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.

B.B. and I were in our ‘green room’.  B.B. was working on my hair as usual, and she was extra careful.  “Stinker?  I asked this last week, and I don’t think you answered it.  What is the meaning of life?”

I groaned.  “I told you last week about the pregnancy’s emotional roller coaster.  Are you off on another roller coaster ride?”

B.B. huffed, “Stinker, I ate pickles and ice cream for breakfast.  Joseph insisted I eat one egg and bacon too.  I am all set for the day.  At least no hormone shifts yet.  But really, my mother taught me to focus on my career.  And I did that until I saw how you and Easy had it together and you had fun doing it.  I accepted Jesus, but then everything became a whirlwind.  I met Joseph.  We got married.  And now pleasing my husband and having children seem to be my focus.  And am I not supposed to glorify God along the way?”

I snickered, “Yeah!  But you can do that while you are doing the other things.  You already glorify God in the film editing room.  You ensure that Christianity is shown in a positive light.  We never chase a storm unless we search for survivors and give comfort to the victims.  And that all comes out in your editing.  And I do not think that a wife and mother can be better at glorifying God than you will be.  Joseph will be ordained soon.  You will be a preacher’s wife, and a good one.”

B.B. moaned, “But what if this child turns out to be rotten?  You tried the Preacher’s Kid rebellion.  What happens if this one does that?”

I shrugged, “I like how you point to your tummy when you don’t have a baby bump yet.  But you pray.  You bring the child up the proper way.  You give the child equal boundaries to the other children, not focusing on how you have to be perfect because your daddy is a preacher.  They’ll pick up on that soon enough anyway.  And in the end, if they turn rotten, it was their choice.  I have three half-sisters that all strayed away, but two repented.  My youngest sister is still older than I am, but we are still praying for her.  And remember what Pauline Niblick said at vespers a couple of weeks ago.  Her mother died of an overdose, in full rebellion as a PK, but then she went through the same thing after her grandparents took her in.  And who bumps into her life?  GrandPa.  GrandPa took her to his secret mountain cabin…  I guess the cabin belongs to the government.  But she learned how to crack safes, sneak in and out of houses, and pick any kind of lock.  But in the process of learning some really naughty skills, GrandPa kept her from actually using those skills.  He redirected her interests.  As long as she could meet GrandPa at the cabin and learn cool stuff, she did not get crazy.  She settled down and enjoyed being a preacher’s kid, or grandkid in her case.”

B.B. smiled, “I guess you are right.  Your hair is perfect, but you’ve got a spot on your nose.”

I yelped and spun around to look in the mirror.

B.B. laughed, “Gotcha!”

I growled, “Who is being the stinker now?”

We entered the den and nodded at Joseph to open us in prayer.

Joseph led us in prayer with no interruption from Arabella.

Emmett’s band was great, as usual.  The song was God of Our Life.

I asked, “Emmett, what is going on?  The choir sounds great, but can you get something that matches the theme?”

Emmett shook his head, “How about we sing Christmas Carols next week?  Then, I won’t have to do double duty.”

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

I laughed, “Samuel, if you have not figured it out, we are looking at attributes of God as they relate to our life.  This week we look at how God becomes our life.  Arabella, do we need Mr. Dictionary?”

Arabella sighed, “I think I do not need Mr. Dictionary, but you forget.  Michael and I are not the youngest in the class.  You need to ask Sarah and Clay.”

Sarah smiled.  She pressed something on her tablet.  “Air Head said she was going to say that, so I recorded this message ahead of time.  I have had selective mutism since my family lost our farm South of town.  I love Mommie Pinkie.  She gave our family a home.  And with the money that was raised and the sale of the farm to form the PLAYhouse and PLAYground, we bought the County Line Farm.  But the scars from the trauma are still with me.  In smaller crowds, I can talk, but this classroom is too intimidating.  So, I use the tablet that Dala Enterprises programmed to read my lips when no sound comes out.  But I have learned that I can sing what I want to say.  As for your question about needing Mr. Dictionary, I would like to reply that Clay and I read the Scriptures.  We discuss them.  And when we do not understand something, we ask Jochebed and Georges or we look the words up in a dictionary and a Bible dictionary.  We may be the youngest in the class, but we study.  We do not play it from the hip, as they say.”

