ON CELEBRATING NEW BIRTH June 12, 2012

It was 1966 and we were living in the quaint little village of Friendship, Maine.  I lived in a perfect little world with my puppy named Fritz and my mom and dad in our little mobile home.  I was six.  I remember that my mom was looking so swell!  She was expecting another child!  Sure enough, just as expected, one day she came home with a beautiful, bouncing baby girl. They named her Jody Rae.  She had the cutest little dimples on both of her cheeks! What a bundle of joy she was!! Everyone was so excited. Whenever people came to church or to our home Jody was the center of attention. I have always loved my sister! It was a wonderful thing that had happened to our perfect home! Seriously....It was!!

Steven  Age 6

One day as I was playing outside I was climbing up one of the trees near the school playground that was about 200 feet from our home. As I was climbing, I lost my grip and fell out of the tree and landed sideways on my foot. I thought I had broken it. I literally had to crawl home. The pain was terrible!  

As I reached our yard, dad was there and came running over to me. He said, “What’s wrong son?” I told him what had happened.  He picked me up and carried me into the house.  As mom and dad looked at my foot they agreed that it must be a sprained ankle. It didn’t appear to be broken. Rather than take me to Rockland they said we’ll just wait and perhaps it will get better on its own.  We’ll just keep the weight off of it until it gets better.  Mom wrapped it in one of those elastic bands for sprains.  That night dad carried me to my bed.

In the morning I told mom the pain was still very bad when I tried to put weight on it.  So dad carried me to school. That was actually kinda fun!! Everyone gathered around as he carried me into my class and sat me at my desk.  All through the day my friends and my teacher helped with the things that I needed. They would sharpen my pencils, help me to the cafeteria at noon, help me to the washroom, etc.  They were so understanding!  When the bell rang that afternoon, there was my dad at the doorway ready to carry me home. We lived in walking distance so dad carried me on foot through the path to our mobile home. This went on for several days.  Dad would carry me to school and carry back home at the end of the day.  He was so compassionate to my situation. I think dad and I "bonded" a little more during that time!

Well, since it appeared that my foot just wasn’t getting better, dad and mom agreed, we better take this boy to Rockland and get that ankle x-rayed.  As we waited in our family doctors office for the report on my foot, the doctor came in and took my dad aside.  He said, “Ray I don’t exactly know how to say this, but according to what we see on the x-ray, there is absolutely nothing wrong with Steve’s ankle nor does it appear that there EVER was anything wrong with his ankle. It seems his problem isn’t with his ankle at all but more a problem with his nose.  I think his "nose is broken" and it probably has something to do with Jody being born....if you know what I mean.” In case some younger ones don't know, a "broken nose" is an expression meaning a severe case of jealousy. 

Dad turned to me and didn’t tell me what the doctor had said, which I thought was kinda strange.  He simply reached down and wrapped his arms around me and carried me to the car.  All the way home.....dad was silent!  He carried me into the house.  Later that evening he carried me to my bed.  In the morning he carried me to school the same as other previous mornings.  I thought, “What a dad!!!!”  But then something different happened!  Once I was seated at my desk, dad came around in front of me, placed each hand on the corners of my desk and he put his face down close to mine. It felt a wee bit uncomfortable. He stared me right in the eyes and he said these words in a tone that I will never forget. It was very deep and raspy and he spoke very slowly, “Son....I know what you’re doing....and you need to listen to me very closely....today everything has changed....the Doctor said there is nothing wrong with your ankle....and mister man, when the bell rings this afternoon....you had better be walking on your own when you come through the door!”  A shiver shot up and down my spine three times as he spoke. My head did one of those jiggle things! I swallowed and tried to speak just one word.  I tried to say, “Okay.” But there was no sound...only the movement of my lips! 

Now I don’t know if you believe in miracles or not, but I tell you, that day I had a miracle happen because I was walking all on my own when the bell rang!  And I've been walking okay ever since!!

Now this story can be expounded on a little.  What I just shared with you doesn't only happen in the home. It often happens in the workplace.  A new man is hired and he begins to get a lot of attention and then it isn't long until he is promoted. Then someone who has been around for years seems to fade into the background while someone else passes them by. What they forget is that their position is just as important to the company as the new comer.

Sadly, this happens in the church as well.  Sometimes, when new Christians are born into the family of God, older Christians can tend to feel a little neglected and missing out on some of the attention that once was theirs.  Remember, it takes a lot of work bringing up a new child.  There are diapers to be changed, bottles to be filled, food to be fed, and clothes to be cleaned. And that's not to mention the holding, the comforting, and the burping!  Comments like, the pastor doesn’t spend any time with us anymore, or the new ones are the only ones that matter, stem from a lack of understanding.  It’s an awesome thing when our heavenly Father talks to us and reveals to us how we must not allow those feelings to invade our heart and how we as Christians can implicate ourselves in the growth and nurture of new converts.  The whole purpose of the church is NEW BIRTH and all the family can rejoice together when new ones are born.  Here’s the key; When God brings new people into the church, we all can be there to rejoice and surround them with all the attention they deserve and need. We can join in with the parents/leaders in nurturing them and take part in the new child’s growth.  When we take this approach rather than feeling neglected, I believe heaven is happy!  Oh, how much fun it is to love and encourage the new ones that are born into the family!  Let’s celebrate NEW BIRTH!!  SRR 

Proverbs 4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.