2020 Vision: Fear Not!

Happy New Year's Eve!  Will you be up past midnight tonight?  We try to celebrate the new year with New York (three hours ahead of us) so we can be in bed by 9:30.

As I previously mentioned, I'm embarking on a new study this year.  I'll be studying visions from the Bible.  The first time the word vision is found is in Genesis 15:1.  I'll be studying the entire chapter next week, but for today I just want to focus on two words:  "Fear not."

Several commentaries on this verse agree that when God told Abram "fear not," He was talking about what happened in the previous chapter.  Genesis chapter 14 is the first war mentioned in the Bible.  Abram got involved because Lot had been taken captive.  Although Abram was victorious, it was thought that he could have been fearful that the nations that belonged to the kings he had triumphed over would come after him.

Other commentaries said that it addresses his future when Abram said in Genesis 15:2, "Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?" Whatever Abram was fearing, God said, "fear not."  The rest of that verse says, "I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward."

The words "fear not" are found 62 times in the Bible.  From Genesis to Revelation we read "fear not."  God spoke these words directly or through an angel or prophet to Abraham, Hagar, Isaac, Jacob, Joshua, the children of Israel, Gideon, the widow of Zarephath, Solomon, Isaiah, Daniel, Zacharias, Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, Simon Peter, Jairus, the multitude, the women at the tomb, Paul, and John the revelator.

I've often heard that hindsight is 2020.  That's true for mankind, but God's vision is 2020 all the time.  He sees what lies ahead when we don't.  We often spend our time fearing the future or looking back wondering if we truly defeated the enemy of our past, when we should really be looking forward without fear.

The entire text of Genesis 15:1 is "After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward."  The commentaries on this verse were remarkable, and I'll return to them next week, for today I'm just going to share what Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible had to say:

"After these things," the victory, the blessing, and the self-denial recorded in the previous chapter.  

“The word of the Lord,” manifesting himself by speech to his servant.

“In a vision” the intelligent observer passes from the merely sensible to the super-sensible sphere of reality.

“Fear not, Abram.” The patriarch had some reason to fear. The formidable allies had indeed been defeated, and the fruits of their marauding enterprise wrested from them. But they might resume their purpose, and return with an overwhelming force. And Abram was still a stranger in a foreign land, preoccupied by tribes of another race, who would combine against him as soon as they suspected him of being an intruder. But the Lord had stood by him and given him the victory, and now speaks to him in the language of encouragement. 

“I am thy shield, thy exceeding great reward.” The word I is separately expressed, and, therefore, emphatic in the original.
I, Jehovah (Yahweh), the Self-existent One, the Author of existence, the Performer of promise, the Manifester of myself to man, and not any creature however exalted. This was something beyond a seed, or a land, or any temporal thing. The Creator infinitely transcends the creature. The mind of Abram is here lifted up to the spiritual and the eternal. (1) thy shield. (2) thy exceeding great reward.

Abram has two fears - the presence of evil, and the absence of good. Experience and conscience had begun to teach him that both of these were justly his doom. But Yahweh has chosen him, and here engages himself to stand between him and all harm, and himself to be to him all good. With such a shield from all evil, and such a source of all good, he need not be afraid. The Lord, we see, begins, as usual, with the immediate and the tangible; but he propounds a principle that reaches to the eternal and the spiritual. We have here the opening germ of the great doctrine of “the Lord our righteousness,” redeeming us on the one hand from the sentence of death, and on the other to a title to eternal life.

I'm saying goodbye 2019 with all it's battles, victories and defeats.  Here's what I'm planning for 2020:

I will Fear Not because
The I AM, Jehovah (Yahweh), the Self-existent One, the Author of existence, the Performer of promise, the Manifester of Himself to man
IS my Shield, my Protector and my Defense Who will stand between me and all harm,
He is also my exceeding great, superlatively multiplied Reward.
Or as David put it, "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"

This and That from Here and There

Happy Christmas Adam!  That's a phrase I read somewhere and think it's kinda cute.  Since Adam came before Eve it makes sense that the day before Christmas Eve should be called Christmas Adam ;)

It's only been three and a half weeks since Thanksgiving, but it feels much longer.  We were home for three days when Les had to go to Las Vegas for a work conference.  He got home on Thursday night, December 5th, and we flew to Hawaii on Friday morning, December 6th.  While Les was in Vegas I decorated our house for Christmas.  It was great coming home two weeks later to a decorated house!

