Think About It

One of the most beloved passages of scripture happens to come from one its most admired writers. The 23rd Psalm has endeared itself to believers and is even well-known by those who aren’t active participants. While the whole poem is inspirational, I have been thinking a lot about the 4th verse, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”. Have you given much thought to what the “valley of the shadow of death” might be? It could be looking into a dark and treacherous valley filled with physical dangers or people seeking to take advantage of those who enter it. Maybe it is remembering the friends and family who have walked into the valley and never came back. It might even be coming face-to-face with our own mortality – knowing that one day we will fall victim to death. No matter how we perceive the valley of the shadow of death, the good news is that we don’t have to walk through it ...

Unfortunately, there have been so many mass casualty incidents that we are starting to see a response in the post-incident pattern. A typical reaction is trying to find the justification for these tragedies. How many times have we heard investigators say, “We are looking into the reason that this person would do this.”? A common theme of reporting is to try to affix the person’s rationale to the event. Even around the water cooler or on social media people will say, “I just can’t understand why someone would do something like this.”. Folks, if I can be as blunt as possible, I would like to weigh in on this discussion. There is NO REASON anyone should do this! None! There is no rationale that should lead someone to picking up a gun and killing several people. There is no reason a person should get in a car and drive other multiple pedestrians. There is no rational logic that would lead someone to plant a bomb in a place that would produce mass casualties. We can’t explain it ...

If you have read much of what I write, it didn’t take you long to realize I am pro-police. (Yeah, that’s an understatement.) I make no pretense about my feelings: I am a cheerleader – I am biased. There are several reasons for my feelings: my father-in-law and my dad were both officers. I have been involved in some form of Law Enforcement for most of the past three decades. I have great friends and mentors who have been or currently are officers. I have laughed and cried with them. I have married some and buried some. I am not a cop groupie … I am the real deal. Having said all of that, I would like to acknowledge this as National Police Week and today as “Law Enforcement Memorial Day”. This week honors the profession, while today reminds us of the realities of the job – there are some officers who went to work one day and never came home. As I ponder this week, I think about two important things: First, as a nation, let’s be appreciative of what Law Enforcement means to o...

This Sunday is Mother’s Day. Now, what that means in most communities is that you won’t be able to find flowers at the local florists or a seat at the most popular restaurants. There will be a run on candy and cards at the local gift shops and, in some places, seats in church might be harder to come by. We do a good job of honoring our mothers on Mother’s Day in American and that is something we can be proud of. Yet, if we are looking for a way to really honor our mothers, the simplest way to do that is to live up to the best of our abilities. I believe that most moms see themselves as being successful – not when their children give them expensive things – but when their children live exemplary lives. Most of the mothers I know will be happier with a feeling of pride in what their children have done than in wearing a beautiful piece of jewelry they were given. What are you giving your mother for Mother’s Day? Make sure you give her something that makes her smile, but don’t overlo...

I am not sure whether Alexander Hamilton is more popular today than he was when he was alive, but due to the success of the musical, he is pretty popular today. Hamilton was influential in setting the principles of our early form government, so I find it interesting to listen to his thoughts about government itself. I recently came across one of his quotes in which he said, “Why has government been instituted at all? Because the passions of man will not conform to the dictates of reason and justice without constraint.”. In essence, we need a collective government because, individually, we would be more apt to serve our own interests firsts and that would lead to anarchy, chaos and failure. Interestingly, this concept wasn’t something that began with Hamilton, it is a truism that has transcended generations. Centuries before Hamilton, King Solomon is credited with saying, “Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness and in the place of rig...

Can you imagine Michael Bublé showing up at your Choir Recital or Aaron Judge showing up at your Adult League Softball game – what would you do? I believe that we would have one of two very different reactions. On one hand, we might attempt to do our best to impress the visitor – which probably wouldn’t work out well for us – or we might do something more productive, ask them to help us elevate our talent. Comparing ourselves to these superstars seems to be destined to failure (and embarrassment) while learning from them – even for a brief moment – might help us develop our skills. Have you ever thought about how the people around Jesus reacted to Him? Once they accepted who He was, do you think they tried to impress Him with their righteousness or do you think they did what they could to learn from the Master? I can’t say what most people did, but I do know which God recommended. While experiencing an incredible vision Peter made an observation then, “While he was still speaki...

When Peter warns Christians of their adversary notice what he writes, “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (I Peter 5:8). Through the years we have accepted this as truth –we are in a spiritual war with satan – but I also think it is important to acknowledge what he doesn’t say. He doesn’t write that our adversaries are the next door neighbor who parks in front of our house … he doesn’t say it is our child’s teacher that seems bound and determined to flunk Little Johnny … he doesn’t say the adversary is a historic figure from two centuries ago or even a modern politician or political party. While we may not get along with these folks or even like what they do, they don’t fit into the category of our arch-nemesis. Sure, we are going to have conflicts with people, but I believe we do more harm than good when we perceive them as the “enemy”. We must remember that we are in an all out war for o...