Blog Archives

FORGET ME NOT

5/29/2017

In the introduction to a message titled How the Mighty Are Fallen, Alan Stewart, Senior Pastor of Rechoboth Baptist Church in Soddy Daisy, Tennessee shares the following observation:

In the spring of 1989, Chinese students at Beijing University led in an uprising for democratic freedom. Their protest was over hardship, corruption, and 40 years of repression. The conflict became so intense, the Chinese government ordered over 300,000 troops to use tanks and semi-automatic weapons to crush the protest. By early June, the Chinese army had succeeded in backing off the protestors.

That is, until June 5. Perhaps you will remember the image being broadcast around the world of a lone, unnamed student who stood in Tiananmen Square to block a line of tanks. In this extraordinary confrontation, he was crushed beneath the tank and became an icon for the struggle for freedom.

That was early 1989. From that time, the Chinese government vowed to erase this image from Chinese memory. Have they succeeded? Last year, veteran journalist Anthony Thomas showed the pictures to undergraduates at Beijing University and none of the students recognized it or even knew why the young man was willing to die!

Wow! How easy it is for one generation to forget the sacrifices of previous generations, especially those who were willing to lay down their lives that freedom might be obtained and ensured.

This Memorial Day, may we be faithful to remember those who sacrificed for our freedom here in America, especially those who gave what Abraham Lincoln termed “the last full measure of devotion”.

SOURCE: http://www.pastorlife.com/members/sermon.asp?sermon_id=3836.
PICTURE SOURCE: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tianasquare.jpg.
SEE ALSO: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tank_Man.

GUARDING THE PLATE

5/25/2017

My daughter grew up playing fast pitch softball. In fact, we travelled all over the southeast attending her games. And we were all overjoyed when she was part of a state championship team in high school.

For these reasons, perhaps, my wife and I still enjoy watching the NCAA regional and super regional softball tournaments leading up to the College World Series this time of year.

As I was watching one such game recently, I was reminded of the story of Baseball Coach John Scolinos. His story has been around for a few years; but is well worth repeating. Below is Baseball Columnist Chris Sperry’s oft repeated account of this man and his powerful testimony.

Twenty years ago, in Nashville, Tennessee, during the first week of January, 1996, more than 4,000 baseball coaches descended upon the Opryland Hotel for the 52nd annual ABCA's convention.

While I waited in line to register with the hotel staff, I heard other more veteran coaches rumbling about the lineup of speakers scheduled to present during the weekend. One name, in particular, kept resurfacing, always with the same sentiment — “John Scolinos is here? Oh, man, worth every penny of my airfare.”

Who is John Scolinos, I wondered. No matter; I was just happy to be there.

In 1996, Coach Scolinos was 78 years old and five years retired from a college coaching career that began in 1948. He shuffled to the stage to an impressive standing ovation, wearing dark polyester pants, a light blue shirt, and a string around his neck from which home plate hung — a full-sized, stark-white home plate.

Seriously, I wondered, who is this guy?

After speaking for twenty-five minutes, not once mentioning the prop hanging around his neck, Coach Scolinos appeared to notice the snickering among some of the coaches. Even those who knew Coach Scolinos had to wonder exactly where he was going with this, or if he had simply forgotten about home plate since he’d gotten on stage. Then, finally ...

“You’re probably all wondering why I’m wearing home plate around my neck,” he said, his voice growing irascible. I laughed along with the others, acknowledging the possibility. “I may be old, but I’m not crazy. The reason I stand before you today is to share with you baseball people what I’ve learned in my life, what I’ve learned about home plate in my 78 years.”

Several hands went up when Scolinos asked how many Little League coaches were in the room. “Do you know how wide home plate is in Little League?”

After a pause, someone offered, “Seventeen inches?”, more of a question than answer.

“That’s right,” he said “How about in Babe Ruth’s day? Any Babe Ruth coaches in the house?” Another long pause.

“Seventeen inches?” a guess from another reluctant coach.

“That’s right,” said Scolinos. “Now, how many high school coaches do we have in the room?” Hundreds of hands shot up, as the pattern began to appear. “How wide is home plate in high school baseball?”

“Seventeen inches,” they said, sounding more confident.

“You’re right!” Scolinos barked. “And you college coaches, how wide is home plate in college?”

“Seventeen inches!” we said, in unison.

