Home     |     Sitemap     |     Contents Dear Everyone November 30, 2018 There is more to life than I have lived so far. There is probably more to life than most of us have lived so far. Learning to live our lives to their fullest potential is my prayer and my desire for all who read these words. This is a dangerous prayer, a very dangerous request. We need God’s help. We need Jesus as our role model, Lord and Savior to start with so that we won’t chicken out when push comes to shove. We need the Holy Spirit. Everyone does! He is like the cell tower between God’s heart and ours. Jesus, God’s Son, lived his life to its fullest potential. He showed us what that looks like. He did not wimp out. It cost Him his life. The apostles lived their lives to the fullest potential. They paid with their lives because they followed Jesus. Many heroes of the Faith were martyred. Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King were assassinated. Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves. It cost him his life. Today both men are celebrated heroes and a part of our national holiday calendar. They were killed because they took an uncompromising stand. They did and said and wrote what angered the world and the devil. They could not do otherwise. Jesus was crucified. Today He is both celebrated and hated around the world. Do I have the courage to be hated because I follow Jesus and let the world around me know I do? So far Jesus has kept us hidden in a small mountain community in Southwestern Colorado; but it might not always be that way if I am willing to live my life to its fullest potential. I have ventured out on a limb with some of my thoughts, beliefs and activities that have earned me a place on the front-page of our local paper and Satan’s hit list. I have salted our local paper with ads that have infuriated the devil: Salting Pagosa Springs. Heaven celebrates when we don’t hide our faith and let the world know that Jesus is God and our God. Heaven celebrates when we have the courage to turn over the money-changer’s tables, especially when we know that this may cost us our life or a place behind bars. Maybe you are at a juncture in your life, wondering what life, what God has in store for you next? Maybe according to the world’s definition of success, you have already scaled Mt. Everest and made it to the top academically and professionally? Maybe those who watched you scale such heady heights marveled and applauded? And maybe you crashed and your fan club vanished overnight? Jesus’ fan club vanished overnight. One day the crowd cheered for Him; the next day another crowd shouted "Crucify Him." I also know what that feels like and you may too. I crashed but by the grace of God, did not burn. Maybe you have crashed, but by the grace of God did not burn? It takes a long time to reassemble shattered hopes and lives and know what is worth keeping and what to trash. As I look back, I see my crashing as God’s amazing grace. I was chasing fool’s gold and my own glory. He had to do something drastic to get my attention. I was promoting myself – my “self” instead of Jesus. My “good education” did not cost me as much as it may have cost you because I had the GI bill that paid for it. I am glad I went through the discipline required to get the degree. I had to prove to myself that I could do it; and I did it. Jesus, though, was never a part of my worldly success story. I took all the credit and loved the applause. Neither was Jesus a part of my arduous two years of being a soldier during the Korean War. It’s something I had to go through to be who I am today and learn what this cruel world looks and feels like. God was in charge of my life back then even though I was not aware of it or acknowledged Him. In fact, I earned six college credits towards my worldly degree by being a soldier. I am still in school and am still a soldier at age 85. It’s called the school of hard knocks and boot camp. I see myself today as the richest man in the world; not because I have a degree or a fat bank account, but because I have Jesus and Jesus has me – all of me I hope. I have burnt my degree and other worldly accolades and don’t have a fat bank account. But I am debt-free because Jesus paid for all my sins and false starts and I know it. Jesus told me if I wanted to be a part of His team, I had to be willing to wear the mantel of humility and obedience. That has been tough. I really enjoyed flashing my worldly credentials and doing my own thing. At age 37 I sold out to God, to Jesus. I had tried the world and the world spit me out. A little later I tried the church and the church spit me out. I became well acquainted with the word “rejection.” It was a tough word to get acquainted with, but eventually it became my friend. In fact, I feel honored that the world and the church spit me out. Jesus warned us that this might happen; and it did. It will as soon as we put Jesus on the front burner of our lives – say “YES” to Jesus and mean it! All the hurts and hurdles in my life built a heart of compassion in me for others who are on a similar quest. All the battles made me into a fierce warrior. I also learned that the world, the devil and my ego are cruel and deceptive taskmasters. I also found out that I am not a saint and need God’s amazing grace to make it from day to day. Today my life is intoxicating and full of surprises and yes, also shocks. I no longer have to go out into the world to seek adventure. In fact, I need a walker just now to get around. Challenges and opportunities knock at our door. They also arrive via mail, e-mail and the telephone. I prefer to stay in my robe and pajamas and greet visitors in that attire. I am writing these words to you today while sitting in the Rocking Chair of God’s Heart in the Upper Room. I am in my robe and pajamas. Try out “That Chair” for size and see if it fits you. Write if it does. I locked you into my heart the moment you walked into our lives. I am 85 and ready to hand you the baton to carry on and finish the race. Please help Rebekah and I finish ours. Whether I am on this side or the other side of the Jordan, know that I enjoy being a cheerleader; your cheerleader if you let me. And please cheer for me, for us, Rebekah and I. I do have those “difficult days”, especially after my heart has been broken by cruel words and cruel stripes. I made the decision a very long time ago that I would rather take the beating, take the stripes for following Jesus than be the one doing the beating. Yes, I have been wounded by those sitting at our very table. Both of our lives have recently been threatened. We both know first-hand what the devil looks like and how he operates. He is fiendishly clever. It will be a much harder for him to deceive us in the future. Jesus will not be beaten with stripes again and neither will I. I thank all those Good Samaritans and angels who have come along, picked me up, picked Rebekah up and brought us to a safe place where we can hide and heal under the shelter of His wings. When I have healed; when I am strong again, when I have come out of hiding, I will be wearing my full armor 24/7. The world and the devil will not dare to touch me or my handmaiden Rebekah again. If you don’t hear from us for a while, we may still be hiding and healing. When you try to call us and get a busy signal, we may have taken the phone off of the hook. Take it as a sign that we still need you to lift up our arms. But I will come back and when I do, I will come back strong with a flaming sword in my hand. For more, go to: A Declaration of War. Should this be the very last letter I post on our cyberspace bulletin board, these are the words on my heart: Unless Jesus is on the front-burner of my life, I will never get hot for Jesus but stay lukewarm. Unless Jesus is on the front-burner of my life, I will never know what it is like to live with passion and compassion. Unless Jesus is on the front-burner of my life, the words of Paul, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” Galatians 2:20 will not be a personal reality. Unless Jesus is on the front-burner of my life, I will never win the war over the lust of the flesh, the pride of life and the devil. Unless Jesus is on the front-burner of my life, I will never know Jesus in His fullness or know how to make Him known. Peter, the Lord’s Scribe Sitemap    |    E-mail Us    |    Contents All writings by Peter, the Lord's Scribe and Storyteller and all paintings by Rebekah, the Lord's artist are copyright free.