Vol. 17 No. 17 | April 27, 2015

You were sick and could not make it to the gathering of your Christian community this morning. You had a legitimate reason; you were sick. You were not just skipping church. You were not there. You were missed.

The ladies had a meeting to study the Word, encourage one another, and pray together. You could not attend this month’s meeting. You had out of town guests. You wanted and needed to spend the time with them. You were not there. You were missed.

You have a group of guys you meet with on a weekly basis for fellowship and a time to check in with each other. Your week was full of travel, meetings and a couple of surprise schedule shifts. You decided to sleep in. No hard feelings, but you were not there and you were missed.

There was a meeting at your church. You thought about going, but were not sure your presence would be needed. So, you decided not to attend. You were not there. You were missed.

Your family had planned a special celebration event. You a decided not to go. Your work schedule had been heavy, money for travel was limited, and you really just did not want to be away from home, so you did not go. After the event you received a flood of calls, emails, texts, and social media messages all saying the same thing: You were not there. You were missed.

There was an important meeting at work that you relay needed to attend but you were also scheduled to be working an important deal in another city so you could not attend. You later talked with several of your colleagues. The message was the same from all of them: We are sorry you were not there. You were missed.

You had a rough weekend. Instead of resting and relaxing you tried to do all the household chores that had piled up from a long cold winter. You were up early, worked all day, and stayed up late with the family. Now it is Monday morning and you are more fatigued than when you came home on Friday. So when the alarm sounds on Monday morning you shut it off, roll over and decide to sleep-in. You assumed no one would care and your absence would go mostly unnoticed. The next day when you return to work your co-workers are concern. “We missed you. It is not the same around her when you are not here. You were missed.”

Meetings sometimes get boring. Church attendance sometimes seems to hold little value. It is easy to take family gatherings for granted. The monotony of work and the routine of workday activities can make you feel unimportant, dispensable, and at times completely useless. It is easy in those times of discouragement and frustration we must find a way to remind yourself that you are invisible, insignificant, nor invaluable. No, the world does not revolve you and your opinion is not likely sway the decisions of the world’s greatest minds.

This may not change way the world treats you or the way you feel at the end of the long difficult week of disappointment, frustrations and discouragement, but maybe when you consider the opinion of you held by the creator of the universe you will feel a little better about the role you play in the lives of your church, your work place, your family and your friends.

“But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.” (1 Corinthians 12:18)

“Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” (1 Corinthians 12:27)

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” (Matthew 6:25-27)

If you were not in your home, you would be missed. If you were not a friend to your friends, you would be missed. If you stopped doing your job, you would be missed. If you were not you, you would be missed. So, this week, wherever you are, whoever you are with, whatever you are doing be who you are and know that if you were not there you would be missed.

Tom

© Copyright 2015 Tom Norvell. All rights reserved.

Vol. 17 No. 16 | April 20, 2015

You knew the day would come. You did not know when, but you knew it would come.

You knew the day would come when you would hold your newborn in your arms as you wept with gratitude for the blessing and prayed for wisdom to handle the responsibility.

You knew the day would come he looked at you and you knew he recognized you and that the smile was real and not just gas.

You knew the day would come when your little one would let go of your hand and start walking on her own.

You knew the day would come you would drive away from the school after releasing your first child to strangers and wondered what you would do the rest of the day, and then the day you left your last child you really wondered what you would do for the rest of the day…and the day after that.

You knew the day would come when your little girl would dress up like a princess and you would watch her and her friends pile into a limousine with a group of her friends as you prayed for her safe return.

You knew the day would come when you would see your son walk across the stage in his graduation regalia and you would realize his life and yours will never be the same.

You knew the day would come when after all the preparations had been completed the wedding music would begin and you would take your place in the processional and prepare to hear her say, “I do.”

You knew the day would come when you received a call from your son saying, “We’re headed to the hospital!” and you would rush to make new travel plans so you could be there to hold your grandchild and weep for the blessing of sharing the moment with your children and pray for the wisdom for them to be the parents, and you to be the grandparent this baby will need you all to be.

You knew the day would come when they all came for a visit and filled the house with conversation and laughter, then you would drop them off at the airport and go home to the quiet.

