This past Thursday morning I thought I would go outside and mingle with the VBS kids during their play time.  Well, I was enjoying my time and minding my own business when all of the sudden I was attacked from behind by an unidentified little boy (Zach Brown) who opened fire on me with a water pistol.  I took after him on foot only to discover there was also a little girl (Zoe Brown) who was packing some water heat.  They continued their relentless assault until I couldn’t take it anymore; I had to defend myself so off to the kitchen for a pitcher of water.
The pitcher of water was exactly what I needed to keep the growing crowd of little tikes at bay. Until, of course, one of them ran to fetch a pail of water from the swimming pool out front of church.  By now my water was gone, which left me open to further attack—and attack they did.  So I ran for the water hose lying on the grate on the west side of church, nothing better to win a water fight than with an endless supply of water.  As I grabbed the hose I thought to myself, funny how water fights begin with a little squirt gun but then usually escalate into buckets and water hoses.
And isn’t this incident true of most of our conflicts.  You’re just enjoying your life, minding your own business, and someone attacks you.  Usually the initial offense really isn’t that big of a deal, but because we’re offended, it just wouldn’t seem fair to let it go, so in order maintain justice, we seek revenge.  Have you ever found yourself hurting someone because they hurt you?  And how often doesn’t the little offense become the straw that breaks the camel’s back which leads to the big meltdown.  “OK, that did it, you hurt my feelers; I’m never talking to you again.”
Well, how about a little wisdom and truth to set us free.  May it never be said of us that we are like this person in Proverbs 26:21, “A quarrelsome person in a dispute is like kerosene thrown on a fire.”  Here’s a better response, “A man’s wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense” (Proverbs 19:11).  And may it be said of us, “Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out” (Proverbs 16:32).
So I bet your dying to hear what happened after I grabbed the water hose?  Nothing, the water valve had been turned off, the war was over.  I surrendered and laid down my hose.  And how about you, could it be that it’s time for you to put down the bucket or lay down the hose?
Drenched, but at peace,
Mike

This past Sunday Vicki and I were blessed to receive a surprise visit from Mitchell, Traci, and Rilyn. Although they weren’t able to stay long, anytime I get to see them (OK, Rilyn J), it is a special treat. Rilyn is just sixteen months old, but she already likes to play hide and seek with me. Now at this point, our game of hide and seek is fairly simple. I sit in the chair in the living room and Rilyn runs into the kitchen and then comes back out and tries to surprise me. Or sometimes she just pulls her blanket over her head and then she thinks I can’t see her. And of course, for a first time grandpa, the little game we play is so precious and I can only imagine as she grows older she’ll learn to hide so that I will actually have to come looking for her.
As we played our little game, it reminded me of the game of hide and seek Adam and Eve played with God in the Garden of Eden. I’m guessing you’re familiar with their story; basically it went like this. God told Adam and Eve not to eat from tree of the knowledge of good and evil, but then after being deceived, they ate from the tree anyway. That’s when the game of hide and seek started, “6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. 8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”
Of course the game of hide and seek between Adam and Eve and God wasn’t for fun, but because of the guilt and shame and fear they experienced when their eyes were opened to what they had just done, they tried to hide from God, covering themselves with some fig leaves.
Sad to say, I often find myself playing the same game with God. After doing the things he tells me not to do, I feel guilty and ashamed, and so I try and hide. Often times I try to cover up my rebellion with weak excuses and reasons for justifying my foolish choices. Sometimes I feel afraid of what God thinks of me knowing I repeatedly commit the same sins over and over. I’m guessing you can identify.
Now, I realize God isn’t interested in playing hide and seek when it comes to my sin, but I truly am grateful for his relentless pursuit of finding me.  I praise God that he never tires of asking me, “Mike, where are you?” And by his grace I am also learning that there’s no point in trying to hide behind my silly excuses when Jesus has already covered my sin on the cross.
So, when it comes to your relationship with God, do you find yourself hiding? Have guilt, shame, fear, and pride been keeping you from being honest with God? Like Rilyn, may you and I with childlike faith come out of hiding and open ourselves to our Father’s love and forgiveness. Hide and seek is not a game we want to play with God, it’s only for grandpas and grandchildren.
Once was lost, but now am found…

