3AM Friends

John 15:13–14 (ESV)

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.

I was talking to a Bible class in America about life and ministry in Germany.  Somehow we got on the topic of how the words “|Sie” and “du” are used in the German language.  Both of the words are translated into English as “you.”  The word “Sie” is formal while “du”  is informal.  As I understand it, you should always use the word “Sie” with people when you first meet them.  It’s normal to use it in business relationships, with those who are in authority positions (your boss, your teacher) and with older people.  In fact you should use the word “Sie” until such time as the other person gives you permission to use the word “du.” That permission is an honor, it’s an invitation to become a friend.

It was at this point that a German man (who has lived in the USA for 40 or more years) stopped me  He explained that to be given permission to use the word “du” means the person is making a commitment to you.  They are pledging to be your friend for life, promising that they will be there whenever you need them, even at 3 in the morning.  He said that there was even a ritual for the process of going from “Sie” to “du.”   I asked our German teacher about all of this.  She said, “Well maybe that was the case 40 years ago but Germans, especially the younger generation have become more relaxed about all of this.  The formal “Sie” is still used but the lines are perhaps not as rigid as they once were. 

Even if that is the case, I must say that the idea of having a friend so committed to you that they would get up to help you at 3am, without complaining, is pretty cool.  As I thought about this I realized that along the way God has given me many “3 AM friends.”  I could call Pastor David Koch anytime about any issue.  James Geyer took three days off to travel from Nebraska, to Illinois with me, to attend my Aunt’s funeral.  He and another man, Wayne Tegeler, traveled all the way from Nebraska to Texas for my dad’s funeral.  The Lasches lent us their van for a trip to Austin when our van’s tires went bad.  I could go on and on.  3AM friends are a blessing!

Indeed they are a gift from the God who is Himself our 3AM friend and more.  He is both “Sie” and“du” at one in the same time.  After all He is the creator of all, who took on flesh and blood to become a part of the creation.  In Jesus He who is our Lord became our brother.  By living among us, dying for our sins and rising again, He made His commitment to us crystal clear.  Jesus said it in the verse above, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.” 

He made that friendship eternal when He adopted you into His family.  On the day of your baptism He became both “Sie” and “du” to you.  He became Your Father and your daddy… inviting you both to stand in awe of Him and yet to boldly ask Him anything as dear children ask their dear Father.  At that moment Jesus became both Lord of your life and brother.  You worship Him and yet you can tell Him anything and everything at any time. Your God is your best 3AM friend.

You know as I think back on all the 3AM friends I have had in life, 90% of them have been believers.  All of them are a gift of God and I hope I have been the same to them.  Indeed I believe that its’s through very real 3AM friends that God makes visible His commitment to us.  In our friends and in our friendship to others we make plain to one another that our God is both “Sie” and “du.”  He is the best 3AM…. 24/7 friend we could ever have.  Amen. 

Hope in an Age of Terror

“When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads

Because your redemption is drawing near.”

Luke 21:28

Attacks on Café’s, a theater and a stadium in Paris…  An annual Christmas party in San Bernardino turned into a terrorist nightmare… the attack on the Brussels airport and commuter rail station… the attack on the nightclub in Orlando… the Russian commercial jet and then the Egyptian commercial jet blown up… ambushes of policemen in Dallas and Baton Rouge (not terrorist related but unsettling none the less)… the attack in Nice on Bastille Day…the attack on the airport in Turkey…  a 17 year old with a knife and an ax attacking travelers on a train near Wurzburg, Germany… the Coup attempt in Turkey – there certainly has been a lot of this going on. 

Thinking about all of that, I wondered where might I go in Scripture for help, guidance or comfort.  My thoughts led me to Luke 21.  The first things I read there, didn’t provide much comfort.  Jesus said, “On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.  Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world…”  Well I haven’t seen a lot of “fainting from terror.”  But anguish?  Just look at the grief of those who have lost loved one’s in these attacks. Perplexity?  Again and again I hear people asking the question, “What is going on in the world?  Why is all this happening?  Are the governments doing anything to stop all of this?  Apprehensive?  Yes.  I have experienced concern and fear over things I would normally not even think about.  Whenever I go to the airport I find myself looking around, wondering do any of these people want to blow us up?  The other day we were taking the train out of Salzburg.  Police got on our train, walked up and down the aisle, obviously looking for something or someone.  Then two stops out of Salzburg we were delayed as the police again wanted to check something about our train. On Saturday when we put Beth, John and Jason on the plane back to the states, I couldn’t help but have a tinge of worry and concern. “Lord give Your angels guard over them.”