It was during the week before we left that a mountain lion made an appearance in Simi Valley.  It was first spotted on our street.  The next day it attacked two dogs.  This mountain lion is believed to be a female with a tracking collar that is no longer working.  I learned about this from a neighbor while I was out walking in the early morning.  Yikes!  A few days later a young male mountain lion was spotted and later captured.

Not what you want to see sitting on your patio!

The captured cat, taking a little tranquilizer induced nap.

December 7th was the First Church Hawaii Christmas banquet.  Good food and great friends made for a wonderful evening. We played several fun games, my favorite being each table making a snowman out of toilet paper!

Sunday morning, December 8th was the Honolulu Marathon.  I planned ahead this year and brought a handy clapper.  I found a perfect spot to cheer on the runners.  Just past mile seven the route starts going around Diamond Head.  At the same place, the route returns with less than a mile to the finish line.  I found a kindred spirit who wanted to cheer and we clapped and cheered for about an hour. We saw fast runners coming back to place in the top 5 and slow runners still going out, but they all got cheered on.  We also saw the wheelchair racers, Les did his annual cycling escort and he got a special cheer from me.

Proof that I clapped much - I got a blister!

Les' company Christmas party was Tuesday night, December 17th.  Les took his trumpet and we played "Name that Christmas Tune."  There are definitely some Christmas music fans in the company.  I took one picture of Les with his trumpet but it's super blurry.  I ended up holding his music book for him because it was breezy since we were seated outside.  It was a beautiful evening at Cafe Julia and I enjoyed chatting with many of Les' co-workers.

As I've already blogged about, we flew home on Thursday, December 19th.  Friday was a blur of napping.

We had a great day at church yesterday.  Les and his trumpet student, Jeremiah, played a duet of "Oh Holy Night" on Sunday morning.  Jeremiah has been taking lessons for a little over a year and he is doing fantastic!  They also played during our afternoon service - a first for Jeremiah.  It was so great hearing the trumpets as I was praise singing.

We're home for Christmas this year.  Due to our travels I'm not doing my usual bake-fest, I just made a few cookies.  Les will be off work from Christmas to New Years and I think we'll be doing a lot of reading, sitting by the fire, and sipping hot chocolate!

I hope you enjoy time with family and friends, safe travels, good eats and a very merry Christmas!

Living the Aloha Spirit

Yesterday was a day that really challenged our patience.  Les and I spent two weeks on Oahu and were ready to get home.  We arrived at the airport at 1:30 p.m. for our 3:35 flight.   We boarded on time as usual and then sat on the plane and waited.  And waited...

Almost two hours later we had to deplane due to a mechanical issue.  We were told we would received an update at 5:30.  5:30 came and went and we were told an update would come at 6:00.  In the meanwhile, I watched several of our crew members walk through our gate area, with their luggage.  "This can't be good," I told Les.  Flight attendants can only work a certain number of hours before they must leave work.  It's for their safety and for the safety of passengers.

We received an announcement around 6:15 letting us know that our flight was delayed until 8:30.  Our plane was ready but a new flight crew had to be scrambled together for our long flight. Our original flight was scheduled to arrive in Los Angeles at 11:00 p.m.  Our delayed flight was scheduled to arrive at 4:00 A.M.  Ouch!

Did I mention most of the restaurants in the airport were closed because food service workers were on strike?

Here's where Hawaiian Airlines made a difference:
Because the restaurants were closed they brought in snack boxes and water/juice for everyone.
Thirty minutes later they brought in sandwiches, chips, and more water/juice.
Shortly before we boarded our flight, they made an announcement that everyone was going to receive a $100 travel voucher.

