One on One: Westerns

Saturday, May 25, 2024

An Upside-Down Blessing

A Series on the Psalms – a collection of prayers
Feeling helpless
(Click on the link below to read the verses.)
Psalm 18:1-19

[Life is filled with emotions. The book of Psalms is a collection of prayers that express our emotions which are the cry of our soul for help and hope. In this series, we will be looking into the Psalms to learn more about ourselves and our Lord.]

During the 50’s and 60’s, Westerns were the king of TV programs. I grew up watching Maverick, Rifleman and Rawhide amongst many others. The hero was always the strong silent type who would quickly take action. Plus, there was always a beautiful woman who was helpless and needed to be rescued.

Typically, one of the most dramatic scenes would be when the hero rode into a heated confrontation to rescue the helpless damsel in distress. He would swoop her off her feet as they rode into the sunset.

David felt like the damsel in distress… helpless when life had become overwhelming and out of control. The imagery of this Psalm is powerful as David paints a picture of his life.

⁴The ropes of death entangled me;
floods of destruction swept over me.
⁵The grave wrapped its ropes around me;
death laid a trap in my path. NLT

It almost sounds melodramatic except that we don’t know what circumstances led David to write with such despair. Fortunately, the Lord heard David’s cry for help. Here’s how he described the Lord riding to the rescue.

⁹He opened the heavens and came down;
dark storm clouds were beneath his feet.
¹⁰Mounted on a mighty angelic being, he flew,
soaring on the wings of the wind. NLT

Then in vivid imagery, David wrote how the Lord pulled him out of his helplessness.

¹⁶He reached down from heaven and rescued me;
he drew me out of deep waters.
¹⁷He rescued me from my powerful enemies,
from those who hated me and were too strong for me. NLT

Sometimes life can feel overwhelming and out of control. It could be due to the death of a loved one, losing your job or a broken relationship. Even a major life-change like becoming an empty nester, changing careers or moving to a new state, can cause these feelings.

Although it sounds upside down, this can be a blessing. It can be a blessing to feel overwhelmed; to feel that life is out of control; to feel helpless. At least, that’s what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount.

³“You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.

⁴“You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you. Matthew 5 MSG

Feeling helpless doesn’t feel good. But it’s an opportunity to learn to trust the Lord; to remember that he is faithful; to relearn that he will never leave you; to internalize his unfailing love. That, my friend, is an upside down blessing.

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Saturday, March 2, 2024

Bad Guys Wear Black Hats

A Series on Lent
The stories of Passion Week - Judas
(Click on the link below to read the verses.)
Matthew 26:1-5; 14-16; 47-50; Matthew 27:1-5

[Lent is a 40-day season of personal reflection with the purpose to prepare your heart to celebrate the Lord’s Resurrection at Easter. In this series on Lent, we will be looking into the stories of Passion Week. How the people who were directly involved were impacted and how that applies to us today.]

Growing up in the 50’s and 60’s, Western TV shows and movies were at their peak. The nice thing about Westerns was that it was easy to tell the good guys from the bad guys. That’s because the good guys wore white hats, and the bad guys wore black hats.

When you read the story of Passion Week, there are plenty of people who wore black hats. The chief priests and elders who planned to have Jesus killed. Caiaphas, the high priest who declared Jesus had blasphemed. Pilate who sentenced Jesus to be crucified in order to appease the Jews.

But the most notorious person to wear a black hat was Judas Iscariot, “who betrayed Jesus”. How would you like to have the title of “who betrayed Jesus” attached to your name every time you’re mentioned? That’s how it was for Judas even though he repented.

³When Judas, who had betrayed him, realized that Jesus had been condemned to die, he was filled with remorse. So he took the thirty pieces of silver back to the leading priests and the elders. ⁴“I have sinned,” he declared, “for I have betrayed an innocent man.” NLT

The chief priests didn’t care about Judas returning the money or repenting. They had
what they wanted. However, Judas couldn’t live with the guilt and the shame of what he had done. So, he killed himself. An inglorious end to an otherwise tragic life.

Although, he must have had some redemptive qualities because Jesus called him to be a disciple and then made him an apostle. However, as treasurer of Jesus’ ministry, he was stealing from it. Then, in his defining act, he approached the chief priests to see how much they would pay him to betray Jesus.

There are lots of people in the Bible who did terrible things, but were still a part of God’s redemptive plan. Jacob stole his brother’s birthright. Moses killed an Egyptian guard. David had an affair and then covered it up by killing her husband. Paul persecuted the church to the point of death. All were forgiven.

What about Judas? Is there no grace for him? Didn’t he have faith at one time? Couldn’t he have been a disciple who just lost his way? In some ways, he’s not all that different from the other disciples. They all had their weaknesses and sinful nature.

It was much easier watching westerns when I was a kid. You could tell the good guys from the bad. But in real life, it’s not so easy. Judas is known for the worst thing that he ever did in his life. What would that be like for you or me?

Thankfully, there was one person who did wear a white hat in this story... Jesus. He died so that you and I could live. He took our punishment so that we wouldn’t have to. As a result, there’s no sin that is too terrible for him to forgive. Not even Judas’.