Mike

Tomorrow is the day our country has set aside to remember and honor our brave soldiers who have given their lives to protect our land and our freedom.  Originally Declaration Day began as a day to honor those who died in the civil war.  Since then, it has become known as Memorial Day and has been expanded to include remembering all of the nearly one million men and women who have died in America’s Armed Forces.
According to some basic internet research, America has been involved in 12 wars.  In each case we have asked the young men and women of our nation to be willing to sacrifice their lives for the cause of freedom, both for us and for others in foreign lands.  The sacrifices made by these men and women can never be totally comprehended, nor can they be repaid.
Like many things in America, I admit I often take the sacrifices made by our soldiers and their families for granted.  I am not thankful enough for their willingness to leave their jobs, their families, and the safety of their communities in order to serve the country they love.  I should show greater appreciation for their willingness to forfeit or postpone establishing a place called home as they move from base to base.  I should live with greater humility considering the thousands upon thousands who have been physically, emotionally, or mentally disabled so that we might live safely in a land of freedom.
When reflecting on my lack of gratitude for the sacrifice our military men and women have paid, I am also convicted of my complacency when it comes to showing thanksgiving to those who are martyred daily on behalf of Christianity.  While it seems impossible to come up with a concrete number of those who are killed every year, thousands of Christians every year could be placed in the Hebrews Hall of Faith.  I recently read that more Christians have been martyred in the past century than in the previous nineteen.
Which then of course leads me to reflect on my level of gratitude for the One who paid the greatest price for freedom that could ever be paid.  Do I truly live a life of gratitude in response to Jesus’ willingness to pay my sin debt so that I could be free for all of eternity?
On this Memorial weekend, let us remember the brave soldiers who have so unselfishly given of themselves.  Thank you so much!  Let us be mindful of their loved ones left behind through acts of love and encouragement.  And let us be grateful for God’s hand of protection and blessing on America.
But also, let us remember those who have given their lives for the sake of the advancement of God’s kingdom.  And especially, let us take some time to reflect on God’s amazing grace and love that he would send his one and only son to die for us while we were still rebelling against him.
And then out of appreciation for this gift of love and selflessness, let us give ourselves to obeying the perfect command of Christ… “This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you.  This is the very best way to love.  Put your life on the line for your friends.  You are my friends when you do the things I command you.” (John 15:12-14)
Increasingly grateful,    Mike