When the recorded answer in Sarah’s voice was finished, Arabella growled and Sarah stuck her tongue out at her older sister.  I think Sarah will be able to hold her own in the class.  And the back story about talking through the tablet will help those in the class that did not know she had difficulty speaking.

Easy groaned, “Rats!  Am I out of a job?  Have I lost my new codename?”

Sarah moved her lips and then the tablet said, “You will always have my sister.”

Lancelot (Colossians 3:4) “When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”

Lance Allott asked, “Thank you for asking me to read, but this is a bit confusing.  Hasn’t Christ already appeared?”

I smiled, “I apologize, Lancelot, but the last couple of weeks have been hectic.  I hope you don’t mind me saying Lancelot.”

Lance Allott shrugged, “A lot of people do.  It’s my name, kind of all run together.”

I nodded, “Well, the context here in Colossians 3 is that Paul is writing to believers in Colossae in Asia Minor, but Paul says that the letter should also be read to the people of Laodicea.  So, the letter was meant to teach the people from both churches.  Laodicea went on to be one of the seven churches that Jesus dictated a letter to and gave the Apostle John the word to pass along.  But these churches in Asia Minor may have had a few people who saw Jesus in person, but they were mostly people who had never seen Jesus.  They would see Jesus upon their death, but even we today have the hope that Jesus could return in our lifetime.  Most scholars say this refers to the second coming of Jesus that is foretold in Revelation.  At that time, we will have our new bodies that will be uncorruptible.  We will stand along Jesus’ side in glory.  But the point here is that to have life as a Christian is to live for Christ.  I think the best verses for this lesson is Philippians 1:20-21.  ‘I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.’  If we have breath in our lungs, God gives us that breath to glorify Him in some way here on earth.”

Lance Allott smiled and nodded, “I am new to this, but I am starting to understand that.  I have a good teacher by my side.”  Grannie Fannie blushed.

Hannah (John 3:16) “Also hat Gott die Welt geliebt, daß er seinen eingeborenen Sohn gab, auf daß alle, die an ihn glauben, nicht verloren werden, sondern das ewige Leben haben.”

Hannah smiled, “Someone told me that Jochebed reads from her French Bible, the one she read when she first learned of Jesus.  I just read from the Luther Bible.  There are newer translations in German, but the Amish usually use the Luther Bible.  Do you want the verse in English?”  I nodded.

Hannah (John 3:16) “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Hannah sighed, “Did you give me the easy verse since I am new to the class?  Well, Jesus came to earth from Heaven.  He did so because God loves us.  And God gives eternal life to those who believe and trust in Jesus.  I would think we should have an eternal debt to pay.  And since our new life is eternal, we could never begin to pay Him back for what He has done.  I look around the room.  I see people who helped Paddy and I to meet for the first time, and those who helped Paddy and I to reunite and get married.  I owe more than I can ever pay just to you in this class and to Mommie Pinkie who continues to help us.  But the new life that Paddy and I have must be dedicated to God.  I owe Him the most.”

I smiled, “And welcome to the class, Hannah.  I see that you have some honeymooners with you.”

Edna spoke for the group.  “I echo what my daughter has said.  Bonnie and I have married Clyde and Barry.  In Amish tradition, when you marry, you visit relatives during the honeymoon phase.  Since Clyde and Barry have no family other than you here, since they work for the Daltons and so many people at Lily the Pink volunteer with the FHAT (Feeding the Homeless At Tracy), we are spending time here to be part of the food distributions and meet Clyde and Barry’s friends.  Then we will go to Halfway where we will visit some of our children who have families of their own before returning to the barn.  The small rooms are fine, and Erasmus, my brother, will build our homes in the Spring across the creek from the County Line Farm.  Then, the unmarried of our children will move in with us.  I guess at that point, the honeymoon will be over.”

There were murmurs of welcome from everyone in the room.  Easy said that when the buses return from the different churches, we will have a catered meal for everyone in the den.  It will be catered by the Lily the Pink bakery, with TomCat supervising the menu to make it is close to the Amish as possible.  TomCat will watch the streaming service while cooking and Missy and Menzie will bring TomCat’s children with them to church.  For those that do not know, TomCat is Thomas and Catherine ver Waarloosd.

