Chris Loehmer Kincaid's Blog, page 72

The Resurrection

    But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.”
    So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word.   And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, “Rejoice!” So they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see Me.” (Matthew 28:5-10, New King James Version) Sunrise over the Sea of Galilee - photo courtesy of Denise Dorsey.There’s not a thing more I can add to that, except maybe -
   And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. (Matthew 28:18-20, New King James Version)
No matter what you are facing today, no matter what you will face in the future, there is no need to fear. Jesus is with you always. To the end of the age.

The Vigil

   Now behold, there was a man named Joseph, a council member, a good and just man. He had not consented to their decision and deed. He was from Arimathea, a city of the Jews, who himself was also waiting for the kingdom of God. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a tomb that was hewn out of the rock, where no one had ever lain before. That day was the Preparation, and the Sabbath drew near.   And the women who had come with Him from Galilee followed after, and they observed the tomb and how His body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and fragrant oils. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment. (Luke 23:50-56, New King James Version)
Yesterday, we remembered Jesus’ death on Calvary. Today, we wait, just like His followers waited after they watched him being laid to rest in a borrowed tomb. Saturday was their Sabbath and no work could be done. They probably stayed in their homes that day and after the usual worship rituals, they bowed their heads in prayer and meditation, waiting and wondering if their Lord would return the next day as He had promised.
When we think of Easter and what it means, we know what Good Friday and Easter morning are all about. We may even have an awareness of Thursday and Jesus serving the Last Supper. But I think that Saturday is just another day to most people, the day in between, the day to go about our business, and on any other year, to do some prep work for Easter dinner.
But for me, Holy Saturday is just as important as the other days. It’s a time to reflect on the things which Jesus taught during His ministry, to remember the promises He made and to rest in the knowledge that He is coming back. Church steeples in Jerusalem - photo courtesy of Denise Dorsey Today is as good a day as any to also reflect, remember and rest in regard to COVID19. Reflect on how we have come together, how we have found ways to carry on with our lives when our world is turned upside. Remember that we are not in this battle alone and remember all the loved ones and strangers who need our help and our prayers. Rest our bodies and our minds so we can stay healthy in body and mind. And of course, wait patiently for all of this pass. It will take more than three days, three weeks, and maybe even three months, but the clouds will clear and we will be set free one day. 

The Crucifixion

 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst!” Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit. (John 19:28-30, New King James Version)
You’ve heard this account before – Jesus found guilty in a mock trial, beaten and whipped, then paraded through the streets to a hill called the place of the skull, where he was hung on a cross, between two criminals, until He breathed His last. But you should note, from these verses, that He didn’t die until He had accomplished everything He had come to do.
After you’ve worked on a long, arduous project, you announce, “I’m done, it’s finished”. You feel a little bit of pride and you maybe want to show people what you’ve achieved. But you also know that you will go on to take on other tasks.
Jesus? His task was truly finished. He had lived an unblemished life on this earth and carried all of our sins to the cross. Yes, He rose again on the first Easter morning, but on that first Good Friday afternoon, He had accomplished the goal He came here to complete.  The altar over the Rock of Calvary in Jerusalem - photo courtesy of Denise Dorsey. 
Someone at work yesterday mentioned the irony that the death toll from corona expected to reach its highest on Good Friday. I can’t fathom what that possibly means, except that a sadness has covered the land which is maybe equal to what the followers felt at the foot of the cross.
The only other comparison I can make is that just like Jesus’ work being finished, corona will be finished someday. And we will be victors over it just like we are victors over sin and death by our belief in what happened on the cross.

The Last Supper

  And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

  Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And He said to them, “This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many.  Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” (Mark 14:22-25, New King James Version)
It’s the day before Jesus is arrested, tried and hung on the cross to die for our sins. He knows what’s coming in the next 24 hours, but He also knows what’s going to happen on Easter morning. He knows that eternal life is just around the corner for all of us.
And so, in addition to that gift of life, He also gives us the gift of Himself in the Lord’s Supper. We are asked to eat and drink the body and the blood in remembrance of the ultimate sacrifice He made as well as the ultimate love He shows us.    Bread in a market in Israel - photo courtesy of Denise DorseyWith all the fear and uncertainty regarding the coronavirus pandemic, we need to remember that God has got this covered. Whatever trials we are going through today, we need to look to the future. It will all come out all right in the end.

