Look Forwards

Luke 9:51-62

The Bible often exhorts us to recount the tale of our journey of faith. Just like the Cleopas and his friend on the evening of the first Easter Day ran back to Jerusalem to tell the news of their encounter with the risen Christ as they had been walking back to Emmaus so we can share our glimpses of Jesus and brief encounters with Jesus. Like Cleopas and his friend we may not, at the time, recognize Jesus but he was there just the same.

Jack Desel was a retired priest who ended his days at Holy Spirit in Houston. He and his wife Dot were members of our congregation. Dot whose main role was pew sitter was pew sitter extraordinaire, why else would I be mentioning her now. Dot almost always wore a hat and a smile, not a general 'I am a happy person smile' but a smile which said ' You are a special person'. Dot also wrote letters. At any opportunity Dot wrote a letter. At her funeral Melvin Gray asked the congregation to raise their hand if they had every received a letter from Dot. Almost everybody raised a hand, and the church was almost full to capacity. I try to write letters and look into eyes when I smile.

But the reson I am sharing the example of Dot today is because I went to a Sunday School class taught by her husband Jack. One lesson was based on this passage. I have written a note in the margin of my bible, 'Don't look back to your previous life'. I think one of the ways that Jack elaborated this was that we should not remember with longing the sins of yesterday but strive towards a closer relationship with God.

I am very grateful that I  have a computer again. I hope to be regular in my posting again.