I said, “We still have more verses.”

Clyde (John 5:25-27) “Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.”

Clyde said, “I was among those that were dead, dead in sin, that is.  Then, the father of Easy, Sophie, and Blaise gathered a bunch of us under a bridge, and he told us that God loved us.  He sent His Son to earth to save us.  This passage talks about how God passed down His authority to His Son, and Jesus had the authority to do what He did.  He died so that I could live.  He lives so that I can be with Him in Glory.  And after the police lieutenant had finished his talk, I accepted Jesus.  I am one of those that was dead and I am now alive.  Barry and I both have social anxiety issues.  Our bodies are broken.  The Amish community is the best place for us to feel safe and glorify God.  But for you who have not been broken down by this fallen world, spread the Gospel to the people.  And I thank each one of you that goes with the lieutenant and Thomas to these feeding events.  It is so much more than the food.  It is the Word of God.  It is the manna from Heaven that the lieutenant started.  God be praised, but even the lieutenant said that he started having these feedbags because of something that Mommie Pinkie said to him.  God works in mysterious ways.  I love all of y’all.  I especially love the giggling little girl in the choir over there.  Arabella comes by more often than anyone.  She is there to help with the birth of the animals.  But she always has kind words for Barry and me.  Living a life that God has given us is not just doing good deeds and trying to not sin.  When God is Life for us, it changes the direction that we go when we travel down the road of life.  It changes the people we meet. And it changes our purpose as we go.”

Joseph smiled, “Can I quote you, Clyde?  I am getting my masters of divinity, and I will be the Associate Pastor at First-Third at the first of the year.  I would love to write a sermon around what you just said.  It was lovely.”

Clyde shrugged, “It was just what was on my heart.  Barry and I were wallowing in self-pity.  We still have problems with PTSD, but when it comes to my new life that God gave me, it’s like what my dear daughter, Hannah, said.  The life God gives is eternal.  We could never pay Him back.  We could never say thank you enough.”

Bonnie (Galatians 2:19-21) “For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”

Bonnie said, “I didn’t think fast enough, or I would have gotten Hannah’s Bible ready.  Christ did not die for nothing.  Christ died for me and the others in this room.  I am one of the nurses in the Community.  When someone is sick, they call on me.  I go and pray over them.  I feed them.  And when they do not respond to natural nursing, I have sent for someone along the County Line Road.  Mrs. Holly Danville, the pharmacist, is a big help.  She gets the doctor to visit.  But the thing is that each time I enter the house of a sick person, I don’t know if I might get the disease that they have.  But that thought never stops me.  It never slows me down.  I go because my life is to help them.  Christ died for me, and I must die in my own self-interest.  I must sacrifice myself so that the sick do not die alone.  But that does not mean that I am not praying for myself.  I pray for me, so that I might help even more who are sick.  Barry and I have asked the man who is dreaming up the house for us.  We want some extra rooms for the sick.  I want my family with me, but I also want a place so that the sick can come and get the help they need.”

“We have registered nurses here at Lily the Pink and Greta Grunge is going back to school to get her nurse practitioner degree.  Barry has the Dalton’s number.  We can give you her number too.”  I suggested.

I sighed, “Wow!  There are so many verses that we have not covered, but my eyes are full of tears right now.  I don’t know if I could read anything at the moment.

Grannie Fannie (Romans 15:13) “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Lauren ran up to Grannie Fannie and hugged her.  “Are you ready to drive us?  And thank you for bringing Sammie and me so many friends.  There was Liam, Lympie, and Ellie Rain.  And there was Reuben, Samantha, and Levi.  We had a party!”

Brooke came over and got Stormie’s carrier.  “Hi, Stormie.  It’s Aunt Brooke and Uncle Goober.  Let’s go hear more about God.”

Stormie cooed.

B.B. came over and hugged me.  “Second week in a row that you gave me what I needed.”

Credits

The nature of the blog from Sweet to the Soul Ministries gives only one verse.  I used various searches and cross references for the other verses.  I used just a few sources.

Here is Grosse Pointe Memorial Church Virtual Choir (Grosse Pointe, Michigan, USA) singing God of Our Life.

God never fails.  We trust Him and lean upon His mercies.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.