faith « Keith Ferrin

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my grandma is home

Jun 30, 2011

101 years, 6 months, 11 days. Her name was Evelyn. Most called her Mrs. Ferrin. Some called her mom. To me she was grandma. She graced us with her presence for more than a century. Now she is home.

There is no one I know who more perfectly embodies Paul’s words in Philippians 3:20-21.

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

Grandma was a woman who deeply, fully, and unashamedly loved Jesus. She wanted to know Him…which she did more and more each day. She wanted to tell others about Him…which she did any chance she could. She wanted to serve Him…which she did faithfully. She wanted to make Him proud…and I know He is. She wanted to be with Him…and now she is. Now she is home.

She embraced life on earth for sure. She traveled. She entertained. She shopped. She laughed. She taught. She worshipped. But she also know where her citizenship was. This world was where she lived. But this world was not her home. And oh, she longed for home. The last time I was with her I asked her about heaven. She grinned and said, It will be more and better than I can even imagine. Now she is home.

Grandma was "eagerly awaiting a Savior from there…” At her 100th birthday party she was so happy to have everyone together. But she made it clear that she didn’t want to see 101. (I am sure she had a talk with Jesus about that last December 19th.) Yet it wasn’t a morbid statement. Her words didn’t speak of disappointment or sorrow or anything other than her desire to be where she was created to be – with Jesus. Now she is home.

She lived to make others feel valuable. You couldn’t be with her without having her cook you something – or a whole lot of things. She always asked about you, rather than talk about herself. She always looked for people who didn’t have a place to go – for Sunday supper or Christmas Dinner – and she made sure they new they were welcome in her home. And now she is home.

I imagine that she arrived at Heaven’s Banquet Table this morning and asked where the kitchen was so she could help. And at that moment, her Lord, Savior, and Best Friend took her by her hand and said,

Come with me. Today I have saved the best seat for you. I have prepared a feast for you. I have planned a celebration for you. I will walk with you, sing for you, and rejoice over you. You have lived well. And now you will live even better…forever. You are not the only one who has been eagerly awaiting this day. I am so glad you are here. Welcome home.

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Tags: Death, Family, heaven
Categories: Death, faith, Family, Inspiring

1

cool “coincidence”

Mar 21, 2011

Friday I was boarding a plane to fly to Milwaukee (through K.C.) where I was going to be speaking at a children’s ministry conference about Like Ice Cream. As the plane was boarding I noticed that a mom and her son who were boarding as well looked familiar. Well, it was Nicole, one of my youth group kids from years ago. Not only was she in my youth group, but she grew up to be a fabulous writer and editor and I used her as the editor on my first book – Falling in Love with God’s Word.

Turns out, she was also going to Milwaukee to visit her younger sister. When she told her sister that she ran into me, Lisa said, “Hey, I’m making a ton of pasta. Have Keith come over.” A few hours later I was sitting in Lisa’s apartment, eating pasta with two of my former youth group kids, who are now grown and still walking with the Lord. To hear them talk about their faith, Bible study, and family was truly an amazing gift.

Then, to top it off, what was for dessert? You guessed it – ICE CREAM. Outstanding!

Comments: 1 Comment »
Tags: Books, ice cream, youth, youth group
Categories: faith, Life, Like Ice Cream, Youth

3

sharing Christ with your ears

Nov 2, 2010

I was at an interesting event this morning. It was a panel discussion on sharing our faith in everyday life. Truthfully, most of it was stuff I’d heard before. That said, there were two things that really stuck out to me, both along the same lines. The first was something said by Jim Henderson – founder of Off The Map . Here’s what he said,

“Instead of just telling people about Jesus, how about putting something in your mouth and doing evangelism with your ears.”

Lovely. I’ve also heard it put this way. God gave us two ears and one mouth. Take the hint.

The other nugget for the morning came from Monty Hipp – founder and president of The C4 Group . He shared the process he goes through to try to live this principle out in his life. He talked about growing up in the Midwest where an “F5” was a tornado of powerful force. He has taken the F5 concept and says that a powerful force in building relationships and showing people the love of Christ is to ask them about these five areas of their lives:

1. Tell me about what you do for fun.
2. Tell me about your family.
3. Tell me about your friends.
4. Tell me about what you’re focusing on right now.
5. Tell me about what you see for your future.

What would happen if we actually asked people about these five areas of their life and then did something crazy…we listened? Gotta say I think it would be life-changing.

Image: Yaron Jeroen van Oostrom / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Comments: 3 Comments »
Tags: evangelism, faith
Categories: Evangelism, faith, Uncategorized

0

who do you call first?

Oct 9, 2010

My son taught me a valuable lesson today.