I have been on delayed flights with other airlines many times.  Not once have we received any of the things Hawaiian Airlines provided.  We've sat for hours in terminals with nothing more than an insincere "sorry" and spent our own money on overpriced airport food.  The Hawaiian Airlines ground crew did a great job making everyone as comfortable as possible.

All the things they did to make us a little more comfortable didn't get us to Los Angeles any earlier.  It didn't make going to bed at 5:00 this morning hurt any less.  But it did make us feel like they considered us human beings, not just a nuisance that was filling their airplane.

The lesson here?  There are some things that are unpleasant that can't be avoided.  A mechanical issue on a plane is not something to ignore.  Patience and kindness go a long, long way.  Patience on our part as we waited was key.  Stamping my feet and hassling the gate agent wouldn't have gotten me home any quicker and it would have made everyone a little unhappier.  Kindness on the part of Hawaiian Airlines as they tried to get us on our way.  Their sincere apologies, the food and travel vouchers, all of that said they understood how inconvenient this was for everyone.  They embodied the "Aloha Spirit" that Hawaii is known for.

While working on this post, I found that there is actually a state law in Hawaii called "The Aloha Spirit" law.  It says in part, "These are traits of character that express the charm, warmth and sincerity of Hawaii's people. It was the working philosophy of native Hawaiians and was presented as a gift to the people of Hawaiʻi. ''Aloha'' is more than a word of greeting or farewell or a salutation. ''Aloha'' means mutual regard and affection and extends warmth in caring with no obligation in return. "Aloha" is the essence of relationships in which each person is important to every other person for collective existence. ''Aloha'' means to hear what is not said, to see what cannot be seen and to know the unknowable."

We live in an angry world.  People lash out because they are "offended" at every turn.  They want to coexist as long as you agree with them.  The Bible has much to say about how we are to treat our fellow man.  The Apostle Paul summed it up nicely in Colosians 3:12-14, "Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;  Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.  And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness."

In this final shopping weekend before Christmas, while you're slipping on your shoes, don't forget to also put on mercy, kindness, meekness, longsuffering and charity.  It won't make the line move more quickly, but you will go home without the baggage of unkindness.

Taking the Long Way ~ Thanksgiving 2019

We left New Orleans on Tuesday morning - our destination was Panama City, Florida.  The direct route via Interstate 10 is about 330 miles, approximately 5 hours.  But who wants to drive the boring interstate?  Les mapped out a route that would keep us right on the coast, mostly via highway 90.  We worked our way from Louisiana through Mississippi through Alabama and finally in to Florida.  We enjoyed the scenery and time for just the two of us.

The coolest part was taking a ferry from Dauphin Island to Fort Morgan.  This was a great chance for us to get out and stretch our legs while still moving towards our destination.

We spent the night at a hotel in Navarre, Florida on Tuesday night.  The hotel sat on a peninsula, so while our room wasn't technically "beach front" we did have a nice view.

The view from the breakfast room

We finally made it to Panama City on Wednesday.  Our dear family that lives there is still recovering from Hurricane Michael that blew through in October of last year.  This was a category 5 hurricane that made landfall with maximum sustained winds of 160 mph between Mexico Beach, Florida, and Tyndall Air Force Base in Panama City, Florida.  The loss of homes and businesses was extensive.  We've stayed at the El Governor Hotel in Mexico Beach many times.  This is what it looks like now.  The structure was solid, but the wind blew right through the rooms.  A year later, they still haven't reopened.

We met at a Mexican restaurant on Wednesday and spent several hours catching up with the family.  I didn't take any pictures, but Les snapped this candid shot.  I really love that no one was looking at the camera - everyone was just enjoying family.

We met up again Thursday afternoon.  Pastor and Sister Crabtree (he is Les' cousin) were able to reserve the clubhouse in the condo building where they are living while their house is being repaired.  We all gathered on the beach for a while to chat and watch the sunset.  Again, no posed pictures, just four generations of family connecting.

I didn't take a single picture during Thanksgiving dinner or our time together afterwards!  I seem to be doing that more lately - preserving the memories only in my mind, while staying present with those around me.

