"Going Up the Country"
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I went to the website of the Minnesota chapter of ABATE, , and I saw the awesome tribute to Kim that was posted on the home page. The website title called Kim a “Tireless Freedom Fighter”. That describes Kim perfectly. She was, a tireless fighter, as she fought this final fight. She loved freedom, she loved the freedom of having her own business, and the freedom to travel and the freedom of riding.
She tirelessly fought the battle that was before her. She fought this cancer battle while working, and travelling because that is what she liked to do. Those were her favorite things, and she said it was one way she get her mind off being sick and focus on doing what she liked to do. She tirelessly fought her battle.
Kim also loved freedom. Having her own business in some ways gave her some freedom. She had the freedom to travel. Robby you and Kim had some great opportunities to travel and enjoy the music you both loved. SH\he would often tell me when she was going, and you could tell by her eyes and her smile how she was looking forward to it. Even when was sick she was looking forward to it. She loved to travel. She loved to camp she loved to ride motorcycles. As I was linking about that I couldn’t help but think of that Geico commercial. Its the one that plays that old “Canned Heat” song going up the country.
On the website she was referred to as a “Tireless Freedom Fighter”.
Kim also loved freedom. Having her own business in some ways gave her some freedom. She had the freedom to travel. Robby you and Kim had some great opportunities to travel and enjoy the music you both loved. She would often tell me when she was going, and you could tell by her eyes and her smile how she was looking forward to it. Even when was sick, she was looking forward to it with a gleam in her eyes. She loved to travel, and I am so glad you both had those opportunities to make those memories.
As I was thinking about Kim and Robby and your life together, and as I was looking through the bible for appropriate verses and scriptures, I came across . I thought yeah that is a the right verse for Kim. says this
16 Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
Then of course my mind jumped to that Geico commercial, you know it. It features that old Canned heat song. Here it is I’ll play it for you.
As good as it is and as enjoyable as that is, there is still something that falls short. It doesn’t last forever, \there is always work waiting for us when we get back. Monday always comes. And as good as the warm summer nights and music can be, the last song is always sung, the house lights comes up and it is time to go, the perfect night always comes to an end. You know this.
A lot of us share that desire for travel and freedom. Many of us can relate to that feeling of freedom of cruising the open road enjoying the country. We might even say things like man, nothing is any better than this. There is nothing like riding the open road, with the sun at your back and the wind in your hair. Then to relax and finish off the evening with good music, we might even say ahh this is a little bit of heaven. It doesn’t get any better than this.
As good as it is and as enjoyable as that is, here on this earth, it still falls short. It doesn’t last forever, there is always work waiting for us when we get back. Monday always comes. And as good as the warm summer nights and music can be, the last song is always sung, the house lights comes up and it is time to go. The perfect night always comes to an end. But it was great while it lasted.
A lot of us share that desire for travel and freedom. Many of us can relate to that feeling of freedom of cruising the open road enjoying the country. We might even say things like man, nothing is any better than this. There is nothing like riding the open road, with the sun at your back and the wind in your hair. Then to relax and finish off the evening with good music, we might even say ahh this is a little bit of heaven. It doesn’t get any better than this.
You the one I was talking about
Then as time went on, Kim still enjoyed the trips, but sometimes she couldn’t go. Her health started to have it’s effect, and the trips weren’t quite the same as they once were. That is difficult, and it is painful, and sad to think about, but God knows about this. God knows about what you are going through.
As Kim got sick you still enjoyed the trips, but sometimes she couldn’t go. Her health took its toll, and the trips weren’t quite the same as they once were. That is difficult, and it is painful. It is sad to think about.
As good as it is and as enjoyable as that is, there is still something that falls short. It doesn’t last forever, \there is always work waiting for us when we get back. Monday always comes. And as good as the warm summer nights and music can be, the last song is always sung, the house lights comes up and it is time to go, the perfect night always comes to an end. You know this.
But God knows about this. God knows about what you are going through.
Then as time went on, Kim still enjoyed the trips, but sometimes she couldn’t go. Her health started to have it’s effect, and the trips weren’t quite the same as they once were. That is difficult, and it is painful, and sad to think about, but God knows about this. God knows about what you are going through.
God knows about this. God knows
Traveling to different places, didn’t just start when the invention of the motorcycle. It seems like this longing for travel the open road, freedom and a different country are written right into the human experience. In fact, the Bible often talks about this. In our passage today it talks about this man Abraham and his wife Sarah.
. They didn’t start The Bible has always had in it this longing for a country, a sense that we are just travelling through here and this earth and we are heading for a better country. It started way back in the Old Testament. In those days the Egyptians enslaved God’s people and they made them work extremely hard. They were slaves, they were mistreated. They were miserable, but they kept their eyes on God. They placed their hope in God. They knew that someday God would rescue them from that land of slavery that they were in. They trusted that one-day God would take them to a better country. The bible refers to it as the promised land, or the land of milk and hiney. The whole time Gid’s people were enslaved they hoped for a day when the Lord wouldlead them out of the life they were loiving to the better country.
That is where we pick up todays scripture reading.
From the book of Hebrews the 11th chapter starting at verse 8
8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.
9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.
10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
11 And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise.
12 And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.
14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own.
15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return.
16 Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
Hebrews 11:8-
God somehow, and we are not told how, communicates to this man Abraham, that he is going to give him land as an inheritance. Abraham believed what God had said, and he headed out, “he went up the country.” He headed out on the open road, of course he didn’t have a Harley but he headed out. He didn’t even know where he was going, but he had faith in God, and he believed God. He believed that God would lead him and get him where he needed to go.
