Activist or Activated?

Activist and activate. Two similar sounding words with very different meanings. The Oxford Dictionary defines activist as a person who campaigns to bring about political or social change. There are several types, but the most common are reformers, rebels, and so called change agents. Some use education, others may use confrontation, rebellion or even violence. Often, they can excuse their lawlessness because they feel “the ends justifies the means”. It has been my experience that when I see activists, whether singly or in a group, most of what gets done is either people standing around doing mostly nothing, disruption of the workforce, or just plain violence. Now to be sure, I support people’s right to freedom of speech and even an orderly protest, but that’s not usually the case. Closing freeways, burning buildings or otherwise damaging property really does little good. You can stand around and shout, complain and otherwise try to influence a group if you want, but as for me, I have better things to do.

To activate means to make active, functional, or ready to work. I can cry aloud and carry signs decrying the plight of the poor and the homeless. I can write to my “congress person”. (There, now wasn’t that nice and polite of me?) Honestly, lately none of them seem to be there to answer, but I digress… I prefer a hands on approach. Find someone or some group that is actively doing something about the problem you are concerned about. Join them. Drag someone (not literally) with you to help. Activate the Love of Christ inside you and be a change for good. Jesus would do it lawfully, and by the book, but most importantly, He would do it! Not talk about it, not picket, not get in the way. My wife and I have chosen to help the homeless and under resourced. We spend 3 to 4 evenings a week helping in a local ministry. We are not an army or mobilized hoard. Just two humans actively working together. And it makes a difference – one life at a time. I won’t hush the activist. They have their place. But I have work to do. So, wanna come with me? Who knows what we can accomplish in the end…

 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” Matthew 13:31-32 NIV

Veterans Day

This coming Tuesday is Veterans Day. It is celebrated every November 11^th to honor all our military veterans, past and present. It started as the celebration of the end of WW1. At that time in 1919, it was called Armistice Day. It became Veterans Day in 1954. The reason it doesn’t have an apostrophe is because it doesn’t belong to veterans, it honors them. Many of my extended family members are military veterans. My Dad and his brother server in the Korean War. My grandfather was in the Battle of the Bulge in WW2. Several other uncles served in various branches. My wife’s father was an Air Force mechanic at Colorado Springs.

Growing up in a small town, many of the special days like veterans Day were celebrated with barbeques & parades. It could have been because we had nothing better to do, but I like to think it was because we loved our country. I especially love the horses, the flags, and the marching bands. I had always wondered why the horses were last; they always made me wait. Then my dad explained about the cleanup problem. I guess there is nothing dignified about marching through that.

My all-time marching band number has to be the Stars and Stripes Forever. I love all the music of John Philip Souza, but the that one is special. It just seems to summarize American patriotism. So much so, that it was adopted, by act of Congress, as the national march of the United States in 1987. Many people are not aware the it also has lyrics. The last part, you know the one that is sometimes sung, “be kind to your web footed friends” (ya, thanks mom and the USO) has these words:

“Hurrah for the flag of the free!

May it wave as our standard forever,

The gem of the land and the sea,

The banner of the right.

Let tyrants remember the day

When our fathers with mighty endeavor

Proclaimed as they marched to the fray

That by their might and by their right

It waves forever.”

  I found this quote in a article on the Marine Band Official website (https://www.marineband.marines.mil/)

Someone asked, “Who influenced you to compose ‘Stars and Stripes Forever,’” and before the question was hardly asked, Sousa replied, “God–and I say this in all reverence! I was in Europe and I got a cablegram that my manager was dead. I was in Italy and I wished to get home as soon as possible. I rushed to Genoa, then to Paris and to England and sailed for America. On board the steamer as I walked miles up and down the deck, back and forth, a mental band was playing ‘Stars and Stripes Forever.’ Day after day as I walked it persisted in crashing into my very soul. I wrote it on Christmas Day, 1896.”

I leave you with the Marine band version of The Stars and Stripes Forever. Enjoy!

Blessings!

