Saturday, September 24, 2005

Compassionate Compassion

Compassion is having sorrow for another’s sufferings and to be compassionate is to express that sorrow with some sort of action, a helping hand. I think it’s only natural for us to feel sorry for the millions of people having been displaced by weather related events this summer, but at the same time overwhelmed as to what we can do about it. I can remember as a boy the first time a deep seeded feeling of compassion pricked my heart. It was a cold winter day when I witnessed an old woman exiting a pharmacy, coughing loudly and really looking sick. Well, her coughing caused her to loose her grip on the brown paper bag she carried and as it hit the concrete sidewalk you could hear the bottle inside break. She started to cry watching the bag beginning to turn red, as it soaked up the contents of the bottle. I felt compassion, but knew not how to be compassionate. But a man nearby did, coming to her aid, comforting her and the last I saw, taking her back into the pharmacy. Every time I think about this, I pray he replaced her medicine.
At the judgment God won’t ask what kind of car you drove, but how many people you drove who didn’t have transportation. God won’t ask the square footage of your house, but how many people you invited into your home. God won’t ask about the clothes in your closet, but how many others you clothed. God won’t ask about your social class, but what kind of class you displayed. God won’t ask how many material possessions you had, but did they dictate your life. God won’t ask what your highest salary was, but if you compromised your principles to obtain it. God won’t ask how much money you spent on yourself, but how much did you give back to Him. God won’t ask how much overtime you worked, but was the overtime for yourself or your family. God won’t ask how many promotions you received, but how you promoted others. God won’t ask what your job title was, but if you preformed your job to the best of your abilities. God won’t ask what you did to help yourself, but what you did to help others. God won’t ask how many friends you had, but how many people to whom you were a friend. God won’t ask what you did to protect your rights, but how you protected the rights of others. God won’t ask in what neighborhood did you live, but how did you treat your neighbors. God won’t ask about the color of your skin, but about the content of your character. God won’t ask how many times your deeds matched your words, but how many times they didn’t. God won’t ask if His son loved you, but did you love Him.
[Psalm 112; Matthew 25: 31-46] Compassion is a personal and private thing, a feeling I may experience in a given situation, you may not and there’s nothing wrong with that. But to become a compassionate person I must act unselfishly toward that which I feel pity for. (Psalm 86) I serve a God who not only has compassion for me as the troubles of life invade and attempt to destroy my serenity, but my God is also compassionate toward me, active in my life. I pray to a compassionate God expecting an answer to my prayers with guidance in my everyday life. I pray God protect me from the evil one who lurks about watching and waiting to tempt me in a weak moment. I pray God will always show me a way of escape. Too often we seek God’s pity and demand a selfish solution. My life has become less troublesome since I’ve become compassionate and have learned that my God is active in my life and His compassionate grace is mine.

Saturday, September 17, 2005

Child Of A King

In the wake of hurricane KATRINA, I have to admit I’ve been doing a little soul searching and counting of my blessings. Growing up I know my parents struggled to make ends meet, but both were very resourceful and unselfish when it came to family. The biggest disaster I ever remember being a part of was a couple of winter snow blizzards that produced cabin fever and sore backs from shoveling sidewalks and driveways clear of eight foot snow drifts. But still we were not forced from our dry warm beds. My dad never threw away anything, and fixed everything by recycling everything else. It’s been a tough transition for me getting used to a throw away world and don’t know if I ever will. Now I think, how would I react if tomorrow I lost everything? I mean everything! The following paragraph is an e-mail I received two days before KATRINA and it sort of put the disaster in perspective for me as I sit here in my comfortable chair watching the news trying to comprehend the true scope of what people are going through and the time it’s going to take to recover from this disaster.
“It was a way of life, and sometimes it made me crazy. All that re-fixing, reheating and renewing. I wanted just once to be wasteful. Waste means affluence. Throwing away things meant you knew there’d always be more. But then my husband died. And on that cold, clear morning, in the warmth of our bedroom, I was struck with the pain of learning that sometimes there isn’t anymore. No more hugs, no more special moments to share together, no more phone calls just to chat, no more “just one minute”. Sometimes what we care about most just gets all used up and goes away, never to return so we can say good-bye, say “I love you and will miss you”. So while we have it, it’s best we love it and care for it, fix it when it’s broken and heal it when it’s sick. This is true for marriage, and old cars, and children with poor report cards, and dogs with bad hips, and aging parents and grandparents. We keep them because they’re worth it and because we’ll miss them. Some things make us happy no matter what and one of those things is a great friendship. Life is important and people in it we know who are special, we keep them close. I received this from someone who thought I was a “keeper” and I sent it to the people I think of in the same way. Thank-you for being a special part of my life.” I also want to thank my readers for being a special part of my life and for your comments and support over the years. I pray our relationship holds true for a long time to come.
[1 Thessalonians 5: 1-24] No matter how well you plan, protect and preserve, the future is very bleak for all of us walking about this planet. The impending disaster of life is death and everything you have in this world will be gone. But as you read the scripture noted, you’ll find there’s great news for those who have a friend in Jesus. If Jesus has been the closest and dearest friend to you in life, fear not, for He will be looking for you when death overshadows you. I’ve been told you can’t prepare for death, but I tell you, you’d better prepare because there looms the greatest of disasters for those who are not prepared, a disaster that will last eternally. I have a friend in Jesus, a relationship rooted in truth and love, faith and trust. I have been adopted by His father into the family of God through baptism. I actually look forward to leaving this world, because I’m going to live like the child of a King for eternity with my Father in heaven.

