Author: Ian Bothwell

So often we are admonished to read our Bibles in search of forgiveness, salvation and eternal life.  However, sometimes we can read just for the sheer pleasure of the content.  Some of Paul’s adventures are as exciting as Indiana Jones’.  There are shipwrecks, mob scenes, a snake bite, escaping a city in a basket.  There is the awesome beauty of the Psalms and of course the narrative of David’s many battles.

Ecclesiastes is filled with great ideas.   Chapter 9 alone is full of entertaining thoughts.  Solomon tells of a poor wise man, surely an oxymoron, who saved his city from a siege by a strong king.  The problem is he never tells us how.  But I want to know.  In verse 7 we read, “Eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do.”  That drives a teetotaler like me just a bit crazy.  In verse 8 he said, “Always be clothed in white.”  White was worn to festivals.  Some paraphrase this as each day dress beautiful and fancy. Verse 11 says, “Time and chance happen to them all.”   The “them” is us.  Good times and bad times come to us all.  Accidents happen.  The last verse says, “Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.”

I think before I go to sleep tonight I will reread one of my favorites.  In Acts 12 Peter is in prison and an angel aids him in a great escape.  It’s an awesome story that should fill all our hearts with courage and hope.  As Paul said, “With God on our side, who can be against us?”  Do you want some really great reading?  Your Bible is full of good stuff.

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 17, 2012

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

Charles Spurgeon, the great 19th century English preacher, once used the following wonderful story.  It seems a particularly loud-mouthed know-it-all boarded a ship.  After a few days at sea with the obnoxious one telling everyone, even the captain, what to do, a severe storm arose.  The captain was very busy trying to keep everyone safe when the unbearable man started getting in the captain’s way.  The captain took him to the front of the deck, handed him the end of a rope and instructed him to hold very tightly and to talk to no one.   After the storm subsided and all were safe the man stepped forward expecting to be hailed a hero for saving the ship.  As he insisted on recognition for his great feat, he forced the captain to speak.  The captain then revealed the other end of the rope the man clutched was not attached to anything.

Spurgeon’s point was all who think they will earn heaven by their wondrous feats and righteous lives will someday discover they were only holding a rope connected to nothing.  If we long for salvation there is only one way.  We have to trust our Captain.  Jesus and only Jesus will be able to take us safely to the other side.  Paul put it so well in Ephesians 2. “Saving is all his idea, and all his work. All we do is trust him enough to let him do it. It’s God’s gift from start to finish! We don’t play the major role. If we did, we’d probably go around bragging that we’d done the whole thing! No, we neither make nor save ourselves. God does both the making and saving.”  The Message Paraphrase.

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 16, 2012

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124

St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

One evening when my boys were teens, three of us were watching one of them play floor hockey in our college gym.  I never did see what precipitated the fight but the one playing hockey was into it with another player.  I could not believe my eyes as I watched his brother leap from our side and hurl himself into the fray to be by his embattled brother’s side.  I never had a brother, just sisters.  I guess that’s what brothers do.

Remember when Jack Kennedy appointed his brother to be his attorney general?  The press was filled with editorials about nepotism.  But there are times when one needs someone beside them they can implicitly trust.  We were all riveted to the news as we watched those two brothers agonize us through the Cuban missile crisis.  The editorials about nepotism slowed down, way down.

We think the little book of James toward the end of our New Testament was written by James, Jesus’ brother.   I can only imagine the struggle he went through to finally realize his brother was Emmanuel, God with us.   What kind of relationship must that have been!  I am amazed in his letter he doesn’t do a lot of bragging about who he was.

Lest we become envious of him, let’s remind ourselves of the promises in Romans and Galatians.  We are promised we can be adopted into God’s family and become members of the family.  What an awesome thought it is to come to the same realization that James did.  Jesus, the Creator of all things according to Hebrews, is our brother.  I like that because I know when I am in trouble He will leap to my embattled side. It’s what brothers do.

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 14, 2011

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

 

 

 

 

New England is deep into summer.  The greens have lost their newness and have darkened into a lush verdancy.   Roadsides are strewn with Queen Ann’s Lace and Daylilies.  Purple Loosestrife has filled the wetlands along the edges of the rivers and marshlands.  Evening shadows lengthen until 8:30 p.m. before falling away to the night.   Eighty-degree days toast the air and herald the coming of sixty-degree evenings.  Wood thrushes sing from the woods the most beautiful sounds of nature.