This past Tuesday Vicki surprised me by stopping by the office announcing we were going on a picnic to the park.  So off to the park we went.  Arriving at the park, we decided to park along the bank of the Rock River so that we could eat our lunch on the bank overlooking the river.  We had a delightful time together sharing in the beauty of God’s creation as we feasted on our sweet onion chicken teriyaki subs piled high with lettuce, provolone and pepper jack cheese, mayo, honey mustard, black olives, green peppers and spinach (yeah right, actually just plain ham and cheese on a toasted bun).
Anyway, after we were finished we packed up, dumped our garbage, and headed back to the car which was only about ten feet away.  And wouldn’t you know it; we got in the car and couldn’t find the keys.  So, out of the car and back to the riverbank, we searched everywhere but still couldn’t find the keys.  Vicki frantically scavenged through her purse while I calmly dismantled the interior of the car searching for the keys.  Still nothing, so Vicki headed back to our picnic site.  By now, I’m becoming more and more flummoxed (I know, look it up in the dictionary J), when all of a sudden it dawned on me to look in the garbage can.  Sure enough, when cleaning up I had erroneously scooped up the car keys with the garbage.  I was careless with the keys that had been entrusted to me.  I didn’t steward them well and the result was they got lost.
As we were driving away, feeling full of joy having found the keys, I thought of Jesus’ parable of the “Lost Coin” in Luke 15.  It goes like this,  “8-10″Or imagine a woman who has ten coins and loses one.  Won’t she light a lamp and scour the house, looking in every nook and cranny until she finds it?  And when she finds it you can be sure she’ll call her friends and neighbors: ‘Celebrate with me! I found my lost coin!’  Count on it—that’s the kind of party God’s angels throw every time one lost soul turns to God.” (Luke 15:8-10 The Message)
This story, of course, is more than just a story about a woman who couldn’t find her coin.  This parable is about someone who was careless with what God had entrusted to them.  Yes, we are all born in a state of lostness, but the reason so many people remain lost is because their parents and other loved ones were careless with the people who were entrusted to their care.
I think of the time that Jesus was lost.  Imagine what it would’ve been like for Joseph and Mary to be entrusted with the Son of God and having to tell God that they lost his son.  I also think of the child whose parents aren’t diligent in teaching their children about the importance of following Jesus, and so they become lost.  I think of children who are abused by those they trusted most and so they wander from God.  I’ve already come to discover that some of you have had parents who were careless with you; they didn’t steward you as a gift from God and therefore there was a season in your life that you were lost.
Well, praise God that he relentlessly pursues us until he finds us.  Praise God that he is patient, wishing that none would perish, but that everyone would repent.  Could it be that you know of someone who is lost because their parents or friends were careless with them?  Maybe God could use you to reach out in order to find them.  Or maybe you need to admit and apologize to one of your children because you were careless with them.
Whatever the case, may you and I be sensitive towards, and passionate about keeping our eyes open for lost people.  They may be closer than you think.  And may we with great joy celebrate with those who were once lost, but now have been found.

Rejoicing over more than lost keys,  Mike

It was time again to update our cell phone plan and since we no longer have any kids on our plan, we finally decided to leave the Stone Age and add texting to our plan.  And not only texting, but I’ve noticed how brilliant those people are who buy those “smart phones,” so I figured an upgrade would really give me a boost.  It shouldn’t be long before you notice that the preacher is also getting smarter.
Wow, I’m amazed at how smart my new phone is!  I can see my new phone is going to be life transforming—if I ever learn how it all works.  The guy who sold it to me said it was really easy to operate, however within this past week I’ve made 23 trips and have put on 71 miles travelling back and forth to the phone store on the south end of town in order to ask questions on how to operate my phone.
I have a feeling the salesman is beginning to wish he would’ve never met me since the last time I was in he said, “You do know that a smart phone doesn’t necessarily make a person any smarter.  Maybe it would be helpful if you read through the owner’s manual.”  As I walked out the door, I thought, “Maybe I should forget about trying to figure out how to buy apps and all the other fancy stuff and just use it as a regular old phone.”
Ok, so I’m having a little fun with this experience, but making this upgrade reminded me of many people when they decide to begin following Jesus.  At first they are so excited about being a new creation; the feeling alone at the possibility of a transformed life is incredible.  They begin by telling others about the joy of their “shopping” experience of how they found Jesus.  And in order to discover how to operate their new life they begin to ask their friends and family how to use their life.
But like many people who buy fancy smart phones and never really make the effort to discover what they are capable of, so too, many new Christians never really make the effort to read God’s owner’s manual in order to discover the amazing things he wants to do in and through their lives.  I know all about this, because it took me 37 years before I really began digging into the Bible.
So what’s the big deal about studying the Bible?  Well, here’s just one example of why it’s a big deal.  “7Be strong and very courageous.  Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you.  Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left.  Then you will be successful in everything you do. 8 Study this Book of Instruction continually.  Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it.  Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.  9 This is my command—be strong and courageous!  Do not be afraid or discouraged.  For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:7-9)
Or did you know this is how God feels about you?  “Don’t be afraid.  Dear (your name), don’t despair.  Your God is present among you, a strong Warrior there to save you. Happy to have you back, he’ll calm you with his love and delight you with his songs.” (Zephaniah 3:16-17)
Well, how about it, could it be that the reason your new life in Christ hasn’t been that big of deal is because you’ve been too busy or too lazy to pick up the owner’s manual?  Father, may you grant each person in American Reformed Church a never-ending passion for studying your owner’s manual in order that we might truly discover who we are in Christ.  In Jesus name I pray, Amen.
Grace and “tweet,”

