Diane Mickler's Blog

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. Micah 5:2

The birth of our Lord and Savior was anything but what we would expect for the birth of a king. It came on a starry night, in a stable, surrounded by animals, shepherds, wise men, and two very inexperienced parents. The bed of the Savior was anything but comfortable as He laid his sweet head in a manger.

The word, manger, comes from a Latin word for chew or eat. It refers to a trough where donkeys and cattle come to eat. It is cold, damp and unsanitary.

The manger that held our Lord as a baby was dirty. I know Mary and Joseph did their best to clean it and somehow pad it for their baby, but the fact remains it was a feeding trough for slobbering animals. Jesus laid in a cold feeding trough and not a royal bed.

God arranged the years leading up to the birth to fulfill the scripture in Micah 5:2. He had the most powerful leader of the day order a census which would bring all the characters in His drama to the city of Bethlehem on the same night. I hear people say constantly during this pandemic, “What in the world is God doing? Why doesn’t He get involved?” If we think He’s not involved in all that goes on in this world, think again. He has and is putting the pieces together exactly as He wants them.

He organized the birth of Jesus carefully. He had the angel appear to the shepherds to declare, “For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior who is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:11 Then He clarified the announcement by adding a sign so there would be no mistake. The sign was the manger: You shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. Luke 2:12 If the shepherds and wise men found a baby in a manger, He was the king.

In the announcement, God uses three words to describe Jesus: Savior, Christ, and Lord. The words Savior implies that He will deliver us from our enemies. The word Christ implies He is the Messiah. The word Lord implies authority and power.

For God to use a manger to introduce His son to the world has a symbolism of its own for me. Animals could always approach the manger anytime day or night and there would be food there. The farmer was careful to always have the manger filled for them. The infant Jesus came to be sure His people are always fed. No one needs to be afraid to come to His manger for there will always be food for our souls there, He is the bread of life.

Throughout his life, Jesus used the manger of His humble beginnings to feed those who followed Him with healing, teaching, miracles, and finally the gift of eternal life.

As we approach the manger this Christmas, let’s not forget the humble beginnings of our Lord and Savior who came as a babe, yet lived to be King of Kings.

Merry Christmas!

Away in a Manger no crib for His bed; The little Lord Jesus lay down His sweet head. The stars in the sky look down where He lay. The little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay. Martin Luther

Silent night, Holy night, All is calm, All is bright. Round yon virgin mother and child; Holy Infant so tender and mild; Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent Night, Holy Night, Son of God, Love’s pure light; Radiant beams from heaven afar; Heavenly hosts, sing Alleluia; Christ the Savior is born; Christ the Savior is born. Franz Xaver Gruber

My soul glories the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior for He has been mindful of the humble state of His servant. Luke 1:46-48

The Christmas story has been played out on live stages, outside stables, and churches everywhere for as long as we can remember. The characters are always the same; Mary, Joseph, the Innkeeper, the Wise Men, the Shepherds, the Angels, the stable animals, and of course, the baby Jesus.

When Randy and I served our very small churches, it became necessary for us to be in charge of the production on some years. Almost every young girl wanted to be Mary, and it wasn’t an easy job to choose Mary from a group of young girls vying for the starring role. I wonder if those girls would have been as courageous as Mary, and I wonder if she, herself, would have ever chosen that role if Jesus had not chosen her?

Scholars believe that the virgin Mary was only 14-15 years old when the angel Gabriel appeared to her and gave her the news that she was to bear a child that was the Son of God. This announcement turned her life upside down. She had planned to marry Joseph, then have a child, but God called her to a different plan. She was called upon to bear shame, reproach and humiliation for the Glory of God. Hers is the greatest honor ever afforded to a woman, yet it came at the cost of tremendous social disgrace.

History tells us that every Jewish girl of that time hoped God would use them as a vessel through which He would send His Messiah into the world. Despite the shame, Mary was willing to submit her life to the will of God and, in so doing, she became the Mother of Jesus.

In speaking of how Mary must have felt when her holy child was born, Max Lucado says “Mary didn’t know whether to give the baby Jesus milk or give Him praise, so she gave him both. She had to assume He was both hungry and holy.”

