Misty Water Colored Memories

It’s been nearly a month since my husband and I helped his 90-year-old mother clean out her home, another step toward finalizing her move to an independent living facility. Now that we’re past the physical exhaustion and emotion of the week, I think I have a little bit better perspective.


Every transition is bittersweet. While my mother-in-law appears to enjoy the services and community of her new “home,” finalizing the move from the house that has been home for nearly 50 years is difficult. Making good decisions about how to dispose of a lifetime’s worth of goods often brought her to tears and us to exasperation. Having downsized ourselves in recent years, my husband and I were much more inclined to categorize dusty attic treasures as “stuff” to be relegated to the dumpster. For my mother-in-law, however, nearly every item was a memory. For one who could not remember where she placed her keys the night before, I was amazed at her ability to recall the occasion and/or the giver of every knick knack or memento.

A wise friend explained that as we age, the thing we fear most is losing our memory. What helps us remember? A trigger. Something tangible—a vase of dusty plastic flowers, a chipped mug, a hopelessly outdated piece of furniture, a brittle, fading newspaper clipping. Remove the trigger, the elderly person reasons, I just may lose the memory. When that’s gone, can the rest of my mind be far behind?

What is it about our minds that we struggle to forget those things we’d prefer not to remember, like the words I spoke to my mother-in-law in frustration—and to remember those things we don’t want to forget, like all those delightful, innocent comments from our children that we vowed to put in a book some day. I’m reminded that God’s “memory” is perfect. He forgets what we want him to forget – our sins. Not only is he merciful toward our faults and failures (Hebrews 8:12), he removes them as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12). They are gone forever – in the cosmic dumpster – never to return. Even better, He never forgets, but always remembers his covenant promises (Psalm 105:8). He remembers that I am His, bought with a price, destined for eternity together. He doesn’t need a cheap memento to trigger the memory.

Judy Hagey
Ascending Leaders team

Eating bread together

Yesterday, the Renovare Covenant Retreat ended in a worship service, including the Sacrament of partaking of the bread and juice. Rev. Chris Webb introduced the Sacrament by talking about food laws.

Every religion other than Christianity has food laws. Judaism does not allow eating of pork and other meats considered unclean. Hinduism is vegetarian. But God lifted any dietary regulations on the Christian community. Diet is not a wall to determine who is in and who is out with Christianity as it is with other religions.
 
However, various Christians have given the meal of our Lord titles and used that meal as a statement of who is in and who is out. Some of us call it the Lord's Supper, some call it communion, some call it "mass" and some call it the Holy Eucharist.

I remember 20 years ago our first six months in Sugar Land.  We had not yet planted Community Life Church and were using the time to visit various churches in the community to gain some understanding of the Christian landscape in our community.  One week I made an appointment and met the pastor of a small church plant.  A couple weeks later we worshiped them. This church practiced "closed" communion. When it came time for the meal without explanation the elders stepped to row after row of chairs and at each gave the nod for families to go up for the meal.  When they came to our row they walked past.  My intellectual side knows that makes sense because "closed communion" dictates that I, not a member of their church or another church in their denomination, was not allowed. For my emotional side, it felt like a punch in the gut. I felt ostracized and left out in the cold with my wife and children. I was a fellow Christian. The pastor knew me as an evangelical Christian with a high view of Christ and Scripture, just like their congregation, yet I was out when it came to the meal of the Lord we shared as Savior and Christ.

Does God smile when he sees us make this meal as a statement of division between Christians? Something to think about.

New website

Our new website is up!! It is so much better than our old website. It has some really great features, a great look and is easy to navigate. We tried to make it as intuitive as possible for searching.

I hope you like it!

And make sure you notice the fall sale of Fulfilling Faithfulness books for $4.95 while supplies last!

Really changing along with you,

Mike