Pray for Your Enemies

 

Lately, I have been grieved by the actions of my fellow humans. Politicians (all parties!) using other fellow humans as pawns. Hate, greed, selfishness, and disobedience abound. Lying, cheating, anarchy, are not hard to find. Now before you get on the train of “The world is worse than it ever has been”, one needs to be a student of history. There have always been corrupt leaders. Abuse was happening then, it was just covered up or not talked about. Whole groups of people treated like mere animals. The list goes on. It makes one almost wish that they had the super power to zap the offenders in their heinous acts. The current political climate especially irritates me. I have even heard some who have said crazy things like “Someone just needs to take them out”. It’s kind of the superhero conundrum. I feel like there are lots of rules for us, but none for the bad guys. It’s a mess to be sure.

What is really amazing is that we feel this way, and we have it good. According to a report from Africa Center for Strategic Studies, Over 22,000 Christians have been killed in Africa just this year. In Somalia totals are harder to find, mostly because Christians have to stay hidden there, but it seems thousands have been beheaded for their faith there also. North Korea, Yemen, Libya, Sudan, all are also facing terrible persecution. Yet they continue steadfast and still try to show love and compassion. I fear they are more righteous than most here.

Jesus was no stranger to such things. He saw oppression, treachery, false accusations, and neglect first hand. If anyone had the right to zap someone, It would be Him. As the creator of the world he understood that violence and retribution are not the answer. In part of the Sermon on the Mount he said,

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5: 44-48 NIV

Here’s where it hit me. I have whined, complained, argued, quoted statistics, and talked to others about what should be done, but there has been very little prayer about it. Do I think some of our elected officials are doing the wrong thing? Love & Pray. Do I feel persecuted by unfair taxes, laws or rules? Love and Pray. Has someone made a personal, unfounded attack on you? Love & Pray. It sounds counter intuitive, but it’s God’s way. Its’s the only way. I think the Apostle Paul summed it up well for us.

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:21 NIV

Blessings!

Waiting for Something?

 

Waiting. It’s an American pastime. In fact, I think we 21^st century Americans are trying to monopolize it. There are so many fun phrases about waiting.

Waiting for the paint to dry. Waiting for the dust to settle. Waiting for the right moment. Waiting for the other shoe to drop.  Waiting for something to turn up. Waiting on pins and needles.  Waiting in the wings.  An accident waiting to happen. Waiting with bated breath. (That one caused quite a stir with one of my bilingual friends. They had no idea what I meant!)

It didn’t used to be that way, at least from what I have read. Oh, you might have been waiting for the pot to boil, but there were a thousand other things to do so that you didn’t hear “a watched pot never boils”.

I remember watching a documentary about what it was like to homestead in the northern states. The man helping them prepare for the coming winter gave them this advice. If you have any spare time at all, chop wood. Done with laundry? Chop wood. Chores done. Chop wood. Done chopping wood? Chop some more. It seems now that we have so many modern conveniences, all designed to save time, we now have loads of spare time on our hands. We don’t have to garden, we stand in line at the local grocery store while we wait to purchase our goods. We don’t have to wash clothes down at the local creek, we let the machines do it, while we wait. Because we like the luxuries of living in the city, we get to wait for the stoplight to change.

Truthfully, because of our own lifestyle choices, the waiting game is not going away soon. But there is something you can do. Find something to do. But please, make it productive. I’m not advocating numbing your senses with mindless phone app scrolling. I mean something real, helpful, and fulfilling.

Find something to learn in those downtime moments. Carry notecards. Bring a good book - a classic or something aimed at self-improvement. Imagine how the world would change if we used some of that dreaded “wait time” to memorize or meditate on scripture? For those more outgoing, what if we used that time to connect with those around us? Grand children need to hear grandpa and grandma’s stories. There are many who could use some encouragement. They’re doing fine and headed in the right direction, they just need a little reassurance on their journey. There are some who would just love for someone to acknowledge that they exist.

Even though we seem to have everything we could ever need, there may be times when we find ourselves “waiting on the Lord” for Him to bring about change, an answer to a prayer, or some provision. Don’t let these be idle times either. There is always plenty of work to do, and it also helps to take our mind off of the worrying. So next time you are “stuck waiting”, look for those “good works” that God has for us to do. You will find the waiting is transformed into activity and the time will begin to fly by!