Mary exemplifies the characteristics that all Christians should show. She was faithful, obedient, and surrendered her will to that of the Father. Even at her young age, she realized that God was doing something wonderful through her life. After all, she was the vessel through which God entered His son into the world and into the history of the world.

As Christians, each of us have to acknowledge that God has done “great things” in and to us. Think of the changes He has made in our lives, and the blessings and benefits we enjoy as children of God! Think of the glory that awaits each of us as God’s child. We have been blessed abundantly. Like Mary, our soul glories the Lord.

In the cast of characters, which part would we choose to play today if we could go back to that time and place? Which part would we play in the Christmas story? Are we just content to admire Mary, or would it behoove us all to be more like her? Our role should not be that of the people who judged her, but rather of the ones who praised her for her role! I wonder if she ever knew the impact she has had on the Christian world!

Mary did you know that your Baby Boy would someday walk on water? Mary did you know that your Baby Boy would save our sons and daughters? Did you know that Baby Boy has come to make you new? The child that you delivered will one day deliver you. Mary did you know that your Baby Boy will give sight to a blind man? Mary did you know that your baby boy will calm the storm with His hand? Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod? When you kiss your little baby, you kiss the face of God.

Mary Did You Know by Mark Lowry and Buddy Green

So Jesus said to him, “unless you see signs and wonders, you will not believe“. John 4:48

I read lately that every miracle must have a witness in order to be a miracle. Someone has to be there to record it and to report the results.

A miracle is startling, but it is simple. It is simple because it is a miracle. It is power coming directly from God instead of indirectly through nature or human wills says G. K. Chesterton Miracles appear in the scripture when God is speaking to his people through accredited messengers, and because of that, miracles in the Bible always have a purpose. Jesus’ sole purpose in miracles was to teach spiritual truth, demonstrate his own character and show His father’s power. Miracles had one purpose – to confirm faith. Jesus himself is the one convincing and permanent miracle. If Christ had not been raised from the dead, out faith is useless.

The miracles of Jesus serve as a glimpse and foretaste of what God will accomplish on a grand and glorious scale when Jesus comes to establish the New heaven and the New Earth. The miracles of Jesus offer a foretaste of that day-a glimpse of heaven on earth. Miracles show the compassion Jesus had for people. He used miracles to teach us to have faith.

The birth of Jesus is a miracle in itself! A virgin girl from a humble background chosen to be the mother of our Savior!! God sent a miracle in the form of a tiny baby who would save the sins of the world. God came down in human form to show the world His love and His willingness to show that love by living and teaching among us. He used wise men, shepherds and angels as witnesses of the miracle of the holy birth.

If miracles need witnesses, then what a great opportunity for us. This world needs a cloud of witnesses to proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord. We can witness that a babe was born of a virgin in Bethlehem. We can be a witness that that Babe gave His life for you and for me. We can witness that He took away your sins and mine by His death. He gives a grace that not only forgives our sins, but offers relief from pain and grief. The church can be the kind of witness that reaches out to a world that is hurting.

Disciples were witnesses of the miracles of Jesus during His ministry as were others. They gave witness to the power of the resurrection. We, as Christians, have to be of one mind, one heart and one soul as we witness to the world of the coming of the light of the world born as a babe in a manger.

We need miracles in our lives today, and this Christmas I’m praying that we will see them. God wants us to have miracles of kindness, miracles of healing, miracles of forgiveness, miracles of answered prayer, miracles of joy, miracles of peace, and miracles of love.

As we celebrate Christmas this year, let’s take the time to witness the miracles all around us every day!

Merry Christmas!

Miracles do happen, they happen every day. We don’t recognize them for our minds get in the way. We think we know what’s going on when something strange occurs, but when we try to figure it out, the vision often blurs. There is no explanation when God comes by our way and does things that are not possible on any ordinary day. We often say quite honestly, we want a gift from God, but when He gives us one we end up feeling odd. We see it or we feel it but we still don’t quite believe that this is indeed a miracle our minds just can’t conceive. But God’s so good, He loves us so and has such mighty power, He cares for us and fills our needs, no matter the day or hour. Elizabeth Thornton Watkins

Climb a high mountain, Zion. You are the preacher of good news. Raise your voice. Make it good and loud, Jerusalem. You are the preacher of good news! Speak loud and clear. Don’t be timid! Isaiah 40:9 from The Message

The Advent season is already upon us, and thankfully, we can begin to turn our hearts and minds toward this season of light and love. I love this time of the year for many reasons, but I especially enjoy the Christmas story because it never gets old. It is interesting to me how important stories are, not only, to the Christian, but also to history, family, and remembrances.

