Many historians believe that 1968 was one of the most turbulent years in American history. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy were assassinated. Race riots and Vietnam war protests created massive unrest. International peace was unsettled as the USSR invaded Czechoslovakia. A bestselling book by entomologist Paul Ehrlich called the Population Bomb predicted that overpopulation would lead to hundreds of millions of people starving and there was nothing we could do about it. In the Christian world a movie called Thief in the Night came out with a frightening story about the rapture and tribulation. I didn’t sleep well for weeks because I did not want to get left behind. My parents thought the end was near. I was 15 years old. The news was terrifying. I was a new Christian and I had virtually no discipling for what faith in God meant when confronting fears. I didn’t know if I would get a chance to drive, vote, get
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A familiar song popped up on a Christmas music station from the original soundtrack of A Charlie Brown Christmas. Jazz musician Vince Guaraldi’s score is simple and brilliant. Listening to the vocal version of “Christmas Time Is Here” brought back some wonderful Christmas memories. Christmas time is hereHappiness and cheerFun for all that children callTheir favorite time of the year A Charlie Brown Christmas is one of my annual delights. In many ways Christmas has become an economic and not a religious holiday. One of the most powerful reminders of the message of Christmas came from the genius of the late Charles Schultz. One simple and elegant scene captures it all. Charlie Brown has failed miserably in his attempt to find the true meaning of Christmas. But then Linus recites the following passage from the King James version of the Bible. “And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the
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You don’t have to dig too deep into my writings to know that I am a dog lover. For some reason I seem to gain spiritual insight from these wonderful creatures. On social media I follow lots of organizations that rescue dogs. This photo touched my heart. The photo on the left shows two sweet dogs one hour before they were rescued and adopted. Look at their faces and body language. On the left you see fear and sadness. After the miracle of rescue you see a total change. They are new creatures full of joy and excitement. The picture reminded me that I sometimes forget that I was once trapped in that place of fear and sadness. And then I heard the Good News of the Gospel. That Jesus came to forgive me, adopt, and rescue me. My initial photo after having that weight lifted would have resembled those joyful faces on the right. But something happens if we
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A couple of weeks ago I wrote about quitting negativity. It’s hard to stop griping cold turkey but I am doing better. Recently I have had some honest conversations that showed me the debilitating impact of a negative spirit. One person shared his deep hatred for people of one political persuasion. Another felt totally hopeless about the divisions in our culture. I shared with both that my hope was in Christ and not in Washington. I pray that I planted a seed of hope in their hearts. Those conversations generated two strong emotions. I was deeply saddened that my friends did not share my hope in Christ. And I was more convinced than ever that I want to be a positive light in this increasingly dark world. Last year I became aware of a very talented songwriter/singer from my hometown of Chillicothe, Ohio. Jerry Salley writes songs that inspire and give hope. One of my favorites is titled “Add More
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I think we are just beginning to recognize and unpack the damage caused by the pandemic lock downs. The separation of friends and families from normal interaction has left it’s toll on the culture. I would argue the effect has been even more profound on the church. If you are/were a faithful church participant you had likely bought into the truth that we need one another on this journey. Many of us have sacrificed that gift of one another to this insidious virus. I have seen responses and behaviors from churchgoers that surprised even me and I wrote a book called When Bad Christians Happen to Good People! I think the isolation may have exposed some baggage that had been buried under busyness and routine. More on that in next week’s musing. I am suggesting that we need to admit this separation has had a negative effect on most of us. It feels like patience is in record short supply
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Life is full of wonderful moments and blessings. Life also has it’s share of dark valleys and scary storms. None of us gets out of this life unscathed. In the valleys of my life I have taught myself to step back and ask this question. What can God teach me in this trial about Him or about myself? This seemingly never ending Covid pandemic has been rife with lessons. Lesson #1 Control freaks have learned a really hard truth from Covid-19. It doesn’t matter one whit how much money, power, or prestige you had accumulated by March of 2020 because Covid rudely stole your ability to control your life. It is funny to search the term “control freak” on the internet and find that so many people try to paint being a controlling person as a positive. I have worked with control freaks and I can tell you the experience for those around them is not pleasant. It is a
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I have some mileage on the life odometer and I can honestly say I have never experienced a season like the one we are currently in. The late sixties were pretty wheels off but even that turbulent time didn’t match this. Instead of uniting as Americans over a pandemic we have divided. Isolation and fear have caused a collective national depression. Christians have too often been a part of the problem. In theory we have a message of hope in Christ. We should be a light of courage because we know and trust a loving God. Instead we too often get sidetracked by arguments over wearing masks and whether we should be meeting without restriction. The sound you hear is Satan chuckling that we are missing a chance to show grace, hope, love, and courage. How can we make that kind of difference? Paul has an annoying suggestion that if walk in relationship with Jesus you should display the traits
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