We were down at Marina Park and he was playing with a buddy about 50 yards away from me. I was focused on my 2-year-old when Will (Caleb’s friend) came up to me and said, “Caleb’s on that rock down there and can’t get off.” I looked over to see Caleb on a boulder that sits about 2’ away from the walkway. He was certainly not in any danger, so as I walked toward him, our conversation went like this:

Me: Caleb, you got yourself into trouble. You can get yourself out. (Good old “daddy teaches son a life lesson” time.)
Caleb: Silence
Me: How do you think you can solve this problem?
Caleb: I called you!
Me: Silence

As I walked the last 20 yards, I found myself thinking What if my first response was always to ask my Father for help? What if I didn’t wait until things were really bad to reach out to my Father. What if I believed that my Father actually wants to help me – and bring me to safety?

Lesson learned. Thanks son.

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Tags: caleb, faith, Family, fatherhood, kingdom
Categories: faith, Family, Kingdom, Life

2

how well do you know the major religions?

Oct 1, 2010

Read an interesting article yesterday that revealed how little Americans really know about major religions. The article is based on a survey by The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Before reading any further – and definitely before reading the MSNBC article – take the survey.

How did you do? Pretty interesting huh? Most interesting for me was how many people missed questions about the religion they most identify themselves with.

Take the survey. Read the article. Let me know what you think.

Comments: 2 Comments »
Tags: Culture, Religion, survey
Categories: bible, Culture, faith, Religion

0

the question with no answer

Sep 13, 2010

Three recent events brought the question to mind. It’s a common question. In fact, I would bet not a single person reading this hasn’t asked it…many times over.

The first event was August 29th – the 16th anniversary of the day my best friend died in my arms…at age 26. The second was an email last week from a good friend who was due –this Saturday – to officiate the wedding of a young man he had mentored for years. Unfortunately, his email told me of this young man’s early homegoing at the hands of a drunk driver. And the third was a cup of coffee just today with a man who – a little over a year ago – lost his 20-year-old son.

We’ve all asked the question. You know what it is before I type it. We pray it on bended knees. We shout it with clenched fists. We sob it with shaking shoulders. And yet we know even as we ask it that the answer won’t come. At least not an answer that really satisfies.

Why?

How can we not ask it? We want to know. We often feel like we deserve to know. We ask it for individual tragedies and global disasters. For petty frustrations and major disappointments. For others and for ourselves.

The one question we most want the answer to is the question most frequently met with silence. And yet, in my own experience – and as I talk to so many other why-askers – as I look back at the hours, days, months, and years following the event that beckons The Question, there is a deep, deep sense of God’s presence. With His presence, there is frequently unexplainable comfort…and even hope. And many times, though not always in our view, there is even redemption.

Maybe that’s the answer. His presence. Maybe He knows that an explanation never assuages our sorrow. Maybe He knows that in the midst of tragedy silence is often more comforting that speaking. And as someone who knows the question from both sides – the Son sobbing in the garden asking His father “Why?” and the Father remaining silent – maybe, just maybe He knows that the only answer that satisfies is Himself.

I guess that’s why immediately before leaving His disciples confused and bewildered and asking The Question, He looked them in the eyes and simply said, “I am with you…always…”

Image: graur codrin / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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Tags: faith, God's love, questions, sorrow, why
Categories: faith, Sorrow

0

engaging students who already “know”

Aug 27, 2010

Yesterday I had an email exchange with a youth/children’s pastor from the Seattle area and as I replied to some of his questions I realized that I had never really shared what I was sharing with him here on the blog. So…here’s an excerpt from his email followed by my reply (editing for sharing):

From his email: I have a question for you regarding another group of students – our 3-6th graders. Many of our students already have an extensive knowledge of the Bible for their age, and they’ve gotten bored with the spoon-fed curriculum that they’ve grown up on. We’re looking for ways to get them into scripture, to allow them to discover the Bible and God for themselves. I know that your new book is all about this, but I’m wondering if you’d have any suggestions for us before it’s published.

From my response: I’ve got to say that I’m becoming more and more convinced that with elementary kids – and even into Jr. High – we focus a lot on figuring out new ways to get them “into” the Bible, without really helping them INTERACT with the Bible. At that age, I think Bible knowledge is all well and good, but the activity-based, interactive model of learning is going to help them grow up knowing that the Bible is alive, real, and relevant to actual life.

To that end, I think the way in which we read it and talk about it is more important at that age than the curriculum we’re using. Do they see us reading it with enthusiasm or is the “Bible reading” the boring part that we have to get thru so we can tell the story, do the activity, etc.? Do they talk about how to live it out in the everyday?

For example, just this morning I read the book of James . My two older kids (8 and 6 years old) came downstairs and I simply said,

I just read in the Bible about how the words that come out of our mouths praise God, pray, and sing worship songs…But they also put people down and say mean or angry things. James – Jesus’ brother – was telling people in his letter that this shouldn’t be happening. So…how can we use our words to make someone feel better today instead of worse?

