2013 

REMNANT

Was thinking about the idea of Remnant last night.

Remnant?

Yeah- in scripture there is sort of a scarlet thread- a teaching- that runs thru both the Old and New testaments.

It goes like this;

There are times when there are bunches of people following God- on the Bandwagon so to speak.

Often times all is great- you know- ticker type parade in NY type stuff.

Then- lo and behold- stuff gets hard- and people bail out.

Okay- the Remnant are those who after the bailout- they are still standing in the rubble.

Got it?

There are a few notable stories like this in the bible- Gideon’s ‘army’- etc.

Jesus taught this in his Parables-

He said the kingdom was like someone planting seeds- some fall on good ground- others- not so good.

He said some ‘endure for a while- but when tribulation arises because of the word they are offended and leave’.

Same concept.

The other day I taught a little form John’s gospel- chapters 13-15.

I didn’t’ hit on a conversation Jesus and Peter had.

Peter ‘why can’t I follow you now- I am willing to die for you’?

Jesus ‘’Willing to die? Before the rooster crows you will deny me 3 times’.

The very thing Peter stated as his mindset- being sold out to death- was in fact the actual thing that kept him form following to death- he was afraid to die.

We all know the story- he denies the Lord and falls hard.

Jesus told Peter ‘I have prayed for you- that your faith fail not- and after your are converted- strengthen your brothers’.

Converted?- after the change has come.

Peter was a type of the remnant- he told Jesus at one point- right after others walked away [John’s gospel chapter 6- because Jesus said unless you drink my Blood and eat my Flesh you have no life- The Jewish followers were forbidden to eat blood from the teachings of Moses- so after Jesus said this many left].

Jesus asked Peter ‘will you go too’?

Peter’s reply ‘where can we go- you have the Words of eternal life’.

In essence- even though things got very hard at that stage- Peter was around long enough to recognize that Jesus was speaking to them at a different level- he seemed to be ‘more real’ than the many preachers of the day.

So- Peter and a few others stayed.

The other day I mentioned my buddy Tim- the homeless friend who I  have been running into on my walks.

I saw Tim a few weeks back- he stopped at ‘my camp’ [my spot by the water where I pray and hang out].

He was heading into town- he was gonna stop at my favorite spot- half price books- and get some stuff to read.

I had my Dylan book [Chronicles- came out in 2004- excellent book] in my Navy Sea Bag- and I asked him if he liked Dylan.

He told me he loves Dylan.

I gave him the book- he was grateful.

It was the 2^nd time I read it- I have given away many of my books over the years- I see it as ministry.

One piece of advice I liked;

Dylan was asking a buddy about his move to NY city- he told Bob ‘get some good boots- you’ll be doing a lot of walking’.

I laughed- I have been walking in work boots for the past 4 months- I mean hundreds of miles [yeah- hundreds!- some days I do about 15- 20 in a single day].

As we all have our own journey to walk- I’m trying to document- and share relevant stuff- things that will last.

One of my favorite journalists of all time was Hunter Thompson.

He’s the character that Johnny Depp played in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas- a Thompson book turned into a movie.

Hunter wrote for Rolling Stone back in the day- he covered politics and eventually wrote for ESPN.

He lost his edge as the years went by- and he knew it.

One day he had his family over- they enjoyed a good day together- after the many years of drugs and stuff he got into.

He was sick at the end- and he walked out of the house- his family heard a shot- Hunter took his life.

It was sad- but he felt like he had nothing left to give.

Yet he lives thru what he wrote.

Morrison [the Doors] was a student of philosophy and a smart guy [did you know that?]

That’s where he got the name for the group- Doors.

He said we only live on thru our songs and poems- sort of the legacy we leave behind.

It’s important to document stuff for the next generation- for the Remnant- if you will.

Sure- there will be some who walked with you for only parts of the journey.

And that’s fine- God had a purpose for you and them at that stage.

Hunter had a saying- he loved riding Harleys- and he said some times he would still get on his bike and head out late at night.

He would up the speed- to a point of No Return.

Sort of like that Runners High- you get to a point where you are feeling high [I get that in my walks- but only after hours of walking with no stopping].

Hunter said- when you reach that point- some slow down.

But he said others- they go past that point- and that’s where they see stuff that you can only see when you push past that point.

I feel like the Remnant- those who stick around like Peter- they have good stuff coming.

It just takes time to let the dust settle- to re-gain your equilibrium-

 then get back on the bike.

www.corpuschristioutreachministries.blogspot.com

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