Preface: Mickey Mantle was in the news again....believe it or not....from something he had done in his wicked days....and I remember my own wicked days....but like Johnny Cash....and Pete Maravich....and Steve McQueen as mentioned below....God had mercy upon the lowest of the low! The following preface and post are about a year old:
Previous Preface: The saying is usually attributed to Mickey Mantle but it goes further back...."If I had known that I was going to live this long....I would have taken better care of myself." Pete Maravich was born about eight miles from where I'm typing right now. He became a Christian later in life....born again....I shouldn't have to add that....but I do. He said once that he wished that all the time in his life that he dedicated to basketball....he had dedicated to the Bible. He died in 1988 on a basketball court.....in a pickup game.....James Dobson present. As Bobby Richardson tells it....his friend Mantle had taken a turn for the worse in the disease that killed him....and the former Yankee second baseman....a Christian....took a plane out to see Mantle. He was going to lay it on the line....but Mantle called him over right away and told him...."I can't wait to tell you this. I want you to know I'm a Christian. I've accepted Christ as my Savior." Richardson cried a little.....but asked Mantle...."Mickey let me go over it a little bit with you to make sure you understand." Oh....memories of stories like this. We don't want to be the soul who when standing before the Lord of Glory....and gazing rapturously upon His glory....would think...."If I had known how glorious the Lord Jesus really was....I would have dedicated my life to seeing Him in His Word." The following post is from December 1 of last year.
We No Longer Gaze Upon His Glory....
Richard Sibbes was one of the more famous Puritan preachers....and he was known for exalting the beauties of Christ....so much so that the heart softens....and the hearer cannot but fall in love with the Savior....and so it must be with the Christian or we wind up doing our 'good works' if you will....out of obedience only....and not out of love....therefore not being 'good' works at all.
When we read God's Word....we are not just reading about Christ.....we are....reading Christ....every passage is as if standing before Him....gazing at His glory....enraptured by the majesty before us. The whole world....and all of its baubles....and all of its demands....and all of its threats and the fears associated with them....melt away in the searing holiness of the One....the One who actually loves us! We can be as Peter....who walked on water....gazing at Jesus before him....but when we take our eyes of of Him....we begin to sink.
This is the challenge of the day. Our nation is crumbling fast. This is where we live....and raise our families....it should be natural that at times like this we turn toward Christ even more....for this is not a mere muse that we have proclaimed to love....but the creator of all things....who holds the universe together by His will....who alone determines....and for His reasons alone....what will become of us....but we turn....to the loudest noise....and we sink slowly into the muddy battlefield....our love....if indeed there was love....fades....as we turn from beauty to the beast.
It can be put in mathematical terms....if every minute that we have spent listening to other voices....taking our advice from those who care nothing for the beauty of Christ....but only the glittering parade float with His name on it....if every minute had been spent....seeking His guidance....searching the Scriptures....renewing our minds....the equation would have proven sound....the algebraic proof....evident in our nation. As it is....nothing works....nothing balances the books....nothing cures....nothing even softens the symptoms.
We fell out of love....we strayed....we no longer cherished His letters to us so as to have to reread them every day....no longer had faith in our beloved....or gazed at His beauty....or walked in discernment....but turn to the parade behind us....no longer brought glory to Him....no longer were nourished by the food of His words....or given light from His countenance....or peace from His presence....yet as He approaches in judgment to take what is His....he tells us to get our houses in order....for His love has remained faithful even if ours has not.
Addendum: The following is in one of my DISPATCHES but I wanted to add it here....
CBN has a story out right now that I would like to relate. It had been reported for many years now how Steve McQueen came to faith in Jesus Christ before he died in 1980. Greg Laurie decided to research that a little....and here is a short synopsis....a pastor was involved in evangelizing the actor....who as we all know developed an aggressive cancer. He somehow met with Billy Graham before going to Mexico for surgery....who gave him his personal Bible. Greg Laurie had confirmed this story years ago with Billy Graham. Steve McQueen had the surgery....and was left alone in the waiting room....and died there....holding on to Billy Graham's Bible. This quote is attributed to him after coming to faith in Jesus Christ...."My only regret in life is that I was not able to tell people about what Jesus Christ did for me."