You knew the day would come you and your wife would look at each other and know without a word that she knows the joy and pain you have in your heart because it is the same joy and pain she has in hers.

You knew the day would come when you walk into one room for a specific purpose, but by the time you got there you had forgotten why you came.

You knew the day would come when you wake up in the morning and try to get out of bed only to discover that you have more aches and pains in places than you knew you places.

You knew the day would come when you get more updates on the health of friends than you do about their vacation adventures.

You knew the day would come when that chair at the end of the table and that chair in the living room would be forever empty.

You knew the day would come when the doctor would say that he has done all that he can do.
You did not know when, but you knew it would come. You knew the day would come when you would say the final goodbye.

For three years the followers of Jesus watched and listened and learned from their Master and He occasionally reminded them that the day would could when He would leave them. They did not know when. In their hearts the wanted to deny the reality of His words, but deeper in their hearts they knew that day would come. That day came.

Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. (John 19:28-30, NIV)

Then they remembered that He promised another day would come when He would leave the tomb. That day came: Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her. (John 20:18, NIV)

Because of that day we know that a day will come when we will be welcomed into the presence of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We will hear Him say, “Welcome home.”

You knew the day would come. What a day that will be!

Tom

A Norvell Note © Copyright 2015. Tom Norvell All Rights Reserved.

Vol. 17 No. 15 | April 13, 2015

I have decided to follow Jesus.
I have decided to follow Jesus.
I have decided to follow Jesus.
No turning back.
No turning back.*

Simple words to a simple song. I first sang those words as a freshman in college. As the years passed I would sing those words hundreds of times in devotionals, on retreats, during camp sessions, occasionally during a church assembly, and many times all alone in a car, in my study, or walking along a wooded path. These days when the song is mentioned it is usually in the context of “We used to sing this song.”

Repeating the words serves as a reminder of the inestimable importance of this decision. In times of temptation and struggle we remind ourselves: “I have decided to follow Jesus.” “I have decided to follow Jesus.” “I have decided to follow Jesus.” I can hear myself reminding myself: “I have decided to follow Jesus.” “I have decided to follow Jesus.” “I have decided to follow Jesus.”

Then, after being reminded of the decision made comes the reminder of the decision to be made: “No turning back. No turning back. I won’t turn back. I won’t turn back. I have decided to follow Jesus and I will not turn back.“

Jesus once told a story that emphasized how important the decision to follow Him is:

As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

He said to another man, “Follow me.”

But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”

Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”

Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:57-62, NIV)

I suspect most of you reading these words have made the decision, to one degree or another, to follow Jesus. Congratulations on that decision! My prayer is that you are living the life to the fullest.

If you find yourself in difficult circumstances of temptation and struggles, take a moment and sing this simple little song as a reminder of your decision. “You have decided to follow Jesus. You have decided to follow Jesus. You have decided to follow Jesus.” Remind yourself of that decision. Remember the moment when you made that decision. Then, tell yourself: “No turning back. No turning back. I will not turn back!”

Say it one more time with meaning: “I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back.”

Tom
© Copyright 2015 Tom Norvell. All rights reserved.