If one leaves the rush of the highways and slows down on the winding rock fence walled roads that led to calendar picture villages, one is treated to well-mown yards and Edenic flower gardens.   Unique houses fly flags as do the light poles in the towns.  One can feel the pride of home and country when moving along the oak and maple lined streets.  If you turn off the air-conditioning and roll down the windows almost every street fills one’s nostrils with the glory of some backyard chef trying out his charcoal grill. In the distance you can hear the calliope sounds of Pop Goes the Weasel as the local ice cream man slowly moves through the neighborhoods baiting both little and big people to come and buy Snow cones, Popsicles and Eskimo Pies.

Summertime in New England is as good as life gets.  It fills one with thanksgiving and praise for the one who made it and closed out Genesis ! with “that’s very good.”

“He owns the day and the night.  He put the stars and sun in place.  He laid out the four corners of earth and shaped the seasons of summer and winter.”  Psalm 74:16 – 17

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 14, 2008

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

People-watching far exceeds bird-watching as a source of fascination.  Don’t get me wrong.  Bird-watching is great fun; it’s just that it is far exceeded by the fun of people-watching.  My favorite sighting for the day was at Taco Bell.  There was this old guy (That means he is older than I.) with diamonds studs in his ear lobes.  He was well groomed with a nicely trimmed beard.  But it was those studs that grabbed my attention.  They just didn’t belong.  They seemed so out of place.  I was instantly reminded of Proverbs 11:22, “Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion.”

There are some things that just do not go together.  James 3:9-12 puts it this way.  “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.”

There are certain behaviors, words and attitudes that just do not belong in a real Christian’s walk.  But by the same token some of us are so lacking in a sense of humor we think everyone should always be solemn and straitlaced.  When I look at some Christians I definitely don’t want to be like them.  But I think we all can agree that there is no room for judgmental, derogatory speech and downright nastiness in our lives.   We must not use honesty as weapon to cut into other’s hearts.

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 13, 2011

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

It’s eight o’clock in the evening here in Massachusetts.  It’s July and it is eighty degrees.  There is no breeze.  Leaves are hanging still.  Sunflowers are starting to lose their vibrancy because it has been many days since we had any serious rain that would concern someone with a convertible.  I was thinking about John 3 this afternoon.  Jesus told Nicodemus that God’s Spirit moved like the wind among the trees.  What of an evening like this when there is no breeze?  What of an era like this when there seems to be so little of God’s Spirit among the church?  Hum?  Perhaps I am being too harsh and overly critical.  Usually that is our problem.   We are parochial.  If we don’t personally see something then it isn’t happening anywhere.

This might have something to do with our desire to be at the center of anything worthwhile.  When someone tells me they were deeply moved last week in church my response is, “Oh, that’s nice.”  Rarely do I stop and ask, “What was it?  What was said?  What was the point?”  Instead it’s just a “that’s nice.”  Since I didn’t hear it or even worse because I didn’t say it, it really didn’t matter much.  Horrors.

But honestly I must say from my very narrow and limited view I don’t see much happening among God’s people.  Paul wrote in Colossians, “(I) do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;”   I like that prayer. This night I pray this for you and I do so desire that you do so for me.

Perhaps there is a mighty breeze all around me.  Perhaps the dearth of fresh air is only located where I am sitting.

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 9, 2010

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

 

There are Oreo cookies, peanut butter cookies and sugar cookies, but yesterday we had amazing cookies.  Chocolate chips held together by the best cookie dough in the world.  They were Goldilocks cookies; baked not too little and not too long.  They were baked JUST right.  They were placed on the table beside a fresh fruit salad and a marvelous plate of fresh veggies.  It was the perfect summer evening fare.

As good as the blueberries were I keep thinking about those amazing Goldie Locks cookies.  They were like Scripture; hundreds of promises held together by the best stories.  There is the story of Jonah with the promise that wherever we go God is there, even if we don’t want Him to be there; He is watching and waiting for us to cry for help and help is immediately on its way.  There is the story of Zaccheaus.  Jesus wants to come to our house.   Then there is the hungry crowd that Jesus fed from a little boy’s basket.  God is able to supply all our needs.   I could go on and on.

