, truly, ‘from every tribe, tongue and nation.’  The act of saving a team of boys and their soccer team coach from a cave literally took the cooperation of humankind in a way which is rarely seen. What was not to love about this story of human beings acting to save other human beings just because they are members of the human race. If we could capture the spirit which led to this act of international cooperation and sprinkle it like dust over the leaders of the nations perhaps peace would prevail perpetually.

The picture of the helpless boys floating through the cave toward the light at the end of their journey, with one diver before them and one behind them, is a modern-day reminder of the moment when God’s people, the Israelites, are passing through the waters with the ‘pillar of cloud’ moving in front and behind them. The LORD, Yahweh, was in the pillar of cloud and fire which protected the people day and night. The lesson of the Exodus was and is, “The LORD will fight for you; you need only be still.” (Exodus 14:14, NIV)

To people who can see with the eyes of faith there is no question. Our God, the God of the people of Thailand and the world, still carries people through the waters.

What remains for the people of God to do?

“They will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn: He has done it!” (Ps. 22:31)

Again.

The 'Wall' Still Stands

Paul was afraid to speak.  The religious folks wanted him beat and imprisoned, if not killed. The local courts heard the case against Paul, but they dismissed the case because the complaints were about religious laws, not civil laws.  As far as the government was concerned, if Paul wanted to say that Jesus was God, well, that was of no concern to the city of Corinth.  And so the gospel spread. The freedom to speak religious ideas without government interference helped Christianity spread from cult status across borders and oceans.

Not to be missed was that though Paul was afraid to speak, he overcame his fear because the Lord told Paul, “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” (Acts 18:9-10)

What should the church celebrate at the birthday of the United States? That the famous ‘wall of separation’ still protects the ‘church’ from the ‘state’.  The President cannot make a rule telling me, as a Minister of God, what I may or may not preach. The Congress may not pass a law restricting the manner in which any religion practices its faith.

The phrase originates with Thomas Jefferson’s writing,  “Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between Church and State.” (Source: Wikipedia, quoting Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptists, 1802)

                                                               

Do not be afraid to speak, friends. Love God. Love your Neighbor. Praise the Lord! No one can stop you from speaking the Truth.

The Wall is still standing. Now, that is something worthy of fireworks.