We took the shorter route back to New Orleans on Friday before boarding a plane to Las Vegas and finally another plane to Los Angeles.  It was a long day of travel but totally worth it for the time we had together.

2020 Vision

Last night during Youth Service I had an interesting thought drop in my heart.  This happened during announcements, not during the preaching!  I really did pay attention.

I know a lot of people choose One Little Word or a Word of the Year each year.  I've only done that once before in 2015 when I chose "Reset."  I like the concept, but don't always have a word that comes to me.  But don't you think the year 2020 is a perfect year for the word Vision?

What will I do with this word?  At this point it's little more than a concept.  I do plan to study each case in the Bible when someone had a vision or when the word vision is used. The word vision is found 79 times in 73 verses.  For today, I just wanted to get the idea written down.

Key verse will be Proverbs 29:18, "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he."  I found some very interesting commentary on this verse:

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible said this:
Where Divine revelation, and the faithful preaching of the sacred testimonies, are neither reverenced nor attended, the ruin of that land is at no great distance.

The Pulpit Commentary said this:
The revelation of ancient prophecy was not continuous and uninterrupted, but it came in flashes, between which there were intervals of darkness. Sometimes those intervals were long and most distressing to a people that had learnt to draw its chief lessons from Divine oracles. Such a time was experienced in the days of Eli, for "the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no open vision" (1 Samuel 3:1); and another and longer period was that of the "four centuries of silence" between the closing of the Old Testament and the opening of the New Testament.

A Commentary on the Old and New Testaments by Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown broke it down like this:
no vision — instruction in God’s truth, which was by prophets, through visions (see 1 Samuel 3:1).
people perish — are deprived of moral restraints.

As an election year, I feel sure that 2020 will have its share of challenges and drama.  Instruction in God's truth, not what the media or politicians want to sell, is what we need to see clearly.

Do you choose a word for your year?  Have you chosen one yet?

A Visit to New Orleans

New Orleans, Nawlins', NOLA - whatever you call it, the Crescent City was our first stop during our Thanksgiving trip this year.  Les and I found cheap tickets and decided to take a couple of days to play before meeting up with the extended McElhaney clan in Panama City, Florida.

Our flight landed at 12:30 Sunday night/Monday morning, so our fun didn't begin until mid morning on Monday.  We picked up our rental car then went to Dot's Diner for breakfast.  The food was good, not great, and our server was subpar.  We asked for and never got a refill on our coffee, which should be a crime at a breakfast location!

We spent most of Monday in the French Quarter.  We had two objectives - beignets at Cafe du Monde and live music.  The paid parking lot was great - I could pay right from my phone.  I even got a text reminding me that my time was almost up and could add additional time if needed.

Cafe du Monde did not disappoint!  The line looked a little scary, but it moved quickly.  Two orders of beignets and we were quickly diving in to powdered sugar goodness.  I found this recipe online if you can't find beignets near you.  The final instruction of "Sprinkle the beignets with the confectioners' sugar and serve hot" is not quite accurate.  It's more like a downpour than a sprinkle!

We wandered the French Quarter for a few hours, laughing a lot, and just enjoying a beautiful southern Fall day.  Wanna-be street musicians (mostly kids playing "drums" on large buckets) and magicians entertained the crowds while carriages filled the streets.  We walked in and out of shops without buying a thing.

As I mentioned, we really wanted to hear live music.  What we didn't want was to go in a bar or club.  Just steps away from where we parked we found the best of both worlds - Cafe Beignet with live music!  Since we'd already had our beignets for the day, we wanted to get another New Orleans specialty - the Muffuletta.  This is an Italian sandwich that was invented in New Orleans.  Cafe Beignet had Muffulettas on the menu, but were out when we tried to order.  We split a roast beef sandwich which was delicious and settled in for a delightful couple of hours.

The first group included a keyboard, bass, and trumpet - the three instruments that Les and I know the best since those are what we play.  They ended their set with "When the Saints Go Marching In."

The second group included a keyboard, drum, and trombone.  The drummer was a guest from France.  This keyboardist was so fun to watch!  I could tell he was having a great time.

The French Quarter was a great way to start our vacation!