“Any Minor League coaches here? How wide is home plate in pro ball?”............“Seventeen inches!”

“RIGHT! And in the Major Leagues, how wide home plate is in the Major Leagues?

“Seventeen inches!”

“SEV-EN-TEEN INCHES!” he confirmed, his voice bellowing off the walls. “And what do they do with a Big League pitcher who can’t throw the ball over seventeen inches?” Pause. “They send him to Pocatello!” he hollered, drawing raucous laughter. “What they don’t do is this: they don’t say, ‘Ah, that’s okay, Jimmy. If you can’t hit a seventeen-inch target? We’ll make it eighteen inches or nineteen inches. We’ll make it twenty inches so you have a better chance of hitting it. If you can’t hit that, let us know so we can make it wider still, say twenty-five inches.'”

Pause. “Coaches... what do we do when your best player shows up late to practice? Or when our team rules forbid facial hair and a guy shows up unshaven? What if he gets caught drinking? Do we hold him accountable? Or do we change the rules to fit him? Do we widen home plate? "

The chuckles gradually faded as four thousand coaches grew quiet, the fog lifting as the old coach’s message began to unfold. He turned the plate toward himself and, using a Sharpie, began to draw something. When he turned it toward the crowd, point up, a house was revealed, complete with a freshly drawn door and two windows. “This is the problem in our homes today. With our marriages, with the way we parent our kids. With our discipline.

We don’t teach accountability to our kids, and there is no consequence for failing to meet standards. We just widen the plate!”

Pause. Then, to the point at the top of the house he added a small American flag. “This is the problem in our schools today. The quality of our education is going downhill fast and teachers have been stripped of the tools they need to be successful, and to educate and discipline our young people. We are allowing others to widen home plate! Where is that getting us?”

Silence. He replaced the flag with a Cross. “And this is the problem in the Church, where powerful people in positions of authority have taken advantage of young children, only to have such an atrocity swept under the rug for years. Our church leaders are widening home plate for themselves! And we allow it.”

“And the same is true with our government. Our so called representatives make rules for us that don’t apply to themselves. They take bribes from lobbyists and foreign countries. They no longer serve us. And we allow them to widen home plate! We see our country falling into a dark abyss while we just watch.”

I was amazed. At a baseball convention where I expected to learn something about curve balls and bunting and how to run better practices, I had learned something far more valuable.

From an old man with home plate strung around his neck, I had learned something about life, about myself, about my own weaknesses and about my responsibilities as a leader. I had to hold myself and others accountable to that which I knew to be right, lest our families, our faith, and our society continue down an undesirable path.

“If I am lucky,” Coach Scolinos concluded, “you will remember one thing from this old coach today. It is this: "If we fail to hold ourselves to a higher standard, a standard of what we know to be right; if we fail to hold our spouses and our children to the same standards, if we are unwilling or unable to provide a consequence when they do not meet the standard; and if our schools & churches & our government fail to hold themselves accountable to those they serve, there is but one thing to look forward to ...”

With that, he held home plate in front of his chest, turned it around, and revealed its dark black backside, “...We have dark days ahead!.”

Note: Coach Scolinos died in 2009 at the age of 91, but not before touching the lives of hundreds of players and coaches, including mine. Meeting him at my first ABCA convention kept me returning year after year, looking for similar wisdom and inspiration from other coaches. He is the best clinic speaker the ABCA has ever known because he was so much more than a baseball coach. His message was clear: “Coaches, keep your players—no matter how good they are—your own children, your churches, your government, and most of all, keep yourself at seventeen inches."

And this my friends is what our country has become and what is wrong with it today, and now go out there and fix it!

"Don't widen the plate."

SOURCE: Available widely on the internet in various versions. It appears that the original source is here: http://www.sperrybaseballlife.com/stay-at-17-inches/.

A CHANNEL OF BLESSING

5/22/2017

As I write this, the forecast is for a considerable amount of rain to move into East Tennessee over the next day or so. Indeed, the radar on my tablet app shows green yellow and red stretching all the way back across Alabama, Mississippi, and into Louisiana and out into the Gulf of Mexico. But, to paraphrase Louisa May Alcott, "my wife and I are not afraid of the storm; for we are learning to clean our gutters!"

A few years ago (on 10/16/2014 to be exact), I posted a blog titled CLUTTER IN THE GUTTER. At that time, I shared about how we had landscaped our yard back when we first bought our home.