The message is powerful.  If we will read the stories we will taste the goodness of the Lord.  Reading the Gospel of John is a feast all on its own.  Chapter after chapter reveals a new picture of Jesus.  In chapter one He is the Creator of all. In chapter nine He is the Light of the World.  In chapter ten He is the Good Shepherd.  In chapter eleven He is the Resurrection and the Life. The really good part about this kind of feast is that it is calorie free.  Those Goldilocks cookies were great but they were rich in calories. Alas. Only Jesus is perfect.

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 11, 2011

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

 

There is something indescribably delicious about a hot muggy summer afternoon that slowly transitions when a thunderstorm cools off the day. Maples leaves, bigger than oak and birch leaves, are the first to catch the approaching zephyr. Glancing up one notices a slight graying of the afternoon’s cumulous clouds.  Shapes and forms multiply overhead and deepen in color as far away sounds of thunder announce intentions.

When my Dad and I would hear the first rumblings of an approaching downpour he would tell me angels were rearranging the furniture in heaven.  I liked it when he told me fun stories.  I knew better but it was fun to hear.  My father was full of strange and wonderful tales about our ancestors.   He often talked about his grandmother who packed a pearl-handled six-shooter on her hip.   I knew it wasn’t true but I would beg him for more and he was good to deliver.

Stories give substance to our ideas, beliefs and values.  Stories help us fit into the world about us. Instead of telling people how to live and what to do it is better to tell them a good story and let them figure out the meaning.   The lessons stick because they were generated in the minds of the listeners.  Jesus knew that and was a great storyteller.  Some of them were true.  Some of them were made up.  The point was not the veracity of the tale but the meaning that would permanently change the life of the hearer. Jesus loved metaphors and effectively used them as when he warned his disciples of the leaven of the Pharisees.

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 10, 2008

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

We have a grandson and a granddaughter staying with us for three weeks and I am enjoying the grandfather thing.  This evening while my wife was teachingI was in charge.  It’s hot and muggy so I took them to an air-conditioned bookstore.  It was most interesting to watch them split up and head for their areas of interest.  In just a few minutes I found Josh curled up on a chair with a book about monsters.  Definitely a male thing!  Rachael spread out on the floor surrounding herself with cookbooks filled luscious pictures of food.  We had a great time.

When we finally headed for the car I asked if they wanted to eat.  “Nope,” they said, “not hungry.  Too hot.”  Naively I took them at their word.  We went home and got something to drink and were having a great evening and then grandma got home and found out I had not fed them.  Wow, had I ever messed up!  I quickly discovered being a grandfather wasn’t quite as easy as I thought.  Next time, if I am permitted a next time, I will do better.

Do you ever have the best of intentions backfire?  Most likely we all have. Fortunately God knows our hearts and intentions and treats us accordingly. While I certainly do not want to under stress the sometimes bad results of our good intentions gone wrong, I do want to point out how wonderful it is to have a lovely heavenly Father who can read our minds and who knows the truth about us.   In the eyes of heaven intentions are of greater value than actions.

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 9, 2008

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

It was a classic July day in Massachusetts.   Hot, humid and muggy.  All one needed to do to work up a sweat was lift a bottle of cold root beer to one’s parched lips. Even the flies were perched and panting instead of pestering.  A mosquito diving for my arm collapsed on the ground before drilling and drinking from my veins.  There were no sounds of mowers or chainsaws.  There was the faint sound of “The Turkey in the Straw” coming from a few streets away as an ice cream man sought to capitalize on the stifling heat wave.  The hydrangeas sagging and wilted were begging for water.  My dog was complaining that these days were named after her.  Why should she get the blame?

But wait.  Did I see a maple leaf move?   Did our red, white and blue stir?  Did I hear the faintest rumble coming from the west?  Yes.  It was going to happen.  The temperature dropped from 99 to 98 and then to 96.  The promise was in the air.  The very top of the oak by the mailbox ever so slowly bent just a bit as the rumble from the west turned up the volume and became a low guttural growl.  The temperature was down to 90 and dropping.

Oh, the sweetness of those first cool drops.  Sometimes it’s grand not to have too much hair as those friendly refreshing drops splashed on top and erased the memory of the swelter.  I love hot July days in New England.  There will have to be storms in heaven or at least on some far off planet we can visit.  It wouldn’t be paradise without the coolness of rain.

Written by Roger Bothwell on July 8, 2013

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org