From a Completely Different Perspective

I grew up the youngest of eight kids in a loving, but pragmatic, expansive home in a village in SE Missouri in the '50's---headed by my taciturn, rather stern father, an elementary teacher/principal, and my very nervous, stressed-out, time-pressed mother, a stay-at-home-mom (she would laugh at that term---with eight kids what else did one do!). Needless to say, we were nominally rich---well, poor . . . but compared to most homes about us, we were doing pretty well, I guess. As a snotty-nosed, rambunctious, pint-sized urchin I excelled.

Christmas was always thrilling to me as a young child.  I realize my recollections are some kind of random, not completely accurate, amalgamation. At some point a few days before Christmas, my dad would cut a cedar for a Christmas tree (I would trail along with my brother in later years to get one). We would decorate the tree with the numerous, accumulated ornaments and trinkets of decades of collecting (seldom do I recall a new one), wrapping it with popcorn chains and paper-ring chains that we kids cut and glued together, making the project a joyous ritual. Hopefully, we could get the lights to work---and what a hassle it was some years.

Presents were limited---typically something like a board game to be shared, a book, maybe a jigsaw puzzle or toy, and several items of clothing.  Christmas wasn't glutted with gifts, but the excitement was intense, nevertheless. Food treats and visits from family members (older brother and sisters from afar) lit the atmosphere, making Christmas a glorious, thrilling interlude in a rather uneventful lifestyle. The divinity, fudge, chocolate chip cookies, and the ham---yes! Life almost seemed good. Then, New Year's came. School started up again, leaving the anticipation to center around biding one's time for the all-sufficient "snow" day(s) ahead. 

However, Christmas, in our home, was not a focused, Jesus-centered holy day. It was family and food and good will. My mother attended church regularly and was an active member. My father on Sunday mornings read the "Sunday paper" in his rocking chair (or on the screened-in front porch during the summer months). She was "family and love," and he was "knowledge and discipline," in my immature, abridging mind. Eventually, my dad became an attender on a regular basis. As a result, I didn't "find" religion until I was in my thirties. Very slowly, I have come to discern for myself God and His love, forgiveness, goodness, patience, power---the supernatural quality of His existence. All of these compared to our physical weakness and smallness and sinful nature. I have accepted The Way artlessly and innocently through faith alone. Now, I'm able to approach Christmas from a completely different perspective, yet retain many of those typical elements. Merry Christmas to all of you, and I hope each of you can find The Way!

It's about Time to Hit Pause

Christmas is at our doorstep once again---my wife has purchased SO many gifts for the grandkids. The love of her life now is their welfare and happiness. With that in mind, I jump to a broader subject---broader, but not more significant. Don't get me wrong.

The USA sends "approximately $800,000,000,000 in mandatory payments and voluntary contributions . . ." to the United Nations. Also, we spend "$23,000,000,000 on foreign humanitarian assistance and international development and $14,000,000,000 on foreign military assistance." I include the zeroes intentionally to try to get you to focus on those amounts more closely. And, I could go on and on listing various stats. My point:  Please reflect on the dollars the USA sends from here to there (wherever)! Personally, I believe we spend too much money around the world and not enough here at home solving our internal problems. I realize the many arguments that can be made in support of foreign "aid," but, sorry, they're just wrong [just like abortion is "wrong"]. 

Another huge problem is the waste and corruption in the public monies that are spent here at home. I could easily throw out some impressive stats on spending here at home. We as a nation are so blessed by our Creator that we have become careless, nonchalant wasters. We have created a monster of convoluted entanglement of mismanagement and corruption and budgeting that defies revision and correcting. 

As I listen to the GOP debates (where ARE those Dem debates?), I have not heard ANYone speak of that monstrosity at all in any fashion at all. Where is the concern for those things? Where is it? No one has a solution apparently. No one wants to talk about it, I guess. No one has the backbone or stomach (strange terms indeed) to propose ANYthing. Actually, no one has suggested ANY solutions or attempts to solve anything.

Don't you think it's about time to hit pause---to call a time-out. Isn't it time for a genuine reflection, for an unpoliticized search for solutions, for corrections---before we get back to vaulting headfirst toward the edge? 

