Think About It

If today is Memorial Day, what are you remembering? The name of the day implies that we are reflecting on something, so what is it for you? Are you thinking about one particular soldier, sailor or airman who gave their life for our country? Are you reminiscing about all the men and women who died in defense of our nation so that we might stay free? Maybe you don’t have a close connection to the military, but you are thinking about a friend, family member or mentor who did something to influence your life but has since passed. As I thought about Memorial Day I got to thinking about another aspect to it. What if we don’t just think about what they did, but what if we expanded it out and reflected on how what they did can influence what we do? How can the sacrifice of those service members help us be better citizens? How can those who make their mark in our lives influence us to do better? When I contemplated this, I was reminded of a passage of Scripture that called upon bel...

Would you like to please the Lord? Of course we would! We like being right in God’s sight – but have you ever thought about how we do that? Typically, when we think about doing righteousness, we imagine getting our worship in order. We look at what God has ordained in worship and invest in doing it to the best of our ability. Now, while that is a good place to begin, that is not all we ought to be doing. Centuries ago an Old Testament prophet observed, “Does the Lord take delight in thousands of rams, in ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I present my firstborn for my rebellious acts, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:7-8). The prophet is not downplaying appropriate worship, he was also reminding us that in addition to worshipping in the proper way, we need to make sure we treat each other the right way. Not on...

Why should we live productive lives? What is the value in having a job and filling the remainder of our time with productive activities? Well, on one hand doing good things produces good results – we can make money, help people and make a positive difference by being involved in good works. Yet, there is another benefit to staying busy – it keeps us out of trouble. In addition to keeping us from doing illegal activities, it also helps us to avoid pitfalls in our social interactions. The Apostle Paul warned a certain group against inactivity by noting, “At the same time they also learn to be idle, as they go around from house to house; and not merely idle, but also gossips and busybodies, talking about things not proper to mention.” (I Timothy 5:13-14). He commanded another group to work, then observed, “For we hear that some among you are leading an undisciplined life, doing no work at all, but acting like busybodies.” (II Thessalonians 3:11). Have you noticed how easy it is to...

When I was a young parent, people would warn me about children. Now, while some of the things they said made a lot of sense, there were other things that I just wasn’t sure about. One of the things people would talk about was children who acted up just so they would get attention – even negative attention. This didn’t make sense to me because when I was a child I did everything I could to avoid negative attention. I was such a people pleaser that I would choose to be invisible before I would chose to illicit the wrath of an adult, especially my parents. Now, while I still wonder about this childlike reasoning, I have no doubt that it exists in adults. I believe there are some people who do things for shock value. In fact, they will do things that are so inappropriate that people can’t help but react to them. They value attention over acceptance, so their goal is to be noticed. The reason I bring this up is to ask about the best way to deal with this shocking behavior. If we en...

Five years ago I went to Urgent Care to get some relief for my flulike symptoms and, before the week was over, I had been replumbed. Come to find out I didn’t have the flu, I had five blockages. (I am still not sure how I could I have that many blockages – I thought the max was four; maybe I just arrived on “free bonus bypass day”.) I can joke about what I went through today, but it was kind of scary – not just for me, but probably more so for my family! As I look back on that time, I do so with a lot of appreciation. First, had it been a year later, we would have been deep in the COVID pandemic and things would have been much different. Additionally, had I not done what I did when I did it, my cardiologist said what I had is usually referred to as a “widow-maker” and that doesn’t sound too promising! May, 2019 wasn’t the best month of my life; but it sure wasn’t the worst either. As I look back at this time in my life, I am grateful for the way things ended up. For me, it rem...

The other day I was reading about someone who had embarrassed themselves and was trying to “explain” why they did what they did. In offering their reasoning for acting inappropriately, they said that they had a condition that prompted them to drink to excess and that is why they did what they did. On the surface this might sound like a solid rationale, but the more I thought about it, the less sense it made. If I am aware that I am at risk to be negatively impacted by something – but don’t do anything to intervene – am I really guiltless? Do I really have a legitimate reason to do something inappropriate if I can reasonably expect that certain triggers will generate that bad behavior? In other words, it is a reason or an excuse. I realize there are mental illnesses and emotional conditions that can generate problem behavior – and some of those things are uncontrollable. I get that and I can live with those unavoidable actions. However, when we know we are susceptible to stru...

Do you have plans for the summer? Maybe a more accurate question is how many plans do you have for the summer? When our children get out of school there is often a mass exodus toward fun and exciting adventures. In addition to big trips, there are also summer camps, summer schools and summer rec activities. For a lot families our days are filled and our bank accounts are emptied! Summer is a fun time of the year, but as we approach it, I want to ask you to do one thing – don’t forget to keep God in your lives. You might look at that statement and wonder if I think you are out running off the deep end of the moral cliff, but my main point is to make sure to take time to keep up with your worship. Summer is hectic and it can be tempting to use Sundays as a day of rest. While there might be a case made for this, our plea is that you don’t rest from God and your spiritual family. In other words, as you plan your summer activities, don’t overlook your spiritual activities. The Holy...