Family and people who knew us never came to the front door of the farm house in which I grew up. One would have to park on the road or well onto the lawn ( I use that term loosely) to make their way to the front door. Everyone who was any one to our family would follow the drive 'round to the back of the house and knock on the back door, or in some cases just come on in. I don't recall ever locking the back door until I was about fourteen or fifteen and then you could just raised the window next to the door and reach in to unlock it. I think the lock was used more to hold the door shut against the wind as much as anything.
I realize that front doors are considered more formal, proper, and mannerly but I have noticed that the front door to the world's heart and mind is being kept shut against the wind of the Spirit and His church, especially in the Western world. In a few cases I understand. The church has at times seemed in some eyes as arrogant, pushy, presumptive, or irrelevant. Although I believe those perceptions in many cases to be wrongly assigned the truth of the matter is that the front door to people's hearts and mind is shut tighter than ever. Bad press, competition from other religions and worldviews, poor exhibition and extremes from some churches, monastic mindsets without the monastery, lack of loving compassion by too many Christians, and human spiritual devolvement have led to a closing of the minds and hearts of many.
The only proper response from the church is this: Rejoice! Rejoice!
Why rejoice? To paraphrase I Corinthians 16:9, "a great back door of opportunity has opened for us and one of the ways we know it is the opposition by the front door." (italics mine, no one else would claim it anyway.) So what do these back door opportunities look like in the world around us. I will spend a blog or two listing some of these entrances for the gospel to knock and be asked in to people's lives. These may morph into a sermon series next year or a book. LOL!LOL! Okay, okay, I might get a sermon of two out of these thoughts but I am serious in that the church has a great opportunity to share the gospel in word and deed in these areas. No ranking by the numbers by the way, it just fell out of my head that way.
Back Door Number 1: The Arts door. This is on my mind because of the beauty and depth that the string quintet added to our service Sunday but it has been in my heart for years. The church should support, revive, and maintain performing, visual, and literary art. The Arts help display and express like none other the beauty, intricacies, rhythm, precision, passion, harmony, imagination, and creativity of God. These can be used mightily by the Spirit to touch the human soul. The Arts also provide a wonderful outreach to many who, because of their life's circumstances, can't get to the "arts district." The church can bring these to people through their support of the arts in many ways, starting with worship. A beautiful door it is.
Back Door Number 2: Human Connectedness. Yes, we are connected like never before and the hardware and software in coming years will make obsolete our iPhone and pads. Yet, for all our connectivity, isolation and loneliness has never been higher. Suicide, depression, anxiety disorders all show the truth of this isolation. The church can position itself to provide true connections between people. The church must think more about people than programs. Of all peoples, we should know about true connections and relationships. One on one, one on two, two on five we must relate as humans to one another. Have we forgotten how? Probably. Put the cell phone down, log off the computer, make the tea, and invite a human to sit down and talk with you. It will scare the daylights out of both of you. Good. Start easy with another Christian then move out. Adopt a block, attend a small\cluster group, make friends with convenience store clerk. No agenda, just be a friend, then watch what Jesus does. (Hint: what He does will probably be more to you than the other person)
Back Door Number Three: Civil Engineers. Through our youth and children's ministries the church can launch an army of "civil" engineers to permeate society with gracious speech and conduct over the next generations. We bemoan the lack of civility in our society, the church has the people and resources to address the issue. But we would do this because of a different motivation. We believe that human beings were made in the image of God and have intrinsic value. We believe that Christ died for all and all should be loved as He loved them. So we teach our parents in church to teach the children to speak and conduct themselves toward others as Christ would. Here is the church functioning as salt and light showing grace to all. Will we make society more respective and kind? I don't know but whatever society is doing isn't working. Also, can't we do some things because it is right and is one of the best ways to show respect to other human beings made in God's image? We may never hear a thank-you but our society can surely hear it from us, can't it? There are probably a hundred opportunities a day to practice civility and manners as we engage our society so let us teach and model these manners in Christ name and see if this door isn't held open to the church for other ministries as well.
I've got a few more doors for next week.
Come on in,
Cos
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Thursday, October 20, 2011
State Fair Faith
Our State Fair is a Great State Fair, Don't Miss it, Don't even be late..."
Oops. For the eighteenth year in a row I'm going to miss our great state fair. I didn't intend to go this long without going, it even seems downright un-Texan to miss it so much. But you know how it goes, the kids get big enough to go on their own, we lived between three and seven hours drive from Dallas most of those eighteen years, work got in the way too... we just haven't made it.
I rather enjoyed the Fair when I went. The exhibits, the "free" stuff, the new cars, the animals, the shows, and of course, the midway. You just can't beat all that fried food and sweets. Well, wait a minute. If a restaurant charged the same amount as those booths at the fair do and it tasted like most Fair food tastes we'd either send it back or never go to that restaurant again. An expensive lesson in developing a discriminating palate no doubt.
In my elementary school days when our school drove everybody to Dallas for the Fair, I still hadn't learned the proper techniques and timing for eating junk and riding rides. It takes a couple of years but you figure it out. An rather inexpensive lesson in human physiology really.
I wish everyone could experience the Fair, even getting snookered by a carny trying to win at an impossible game. I think I lost fifteen bucks which was lot then. Cheap lesson , in economics, really.