At the time of our purchase, we had no foliage to speak of. We were advised to plant River Burch trees, which were said to grow quickly, and to provide ample shade and greenery. Suffice it to say that they have now lived up to their billing. In fact, if not pruned regularly, they grow almost as full and as fast as kudzu!

They also shed a fair amount, filling the valleys of our roof and our gutters with so much arboreal detritus that, if it is not cleaned out two or three times each spring and fall, will clog the gutters and downspouts completely. For this reason, my wife and I dutifully climbed up on step ladders and performed this accepted seasonal ritual once again this past weekend.

The process of clearing our gutters brought something else to my mind. I remembered that I had previously taken notice of a similar issue with several of the various street drains in our subdivision. With this in mind, I grabbed a small rake and took a stroll through our neighborhood.

To be precise, we have nine street drains positioned at strategic locations throughout our subdivision. I soon discovered that each one of them, to some extent, was clogged with dirt, leaves, gravel, plants, and/or similar debris. One or two were almost completely obscured. It took a little work; but within a half hour or so, I had succeeded in excavating each of them back down to their original metal grates.

And just in time, I might add. For the rain that is predicted to move in tonight will now be allowed to drain freely from the roof over my head and the street under my feet! With this confidence, I say again, “Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain.” For I know that that which falls upon me and mine will now flow smoothly through to other points.

With that simple metaphor in mind, I remind you that we too are designed to be conduits. Harper G. Smith understood this. Back in 1903, he penned these words to the wonderful Christian hymn titled “Make Me a Channel of Blessing”:

Is your life a channel of blessing?
Is the love of God flowing through you?
Are you telling the lost of the Savior?
Are you ready His service to do?

Refrain:
Make me a channel of blessing today,
Make me a channel of blessing, I pray;
My life possessing, my service blessing,
Make me a channel of blessing today.

Is your life a channel of blessing?
Are you burdened for those that are lost?
Have you urged upon those who are straying
The Savior Who died on the cross?

Is your life a channel of blessing?
Is it a daily telling for Him?
Have you spoken the Word of salvation
To those who are dying in sin?

Allow me to stress the words to the refrain one more time:

Make me a channel of blessing today,
Make me a channel of blessing, I pray;
My life possessing, my service blessing,
Make me a channel of blessing today.

Mr. Smith was quite right. God does desire to use us as a channel of blessings to others. For this reason, it is imperative that we make certain there is nothing in our lives that impedes the flow of any such blessing to others.

My wife and I have learned that even the smallest of twigs, if allowed to lie across a downspout entrance, will soon begin to snag and snare debris and grow into a full scale gutter malfunction. For this reason, we have also learned to give regular attention to keeping the trash out of our gutters.

In a similar vein, how much more effective of a channel of blessings for Jesus Christ might we all be if we would only regularly examine our lives and cleanse them of any activities or pursuits that impede the flow of God’s love and grace!

LYRICS SOURCE:
http://library.timelesstruths.org/music/Make_Me_a_Channel_of_Blessing/.

WHAT TO DO WITH YOUR CHANGE

5/18/2017

A recent news story caught my attention. It was titled “20 Things We Don't Do Anymore Because of Technology”. Read through this summary list of the twenty things and see just how on target the author, Kim Komando, really is.

1. Memorize a phone number
2. Use a phone book to find a company to do work around your house
3. Park your used car on the street with a sign that says it’s for sale
4. Do math in your head
5. Call a family member to ask where they are
6. Tell time by the hands on a clock
7. Make photo albums
8. Own a CD or record collection
9. Make mix tapes
10. Call a theater to get movie times
11. Record your favorite programs on tape
12. Watch shows when they are broadcast
13. Run to the store for a last-minute gift
14. Cut things out of the newspaper
15. Send a handwritten letter
16. Look up how to spell a word
17. Use a phone booth
18. Carry enough change to make a phone call
19. Use a travel agent
20. Get your old checks back from the bank every month

So, how did you score? As a general rule, the younger one is, the higher (or closer to all twenty) he or she will score. By contrast, the older one is, the lower (or further from all twenty) he or she will score.

Accordingly, for our part, about twelve of the twenty apply to my wife and me. (We shan’t reveal which ones!) We are probably right in line with most people our age. By comparison, our children would likely score very close to all twenty, while our parents would score close to one or two.