When You’ve Seen the End of the Story

Those that really know me would agree that I like fantasy fiction (Lord of the Rings et.al.) but they may not know my dirty little secret. I like to read ahead to make sure that a character isn’t going to die. Whereas my wife hates spoilers, I will purposely look them up. Like who’s going to win Top Chef this season kind of peeking.  Kind of cheating I guess. Still, I am smart enough not to say anything. Not because I don’t like spoilers, but because I would like to eat something besides my own cooking. (If I have to explain, don’t ask.)

For a Christian though, it is a necessity. Jesus reassured us that the end is already written and that He has overcome. Without that assurance, I don’t think many of us could carry on. Knowing that heaven is assured and good will overcome evil allows us to serve Him no matter the cost. Paul said “to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8). Knowing our final future removes the fear of death. And that’s what Jesus did.

Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. Hebrews 2:14-15 NIV

This kind of thinking, Kingdom Mindedness does not fit in very well will this current world’s philosophy. In fact, they basically think were crazy.

Case in point. The Modesto area has a rich history of Dutch immigrants, many of who are descendants of the Dutch Anabaptists. They did not choose this name willingly. It came as a slander from their enemies. Although I don’t necessarily see eye-to-eye with them in all of their practices, I guess in some form I would be called an Anabaptist too.  An account from 1569 recently caught my eye. Dirk Willems lived in what is now the Netherlands during a time where they were governed over by The Holy Roman Empire (AKA the Catholic Church.) The Catholic church and many of the local protestant groups where practicing infant baptism. Dirk and others were considered Anabaptists because they believed you should be baptized after a pledge of faith in Christ, not as a baby. Because if this and because he had helped others to be “rebaptized”, he was tortured and jailed. Here’s where the unusual mindset occurs. He fashioned a rope of rags and escaped through a window. Unfortunately he is spotted, and the “catcher” is sent after him. He made his way across a small frozen lake and because he was thin from his meager prison rations, manages to not break the ice. His pursuer however, was not so lucky. The jailor fell through the ice and was in peril of drowning. Dirk, the godly man that he was, could not let go of Christ’s admonition, “Love your enemies”, and so went back and pulled him out. The man did not want to arrest Dirk, but at the chastening of the burgomaster (kind of like the mayor) to “remember his oaths”, he was rearrested and brought back to trial. Because of his confession of rebaptism, his crime aiding and abetting others to get rebaptized, and his unwillingness to recant, he was sentenced to be burned at the stake. He was executed the 16, of May, 1569, a long and torturous ordeal I might add. You can read about it here. https://anabaptistfaith.org/dirk-willems/

What I found so interesting were people’s comments about his actions. Most thought he was unwise, nay stupid, for saving the guards life. Phrases like, “He was the enemy. You never help the enemy” abounded. Some used the old adage, “No good deed goes unpunished”. Very few thought it was a noble gesture.

Dirk Willems did not fear death. What he feared was doing the wrong thing - disobeying the commands of Christ. I think he knew if he went back, that would be the end. Yet he did. We are not told what happened to the guard. I’m sure he thought long and hard about what Dirk had done. Will we meet him in heaven? There’s no way to be sure. At least Dirk’s sacrifice gave him another day to think about it.

No, like Dirk, we shouldn’t fear death. Not because we are stupid, but because we have read to the end of the story, and we know who wins.

When the Story Doesn’t End (But Should!)

The last two posts about stories were looking at timelines that had reached their finale. This one takes it in the other direction. For some reason over the last week or so, I have been bombarded with memories of past mishaps, failures, and many the times I have let people down. They mostly started in the form of dream events. But once you start rehearsing the past, it has a way of continuing in your thoughts. To be honest, none of them are the Earth-shattering things that you would think would haunt your dreams, but none the less, if you dwell on them, they can get you down. The time in 1^st grade that I led the group in “Chicken Little” too far to the side of the stage so that some of them were running into the curtain. (In my defense, I was the understudy so I never really got to practice.) Or the time the speaker system I had borrowed for homecoming music wasn’t good enough. Not “being a fit” for the job I was in. The time I forgot some equipment on a camping trip. Pressing “buy”, and then realizing I had checked $100 instead of $10. And on and on.