Randemic Thoughts

     Hubby and I ready to go vote yesterday. Luckily, our polling place set up drive-through voting, so we didn't even have to leave the car. Ingenious! I should have taken a picture of that.
Here are some more random thoughts I have on this pandemic.
Odd how they had just gotten us all trained to use our cloth shopping bags and now we have to get new bags every time we go shopping. I hope we all remember to go back to the reusable bags when this is all over.Have all the grocery stores always offered curbside pickup? Coz when this is all over, I think it would be great to keep doing it. Order what I need online in the calm of my living room and totally avoid those impulse purchases.How did anyone mentally and emotionally survive the pandemic of 1918 with no internet? A lot of people on Facebook have been reporting that they have been hacked or getting private messages, which screams spam to me. I think it’s all because so many more people are on Facebook more than usual. I ignore that stuff. If you get a new friend request from me, I didn’t do it and I don’t want to hear from you and I’m going to ignore your friend requests because I think somehow that is how “they” (whoever “they” are) actually do hack you. Don’t freak out, don’t pass that stuff on to others, maybe change your password if that makes you feel comfortable, maybe take a social media vacation for a few days. I know that the labs and testing sites are doing their very best, but I still know, in my own pea-brain, that the number of people with COVID is way higher than anyone is reporting. Which is not cause to panic; it just means that numbers are only numbers. Your friends, relatives and that old guy who lives down the street – that’s what really counts. Back to the whole internet thing? It’s great we can stay connected via texting, email and video chat. But better yet? Just pick up the phone and call somebody. Monday morning, this sign was posted outside the medical facility where I work. I think everyone can be a hero. It’s not always the big things; the little things are just as important. God be praised, we haven’t been hit much with this pandemic in my community. Yet. But that doesn’t mean that people aren’t scared and about all I’ve been doing is talking to my patients over the phone as much as I can, not even about this virus, but about everything else in their lives. Nope, I’m not a hero any more than anyone else. Nobody is talking about toothbrushes. I'd recommend you change your toothbrush more often and that all the toothbrushes in your household should practice social distancing.  Terminology changes all the time. Just three months ago I thought of “flattening the curve” as getting my mammogram. And those are my random thoughts for today. It is Holy Week, though, so tomorrow I will get back to writing serious stuff.
Have a great day and God bless. I'm heading off to work now. Chris

but have eternal life.

 
(This year’s Lenten posts revolve around John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” With COVID19 on everyone’s minds, I find it hard not to veer from that theme and instead offer Biblical inspiration for dealing with the pandemic. But we need to turn our eyes back towards Lent and the upcoming crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. Despite all this chaos, I’m not going to let my Easter be cancelled.)
  Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. (John 12:23-26, New International Version)
Today is Palm Sunday. With the pandemic sweeping across the globe, it certainly doesn’t seem like it; it doesn’t feel like this is the beginning of Holy Week. The verse above was spoken by Jesus at the outset of that first Holy Week. He knew what was going to happen to Him and He was getting Himself as ready for it as He could. He was compelled to continue to teach His disciples and anyone else who would listen.
But getting back to John 3:16 and the meaning of having eternal life.
  “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24, New International Version)
God doesn’t really expect all that much from us. All we need to do is believe and have faith, and we will know where are going when we pass from this world into the next. No matter how long anyone lives on this earth, it is only a milli-second of time compared to the eternity we get to spend as children of God with all other believers in Heaven. It’s something to celebrate during our current dark times.
LORD, God, Heavenly Father, there are no words to express the joy in the hearts of believers in knowing that Your Son Jesus has paid for all of our sins and that we have no reason to fear. We will be with You some day in paradise. Amen.

Just Be Held

   Last night, while trying to write this blog post, I tried thinking of an uplifting, even comical story I could share. Something goofy I may have done as a child or as a fifty-something year old. Something to get my mind, and yours, off of the coronavirus pandemic for a little while.
Nothing much came to me, so I woke up this morning wondering if I should just not post anything today.
Then some song lyrics came into my head. Or more likely, God sent these words into my head:
“Your world's not falling apart, it's falling into place.”
I looked up the song by Casting Crowns on-line. I’ve heard it many, many times over the years, but I guess the words never meant what they mean to me this morning.
“Hold it all together, everybody needs you strong. But life hits you out of nowhere, and barely leaves you holding on.”
Listen to the video or read the full lyrics by clicking this link.

I still gotta believe that God has got this taken care of. 

Ask About Masks

   I spent most of yesterday afternoon pouring through articles on the effectiveness of wearing face masks to prevent the spread of illness, as well as my usual obsessively reading of statistics. I decided to just share my thoughts, whether accurate or not. Heck, the media and politicians do it all the time. So, take the following with a grain of salt or bolt of cloth, whichever works for you.

