Just Gone -- 4 Rapture Scenarios

"Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. "Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him." [Matthew 24:40-44]

The Husband
Kelly knew she didn't have much time left. She quickly threw clothes in a plastic shopping bag before placing it on the dining room table next to another bag, as quickly as she could. Quickly she ran to the kitchen, grabbed another bag out of the bag caddy on the wall and ran to the bathroom to pack her prescriptions...she heard Ed's keys jumble at the lock. She screamed, silently, and ran for the back door, through the kitchen. She turned, spied the bag of clothes on the dining room table...it was either risk being hit again and again for that bag of clothes, or jump in her car that sat, waiting with keys and purse in it, at the end of the cul-de-sac. "What are you doing!?" Ed screamed, the smell of cheap whiskey fresh on his breath. Immediately she started to cry. Kelly pleaded, tears coursing down her black and bruised eyes. "Ed, I can't do this anymore...you hit me..." Ed flung himself at her, screaming, rearing his fist back. She fell to the floor in a ball, screaming, "Jesus, help --" Ed's fist sliced through the air, aimed right at Kelly's left eye -- he never ever missed -- but this time, his fist slammed into the wall. He reared back, stunned...Kelly was gone. Just gone.

The Prisoner
Dan reached in the sink, grabbed another potato, and started peeling it. Tattoos covered his arms, neck and legs -- tattoos revealing gang affiliations and the like. He peeled one potato, grabbed another, got in a rhythm. Peeling potatoes went faster when there was a rhythm to it. He chuckled -- why make it go faster, I have my whole life to peel potatoes. Dan was in prison for murdering a man, in a drug deal, 23-1/4 years prior. He was in the 21-3/4 year of a life sentence. And here he was, wanting to make peeling potatoes go faster. Still, it did go at least easier when there was a rhythm, so he started singing a song that he had learned a couple of years ago in chapel, when the prison preacher came to do a service. In his deep baritone voice, Dan sang, "When the roll...is called up yonder..." A guard walked in the kitchen about that time, to check on him and the other prisoners on kitchen detail. Deputy Harris listened for a bit then laughed. "You think you're actually going to be going to heaven with what you did?" Dan stopped singing. "Well, I did do something awful, and I know that. And I know the Good Lord saw it too, but I also know 'cause I asked, He forgave me. So...yes. Come death or rapture, I know where I will be." Deputy Harris laughed again, picked up a potato out of the sack and examined it. This struck Dan as odd but he didn't say anything. Deputy Harris laughed again, still with his eyes focused on that potato. "Well, I know I'm gonna be in heaven....I'm a good person. I don't cheat on my wife that much or cheat on my taxes and I certainly never shot a man in a crack deal." He tossed the potato to Dan, just in time to see Dan standing there, holding the peeler...then the peeler fell to the floor from midair and the potato fell with it. Dan had simply vanished. Just gone.

The Preacher
The pastor was in the middle of a sermon on the Beatitudes. He liked preaching the Beatitudes, made people feel good and was a good way to get a good tinkle going in the brass-colored offertory plates. Life was just good, he thought to himself in his black robe and collar, reading from the sermon he had written between a hospital chat to a dying woman named Something-or-other, he couldn't really remember and the golf game he had been practicing for, with members of the church council. He smiled and inflected his tone and did everything by the book from his seminary preaching class. No wonder he made As in that class, he thought. He looked over his congregation and smiled inwardly. I've done some good work here, he thought, with not a small amount of pride. Membership was down but dollars in the plate were up; Vacation Bible School was just around the corner and most of the volunteer slots had been filled for that. He was just about to hit the proverbial preaching ball out of the ballpark with "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God" when, right in front of his very eyes, people just up and disappeared. The rest of the congregation screamed and jumped up, some ran outside...all over town, all over the state, the country...the world...people everywhere were screaming and running outside and calling for loved ones, for co-workers, for children that were just gone.

The Government
The government soon met, quickly, even though Congress had far less people in it before. The senators and representatives that were...missing...could not be reached via telephone, or email, or pager....The media outlets were short people, too, as they tried to make sense of this. Millions of people across the world were just gone. The United Nations called for an emergency summit, elected a committee to do a fact-finding mission to find out where all the people went. The international organization declared that they would prosecute the person or persons responsible for such a global act of terrorism and kidnapping. Right in the middle of that meeting, a dashing, well-spoken and charismatic leader stepped forward. He talked them all down from their frenzied state and reasoned that first and foremost, the small nation of Israel must be secured....This man, the nations declared, would be their savior, to lead them in the absence of leaders, politicians and people who were just gone.

These are just four hypothetical fictional accounts of what the Rapture could be like. For those who have never accepted Christ as Savior, who have denounced God, who follow wicked religions and think they can get buy their way into heaven by "being a good person," woe unto you....you will be left to face horrors unlike you've ever seen on this planet, while Followers of Christ all over the world, dead and alive, will be just gone...to be with Christ Jesus and to worship Him forever and ever. At the end, though -- even Hitler, Hussein, Herod and millions upon millions of people will bow before Him. Every knee will bow. The fact remains: 'tis so much better, with a life worth living for the Lord, if you bow your knees of your own accord.