Mike

I was truly saddened to read about the story concerning Deputy Kyle Kreun on the front page of last week’s Star Herald.  According to the story his wife had e-mailed the Star Herald earlier saying, “My husband is a good person, a great father, he was a good deputy and he made a mistake.  I don’t know anyone that hasn’t made a mistake in their life or done things they are ashamed of.”
Now it’s evident from the editorials that this crime creates all kinds of emotional responses.  And rightly so, in fact, regardless of how good of a man Mr. Kreun is, he made a huge mistake.  And let me go even a step further in saying he committed a grievous sin against the young woman and against God.  My heart grieves deeply for both families and for everyone who is affected.
The story brings to mind a similar story that we are all familiar with—the story of David and Bathsheba found in II Samuel 11.  Like Kyle, King David also failed to recognize and deal with the deceitful temptation that confronted him.  And like for the Kreun family, the victim and her family, the Sheriff’s Department and our community, the nation of Israel also suffered the disgrace of a careless leader.
In no way do I want to minimize the sin in this situation, but I also agree with Chelsie Kreun in that we all have made mistakes and have done things we are ashamed of.  I praise God for second chances.  I praise God for his grace and mercy as we can join with David in reciting Psalm 51.  I praise God that he notices “heart-shattered lives ready for love”.  Feeling the guilt and shame of your sin?
Let me encourage you to read on… “1-3Generous in love—God, give grace! Huge in mercy—wipe out my bad record.  Scrub away my guilt, soak out my sins in your laundry.  I know how bad I’ve been; my sins are staring me down. 4-6 You’re the One I’ve violated, and you’ve seen it all, seen the full extent of my evil. You have all the facts before you; whatever you decide about me is fair.  I’ve been out of step with you for a long time, in the wrong since before I was born.  What you’re after is truth from the inside out. Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life.
7-15 Soak me in your laundry and I’ll come out clean, scrub me and I’ll have a snow-white life.  Tune me in to foot-tapping songs, set these once-broken bones to dancing.  Don’t look too close for blemishes, give me a clean bill of health.  God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.  Don’t throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me.  Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails!  Give me a job teaching rebels your ways so the lost can find their way home.  Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God, and I’ll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.  Unbutton my lips, dear God; I’ll let loose with your praise. 16-17 Going through the motions doesn’t please you, a flawless performance is nothing to you.  I learned God-worship when my pride was shattered.  Heart-shattered lives ready for love don’t for a moment escape God’s notice. 18-19 Make Zion the place you delight in, repair Jerusalem’s broken-down walls. Then you’ll get real worship from us, acts of worship small and large, Including all the bulls they can heave onto your altar!” (Psalm 51 The Message)
May you and I always master the sin that is crouching at our doors, however when we fail, may we humbly call on God for his redeeming grace and mercy.
Grace and peace,   Mike