A story is a conversation which gives us a way to get to know others, to explain relationships, and to find a connection with others. As Lewis Grizzard always said, “How’s your Mama and them?” In other words, tell me about them. Stories give a context to our lives and help us make it through the days.

You can tell a lot about a person from their conversation. If that person answers Yes or No to questions asked them with no elaboration, then obviously they are not interested in hearing or discussing any stories that others might relate or entering into conversation. If they eagerly add to the conversation. a world of stories and information can happen among people. During this time 2000+ years ago, there were those who didn’t want to hear the story of a babe that was to be born in a manger, but there were those who believed and wanted to hear more!

The world today is trying to say that the birth of Jesus, the cross, the Resurrection, and the Kingdom of God doesn’t matter. They are also interested in telling us that there is no right or wrong in this world today. People can do whatever makes them happy, and we will all go along and get along. They don’t seem to be interested in the stories that the Christian world is eager to tell.

Stories of Jesus are needed more than ever in this world of today. The world needs to hear that a Savior was born, lived, died, and rose from the grave. We need to hear that He was born for all of us no matter our station in life. It is through these stories that Jesus knits the the Kingdom of God together for us.

There is nothing like a pandemic to let us know that the stories we would like to tell or thought we would be telling this time last year will probably be different than what we had planned. It reminds us once again, that when we make plans, God laughs. He is in control.

During this time of year, our hearts just seem to turn to memories of family, friends, and loved ones who aren’t with us. There is nothing so dear as family members gathered together to relate stories of a loved one. It’s how we keep their sweet memory alive.

God sent His son to restore order out of the chaos of our lives, make sense out of the senseless, and connect the dots to piece things together. Not all of the stories in the Bible are easy to understand and some can be labeled as strange, but together they intertwine to tell God’s bigger story.

The story of Jesus is a beautiful story of love that came down to provide redemption for the people God dearly loves. They show His glory, reveal His character, and proclaim the truth that leads us to Him.

As we prepare our hearts to receive Him this season, remember to tell the stories of His love! So many in our world today need to hear them!

Forget not all His benefits. Psalm 103:2

For many years, the Mt. Bethel church family had a special way to close out each service on Sunday. We as a congregation, held hands across the aisles and pews and sang together our trademark benediction. The words went like this: May the good Lord bless and keep you, whether near or far away. May you find that long awaited golden day today. May your troubles all be small ones, and your fortune ten times ten. May the good Lord bless and keep you til we meet again. It was our blessing for each other for the week.

The word blessing or Makarios literally means happiness. It was a wish for happiness, health, and living in God’s favor until we met again. It was so special, and it bonded us as a church and as God’s people. Who wouldn’t want to start your week with a wish for happiness?

Now we come again to that season of the year where we thank God for His blessings, ask to experience His happiness, and for His favor to be upon us. The year 2020 has not been a year which offered us many chances to reflect on our blessings; yet gratitude isn’t a natural response to adversity, it’s a discipline you develop!

In the midst of reflecting on this year, it would be easy to think that God hasn’t blessed us, but if we sit back and think back, I bet we will find many reasons for counting those blessings. Think back on His faithfulness through the years to us, our family, our friends, our country, and we’ll soon be filled with so much gratitude and joy! An attitude of gratitude in the midst of the adversity all around us will bring us to our knees. Tough times don’t end over night as we have seen, but there is much hope for us this Thanksgiving.

Habakkuk says, “Though fig trees may not grow, though there may be no grapes on the vines; no olives; no food growing in the fields; no sheep in the pens, no cattle in the barns, yet I will still rejoice in God my Savior.

We succeed in rejoicing in God always by staying focused on our blessings and not our troubles. When we take time to remember our blessings, it will change our attitude and our outlook. Stay focused.

