Sound Asleep…

I’m really good at going to sleep. What I’m not good at is staying asleep.

Like you, I have a lot of responsibility, love a lot of people, but have very little control over any of the circumstances of my life concerning those responsibilities and those people I love. Really, when I think about it, I have zero control.

Nevertheless, I live my daylight hours as if I really did have some control. I make leadership decisions after weighing options, form careful sentences to put in sermons, articles, and books, and try to do as much as I can to make the world a better place for the people I love.

And then, I fall into bed exhausted but satisfied with all my illusions of control.

Until about 2:00 AM!

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Fear of Flying?

Wednesday of this week an air traffic controller was suspended after being asleep while a medical flight was landing, marking the fifth lapse so far this year among controllers at the nation’s airports. Four involved sleeping controllers.

It’s enough to make you never want to fly again.

Unless you know Someone seated high and lifted up, far above the highest air traffic tower.

Someone seated at the right hand of God.

His name is Jesus.

On Easter Sunday afternoon Judy and I are flying to Cannon Beach Conference Center where I’ll be teaching the Book of Colossians at Ecola Bible School.

2 Reasons I’m Not Worried

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I fight an almost nightly battle that you might find a little too familiar. My mind defaults to the problems and pressures of life the moment I try to relax. Thoughts fly toward worst-case scenarios—what will we do if? Or how will we ever get past that?

When this happens, there’s always one verse that brings me back to the sweet center of trust. Sometimes it even brings a smile just before I doze off.

If you’re wondering, “What could it be that keeps you up at night fretting Ed?” here it is. Please know, I’m not telling you this to show you how difficult my life is. I’m telling you this so that you can know that my life is just like yours. We’re all under pressure and worrying about our families, our friends, and our country; it’s just that we’re worrying about different details and pressures.

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Disclaimer: These are emails I sent out in 2005 asking friends for prayer. Since then I’ve heard from so many sufferers who told me how much they help. THIS IS NOT MY CURRENT CONDITION. I’M DOING WELL. I simply want to resend them to help those who are suffering today.

Anxieties of the Night

From the night the prayers of friends carried us through a long, dark night.

As you know by now, the main source of discomfort for me and our primary concern is the “skin issue” once again. Last night was the first night off meds–pain meds, sleeping meds, antibiotic meds–every hour filled with itching, skin falling off, twinges of pain in the knee, and, as you might imagine, anxiety.

With decades of studying about, relating to, walking with, and telling others about “Our Father” in my life, I was able to focus my thoughts on a comforting phrase from the New Testament–Abba Father (Romans 8:15). This is an endearing and intimate title for God the Father that could be translated, “Father, my own dear Father.” It is the title a child uses to relate to a father when the child knows that he or she is dear to Him, the one He delights in.

So, last night was so much more than a night of malaise, it was a night I spent on my Father’s lap, talking with Him about my fears, feelings, and hurts. It is the upside of suffering for the child of God–deepening intimacy with Abba Father.