Heavenward

Road Trip

2010-07-11T21:57:00.000-07:00

So I knew we were off to a good start to our road trip when we stopped at Houston (BC) at a huge fundraising flea market. I think it is at this point that I will freely admit to something that my wife has known all along. I like to collect books… I may even read them eventually. Combine the finding of a good used book with a ridiculously low price and I am happy. So I found 3 books: “Boundaries”, “Vine’s Expository Dictionary – OT & NT Words” and “Unger’s Bible Handbook”; the price….25 cents each!

The rest of the books were purchased at a couple of other spots along the way. While we were in Rosthern, Sask. We went into a second-hand store called “The Clothes Basket” where I bought 3 more: “The Dead Sea Scrolls” - $5.00, “The Great Evangelical Disaster” by Francis Schaeffer – 50 cents and “The Mennonite Hymnary” – 25 cents. The final book I bought was at the PG Value Village: “This Momentary Marriage” by John Piper (2009) for $4.00. To me, this is akin to my friend Adam B. posting his latest catch on the banks of the Skeena. Insert euphoric adjectives here.
Returning to the road trip part of this post, I want to mention 2 big parts of the trip, first the family reunion for Joleen’s family was held near a small town in Saskatchewan called Landis at the sight of a 1-room school house.

The school was named after the family and was located 1 mile from the 100-year old family farm. Having 12 kids born to the family gave the school a good source of students and made for a large family reunion, 44 years after the youngest Porter was born (Joleen’s aunt). The highlight for me was finding the connection to Christ.

The school had also been used as a church so a request had been given for me to lead in some singing while another member connected to the family preached. This was, to say the least, an unusual event. We were warmly received and prayed much that the word and the songs would be used in some way to reach those who were new to the gospel.

The trip to my parent’s farm is always one of wonderful nostalgia yet in some ways, holds with it, a touch of sadness. Time keeps turning the pages and we are along for the ride. The great comfort for me is that eternity beckons with incredible hope and wonder. My parents and siblings know this same hope. Yet, making the trip to the farm is like being partially suspended in time, a time of innocence that can only be grasped in memories triggered by familiar sights, smells and sounds.
One day we pulled up to the Duck Lake town hall while Mom went in to talk to someone. Meanwhile, I’m noticing someone about my age cutting the grass in front of us with a large ride-on lawnmower and wearing a huge smile. Mom told me it was C., someone I had known in grade 1. My vivid memory of him was the very first day of school and him crying and crying because he did not want to be there. That was almost 42 years ago. Another sight we saw while in Duck Lake was our high school.

That day they were in the process of demolishing the main wing that housed the classrooms for my grades from 7-12. Ouch that hurt. I know that I would have been thrilled back then to see it go but it was kind of hard to see it happen now. Later, Joleen and I drove around the farming area with my Dad. We drove a circuit that went about 8 miles away from the farm and then looped back. Dad was bringing me up to speed on all the people living in the area, many old, but some, new. There never seems to be any shortage of wildlife in the area either. As we were driving we saw a black bear in one hay field, then as if prompted by the director the “The Truman Show”, 2 white tail dear popped their heads up in the next field and bounded behind a poplar bluff in perfect unison. As we drew closer to home, a partridge stared us down and then bobbed and weaved in front of us before finally hopping of the side of the road.

The one frustration I had was that while we were in Saskatchewan, it rained almost every day which prevented us from making any hay. The storm in the picture happened to dump 1.1 inches of rain in a span of approx. 25 minutes (we had a rain gauge and a watch).

The final shot I want to leave you with is one that Joleen shot - a drive-by shooting actually. I loved the composition of this shot, the sunshine, the velvet on the antlers of the elk and of course, the picture takers who have carefully placed their child within 5 feet of him.

Christmas Eve in Saskatchewan

2009-12-21T21:35:00.000-08:00

So its Christmas eve in Horse Lake, Saskatchewan; a small farming community with an outdoor skating rink on one farm and a small church with wooden pews several miles further on a gravel road. The time is somewhere in the early 1970’s. The church is all lit up. The furnace has been on for several hours and a warmth is filling the tiny sanctuary. An odd shaped spruce tree is perched off to the side of the stage area with the now familiar ornaments, garland and tinsel. Behind the tree sits a couple of cardboard boxes filled with brown paper bags. Each bag has 1 mandarin orange in it, peanuts (still in their shells) and an assortment of hard candy.