I remember being really fascinated by the "shows" at the fair featuring bearded women, strong men, Bonnie and Clyde's death car, the human slinky, Siamese twins, and the world's fattest twins. Where else could fifty cents get you in to see so much refined culture? Those shows grew tiring after a few years even though the boss might change the name or paint a different poster to raise interest. Another fairly inexpensive lesson in advertising techniques and the brokenness of humanity. Most of the sideshows were of broken people being taken advantage of by broken people to be gawked at by broken kids with now empty wallets. Great lessons at the Fair, all in one place and at a fair price.
If you think about it, God could have made a killing at the Fair with the characters from Bible. You talk about a great state fair just imagine behind those curtains is Moses parting a huge tank of water and walking himself and a few people from the audience through it. Samson could have put all the other Fair strongmen out of business. Elijah could have taken any heavy object from the crowd and thrown it in a tank of water and made it float like he did the lost ax head. Paul could let rattlesnakes and cottonmouths bite him. Daniel would be a hit with his lion taming act. If Jesus shows up, well forget about it...walking on water, healings, raising the dead. Wow, what a show!
That's where we need to be careful, we enjoy the show and forget the lesson. If you consider the length of time that the Old Testament covers, the miracles, the "shows" are spread out pretty far. Abraham lived about 2200 BC as an educated guess. Moses, some believe started writing down the things that happened about 1450 BC from the oral traditions passed on to him and the things that God revealed to him. The point is that more than likely, you personally, if you lived in those times would never see the great things God did in history. He rescued, He saved Israel. He miraculously preserved His people moving salvation history toward the day of Jesus coming. You would hear about them and a few of you could read about them. The rest of the years and for the vast majority of the generations that lived in Old and New Testament times, you lived by faith.
God still does miracles but that's not the whole show, the lesson. The greatest miracle that still remains is that God through Christ redeems sinful men and calls them to walk with Him daily in a relationship of love and service. It is often not fancy, just put your head down and take one step after the other after the other after the other...We need to be careful to not just go down the midway of life looking for the next big show that excites us spiritually but to walk in faithful obedience with the One who helps us exhibit His Presence, His Life, His Love to all who have been broken in a sinful world.
That's a pretty Fair deal.
Cos
Oops. For the eighteenth year in a row I'm going to miss our great state fair. I didn't intend to go this long without going, it even seems downright un-Texan to miss it so much. But you know how it goes, the kids get big enough to go on their own, we lived between three and seven hours drive from Dallas most of those eighteen years, work got in the way too... we just haven't made it.
I rather enjoyed the Fair when I went. The exhibits, the "free" stuff, the new cars, the animals, the shows, and of course, the midway. You just can't beat all that fried food and sweets. Well, wait a minute. If a restaurant charged the same amount as those booths at the fair do and it tasted like most Fair food tastes we'd either send it back or never go to that restaurant again. An expensive lesson in developing a discriminating palate no doubt.
In my elementary school days when our school drove everybody to Dallas for the Fair, I still hadn't learned the proper techniques and timing for eating junk and riding rides. It takes a couple of years but you figure it out. An rather inexpensive lesson in human physiology really.
I wish everyone could experience the Fair, even getting snookered by a carny trying to win at an impossible game. I think I lost fifteen bucks which was lot then. Cheap lesson , in economics, really.
I remember being really fascinated by the "shows" at the fair featuring bearded women, strong men, Bonnie and Clyde's death car, the human slinky, Siamese twins, and the world's fattest twins. Where else could fifty cents get you in to see so much refined culture? Those shows grew tiring after a few years even though the boss might change the name or paint a different poster to raise interest. Another fairly inexpensive lesson in advertising techniques and the brokenness of humanity. Most of the sideshows were of broken people being taken advantage of by broken people to be gawked at by broken kids with now empty wallets. Great lessons at the Fair, all in one place and at a fair price.
If you think about it, God could have made a killing at the Fair with the characters from Bible. You talk about a great state fair just imagine behind those curtains is Moses parting a huge tank of water and walking himself and a few people from the audience through it. Samson could have put all the other Fair strongmen out of business. Elijah could have taken any heavy object from the crowd and thrown it in a tank of water and made it float like he did the lost ax head. Paul could let rattlesnakes and cottonmouths bite him. Daniel would be a hit with his lion taming act. If Jesus shows up, well forget about it...walking on water, healings, raising the dead. Wow, what a show!
That's where we need to be careful, we enjoy the show and forget the lesson. If you consider the length of time that the Old Testament covers, the miracles, the "shows" are spread out pretty far. Abraham lived about 2200 BC as an educated guess. Moses, some believe started writing down the things that happened about 1450 BC from the oral traditions passed on to him and the things that God revealed to him. The point is that more than likely, you personally, if you lived in those times would never see the great things God did in history. He rescued, He saved Israel. He miraculously preserved His people moving salvation history toward the day of Jesus coming. You would hear about them and a few of you could read about them. The rest of the years and for the vast majority of the generations that lived in Old and New Testament times, you lived by faith.
