The Folded Napkin

Received in an email:

Why Did Jesus Fold the Napkin?

The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed over the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes.

The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly folded, and was placed at the head of that stony coffin.

Early Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.

She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved.. She said, 'They have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb, and I don't know where they have put him!'

Peter and the other disciple ran to the tomb to see. The other disciple out ran Peter and got there first. He stopped and looked in and saw the linen cloth lying there, but he didn't go in.

Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus' head was folded up and lying to the side.

Was that important? Absolutely!
Is it really significant? Yes!

In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day.
The folded napkin had to do with the Master and Servant, and every
Jewish boy knew this tradition.

When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it.

The table was furnished perfectly, and then the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master had finished eating, and the servant would not dare touch that table, until the master was finished.

Now if the master were done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth, and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and toss it onto the table.

The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, "I'm finished."

But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because..........

The folded napkin meant,


"I'm coming back"

McGrady's Our Missionary Family

Dear Faithful Friends and Family,

All of our hearts our saddened by the terrible tragedy that has taken place in Haiti this week. Reports are just now coming back of Haitian people that we met when we visited there in November, that have lost loved ones in this disaster. We are asking that you please pray for these precious people and this country. We praise the Lord that all of our Wesleyan Missionaries are safe and accounted for and no one was injured. Our Wesleyan Missionaries need your prayers in a very big way as they are helping in clinics, working to rescue people and assist this country in this time of need.

If you would like to respond finanacially to help with relief efforts in Haiti, please see the info below.
Checks should be made payable to “The Wesleyan Church” as you mail your timely donations to the “Wesleyan Emergency Relief Fund”, 13300 Olio Road, Fishers, Indiana, 46037.
For Canadian donors: Relief cheques are to be made payable to "The Wesleyan Church of Canada" and mailed to 1830 Mountain Road, Moncton, NB E1G 1A9.
To make a credit card donation click here or call 800.707.7715. Use fund number “WM07-0005” with the description “Haiti Relief."

Also we ask you to pray for our Kansas District Workteams that are flying to Ecuador today. They will be joining with us over the next month to do a Bible School here in the Andes Mountains of Ecuador as well as many different outreach events and construction projects.
For the latest on our ministry please go to our web site http://straightpaths.org/news.aspx, be sure to check out Jordan's Corner as well as our home page for the latest in our mission ministry updates.

Thank you for praying and supporting our work here in Ecuador as well as our Pastor to Missionary work. You are a blessing.
Sincerely,
Ned, Marlene and Jordan

Newspaper Column by Pastor Roger Campbell

TAKING FEAR OUT OF THE NEW YEAR
“How long have you had this lump under your arm?” my doctor asked as he worked his way through a “routine” physical. “And what about this black spot on your hand?” he added. I hadn’t noticed either the lump or spot until he pointed them out to me but now they would become front and center in all my waking thoughts.
Within a few days, I was at the office of a skin specialist who was to examine and possibly remove my black worry spot to determine just how serious a threat it posed to my health. This respected specialist finally concluded my black spot was too deep for him to remove so he made an appointment for me with a surgeon.
Finally, the surgeon removed my fear spot and sent it to a laboratory to be studied and analyzed. This would enable him to report to me and my primary physician about what should be the next course of treatment.
Now I was waiting again…and each day of waiting became a study in fighting fear. My work has often placed me with people during serious waiting times but it is one thing to wait with others to encourage them and another to be the one waiting to find out what’s ahead.
Finally my biopsy report arrived and was read to me over the phone: “This black spot was caused by a ball point pen,” the reader of the report said. By this time, the lump under my arm had disappeared, probably having been a swollen lymph node caused by a cold or simply an unknown lump that was removed by the Lord in answer to prayer. Either conclusion is fine with me.
More than twenty years have passed since that freeing phone call arrived about my
TAKING FEAR OUT OF THE NEW YEAR PAGE TWO Roger Campbell

ball point pen panic and I’m still laughing about my worthless worrying. But beneath my laughter a lesson in faith lingers built on two faith building fear fighters in the Bible: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow” (Matthew 6:34), and “Be anxious for nothing” (Philippians 4:6).
We shouldn’t fret when we don’t have all the facts.
C.S. Lewis wrote the following in a letter to a friend who was constantly worrying about what might someday happen to her:
“Remember one is given strength to bear what happens to one, but not the 101 things that might happen. The great thing, as you have obviously seen, (both as regards pain and financial worries) is to live from day to day and hour to hour, not adding the past or future to the present.”
In his published sermon, The Sin of Borrowing Trouble,” the eloquent, nineteenth century minister, T. Dewitt Talmadge, said: “the majority of the troubles of life are imaginary, and most of these anticipated never come.”
Fear robs us of the adventure of living, even when these fears are imaginary.
When we excitedly await the future with faith instead of fear, we experience the peace of God in daily living and our example builds the faith of others.
As faith increases, fear decreases. And strong faith in God overcomes fear every time.