——–
* From hymnary.org: About 150 years ago, there was a great revival in Wales, England. As a result of this, many missionaries came from England and Germany to North-East India to spread the Gospel. At the time, north-east India was not divided into many states as it is today. The region was known as Assam and comprised hundreds of tribes. The tribal communities were quite primitive and aggressive by nature. The tribals were also called head-hunters because of a social custom which required the male members of the community to collect as many heads as possible. A man’s strength and ability to protect his wife was assessed by the number of heads he had collected. Therefore, a youth of marriageable age would try and collect as many heads as possible and hang them on the walls of his house. The more heads a man had, the more eligible he was considered. Into this hostile and aggressive community, came a group of Welsh missionaries spreading the message of love, peace and hope of Jesus Christ. Naturally, they were not welcomed. One Welsh missionary succeeded in converting a man, his wife, and two children. This man’s faith proved contagious and many villagers began to accept Christianity. Angry, the village chief summoned all the villagers. He then called the family who had first converted to renounce their faith in public or face execution. Moved by the Holy Spirit, the man instantly composed a song which became famous down the years. He sang:
“I have decided to follow Jesus. (3 times)No turning back, no turning back.”
Enraged at the refusal of the man, the chief ordered his archers to arrow down the two children. As both boys lay twitching on the floor, the chief asked, “Will you deny your faith? You have lost both your children. You will lose your wife too.”
But the man sang these words in reply: “Though no one joins me, still I will follow. (3 times) No turning back, no turning back.”
The chief was beside himself with fury and ordered his wife to be arrowed down. In a moment she joined her two children in death. Now he asked for the last time, “I will give you one more opportunity to deny your faith and live.”
In the face of death the man sang the final memorable lines: “The cross before me, the world behind me. (3 times)No turning back, no turning back.”
He was shot dead like the rest of his family. But with their deaths, a miracle took place. The chief who had ordered the killings was moved by the faith of the man. He wondered, “Why should this man, his wife and two children die for a Man who lived in a far-away land on another continent some 2,000 years ago? There must be some supernatural power behind the family, and I too want that supernatural power.”
In a spontaneous confession of faith, he declared, “I too belong to Jesus Christ!” When the crowd heard this from the mouth of their chief, the whole village accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior.

-Dr. P.P. Job and Indian preacher in His book “Why God Why”

Vol. 17 No. 14 | April 6, 2015

As I waited for the light to change I saw the man selling papers. I see him in the same location on a regular basis. He always smiles a friendly smile. He always waves a friendly wave. He walks along the line of cars then turns around and comes back to his original station. What was his life like before he came to sell papers on the street? Where is his family? Do they know he is on the street? Do they care? I wonder about his story.

She comes into the sanctuary just as we are beginning each week. She sits in the very back, near an exit. She seems to know most of the songs we sing and appears to enjoy the time in the assembly. But as we are singing the invitation song she quietly slips out unnoticed. I wonder about her story.

If I were to describe him I would use words like rugged, strong, hard, and calloused. None of those would refer to his physical appearance, but his demeanor. My impression is that if I were to ask him about his life he would say something like, “Oh, I’ve been around.” That would be it. His answer would be saying, “I doubt you really want to know my story.” But, I do. I wonder about his story.

He comes to church with his parents. He sits with them and stays pretty close to them before and after. Occasionally one of the other children will approach him and invite him to play with them. He always declines and stays close to his mother. He does not really appear to be afraid, but he is not confident enough to venture away. I later learn that he is adopted. I was already wondering about his story, now I wonder about it even more.

Her parents’ marriage crumbled when she was very young. Most of her life has been spent going from one parent to the other. Two sets of grandparents. Two different homes. Juggling the holidays and summer vacations. Always trying to be the good girl that never caused trouble. Now, in her late teens, she tries to find her way through the world and tries to discover who she is. When we have talked she has a look in her eyes that says she wonders where this life she has lived is going to lead and she wonders who she will be when her story comes to an end. I, too, wonder about her story and where her life will take her.

She is just a child. She is sweet. She is innocent. She is loved and nurtured and protected and nourished by the best parents anyone one could ever ask for. She has a vivid imagination and an abundance of energy. I watch her and I marvel at the story God is weaving with her, for her, and through her.

He was in his early twenties when I met him. He was troubled. He was angry. He acted tough and wanted everyone to think he was tough. Getting beyond the walls of his heart required something I did not have. We spent some time together and I did what I could, then he disappeared. I often wonder about where he is, how he is, and if he is. I wonder if he has ever been able to make sense of his story.

As I wonder about these people, I am in awe that God has allowed me to have a glimpse into their lives. For some I have played a minor role in their story. For others I have had a greater influence, just as they have influence me. They have all touched me, and challenged me, and blessed me, and opened the eyes of my heart to remind me there is more — much more — to this life than I can see. They have all reminded me that there is more — much more — to this life than me.

We all have a story. Although we may sometimes wonder about where our story is leading, or how it is being written, and why it has not taken on a different theme, we do not need to wonder about one thing: He has always been involved, graciously shaping us into the image of His Son.

For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. (Romans 8:29, NIV)

Tom

© Copyright 2015 Tom Norvell. All rights reserved.