The children have slide into the first few rows in nervous anticipation of the program to come. The church fills. Even the balcony is full… standing room only on this night. There are people here that have not set foot in church all year and are slightly out of sorts by their surroundings.

Soon the program begins. Poems are recited with the gentle prompting from the Sunday school teacher, songs are sung, some solos, some duets or trios. Occasionally the congregation is invited to join in for a Christmas carol or two. The evening is highlighted by a play performed by the senior Sunday school class. It was always amazing to see all those lines performed from memory. At the end of the play, the Pastor, my uncle, goes to the front with his Bible tucked under one arm and a satisfied smile on his face. He closes with several poignant thoughts and closes with one more song and a prayer. He then invites several men to come to the front and help assist in the distributing of the goodie bags. This, was the highlight of the evening. We quickly scatter with our booty.

As the evening draws to a close, the crowd slowly disperses and everyone begins to drive off of the chilly church yard. We head for home 4 miles away, still buzzing from the evening’s events. As we lay in bed, we could hear Mom and Dad in the kitchen wrapping up gifts and placing them under the tree for the following morning, our imaginations running wild with every sound of folding wrapping paper and the muffled sound of Mom and Dad talking.

There was something about experiencing that as a child that amplified every joyful nuance. What fun it was!

The U2 Gospel

2009-10-31T22:19:00.001-07:00

Fresh from the concert I feel to give you some impressions that are sticking with me. I noticed in this morning’s papers that the critics had already put in their two cents worth, most of it positive. One went as far as to say that they surpassed the Rolling Stones in their Vancouver performance.

First of all I really enjoyed the concert. I’ll agree with some of the other critics that the sound in BC Place is far from perfect. But it was an experience charged with human emotion and sound. Having experienced an event in the old Kingdome in Seattle, I knew that the shared “crowd” effect was something to behold and be a part of.

Knowing most of the songs made it that much more enjoyable. I enjoy the role of critic (not a good thing when trying to sit down and watch a movie together with your wife). I would listen for variations between their performance and their albums. Some changes were good, some, just different. I noticed “lepers in your head” became “lepers in your bed”. I noted the songs where Bono had to carefully navigate the high notes instead of sounding flat or worse.

What I really wanted to see first hand though, was what they believed and how they conveyed it. The risk involved is that a person may read more into it than is actually intended. I’ve been amazed by the lyrics of a number of the songs which seemingly having several meanings and speculating which one they really want to convey. Some seem more obvious – case-in-point…”I was born to sing for you, I didn’t have a choice but to lift you up and sing whatever song you wanted me to. I give you back my voice, from the womb, my first cry, it was a joyful noise…. Only love, only love can leave such a mark…can heal such a scar. Justified till we die, you and I will magnify…The Magnificent”. The other thought I have are those around me who are belting out the lyrics and wondering what thoughts might be occurring as they are sung. Near the end of the concert, Bono belts out the first verse of Amazing Grace with minimal accompaniment and as he clearly sings “I was blind, but now I see…”, the Edge begins the now legendary guitar intro to “Where the Streets have no Name” and so it goes. The crowd joins in on every word, some oblivious to the place that has streets without any names, Christians who knowingly join in, knowing of the place while others who know that he is singing about heaven but don’t really care because it just sounds so good.

I know that Bono has several worthwhile causes which he clearly is not afraid to declare. I’m sure he will always have his share of critics especially from the evangelical Christian perspective. It seems to me that he is willing to do more than just be a commercial success. I’m sure he has made many mistakes along the way. But there is something about what he is doing, what he is saying and who he is saying it to that may just have some traction in the kingdom of God.

Quite a Summer...

