Walking with Ezra
Life can change in the blink of an eye. Our General moved Heaven-side suddenly, and without warning, in the chill of a cold February. Every day since, his last words have resounded in my ear. “I’m tired!” Often I find myself reflecting over his life, pondering all the reasons he would have felt that way. He raised us well, teaching us Biblical Truths in a conforming world. My earliest remembrances include Sunday morning church, many times with him standing behind a pulpit. His hands were never slack to work, his ethic being passed down in many ways. His teachings in the garden, or the importance of a clean car will never be forgotten. A well-manicured yard with plenty of bushes always catches my eye, reminding me of the ones he provided for his family. His tender love for a donkey has been engraved upon my heart. I can still hear him pretending to “bray” like them, always making me smile. I never imagined a world where he isn’t, and still to this day, I find myself trying so hard to hold onto everything he taught me. Come aside from a heavy world for a moment. Leave your own “tired” ~ whatever it is that leaves you that way. For a brief moment in time, let me share with you what a lifetime of moments with him gifted us with. Come walk with Ezra! Step inside his footprints with me ~
“KEEP YOUR CHIN UP!” That must have been his favorite thing to say. I remember him sharing those words to young and old alike, in every kind of storm. Whether a broken heart or a bruised knee, his words never changed. “Keep your chin up, Little Boy! “Keep your chin up, Grown Man!” His words never ended there. He continued by telling us “As long as you have your chin up, you can see the devil when he tries to hit you!” Through the years, I recall thinking that was not what I wanted to hear. The devil has been hitting some of us for so long that it seemed pretty silly to keep on keepin’ our chins up! It didn’t take me long to realize Ezra was right though ~ the more I kept my head down, the more that puny one seemed to be able to sneak up on me. Perhaps that’s why he grew so tired. He kept his chin up!
Those are pretty wise words, really. In a world now filled with savage beasts wearing skin, we need to be paying attention. With the threat of wars and evidences of real ones, “eyes wide open” should be our marching orders. He would always want us to be ready for whatever we were facing. When trials came, he never forgot to tell us. If evil men crossed our path, he’d remind us. Even now, I can hear his voice standing ready to tell us as the news reports grow scarier by the minute. While the Bible is fulfilling all the Revelation verses he told us about, we can’t forget his four simple words. As we walk a little further down the road, just remember ~ KEEP YOUR CHIN UP! We’re almost Home now.
Ezra didn’t always preach his best sermons from the pulpit. Sometimes the message came through on an ordinary day. He must have understood how a typical day can suddenly turn into something heartbreaking. On this particular day, he had been studying for the test in front of him. I must have been about 7 or 8 when the baby bird lay lifeless. There in the grass, he seemed so tiny and delicate. He had fallen hard from the nest above. It was evident, even to a small girl, his ending was traumatic. The wee little bird was swallowed in blood, and some of what should have been inside, was out. I must have cried my hardest cry that day, knowing not only did that sweet bird die, but he had suffered on his way to death. Just then, like he often did in my tragedies, Ezra appeared. He didn’t have to ask what was wrong. The story was spelled out in the grass. Ezra knelt down beside me, while I poured out my little girl heart. I didn’t want that bird to be dead. Baby birds are supposed to grow up to be grown-up birds, after all. My eyes probably pierced through Ezra as my arguments about life and death were brutal in that moment. This was NOT fair and I was not happy about it! Surely there was something somebody could do. Ezra did not pause. He did not stutter. He simply opened his mouth there in the grass, and wisdom poured out. “Child, there are alot of things in life that aren’t fair. You will learn more about that as you grow up. This little bird is with God now, and He is taking care of him. You don’t have to worry about that. He loves all of the things He created, and always takes care of them.” I remember my next question well, though I never remembered his answer. “Did the bird hurt?” Whatever Ezra told me surely comforted my child-like heart. I never worried about that teeny bird again. To this day, I recall his lesson every time I see a baby bird, a nest, or an egg. We have a Heavenly Father who is much like Ezra. When the hurts come, whether a departed bird, or the wild, beating hands of a monster, The Father knows exactly what to say or do. We never have to wonder if He will forget the playbook or abandon His position. When our heart cries over what has fallen from its safe place, just like that, He shows up with peace in His hand. He understands that life isn’t fair. He knows we will have to learn those hard lessons as we grow. The good news is, once the disaster has passed and He has soothed the broken heart, we struggle to remember how bad it hurt while it was breaking. I am thankful for the little bird in the grass. I am thankful for the words I remember, and even the ones I do not. After all of these years, it is so reassuring to know it wasn’t because I didn’t pay attention ~ but because both of my Father’s knew how to speak peace to my soul. ~selah.
