Think About It

           On September 8, 1974 President Gerald Ford appeared before the American people to let them know that his intent was to offer a pardon to disgraced former president, Richard Nixon.  With the wounds left by the Nixon administration still fresh in many people’s minds, this decision was controversial at best and considered inexcusable by some.  As President Ford related his decision to the nation, his reasoning was that it was time to put what he had previously descried as a “national nightmare” to rest – it was time to move on so that the hurts could heal.  He understood that he could allow the “legal process” to meander on for years or he could make the executive decision to end the drama here and now.  In his speech he highlighted his reasoning by saying, “ During this long period of delay and potential litigation, ugly passions would again be aroused. And our people would again be polarized in their opinions. And the credibil...

One of the best known stories in the New Testament is often referred to as “The Temptation Of Jesus”.  While there are only three of satan’s temptations listed in the text, we have a broader summary of the event when we are told, “ Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led around by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil.” (Luke 4:1-2).  Those who know the rest of the story remember that Jesus passed the test with flying colors, but have you ever given much thought to how He did it?  I am sure there are several qualities that made Jesus sinless during this time, but here are three that stand out to me: 1.  Jesus was aware of what was going on .  Jesus knew that satan was trying to tempt Him, trying to derail His path to providing salvation to the world.  Do we acknowledge that satan is out to get us just as he sought to get Jesus?  To be successful, we better be aware of the devi...

          Have you noticed how easy it can be to become spiritually soft?  I am not (necessarily) talking about diluting our message, rather I am referring to expecting that satan’s world should treat us “fair”.  Modern religious people are tempted to complain about not being giving equal footing with the non-believing world.  We feel put upon when we don’t get treated the same way as the non-churched world.  In essence, it has become easy to stomp our foot and shout, “They are being mean to us!”.  You know what – they are being mean to us and guess what, it is going to continue!  When Jesus assessed the world for His earliest disciples He remarked, “ If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.   If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. ” (John 15:18-19)...

In his book “Church Inside Out” Timothy Archer advocates that we should take a bit of a different look at how the church approaches evangelism in our modern society.   In one section of the book he notes, “Often God calls us to ministry through irritation.   That is, we see something that bothers us.   We notice something that isn’t right or something that should be done differently.   Far too often, that moves us to anger, to criticism, or to compliant.   What it should do is move us to action.”.   As I read Mr. Archer’s thoughts I immediately felt a connection.   It is very easy for us to see things that bother us – that make us fuss and whine.   I can relate to the feeling that if I get irritated enough that these things exist and vowing to make people’s lives miserable until someone does something about I have done my job.   While this philosophy might have an appearance of being noble, it isn’t the people who complain that make a differ...

On March 1, 1872 Yellowstone National Park became the world’s first national park.   While this is a statement of fact, I find a couple of interesting things in this factoid.   First, I am thankful that President Grant had the insight to keep some of the wild areas wild – I mean think about it, in 1872 there was an abundance of wild lands in North America; but someone had the foresight to realize that future urban generations would need a helping hand to experience nature.   The second thought is just how incredible Yellowstone National Park really is.   If you have never been to Yellowstone it really is worth the trip.   The flora, fauna and topography are breathtaking!   Now, having said this, I think it is important to mention one other thing – you see Yellowstone is not the creation of a man or even a nation – it is work of God!   The first page of the Bible reminds us, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1) – an...

          President Lyndon Johnson was known as a brilliant politician, but was not often known for his genial nature.  President Johnson was able to get a lot of things done – sometimes through “consensus”, but often by what might be called political intimidation.  LBJ would not take “No” for an answer and would often badger people into doing what he wanted them to do.  President Johnson left a lot of egos in his wake on his path to notoriety.  LBJ really didn’t think much about social graces – he was on a mission to change the world!  When I read about Johnson, I don’t get the warm fuzzies until I start thinking about the environment in which he worked.  He became president as the result of an assassination, he inherited an unpopular war in Viet Nam and in one year (1968) he had to deal with the deaths of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy all the while trying to keep the nation from exploding into an uncivil war on civil ...

Not long ago Jeane and I visited one of the many old family estates that have been made into museums in Virginia.  This residence happened to be Stratford Hall that was home to several generations of the Lee family.  As we toured the house we were fascinated by how much “nice” stuff the family had on display.  The docent explained that many of the people of that day often put their finest on display so that others would know their “station” in life.  They liked to be seen as different than those around them. As I reflected on the ostentation showed by the “haves”  of that generation I was struck by how this type of display might be good for us today.  Now wait, hear me out – no, I am not advocating that we put our “stuff” on display, rather we should be known for our good name and purity.  Just as those in bygone days put their wealth on display, we should put our goodness and righteousness on display – not for our own benefit, but so that our Heave...