So watch out, here comes some talk on a Son who spoke of returning — and has.

1

Where We All Come From

Jesus.

What do we think of that name when we say it, scream it, or moan it?

It’s a name I’m sure we’ve all heard at one time or another. Whether some of us put much meaning into it or not, this name always seems to come up. I know that at one time, for myself, whenever I heard that name it felt like something old and distant. It was like this prehistoric figure who once was rumored to roam the land, never to be seen or heard from again.

At times imagery would pop into my head when I heard this name, which made it even harder to truly take in all that it meant. Sometimes I felt as if I were a little kid sitting around a campfire, eagerly leaning in as the elders would share stories passed down to them, “Yep, that Jesus fellow was somethin’ else, He was! That bear stood anywhere between 10 and 15 feet tall! But Jesus didn’t back down, no, sir! He stood His ground and gave that bear a good whacking upside his head! Ya better believe that bear went a-runnin’!”

Well, okay, maybe the images weren’t that farfetched. Perhaps it was more like memories from childhood, where I was made to sit on hardwood church pews, shifting from one side to the other to allow blood to flow to my lower extremities. Then, at times, I’d have to pull my dress back down into place which had hiked up from all of the shifting, which would cause my pew-sticking skin to create audible screeching noises to be heard clear down the church rows. I’d usually look over in embarrassment to my sisters to see that they were doing practically the same thing, with an added whine and rolling of the eyes in “preaching-recipient” agony.

We were at church service, and there was no escape, we realized, but we were told we were supposed to be there, so we were. It still wasn’t fun, not service sermons, anyway, but Sunday school was another story. We could handle the classes and actually tended to enjoy more of the one-on-one explanations instead of this mass address to an audience. I know I often wondered why the kids couldn’t just end out their day with Sunday school and let the adults have their advanced classes in this more college-like forum.

But, nope.

We had to have our Sunday school, plus this hour of practicing to sit still — only to stand up when you saw everyone else do so. Not to mention bowing our heads in prayer, only to peek around to see if everyone was really closing their eyes when they tipped their heads forward and folded their hands. For the record, most people just seemed to be looking down at their laps or shoes. I could see the whites of their eyes at times, and that just doesn’t happen if you truly have your eyes closed.

But, then, suddenly and mysteriously among all of the discomfort and spying, the pastor would heighten his voice in parts of his sentence to emphasize a name that would suddenly draw my eyes forward, “Jesus said . . . blah, blah, blah,” only to lower his voice into something not memorable by a child.

So I’d heard the name Jesus before. I thought I knew where His place was in a book, too. The one that was written over, uh... well... a long time ago, called the Bible. Most people seem to be at least aware of the existence of the Bible, and I’m guessing that if they know it exists, they have at least opened it once or twice.

I admit that I’m not too savvy on the Bible, myself, but I did read a good deal of it some time ago. So bits and pieces of it have stuck in my head about the main points and ideas, I suppose. It seems to ring of “Be good, and don’t let the darkness change you.” But, of course, there’s more to it than that, I realize. But to say that I have truly mastered the full details of the Bible would be far from the truth.

So, if someone thinks they can come up and out — quote me, you bet! But there’s something to be said for where my heart is (It’s just my head that can’t always keep up with the quotes and reading and such.).

But back to Jesus: Who was, or is, this man, and where does He fit within our society? This is something I’ve often wondered.

I knew the general setting of the Bible: really ancient, lots of sand, with men and women walking around in big airy robes and sandals. There were kings, queens, empires, and lots of wars with hands-on battles with swords and rocks. Back in those days, people paid high taxes, and the amount of land you owned measured your wealth among your neighbors.

Scratch that last part, since those concepts have never changed.

But today things have changed quite a bit in considering this physical world. In today’s playground, there are paved roads, dance clubs, televisions, cars, high schools, airplanes, technical gizmos, movies, and robotic pet dogs! These are just a few added distractions in this day and age to make it harder for the modern human to place how people in the Bible went about their daily lives. I doubt that many of us could even fathom having to wash our clothes by hand in our sinks, let alone go down to a river or well to beat our clothes with a rock. Envisioning those days of old is difficult enough, now try to manifest in your mind that God’s Son Incarnate once traversed that very soil so long ago.

I’m trying to hold the thought, myself, and I think I have a decently assumed visual in my mind, since I have seen enough “Life of Jesus” specials on television. But to truly understand the whole concept of Jesus and what His life and sacrifice is about, can be a struggle to absorb.

I knew that a man by that name, claiming to be the Son of God, existed at one time. So for me it was pretty much historical fact, but I didn’t know where He fit in with what I was doing today and if He was at all concerned with all of the atrocities which are going on in the world.