God still does miracles but that's not the whole show, the lesson. The greatest miracle that still remains is that God through Christ redeems sinful men and calls them to walk with Him daily in a relationship of love and service. It is often not fancy, just put your head down and take one step after the other after the other after the other...We need to be careful to not just go down the midway of life looking for the next big show that excites us spiritually but to walk in faithful obedience with the One who helps us exhibit His Presence, His Life, His Love to all who have been broken in a sinful world.
That's a pretty Fair deal.
Cos
Monday, October 10, 2011
Ironman Is Missing
He flew in from New Mexico with sister, mom and dad safely in tow. Dressed in maroon and gold, complete with mask, he soared around the living room, dining room, kitchen and halls. Our hearts soared with him. He was busy saving the world. But he was never too busy to stop, remove his mask, remind us of who he really was, just in case we forgot. He'd kiss his sister and fly off again in real adventures while the rest of us in the world toiled in its imaginary exsistence of imaginary importance.
When Ironman wasn't in suit and flying high, a little ironman went with him in his pocket. He went to the store, he went to play golf, he went to the zoo, he shot little darts at bad guys. When Ironman went to sleep, little ironman kept watch over the family while perched on the table, the counter, or the dresser or wherever he was left.
In the light speed at which such times move, Ironman went missing. Held prisoner by some evil power in some nook, cranny, or crease that no amount of searching could discover, he was left. Invisible for days because of the dark powers that held under the couch, he overcame the evil and appeared again to searching eyes and grasping hands.
But Ironman is missing.
He flew back to New Mexico with sister, mom and dad, and our hearts in tow. So little Ironman sits on the counter-- a pitiful sight-- awaiting reconciliation. Our hearts sit with him awaiting reunion. Our wait is lonely because
Ironman is Missing......................
GrandCos
When Ironman wasn't in suit and flying high, a little ironman went with him in his pocket. He went to the store, he went to play golf, he went to the zoo, he shot little darts at bad guys. When Ironman went to sleep, little ironman kept watch over the family while perched on the table, the counter, or the dresser or wherever he was left.
In the light speed at which such times move, Ironman went missing. Held prisoner by some evil power in some nook, cranny, or crease that no amount of searching could discover, he was left. Invisible for days because of the dark powers that held under the couch, he overcame the evil and appeared again to searching eyes and grasping hands.
But Ironman is missing.
He flew back to New Mexico with sister, mom and dad, and our hearts in tow. So little Ironman sits on the counter-- a pitiful sight-- awaiting reconciliation. Our hearts sit with him awaiting reunion. Our wait is lonely because
Ironman is Missing......................
GrandCos
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Frank and Louie and the Hope of Unbelief
The day after I preach a sermon, I always find the perfect story, illustration, or clarifying point to go with it. It seems to be a little joke between me and God. It could be that I always quit reading one article, magazine, or commentary too soon. It may be God's way of humbling me and keeping me a little off balance. ("Heavenly Father, I really don't need any help staying off balance. I do fine with that on my own.") Anyway, it has been a good week in that I didn't find the better story until three days after the sermon. The better story to parallel the sermon on Mark 9: 14-29 is about Frank and Louie, a cat. Yes, this cat has two names and the accompanying picture explains why. Frank and Louie has two faces. I wonder if he gets 18 lives?
Frank (on the left) and Louie lives (singular verb) in Massachusetts and recently set a record for the oldest living Janus cat. The name comes from the Roman mythological fellow with two faces. One cat with two faces, can that really be? But it is true and has been for Frank and Louie for twelve years. 
Believe me, I can relate and I believe that the father from Mark 9: 9-29 can also. When asked if he believed that Jesus could heal his demon possessed\ epileptic son his reply was classic: "I believe, help Thou my unbelief!" Like most of us some of the time and some of us all the time, the father believed but his trust wasn't complete, fully orbbed, wholly mature. He knew his son was in a bad way and found someone he thought could help and expressed what we all feel so well. He had hope, he had trust but it was mixed with some fear and doubt. He had what I call the hope of unbelief. I know that hope and unbelief are not suppose to go together. They are oxymororic. In the church we teach and preach that belief helps us to hope; belief ties us to hope whereas unbelief shrouds hope, chokes hope and finally kills it. We leave little room for doubt. In the church we are certain, sure, confident, strong and determined. Except...except when we're not. We're not sure the kids will turn out ok; we're not sure the disease will be cured; we 're not sure the marriage will make it; we not sure the money will hold out; we're not sure God heard our cries. I believe, Help Thou my unbelief. The hope of unbelief is this: that doubt can change: unbelief can give way to belief; doubt can be usurped by faith, fear can be dominated, cast out by love.Thank-you nameless-face-in-the-crowd father of an epileptic child desperately seeking help. We hear you. We feel you. In so many ways, we are you. Believing but not always sure, trusting but seeing doubt clouds on our horizons, knowing God can but also knowing that God doesn't always...Help thou my unbelief. Dr. Bill Self once wrote, "Doubt is like the front porch. All of us go through it before we get inside the house of faith." Now we see as through a glass darkly; but then face to face. Now I know in part; but then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. In the passing of time and the growth in Jesus, the face of doubt fades little by little till it sees no more. So Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight, the clouds be rolled back as a scroll, the trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend, even so it is well with my soul. Don't worry about being two faced like Frank and Louie. Bring both faces to Jesus with all your hopes and all your doubts and surrender them to his care. He knows how to sort them out.
