Resolution Kept

   Did you make any New Year resolutions this year? I don't usually make a list of person improvement resolutions, but this January I did decide I will read through the Martyrs Mirror as part of my devotional time. I had read portions of Martyrs Mirror, but never read the entire book. I found a complete version online and began reading it in January. I read about three pages per day although there were times I skipped a day or two. I read page 1141 this morning.

 The gigantic book contains graphic accounts of more than 4,000 Christians who endured suffering, torture, and a martyr’s death because of their simple faith in the gospel of Christ. It includes more than 50 finely detailed etchings by noted Dutch artist Jan Luyken. 

   The accounts call believers to follow Jesus in all areas of life, even unto death. Come what may, true Christian commitment demands supreme discipleship and steadfast adherence to the teachings modeled by Jesus and his apostles. Songs, letters, prayers, and confessions of faith appear with the stories of many “defenseless Christians” who were able to love their enemies and return good for evil.

   Written and published in 1659 by a Dutch Mennonite, Thieleman J. van Braght, to strengthen the faith of his fellow believers, the book was treasured by Mennonites for generations.

   These are some of the impressions I got from reading the entire book:

1. Unregenerate man is utterly wicked. They were worse than animals in the ways they tortured human beings. It's too horrible to repeat here.

2. The great patience of the martyrs in their suffering is amazing. Over and over they repeated that suffering was to be expected. The letters they wrote to family and friends while in prison contained few descriptions of their sufferings and torture. Instead, they assured the readers they were remaining steadfast in the faith and encouraged them to do the same.

3. The joyful anticipation of the martyrs of their deaths. It was often referred to as "offering my sacrifice." Frequently they expressed joy that they were counted worthy to give their lives for His sake.

4. The great price nonresistant Mennonites paid for their faith. Those who were arrested had their property confiscated and the proceeds from the sale went to either the church or the state or was simply pocketed by the authorities. Those who were exiled from their homes and shipped out of the country left everything they owned behind. 

5. The beliefs of the Mennonites that differed with the state church were infant baptism, nonresistance, no swearing of oaths, transubstantiation, the role of Mary, and ability of the priests to forgive sin.

   Both the Catholic and Reformed churches persecuted Mennonites for their faith. Persecution continued in Switzerland after it had ended in Holland. The Dutch Mennonites helped their Swiss brothers, writing pleas to the authorities to let them live in peace and helping them to leave the country. When hundreds of Swiss were deported and sent to Germany in 1671, the Dutch sent relief funds. They also helped Mennonites emigrate to Pennsylvania in the early 1700s. Some of them brought with them their treasured copies of Martyrs Mirror. It was translated into German in 1748 at the time of the French and Indian War. In 1886, Martyrs Mirror was translated into English to continue to challenge generations of Christians in North America.

   It took me nearly a year, but I kept my 2021 resolution and read the whole thing.

Martyrs Mirror printed in German at Ephrata, Pa., in 1748

A Stitch At A Time

   In September I seized the opportunity to take a tablecloth from a pile of things my brother-in-law was giving away. His wife (who passed away last year) had bought this tablecloth and only got a few stitches in it. Summer was winding down and I was looking for something to do this winter. I took it thinking it would take me all winter to do it.

   On October 1, I put the first stitches in it. I had not done any embroidery for a long time and enjoyed it so much I couldn't let it alone. I'm not writing a book this winter so I had lots of free time and kept stitching away. I put the last stitches in it this morning. I surprised myself by finishing it in one month and twenty-one days. I have no idea how many hours I have in it.

   I chose the colors to go with my kitchen. It is on the table now but covered with a piece of clear plastic to protect it from spills and stains. We've come a long ways from the days when I used a terry tablecloth because of the frequent spills! Can two old fogies be trusted to keep it clean?

center design

corner design

Led Captivity Captive

   I have read the Bible ever since I could read and memorized passages. I grew up with the King James Version and it is still my preferred version, although I do use other versions for study. Being so familiar with the KJV, I can read over words and phrases without stopping to think what it is really saying. 

   I was reading Ephesians 4 yesterday when the phrase "he led captivity captive" grabbed my attention. Ephesians 4:8 "Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men." 

   The verse is a quotation of Psalm 68:18. "Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men." Clearly, this is a prophecy of the ascension of Jesus and coming of the Holy Spirit. But what do the words "he led captivity captive" mean? Maybe you already know and I am just exposing my ignorance. A little study revealed the meaning and I'll never read over it so lightly again.

   At the time when the Bible was written, great conquerors rode in their triumphal chariots with their captives led in chains on public display.  It is a phrase used in the Old Testament to signify a conquest over enemies, especially over such as formerly had led others captive.

    Jesus conquered the things that had conquered us---sin, the devil, and death. He triumphed over these on the cross; but the triumph was completed at his ascension, when he became Lord over all, and had the keys of death and hades put into his hands. 

