“pray continually”
~ 1 Thessalonians 5:17
Hi James and Ellen,
Do you spend a lot of time everyday looking out of your house’s living room window hoping to see your grandmaa and grandpaa showing up at your house again? When your dad goes to the store, do you wait at your house’s living room window waiting for your dad to get back from the store? How do you feel when a guy and/or gal who you really like – like your Aunt Lynn and Uncle Chris, leaves your house after spending time with you and you do not know when you will see him and/or her again? Your grandpaa always feels sad when he has to say goodbye to a guy and/or gal who he really likes. Your grandpaa met your grandmaa in the fall of 1961 – about a month or so after classes began at Dordt College. Dordt College is located in Sioux Center, Iowa. When the school year ended in the spring of 1962 at Dordt College, your grandpaa went with your grandmaa, your grandmaa’s ma and dad and your dad’s Aunt Sandy to your grandmaa’s home in Wilmington, Delaware. Your grandpaa had never been to Delaware. After a couple of fun weeks in Delaware, your grandpaa headed back to the home of his ma and dad – which was a farm near Volga, South Dakota. Your grandmaa’s ma and dad took your grandpaa to Philadelphia to get on a bus that took your grandpaa to Chicago. Your grandmaa went with her ma and dad to say goodbye to your grandpaa at the Philadelphia bus terminal. As the bus was leaving the Philadelphia bus terminal, your grandpaa could see your grandmaa standing with her ma and dad as they watched your grandpaa’s bus leave. Your grandpaa really did not want to leave your grandmaa as your grandpaa knew that there was a possibility that he would never see your grandmaa again. Your grandpaa was feeling really, really sad as the bus was leaving the bus terminal in Philadelphia. Your grandpaa thought that your grandmaa was the nicest gal who he had ever met. Your grandpaa always liked being with your grandmaa – who was always a whole lot of fun and always full of puns. Your grandpaa knew that he had never met a gal who was as pretty and as classy as your grandmaa. The mental picture of where your grandmaa was standing with her ma and dad at the Philadelphia bus terminal – as the bus that your grandpaa was on was leaving the bus terminal, and the look that was on your grandmaa’s face in those last few moments that your grandpaa could still see your grandmaa, will always remain embedded in your grandpaa’s mind. When your grandpaa arrived in Chicago, your grandpaa had to get on another bus which . . . your grandpaa is very thankful that God divinely led him to return to Delaware where your grandmaa about a year later married your grandpaa.
Your grandpaa knows that your grandmaa did not spend time standing in front of the living room window in the house where your grandmaa was living – thinking that your grandpaa would at any moment return to Delaware. Your grandpaa really wanted to go back to Delaware – as your grandpaa really wanted to be with the beautiful, talented, fun young gal who would become your grandmaa but . . . your grandpaa now knows that marrying your grandmaa had to have been totally driven by God. God blessed your grandpaa by impressing on him to really want to go back to Delaware a second time – this time to find a job and to stay in Delaware. Do you know Jesus? Have you ever met Jesus – in person? Jesus’ birth on planet Earth happened about 2000 years ago. Jesus lived for a little over thirty years on planet Earth. Jesus came to planet Earth as God the Son. Jesus came to planet Earth to give guys, gals and kids who were living and who would live on planet Earth hope. Every single guy, gal or kid who is led by God the Spirit to make a decision of faith to believe in Jesus as his or her Lord and Savior receives this gift of hope. Every guy, gal or kid who makes a decision of faith to believe in Jesus as his or her Lord and Savior now look forward to seeing Jesus again. God has promised to send Himself as His Son again to planet Earth – at which time He will bring to His realm in heaven all the guys, gals and kids who have made decisions of faith. If you have made a decision of faith to believe in Jesus as your Lord and Savior, have you been waiting at your house’s living room window looking for Jesus’ return planet Earth? There were guys and gals who were at every moment expectantly looking forward to Jesus’ imminent return again to planet Earth. The Thessalonica Church’s Christ-follower guys and gals were waiting for Jesus’ return to planet Earth. Paul would send a letter to the Christ-follower guys and gals in the Thessalonica Church telling these guys and gals that how they were waiting for Jesus’ return really was not something that they should be doing. Paul in Thessalonians 5 tells the Thessalonica Church’s Christ-follower guys and gals that Jesus when He does return to planet Earth again to take all the guys, gals and kids who are following Him to heaven to be with Him there that Jesus will come like a thief in the night to do it.
What is something that you can do when you are waiting for a guy, gal or kid to show up at your house who you would really like to see again when you have no idea at all when the guy, gal or kid is going to show up at your house’s door or in your life again? Paul knew that the Thessalonica Church’s Christ-follower guys and gals needed to focus on other things versus focusing on Jesus’ return. Your grandpaa remembers spending a lot time thinking about your grandmaa as he was riding on buses from Philadelphia to Volga. Paul left several micro vignettes for the Thessalonica Church’s Christ-follower guys and gals to think about – such as always give thanks, always be joyful, always stay away from evil and in verse 17, “pray continually”. What have you been doing as you wait for the return of your grandmaa and grandpaa to your house. Have you been continually praying for your grandmaa and grandpaa?
1 Thessalonians 5 (238)