2009-08-25T21:52:00.000-07:00

Well, with a few small exceptions, the past couple of months have been filled with some pretty good stuff. It was good to have Steph back for a visit with Josh. Several weeks of unusually hot weather will make the damp winter a bit easier to bare. We finally have a tent trailer (approx. 15 years later than our children would have liked - sorry about that) to do some camping in. The summer got off to a great start with the church camp-out. I have to say that I had more fun then I expected. It seems I never am disappointed when I get to spend more recreational time with those in the body of Christ - you guys rock (pun intended).
God seemed to set a good tone for me beginning in June when we joined with City Church in Prince George for their training time with Rigby Wallace. I continue to pour over the notes, recalling some of the things that God impressed on me then. As so often happens for me at venues like this, I will receive a teaching while learning a new song. The song in this case was "God of this City" and the impressions that stuck - becoming the city of God within the city of Terrace. So now, when I consider this challenge, I hear the song playing in my head. Here is a quote that resonates with me for obvious reasons: "The people of God will have more when the elders write a line in their diary that says 'we're going for more!'"
It seems that God is talking to the church, certainly to my own heart, about what the gospel is and how it did not loose its daily relevance even though I've embraced Christ as my Lord. How much more desperate am I now to be governed by it and changed by it. My decision to follow Christ and the eternal reward are, in a sense, book ends (not to minimize eternity) to the life I now live; salvation that God asks me to walk out with fear and trembling. What are we going to do with our lives now? Will we allow God to make them count??
It has been good to have a bit of a rest and some physical renewal this summer but the thing I like about this time of year is that we come together often with a renewed sense of purpose and hopefully, rested bodies. We look forward to getting back to some things that, perhaps are familiar, but also the new things that are coming up over the horizon that God has planned for us. I can't wait...

Thine is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory

2009-06-15T21:49:00.000-07:00

A fitting end to the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6 is much like its beginning. As we began in prayer honouring the Name that is above all names, so we end in awe of His majesty, realizing that the Kingdom, the power and the glory are all His. We don't determine it, He does.
Yet we pray. Even as Christ encourages, we pray. In Revelation 5:8, we get a glimpse of the heart of God concerning the prayers of the saints, "...the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints."
Integral, absolutely essential, to the prayer life of a believer is learning to be released in praise and worship to our King. David demonstrated a freedom to worship within the context of a prophetic promise glimmering over the horizon, how much more we, who have received the promise of the new covenant, have every reason to dance before our King.

Happy 25th!

2009-05-19T01:16:00.001-07:00

Odd thing, silver wedding anniversaries. They usually happen to older people, not young couples like us. Well with that said, I thought I'd throw my own "list" together. They seem to be all the rage on blogs, facebook and the like. So, looking back over the last 25 years, here are some highlights....
Biggest Surprise: Our move to Terrace
Greatest relief for Joleen: God didn't ask us to take over the farm.
Hardest Moment to explain: I had taken a puck in the eye (shiner), Joleen had taken a falling casserole dish to the nose (more shiners) and we happened to be taking Kevin in to the doctor for (yah, you guessed it). They let us go without incident. Our reputation had preceded us.
Funnest family time: trip to Disneyland (I think I would have agreement from the rest of the family on that one.)
Average baby birth weight: 10 lbs
Didn't see that coming....
Steph: The girl that always said she would like to live up in the mountains with her dogs - now living in Canada's largest city with 5.5 million of her closest friends.
Ryan: He has turned into a fine carpenter at a young age and I'm still try to master a hammer.
Kevin: He convinced us to buy him a drum set (like we thought almost every teenage boy does) and he's never looked back since. Me? I'm still trying not to clap on the off beat.
Our God has blessed us richly over the years and has now added Leah to our clan. We have much to be thankful for!

Lead us Not into Temptation

2009-05-17T18:40:00.000-07:00

First of all, let's get one thing straight; "God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone..." So, according to this truth expressed clearly in the book of James, when we pray that we would not be led into temptation, there isn't an inherent risk that God might tempt us. There is plenty of scriptural evidence though, that He is able to deliver us from temptation. Ps. 119: 35 says, " Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight. " Direction, preservation and even our own desire to follow His commands all fall within the scope of things we can ask God for. We may think that that is not a prayer that God will answer but several places in Ps. 119 and elsewhere give us several precedents to express this prayerfully to God.
It seems obvious that the best way to be delivered from evil is not to spend any time on the road to temptation.
Another implication we can take from the fact that this specific prayer exists is that we are not to trust our own ability to fend off sin and the tempter. This is something we must go to God for; no if's, ands or buts. If we try to fend of temptations to our flesh, in the flesh, it will not work.
Neil T. Anderson said, "The essence of temptation is the invitation to live independently of God. " If ever there was an indictment against our flesh, there it is.

