Commitment Archives - Creation Beckons

Luke 3:4-6 The Crooked Made Straight

“A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth. And all people will see God’s salvation’” (NIV).

This is taken from the beginning of the ministry of John the Baptist. He went throughout the countryside preaching a “baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” The Scripture quoted above speaks of John’s reason for ministry—prepare people for the coming of the Messiah. The implication of the verse is that when Jesus arrives, things will get better. Moving through life is to become easier with valleys and mountains made level, crooked roads made straight, and the rough ways made smooth. Did that happen, even after Jesus was baptized by John? No, it didn’t because the leaders of the time saw Jesus as a threat to their authority because they feared that His message would upset the Romans and cause them to crack down and take away the powers the religious leaders had. Their selfishness and lust for power made them rouse the people against Jesus, accuse Him of sedition against the Romans, and demand that He be crucified.

So the church began in a time and place of criticism and antagonistic actions by the religious leaders of the day. It seems to have been a foretaste of what was to come for millenia after the crucifixion of Christ. Throughout history, the church seems to grow best when its members are driven to defend themselves and their beliefs in Jesus Christ. The opposition makes for tougher, more determined believers. For the past two thousand years, those who truly accepted Christ as Savior have proven to be willing to undergo hardship, punishment, and even death to declare that Jesus is the Messiah, the one and only way to God.

If you follow the lines in the picture above from left to right, the swirls, whorls, and bumps are easily seen, but as the view continues to the right, the lines smooth out and go forward in a strength proven by the earlier difficulties in the growth of the tree. Yes, valleys will be filled, mountains will be made low, crooked roads will be made straight, and the rough places will be made smooth. But a look at the center of the picture above shows the difficulties and hard times that the tree survived before it got to the smooth times. So in our lives as Christians, we will encounter tough times, difficult times, and, perhaps, even dangerous times before we attain peace and rest with Christ in eternity. I haven’t been in eternity with Jesus, but I am convinced that eternity with Him will be worth any difficulties we encounter here. So hang in there—it will be worth it.

2 Chronicles 16:9a A Faithful Servant

“For the eyes of the Lord ran to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him…” (NKJV)

I wrote this message many years ago for a book of devotionals, and it seemed like today was a good day to celebrate Mike Morgan again.

I was recently asked to name and describe someone I admired, and the following is my answer.

His name is Michael Morgan, and he was born in the early 1950s in Elkhart, IN. His parents took him to church almost every Sunday, and to Sunday School before church. He belonged to the youth group in his church. After high school graduation, he went to work in the local mobile home factory. He married his high school sweetheart, and they had two children, a girl and a boy. He and his wife took their kids to Sunday School and church much as his parents had. Although his kids have grown and moved away, they see them several times a year.

Mike has never preached a sermon, has never spoken on the radio or TV, and has never gone on a mission trip to far away places or even close by. So what makes Mike a person I admire?

At work, he doesn’t preach his Christianity, but he does live it. His fellow workers have seen his faith in his offers for help when someone has a problem, in his willingness to say, “I will pray for you.” His oft- spoken question is, “What can I do to help?” When he was passed over for a promotion, he didn’t gripe and speak bad things about the man who got the promotion, and he was promoted later. He doesn’t swear, and he doesn’t raise his righteous anger when someone else does. He usually tells them later that he doesn’t appreciate foul language. Over the thirty-five years that he has worked at the mobile home plant, he has been known as someone who will help out in troubling times, and as someone who is fun at the company picnics.

At church, he has never been on the Deacon board, but he is available when some work is needed to be done. He almost always shows up for work days, and he doesn’t mind what work he does then. He does not forward himself, but he does offer advice when asked, and he prays anytime anyone asks and often before he asks. His advice is well thought out because it is based on Biblical passages he knows. Discussions regarding the future of the local church and the future of the Church at large are lively when he joins because he refuses to believe that God will allow His church to fail, and he does what is necessary to keep his church going. His wife often brings food to the home of someone who is ill. They are friendly with everyone and friends with many. Mike supports his church and his pastor with his actions, his words, and his finances. He thinks of the small things that need to be done, and he sees that they get done. If you were to ask him why he does these things, why he is like this, he would probably say, “Well, it needed to be done, and I had the time.” He never brags about the fact that he really does these things because he feels his church and the people in it are his ministry, the ministry entrusted to him by his Lord, Jesus Christ.

I have never met Mike Morgan; you see, there is no Mike Morgan. I made him up, but I’ve seen “him” in almost every church I’ve ever been in. Churches who have a “Mike Morgan” are greatly blessed. I admire greatly those unsung people who keep things going, don’t give up, and provide help and comfort to others just because that’s what they believe Jesus would have them do. Who is the “Mike or Martha Morgan in your church? Let him/her know he/she is appreciated.