So, what do we take form this? Undeniably, technology is changing all of our lives! And this is true, even if we do not want it to! A dozen or so years ago, the online world was considered something of a fad. Very few people could conceive of how the world was about to change.

Then came the introduction of the smartphone. Suddenly everyone was not just talking on their phones, or texting on them, but surfing the web on them as well. The proliferation of phone apps that quickly followed has so radically altered our way of living that the world will never be the same. Indeed, some argue that technology is the greatest leap forward in civilization in the last millennium. Only time will tell.

But this much is certain - the only thing constant is change itself! And in the future, change will only occur at an even faster rate than it has in the past. Which leaves us with a choice – we can either embrace change or we can eschew it.

Of course, if we choose not to ream in intransigent and resist change, we run the risk of becoming irrelevant! At the same time, as we embrace change, we must make certain that we do not let go of everything. For some things, particularly values, do not change, and thus should not be abandoned.

In by-gone days, our forebears spoke a lot of folk wisdom. Most of us can quote these maxims by heart…

“Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder”, “Out of Sight, Out of Mind”, “Confession Is Good for the Soul”, “All Work and No Play Makes Jack a Dull Boy”, “Early to Bed, and Early to Rise, Makes a Man Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise”, etc… The list is long and familiar.

Allow me to remind you of one more in particular: “Don’t Throw the Baby Out with the Bathwater”. In days gone by, many babies would be bathed in small 35 gallon tubs up on the kitchen counter. After the bath, the dirty bath water would be slung out into the yard. Obviously, it was important to make certain the baby had been removed from the tub before its contents were dispensed with and dispersed into the yard.

The point of this proverb is that one must let go of what needs to be discarded while hanging on to what matters most. And that is a pretty good guide for how we much approach change to day. If a better, more efficient way of doing something is invented, then we should embrace that and let go of the older, less efficient way of doing whatever it is we are doing.

But at no time in this process should we ever discard what really matters. Among the list of things that really matter are our relationships, our values, and our convictions. Whether I communicate through a handwritten letter or an email, whether I call or text, whether I send a physical greeting card or a digital one, what matters most is that I communicate regularity with those I know and love. Methods change, but meaningful communication does not.

In a similar way, for the church of Jesus Christ, the methods by which we communicate the Gospel may change over time. From one on one conversations to mass assemblies to books to pamphlets to tracts to radio to television to webcasts to blogs to tweets to who knows what else, the methods by which we have seen and will see the Gospel communicated are ever changing.
But the glorious message of the Gospel itself, as summarized so succinctly in the New Testament life of Christ as penned under the direction of the Holy Spirit by the Apostle John (chapter three, verse sixteen through eighteen) never has and never will change:
16For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

And so, my friend, embrace change. It is inevitable. Grab hold of the new and let go of the old. But never, never, never throw the proverbial baby out with the bath water! Rather, hang on to that which is essential at all cost – the good news of Jesus Christ!

And remember… the methods by which we communicate the Gospel always have and always will change; but the message of the Gospel itself never has, never does, and never will!

SOURCES:

STORY SOURCE: http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2017/05/06/20-things-dont-do-anymore-because-technology.html. Kim Komando hosts the nation's largest weekend radio talk show, dispensing advice on nearly every aspect of living in today's digital world, from smartphones and tablets to online privacy and data hacks. Her website is: http://www.komando.com/.

SCRIPTURE SOURCE: http://biblehub.com/niv/john/3.htm.

NOTE: For an extensive list of American Proverbs and Folk Sayings and Maxims, see: https://www.brownielocks.com/folksayings.html.

PERFECT LOVE

5/15/2017

On occasion, I use an illustration from the pulpit that generates a fairly large number of requests for a copy.   Such was the case this past Sunday when, in the process of celebrating Mother’s Day, I read a poem about how hard our grandmothers worked and sacrificed on our behalves with little or no recognition.

Given the amount of feedback, I thought I would simply post it here today. It is titled “PERFECT DAY”.

Grandma, on a winter's day,
milked the cows and fed them hay,
hitched the mule, drove kids to school...
did a washing, mopped the floors,
washed the windows and did some chores...