   Today there are seventeen missionaries being held captive by violent gang members. If someone would go in and capture the captors, the hostages could go free. That's what Jesus did for us. He captured our captors and set us free from the power of sin and death. The captors are now in captivity.

Tarnished Silver

   We received a pair of silver candle holders for a wedding gift more than fifty years ago. I really liked them and had them on the coffee table for a long time. But, as it goes with silver, they became tarnished and no longer were attractive. I tried to clean them but the silver cleaner I had did not do the job so I put them away. I thought about them once in awhile but didn't remember where I had put them.

   In my fall cleaning this month I found the poor neglected pair of candle holders. Ignoring them had not solved the tarnish problem; they were more black than ever. This time I used a different cleaner and the tarnish disappeared like magic. With their shine restored, they resumed a place of honor on the coffee table. 

   The restoration of the tarnished silver is an illustration of what happens when the proper cleaning solution is applied to the soul. We are pure and innocent at birth. As we grow, human nature begins to appear and the tarnishing begins. The longer the problem is ignored, the worse it becomes. 

   We may resolve to reform and change our wrong behavior, but that does not solve the problem. Not until the blood of Jesus is applied will the tarnish of sin be removed and the heart and mind transformed. With the shine restored, we are useful and a glory to God.

   Knowing the nature of silver, the candle holders will need polishing regularly to maintain their shine. In the same way, human nature keeps cropping up after our initial cleansing. We need a spiritual maintenance program to maintain our shine. The polish is daily Bible reading and prayer. We need the Word of God in us to purify and cleanse the way we think, which in turn affects our actions and prevents tarnish.

   "Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word" (Ephesians 5:25b-26.

Boys and Noise

   I remember a poem about boys that was in our church papers way back in the 1950s. My mother cut it out and taped it on the cupboard door in the kitchen because it perfectly described my brothers at that time. Years passed, and I often thought of that poem while I was raising boys. I could still quote the beginning and ending but my memory was foggy on the middle.
   Today I found the poem in a book compiled by Marjorie Ebersole titled Living in Sonshine. In the book, multiple writers shared stories and thoughts about their experiences in raising boys. 

  Here's the poem.

Boys and Noise

by Martha Schmucker

Boys screech and scream

To let off steam.

They laugh and sing

Till echoes ring.

They growl and roar

Behind the door. 

They holler and whoop,

Whistle and toot.

They cheer and chatter,

Clash and clatter.

They moan and mumble, 

Groan and grumble.

They yell and shout, 

Indoors and out.

But who would want boys

Without their noise. 

Happy Birthday Little One

    On Saturday we were privileged to join in celebrating Abigail's first birthday. It was a beautiful evening for a lawn party. The theme was bears and the color was pink. Of course! This was a party for a little girl who is sugar and spice and everything nice.

   The years of waiting for her are fading into a memory as we enjoyed watching her grow and develop in the past year. (Go back to my March 6, 2020, post on how she was brought to life.) She isn't walking without support yet but it won't be long. She has discovered the piano makes sounds and she can climb to the top of the stairs. 

    We are looking forward to watching her continue to grow and develop in the next year. I'm waiting to hear her say "grandma." Grandchildren are the greatest reward for old age!

Seasons

     I hear people saying, "Where did the summer go?" and wonder the same thing. With most of our usual summer activities held on schedule this year, the summer zipped by. We have only five more days until fall officially begins. But already the markets are filled with mums, pumpkins, and other things that silently shout fall is about to pounce on us.

  It's human nature to resist change. Though we might enjoy each season and appreciate a change once it's taken place, there's an undercurrent of anxiety that comes with the build up to the actual change. And though we've let go of the summer in a lot of ways by now, we can't help but hesitate to embrace the new season because we know what fall is leading up to.

   As the equinox creeps closer, the changes are barely noticeable and easy to ignore. It is easier to embrace the beginnings of fall while it is still summer, because we can safely enjoy fall without having to say goodbye to summer.  And then one day we look up and see fall is no longer approaching, it is here. We will flip the calendar to October and resign ourselves to the fact that the summer is over and gone. The change has come and we settle back to enjoy it.

 

The Many Different Seasons

There are many different seasons

In life that we go through,

Times of God's blessing and peace

And times of hardship too.

No matter what the season, 

We find that we are in, 

God is there to lead us on

And give us hope within.

And when the seasons of hardships

Have come into our lives,

We can be encouraged by God

For our hope is placed in Christ.

For we know it's only temporary

And will change as seasons do,

Though it feels like an eternity

And we wonder if we'll get through.

But God's rivers of mercy

Flow down from heaven above

To bring to us refreshment

And to touch us with His love.

So thank the Lord for the seasons,

As different as they are,

And for the growth that comes from it,

Bringing change within our hearts.

By M. S. Lowndes