Hey, I have to keep this article short this week.  I don’t have much time on account of how much fun I’ve been having this week rummaging through everyone’s roadside junk.  I’m really surprised that the search team didn’t tell me about our community’s “Spring Cleanup Week.”  I mean what better way to attract a Dutchmen to your community than to tell him once a year you can ride around and pick up other people’s junk—for free!
Just a few random thoughts about the junk I see along the road.
Some of the junk appears to have a lot of life left in it.
Lot’s of the junk has fulfilled its intended purpose and is now truly junk.
More than 40% of the world’s population would love to have our junk.
Lots of the junk are items people bought thinking it was really going to make them happy.
You can tell who the true Dutchmen are of ARC—there’s no junk along their curbs.
You can tell who the true Dutchmen are of ARC—their junk will be on the city wide rummage sale next weekend. (By the way, feel free to stop by ARC’s rummage sale, Vicki and I have some junk we would like to sell.)
Americans have too much.
It sure is nice of the city to offer to pick up our junk.
What were they keeping that junk for anyway?
Speaking of junk, all of the junk alongside the curbs got me to thinking about the emotional and spiritual junk you and I accumulate in our lives.  You know, all of those times when we get hurt by someone or by other situations when we find ourselves disillusioned and disappointed.  Or when we fall into sin and become filled with guilt and shame.
I often meet people who are like “emotional junk hoarders.”  They seem to love to wallow in their junk and if they don’t have enough of their own junk, they like to rummage around in the lives of other people in order to pick up their emotional junk too.
Well, in regards to our guilt and shame, we must remember Christ died for us so that we could be free from that junk.  As it says in Colossians 3:13-15, “13 When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ.  He forgave us all our sins, 14 having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. 15 And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
And in regards to our other hurts and disappointments, for those who truly love God, he promised to recycle all of that junk and make it useful for building Christ-like character in us (my paraphrase of Romans 8:28-29).
So how about it friend?  Is it time for some spring time spiritual house cleaning?  Time to get rid of some junk?  May you and I always be free from the junk in our lives for as the Apostle Paul wrote, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free”.
And in honor of George Den Herder, for those of you feel like you have no value anymore, remember, “God doesn’t make no junk!”
Happy house cleaning, Mike

A couple of weeks ago Vicki and I took advantage of a beautiful spring afternoon to go on a motorcycle ride.  One of the reasons I find motorcycle riding so delightful is just to be able to enjoy all the different aromas along the way.  It’s one thing to enjoy the aroma of a dead skunk along the road from inside a car; it’s a much greater blessing to enjoy the aroma out in the open.  The neat thing I discovered though is that the fowl odor doesn’t last as long. J
On our ride we encountered several fragrances.  When passing one farm, the smell of hog poo was so strong that Vicki buried her face in my coat for almost a mile.  We encountered the camp fire smell of someone burning some dead braches in his grove and also the lovely smell of freshly cut grass.  Because there were many farmers tilling the soil, the fresh smell of dirt was constant.  Then there was the sinus cleansing smell of a cattle feedlot (oh I wish they could capture that scent and package it as a car freshener).  And then there were the pleasant smells of the lilac bushes and the budding ornamental trees. And finally, there was the breath- stopping smell of the diesel truck that pulled out in front of us.
As we cruised through the different odor zones, two things came to mind.  One was that our journey on the cycle was much like our journey through life with the various scents representing the different stages and trials we go through.  Like the writer of Ecclesiastes says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.”  There are those times in our life when things just seem to stink; on the other hand, there are those sweet smelling seasons when everything seems to go our way.  And then there are those seasons that seem as stale as the odor inside the transfer station at the landfill.
I wonder: If you were to describe how your life was going right now, what smell would it be? Sweet…Stinky…Stale…Odorless?
The other thought that came to mind; I wonder what kind of aroma am I emitting?  Not literally, but I wonder when people encounter me, is it a pleasant experience for them.  Do I leave behind a refreshing scent for both believers and unbelievers?  And even more important, what kind of aroma does God receive from my life?
My hope is that I am like the Apostle Paul who wrote, “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.  For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.  To the one we are the smell of death; to the other the fragrance of life.”         II Corinthians 2:14-16
My hope is that I am as much of a blessing to others as the smell of freshly cut grass is to me.  My hope is that I am the aroma of Christ to everyone I encounter.  And my hope for you, regardless of what stage of the journey you are in, is that you too will be the aroma of Christ to those around you.
Sharing the aroma of Christ,