Ezra always said it was a BIG “if.” It becomes more apparent every day he knew what he was talking about. He made sure we knew it was God speaking, and the word “My” was possessive. MY PEOPLE. God wanted us to know who He was talking to. He told us how God spelled it out to make it easy because we can’t be called by His Name unless we belong to Him. I remember how Ezra emphasized the important Words in the verse. He preached on it often, even said it was his favorite. It’s a deep well, Ezra’s verse. God, help us to humble ourselves enough to pray! Give us the meekness to bow low enough to get under you. As we seek Your face in all things, help us, oh God, to turn. How often have we become wicked in Your sight! Ezra never forgot to thank God for His promise to hear us when we prayed like this. I am thankful for a God who not only hears us, but promises to forgive and heal when we obey the instructions He has given us. If ever we have needed every Word of this verse, it is NOW!
I grew up hearing Ezra preach. Some sermons were deep wells, and scripture packed. Some convicted the room. Altars would fill, with tears from hearts that needed to change. Some sermons were kind and loving, encouraging us to keep walking. As I recall those messages from God, one stands out among the rest.
It was never a hard-hitting sermon. Often on a Youth Sunday, he would pull out the arsenal, and captivate all ages. I remember wanting to take in every word. Those around me were taking them in as well. Even the youngest Child could understand these words. Even the hardest heart would giggle when Ezra huffed and puffed.
He drew a picture everyone could see. 3 little pigs, all with a problem. 3 little pigs who needed some help. Trouble was, some of the pigs didn’t use their head. I knew exactly what Ezra meant by that ~ he had corrected a few times when I didn’t use mine.
He told of the first pig, the one who thought he had it all together. That pig met a peddler who was selling straw. Without much thought, he took the straw and built his house. “That’s when his troubles began,” Ezra would say. “The first little pig built a flimsy house, one that had no strength to stand.”
Ezra would tell us about the second little pig. “This pig thought he knew better than the first. He met a peddler hauling sticks. Surely a wooden house would stand! He proudly built his house with the sticks, but some of them came loose. His house was already tumbling.”
Then, Ezra would smile. He must have loved that third little pig! He always had a glimmer in his eye when he told us about him. “The third little pig was wise,” he would say. “He sat down and thought long and hard before he made a decision. He contemplated his building plans.” I remember a time when I asked him what “contemplated” meant.
Ezra told us how the third pig found a peddler with bricks. He knew the bricks would be able to withstand the winds that would howl, and keep him safe from the big, bad wolf. “The third little pig built a strong and steady house with his bricks.” I remember how Ezra described the house ~one with a sturdy door, and a big, tall chimney. I could imagine it as he taught.
Not long after the pigs had finished their building, along came a hungry wolf. Ezra would tell us how that’s just like the devil. He will wait until we think we are safe before he pounces. I remember hating that wolf and wanting to kick him in the face. I already knew about the devil’s antics, and surely a wolf didn’t need to copy that!
This was the part of the story when Ezra came alive. He made us all laugh when he used his “special voices” to mimic the wolf. “Little Pig, Little Pig! Let me come in!” Ezra loved telling the part when the pigs said, “Not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin!” I loved it too.
Ezra had the full attention of everyone in the room when he told us about the wolf’s huffing and puffing. He would pretend to huff and puff just like that nasty wolf. When the first pig’s house fell, Ezra would get excited to tell about that pig running to the second pig’s house. “The second pig always opened the door to let his brother in,” he would say. There was a whole lesson there, and he paused to share it. “God wants all of us to watch out for each other.” Ezra made sure we all knew the importance of that.
The creepy wolf would go on a little further down the road. He terrorized the second pig, huffing and puffing, blowing his house down. “Now there were 2 homeless pigs,” Ezra would tell us. He shared the good news about pig survival, reminding us there was a 3rd pig and he would let them in. I was happy to know he was a nice pig and not like some of the people I knew.
Ezra told us all about the huffing and puffing with useless efforts to blow the brick house down. His face would turn red as he huffed and puffed. Ezra told us how hard that wolf tried to no avail. I was glad that mean wolf had suffered trying to hurt the sweet, little, innocent pigs. That wolf was a jerk!
And then? Ezra would open the Bible. He asked us if we knew God told the story of those 3 pigs in the Bible. I remember the faces of the skeptics. They’d never heard the pig story in any Sunday School class. I knew their doubts would soon be erased. I had heard Ezra’s story before, and I knew it was his best one.
He told the story of a foolish man. This man built his house on sand. He thought his house would stand through the storms of life. The foolish man was wrong. The storms came and blew his whole house away! Ezra would say, “There will be many storms. The wild winds will come. Make sure your house isn’t built on something as flighty as sand. You need to build on a firm foundation.”
Then Ezra would tell us about another man. This man was wise. He thought things through. Though I never met the wise man, Ezra made me want to be like him. He told us, “The wise man built his house upon a rock. The storms came and the wise man’s house stood firm! We have to be wise as we are building our house.” Ezra would explain God wasn’t talking about physical houses, but that WE are a house.