Believe me, I can relate and I believe that the father from Mark 9: 9-29 can also. When asked if he believed that Jesus could heal his demon possessed\ epileptic son his reply was classic: "I believe, help Thou my unbelief!" Like most of us some of the time and some of us all the time, the father believed but his trust wasn't complete, fully orbbed, wholly mature. He knew his son was in a bad way and found someone he thought could help and expressed what we all feel so well. He had hope, he had trust but it was mixed with some fear and doubt. He had what I call the hope of unbelief. I know that hope and unbelief are not suppose to go together. They are oxymororic. In the church we teach and preach that belief helps us to hope; belief ties us to hope whereas unbelief shrouds hope, chokes hope and finally kills it. We leave little room for doubt. In the church we are certain, sure, confident, strong and determined. Except...except when we're not. We're not sure the kids will turn out ok; we're not sure the disease will be cured; we 're not sure the marriage will make it; we not sure the money will hold out; we're not sure God heard our cries. I believe, Help Thou my unbelief. The hope of unbelief is this: that doubt can change: unbelief can give way to belief; doubt can be usurped by faith, fear can be dominated, cast out by love.Thank-you nameless-face-in-the-crowd father of an epileptic child desperately seeking help. We hear you. We feel you. In so many ways, we are you. Believing but not always sure, trusting but seeing doubt clouds on our horizons, knowing God can but also knowing that God doesn't always...Help thou my unbelief. Dr. Bill Self once wrote, "Doubt is like the front porch. All of us go through it before we get inside the house of faith." Now we see as through a glass darkly; but then face to face. Now I know in part; but then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. In the passing of time and the growth in Jesus, the face of doubt fades little by little till it sees no more. So Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight, the clouds be rolled back as a scroll, the trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend, even so it is well with my soul. Don't worry about being two faced like Frank and Louie. Bring both faces to Jesus with all your hopes and all your doubts and surrender them to his care. He knows how to sort them out. Till We Have Faces, (sorry Mr. Lewis)Cos
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Swiss Cheese and the Christians
I just finished lunch. I made a good sandwich. I think it could have been better. I had provolone cheese which was good but I think Swiss would have added a bit more twang to the sandwich. Good but could have been better.
Maybe its just the crowd I'm around but it appears to me that every one's life has some aspect of it amiss or missing or that could be better. Somethings wrong, out-of-balance, broken, askew, or as my west Texas friend used to say "whomperjawed." Just listen to folks for five or ten minutes and you will hear it. It usually doesn't come across as direct complaint, more of an observation or a lament. If a guy has four kids you can almost bet that one or two of them has a frustrating or hurtful problem. If a person has a high paying job you will hear it is also highly stressful or so time consuming that she can't enjoy the fruit of her labors. A lady may have a great business but senses distance in her marriage. A guy may have a great marriage but finds that the cash flow in his start-up taco truck is depressing. A pitcher may have a great fastball but still have trouble with his change-up (Mr. Ogando?). A pastor may be a great administrator (I've heard they exist) but have trouble getting along with people. You name the person, the career, and the circumstances and sooner of later you will see that the very best ones still have holes in their lives.
In a fallen world it is nearly impossible to get it all together, keep it all together, or remember where you put it if ever you do. Why is that? One reason is that we are a broken people in a broken world. Things don't always work and rarely even look perfect. Yet, in the hands of the right person, even broken pieces are made into a beautiful mosaic. In the skilled hands of some folks, leftover and unmatched material make keepsake quilts. This happens in the craft room and in life.
Another possibility is that the lack of being able to get everything together for very long keeps us mindful of our need for Jesus. Be honest---do you pray as fervently now as you did about finances when you were twenty-eight, had a sick baby, the car insurance was due, and the washing machine was broken? Things broken can keep us humble and thankful. They also remind us that we are all in the same boat. The guy next door may appear to have the world by the tail, but his health is compromised and he's still really lost without Jesus. What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul? That lady in Bible Study tells great stories about her 4.0 student but rarely mentions the absentee husband. The kid can bench press 415, run a 4.5, and still has a 3.4 gpa, and he hopes that his alcoholic mom forgets to come to the games after what happened last season. Life is a contact sport and it can get pretty rough. But since every one of us has something out-of-whack, we probably ought to go easy on each other with a little less judgemental ism, be a lot more encouraging, and be a lot more prayerful.
We are all a bit like Swiss cheese. We all gots holes, but holes and all, we can make life more flavorable. And you know what else? Holes are the places Jesus comes into our lives. For a long time He has been pretty good at taking our hole-y lives and making us wholly His.
...until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ... Eph. 4:14
Holey to Holy,
Cos
Maybe its just the crowd I'm around but it appears to me that every one's life has some aspect of it amiss or missing or that could be better. Somethings wrong, out-of-balance, broken, askew, or as my west Texas friend used to say "whomperjawed." Just listen to folks for five or ten minutes and you will hear it. It usually doesn't come across as direct complaint, more of an observation or a lament. If a guy has four kids you can almost bet that one or two of them has a frustrating or hurtful problem. If a person has a high paying job you will hear it is also highly stressful or so time consuming that she can't enjoy the fruit of her labors. A lady may have a great business but senses distance in her marriage. A guy may have a great marriage but finds that the cash flow in his start-up taco truck is depressing. A pitcher may have a great fastball but still have trouble with his change-up (Mr. Ogando?). A pastor may be a great administrator (I've heard they exist) but have trouble getting along with people. You name the person, the career, and the circumstances and sooner of later you will see that the very best ones still have holes in their lives.