We, as Christians, have the blessing of being able to take everything to God – the little things, the tiny things, and the trivial things of life. We pray earnestly, petition, and wait. God will answer.

We are blessed when we stay faithful. It’s easy to stay faithful when everything is going well and all is comfortable and right with the world. However, when we hit a time when our world seems to be falling apart right before us, that’s the time to look up and declare, “I have faith in God that it will happen just as He told me.” (Acts 27:25) Blessings don’t trickle in if you are faithful to God, they come in abundance.

My Daddy was a farmer, and when he planted a seed, it didn’t resemble the mature plant. Sometimes we don’t recognize our blessings because they are still in seed form, and we don’t recognize them for what they are when God is finished with them. Look around for those seeds we might inadvertently miss in our lives every day.

Jesus taught His disciples to be distributors of blessings to those around them. This Thanksgiving, my prayer is that we will be distributors and that there will be showers of blessings around each of us.

We can praise God too little, but we can never praise Him too much!

Happy Thanksgiving!

There will be showers of blessings, This is the promise of love; There shall be seasons refreshing, Sent from the Savior above. Showers of blessings, showers of blessings we need; Mercy drops round us are falling, But for the showers we plead. Showers of Blessings by Daniel Whittle

Because we know that this extraordinary day is just ahead, we pray for you all the time – pray that our God will make you fit for what He’s called you to be, pray that He will fill your good ideas and acts of faith with His own energy so that it amounts to something. II Thessalonians 1:11 from The Message

Years ago Randy and I had an extraordinary opportunity to visit Africa with some dear friends on a business trip of sorts. It was a case of ordinary people being able to do extraordinary things! How many people can say they went on an animal observation safari, saw the Big Five, traveled dirt roads and encountered animals in the wild, provided an impala to feed an African village, sat out among the gorgeous Northern Lights, camped while wild animals drank from a stream nearby, slept in a hollowed out cave, met an elephant mouse, saw the world from atop a mountain while spreading a cloth and eating a picnic, and even rode an elephant??!! Extraordinary!

Extraordinary is defined as very unusual or remarkable, and our to Africa to do a mission trip in Kenya where they ministered to children, baptized some children and adults, led in worship, and shared with them the saving grace of Jesus.

Upon the return, several of these people joined together and founded a new Mission and began a great work in Africa. It’s heartwarming to see Annie, her husband and their ministry with children in Kenya. It is a testament to me that God can do extraordinary work through ordinary people.

Extraordinary experiences happen every day, and it doesn’t have to be on a huge scale – it can be as simple as a phone call to a friend, a meal delivered to someone in need, a kind word to a stranger, or just doing an extraordinary work in your job. Every life can be transformed.

So, how do we allow God to do extraordinary things through ordinary people such as ourselves? I believe the first step in allowing God to do extraordinary things in us is to change our view of perfection. D. W. Winnecott said, “Being perfect is overrated”; there is no need to try to be perfect. It’s all right to make mistakes and even to apologize if we get it wrong, that’s where mercy enters in. Don’t be reluctant to ask for guidance, but rather rely on God to take a willing heart and use it.

In all the things we do, the next thing is to affirm others who are willing to take an extraordinary journey with us or on their own. Everyone needs affirmation and encouragement along the way. The story is told of a family gathering where children were allowed to sit at the adult table for the first time at a Sunday dinner. Almost immediately one of the children spilled their glass of tea. Silence ensued, then one by one the adults and other children at the table knocked over their glass as well. That’s affirmation.

Next, don’t quit once you begin the extraordinary journey. Quitting is often the easiest course of action when we encounter hardships along our journey, but quitting should never be an option for us when we are on an extraordinary journey to do God’s will. Most people who seek to do God’s will meet with discouragements, disappointments and continual opposition, but it’s just a temporary roadblock to reaching our goal.

Our grandson, Cooper is the center for his football team in Buford. He has the constant responsibility of hiking the ball and anchoring the offensive line on every single offensive play. Nobody moves until he hikes the ball! The key to his position is never to quit on a hike, a block, or tackle. Their team just won the state championship for their league. Extraordinary effort from an ordinary bunch of guys who dare to never quit!