Robby, and many of you here, life will very different for you without Kim. Your club, will be very different without Kim. Our church here will be very different without kim. This is hard. We do not what the future will hold for us. We are going where we have not been before, and like Abraham we are going to need faith in God. We will need to trust that God is taking us to where he wants us to go, and we need to have faith that God is going with us.
The text goes on to say that that he felt like a stranger in a foreign land. He did not even have a permanent home, but was a traveller. The Bible tells us that this is not our home. It is like we are just travelling through this world. It is like we are living in a tent here, it is not our home, our home is somewhere else. Abraham was travelling to and looking forward to a city whose builder was God.
This world is not our home, I know it feels like it is sometimes. We really lay down roots here, but this world is not our home, and that is ok. We are all travellers. It is like were are all travelling through this world, and for a time Kim rode up alongside of us. She rode with us for this part of the journey, but this world is not our permanent home. And that is good.
It says that he was looking forward to city whose builder was God.
it is good, because in this world world the weekends end with Mondays, in this world the the last song is played, and the house lights go up. This world, as great as it is, could be better.
Sin has caused damage in this world. This world is full of pain, and it has things like cancer that takes one of our fellow travellers before we are done with ride.
But we can have hope. We can look forward to the city we are going to, because the architect of that city is God. In that city there is no longer any thing like cancer. The ride is for eternity. The Bible uses all these ways of talking about how great that city will be. It will have a sea of glass, light will be everywhere, the streets will be gold.
But, I know, that now while we are, in the middle of this place stuck here without Kim, our friend and loved one it is hard to see that. It is hard to see through the tears and look toward this heavenly city. And it is hard to trust that someday things will be better.
These people in this lesson did not have it easy either. They could not see the inheritance that God had promised. Most of their life they just had to have faith that God was working it out. They grew very old without having any children at all. Everything seemed impossible., and hopeless. The Bible even says that Abraham was as good as dead, yet…
yet even though they couldn’t see the promise through the pain and the tears, they had faith that God would do as he says. They believed that God would do as he says. And then it says this.
13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.
14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own.
They did not see the city, they did not see the promised land. but they hoped. But they trusted in God. I know it is hard to see the things that God has promised to those who trust in him. I know all we see is this struggle. This fight that Kim fought the battle that she was engaged in, but there is hope out there there is a better country, there is a better land and time when the tears will be gone and the pain will be gone. And it says they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance.
As Robby and I met he told that in the final days, Kim was weak. She was unable to even lift her at some points, but at one point she looked off in the distance, and she lifted her arms as if being welcomed into this mew city from distance.
14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own.
14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own.
15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return.
The passage closes with this
16 Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
They were longing for a better country, a heavenly one, isn’t that what we are all longing for a better place. One that doesn’t, have these problems. One where where the ride doesn’t have to end?
Therefore, the Bible says, God is not ashamed to be called THIER God for he has prepared a city for them.
Their God. The faith is personal. God has to be our God. We have to personally each one us trust that God is going to be our God.
When we turst in God, when we have faith in God we have that city and country prepared by God for us.
We are all just travelling through here we might as well be travelling through to a better place. This phrase I keep saying faith in God means something very specific in the Bible.
That God is our God, does not mean that we just travel along this rode of life and say sure I believe in God, I can’t wait to get to a better place.
No it means that personally, you have to decide to trust in God for yourself, just you and God. And we can’t get to that heavenly city from the road we are on.
Jesus once said I am the way and the truth and life, no one comes to the Father except through me. Jesus is the way to get to God the Father. Jesus is the way, the road to the city of God.
It means Giod has to be your God, you have to personally and indiviually trust in Him to lead through this life. Jesus said I am the way and the truth and life, no one comes to the father exceot through me. Jesus is the way to get to God the Father. Jesus is the way, the road to the city of GOd.
You must trust in Jesus to get you to God the Father. To trust in Jesus you turn from the direction you are going, and you turn around and go toward Him. You let him lead you.
Jesus lived a sinless life. He did not make mistakes, like you and I make. Jesus travelled along this road, but he did nothing wrong. He did this because He was fully God but also fully man. And because he did not sin, he could pay the price for our sins. Then Jesus died on the cross in our place for our sins.
The writer tells us that we was a strnager in foreign land.
Jesus was then raised from the dead three days later so that you and I would know, So that we would know for sure, that God keeps his promises that there is a ride better than the one we are one and that we can have a sure and certain confidence that if we trust in Him we can enter that heavenly city of God one day.
Kim’s ride on this earth is done. All of here will one day finish our ride.If you have never trusted in Jesus in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins you can do that today. Simply take a minute to confess to God that you have sinned, and you want to follow Him. Tell him that you believe that Jesus rose from the dead so that you can have eternal life, then trust that God will one day wipe away the tears and all pain. Won’t you pray that now?
If you have never trusted in Jesus in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins you can do that today. SImply take a minute to confess to God that you have sinned, and you want to follw Him tell him that you believe that Jesus rose from the dead so that you can have eternal life, then trust that God will one day wipe away the tears and all pin. won;t you pray that now?
As good as it is and as enjoyable as that is, there is still something that falls short. It doesn’t last forever, \there is always work waiting for us when we get back. Monday always comes. And as good as the warm summer nights and music can be, the last song is always sung, the house lights comes up and it is time to go, the perfect night always comes to an end. You know this.
Then as time went on, Kim still enjoyed the trips, but sometimes she couldn’t go. Her health started to have it’s effect, and the trips weren’t quite the same as they once were. That is difficult, and it is painful, and sad to think about, but God knows about this. God knows about what you are going through.