In a fallen world it is nearly impossible to get it all together, keep it all together, or remember where you put it if ever you do. Why is that? One reason is that we are a broken people in a broken world. Things don't always work and rarely even look perfect. Yet, in the hands of the right person, even broken pieces are made into a beautiful mosaic. In the skilled hands of some folks, leftover and unmatched material make keepsake quilts. This happens in the craft room and in life.
Another possibility is that the lack of being able to get everything together for very long keeps us mindful of our need for Jesus. Be honest---do you pray as fervently now as you did about finances when you were twenty-eight, had a sick baby, the car insurance was due, and the washing machine was broken? Things broken can keep us humble and thankful. They also remind us that we are all in the same boat. The guy next door may appear to have the world by the tail, but his health is compromised and he's still really lost without Jesus. What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul? That lady in Bible Study tells great stories about her 4.0 student but rarely mentions the absentee husband. The kid can bench press 415, run a 4.5, and still has a 3.4 gpa, and he hopes that his alcoholic mom forgets to come to the games after what happened last season. Life is a contact sport and it can get pretty rough. But since every one of us has something out-of-whack, we probably ought to go easy on each other with a little less judgemental ism, be a lot more encouraging, and be a lot more prayerful.
We are all a bit like Swiss cheese. We all gots holes, but holes and all, we can make life more flavorable. And you know what else? Holes are the places Jesus comes into our lives. For a long time He has been pretty good at taking our hole-y lives and making us wholly His.
...until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ... Eph. 4:14
Holey to Holy,
Cos
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Strengthen What Remains
The tenth anniversary of 9/11 is upon us. The fact that I can write 9/11 and you know what I am referencing speaks in and of itself to a life changing day. To "the greatest generation" you can ask them about Pearl Harbor Day and they will tell you about the events of Dec. 7, 1941. It changed them. It changed the world as 9/11 has done for this generation.
Everyone is writing, speaking, remembering, and commemorating the day on the airwaves, the print media, and now in social media. This is as it should be. I, personally, have not been able to string together one stream of thought to form an article for this medium. My thoughts start in one place and run to another. Frankly, I remember having the same problem ten years ago on 9/11. I couldn't and can't get my mind around this attack. I didn't have a very extensive vocabulary for terrorism, radical Islam, enhanced safety measures and war that was brought to our shores back then. It is still strange today, unfortunately, less strange. But I've pulled together a few of my scattered thoughts on this new reality.
* Evil is real. 9/11 is not a case of normally good people having a bad week or month. Deadly, hateful, destructive evil was loosed on America that day. It has happened before, it will happen again, and is happening today in this world to various individuals, peoples, and nations. The consequences of sin in a fallen world affects every single person on the planet. If we didn't know it before, we know it now--there are dark, sinister, evil forces at work in this world.
*Children born in the last 14 or 15 years have no emotional nor visual memory of 9/11. The few exceptions are the ones who lost loved ones. The kid who was 2 or 5 or not born views 9/11 like I did Pearl Harbor Day or San Jacinto Day. I think this is good. They learn from parents, teachers, and media that something bad happened and they should learn about its history but life went on and they have been able to enjoy it for the most part. Bad, even evil, horrible times can be gotten through and overcome.
*Silence is a viable response to tragedy. Sometimes silence in the face of grief is the first and best response. No words are big enough to cover the kinds of pain 9/11 birthed. In time, silence can envelope it in grace. In time, after the tears have fallen, words begin to form from a place that is bigger than our pain. Ideally, this Place of largeness is the very Presence of God himself and this Greatness of Presence gives rise to hope, courage, nobility, and love. And yet, if words don't come, all these qualities can still be expressed in thoughts and actions.
*When the honest questions of 'why' are asked about people, evil, war, and God, "I don't know" is an honest response. It doesn't clear up all mysteries but we will not get out of this life having cleared up all its mysteries. We live by faith, not by sight the Apostle Paul tells us. The most important things are never seen with physical eyes anyway. Why doesn't God stop.... why doesn't God do more.... why doesn't God.....? I don't always know, but from what I know of Jesus and faith tells me that one day I will.
*There are lessons to be taken away from ground zero and all the "ground zeros" of life. Lessons about evil, good, perseverence, pain, overcoming, courage, faith, forgiveness and redemption are there in the rubble and are taken away in cleaning up the rubble. With these life is then built.
