Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

I’m Jemima L. Yeggs, a.k.a. Stinker.  Pink Lady Apple Yeggs, my landlady and my auntie, wants to read about how younger people, especially couples respond to what the Bible says.  And she wants to know how God is at work at Lily the Pink.

I had such a crowd in the “green room’.  The ‘green room’ is Aunt Pink and Aunt Gwen’s restroom outside the den where the Sunday school class was now held.  A few people did not get my memo and everyone was back from their vacations or business trips.  As usual, B.B. was with me, the expert on getting your hair to look perfect before you went in front of a camera.  That was the plan, but Sophia was there, along with Arabella and Menzie.  If anyone needed to use the restroom, they were out of luck.

The Turtle team was about to leave, at least by next Sunday morning, on a hurricane data collection trip.  We might even miss two Sundays.  I think Dr. Kildare was planning for all of us to be staying off the beach so that we do not get stranded if the bridges get wiped out.  Dr. Kildare had a large group going on the trip, many of them being people who attended the class.  But the most impactful thing is that I would not be teaching the class.  And I may be away for two Sundays in a row.  My planned backup was Joseph Jones.  But No Joe will be on the same trip.  Yikes!

B.B. said, “I have this, ladies.  I will make Stinker look gorgeous.  It may take a miracle, but I can hardly move with all of you in here.”

Arabella said, “But I really have to go!  I can’t go with a crowd watching.”

I suggested, “Belle, you can close the door, you know.”

She replied, “But I will still know they are outside the door.”

Menzie suggested, ”There are bathrooms on opposing corners of the conference center.  Other than a few people having a late breakfast before going to church, there should be no one in there.”

Arabella tore out of the room.  “If I don’t make it, it’s your fault!”

Sophie said, “Bestie, let’s give these two some room.”  And then B.B. and I were alone.

B.B. asked, “Who do you have to take your place next week?  My husband will be on the storm chase with you.”

I shrugged, “I don’t know.  I was in the mode of pray a lot and hope for a miracle.”

“Come on now, Stinker.”  B.B. teased, “You have mostly adults in the class.  Someone has to stand out.”

“I don’t know.” I replied, “The ones that I would like to ask are the ones that I do not feel right in asking.”

B.B. put her arms around my neck from behind, “And so it goes.  You keep doing more in fear of being rejected or disliked by asking someone to help.”

Joseph led us in prayer.  He covered travel mercies for all those who were about to leave on a hurricane watch.  He reminded everyone that if their prayer request status changes, he can print a new list.

Then, Emmett led his large group.  Everyone was back except Carla and Brenton, but now Darrell and Sally Mae were singing.  The lead was sung by Sally Mae, Arabella and Menzie.  At alto, there was Brooke and Mercedes Lothrop.  At tenor, Michael, Samuel, and Emmett.  Dr. Ben and Darrell sang baritone.  And Goober sang bass.  The hymn was Great is Thy Faithfulness.

Emmett added, “Do you have to ask, Aunt Jemima?”

I asked, “No, but you have to watch out, Emmett.  Darrell did a great job filling in.”  Darrell simply grinned.

Samuel said, “Aunt Jemima, what Attribute of God are we studying today?”

I laughed, “Samuel, you picked a great backup, too.  Michael did a great job of asking me your question.”  Then I paused.  “The Attribute today is God’s faithfulness.  I need to pick a great backup for me.  I thought that if I were gone, Easy would be with me.  So, I asked Joseph to back me up, but next Sunday, we will not be here.  All the storm chasers will be somewhere along the Gulf Coast or on our way there.  Then depending on when the storm hits and how much damage is done to our escape routes, we will probably miss the next Sunday.  It would have to be a quick hitting small storm for us to be back by the following Sunday.  We only have three topics left: God’s Love, God’s Holiness, and God’s Perfection.”

Angus said, “Nae, Lassie.  We want you to teach those three topics.  I propose that Missy and I teach the class.  And instead of proceeding, we can review.  We might find new Scripture or read some of the old, but we have a God who is One God, in three persons, who has at least the twenty attributes that are in the books you have used as a guide.  I can look around this room and find only a handful of people that have been with you from the start.  A review will be good.  Besides, many of these attributes of God cannot be perfectly understood by themselves.  I am just talking off my head and if it becomes a heavy load, I can blame my volunteering on a wee bit of jet lag.”

I asked, “Are you sure, Mamma Missy?”

Missy snickered, “I have a great backup in Julia.  Angus does not start teaching classes at the university for another month and a bit.  Besides, we need to keep meeting.  How else will be have a chance to talk about you?”

Margie said, “Yes, I love that idea.”

I shook my head.  “Okay, this may not work but tell us something about your trip other than everybody, even the two golfers still in Great Britain, were at a particular music festival.  Give me something else.”

Sophia (Lamentations 3:22-23) “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”

Sophia laughed, “Wait!  That is what we just sang!  The first verse!”

Emmett said, “Well, yeah.  Thomas Chisholm didn’t write the whole thing out of thin air.  A lot of the great hymns are patterned after verses in the Bible.  It is what inspires the composers.”

I asked, “So, where were you and what did you do?”

Emmett said, “I was in Scotland, babysitting the Niblick’s children, practically the whole time.”

Sophie said, “What he said.  You press me anymore, and I will say that it is classified.”

I groaned.

