Think About It

Sometimes factoids are interesting and informative – other times they are just fun.   Today’s fits into the latter category.   According to one reference, on this date in 1903 an automobile trip started in San Francisco and begin the first trip across the United States.   It arrived in New York on July 26.   If my math is correct, that means it took a little over two months to make the cross-country trip (about 64 days).   Now, I don’t if there were a lot of stops for sight-seeing along the way in 1903, but that is a pretty incredible trek.   According to a popular map application, it would take about 44 hours today to travel the 2903 miles.   That’s quite a difference between 64 days and 44 hours!   We have come a long way in the last 120+ years, haven’t we! The reason for this post is to remind us that even though there are challenges and struggles in 21 st Century America, we have made progress in many areas.   Our health and wealth hav...

I recently went to a meeting that brought together several members of the community with different backgrounds to try to analyze what we can do to address a healthy community.  As the conversation developed, it became obvious that, while we all came from different perspectives, one thing we all had was a desire to make things better for our friends and neighbors.  Another thing that became obvious was that each of us had an inclination to help certain groups of people.  While there was an overall hope to help, some focused on the homeless, others’ main concern was students, some were homed in on those who had been incarcerated and others show deference to children.  Not only was their focus typically narrowed, so were the talents and resources they brought to the table. Interestingly, as I looked back on that group, I was reminded of another collection of individuals – this one addressed by Jesus.  When the Lord challenged His audience to do something, He stated...

There are some passages of scripture that make good, easy sense.   There are truisms that we can look at say, “Well, that’s a no-brainer”.   However, there are others that are more head-scratchers.   One of the ones that might cause us to ponder is the Beatitude, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” (Matthew 5:4).   First of all, few of us like to mourn – and even fewer of us would consider it a blessing!   So, how can we make sense out of Jesus’ words?   First, I think this admonition reminds us it is OK to be emotional.   Not only is it permissible to express our feelings, but it may also be the best way to find healing.   We might think we are being mature or macho by hiding what is bothering us, but we may not be able to find comfort until we admit what is troubling us. Second, there might be times when we do too good of a job of hiding our struggles.   If we put on a façade, people might not know we need help. ...

One of the things I like about team sports is that they can be played even if people don’t necessarily have the ability to communicate.  Most of the major sports have a common “language” that consists of the way the game is played.  One hockey player can set another one up for an assist even if one speaks Czech and the other speaks English.  On the baseball diamond, infielders who speak Japanese, English and Spanish can all turn a double play.  Now, while activity can sometimes speak louder than words, at some point, there is a benefit to learning each other’s language.  So, if you were a team athlete, where would you put the emphasis of learning to communicate?  I would suspect you would start learning the language that applies to the game you play.  You may not be fluent in another language, but learning certain words can make life easier and productivity better. The reason I bring this up is to challenge us to learn the language of spirituality....

How is your prayer life?   Of all the religious disciplines of Christianity the one that may ebb and flow as much as any other is prayer.   There are times when we feel like we could crawl right into God’s lap and whisper in His ear … then other times when it feels more like a long distance phone call.   There are a variety of reasons our prayer life is so flexible: some are because of our circumstances, some are due to our personalities, some because of our spiritual situation.   I imagine that there are many people who regulate their prayers so they maintain more of a consistency, but a lot of us struggle to stay steady. Now, back to our question.   How is our prayer lives?   If yours is regular and effective – that’s great, keep it up.   However, if you aren’t feeling as good about your chats with the Lord, there is good news.   You see, just like picking up a conversation with an old friend you haven’t seen in a while; the Lord is ready, wil...

When the Lord reflected on godly worship in Jerusalem following their Jewish re-occupation of Judea, He noticed that something was missing.   Those who had come back to their homeland seemed to be missing the point of their worship.   Whether it was in their sacrifices or their tithes, they weren’t doing what they should have been doing.   Interestingly, as the Lord addressed their lapses, He not only chided them for what they weren’t doing, He also told them that they were missing out on blessings.   After warning them of the curse they were facing He stated, “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.” (Malachi 3:10).   Their negligence wasn’t just annoying Him, it was also limiting them. While we don’t have the same style of worship today, ...

Throughout the last several decades, my focus on May 15 has been Law Enforcement Memorial Day.  It has been – and continues to be – an important day to me because it is a national reminder of the price that Police Officers are willing to make to keep us safe from ourselves.  To those of you who are serving or have retired – and to you family members who have stood beside your officers through the good times and the bad – thank you!  You are more than my friends; you are also my heroes.  (For more thoughts on this, go back to my May 13 th post.) As I was looking at observations on May 15 th , I came across another one, “National Bring Flowers to Someone Day”.  Honestly, I had never heard of this day before, but I have to admit that it is quickly moving up my list of favorites.  Growing up when and where I did, I have always loved flowers.  My grandfather may have been the one who instilled this in me because he had a green thumb and an appreciation for...