Forgive us Our Debts

2009-03-18T20:22:00.000-07:00

A number of years ago when one of my children was battling through a tough stint in school, I was at a loss as to how I could affect their marks in a certain subject. I thought that perhaps it was just a bit of laziness. Knowing that I would be within earshot, I spoke a few harsh conclusions to Joleen about what I thought might be the problem. I realized almost immediately after I said them that they were potentially very hurtful words but I could not retrieve them. The damage was done. This became more apparent as time went on. Even though I asked forgiveness for the things I said (several years.. yes years later), I often ponder with regret those brief moments when I could have chosen my words more carefully.
Praise God for His daily invitation for forgiveness. He does not harbour judgment against us. He is always willing to extend forgiveness to us. We must ask, though. This can be humbling, but necessary because it can be pride that prevents us from asking and receiving forgiveness. Pride can convince us of our own righteousness... That's not something that I want to be convinced of.
The final detail to this transaction between repentance and forgiveness is our own culture of forgiveness towards others. Our inspiration is clearly stated in the verses following the Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6: 14-15). If we forgive others, then our Heavenly Father will forgive us. And because I know the extent of what I need forgiveness for, that should be a no-brainer!

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-14T15:48:00.000-08:00

It has been so very, very good! "The man who finds a wife finds a treasure, and he receives favor from the Lord." Prov. 18:22

Give us, this day, our daily bread...

2009-01-24T17:46:00.000-08:00

I like food. I think I'm in good company when I say this. As I grew up out of my childhood I figured the Lord's Prayer was God's prompting to acknowledge Him in my daily needs. I still believe that. Except for famine, illness or fasting, we have been created with this daily need that does not often go interrupted for too long. It's a cycle that includes hunger (hopefully), followed by the satisfying feeling of food. So we try not to take our daily bread for granted. We ask Him for it, then we thank Him for it and bless it.
Now, for another important truth that is perhaps best described by King David in Ps. 63: 1-5. He begins by describing his need for God like a hungry teenager raiding the fridge... "my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water." He finishes by describing how he is satisfied by God, "my soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods."
Only God can satisfy. Only He can fill the emptiness. There is no other; even as the world offers all its substitutes. Nothing will ever compare!

Happy Birthday Steph!

2009-01-19T06:30:00.000-08:00

I simply want to wish my daughter a very happy birthday. Did we bribe you to take this picture?

Your Kingdom Come

2008-12-07T17:24:00.000-08:00

Last week my brother and I made a quick trip to Saskatchewan by car. Somewhere between Hafford and Krydor at about 12:30 A.M. I leaned back in the passenger seat and gazed out my window and up into the prairie sky. The expanse was peppered with stars. The song playing on the stereo was U2's "Where the Streets Have No Name". It seemed fitting; echoes of that eternal city as I stared off into the face of infinity.

So this, the second post devoted to the Lord's Prayer is an interesting one. How many have uttered "thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven" and didn't consider their request literally? It does have a nice ring to it but what are its implications?

I've always been amazed that despite God's sovereignty, His predestining of people and His ability to design and bring intricate plans to pass, that He would instruct people to pray in this way. Its almost as if we need "us" to pray more than He needs "us" to pray. Nevertheless, the prayer itself finds us gazing from our mortal foothold off towards eternity and inviting all that God "is" there, to be here in this "not so spiritual" place called earth. This is a bold prayer. It is a "buying in" to God's plan of redemption. This is a prayer one would offer after venturing through the door of salvation. Faith has been exercised in receiving His gift. The first marvelous taste has been received. If this is you Lord, I want what You have, not the meager counterfeit that the world has to offer.

When we ask that God's Kingdom come, we invite all that is His to invade every part of us. We aren't asking Him to go to a third party location where we admire His government from afar. This is a request that goes straight to the heart. We ultimately are asking for more than we bargained for.

Our Father...