Blaise (2 Thessalonians 3:3) “But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.”

Blaise said, “I like the way that is said.  A lot of people say they rely on God when they are relying on themselves.  This says that God strengthens us, but then He protects us.  Even if God gave us the strength to do it, it still cannot be done without God running interference.  It’s kind of what happened on our trip.  Some people provided the strength while others ran interference, keeping them safe.  And someone got to come home to his family.  That wasn’t too much was it, Soap?”

Sophie smiled, “I‘ll let you have that one, little bro.  And amazingly, you didn’t screw it up.”  Then she snickered.

Arabella said, “I was hoping Emmett would talk in his sleep.  I stood very quietly in the corner of his room and all he said was (using a mechanical voice, as best she could) ‘Like I told you, Airhead! I just babysat little kids.’”

I nodded, “Emmett, you should be ashamed of yourself.  Even your subconscious calls Belle that naughty name.”  Then, like Sophie, I couldn’t hold it any longer.  I had to laugh.

Angus (Deuteronomy 7:9) “Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments.”

Angus laughed, “As for my highlights of my vacation, other than seeing wee Menzie on stage, I got to visit my last living aunt and uncle, not married to each other, so there were lots of cousins who visited while we were there.  And I got to eat some genuine haggis.”

I smiled, “I knew I could get a straight answer out of you.  But how did you pull off getting Missy into a dance competition and lining up the Scaffold and Paul McCartney to come on stage with Menzie for the last performance of the evening?  That’s when they have the big names.”

Angus frowned, “Och, Lassie, I canna tell my secret and I canna lie.  Well, I could but my Missy keeps her sword sharpened, and she knows how to use it.”

I added, “And Angus, you said nothing about the verse.”

Angus sighed, “How silly of me.  It speaks of God’s love for a thousand generations.  God is faithful to those who love Him and keep His commandments.  Of course, we canna keep His commandments without His love inside us.”

Missy (Hebrews 10:23) “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.”

Missy said, “To be honest, Angus ate more than some haggis.  I thought we might have to leave someone behind to make the weight for the airplane.  But I got a few recipe books for local favorites.  His aunt was very helpful.  But this verse is what we have hope in.  We know the attributes of God.  God cannot, or as Angus has been saying canna, lie.  So, when He promises us something, it is going to happen.”

Elroy (Psalm 33:4) “For the word of the Lord is right and true; he is faithful in all he does.”

Elroy smiled, “Those people who say that there is no objective Truth do not know God.  He is right and true, for He is the Truth.  And He is faithful because He has unlimited power everywhere in the universe.  But as for rumors that I left the country, they are greatly exaggerated.”

Irusya laughed, “Nice try, loving husband of mine, but we go – Latvia.  Visit my relatives, and relatives of Stasya, Rota, and Zuzka.  Only stay few days, but we bring back pictures for friends to see and little things to remember they are still loved.  And baby clothes and baby blankets.  I not having baby.  They for Zuzka and Stasya.  And now that families know each other, they start meeting like club.”

Menzie (Isaiah 25:1) “Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done wonderful things, things planned long ago.”

Menzie said, “This verse praises God for God being God.  And God is doing great things that He planned long ago.  So, if He promises to do something, He already has a plan to make it happen.  And Lauren talked to Sir Paul McCartney just like he was just another guy.  She talked about being in a Sunday school class with her Mommie and her grandma Missy.  And she was the one that told her Mommie that the buses were ready to take us to church.  And Sir Paul said that she must be doing a really good job and somebody has to do it.”

Samuel (Numbers 23:19) “God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?”

Samuel said, “I was much like Emmett.  I did a lot of babysitting, but I got to visit with the Farquharson Clan.  I said we were in high school, but in a few years we would marry.  Then one of the administrators with the clan said that Menzie was not Scottish.  Then she mentioned that her father was a Menzies.  And she had a grandfather who was a Campbell.  And before she said any more, the administrator said, ‘She has the fire of a Scot.  That’s for sure.’  But this verse is why we need to study God’s Attributes.  God is a different kind of each of these things than we are.  He is not human.  We break promises.  We do not always tell the truth.  We often change our minds.  But God does not do that.  He can be relied upon.”

Lauren ran up to Menzie and Samuel, “Mommie!  Daddy!  The buses!  The bus driver is here.  We might miss the bus!”

“Oh, sweet child, Lauren,” Grannie Fannie said softly, ”I have been sneaking into the class early to hear what Aunt Jemima is teaching.  You are not late.  I have the lead bus, and I am blocking the exit.  So, if you come with me, you cannot miss the bus.  Okay?”

Lauren wiped away the tears and smiled.

I smiled, “As we have been doing, let’s end with the Mizpah benediction.  Everyone, bow your heads in prayer.  “May the Lord keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other.’” (Genesis 31:49b)

Brooke came over and picked up Stormie’s carrier and went with me to the bus.  She looked into the carrier, “Hi, Stormie, it’s me, Aunt Brooke.”

And Stormie returned her usual smile and a little laugh.

Credits

I am now starting to use the David E. Fessenden study guides for The Attributes of God, A Journey into the Father’s Heart by A.W. Tozer, in two volumes. Again, no quotations, just some Scriptures that keep the flow going.  But I will admit that I did a search on the topic and found most of the verses that I used this time.

Here is Carrie Underwood and CeCe Winans singing Great is Thy Faithfulness.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.