Then the other day I was talking with someone who had to leave the country where they lived and worked… a place where some of these terrible things have happened.  He was tired. He was stressed. Yet in the course of our conversation, he said something that really helped me to think about all of this from the perspective of faith.  He said, “I look at all this and I think that now would be a good time for Jesus to come back.”   This man was expressing a uniquely Christian reaction to all of this… a reaction that doesn’t make a lot of sense to the world and sometimes even to us Christians.  He expressed hope!

Believe it or not, from the perspective of our faith, hope is perhaps the most appropriate of all responses.  Jesus himself says so in Luke 21. Just a couple of verses after the one’s I quoted above Jesus says, “When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads

because your redemption is drawing near.” 

Yes, that’s right, in the midst of all these terrible events, our faith produces in us the most unexpected reaction.  We have hope. Don’t get Jesus wrong?  We do not rejoice over such horrible events.  These terrorist attacks are not our reason for hope.  Our hope comes from Him.  The fact that He warns that such things will happen reminds us that He is still in control.  None of this surprises Him.  He, our God and Savior, is still King.  That is good news. For we know that He who rules over all things – He loves us.  We know that we can trust Him.  We know that because in love He gave His own Son.  His Son loved us and gave His life for us.  We know that there is nothing that He can’t handle.  After all, not even death could defeat Him.  He rose again!  He did all that because He desires that all men be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. He did all that because He wants to spend all eternity with us. Jesus told us, “I go to prepare a place for you and if I go and prepare a place for You I will come again to received you unto myself that where I am you may be also.”

These things that have happened are terrible.  We must fight terror and hate with all our might.  We understand the anguish, perplexity, and apprehension.  We even experience them but they cannot rule the day for we have something no attack… no terrorist… nothing can take from us..  Jesus gives us something better and stronger.  He gives us hope… hope born of His love, His power and His faithfulness.  With that hope, even in an age of terrorism we can look up, lift up our heads in confidence.  We know that because of Jesus our redemption IS drawing near. 

Waiting for the Master

“But our citizenship is heaven,

And from it we eagerly await a Savior,

Our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Philippians 3:20

I really want you  to take a close look at the picture of the dog I am posting with this blog.  I took the picture the other day outside our neighborhood grocery store.  Notice that the dog’s leash is not tied to anything.  The dog could easily have walked away, run away, gone anywhere it wanted.  But it didn’t.  The dog stayed right where you see it in this picture.  It was there when I went into the grocery store and the dog was there, standing in the exact same spot, 15 minutes later when I came back out.  I thought, what a great dog –standing there obediently waiting for its master to return.  That’s when it struck me.  That’s us – living life in this world as we wait for the Master, wait for Jesus to return. 

I don’t know about you but that dog puts me to shame.  As the dog waited for its master, it did so obediently.  It stayed right where its master had told it to stay. The dog could have wandered around.  Its master would never have known where it wandered or what it did.  Too often that’s exactly what we do.  When we think no one is looking we do or say or think all sorts of things that we shouldn’t.  We live our lives like children whose teacher has left the room.  We think we can get away with anything and not get caught.  That’s when we get in trouble.  That’s when we wander away from the Master.  That’s when we risk getting lost.  That’s what might have happened to that dog if it had wandered off.  But it didn’t.  Instead it waited obediently for its master.  Yep puts me to shame.  What about you?

You know that you and I have the same reasons that dog had for waiting obediently.  That dog knows its master loves it.  That dog knows that its master has never failed to take care of it. That dog trusted its master.  Such trust is the source of obedience.  That why that dog stayed there, in that same spot, obediently waiting. WE know those things too..  WE know that our Master loves us.  He gave His own Son.  His own Son took on flesh and blood to die for our sins and rise again that we might have life.  He cares for us.  He forgives us. He gives us family, friend, church, neighbor… all that we need.  He listens to and in His own way answers our prayers.  WE know that if He did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, He will freely give us all things.  He will never leave us or forsake us.  From such truths are born the miracle of faith… faith that waits obediently for our Master.

One final observation about the dog – it was standing.  The dog never sat down.  That dog was expecting its master to return at any moment.  That dog wanted to be ready.  That’s the other great blessing that is the fruit of faith – expectant hope.  We trust Jesus.  We believe He keeps His promises.  Therefore we live our lives eagerly awaiting our savior!  We know our Master, our Savior will come for us… is coming to take us home… home to be with Him forever.  No matter what is going on right now – good or bad – the hope we have in Jesus keeps us hoping… keep us on our feet expecting His good gifts to come… keeps us eagerly waiting for the Master, Jesus our Savior.  Amen.