We all have someone we know who does or has done extraordinary things with their ordinary life. They touch the lives of their family, their friends, their work associates, and others through the things they do or the example they set day by day. Ordinary people doing extraordinary things!

There are three things that we should remember as we seek an extraordinary life doing extraordinary things; rely on God for everything, always affirm others on their journey, and never ever quit! If we focus on the things God has planned for us, we will accomplish extraordinary things with our ordinary lives!

But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, and we have fellowship with one another, the blood of Jesus His Son, cleanses us from all sin. 1 John 1:7

Although originally debuting in 1971, in Christmas of 1978 there was a Coke commercial that began with one single candle in the darkness and participants singing I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing. As the camera widens, the view is of many people of many different nations and races, all holding candles and singing the song. At the end, you realize they are standing in the shape of a Christmas tree as they sing of harmony and love in the world. Just one candle when the light is shared becomes a beautiful sight of light in the darkness. Oh how far we have come from those days!

It seems a good idea to resurrect this thought of harmony and love in this time of unrest, hatred, division, and general upheaval in this country of ours. We are in a time of darkness that is in desperate need of some light. Who would have imagined an election would cause such divisiveness and disharmony in our great nation? Our democracy has been threatened in so many ways. We could all use just one candle of light.

Last week when much of the area in which we live was suffering the aftermath of Hurricane Zeta, I was texting with friends who were out of electricity. One said, “I’m just sitting here in the darkness.” What a difference just one candle could make in that situation and others like it!

If Christians held out just one candle in this dark time, think how many people might be comforted and strengthened in this world in which we live.

One single candle can be likened to a lighthouse which stands on the shore. What good can a lighthouse really do? It never moves. It can’t run up and down the shore line and rescue a ship. It can’t calm the waters and bring the ship safely to shore. It can’t clear a path for the ship. The miraculous thing it can do is provide a light in the darkness. It can point the way to safety. The light it provides can guide many ships that were in darkness safely to shore. It is a light in the darkness.

There is a reason light was mentioned so many times in the Bible – it’s important to keep the light of Christ burning. The Bible’s account of the ten virgins and their lamps speaks to the importance of keeping the light burning. Five of them were foolish and took no oil for their lamp. Five of them were wise and took enough oil for their lamps. Five of them kept the light burning while five of them were powerless to help.

Mother Teresa takes this parable and adds her thoughts to it with these words: My daughters, what are these drops of oil in our lamps? They are the small things of daily life: faithfulness, punctuality, small words of kindness, a thought for others, our way of being silent, of looking, or speaking and of acting. These are the true drops of love. Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies. I would add that in doing these things we hold out one small candle of light.

Throughout the New Testament followers of Jesus are called to be lights in the darkness. As we seek to be His light, we are called to be not only hearers of His instruction, but doers as well. What light can be bring to a world in desperate need? Each of us can brighten a dark corner by taking those small things Mother Teresa mentioned, adding them to our of daily life and being faithful to do them.

As we look toward Veteran’s Day and honor our veterans, our men and women who actively serve our country, and the freedom they insure for this country, it’s an special opportunity to thank them for their service to our nation. They bring a light to this country that can never be extinguished.

It’s interesting that the Coke song ends with these words, “It’s the real thing – what the world needs today is the real thing.” There is a “real thing” in this world of today, and his name is Jesus. Jesus is the “real thing” – the light of the world – and the world sorely needs Him today.

God bless our country as we strive to keep the light of freedom, equality and democracy alive and well. God bless us all as we light our one single candle!

My strength comes into its own in your weakness. 2 Corinthians 12:10

God bless America, land that I love. Stand beside her, and guide her through the night with a light from above. From the mountains to the prairies, to the oceans white with foam; God bless America, my home sweet home.

The song God Bless America was written in 1918 by Irving Berlin as a war time salute to soldiers, but he decided not to use it and packed it away. It was resurrected in 1938 by Mr. Berlin and used as a “peace song” in response to escalating tensions in Europe. He made changes to it and gave it to Kate Smith to sing on her radio show to commemorate Armistice Day.

Kate Smith introduced the song with these words, “As I stand before the microphone and sing it with all my heart, I’ll be thinking of our veterans, and I’ll be praying with every breath I draw that we shall never have another war.” Unfortunately, war did come, but the song endures as does the message it conveys. It has found its place in churches, the scouts, veteran’s celebrations, and moving tributes to America. Who can sing it without a tear in your eye and pride in your heart?

