Finishing the Race

Revelation 21:4 (NET) - He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death will not exist anymore—or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the former things have ceased to exist.

I have been a fan of auto racing for a very long time.

As with every sport, sometimes a story emerges that transcends the sport itself.

Weeks ago, one emerged that resonated within me and with fans all across America.

It was a story about an 11-year old boy diagnosed with leukemia.

This young man’s name was Caleb Hammond and he was a bigger fan than I could ever hope to be.

With treatments proving ineffective, it was decided that he would leave the hospital and live out his remaining days at home.

But Caleb did far more than that.

In August, Caleb was invited to Southern Iowa Speedway.

There, he learned that he would get to live his dream.

He would be able to race his own car on the track.

Later, he was able to take a ride in a Ferrari on a racetrack.

Shortly thereafter, the news broke that Caleb wanted racing stickers to adorn his coffin.

The racing community responded.

Drivers and teams sent boxes full of stickers to help fulfill Caleb’s final wish.

Caleb left this earthly life days ago.

With racing this week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, several drivers honored Caleb with “Team Caleb” stickers on their cars.

When weather postponed the race until after Caleb’s death, the Speedway honored his memory with a moment of silence.

There are those who will say that Caleb lost his battle.

I prefer to think that he won it.

Death is an eventuality that all must face in the end.

I pray that when my time comes, I can face it with the courage of this 11-year old.

2 Timothy 4:7-8 (NET) - I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith! Finally the crown of righteousness is reserved for me. The Lord, the righteous Judge, will award it to me in that day—and not to me only, but also to all who have set their affection on his appearing.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, September 21, 2018.

I will be back here on Friday, September 28, 2018

Rings a Bell

Church bells have been in use for centuries.

There are primarily used to signal worshipers that the service is about to begin.

Some churches, including my own, also ring the church bell at the conclusion of the service.

Some churches ring their bell three times a day as a reminder to their members to recite prayer.

Church bells are even rung in celebration at Thanksgiving or at weddings.

In fact, many wedding and anniversary cards have pictures of church bells on them.

When rung in celebration, the sound of the church bell adds to the joy of the occasion.

Psalm 98:4 (KJV) - Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.

I have been called upon to ring my church’s bell both before and after worship.

When rung in a certain way, the bell produces a loud and joyful sound just as described by the Psalmist.

I believe this helps prepare the believer’s heart for worship.

In the same way, that joyful sound it creates at the end of the service also serves a purpose.

I believe it helps prepare the believer to take what was shared during the worship service out into the world.

The sound the bell makes is not always a joyful one though.

In Great Britain during World War II the church bells were silenced.

They were only to be rung as a warning of a pending enemy attack.

There is another time when the sound of the church bell is not a joyous one.

I know this from experience as I have also been called upon to ring the church’s bell at funeral services.

In fact, I was called upon to do just that on Saturday.

Whenever I am called upon to do this, I take the responsibility very seriously.

I see the church bell is a musical instrument that is capable of producing only one note.

Whenever I ring the bell at a funeral service, I try to ring it slowly, regularly and somberly.

I do this out of respect.

I also do it for one more reason.

It is possible that someone attending the funeral service has not yet made himself right with the Lord.

If such is the case, they need to do so while they still have time.

Psalm 144:4 (KJV) – Man is like to vanity: his days are as a shadow that passeth away.

Just as the bells were rung as a warning in times of war, perhaps the slow, regular and somber tone of the church bell will serve as a reminder.

A reminder that our time on earth is limited.

Although limited, it is never too late to get right with God through Jesus Christ.

For as long as we draw breath there is hope.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, April 3, 2015.

I’ll be back here on Friday, April 10, 2015

Life Imitating Art

Teaching Sunday school is something I am very passionate about.


Along with the current study, I also have to plan ahead for the next study and be able to move forward with it when the time comes.

One thing I have always been able to rely on is God’s guidance in the preparation of these one hour sessions which seem to go by so very quickly. I can also rely on His direction for us in future studies.

That is certainly the case with our current study which is very nearly complete.

Some months ago, I managed to get some time off around Christmas and decided to begin reading The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan.