Cooked a dish of home-dried fruit,
pressed her husband's Sunday suit...
swept the parlor, made the bed,
baked a dozen loaves of bread...
split some firewood and lugged it in,
enough to fill the kitchen bin...

Cleaned the lamps and put in oil,
stewed some apples before they spoiled...
churned the butter, baked a cake,
then exclaimed, "For goodness sake!"
When the calves ran from the pen,
and chased them all back in again...

Gathered eggs and locked the stable,
back to the house and set the table...
cooked a supper that was delicious,
then washed and dried all dirty dishes...
fed the cat and sprinkled clothes,
mended a basketful of hose...

Then opened the organ and began to play:
"When You Come to the End of a Perfect Day..."

What a powerful reminder of how hard our forebears worked each and every day of their lives. I am of the “woman of noble character” found in the Old Testament Book of Proverbs (chapter 31, verses 10-31):

10 A wife of noble character who can find?

She is worth far more than rubies.
11Her husband has full confidence in her

and lacks nothing of value.

12She brings him good, not harm,

all the days of her life.

13She selects wool and flax

and works with eager hands.

14She is like the merchant ships,

bringing her food from afar.

15She gets up while it is still night;

she provides food for her family

and portions for her female servants.

16She considers a field and buys it;

out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.

17She sets about her work vigorously;

her arms are strong for her tasks.

18She sees that her trading is profitable,

and her lamp does not go out at night.

19In her hand she holds the distaff

and grasps the spindle with her fingers.

20She opens her arms to the poor

and extends her hands to the needy.

21When it snows, she has no fear for her household;

for all of them are clothed in scarlet.

22She makes coverings for her bed;

she is clothed in fine linen and purple.

23Her husband is respected at the city gate,

where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.

24She makes linen garments and sells them,

and supplies the merchants with sashes.

25She is clothed with strength and dignity;

she can laugh at the days to come.

26She speaks with wisdom,

and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

27She watches over the affairs of her household

and does not eat the bread of idleness.

28Her children arise and call her blessed;

her husband also, and he praises her:

29“Many women do noble things,

but you surpass them all.”

30Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;

but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

31Honor her for all that her hands have done,

and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

Where would most all of us be without the love and affection showered upon us by loving parents and grandparents? If you filed to do so this past weekend, please take a moment to contact your mother and share your appreciation and affection for her. As the text says, “rise up and call her blessed”. That will surely be rewarding to her.

And if she has already passed on to her eternal reward, then honor her memory by rising up and becoming a blessing to someone else in her memory. Such a step would surely have made her happy.

POEM SOURCE: Reminisce, Magazine, premiere issue, 1991, pp. 46-7. Also available widely on the internet. See, for example: http://www.grandparents.net/perfectday.htm.

NOTE: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mnwabbio/wab4.htm has a companion poem about grandpa as well.

SCRIPTURE SOURCE: http://biblehub.com/niv/proverbs/31.htm.

INDELIBLE IMPRESSIONS

5/12/2017

When our children were small, my wife made the important decision to be a stay at home mom and invest in the lives of our children during the crucial years of their childhood. Only later, when they were of age, did she return to the workplace.

For my part, I completely supported her in that decision. To this day, the two of us like to think this simple step had a meaningful and lasting impact on the lives of each of our three children.

It has therefore come as no surprise to either of us that our daughter, supported by her husband, has now made a similar choice. She has decided to forgo her career for several years in order to stay at home and invest in the life of our young grandson (and any siblings that might one day be forthcoming).

Of course, this Sunday is Mother’s Day. An anonymous poem, available widely on the internet, is often cited this time of year. I do not know who the author is, but the message it contains perhaps best explains why we applaud our own daughter’s decision to sacrifice on behalf of the precious little child the Lord has now entrusted to her.

That poem reads as follows:

I took a piece of plastic clay
And idly fashioned it one day;
And as my fingers pressed it still
It moved and yielded at my will.

I came again when days were past,
The form I gave it still it bore,
And as my fingers pressed it still,
I could change that form no more.

I took a piece of living clay,
And gently formed it day by day,
And molded with my power and art,
A young child's soft and yielding heart.

I came again when days were gone;
It was a man I looked upon,
He still that early impress bore,
And I could change it never more.

Whether you, the reader, are a working mom or a stay at home mom – indeed, whether you are a mom or a dad, or a grandma or a grandpa, or an aunt or an uncle, or even an older sister or an older brother - this poem has value. We all help to mold the lives of the little ones whose paths we cross.