None of these were really that important. So why was it bothering me? I’ve tried to narrow down the causes and here’s what I came up with.

1. It is a direct attack of Satan because I’m getting too spiritual. Ya, don’t think so.

2. I have some deep trauma that I need to face through regression therapy. Serious doubt it. 

3. It was the pizza. Ok, could be part of it, but kinda shallow.

4. We are all in a spiritual battle with the forces of this world, and as long as I focus on what’s wrong with me, I’m not much good for helping others.  There, now I think we are getting somewhere.

My wife and I have a passion for the homeless and under-resourced in our area. I do notice a correlation between successes at the ministry we volunteer at and the spiritual battles we face. We have seen some great life changing stories lately.  I really get the feeling that the side of spiritual wickedness does not like this.

I think the Apostle Paul went through the same thing. And he had some major regrets. He had persecuted Christians in Jerusalem and beyond. He had tried to destroy the early Church. He had consented to the death of Stephen, and was there when it happened. I’m sure he battled with memories from the past.

So how did he handle it? Philippians 3:13-14 says: Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. NIV

Because of God’s wonderful forgiveness, we are allowed the luxury of forgetting the past and it’s failures and looking forward to the end of the race that really matters. If Paul, who called himself “the least of the Apostles” can do it, we can too. Let us leave out past failures at the foot of the cross and continue ahead to hear that “Well Done” at the end of the race. The past is past, unchangeable, to be learned from but not dwelled on. It’s what we do now, today, that can change those around us and possibly, even the world. Let it go. Press on soldier, press on!

Going Nowhere Fast

 Most of us have been in situations where we realize that no matter what we do, the forward progress seems to come to a grinding halt. It’s 3 steps forward, two steps back. It’s spinning your wheels. My dad used to call it going nowhere fast. I experience this recently at 6^th grade science camp. Most of the time the students were running full steam ahead, mostly because they were doing things that they already knew and were already good at. They ran. They played games. They snacked. Then there was kayaking.

I found myself riding with a very inexperienced 6^th grader who, through no fault of their own, knew absolutely nothing about kayaking, let alone how to steer while paddling. I found myself surrounded by students vigorously trying to get across the water, yet going in circles or accidentally ramming into one another and myself. Again, not their fault. For most of them it was their first time in a boat, let alone a kayak that they were supposed to move in a specific direction. This is one of those situations where you really shouldn’t take life too seriously. You try to explain, demonstrate, cheer, and hope for the best. Needless to say, I did most of the heavy lifting on this one. We were going nowhere fast, but we were having fun, well I guess most of us were.

So what is your response when you feel like you are spinning your wheels? It’s taken me many years, but I have grown to understand that when this happens, you need to look for a cause. Sometimes we will just find out we’re doing it wrong. But as a believer in “divine appointments” - those times where God has put you in the right spot, at the right time, with the right tools to be a help to someone. I’ve noticed that very often, if you really pay attention, there is someone or something that God wants you to notice. It might be a situation that is totally unrelated to you current predicament that He desires you to notice. Call it a side-line if you will, but it might just be the best thing you do all day. It could be a need, a project, or a hurting person. It just might be that God needed to slow you down from you 90 mph day so that it/they would get your attention.  So if you ever have that feeling of going nowhere fast, try this.

1. Stop and take notice. Are you doing something wrong, or is there someone in need.

2. Pray that God would guide you to where you need to be, both physically and in your awareness around you.

3. Look for those “divine appointments”. They happen more often than you think.

4. Leave those people and places you touch that day a little better for you being there.

5. Follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. (And don’t argue with him in your head. You will find out that God also has a sense of humor.)

It takes being in the moment, being aware of what is happening around us. It takes a little work on our part, but being someone’s hero for the day is a great place to end up. It might just help you stop spinning your own wheels and get you on with your day – only this time with a smile on your face.