When my holiday arrived, I read the first chapter before going to bed and it had a very profound impact on me.

Over the course of the next two days, I devoured the rest of the book.

I remember telling friends and family afterward how "blown away" I was by the book.

I also knew that upon completion of our current study, I would ask my class would to join Christian (Bunyan’s main character) on his pilgrimage through this classic.

I procured enough copies of the book for the entire class and informed them of the pending study.

Along with continued work on our current study, I read Bunyan’s classic three more times taking detailed notes, anticipating questions I might be asked and drawing on scripture to reinforce the spiritual truths that Bunyan sought to teach in his allegory.

When the time arrived, we began our study.

One of the things that delighted me was seeing my students have the same reaction to the book that I had the first time I read it.

Also very personally rewarding were the number of times students told me, "Thank you for bringing this book to us."

Now, that journey nears its end.

Along with the joy, we also experienced some personal sadness along the way.

One of my students, Rudy, went to be with the Lord.

Rudy was much more than a student.

I counted him as both a blessing and a good friend.

I feel that way about every student.

We are a cohesive and closely knit group.

There is an old saying that says that life imitates art and, at times, there is more than a fair amount of truth in that.

In The Pilgrim’s Progress, Christian acquired a traveling companion from his home town. This character’s name was Faithful.

They journeyed together intending to arrive at the Celestial City, or heaven, at the same time.

One day, as they neared the town of Vanity, they encountered an old friend and mentor, a wonderful man by the name of Evangelist.

Along with the happy reunion, Evangelist gave them words of caution.

"But be faithful unto death, and Christ will give you a crown of life. If one of you shall die there, although his death will be cruel and his pain great, yet he will be more fortunate than the other, because he will arrive in the Celestial City much sooner, and he will escape the trials the other must endure in the rest of the way."

This came to pass.

When Christian and Faithful arrived in Vanity, they refused to buy any of the worldly goods that the townspeople had for sale. This coupled with their speech and demeanor soon created quite an uproar. They were arrested and put on trial.

At the trial, Faithful gave a remarkable testimony. Nevertheless, he was found guilty in the town’s eyes and executed.

Christian then saw a golden chariot with fiery steeds whisk Faithful away to the Celestial City. He also thought he heard a trumpet sound from the Celestial City when the chariot arrived.

Christian then continued on his pilgrimage. A pilgrimage in which he encountered and overcame numerous obstacles before reaching the Celestial City himself.

My friend and student faced a trial of a different sort.

The trial he faced was a fatal illness.

Yet even in this sort of trial, he gave his own powerful testimony to those who lovingly took such good care of him.

At his funeral service, our pastor said that Rudy’s physical therapist told him, "Thank you for sharing Rudy with us." He added that these words assured him that Rudy was exactly where God wanted him to be.

Just like Faithful, Rudy has now arrived at the Celestial City ahead of the rest of us.

Just like Christian, we who remain behind must faithfully continue in our pilgrimage knowing that we will face and overcome many tribulations along the way.

Yet, we remain confident that God will see us through each and every one of them.

He will use these to build us up and refine us until we too reach the Celestial City just like our now departed friend.

Sometimes life really does imitate art.

This is not surprising when you consider that God is in complete and total control.


Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, June 21, 2013.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I’ll be back here on Friday, June 28, 2013.

My Funeral for Sam

My friend Sam passed away last week.

Sam was not given a funeral, so the following is my feeble attempt at providing him with one...

We are gathered here today to give glory to God and to pay our final respects to Sam.

No obituary was printed for Sam, so I had to draw on things I have learned from our friendship of over twenty years.

Sam held several jobs in his lifetime but he was an artist at heart.

To the best of my knowledge, he never made any serious money with his paintings, but perhaps that is just as well.

If Sam had managed to make money this way, he would have likely concluded that his art had become too commercial and probably would have abandoned it for another art form.

I showed someone a portrait Sam had painted of Jesus and they remarked that it was a "little scruffy looking."

Artistically speaking, that made some sense to me.

You see, every culture tends to depict Jesus in art in terms of their own culture.

