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Wednesday; November 6

Jesus was a good guy.  (Okay, you can file that under the “firm grasp of the obvious” tab.)  While Jesus was full of goodness and kindness, He did have an intolerance for certain things – one of which was hypocrisy.  Early on, Jesus reminded people to look at their own lives before criticizing others by saying, “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.” (Matthew 7:5).  However, if there was a particular bias, it was against religious hypocrites.  In condemning the one particular attitude of His day, He said, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.” (Matthew 23:27).  Throughout His ministry Jesus advocated love and acceptance, but He was very pointed when it came to duplicity.   As I thought about this, two things came to mind.  First, we must live up
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Tuesday; November 5

Will everyone be satisfied with the way this election will turn out?  Sometimes I wonder if anyone will be pleased with the way this election will turn out!     This has been a unique election season and I get the impression that it isn’t over yet.  I have been around for a lot of these elections and I just get the sense that this one is different than those I have previously experienced.  Now, I don’t know if the results will be better or worse – in fact, I don’t believe the success of this election will be answered on Tuesday … in the next few days … or even in the next few years.  I believe that it will be the historians that will ultimately decide if November 5, 2024 was a good day or not.   As I think about this historic day, I tend to harken back on our nation’s history – but, in all honesty, it takes me back even further.  As I have thought and prayed about Election 2024, I keep going to back to a passage in the New Testament, “ Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, 
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Monday; November 4

Is unity possible in our nation at this time?   Well, I guess that depends upon what we mean by unity.   Will we all think alike on issues?   The answer to that is a resounding “No”.   Our nation is such a diverse place with different people that very few of us will see eye-to-eye on many things, much less most things.   However, unity does not mean uniformity.   One of the neat things about the American experiment is that we have the independence to see things differently and the freedom to express our opinions openly.   Additionally, the inherent checks and balances set forth by our forefathers not only allowed for differences, it embraced a diverse way of looking at things.   In an odd way, this helps us to be more well-rounded.   While I like things done my way, that doesn’t mean that my way is always the best way.     Over the next couple of days, there will be a lot of discussion about different ways of seeing things.   Folks, rather than seeing this as a weakness in the 21 st
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Friday; November 1

The other day I was reading about the Mexican tradition called, “Dia de Muertos” or Day of the Dead in English.   Now, I won’t pretend to be an expert on their celebration, but I believe that it has something to do with paying respects to and creating remembrances for those friends and family members who have died.     As I thought about this annual festival, it got me to thinking about a celebration Christians have, “The Lord’s Supper”.   As I thought about the two events, I was quickly drawn to how different the two celebrations are; however, the most obvious is that our communion service isn’t an attempt to bridge the gap to connect with the dead, it is designed to bring the resurrected Jesus into our fellowship.   After describing the elements of the Last Supper that have been translated into the Lord’s Supper, Paul emphasizes, “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.” (I Corinthians 11:26).   Our Lord and Savior, Jesus
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Thursday; October 31

On this date in 1941, Mount Rushmore was declared completed – well, as completed as it was going to be.  The massive work of art in the Black Hills of South Dakota took more than a decade to get to this point and after the death of Gutzon Borglum in March, 1941, enough was enough.  Although there were parts of the project that were planned and never completed, it still stands as a Shine to Democracy.  The images on the mountain, Presidents Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt represent the legacy of the development of the American people.  When I look at Mount Rushmore I see a mini Hall of Influence.  Each of those enshrined in the carving shaped what our nation is today.    Who would be on your personal Mount Rushmore?  Who are the influences that have made you who you are today?  While we may like the concept of self-made people, there are always those who either directly or indirectly steered our development.  Have you ever stopped to think about who these people are in your
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Wednesday; October 30

Have you noticed how easy it is to get overwhelmed by all the needy people in our nation – and even in our community?  Whether it is through media attention or just casual observation, the plight of the poor and disadvantaged is obvious.  Interestingly, one of the common reactions to this type of problem is the temptation to just shut down.  Rather than seeing individual opportunities to help, we feel overwhelmed by how much there is to do and how few answers there are to the issues.  What would happen if we stopped, took a deep breath and did what we could?  We might not have the answer to addressing food insecurity of homelessness; but we can help the person living next door to us.    When James addressed faith in action he challenged Christians, “If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,’ and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?” (James 2:15-16).  N
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Tuesday; October 29

One of my favorite New Testament verses says, “… but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ …” (Ephesians 4:15).   This verse seems to indicate that it isn’t enough to just be right; in Christianity, there is a right way to be right.  Winning an argument is no excuse for losing our reputation.  As I thought about this verse the other day, I got to wondering about the demands of righteousness when expressing our opinions.  If we have a responsibly to speak the truth in love, how much more of an obligation do we owe people when what we are espousing is just our beliefs.  If we are to be kind when it comes to truth, imagine our responsibility when it comes to our ideas!   Over the next week there will be a lot of opinions presented.  People will agree with some, people will disagree with some and a few might be useful in changing minds or influencing opinions.  However, one thing that can be safely said is that very few people wi
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