2008-11-14T21:08:00.001-08:00

As some of you may recall, the Lord's prayer found in Matthew 6 has played an important role in my time with Him. Each segment of the prayer is intentional and purposeful for the Christian. This isn't just a Catholic tradition. When Jesus responded to the disciples' request "teach us to pray", He laid out a pattern that is as relevant today as it was 2000 years ago on a dusty mountain on the outskirts of Jerusalem. I hope to spend the next few posts looking at the prayer and how it provides us with a simple outline of how we should approach God, and what really matters in all things eternal.

Today, we begin with the first two lines, mentioned first for a reason. When we come to God, whether it be in daily prayer or whether it is our first time whispering His Name, this portion indicates a "posture" or "attitude" that is important to understand. We want to acknowledge that He is Lord. He has a place of preeminance, and we willingly, humbly bow before One seated on His throne. Now this may be a precarious posture to take if we knew Him as "Dictator" or "Tyrant" but that is not who He is. We call Him Father! The very first think Jesus tells us to do, is call this incredible God, Father. What an invitation! What a priviledge! We know that typically, a father knows how to give good gifts to his children. Well, so does our heavenly Father. Sadly, many today do not (cannot) bring themselves to call Him "Father". Pride may keep them from bowing before Him. They may be convinced that they are quite capable of doing it themselves, thank-you very much. They may have a twisted idea of what a father is and does and want no part in Him. Should they leave this life not knowing, never bowing, we know that that acknowledgement will be made. "Every knee will bow, every tonque will confess".

And, in case we didn't quite "get it", He describes the name as "hallowed" or "holy". We see in numerous other scriptures, the importance of a name. It not only has meaning but can carry with it, authority. We know that "holiness" is "without sin", a love that is pure and uncorrupt, never changing, always true and constant.

So we see that we are able to come without pretense. Yes He is King, but invites us to come as a son or daughter would. What an invitation! So simple, so profound!

A City on a Hill

2008-10-22T06:45:00.000-07:00

Our farm in Saskatchewan was (still is) located approximately 60 miles north of Saskatoon. On a clear night (most nights), you could look south and see that familiar glow rising up from the horizon representing a city of 175,000 people.
I've always like the metaphor mentioned in Matthew 5:14. Clearly, the city that Jesus is speaking of is worth seeing; it's light not limited to one direction but set up on a hill for those around it to see. If you live in this metaphorical city, perhaps you've wondered about the kind of light that is being seen by others.
In our small group discussion last night, we considered the "love-one-another" command that Jesus gave. How captivating that kind of a light is! The love that comes from Christ, that pure love that does not come with conditions is so foreign to the area surrounding "the city". If we were to reflect on what it is that keeps us and holds us close to Christ, it's that love!
When the "prodigal son" decided to return to his father after he squandered his inheritance, he thought he had forfeited the love of his father. He could only hope for some peripheral blessing, maybe if he was lucky, he could be given the status of a servant on his father's estate. He hadn't counted on the unwavering love of a father that had not changed even during the absence of his son.
This is the kind of light the radiates from the city that Jesus spoke of. This is the love that gets attention. This is the love that can penetrate the most hardened soul.

Treasure hidden in a field...

2008-10-09T20:43:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up in Saskatchewan, I, like all the boys my age, learned to operate a tractor in the fields when I was a preteen. I remember one specific day I was doing some work in a field not to far from the one pictured with my children, my father and our dog (above). I was driving a John Deere AR tractor. I had on one of my fingers, a ring. I'm not sure where I got it from. It wasn't anything special; no stones; just a simple ring that likely cost less than a $1.00. I still remember exactly what it looked like. I was playing with it when it fell off my finger, bounced off of the floor of the tractor, through a hole and down onto the field passing by below. I quickly got everything stopped and tried to find it but couldn't. As I passed by the spot with my tractor, I would look at the spot, hoping to catch a hint of glitter so I could locate it but never could. As I worked the field in subsequent years, I would always keep my eye open around the area where it had gone missing... nothing. As I grew into adulthood and left the farm, during return visits I pass by the field and always remember that small event some 35 years later.