The Psalmist (Psalm 127, verse 3 NLT) put it this way, “Children are a gift from the LORD…” And of course, the same Bible (in the New Testament Gospel of Luke, chapter 12, verse 28, BSB) reminds us that “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required…”

My wife and I were given much when we were entrusted with our three children. We tried to give much to our children in return. With the addition of their own child, our own daughter and son-in-law have now been given much as well. We support them in their decision to give much to their son in return.

May God bless them (and him) as they do!

SOURCES
POEM: Available widely on the world wide web. See, for instance, http://www.rayfowler.org/2009/05/08/a-piece-of-plastic-clay-a-poem-for-mothers-day/.

SCRIPTURES: http://biblehub.com/psalms/127-3.htm
and http://biblehub.com/luke/12-48.htm.

HEADS UP!

5/9/2017

According to a Reuters/Associated Press news release dated earlier today, five lions have somehow managed to escape from a South African wildlife park.

The lions that are believed to have escaped from the world famous Kruger National Park, which is the country's biggest wildlife reserve. There has been at least one confirmed sighting by a local resident, who spotted the enormous cats on a road in Komatipoort, a town near the park, on Monday morning.

Park officials do not yet know how the animals got off the preserve, but they believe the cats are now holed up in sugar cane farms in an area that has thick fog in the mornings. There is also growing concern that the lions may have split up into two or more groups.

Naturally, local residents are being strongly urged not stop to take photographs of the lions. As wild animals, they are extremely dangerous. Indeed, they are thought to have already killed and consumed at least one domestic cow.

Of course, this last admonition from park authorities should be self-evident. But sadly, it seems, we live in a day and age where a great many people have lost all sense of appreciation for the danger presented by wild animals.

In our modern world, where we have very little interaction with such majestic predators, we have allowed ourselves to be deluded into thinking that they are somehow akin to mere housecats. We are so accustomed to being taken into their private worlds via wildlife documentary cameras that we have lost any healthy sense of fear.

Proof of this is seen in the all too familiar reports of people get too close to large predators and then paying the price. Whether it be golfers encountering alligators in south Florida or tourists straying too close to feeding bears in Alaska, the outcome is all too often tragic. I certainly hope any such misfortune does not unfold in South Africa.

As a Pastor, upon reading this story, I could not help but think of what the Bible admonishes in the fifth chapter, eight verse of the Apostle Peter’s First New Testament Letter: “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”

The good people of Komatipoort, South Africa have been duly warned of the danger lurking among them. One can only hope they will heed this admonition. But so have we, my friend. For while we may not face any immediate physical danger from any actual earthly predator, we most certainly face an onslaught from an even more dangerous spiritual marauder.

In light of this, we would do well to heed Peter’s admonition. I pray that we will!

NEWS ITEM SOURCE: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2017/05/09/5-lions-escape-from-south-african-wildlife-park.html.
SCRIPTURE SOURCE: http://biblehub.com/niv/1_peter/5.htm.

LEAN ON ME

5/4/2017

While out walking a few weeks ago, I came upon what appeared to be graffiti spray painted on the asphalt on the frontage road adjacent to where we live. As a homeowner, my initial reaction was one of disappointment. No one desires to have acts of vandalism occur anywhere near his or her place of residence; and I am no different.

The three giant letters on the asphalt on the edge of the road read “LOC”. I asked myself whether or not I knew of anyone with those initials. I kicked it around for a few days, never able to figure out who the culprit might have been.

However, after a few days, a strange thing happened. It seemed for all the world as if the paint was fading. Sure enough, within about ten days, the letters had mysteriously all but disappeared. For this, at least, I was grateful.

And then, one day while out walking, I came across a sight that completely changed my perspective on the whole matter. Across the ditch and up the embankment from the faded remains of the letters, a brand new power pole had been installed adjacent to an old one.

Obviously, what I had interpreted as graffiti was the marking for the location for a new utility pole. What I had perceived as paint was a substance that was clearly designed to be biodegradable and therefore to fade away over time, which it has now done almost completely. Kudos to the local utility authority, who had clearly thought all of this through in advance.

And also for their ability to see that I could not see. The old power pole was clearly on its last leg. Not just faded, it was splintering and sagging. In fact, one could almost say that the vines growing around it were partly responsible for its ability to remain standing under the burden of the lines it had borne.