*I try to make 9/11 personal. I was a thousand miles away and knew no one in the Pentagon, Pennsylvania, or the twin towers. It hurt. It caused fear, anger, resentment, doubt, and a hundred other emotions and thoughts. So I read the biographical information of victims on the internet or when they are shown on television. I get to know the soldiers killed in action in Afghanistan or Iraq through the local newspapers or wherever I find their stories. This hurts frankly. But I need this hurt. It keeps 9/11 real. It keeps the wars that 9/11 spawned closer. It keeps prayers more fervent. It instills thankfulness for goodness and the sacrifices made for me and mine. It helps to identify with other human beings hurting and helps keep life sacred. So I watch the ESPN video of the Man in the Red Bandana. It hurts but I am thankful for his bravery. I look deeply as I can into the eyes of Cpl. Roberts' picture on tv when his sacrifice is highlighted and tear up when his funeral procession is shown from the airport to the church. I recite John Dunne's "For Whom the Bell Tolls" and remind myself that ''no man is an island..." The war on terror and the spiritual warfare to which all Christians are called must remain personal.
*We are at war in Afghanistan and Iraq and fighting terrorism on physical, intelligence and financial fronts. We must continue this. We will not win this war by these means. This is a spiritual war and it must be fought and won on our knees. People need salvation and that comes only in a relationship with Jesus. The church must fight by prayer and mission endeavors. Jesus is the hope for our world. The church needs to act like it believes this and live accordingly.
*Keep going forward. Until the final trumpet is sounded and the final word of history is spoken keep moving forward, even at a snail's pace if that is what can be managed but keep going forward. Evil, destruction, pain, sin and death will not have the final word, Jesus does. So keep going until He tells you to stop.
Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. Revelation 3:2
Cos
Everyone is writing, speaking, remembering, and commemorating the day on the airwaves, the print media, and now in social media. This is as it should be. I, personally, have not been able to string together one stream of thought to form an article for this medium. My thoughts start in one place and run to another. Frankly, I remember having the same problem ten years ago on 9/11. I couldn't and can't get my mind around this attack. I didn't have a very extensive vocabulary for terrorism, radical Islam, enhanced safety measures and war that was brought to our shores back then. It is still strange today, unfortunately, less strange. But I've pulled together a few of my scattered thoughts on this new reality.
* Evil is real. 9/11 is not a case of normally good people having a bad week or month. Deadly, hateful, destructive evil was loosed on America that day. It has happened before, it will happen again, and is happening today in this world to various individuals, peoples, and nations. The consequences of sin in a fallen world affects every single person on the planet. If we didn't know it before, we know it now--there are dark, sinister, evil forces at work in this world.
*Children born in the last 14 or 15 years have no emotional nor visual memory of 9/11. The few exceptions are the ones who lost loved ones. The kid who was 2 or 5 or not born views 9/11 like I did Pearl Harbor Day or San Jacinto Day. I think this is good. They learn from parents, teachers, and media that something bad happened and they should learn about its history but life went on and they have been able to enjoy it for the most part. Bad, even evil, horrible times can be gotten through and overcome.
*Silence is a viable response to tragedy. Sometimes silence in the face of grief is the first and best response. No words are big enough to cover the kinds of pain 9/11 birthed. In time, silence can envelope it in grace. In time, after the tears have fallen, words begin to form from a place that is bigger than our pain. Ideally, this Place of largeness is the very Presence of God himself and this Greatness of Presence gives rise to hope, courage, nobility, and love. And yet, if words don't come, all these qualities can still be expressed in thoughts and actions.
*When the honest questions of 'why' are asked about people, evil, war, and God, "I don't know" is an honest response. It doesn't clear up all mysteries but we will not get out of this life having cleared up all its mysteries. We live by faith, not by sight the Apostle Paul tells us. The most important things are never seen with physical eyes anyway. Why doesn't God stop.... why doesn't God do more.... why doesn't God.....? I don't always know, but from what I know of Jesus and faith tells me that one day I will.
*There are lessons to be taken away from ground zero and all the "ground zeros" of life. Lessons about evil, good, perseverence, pain, overcoming, courage, faith, forgiveness and redemption are there in the rubble and are taken away in cleaning up the rubble. With these life is then built.
*I try to make 9/11 personal. I was a thousand miles away and knew no one in the Pentagon, Pennsylvania, or the twin towers. It hurt. It caused fear, anger, resentment, doubt, and a hundred other emotions and thoughts. So I read the biographical information of victims on the internet or when they are shown on television. I get to know the soldiers killed in action in Afghanistan or Iraq through the local newspapers or wherever I find their stories. This hurts frankly. But I need this hurt. It keeps 9/11 real. It keeps the wars that 9/11 spawned closer. It keeps prayers more fervent. It instills thankfulness for goodness and the sacrifices made for me and mine. It helps to identify with other human beings hurting and helps keep life sacred. So I watch the ESPN video of the Man in the Red Bandana. It hurts but I am thankful for his bravery. I look deeply as I can into the eyes of Cpl. Roberts' picture on tv when his sacrifice is highlighted and tear up when his funeral procession is shown from the airport to the church. I recite John Dunne's "For Whom the Bell Tolls" and remind myself that ''no man is an island..." The war on terror and the spiritual warfare to which all Christians are called must remain personal.
*We are at war in Afghanistan and Iraq and fighting terrorism on physical, intelligence and financial fronts. We must continue this. We will not win this war by these means. This is a spiritual war and it must be fought and won on our knees. People need salvation and that comes only in a relationship with Jesus. The church must fight by prayer and mission endeavors. Jesus is the hope for our world. The church needs to act like it believes this and live accordingly.