That led to some brainstorming about things we can say to encourage people – friends in the neighborhood, kids on their soccer teams, etc. It wasn’t a formal “Bible Study” per se. It was more conversational. More relational. More this-is-the-Bible-being-lived-out-in-everyday-life.

That said, I understand that in the Sunday morning setting there needs to be some sort of structure that leads to those conversations. I’ve recently come across a group called Family Time Training that has some great activities tied to Scripture. While the site is geared toward family worship it’s certainly easily adaptable for groups of kids. If you’re looking for a more complete package type curriculum, I know some of the people behind Rio and Tru (from David C. Cook ) and they’re really doing some neat things.

This is certainly not a complete list. How would you have replied to his email?

Image: Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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Tags: bible, children, Life, teaching
Categories: bible, children, faith, Life, Youth

2

can you build character without suffering?

Jun 15, 2010

Finished reading Job this morning. As I watched this guy go from a “blessed” life of ease and abundance, to intense suffering, to well-meaning-but-not-helpful friends, to frustrated venting to God, to God’s are-you-serious? response, to Job falling on his face in worship, I found myself faced with a question:

Is it possible to have character built without suffering?

Looking back on my life, I am having a hard time finding a time when I have truly grown apart from an event – or season – of struggle. Seems like pain always plays a vital role. Sometimes that’s suffering I deserve. The result of paths chosen. Other times the suffering is random – or even unjust in my own estimation.

And yet it’s there. Pain. Suffering. The result is almost always character strengthened, faith expanded, and gratefulness for God’s restoration.

What has been your experience with pain and suffering?

Comments: 2 Comments »
Tags: bible, pain, suffering
Categories: bible, faith, Pain

2

who are you looking at?

Apr 13, 2010

What makes you not do what you know you should or could do? Interesting to me that just last night our small group talked about fear. What causes it? How do we overcome it? Then I woke up and my time in God’s Word had me hanging out with Moses. Quick recap of the first few chapters of Exodus:

Moses sees burning bush. Moses talks to God. God says, “Hey, you’re going to lead my people out from under Pharaoh’s thumb and into freedom in the Promised Land.” Moses makes one excuse after another, but finally goes. Moses talks to Pharaoh. Pharaoh makes it even harder on the Israelites. They don’t even want to hear what Moses has to say anymore.

Then God comes to Moses again and tells him to take another trip to Pharaoh. Moses’ response, “Look at me. I stutter. Why would Pharaoh listen to me?” (Ex 6:30 – The Message) In the very next verse, God’s response is “Look at me.”

Stopped me dead in my tracks. How much of what I do and don’t do is because I’m looking at myself instead of Him? My weaknesses instead of His strength. My faithlessness instead of His faithfulness. My fickleness instead of His steadiness. My faults instead of His perfection.

What would happen if my eyes were truly fixed “on Jesus, the Author and perfecter of our faith?” Who are you looking at? How many times do I tell God, "Look at me” only to have Him respond, “No…you look at ME!”

Comments: 2 Comments »
Tags: bible, BRT, faith, Fear, moses
Categories: bible, Bible Read Thru, faith, Fear

2

what do “plans to prosper you” mean?

Feb 25, 2010

I’m on Day 53 of my 4-month read thru the Bible. Today was Day 2 in Jeremiah and I came across the most quoted verse in Jeremiah (29:11)

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

I’ve heard these words a bunch of times. What I’ve never heard anyone talk about is the verse before this verse. Here it is:

This is what the LORD says: "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place.”

The Israelites are in exile in Babylon. They’re not at home. They’re not where they want to be. And they’re not really happy about it. And yet, God tells them that He’s going to leave them there for 70 years before bringing them back home. Seventy years!

Since most people didn’t even live to be 70 years old, God was basically saying, “Your kids are going to come back home. Many of you will die here in exile. But I know the plans I have for you. (Though they’re not the plans you’d come up with for yourself.) To prosper you. (Though not in the way you’d like me to.) To give you hope. (Though maybe not the end result you would hope for.) To give you a future. (Though not the future you’d dream up.)

I found myself reading these words this morning and wondering how I would respond to God promising prosperity, hope and a future, right after telling me He was going to keep me in exile for most – maybe all! – of my life. I’ve been asking myself questions like: What is prosperity? Is my hope circumstantial? Do I really trust God with my future? Am I only going to praise God with He does things my way?

Interestingly, God’s next words to the people of Israel are:

Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Calling. Prayer. Seeking. With my whole heart. Maybe if I did more of these things, I’d be much more likely to experience God’s prosperity, hope, and future for me – and recognize that His plans for me are good. Always good.

Comments: 2 Comments »
Tags: bible, BRT, faith, Hope
Categories: bible, Bible Read Thru, faith, Hope