March 30, 2012 What else is there?

John 21: 25 And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.


I love the book of John, especially as I think of it as the words of John, Jesus' best human friend, the disciple whom Jesus loved, as he identified himself in Jn. 19:26, 20:2, 21:7, 21:20. For three years John pretty much hung out with Jesus, about every where He went. In Mark 1:35, we read these words: And in the morning, rising a great while before day, he went out and departed into a solitary place and there prayed, and Simon and they that were with him followed after him. I can just imagine John leading this bunch as they pursued Jesus.

All of that to say, John had a ton of stories he did not record. Did you ever try to imagine what those stories might be? All week, ever since I read those words in John 21 again, I have been thinking about that, imagining what John might have seen Jesus do.

Certainly it would have been in His character to heal sick people, and there were a lot of them. Can't you see the leprous, the blind lying on torn blankets, perhaps outside the open market where people bought and sold vegetables and meat? Or outside the temple? Or even following the crowds that followed Him?

I lived in Africa before internet and radio service, and it always amazed me how word traveled. I can imagine somehow word traveled ahead of Jesus that He was coming, and people laid out their sick and blind and wounded in hopes that Jesus would touch them. And I can't help but wonder if John just left a lot of those stories out.

Can you imagine how many meals John shared with Jesus, and all the long relaxed conversations that stretched into the night under the stars? John left the details of those intimate evenings out. I can imagine that Christ's followers asked a lot of questions, perhaps like Thomas's, and John, perhaps in respect for his friends left those stories out.

And as I thought about all those stories that John left out, I thought a lot about all the stories of our lives that we leave out, that we fail to notice, stories of how God worked and continues to work - to keep us from or through danger. Stories of how He provided our needs, food or lodging or medicine. Stories of how we almost fell or succumbed to temptation or stories of how when we did fall, He picked us up and washed us off and gave us a fresh start...forgiven.

It is sad that we are so busy we forget to thank Him for all the stories He wrote on and with our lives.