There is no doubt that Jesus is coming soon. World events and events happening in the United States alone make some Christians shudder and wonder how could America go so far from what the Founding Fathers conceived? But take heart, Followers of Christ. Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” [John 16:33]. We don't need to be scared...we need to keep our eyes upon Jesus, who will soon be coming for us. Soon we will look face-to-Face with the Risen, Ascended, Rapturing Jesus. AMEN!

"For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words." [1 Thessalonians 4:16-18]

Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus.

Terrie

(c) 2013 Terrie McKee

Nourishment for a Crazy-Busy Life

"Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. “For the last fourteen days,” he said, “you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food — you haven’t eaten anything. Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head.” After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves." -- Acts 27:33-36

Paul certainly had his share of crazy adventures. Arrested, on a boat that was clearly sailing in the wrong time of the year to be doing so, headed off to face Caesar and spread the Gospel throughout Rome. This passage of Scripture indicates a time on the ship when it was being flung around the Mediterranean, hurling through harbors and bouncing off islands, and everyone was on high alert. They knew death could be right in the middle of the next wave of the nor'easter.

Adrenaline was pumping.

There was no time to sit and chew the fat, much less food. There was no time to think about the ramifications of what they were doing or that the Roman government didn't understand proper timing of marine travels. The frenzied nature of their lives had every sailor and soldier on board calling for his mama. Peace? Please...no time for peace, let alone trips to the bathroom.

So Paul called a time-out.

"For the last fourteen days," he said, "you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food -- you haven't eaten anything. Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive."

Sometimes I read a passage and think, "Now that'll teach."

As a stay-at-home mom of four, we have our share of frenzy. Our oldest is 18, has autism, epilepsy, ADHD, spinal stenosis -- and was recently given the added diagnosis of bipolar disorder. Lord have mercy, when I write about Sam's difficulties and opportunities for God's grace, I get tired just reading about it. Then, Jacob, 15, has ADHD and his learner's permit to drive. Lord have mercy. Then, my beautiful step-daughter Ellison, 14, diagnosed ten years ago with diabetes. Growing up way faster than her daddy likes. Then, there's Laura -- a three year old ball of energy who, as I write this, is having a sword fight with our 14 year old tired cat. Lord have mercy!

This passage from Acts reminds me that I cannot be the person God intends for me to be -- wife, mother, writer, Sunday School teacher, daughter, sister, friend -- without calling a time-out in the midst of the frenzy and taking nourishment. Nourishment could be in the form of a healthy but filling lunch, not skipping breakfast, or having a dinner-date with my husband -- or it could mean not neglecting time with God.

I struggle with this last one. So many Christians have the discipline to have an early-morning quiet time with the Father. I have a confession: this stresses me out. I cannot compare myself with other Christians with their morning devotions. I have tried. But the moment some child (and I include teens and young adults in that description) smells the coffee brewing or toast toasting, that means one thing: Mom is Up. One cannot have quiet time when another has declared Mom is Up. If I don't brew coffee, their sharp albeit selective hearing can hear the pop of a new orange juice container lid -- and morning devotions are out the window.

But nourishment from the Father in His Word is what I seek. I have bedtime devotions. I read the Bible at night, in bed, before lights out. I write when I can but often its late at night when all are asleep, and my fingers can type ever so quietly. Before I get up in the morning, I pray, and most days I pray this simple but heartfelt prayer: "Lord, let me be a blessing to someone today, in Your Name." I pray in the shower. I pray while driving my herd to wherever it is we're going.

I remind myself though, that Jesus had to get away from the crowds too. He had to have communion via prayer with the Father. If it is good for Jesus, it is good for us. It is necessary to the Christian life to have time with Christ. In fact, it is also good for kids to see their parents exercise their faith by having quiet and not-so-quiet times with God.

So, how do we gain nourishment? How do we put ourselves in time-out so we won't go Nebuchadnezzar-crazy in the frenzy of life itself? Because sometimes life just hits all at once and piles it on. We don't even think about stopping to use the bathroom let alone eat correctly. When we do go to the bathroom, there's always some little kid in there with you. When we can sit down to enjoy a meal, there's always some little kid who won't eat the food on their plate but wants to share yours -- despite it being the same food. How do we balance the needs of the whole when we have one who requires so much more?

As a mom of four kids with various special needs, living in a cramped 1,200 square feet home where there are no good hiding spaces (particularly when Mom has squirreled away a piece of chocolate she has no intention of sharing), I have some experience and ideas on how to carve out time so you can indeed be the Follower of Christ and the person Father calls you to be.