Mike

I had a friend when I was in high school that would often argue with me about God.  His father was dying of cancer and he would say, “Come with me to the cancer ward in the hospital and see all the hurt and pain that is there and then tell me what kind of a God would allow something like that to happen.”  Someone else told me more recently that it doesn’t matter how they live their life—good or bad—God seems to be out to get them either way.
Well, I want to tell you about my God.  My God knew me and loved me before I was even born.  In fact, before He even created the world, He had a plan for my life.  He gave me a mom and dad that loved and cared for me and introduced me to Him.  He gave me the gift of His creation – rain that brought puddles to jump in, animals that I loved and cared for, apple trees and watermelon and sunsets with all my favorite colors.  He gave me a love of music.  He gave me older brothers and sisters that showed me how I should live my life and also how I shouldn’t.  He provided teachers at church and school that taught me about His goodness and grace.
As I grew, my God gave me the gift of being an Aunt.  He shared in my delight at the thought of having a baby in the family that I could call ‘mine’; my nephew.  He also allowed a young girl be angry at Him when that gift was taken away.  My God sat next to an awkward kid in middle school.  A girl that wasn’t sure of who she was or who she wanted to be; a girl with a big mouth and a short fuse; a girl who sometimes asked Him not to sit so close.  Thankfully, my God continued with me to high school.  He comforted me when a friend stood at the gates of heaven in her prom dress.  He protected a young, inexperienced driver and allowed me to walk away from an overturned car.  He smiled when I answered His knock at the door of my heart and He introduced me to a young Christian man with a flashy smile and a flashy car.  He sealed a promise as we said ‘I do’.
My God has continued to walk beside me in my adult life.  He has blessed my feeble attempts at marriage for more than twenty years.  He has blessed me with three healthy, beautiful and talented children.  He has helped me see that a perfect family only exists in a ‘Little House on the Prairie’.  He has provided for every physical need along the way—in His perfect timing.  He has stood beside me when I have laid loved ones to rest, when dreams have unraveled and when hope seemed to disappear.
My God has not made my life perfect.  He has not kept me from the pain and troubles of this world.    He does not “give me more than I can handle”, but helps me handle what life gives.  He has given me the gift of tears, His big lap to curl up on and His shoulder to cry on.  He understands when I am tired and afraid; when guilt floods my soul and when a mother feels like a failure.  But through it all, He gives me His peace; a peace that surpasses all my understanding, and the promise that He is with me wherever I go and that one day I will be in a magnificent place that He has prepared just for me.
My God is the same… yesterday, today and tomorrow.

Erin Jacobsma

I was recently visiting with someone and I asked him which church he was a part of.  Seeming somewhat surprised, he shared with me that he hadn’t attended a church in over thirty years.  He continued by sharing how he had been hurt by the leadership of the church he had been a part of.  Like many people in these situations, he reassured me that he believed in God, and that you don’t have to be a part of a church to be a Christian.
Of course I was deeply disappointed with his experience in the church and even shared that I have also been hurt by the church.  I also shared, that although not intentional, I’m sure I have offended people as well.
As I was visiting, I kept feeling this overwhelming sadness that he wasn’t able to overcome his deep disappointment, especially in light of the power of Christ’s resurrection.  See, it’s through the resurrection of Christ that we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to overcome those kinds of challenges in life.  It’s through the resurrection that we can extend forgiveness and move beyond those things that mentally and emotionally paralyze us.
I think about the disappointment that Mary, Mary, and Salome felt on that morning when they went to put spices on Jesus body, only to find his body was gone.  And how their disappointment turned into new hope when they discovered Jesus was alive.  It’s because of the resurrection that you and I also have hope. No situation is beyond redemption.  Even if it appears that all hope is gone you and I can walk by faith knowing that God is working to redeem the situation.
One of my favorite verses from the Old Testament that points to the resurrection of a brighter future is Isaiah 43:18.  “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!”  Life is full of ups and down; things we celebrate with great joy and also experiences that cause great heartache and pain.
However, may you and I be reminded that God is always faithful in the midst of both and that through the resurrection he is also getting ready to do a new thing!  So, hanging on to a past hurt? Feeling the burden of other people’s problems. Quit dragging that old dead stuff around; let it go and open your heart to receive that new thing God wants to do in your life.

Happy Resurrection Day!
Mike