Saturday, September 10, 2005

Age Of Accountability

For some reason it seems that others declare it’s time we need to learn something or they determine we’ve become of age and must be doing certain things in our life. I’ll bet it wouldn’t take long for you to remember a time when you were intimidated into doing something you’d never done before and ended up looking like a fool because of it. I can name a number of times without thinking too hard, but this is probably the very first incident burned into my memory. I can remember my older siblings deciding it was time I learned how to ride a bicycle. I remember me being small and the bike being huge, and really not enthused about the passing rite at all. Impatience on my teachers part soon ended the lessons, and that was ok by me. But even at that young age I was determined to ride that bike, privately, all by myself and without witness of my failures, of which there were several. At the top of the hill where we lived it didn’t take much effort to get the bike moving downhill, it was the balancing act that had to be mastered. Then came my first real ride. It was shaky, scary and exhilarating all at the same time. But, the pride of success was suddenly overshadowed with fear, when I discovered that my previous lessons didn’t include how to govern the speed of the bike. I had no idea how to stop my new found mode of transportation. Needless to say, I crashed in a neighbor’s yard, without injury, and proceeded to put many miles on bicycles throughout my youth.
Here are ten things that aren’t easy to contend with in this life. 1) To shoulder a deserved blame. 2) To apologize. 3) To take advice. 4) To begin over. 5) To be unselfish. 6) To think before you act. 7) To profit from your mistakes. 8) To be considerate. 9) To forgive. 10) To keep on trying. I think that says it all.
[1 Peter 2: 1-3] It has been stated, and for some reason has developed into a sort of rite of passing, that there is an age of accountability to God solely based on the fact that at the age of twelve Jesus was found by his parents in the temple courts sitting among the teachers listening and asking questions. (Luke 2: 41-50) I believe and see the age of accountability to be when a person understands that their spirit is in peril because of sin and to bring it into a saved state they must rectify the situation. Here are ten things that I think we can teach to bring anyone to accountability. 1) You are created in the image of God. 2) You are wonderfully made. 3) God loves you. 4) You are the apple of His eye. 6) You can have peace every day. 7) You must follow His will. 8) Faith is the victory. 9) When you plant right, you will reap right. 10) You can do all things through Him who created all things. I cannot force my belief and faith on someone else. They alone have to come to an understanding of God’s plan for them and begin building their own faith. Why do so many fall by the wayside? I think because they feel they can do this on their own, privately, without witness of failures or embarrassment. “I’ve confessed my sins. I’ve been baptized. I’m saved. If I want to know more I’ll study on my own at my own pace.” In other words, “I’ve done what you told me to do, now leave me alone!” As faithful Christians I think we fail to show our new convert how to govern life and apply the brakes on the sinful things of the world. Consequently they end up crashing in their own will. In His commission Jesus said that we are to teach to understanding, and then to continue to teach to obedience of the will of God. Obedience is faith to salvation.

Saturday, September 03, 2005

Apon Eagles Wings

I don’t know if you’ve thought about it or not, but the fourth anniversary of the tragedy on September 11, 2001 is very near. And, as is always the case, as years separate us from notable events, new historical markers have a tendency to cast a shadow on past events until they’re hardly recognizable anymore. Not that they’re any less important nor should they ever be forgotten, it seems they just simply become a date on the printed calendar and an editorial in the newspaper or a special on TV. 911 will definitely cool in the shadow of hurricane KATRINA this year, a tragedy of huge proportion with long term suffering in the aftermath for not thousands of people, but hundreds of thousands of people. Not only have loved ones been lost, but homes, transportation, jobs and incomes. For many there will be no returning to their former lifestyle. It simply doesn’t exist anymore. Will the victims and the country recover from this greatest of tragedies in recent history of the U.S.? Yes. Just look at what has happened in the past. Catastrophic events have happened before, yet they’re all covered up and nearly forgotten.
Why was the eagle chosen over the turkey for our national bird? Perhaps for the one characteristic that blends with mans ability to survive. Eagles have a sense to know when a storm is coming before it even breaks out. The eagle will fly to a high spot and wait for the winds to come. When the storm hits the eagle sets its wings so the wind will pick it up and lift it high above the storm. Commercial aircraft pilots have reported seeing eagles thousands of feet in the air. While the storm rages below, the eagle is soaring above it, gliding with ease. The eagle does not escape the storm, it simply uses the storm to lift it higher. It rises on the winds that bring the storm into its world.
[Isaiah 40: 28-31] Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary, and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. (NIV)
Every one of us is probably already guilty of analyzing the destructive aftermath of hurricane KATRINA. We can’t understand why some people did what they did and why others seem to be doing nothing. It’s easy to talk when you’re not right in the middle of it. We forget to step back and look at the big picture. This world is ever changing and to survive man must be ever changing, and must be ready to adapt at any time. Let’s face it, life isn’t fair. I personally don’t care who you are or who you think you are, God is still in charge. Nothing is everlasting in this world, I don’t care how strong you build it. I see not a physical tragedy so much as I see a spiritual tragedy among the survivors of this storm of life. Those who have a faith built on the rock of God’s truth are moving on to a changed life with courage and strength that comes from their Lord. Those who built their faith on shifting sand are wringing their hands, blaming God and others for their sorrow. And then, there are the godless who are reeking havoc for personal gain. Are we listening and learning? Do you want to find yourself among the hopeless and the godless in time of disaster? Have you talked to your neighbor about life and hope in Jesus?