Now, however, a newer, much taller and much stronger pole has come along beside the older, shorter, and weaker pole and taken on this burden. As I stood there observing this scene, it was almost as if I could hear the old pole saying heaving a sigh of relief and muttering its appreciation over and over again.

As I have reflected on this, I have been reminded of how many times God has pretty much done the same for me - of how many times God has looked down and seen that my burdens were reaching the point where I could no longer bear up under them; of how many times He has marked me for assistance; and of how many times He has either come along beside me and relieved me of my burdensome load in life or else sent someone to do that in His name.

Of course, no sooner have I reflected on these things than I have also been reminded that these are the very ways God wants to use me in the lives of other people. More times than I can count, I have either driven or walked by that old pole and never once noticed either its condition or its burden.

I shudder to think how many times I have also walked by my fellow human beings and taken no more notice of them and/or their circumstance as well. My prayer is that, from this day forward, God will help me to be a bit more sensitive to the plight of the individuals whose paths I cross.

In his New Testament Letter to the Galatians (chapter 6, verse 22), the Apostle Paul states: “Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” In light of this, I hope to become more sensitive to the burdens of others.

As I do, should I encounter someone who has been marked by God as being in need, I trust that I will be found faithful to come along beside them and help to ease their load in his name. And also that Jesus Christ will be pleased with my efforts.

SCRIPTURE SOURCE: http://biblehub.com/galatians/6-2.htm.

LITTLE BIG MAN

5/1/2017

My grandson turns six months old this week. And he has not wasted of a day of his precious young life. He now clocks in at over twenty pounds! So, he has obviously been doing a lot of eating! In addition to packing on the weight, he has learned to sit up on his own!

Along the way, he has discovered his little fingers and his feet and most recently, that he also has a tongue! He will spend untold minutes making little noises with his mouth and then grinning with satisfaction at the results!

Now I realize that these things may not sound all that impressive in and of themselves. But considering that he started with a completely blank slate a mere six months ago, he has definitely accomplished a lot!

Of course we all start out pretty much the same way. We come into this world with very few skills. But then, over a period of time, hopefully, we grow and develop into maturity.

I am reminded of the old story about a group of tourists visiting a picturesque village who walked by an old man sitting beside a fence. In a rather patronizing way, one tourist asked, "Were any great men born in this village?" The old man replied, "Nope, only babies."

This rather petulant question actually brought about a fairly profound answer. In truth, there are no instant heroes! Rather, growth takes time. Maturity is a process.

Development is also a necessary component of life. For while the actions of a six month old child are often seen as adorable, similar actions would likely not be viewed with as much appreciation if they were being undertaken by a teenager. By then, hopefully, one should have matured far beyond these initial stages of development.

Of course, what is true in the temporal world is also true in the spiritual one. Believers become children of God when they experience new birth in Christ. Thereafter, hopefully, they begin a process of spiritual growth that continues all throughout their lives. And if they do not soon exhibit growth and maturity, one might rightfully ask whether there is a problem of some sort.

As a child, I used to love the old Paramount Pictures' Famous Studios cartoon about “Baby Huey”, a gigantic and naïve baby duckling. He was portrayed as a comical individual, clumsy and naïve as he bumbled his way to the successful resolution of one pressing problem after another.

As funny as this cartoon character was, real life “Baby Hueys” are not nearly as amusing. In fact, overgrown babies who have never grown up are no laughing matter. If you come across one, you will soon have cause for regret.

The Apostle Paul encountered his share of such overgrown babes in Christ in the church in ancient Corinth. Here is how he addressed them on his First New Testament Epistle (chapter three, verses 1-2):

1Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready.

Paul’s concern appears to be that the Corinthian Christians should be progressing in their spiritual growth, and moving from spiritual milk to spiritual solid food in the process. Sadly, they are not. And Paul's heart is broken as a result.

My six month old grandson is even now moving from the bottle to cereal. I hope the day will soon come when he is eating solid food. And I also hope there eventually comes a point in his life where he puts the bottle down for good.

Otherwise, even I, his adoring grandfather, might not find his actions so adorable. Somehow, I sense that God looks at us much the same!

SCRIPTURE SOURCE: http://biblehub.com/niv/1_corinthians/3.htm.