In Matthew 13:44 is a very brief but vivid parable about the Kingdom of heaven. It describes a man who finds a treasure in a field. He then hides it in the field and sells everything he has to buy the field. He has made the connection that so many on earth fail to understand, Jesus comes to us and offers us something that is priceless, simply incomparable to anything we could possibly possess here on earth. It is something eternal. Jesus spoke of this treasure and then delivered it.

From Here to Eternity

2008-09-30T22:07:00.000-07:00

There is just something about the thought of heaven that stirs up the imagination. You don't have to believe in the claims of Christ to wonder what might actually await us on the other side of the curtain of death. As a child, I would fantasize about it. As an adult, I read the passages that describe heaven and images leap into my mind's eye.

Several years ago, God illuminated aspects of the Lord's prayer (Matthew 6) to me. One phrase got my attention, "your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. " Jesus was actually instructing people who were alive on earth to request from the 'Father' in heaven that His kingdom would come to earth and further, His will would actually be performed here. It would be carried out on earth in a similar way to how its carried out in heaven. Jesus was not and is not asking us to pray that God would pull the pin on earth but that there would be a manifestation of something eternal, something heavenly. What that said to me was God's plans reach down from heaven still. God's will is performed outside of heaven as it is performed within heaven. This did not quench my interest in heaven, rather is deepened it.

In the past 2 years I've read 3 books that speak to some aspects of this. The first book really whet my appetite for all things heavenly. Heaven is so Real is quite the book. The author is taken to heaven in a series of visions... I know, it has all the makings of a cult but I pressed on through. Other than a few escathological conclusions she comes to, I couldn't find anything that clearly contradicted scripture. If anything, it made my picture of heaven more vivid. I came away with a renewed sense of needing to get things done while I'm still here on earth. Seems like a good point to end a book on.

The next book to challenge me was Driven by Eternity. In the part of the book, John Bevere writes an allegory. He unfolds it in such a way that we consider what God will be looking for on that day of judgement; when life on earth as we know it comes to an end and we are left to give an account. He describes the response of different ones who are left stunned by God's judgement of them. Should I be taking my salvation for granted? ah... no! I left this book thinking, "Are the things that I give myself to on earth having any positive bearing on eternity?" This is always a great question to consider?

The final book When Heaven Invades Earth gives us some sense of what it means to take God seriously about inviting His will to be done on earth. The book begins by giving an account of a young couple who were planning their wedding. Both of them loved the Lord and had a desire to see needy people ministered to. On the day of their wedding, they sent out buses to the poor parts of the city to gather people for their marriage banquet. Before hand, they set up a gift registry at Target requesting only coats, hats, gloves and sleeping bags so they could give these out to the poor that would be coming. After the ceremony, the bride and groom went behind the table and began to serve all the guests. Plenty of opportunity was given for people to be ministered to. Not only were people fed that day but God chose to move, even healing some of terminal diseases... God's will was done on earth, just as it is in heaven. In this book Bill Johnson says, "This world is our assignment, but not our home. Our purpose is eternal. The resources needed to complete the assignment are unlimited. The only restrictions are those between our ears." Many of us don't even have an inkling of what "your will be done" might possibly mean. This book provides a great taste.

Its hard to give justice to these books in the space of this small post but they are a thought provoking, inspiring eternity trilogy.

Disclaimer

2008-09-25T21:05:00.000-07:00

OK, if I'm going to do this thing, there may be a few things you should know about my intentions for this site. In keeping with my involvement with church and small group leadership, I'm thinking that these groups will be my primary target. I hope that the posts I make will be encouraging, challenging (a little shaking is always good) and thought provoking. I stand by my subtitle, if it's worth doing, it worth doing unto the Lord. I enjoy humour in writing. I'll try not to keep my tongue in cheek when I know I should be biting it. I have a little trouble with the proper use of homonyms... so their! In the end, just having an outlet to write some of the thoughts of my heart will be good for me. Like a wise bletherer once told me, "It doesn't matter if anyone reads my blog", I know that I will always have an audience of One. He's the One that counts!

Happy Birthday to my love!

2008-09-23T22:21:00.000-07:00

What better way to inaugurate my arrival on the blogging landscape than to say happy birthday to the love of my life! We met a few days after your birthday in 1980, but I've been there for every one ever since. It has been great, so will the years to come!