In African art, Jesus is often depicted as African.

In Asian art, He is often depicted as Asian.

I have a portrait of Jesus that was painted by a European artist that depicts Him with flowing blonde hair and blue eyes.

In this portrait Jesus looks quite European.

I think Sam was simply transferring some of his own "scruffiness" into the painting.

Honestly, I don’t think Jesus took any offense.

Sam enjoyed history.

His favorite TV program was The Antiques Roadshow and he was also extremely interested in Nikola Tesla.

Sam read everything about Tesla that he could get his hands on.

Sam was always researching different things and would talk to me about everything from canyons in Mexico to the Antikythera mechanism found in an Aegean shipwreck.

Sam kept a notepad in his pocket.

If something came up in conversation that interested him, he would jot it down and research it later.

Sam attended several churches in his lifetime including the one I attend.

I think his curiosity fueled his desire to experience firsthand how different denominations choose to worship God.

Sam and I had many, many conversations over coffee and we disagreed about a great many things.

It is said that there are two things you should never discuss, namely, religion and politics.

Yet we discussed both.

And, since we were on opposite ends of the political spectrum, we found a great many things to disagree about.

I can honestly say that we never once allowed a disagreement of any magnitude to get in the way of a perfectly good friendship.

Sam understood my fondness for music.

It was Sam that introduced me to the music of an Australian country singer by the name of Slim Dusty.

To this day, I never tire of listening to Slim singing ‘Waltzing Matilda‘.

I will always be grateful to Sam for that.

Similarly, I will always be grateful to God for the friendship He gave me with Sam.

Sadly, at the end, I honestly do not believe that Sam had many friends and even fewer good friends.

More than a few severed ties with him altogether for one reason or another along the way.

Sam was not perfect.

Then again, neither are we.

If you seriously think about it, a lifetime of rejections must have caused Sam to feel a great deal of personal pain.

I can only imagine what that amount of rejection must have felt like.

Jesus did not have to imagine anything of the sort.

He knew firsthand what it was like to have people turn on Him.

One day, Jesus rode into Jerusalem to the victorious cry of an ecstatic crowd.

Matthew 21:9 (NET) - The crowds that went ahead of Him and those following kept shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the One who comes in the Name of the Lord! Hosanna In the Highest!"

A short time later, an angry mob turned on Jesus.

Matthew 27:22-23 (NET) - Pilate said to them, "Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Christ?" They all said, "Crucify Him!" He asked . "Why? What wrong has He done?" But they shouted more insistently, "Crucify Him!"

I have often wondered how many people were part of both the jubilant crowd one day and the angry mob the next.

Jesus knew exactly how it felt to have one of His own turn against Him.

Matthew 26:48 (NET) - Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "The one I kiss is the man. Arrest Him!"

And it happened just that way!

Jesus also knew personally what it felt like to have friends abandon Him.

Jesus told Peter there would come a time when he would deny Him.

Matthew 26:34 (NET) - Jesus said to him, "I tell you the truth, on this night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times."

Again, it happened just that way!

Yes Sam, in that regard, you were indeed in excellent company.

You see, your Savior knew just how you felt.

Now, that same Savior welcomes you home.

Lord, my prayer today is that You help us recognize that there are many Sam’s in the world.

Encourage us to accept them just as they are.

After all, that is just the way that You accept us.

For those of you that attended this "service" and stayed until the end, I offer my sincerest gratitude.

Sam was created in God’s image.

Sam mattered to God.

Sam mattered to me.

Funerals are for the living, bur everyone has a story.

In the end, doesn’t everyone deserve to have at least some of that story told?

It should not matter how many or how few decide to attend.

If it were possible for us to combine our voices in a closing hymn right now, I would ask that we sing "Just as I Am" before we part company.

One final and very personal note,,,

One of the last things Sam ever said to me was, "I can’t wait until you become a preacher."

Well Sam, this is about as close as I can get.

You deserved better.

This was the best I could provide.

Rest in peace, my friend.


Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, February 1, 2013.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I’ll be back here on Friday, February 8, 2013.
Schedule subject to change.