Author Archives: chadzaucha

Excited to report that Josh has committed to Pepperdine for Law School! So, thankful for how God has worked in this situation and opened doors. Christy and I now have some great (but distant!) destinations to visit–Ashville, NC to Malibu, CA.

So with Christ. It is one thing to know the doctrines of the incarnation and the atonement and a hundred other vital doctrines. It is another, more searching matter to know his heart for   you. Who is he?

Ortlund, Dane C.. Gentle and Lowly (p. 15). Crossway. Kindle Edition.

Meek. Humble. Gentle. Jesus is not trigger-happy. Not harsh, reactionary, easily exasperated. He is the most understanding person in the universe. The posture most natural to him is not a pointed finger but open arms.

Ortlund, Dane C.. Gentle and Lowly (p. 19). Crossway. Kindle Edition.

Highlight – Genesis 1:28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth… (ESV)

Explain – Adam and Eve were to have lots of offspring.  The practical purpose was to cover the earth with creation stewards.  Humankind was to develop the creation so that it would flourish.  But there was also a spiritual purpose which was that the earth would be covered with God’s image bearers who would represent Him as agents of His Kingdom.  

Apply – The mandate for Christians today is exactly the same.  The Great Commission is that we are to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth” with spiritual offspring.  Then the earth will be covered with ambassadors of God’s Kingdom who will lead all of creation in worship of our Creator.  How fruitful am I presently?  I’ve got some growing to do in regard to evangelism.  It is so easy to get busy, even with ministry tasks, that sharing my faith with those who are not yet Believers takes a backseat.  The important becomes squashed by the urgent.  

Respond – “Father, may 2021 be a year of multiplication for me personally. May it be a year of fruitful evangelism.  This won’t happen by accident.  I pray first of all for you to provide divine appointments.  I then pray that you would cause me to approach each day expectantly, looking for these divine appointments and ready to share. I look forward to leading others across the line of faith.”

            What a gorgeous few weeks we have enjoyed!  That wet, heavy snow has clung to the trees making Cadillac a winter wonderland.  It has been the stuff of postcards and paintings by Currier and Ives.  The scenic landscape has been enough to almost make winter tolerable (emphasis on “almost”).  This I know: regardless of how irregular 2020 has been, it sure looks like a regular Northern Michigan Christmas out my window. 

            But that beauty from the wet, heavy snow has not come without consequence.  Numerous trees have experienced broken limbs or have fallen altogether.  In our own neighborhood (Shout out to Whitetail Drive!) the thinner and weaker trees have been bent low, even creating hazards on the road.  Soon after the snow fell, my wife Christy thought it her personal mission to shake the snow off these trees that were hindering our neighborhood travel and release them from their icy bondage.  (I stayed in the warm car and watched). 

            The image of those vulnerable trees bent over under the heavy load of snow reminded me of a line in the Christmas carol “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear.”  The lyric reads:  “And ye, beneath life’s crushing load, Whose forms are bending low, Who toil along the climbing way, With painful steps and slow…”  Anybody relate?  It’s like that old psychological question:  “If you were a tree, what kind would you be?”  For many of us the answer is easy:  a bent one!  Especially in this past year, so many of us have felt life’s crushing load which has bent us low.  Our steps have indeed been painful and slow as we have toiled along the climbing way.  The sentiment of the carol has never seemed more true than today. 

            But fortunately, the carol doesn’t end with subjects hopeless under life’s heavy load.  The verse goes on to say: “Look now! for glad and golden hours come swiftly on the wing.  O rest beside the weary road, And hear the angels sing!”  Much as my wife removed the heavy load of wet snow from those bent trees, allowing them to spring back to life, so Jesus came to earth to bear your heavy load—most notably your heavy load of guilt and sin.  And for those who put their trust in Him alone as Savior and Lord, He walks with them as a constant companion and load bearer. 

            As we bring conclusion to this Christmas season, the month of December, and the heavy year 2020, do you find yourself bending low beneath life’s crushing load?  The Good News of the season is that we have not been left alone.  Jesus came to earth in the flesh to set us free and to allow us to rest beside this weary road.  May you enter His peaceful rest and experience the blessing of the freedom that He alone can bring. 

            Charles Elwood “Chuck” Yeager passed away last week at 97 years of age.  He became one of my childhood heroes through his depiction in the 1983 movie “The Right Stuff.”  His list of accomplishments is legendary.  He flew the P-51 Mustang in WWII and became an ace in a single day.  After the war he became a test pilot and was the first human to break the sound barrier on October 14, 1947.  His active-duty flying career spanned more than 30 years and he flew more than 360 different types of aircraft.  He retired in 1975 with the rank of Brigadier General. 

            One of the memorable scenes from “The Right Stuff” is when Chuck was on the verge of breaking the sound barrier.  His Bell X-1 rocket-powered aircraft was experiencing so much turbulence that it seemed as if it would be ripped apart.  Those who were skeptical about the breaking of the sound barrier actually believed that it was like flying into a brick wall in the sky.  It was at that moment that Chuck had a decision to make.  He could either back off the throttle and return to base safely to fly another day.  Or, he could increase the throttle to press through the turbulence and see what was on the other side.  Yeager made the decision to “punch it,” and discovered that the feared brick wall did not exist.  Once supersonic, the plane experienced clean air and peaceful flight. 

            There was a time in the ministry of Jesus when He too faced great turbulence:  the Garden of Gethsemane.  His very life was being shaken to the point that He prayed, “Father, if there be some other way…”  He also had a decision to make:  turn away from the mission the Father had given Him, or obediently press through the turbulence.  Jesus “punched it,” and endured the agony of crucifixion.  As a result it appeared that His life ended tragically rather than heroically.  But on the other side of the turbulence of crucifixion, there was Resurrection.  And the fact of the matter is that there is no Resurrection without turbulence of crucifixion.  Jesus broke the sin barrier.  And on the other side there is peace for all who are in Him. 

            2020 has been a year of great turbulence.  It is a year that tempts us to pull back in fear and to seek safety.  But the reality is that true peace lies on the other side of the turbulence.  Freedom lies on the other side of our anxiety when we put our trust in the One who broke the sin barrier and when we allow Him to lead us into the unknown (which is not unknown to Him).   Hebrews 12:2 says, “Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end. He did not give up because of the cross! On the contrary, because of the joy that was waiting for him, he thought nothing of the disgrace of dying on the cross, and he is now seated at the right side of God’s throne (GNT).”  Whatever “barrier” you face today, let Jesus take you through to the other side.