So, I suppose to quiet my own lack of answers where Jesus fit in, I just kept it out of my mind. I figured that if I didn’t place judgment on it, how could I be for or against it? He had existed; I knew that, He performed miracles; I accepted that, and you had to say your prayers in His Name to get your point across to God.

Well, I knew all that, but this stuff was more memorized than personal. It was like there was more “head” stuff involved than “heart” when it came to Jesus.

For me, God was easy to know. I knew there was some higher being who started this whole earthen mystery. I feel that we are all born with this feeling that something or someone is missing in our lives, and we spend a great deal of our lifetime trying to find that missing piece. It’s as if we came here with the distinct knowledge that part of our heart lies elsewhere and we need to reconnect to that “something else” to feel whole again. So we go where others are looking for that same missing piece — and it usually is in a worshiping place of one faith or another — and we try to piece the mystery together for ourselves. Someone, a long time ago, gave me a name for this pretty natural thing I personally felt and sought, and the name “God” stuck with me for the most part.

Now there goes another powerful name for you: God.

His is the very name we shout when we are in our most dire need, next to Jesus’ name. Even if you didn’t have faith before in Him, suddenly it’s the first thing out of your mouth when you’re in trouble. Isn’t that something?

I always thought that was one of the world’s greatest mysteries. Here you have the rottenest of the rotten, sitting on death row, and suddenly he or she finds God. Surprisingly, now I understand more of that mystery.

People are essentially missing that link which I just mentioned, and we all realize it, no matter who we are. Most just don’t have the patience to try to reconnect to it on a satisfactory level to feel secure and make that empty feeling go away. But sit a few years on death row, or feel like nothing can help you but a miracle, and you will surely make the time to throw out that light in you to form a rope to God to hoist you out of your situation.

Is that more of the miracle, that we find the time and means to call unto God only when needed, or did we know all along to truly mean it when we call out to Him to make things happen?

I know we all have it in us to make the connection whenever we want, but I think it’s smart not to abuse it and to think that it can always be made up with one heartfelt call. Practice makes perfect. Keep your lifeline up and open so maintenance will be minimal when you need to make a call. Now I feel like a long-distance phone service, but the concept was so similar that I couldn’t help myself.

I’m the first to admit that I am no angel in anyone’s eyes. At times, I’m just as guilty as the next person, especially when it comes to slacking on the prayer end. But I have learned to make communication with God easier for myself by not placing so many restrictions on myself in the manner in which I can speak with Him. So, when it comes to God, I feel great about where I stand with Him for a variety of reasons which I’ll mention later.

But Jesus? Was it really necessary that I know and fully understand what was meant by Him and His actions, even today? I figured I had the God thing down pretty good, so there was no need to dig any further, just go by memory on how to address God through Jesus, and all would be fine.

Well, today I’m inclined to say that it was not a wise decision, because it could have cost me dearly in more ways than I can count. I also would have spread my arrogance and ignorance to others and been partly responsible for their deception. I suppose (Well, there is no “supposing” to it, really.) I know that God saw that I was a decent person who was making an awful mistake. So, what better way to help me see the light than to wake me up personally with a special visitor?

There’s no mystery about who I’m speaking of, unless you missed all the name-dropping going on. There is no way in my wildest dreams that I could surmise I would ever meet Jesus, but then again, I don’t know why I thought it could never be possible. The conflicting thoughts which a mind can give you are something else. That’s why I feel it’s best to go with one’s heart on most things.

But, yes, I saw Jesus! Not just once or twice, either.

When I say it aloud, or write it down, it sounds wild even to me. It just seems too grand to have happened to me — or to anyone else, for that matter. But when I think back on how His Presence felt and all of the emotions I have attached to my encounters with Him, it’s not hard for me to be assured and not care how wild it sounds to say it.

I know what my life experiences have been and what I’ve seen. In all honesty, I’m not concerned how my experiences may be perceived by outsiders on their grading scale of how Jesus encounters should be presented.

It’s funny how some may try to place limits on God and Jesus, Who most believers admit as having limitless powers. They might say, “Oh, but that can’t happen that way! Because evil can come as an angel of light, as it’s quoted in the Bible.”

 Rationalizing if evil prevailed by making appearances as something positive should help clear an outsider’s perspective to another about an apparently holy visitor.

I like to use my common sense to explain that I doubt the devil would come to me just so I could talk about Jesus and God to a few more people. But to argue for or against any of this is not my issue.

I’m just here to share what has come my way in hopes that it will inspire others who think Jesus is some ancient Son of God who once came, never to stop by since. There’s much to know about Him and His ongoing Work, and I don’t pretend to have all of the answers. Yet, if I can open up my life and encounters to give even a hint more about Jesus, then I’m more than honored to be an instrument to help out.