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Posted At: 3:39pm by Bloghardt
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 In the name of Jesus. Amen. When I went to bed last night, I had pleasant thoughts and my day planned out. Monday is my “day off,” but I was going to go to church and do some writing. My greatest fear last night was how the Mets could possibly beat the Cards with Glavine pitching on three days rest.
This morning, my wife woke me up all frantic. “Wadder is comin up da side of da house.” When my wife gets rattled, her Cajun accent comes out. So, I picked myself up and went outside to look at the emergency.
Yes, water everywhere. An hour later, I walked out to try to drive my truck out to go to church and I couldn't get out. The water was at the house. Water was FLOWING like a river down my street.
How about that? How gentle, fragile, and delicate are our lives! We sleep in peace and wake up and eleven inches of water has dropped on us. Now "wadder" is everywhere – going up the side my house.
Children never know the danger they are in every day. Toddlers waddle past the corners of tables just missing them. My sons just miss getting hit in the parking lot at church. A minute later, they are drawing and coloring as if they had not almost lost their lives.
What's the difference between the way I slept and the way my daughter joyfully reached for raindrops as we took pictures of the waters climbing up side the house? “I can almost get it... I can almost reach it... Daddy, if you just move over a little bit, I could get them... There it is... splash! Dad” I could see my daughter thinking as I held her and she reached her hands toward the rain drops.
We sleep. We play. We have no idea the danger we are in. God does not sleep – not ever. He's always our Father, always tending to us, always caring for us in Christ.
The “in Christ” is everything! There's nothing lovable about me – not even my wife deserves the Father's constant attention. There is no reason for God to care and tend to us outside of Christ.
But, we were washed, we were set apart, we were made holy in the blood and water flowing from His crucified side. There we were tended to in a way that no amount of flood waters can wash away.
In Christ, we lost everything – even our lives. We died with Him – all of us who were baptized into Christ. What joy and comfort! For when the waters do finally overcome us and our last our comes, it isn't the finality of death that awaits us. No, in Christ, we have already died. All that awaits us is a nap.
In Christ, we have already gained everything and then some! He splashed on us the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. We have the life of the Son of God – delivered to us in our Baptism!
Now that's "wadder" everywhere! But no amount of flood waters that befall us as we sleep can change the life and salvation that was won on the Cross for us and made ours in Baptism.
So in high water, He's tending to us and caring for us. In low water, He's tending to us and caring for us. Even while, we sleep, He's on the scene. Same God, caring for us in Christ. He calls us to repent of our sins and raises us again to new life - new life in Christ.
Lookie, the waters are already going down. And whether they go up or down in the next few hours, we will be just fine. No fears. We've already died and lost everything in Christ. We've already raised and have the eternal life of the Son of God. In the name of Jesus. Amen.
For God decided to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us. He died for us so that we can live with him forever, whether we are dead or alive at the time of his return.” (1 Thes. 5:9-10)
Edited on: October 16th, 2006 4:16 pm
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