Humans really are capable of the searching, forethought, and preparation necessary for solving problems. I believe it. I ask members of our government who aren't completely sold-out to monied-interests to step up. To attempt to begin a change in the slide in our nation. "The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now He calls all people everywhere to repent" (Acts 17:30). Hey, USA, the "times of ignorance" must be left behind us if we are to have any chance to survive as a nation. God said in Isaiah 1:18, "Come now and let us reason together . . . though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." Yes, we can reason with God and with each other to find solutions to problems. We must!

Many will contend (and therein is much of the anger in our citizens) that no solution is possible. They may, perhaps, be right. So, I think, like my wife, I'm going to focus on the immediate happiness and welfare of our grandkids and children and enjoy the Christmas spirit in our home and family. The rest? Well, in faith, I'm going to leave the larger purposes to God's capable hands. Please don't call me names like quitter or all-talk-no-action. God will ultimately "solve" all my concerns. He's my Rock.

Since I started this blog in May, 2015, we've had 1700 reads. Hope we've helped someone's day once in a while. Want to wish the real Merry Christmas to all my friends and readers!!!

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Christmas Really Doesn't Belong to You

      Well . . . we had a marvelous Thanksgiving---the entire family gathered together. Everyone's life was apparently in good and/or acceptable condition. Now, Christmas is looming (14 days left).  Jan and I decided not to buy presents for each other just yet, but to wait awhile, then each to get something each wants. She has been happily purchasing presents for the grandkids (now one great-grandkid) for several days. The holiday period is always a treat for us.

       I can't, however, but have some misgivings as I observe the malicious political climate we have right now, the brokenness I see in so many people all around me for all kinds of reasons, the poverty, the drug and alcohol-induced stupor of so many, the emptiness and hurting, the overwhelming health problems, the moral and general ignorance, and the horrendous evil. Yep. I know. Many---the rosy ones---will say it's not as bad as it seems. But, they're wrong, I'm thinking. It really is as bad, maybe even worse.

       So, where does that leave me?  I'm not sure. Right where I always am, I guess.  Not knowing just how to influence the situation.  Left---just talking; trying to say something sensible in my own way and based upon my seventy years of living that perhaps someone will hear and find helpful. Many would tell me to get up and get out there and do something. I try in my now limited way---have yet to find some larger, benevolent outlet. But, each day that I feel well, I try to touch lives I encounter in a Christian manner . . . and I hope that's enough. Some days I'm simply an old grouch---grunching around uselessly.

      So? . . . so what? Christmas is now just around the corner---a marvelous reminder that Jesus lived our life and suffered our difficulties and waits to receive us in a supernatural, spiritually based configuration (that I won't even speculate about anymore); therein is my hope. It truly isn't logical. There's no common sense in it. It's not emotional---emotions eventually fade or change. Rather, I invite you to accept Jesus Christ into your life---through simple, innocent "faith." Yep. There it is. Be skeptical. Be sarcastic. Be intellectual. Miss the boat. One simply speaks to Him, asks for forgiveness for one's sins, and confesses publicly one's acceptance of Jesus as Lord (one's king) and Savior (the only eternal Out). Then, one can have joy and peace in a more consequential, abiding sense.

      I wish you a Merry Christmas. It's really only merry if you're a Christian, and the holiday really doesn't belong to you unless you're a Christian. Sorry. But, it really doesn't.

      

So Sorry for You !

      Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.  (Romans 12:9)

       God cares about us. That doesn't ring true to many today. When one observes the lawlessness, the pedophilia, child trafficking, random shootings, drug abuse, starvation, warfare, the general hurting and brokenness so rampant about us, one could presume God doesn't care. But, if you'll look at each misfortune listed above and add many more of your own, I believe you'll find that God is not the initiator of any of them---people are. God placed us in a world that we have gravely misused. God is not responsible for the "bad-ness" in our world---we are.

      God did not kill helpless humans recently in Paris in terrorist madness. Nothing, for that matter, would indicate that He would even desire such evil activity. Yes, He allowed it. But, if we are to have free will, He must allow such. Could He have intervened and stopped it. Yes. But, He chose not to, and I don't claim to know why. This world, for the time being, is subject to the negative forces of Satan (go ahead, scoff at this reference, but know that human understanding of the spiritual world about us barely exists. Label me illogical, unscientific---okay; but don't brazenly and incorrectly label me stupid).