It also found a home in baseball stadiums around the country. The song replaced the national anthem in 1940 at the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball games because the organization felt it was easier to sing. It was also added to the seventh inning stretch at many baseball games after September 11th. It’s no longer a war time song, but has fulfilled Mr. Berlin’s hope and become a song of peace and love of country.

The founding fathers of over 200 years ago loved this country, and they had a vision for it. They were a diverse group made up of merchants, farmers, lawyers, etc., yet they all believed in this new, young country. Even though they all wanted liberty, they didn’t all agree on the best way to achieve it. They had different opinions on the best course of action for the country, the appropriate form of government, and the structure which would balance liberty with order. As with any group, their strength was often gained from their differences. In other words, they, like politicians of today, disagreed. On one thing they agreed, any attempt to govern without God will fail.

Unlike today, they were able to put aside their own disagreements and work together as parties and individuals to form one nation under God with liberty and justice for all. There is no doubt that there is a battle raging all around us this week and perhaps in many weeks to come, but there’s none of us who have the strength to win it alone. I do firmly believe that God is fighting this battle, and it is He who will determine the way our nation will proceed.

The good news for us is that after we have done our civic duty, weighed the candidates, listened to the facts, and voted our conscience, our only job then is to hit our knees and turn it over to God. Everyone of us has dealt with disillusionment, discouragement, confusion, and conflict, and we are weary of the battle. The Bible tells us that we should not be afraid or dismayed – for the battle is not ours, but Gods. (Exodus 14:14) Our battle is to fight the good fight of faith. (1 Tim 6:12)

Henry W. Grady on speaking of the strength of America originally said, “Surely the great strength of America lies in its military and naval might.” Years later after the might of war and the military had faded away, he was on his knees in a family circle of evening prayer, and there came to his heart a new conviction. He ended the prayers that evening with this confession; The strength of America is found not in its great armies, but in its godly people.

I truly pray that God will Bless America and strengthen her people with love, peace and hope in the days, months, and years to come. Let us never forget these words: We are to stand firm in our faith with the certain knowledge that the battle is the Lord’s. Our faith is His victory – a victory that has already been accomplished on the cross. That is what overcomes the world. Ray Stedman

So here’s what I want you to do – God helping you; take your everyday, normal life – your sleeping, eating, going to work, walking around life and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for Him. Don’t become so self adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without thinking. instead, fix your attention on God. You will be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what He wants for you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you , always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings out the best in you , develops well formed maturity in you. Romans 12:1-2 from the Message

These days almost everywhere I go I must expect or be prepared to have my temperature taken. Although, I don’t mind, I have heard that if that digital thermometer is used too many times, it kills our brain cells!! I wonder if that’s normal?

Normal is defined as the usual, average or typical state or condition. For example, the normal temperature for a person is said to be 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit. However, normal for one person is not always normal for another. For me normal is usually around 97 degrees. One day they said my temperature was 95.4, which seems almost comatose to me. There are differences in what is considered normal.

In the last seven months, normal has taken on a whole new meaning. Students have been staying home rather than the normal day of school, parents are working at home rather than an office, restaurants and businesses don’t keep normal hours anymore, churches are altering the normal times and amount of services, and on it goes. There is a new normal in our lives.

In this age, we are all having to cope with the sense of lost normalcy in our lives that we took for granted. It seems that we are being granted the time to review our lives and what is really important.

In years past, normal was a dinner without cell phones where people enjoyed conversation and communication. Now, I rarely see anyone in a restaurant or gathering without their cell phone or laptop on the table. Instead of intimacy and communication, we are becoming a generation that has lost that art. We spend our days isolated with only technology to keep us linked to the outside world. Is that normal?

Many people rarely have time to include Jesus in their normal day. We rush from one thing to another, but the one thing we never are without is our cell phone. We feel we are in constant demand. Jesus felt that way, too. He was pursued at all hours of the day and night by multitudes, yet He always found time to depart into a solitary place and pray.