*Keep going forward. Until the final trumpet is sounded and the final word of history is spoken keep moving forward, even at a snail's pace if that is what can be managed but keep going forward. Evil, destruction, pain, sin and death will not have the final word, Jesus does. So keep going until He tells you to stop.
Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. Revelation 3:2
Cos
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Tough New Laws
September 1 is going to be really hard on a few folks in my family, mainly the dumb cousins and the smart ones. It has come to pass that new laws enacted in the recent Texas legislative session and some leftover ones from past sessions that had to visit the courts first go into effect tomorrow (Sept. 1) Because of the nature of the laws this will prove problematic for some of my extended family, both the crooks and lawyers.
Among them, it has now become lawful for Texas to join their Oklahoma neighbors in noodling. I must confess that I didn't know noodling wasn't legal in Texas. I just thought Texans were smarter than the Oklahoma boys and Alabama girls who noodled a lot. Anyway, I suppose being able to catch fish under the banks of rivers and creeks with your bare hands is progress. Or is could be a fishing expedition by Gov. Perry to lure voters to his side from the south. Time will tell but this may be hard on a few of my cousins. I'll explain later.
Some of the other laws are the pork chopper law which makes it legal to shoot feral hogs from a helicopter. It is now legal to take your gun to work with certain provisions. The highest legal speed has been raised to 85 mph but the roads where its ok aren't designated yet. Strip clubs that sell alcohol must charge a $5 fee (pole tax?) of its patrons. Funeral protests must be finished three hours before the actual funeral or you go to jail. Amber alerts will be used for missing adults. We also have a new concussion law that requires coaches to immediately take their players out of a game or practice if a concussion is suspected.
I can see the problems coming now. Cousin Slim calls our Cousin Mike, a lawyer......
Cousin Mike? This y'here is Cousin Slim. I'm in trouble, I think....
What's wrong Cousin Slim?
I'm in jail.
What did you do? Why are you in jail?
I'm not sure. I thought ever'thang I did was legit and legal like,but this young County Deputy pulls me over and then hauls me off to jail.
Well, the man pulls me over for speeding but I weren't going but 83.
Where were you going 83?
On I 20 'tween Abilene and Weatherford. Ain't the speed limit 85 now?
Not everywhere Cousin. Is speeding the only problem?
No, they say theys going to add a bunch more charges after the CSI folks go over my car.
What other charges, Slim?
Well, Cuz, they say probably kidnapping and murder.
WHAT?!?
Eazee, Cuz. It's all a big mistake. That young sheriff's deputy jumped to some pretty far conclusions when he saw my rifle under my backseat, but it wore locked up and hid and everything.
So why did that bother him?
I guess it was the smell.
What smell?
And maybe the blood.
What Blood?
The smell and blood a'coming from the trunk of my car.
How, what in heaven's ....why, wh....
Eazee, Cuz. It's all explanable. I was driving fast to get back to football practice in Azle. All the coaches in Texas got locked up by the third week of the season for not reportin' concuzuns. So us parents took over coaching. Well, I took a quick trip out to Abilene to shoot sum of them wild pigs running around out there in the Oak and Meskeet trees. We flew up in Cousin Gyro's, our Greek cousin by marriage, helochopper to get a better shot. All legal now, you now. We got some bigguns. One or two might have been on a hog farm but its' hard to see the fence line up in the air. Anyway, it was getting a mite late so we throwd a couple of the oinkers in the back of my caddy's trunk. Barely had room in there with the catfish.
What catfish???
Oh, yeah, I forgot. I stopped off at Cousin Barge's place on the Brazos and we had breakfast early this morning and went noodling for a spell. We each grooped a couple of twenty pounders and the big one, he may have been closer to 30, put a big gash on my wrist, stuck that old barb in my other hand and slapped me in the face with his tail. My eye swole up but its ok. I looked like I'd been in a fight. I meant to stop at that store by the 281 cut off to buy ice but plumb forgot as I was thinking how I was going to tell Doris how that $10 charge got on our American Express from a strip joint last night. I sware, Cuz, I was just there to have a beer with Cousin Wily, I wasn't even lookin at them women but he was broke and I didn't have $10 cash for the pole tax after the beers so I put it on American Express and Doris pays the bills and when she sees that she's gunna have Cousin Terry over here to counsel me again and I can't stand that preacher nosing in my bizness. Anyway, I forgot the ice and by the time I throwed them hogs in there them fish was pretty ripe. But I had to hurry to get to football practice and I figured I still had time since the speed limit was 85.
But how does all that add up to a kidnapping and murder charge?
Well, while all that was going on the police in Throckmorten, that's Bob Lilly's homeplace you know, well they put out an a-dult amber alert for a missing elderly gentleman last seen in a '86 Caddy just like mine. So the deputy pulls me over for speeding, sees me purdy banged up from the fish fight, smells something decomposin' and walks to the back of the car and sees blood coming out the bottom of the trunk and thinks I've done kidnapped the man, had a fight with him, shot him with my rifle, stuck 'em in my trunk, and am trying to get away real fast when all I was trying to do was get back to coach the linebackers and special teams. Next thing I know I'm on the ground and they's impounding my car and calling a CSI team from Ft. Worth to come check it out.