      When Jan and I first moved to our rural home, I often, and sometimes still do, referred to it as God's Country.  Serene and isolated. Two, three, four cars passed our house in a day---one of those was the mail deliverer. Things have changed: traffic has increased including people we don't even know! New homes and families nearby. We live a far piece, a far cry, from Paris. We feel so blessed in our still peaceful territory---our very blessed home! But, we do have more evil about us, as more people are here.
       I'm sure many folks will always resent God's allowing bad things to happen in their lives. Many will interpret it as God's bad-ness. Many will choose to think of God as despicable, as the cause of their ill-fortune---and some will even tragically disavow my God as a result. So sorry for you! I, however, choose to focus on the many, many good things that God has heaped upon my life---the protection, the love, the comfort (none somehow personally deserved). I will insist that our life's evil activity is triggered by the evil within us humans.
      So, my rambling ends again, God is good, always was and always will be. We are warped. I pray for His forgiveness and blessings upon you.
      

Mizzou . . . Schizophrenia and Existential-Groanings

      Have you observed reports of the activities at Mizzou this week? Pretty weird, eh? It's difficult for me to ferret out all the necessary information down at the street level to grasp the significance of the matter. But, a football team threatening to boycott a game-day! And, it would seem, that menacing possibility becoming the tipping point in the decision-making process?! People fired? Oh, well---sports money ($1,000,000 plus for a forfeiture) speaks louder apparently than values, purpose, and objectivity once again.  Perhaps, more was there than meets my eye, but good grief, what kind of self-hating, warped, forlorn soul spends time drawing swastikas, much less using feces?!

      The female communications instructor---shrill and frenetic---now fired, was absolutely ridiculous. What does she indicate about the teachers and professors our university systems are hiring---and even paying. I would certainly loved to have been one of her students!  . . . and then the "News" making judgments about the University of Missouri based upon the one video of her screaming for "muscle"? Loose connections implied between events in Ferguson and these events!  My, my, my . . .

     What can we say? Basically, nothing. The insanity of those developing events and reactions is probably suggestive of some large generalization about our society, but I believe it's even more indicative of the state of the Individual within our culture. I marvel at how empty and peripatetic we have become morally. I was a young man in the "Sixties" and am aware that the loss of "grounding," though not always bad, certainly allows for existential-groanings---but, today, we have what seems to me almost a schizophrenic populace. Definitely, one that is so Me-first in most ways that it is exclusive of all common sense---perhaps, even hope.

      Sorry, for those of you super-people who believe that we e-van-GEL-i-cals, as you so disdainfully mouth, are so stodgy and un-educated---and, yep, even stupid. I won't call you "stupid," as you call me, but I believe a good dose of the Holy Spirit [of Jesus] could cure the disease you and your fellows (sorry if that word is too political incorrect for you) are suffering. I could more easily ignore your illness if it didn't manifest itself so often in my world.

      My friends, we need each other. We need peace. We need love. We need good-will. I pray for all of this. But, I realize, as long as humans are capable of evil, we will always have problems. Lawlessness is always a danger. Hurt and pain are everywhere rampant. Disagreement and division create difficulties. What do we not need? We don't need the incredibly foolish events like those at Mizzou this past week.  When people around you do destructive things, point it our to them. Have a spine.

and It Was Completely Calm

      I find it quite humorous to observe the awkwardness in the cynical political media's reaction to Ben Carson's occasional remarks about his conversion experience and how it changed his relationships and his life. The world, I suppose, has nearly always had an arthritic reception to any Christian's attempt to communicate his salvation event. To begin with, the supernatural element in it goes entirely beyond human analysis and makes the discussion stand finally outside rationality. To a completely objective person, then, the matter simply dies at that point. And so it does, I believe. Without spiritual intervention, salvation cannot occur. Human-inspired hyper-emotion, though dramatic, is not, in any sense, a viable replacement for the actual indwelling process of the Holy Spirit.