• Enlist the aid of a babysitter and go out for lunch with a good friend. Babysitters don't always have to be for nighttime!
• Remove the guilt: Let the kids watch a 30-minute cartoon on television or DVD so you can shower, change into clean clothes, do your hair, and do your makeup. Even if you're not leaving the house.
• Refresh said makeup right before the husband walks in the door. The house may look like a disaster, but you don't have to.
• Take your devotional book or the Bible and let the kids play at a park. Bring along sandwiches, snacks, water bottles...and don't forget the sunscreen. Better yet: meet a friend, a fellow Mom with kids, there.
• Have a standing Sanity Date with yourself, Sunday afternoons. Go to the bookstore and browse, buy a fancy coffee drink, go to the mall -- do whatever it takes to have some time alone. Pray.
• For parents with kids with serious special needs -- investigate respite care options.
• Nurture your marriage. Flirt. Wink.
• Garden. Plant a plot of yard outside with veggies, or maybe just use flowerpots on the deck or patio. Good for kids, good for you -- good eating.
• Invest in a Slip and Slide, a kiddie pool, a sprinkler -- anything to get the kids outside, with you under a shade tree or umbrella. Pretend you're playing a game on your phone but secretly, you're videoing your ultra-cool teenagers laughing hysterically with arms flailing as they fling themselves down the Slip and Slide....Even if you don't post this on social media sites, the blackmail investment alone should get at least three nights' worth of dishes washed.

We are called by Christ to serve Him by serving others. But when our cup is empty, we risk burnout...more than that, we risk having heart attacks, strokes, or saying something we do not mean. Psalm 23:5 states, "You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows." The Lord can only overflow our cups with blessings when the cups are empty of chaos. When Paul broke the bread, and began to eat it, all the others on the ship were encouraged, and ate bread themselves. When we are nourished and fed, the cup overflows to our whole family, and everyone is nourished.

Terrie

(C) 2013 Terrie McKee

mission:Africa ~ Putting Feet to my Faith

"For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!' [Romans 10:12-15]

It's been said, "Why should we send a mission team to Africa when we have unchurched people in our own community?" Being born and raised in the United States' "Bible Belt," with television evangelists on every Sunday, a church on nearly every street -- I would have to say, people need to take a certain personal responsibility in their walk of faith. In the United States, if you want to go to church, there are plenty of choices to be had. If you don't want to go to church, there's that option as well. In the United States, that still has a semblance of freedom of religion, citizens do not have the excuse that there are no churches nearby. In a country full of rights -- citizens must take the responsibility for those rights.

The church still has the responsibility, though, to reach out to the unchurched in the community...in the city...in the state...Jesus did not lay down any geographic barriers when He said "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” [Matthew 28:19-20].

Zambia, Africa, like many other regions on that continent, plays host to a deadly foe: the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The victims of this are not only men and women, but more often than not, children. Children who are left orphaned -- either losing one parent, or both. Children of all ages are left without someone to care for them, hug them, kiss them goodnight. Children of all ages die not knowing Christ. Children, men and women of all ages in Africa die without hearing the Good News of Jesus Christ.

And they don't have the luxury of a church on every corner.

Paul wrote, "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?" His emotional call to mission leaves me heart-heavy. How can these orphans hear about Jesus if Jesus' followers disobey Christ's Commission to us? How can the widows and widowers hear about Jesus? How can they have the Hope of Heaven if it is not shared to them?

Friends, we are called to preach and teach the Word. We are commanded to share Jesus to others -- "others" including the lady beside you in the dentist waiting room, the man behind you in the check-out line in the grocery store, the housemother raising five orphaned children, of whom none are her biological children.

This October, my church, Flint Groves Baptist Church in Gastonia, NC, is leading a mission team to go to the Village of Hope in Zambia and minister orphans and housemothers alongside the missionary organization All Kids Can Learn International. The team will be providing training and encouragement to nearby church pastors, provide discipleship opportunities to children, youth and housemothers, staff a medical clinic, and just love on them --- and share Jesus with them.

The Book of James states that we are to put Feet (action) to our Faith. What does Paul say when we do that? “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"

We want to bring the children new red t-shirts (a semblance of a school uniform), children's vitamins, Lincoln Logs, and curriculum for Bible School. But to do this, and do fund the mission trip, I need your help. My husband and I are struggling financially as we all are. We have four kids who have grown fond of eating. Yet, the fact remains that the Lord has called me personally to serve on this mission trip to Zambia. So, I'm asking for your prayerfully-considered donations to fund this trip.

To make that easy for everyone, please go to this link: http://www.youcaring.com/mission-trip-fundraiser/missionafrica-putting-feet-to-my-faith/63517 and donate using PayPal. Any donation is appreciated. Any funds left over from paying for the necessary mission trip expenditures (airfare, in-country costs, etc) will pay for t-shirts, vitamins, toys, and curriculum. If there are any funds left over, they will be given to the Village of Hope as a mission gift.

For more info on All Kids Can Learn International and the Village of Hope, please go to http://www.akcli-voh.org/.

Please .... help me be the Hands and Feet that brings the Good News to the people of Zambia. May God richly bless you.

In Christ,
Terrie

(C) 2013 Terrie McKee