Why didn't they just open the trunk?
Oh, did I forget to tell you that after we noodled a bit we went fishin' the old fashion way Grandaddy taught us, with dynomite. The officer might have seen an extra stick on the backseat and got all scared about a bomb. Can you help me, Cousin...
Click!
Have a safe Labor Day and watch out for those new laws.
Cos
Among them, it has now become lawful for Texas to join their Oklahoma neighbors in noodling. I must confess that I didn't know noodling wasn't legal in Texas. I just thought Texans were smarter than the Oklahoma boys and Alabama girls who noodled a lot. Anyway, I suppose being able to catch fish under the banks of rivers and creeks with your bare hands is progress. Or is could be a fishing expedition by Gov. Perry to lure voters to his side from the south. Time will tell but this may be hard on a few of my cousins. I'll explain later.
Some of the other laws are the pork chopper law which makes it legal to shoot feral hogs from a helicopter. It is now legal to take your gun to work with certain provisions. The highest legal speed has been raised to 85 mph but the roads where its ok aren't designated yet. Strip clubs that sell alcohol must charge a $5 fee (pole tax?) of its patrons. Funeral protests must be finished three hours before the actual funeral or you go to jail. Amber alerts will be used for missing adults. We also have a new concussion law that requires coaches to immediately take their players out of a game or practice if a concussion is suspected.
I can see the problems coming now. Cousin Slim calls our Cousin Mike, a lawyer......
Cousin Mike? This y'here is Cousin Slim. I'm in trouble, I think....
What's wrong Cousin Slim?
I'm in jail.
What did you do? Why are you in jail?
I'm not sure. I thought ever'thang I did was legit and legal like,but this young County Deputy pulls me over and then hauls me off to jail.
Well, the man pulls me over for speeding but I weren't going but 83.
Where were you going 83?
On I 20 'tween Abilene and Weatherford. Ain't the speed limit 85 now?
Not everywhere Cousin. Is speeding the only problem?
No, they say theys going to add a bunch more charges after the CSI folks go over my car.
What other charges, Slim?
Well, Cuz, they say probably kidnapping and murder.
WHAT?!?
Eazee, Cuz. It's all a big mistake. That young sheriff's deputy jumped to some pretty far conclusions when he saw my rifle under my backseat, but it wore locked up and hid and everything.
So why did that bother him?
I guess it was the smell.
What smell?
And maybe the blood.
What Blood?
The smell and blood a'coming from the trunk of my car.
How, what in heaven's ....why, wh....
Eazee, Cuz. It's all explanable. I was driving fast to get back to football practice in Azle. All the coaches in Texas got locked up by the third week of the season for not reportin' concuzuns. So us parents took over coaching. Well, I took a quick trip out to Abilene to shoot sum of them wild pigs running around out there in the Oak and Meskeet trees. We flew up in Cousin Gyro's, our Greek cousin by marriage, helochopper to get a better shot. All legal now, you now. We got some bigguns. One or two might have been on a hog farm but its' hard to see the fence line up in the air. Anyway, it was getting a mite late so we throwd a couple of the oinkers in the back of my caddy's trunk. Barely had room in there with the catfish.
What catfish???
Oh, yeah, I forgot. I stopped off at Cousin Barge's place on the Brazos and we had breakfast early this morning and went noodling for a spell. We each grooped a couple of twenty pounders and the big one, he may have been closer to 30, put a big gash on my wrist, stuck that old barb in my other hand and slapped me in the face with his tail. My eye swole up but its ok. I looked like I'd been in a fight. I meant to stop at that store by the 281 cut off to buy ice but plumb forgot as I was thinking how I was going to tell Doris how that $10 charge got on our American Express from a strip joint last night. I sware, Cuz, I was just there to have a beer with Cousin Wily, I wasn't even lookin at them women but he was broke and I didn't have $10 cash for the pole tax after the beers so I put it on American Express and Doris pays the bills and when she sees that she's gunna have Cousin Terry over here to counsel me again and I can't stand that preacher nosing in my bizness. Anyway, I forgot the ice and by the time I throwed them hogs in there them fish was pretty ripe. But I had to hurry to get to football practice and I figured I still had time since the speed limit was 85.
But how does all that add up to a kidnapping and murder charge?
Well, while all that was going on the police in Throckmorten, that's Bob Lilly's homeplace you know, well they put out an a-dult amber alert for a missing elderly gentleman last seen in a '86 Caddy just like mine. So the deputy pulls me over for speeding, sees me purdy banged up from the fish fight, smells something decomposin' and walks to the back of the car and sees blood coming out the bottom of the trunk and thinks I've done kidnapped the man, had a fight with him, shot him with my rifle, stuck 'em in my trunk, and am trying to get away real fast when all I was trying to do was get back to coach the linebackers and special teams. Next thing I know I'm on the ground and they's impounding my car and calling a CSI team from Ft. Worth to come check it out.
Why didn't they just open the trunk?
Oh, did I forget to tell you that after we noodled a bit we went fishin' the old fashion way Grandaddy taught us, with dynomite. The officer might have seen an extra stick on the backseat and got all scared about a bomb. Can you help me, Cousin...
Click!
Have a safe Labor Day and watch out for those new laws.
Cos
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)