      Jesus plainly stated:  "with man this (salvation) is impossible, but with God all things are possible" (Matt 9:26). If one accepts that Jesus died and was raised from that death to a new life in a new body, then absolutely anything is possible through His spiritual intervention---absolutely anything, within the will of God! So, why do we so doubt? " '. . . you of little faith, why are you afraid?' Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm" (Matt 8: 26). Supernatural, right? I always think of Peter. We, like Peter, can walk on the water toward Jesus, but then we waver. I've always felt an affection for Peter---his histrionics, his aspirations, his willingness. And . . . his failure at the critical moment! That's me, all wrapped up in Peter's human-ness. Yet, I've accepted that Jesus is the bread, the living water, the Way---and everything's going to be okay. "In his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1 Peter 1:3).
      Well, it's basically very simple, I guess. Yet, we humans can find a way to complicate anything. I wish I could "explain" to you salvation, but I cannot. You must seek your own. No, . . . no, you don't have to do anything; God gives us the choice, the option. I hope, though, that you will read the Gospel and let it work in the very depths of your being.  God bless!
      Please don't scoff when people speak of their salvation. It is a very intimate experience. It is very personal. It is the most important portion of their life here on earth. It's an ongoing experience, as testified to by the lives of Jesus' disciples. Be patient with yourself. Jesus in your life brings a sweet, sweet mysterious peace that you'll not know until you accept Him.

That Haunting Whistling

      "Don't Worry, Be Happy" is a fairly nondescript song by musician Bobby McFerrin from the late 1980's espousing the virtue of just simply being happy. Somehow, out of the blue, it crossed my mind this morning---just goes to show that even my brain takes an occasional odd twist. Got me to thinking, though. Our Declaration of Independence proclaims "the pursuit of happiness" one of our "unalienable (fundamental, inherent) Rights." Many folks will quickly and openly tell you that being happy is exactly and naturally what one should really be seeking in life. I have many facebook friends who often express in posted pics their happiness---tho' their words mainly express gripes, opinions, fears, and concerns. It seems to me that happiness has become our purest American Idol (sorry, couldn't resist) pushing all other virtues far into a blurred background. I'm thinking happiness isolated as an overriding quest becomes a very lonely phantom. 

       "So what?" you say. Not sure yet; give me a couple of minutes. Certainly, our other proclaimed unalienable rights---life and liberty---play a distant second and third fiddles. Abortion and prohibitive costs of medical care and curative drugs say much about our dishonor for life. Our isolationist foreign policy and  the increasing attacks on our daily lifestyles speak much of our belittling of liberty. So, it's back to the pursuit of happiness---and pursue it we do.
      I can only speak for myself on this. I believe, to a large extent, we choose to be happy or not. Jesus said, "I came that they may have life and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). So, I choose to believe that and accept it and opt to be happy. I was never the hottest guy around (but okay); eventually, I read Paul's remarks, "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you . . ." (1 Cor 6:19). I just figured if it's good enough for the Spirit, it's good enough for me. I'm happy. Also, I've always had plenty (all one could truly need) of wealth and things: "Keep your life free from the love of money, and be content with what you have . . ." (Heb 13:5). I've been happy and more than blessed by God. He allowed me to love the work I did (Prov 12:11), and He kept loved ones all around me (Psa 128:3). I'm happy. God gave me a home where I wanted to live---serenity itself, not the hustle of city life, and He has allowed me to enjoy the simple, basic things in living (Mic 6:8). I'm happy. As I age, I'm learning more and more to let go of past hurts, and I'm becoming more and more spiritual in my view of life itself (Mat 6:33). I'm happy. I exhort you to enjoy those perfect moments when they happen---perfection doesn't last long on Earth. Overall, I suspect my happy listings match most of yours.
      So, after all this seemingly extraneous rambling, I conclude:  The pursuit (of happiness) must be focused on something else and directed by Biblical principles or else it is futile. We have the declared Right to pursue happiness---but pursuing Christ's approval is the ultimate pathway to happiness. You certainly are free to disagree with me. But, only the Holy Spirit can ultimately comfort and completely fill the emptiness---the spiritual unhappiness---that humans inevitably weather. 
      That haunting whistling from the song is reminding you not to worry, but simply being happy doesn't cut it. It won't work. It's just not life. It's a lie. Our expulsion from the Garden of Eden (however you want to interpret it) made true happiness impossible till finally comes the comfort of the Holy Spirit. That whistling will just echo quietly somewhere in your consciousness---occasionally thrown to the surface to refresh your awareness of your need for happiness. The indwelling Holy Spirit is what you need and long for. I'll continue to pursue happiness myself---but, I have a most amazing Helper!