Thursday, March 09, 2017

The Ministry of Saint Patrick

I am Patrick, yes a sinner and indeed untaught; yet I am established here in Ireland where I profess myself bishop. I am certain in my heart that "all that I am", I have received from God. So I live among barbarous tribes, a stranger and exile for the love of God. He himself testifies that this is so. I never would have wanted these harsh words to spill from my mouth; I am not in the habit of speaking so sharply. Yet now I am driven by the zeal of God, Christ's truth has aroused me. I speak out too for love of my neighbors who are my only sons; for them I gave up my home country, my parents and even pushing my own life to the brink of death. If I have any worth, it is to live my life for God so as to teach these peoples; even though some of them still look down on me. 1 Corinthians 15:10; Philippians 2:30

Could I have come to Ireland without thought of God, merely in my own interest? Who was it made me come? For here "I am a prisoner of the Spirit" so that I may not see any of my family. Can it be out of the kindness of my heart that I carry out such a labor of mercy on a people who once captured me when they wrecked my father's house and carried off his servants? For by descent I was a freeman, born of a decurion father; yet I have sold this nobility of mine. I am not ashamed, nor do I regret that it might have meant some advantage to others. In short, I am a slave in Christ to this faraway people for the indescribable glory of "everlasting life which is in Jesus Christ our Lord." Acts 20:22; Romans 6:23

Excerpt from "A Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus"

Thursday, March 02, 2017

"There's No Place Like Home"

When I was a child, we used to watch the Wizard of Oz every year. One of the most memorable lines from the film was when Dorothy said, “There's no place like home!”

Home is a place of familiarity, where you grew up, where you have fond memories.  Home is a place of security, where you can let your guard down.

No matter where you currently live, once you receive Jesus as Lord you have a dual citizenship. Your real home is in heaven.

But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control. Philippians 3:20-21

When you belong to the family of God, sometimes you actually get homesick for heaven.  You may feel restless for home because God created you that way, with a spirit that longs to be with God. It's like we have a homing instinct guiding us there.

It's amazing that God has built this homing instinct even into animals. The salmon return home from the sea to lay their eggs in the rivers of their birth. Birds migrate home over long distances every year as well.  God designed something in them that brings them home.

Likewise, God has built into each one of us, a desire, a longing to be home with Him. 

God has planted eternity in the human heart.  Ecclesiastes 3:11
 
I believe we were all created for heaven. C.S. Lewis put it this way...

"Creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for those desires exists.  A baby feels hunger: well, there is such a thing as food.  A duckling wants to swim: well, there is such a thing as water. If I find in myself a desire which no experience in the world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world." (Mere Christianity)

We were made for another world. You and I will never be fully satisfied with life here on earth.  Ironically, many people think that if they have a nice big house, a loving family, a stable job, two cars - then they will be happy and content.  But look at how many rich people have it all and yet they are some of the most miserable people in the world.

Augustine said, "Thou hast made us for thyself and our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee." We will always be restless if we try to find rest here on this earth and through things of this earth.  We need to realize this world is not our home and that true rest can only come when we finally return to our eternal home in heaven.

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. Colossians 3:1-2

The more pain I experience, the more evil I see, the more funerals I perform, the more I long for heaven. No more sin, sickness or sadness there. God will wipe away every tear. The greatest thing about heaven is that we will be with our Lord. 

How do you get there? Not by good works. You must admit you are a sinner, repent of your sin, ask God's forgiveness and receive Jesus Christ as Lord of your life.  

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 
 

Jesus has provided the way of salvation. God has prepared a home for you in heaven and He is waiting for you to come to your real home. I pray that you know Jesus as Lord and that you too will be homesick, not just for your earthly home but for your true eternal home in heaven.