Thought for July 18, 2024

•  64: Great fire in Rome; Nero on the throne, Christians blamed
• 1290: England expels all Jews, a ban lasting 350 years
• 1925: Hitler publishes "Mein Kampf"
• 1938: "Wrong Way" Corrigan lands in Ireland after leaving NY to fly to California
• 1976: Nadia Comaneci scores the first "10" in gymnastics
• 2013: Detroit files for bankruptcy
• Born: Machine Gun Kelly, Nelson Mandela, Hunter S Thompson, Vin Diesel, Kristen Bell, Richard Branson, Tenley Albright, Joe Torre, Nick Faldo, 
• Died: Jane Austen, William Westmoreland, John Paul Jones, Karl Menninger

Thought:

Reading Mark 1: 35 today. Asking the Lord what I should learn from this verse. It is early morning. It is dark. It is a lonely place. Jesus is praying. Now I have to say that I can relate to the setting. I like getting up early. It is quiet--no phones, no interruptions, no conversations. The best part of my day is the time between getting up and noon. My mind seems to work best then, I seem to be more productive. I can get more things done. For others, another time of day may be your best and most productive time. 

What I am learning from this verse is:

• Jesus needed alone time. If the One who created everything, knows everything, and has power to change everything needed alone time, maybe it is a good idea for me too. Time to think, time to evaluate and examine myself, time to clear my mind. A couple of weeks ago, our family rented a beach house. I loved the house because there were covered porches on three sides. No matter where the sun was, there was a shady place on the porch. The front porch had a swing. Early in the morning, sitting in the swing, no sounds yet, I could clear my mind and ask the Lord to fill it. 
• He had no distractions. Sitting in the dark, there is nothing to look at. I cannot fill my mind with things I see. I wonder when Jesus was sitting in the dark if His mind went back to creation---it was dark and God said, "let there be light." I wonder as He sat in the dark if He thought about men walking in darkness and looking for the light. I wonder if He thought about His role as "Light of the World." Maybe when I sit in the fading darkness of the early morning, I should think about my life when I was in the darkness and then rejoice as the SUN/SON rises bringing light and warmth. Maybe I should think about the darkness and recall that once I was blind, but now in His light I can see. 
• Jesus was praying. Is that what I do first thing in the morning. One of the great joys of my life and one of my best memories is getting up early at my parent’s home on East Durham Circle and drinking coffee at the formica table with my Mom. We talked about my job when I was working in the summer. We talked about my plans with Jan and for a family. We talked about her concerns. Then we talked about grandchildren. Later years we talked about my Dad after he went home. Finally we talked about her cancer and her homegoing. I picture Jesus having those conversations with His Father sitting in the dark alone. Talking about His disciples, about those He was healing, about those who were rejecting Him. Maybe it would be good to start every day with a conversation with the Father.

Look at what Jesus did after praying. Verse 38 records what He said to the disciples. Wonder if this is what He and the Father were discussing as He prayed--time to move to other cities, other people. Time to spread the good news. Maybe that is the end of every conversation with the Father for me--time to tell someone new about the Savior and the Good News.

Blessings

Larry