I haven’t watched the nightly news in – I don’t know – thirty years? But besides spending too much time reading COVID19 articles on the internet, I’ve been catching some of the world and national news on TV. Just tonight they aired a piece on the use of masks during this pandemic. I saw a similar piece online.
First, you have to realize what kind of masks there are. As you may have heard, the N95 or respirator mask is the most effective. But to attain that standing it needs to be the right size and worn appropriately. And when it is worn appropriately, you can barely breathe because it is stuck tight to your face. You cannot wear it for long without coming out for air. It is also a one-use product. Despite all of that, it claims to be 95% effective in keeping out bacteria, most viruses and other pathogens.
The standard surgical mask is one size fits all, which like anything with that label, means it really only fits correctly on half the people. It’s a little bit more comfortable, but the downside to that is that comfort means you can breathe – air can get in which means pathogens can too. I couldn’t find the statistics on how effective wearing one is.













With all this hype, people have started sewing their own fabric masks. (God bless them.) They are easy and quick to sew and don’t take much for supplies. They are perhaps more comfortable than the first two options, for the same reason you sleep on a cloth pillowcase and not one made of paper. Different studies I’ve found on these homemade masks is that they are only 50% effective. Is that enough to make a difference? Perhaps. Here are the crucial things to remember, though, no matter what kind of mask you wear.
Once you put it on, you cannot touch it again. Every time you try to itch your nose or adjust it coz your glasses are fogging up, you compromise its effectiveness. And when you touch it, you also expose yourself to whatever bugs the mask has already captured, totally defeating the purpose of wearing it. So, you still need to remember to wash your hands. A lot.
Also, disposable masks are not reusable. Throw them in the proper garbage when you take them off. I don’t know what people plan on doing with their fabric mask. Wash them every day? I’m not sure.
With all this in mind, is it worth it to bother with wearing a mask? It certainly doesn’t hurt, except for one thing. Wearing a mask, of any kind, does not make you invincible. Bacteria is pretty small, but you can see them with a regular microscope. Viruses are way smaller (did I read somewhere that they are 100 times smaller than bacteria?), so they can get through smaller holes in your paper mask or cloth mask.
Your best bet to avoid catching anything from the common cold to COVID19 is to wash your hands, avoid contact with sick people, wash your hands, be careful around anyone as you never really know who is sick, wash your hands, don’t touch your face if you can possibly help it, wash your hands, cover your cough and sneezes, and wash your hands.

shall not perish

(This year’s Lenten posts revolve around John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” With COVID19 on everyone’s minds, I find it hard not to veer from that theme and instead offer Biblical inspiration for dealing with the pandemic. But we need to turn our eyes back towards Lent and the upcoming crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. Despite all this chaos, I’m not going to let my Easter be canceled.)
   Jesus told her, “I am the one who raises the dead and gives them life again. Anyone who believes in me, even though he dies like anyone else, shall live again. (John 11:25, Living Bible)
When God created the world and put us humans on it, he intended for us to live forever. Without sin, our bodies wouldn’t wear out and fail us. We were meant to have eternal peace and happiness on this earth.
But Adam and Eve sinned against God which began a long list of problems for everyone who followed. I think that as the world goes on and more sin permeates it, things for us continue to go downhill. I know that God will never turn His back on us, but as more people fall away from Him – well – I don’t know.
I think our world is in a rough place right now. Maybe all the shootings, crazy weather, wars, and general anger, distrust, and despair were just the beginning and now this coronavirus pandemic. There’s a lot going on, and I’m fearful, but not for myself. I’m afraid for all the non-believers out there. As for me, I know where my faith is and I know that I will not perish.
LORD, God, Heavenly Father, I turn to You in prayer. I humbly ask that You send Your Holy Spirit into the hearts of non-believers that they may turn to You in time of trouble. Amen.   

Flashback Friday Fotographs

Three weeks ago, I introduced you to my beloved (albeit bulky) 35 mm SLR Yashica. I also shared the second picture that I took with that camera. I’ve been wanting to share some of the better snapshots from that time, but I got sucked into the whole coronavirus craze. I thought it was time to get my mind off of that for a while.
So here are some of those old photos from the fall of 1980. Yes, forty years ago.    Very First Selfie Random mushroom 

Maybe I should have waited until the Fall to share these pictures. I think we all want to think Spring instead. 

The playground in Marathon Park.
Lichen or some such thing. It's hard to get the pictures to look the same when you scan them into the computer. 


Under a bridge in Wausau.  People cookies! My sister Pat and I used to make small round cut-outs and decorate them like people.
How fun!