Thursday; November 14

          It is hard to believe it was forty years ago that I sat in those teenaged devotionals back in south Florida and west Texas.  It seems like it was only yesterday that we sat around in people’s homes or around a campfire and sang what we called “devo songs”.  (I also have a hard time believing that those songs have become “traditional Christian music” that the younger generations view as being archaic.  Wow, I guess I am old!) 
          Last Sunday morning we sang one of these songs in our worship service, “They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love”.  Not only did it give me a ride in the way-back machine, it got me to thinking about things from my modern perspective.  One verse that got me to thinking was, “We will work with each other, we will work side by side - we will work with each other, we will work side by side – and we’ll guard each one’s dignity and save each other’s pride – and they will know we are Christians by our love, by our love – they will know we are Christians by our love.”.  When I sang that song back in the day, I don’t know that I fully understood what they meant; but, it really struck a special chord with me at my age an in today’s world.
          According to some limited research, “They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love” was written by Peter Scholtes in the 1960s.  The source stated that Scholtes was inspired by two things:  A phrase that the non-Christians used to describe the early Christians, “Behold, how they love one another” and Jesus statement recorded in John 13:35, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”.  I can’t vouch for the truth of the research, but whether it is true or not, they are both accurate reminders of the importance of love in Christianity.
          Let’s make sure that we cooperate with each other to preserve each other’s dignity and pride.  When we do, the world won’t help but be able to know us for our love!
         Think About It!

Popular posts from this blog

Tuesday; November 29

The biblical story of the Good Samaritan has changed our world. Notice I didn’t say that it had change religion or even Christianity, it has influenced the world. There are very few people who don’t know the moral of Jesus’ parable about the Good Samaritan. In fact, the phrase has become a common description of everyday people doing good to their neighbors. While Jesus’ parable from Luke 10 shares several spiritual lessons, one of the most practical is that good can be done by anyone. You don’t have to be a church official to do good, it is not only possible for each one of us to help, it is required of all of us. If a Samaritan can be good, so can we! After presenting the parable, Jesus asked the man who had originally asked the question about being a good neighbor which character in the story was a good neighbor, “… he said, ‘The one who showed mercy toward him.’” at which point, the discussion from theoretical to personal, “Then Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do the same.’” (Luke
Read more

Thursday; January 12

The other day I was watching a television show that used a rather common term applied to overcoming challenges. When organizations experience unexpected setbacks – especially when they lose key people – they rely upon the concept of “Next Man Up”. In essence, when our starters (or stars) go down, effective organizations rely upon their next levels to step into the vacancy. While this is an effective response, have we given much thought as to how we prepare to be the “next people up”? First, we must know our job. Even when we aren’t the primary players, we need to be preparing ourselves to be ready when we get the opportunity to shine. Second, we must do our best when we get the chance. Knowledge is important but what turns potential into talent is effort. Yet, maybe the most underappreciated aspect of this concept is a willingness avoid excuse-making and whining about the unfairness of our situation. When we complain about the circumstances that caused the need for replacements
Read more

Monday; September 25

When I was a youngster, I remember hearing about this thing called the Generation Gap. I was a little bit too young to be active in the social movements of the 1960s, but I do remember listening to the challenges the generations were experiencing way back then. Interestingly, now that I have been on both sides of the aging process, I have to admit that the Gap of the 1960s was nothing new. With the development of each generation comes conflict. The young people don’t feel like the older people understand them and the older folks tend to believe their input is being underappreciated. Too often trust is the casualty when two generations collide. The sad thing is that it doesn’t have to be this way. When we can capture the innovation and energy of the younger folks and harness the wisdom of those who have been around for a while we can develop a winning combination. No, we won’t always see things eye-to-eye nor will we necessarily speak the same emotional language, but when we app
Read more