In the past, it was normal to wake every day to a schedule. Now, we are adjusting to schedule changes. Who in our lives sets the schedule for our normal day? Usually it seems that our job, our family, and we ourselves set our schedule for the day or week. We find ourselves busy with work, family activities, and social activities for ourselves, but rarely do we include time for God in our normal schedule.

It is normal these days to acquire as much monetary wealth as we can, work as many hours as we can, own as many cars, houses, and material things as we can, and push ourselves as hard as we can. The new normal is the need to remember that the most important things are those which have no monetary value.

We are all looking for peace and inner comfort in this not so normal world, so how do we get it? It is probably the world’s best kept secret, but all this is ours for the taking if we just embrace Him and His promises. He will provide us with everything we need to handle life’s opportunities and difficulties. The secret is handling only the things God wants you to handle, and entrusting the rest to Him. That keeps life normal.

Dear Father, help us to expect you as we travel this normal ordinary road of life. We are not asking for sensational experiences, just fellowship with You through every day work and service. Be our companion when we take an ordinary journey and let our lives be transformed by Your presence.

So Jesus answered them and said, “My teaching is not mine, but His who sent me.” John 7:16

When it comes to teachers and students, I’ve discovered over the years that if you get a group of teachers together and ask one question, “Which class was your absolute worst?”, the answers are quick and definitive. If you reverse the question and ask, “Which class was your absolute best?”, the answers are equally (well almost) as quick and definitive. Teachers remember every class and every student because each one holds a special place in their life.

Likewise, students will always be quick to answer definitively when you ask, “Who was your best teacher?” Even as adults, most people remember our best teacher from ages ago! Teachers have that kind of influence on a person’s life.

We all remember teachers for different reasons, but most of the time we remember them because they taught us things we needed to know to survive in this world, and they did it with strength and compassion. Their “teachings” combined knowledge with curriculum and did it in a way which captured our attention and respect.

The ability to live out our teachings isn’t because we are necessarily the smartest person ever, but if we listen to the teacher, watch the process, and try to emulate the teacher, we will learn. I think that’s exactly the method Jesus used to teach others of the Kingdom of God, and I think He would want us to use that method to teach those who need to hear about Him.

There are many different “teachings” going on in the world today. There is the teaching of conforming to the will of the majority. There is the teaching of political correctness. There is the teaching of which lives matter most. There is the teaching of which political party is correct. There is the teaching of what is right and wrong. The teachings of this day and age are too many to number. Which teaching do we embrace and learn? The only teachings that we as Christians should embrace are the ones which come from The Best Teacher, Jesus.

Teachers, in this world of virtual classrooms and constant changes have a very special mission these days, they have to adapt. Besides, teaching the children the curriculum, they also have to be there to model confidence, adhere to safety measures, provide assurance, wipe tears, calm fears, treat students with love and care, and provide a constant for the classroom. Added to an already stressful job, it goes above and beyond their contractual duty. It’s like having three pots on the stove and four casseroles in the oven all on different time schedules with a table of hungry guests at the table!

The best teacher has characteristics which inspire their students just as Jesus had many characteristics which inspired His followers. The best teacher should teach with compassion, authority, tempered with purpose, adapt their teaching style to encompass different scholars, put students first, and approach every day and every student with a unique teaching style.

Jesus did the same thing as He reached so many different people in so many different situations, He adapted. He taught from a boat in the water, He taught on a hillside, He taught from the temple, and He continued to teach from the cross and after the resurrection. He taught to the rich and the poor, the lame and the whole, the young and the old. The best teacher taught by telling stories that relate to life and by using “teachable moments” to which his audience could relate. His teachings had no prejudice – every person was equally valued.

Teachers are leading children by their example, their knowledge, their presentation, their excitement, and their love and care much like Jesus led His followers. When I decided to become a teacher I remember my Mama saying, “That will be the profession that keeps on giving by touching young lives, and it will enrich your own, plus you get the summers off!” One thing proved to be true, it has been a profession that touched my life in so many different ways!

We have to pick the best teacher and teachings upon which to build our faith and our lives. It seems to me that the obvious choice for the best teacher would be Jesus, and His teachings are the ones upon which we should build our lives and faith.

A huge shout out to all the teachers! God bless you as you exemplify the qualities of the best teacher every day!