Ezra made sure to compare the 2 men’s houses to the 3 pig’s houses. I guess he kept our attention that way. He wanted to be sure we understood God’s Words. He would go on to tell us, “We have to build on a firm foundation. If we build on a flimsy, faulty foundation, we will fall. We have to be sure to build on something strong and secure. God tells us to build on a rock. That Rock is Jesus.”
I am thankful for Ezra’s story. It wasn’t until I was much older that I discovered he didn’t write it himself. He had made those little pigs so real in my mind. I believed it was his very own creation. As I grew older, and perhaps a little “wiser,” the tale of Ezra’s pigs etched into my spirit. He had planned it that way. He didn’t want us to forget.
I hope we don’t.
Ezra always told us John 3:16 was not a complete verse unless we read the next one. He could quote them both from memory, though it took awhile for me to master the second one. I remember when I finally began to understand the significance of Ezra’s words.
In our Home, I guess we could quote John 3:16 from the womb. Memorizing Bible verses for Sunday School was something we grew up on. It helped that we were given a special treat when we could say it all by heart.
Ezra never said one of the verses without the other. He explained how God really did love the world so much that He gave His Son. He made sure we all knew Jesus was our only way to Heaven, and He went to the cross because He loved His Father. I always understood the best part of that verse was how God would keep me from hell if I believed in Jesus and lived for Him. Ezra made sure we all treasured eternal life with Him, even before we have it. I wonder sometimes how Ezra is enjoying the “other side” of his eternity. I bet it’s more than he expected.
When Ezra explained why God sent Jesus, it made me want to love them. As he taught us the deeper well of verse 17, I loved them even more. Ezra told us how God did not send Jesus to condemn us, but to save us. He made sure we understood how important that is, since we all deserve hell. He preached to us often about our need for a Saviour. He was sure to help us know why we needed one.
I will always treasure Ezra’s special way of explaining God’s Word. He never pounded a pulpit or yelled at us. He simply opened the Bible and made it come alive. Even when I thought I wasn’t paying much attention, somehow his words were going from one ear to another. I am thankful God opened both of them.
Ezra said it more times than I can count. “Pull yourself up by your bootstraps!” As many times as he said it, I had good arguments about his words. My ramblings about bad deacons or evil demons never failed to get his same response. “Pull yourself up by your bootstraps!”
I wonder how many times he had to do it. When my life choices offered him nothing but nightmares, he simply grabbed a strap. Strong and determined, Ezra pulled hard to keep my life from unraveling. Inside his pulled-up boots, he made a tough walk more often than he should have needed to. His gait was secure inside those boots. It wasn’t until later in my life when I realized how tight Jesus held Ezra’s straps.
I still hear his words today. “Pull yourself up by your bootstraps!” When times are hard and people are cruel, Ezra’s bootstraps always come to mind. I understand more everyday that he wasn’t telling me to pull simply because I needed those boots. He was telling me sometimes a hard pull is the only thing we’ve got. Ezra wanted us to know life is sometimes a verb.
Struggling? “Pull yourself up by your bootstraps!” Keep walking. We’re almost Home now!
Ezra was serious about it. He never joked when he talked about it, and his stance was made clear early on. His firm belief challenged the way I viewed every nativity, whether at home or on a store shelf.
We teased him about the kings. Often, we removed them from their place at the end of the table. We would hide and giggle as we watched him retrieve them from down a long church hallway. We found entertainment in placing those kings as far away as we could from the stable. After all, Ezra said that’s how it should be!
He taught us the importance of the magnitude of their visit. We always understood the kings did not show up at the barn, but to a house where Jesus lived when he was 2. Ezra made sure everyone knew a 2-year long trip atop a camel would have been a rough terrain. He drew the picture well, sometimes bouncing as he explained their plight. Even though I never sat on the hump of the dromedary, I was sure I could feel the hardship when he spoke about it.
To some, the fact would seem irrelevant, but not to Ezra. Even as a child, when the nativities began to show up, I already had some “stable” knowledge about commitment. (pun intended) Ezra was good at using the simple things to confound the wise. From the blank stares of some of his people, I was sure they had no idea how important these facts were.
Every December, while Ezra held camel in hand, he made certain we all gathered the hard truth about being fully devoted to another King. His definition of that ride so long ago made us all think twice about complaining when Jesus asked us to do something. If some camel-riding kings could be as determined to travel uphill and down, across the hot sands, with only a star as a guide, well, Ezra said none of us had much of an excuse to not at least try.
I hope I always take time to pause when the kings come out. As they are placed somewhere across a room from the stable, I pray my attention is drawn to Ezra’s insistence. May it always serve as a gentle reminder to pay attention to the details in His Story!
