aBeLOG

LEGACY?

2012-01-28T23:34:00.000-06:00

Everybodywants to leave a legacy. Especially public servants.

One-time sheriff of Arapahoe, CO, Patrick J. Sullivan, Jr., is no exception to thatdesire.

Nationallyrenowned law-enforcement legend who served as sheriff of aforementioned countyfrom 1984 to 2002. Served six terms. Named “Sheriff of the Year” in 1991 by theNational Sheriff Association. In 1995, President Bill Clinton named Sullivan asa member of the National Commission on Crime Prevention and Control. In a 1995White House press release, the sheriff is said to have been a consultant to theU.S. House Subcommittee on Crime. Served on two advisory councils affiliatedwith the Department of Justice. The 68-year-old bloke was known as “HollywoodPat.” Apparently, once, in 1989, the guy sped his jeep into the line of a fireto rescue a wounded deputy, and then roared back through a fence in a boldescape captured live on TV! Even as recently as 2008, he was an activeparticipant in state and local methamphetamine policy-making task forces thatprovided recommendations to the Colorado state legislature on how best to dealwith the surge in meth-related crime.

Whata legacy!

Nowretired for nine years, Sullivan was serving as director of safety and securityfor Cherry Creek School District, in Colorado.

Untila couple of months ago.

Ina sting operation the erstwhile lawman was arrested on suspicion of traffickingmethamphetamines—yup, the same drug he fought so vigorously against—in exchangefor sex. He was arrested by the South Metro Drug Task Force and faces felonycharges. He is held on a $500,000 bond.

FormerArapahoe County District Attorney Jim Peters, who worked with Sullivan, toldthe Denver Post that he allegations against Sullivan were “totally out ofcharacter.” “Hewas completely ethical, upright and honest,” Peters said. “He just oozedhonesty and integrity. He was an outstanding sheriff.”

“Was.”Gone is the legacy.

“Iwas saddened by the allegations and very disappointed,” said Grayson Robinson,the current Arapahoe County sheriff. He confessed this was “the most shockingthing I've ever been involved with.”

Oh,but wait. Pat Sullivan did leave a legacy. For himself.

Inan incredible twist of fate, Mr. Sullivan is now cooling his heels at—guesswhere?—The Patrick J. Sullivan Jr. Detention Facility, once named in his honor!

Allthat good work, now undone! All that exemplary service, in tatters.

Andit’s easy for us to ruin our legacies too.

Therefore, prepare your minds for action,

keep sober inspirit,

fix your hope completely on the grace

to be brought to you

at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

As obedient children,

do not be conformed to the former lusts

which were yours in your ignorance,

but like the Holy One who called you,

be holy yourselves also in all your behavior;

because it is written,

“You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

1 Peter 1:13–16

Let’s live soberly and fearfully. For the consequencesmay be severe.

If you address as Father the One

who impartially judges

according to each one's work,

conduct yourselves in fear

during the time of your stay on earth;

1 Peter 1:17

No, not eternal consequences, for we …

… were not redeemed

with perishable things

like silver or gold …,

but with precious blood,

as of a lamb unblemished and spotless,

the blood of Christ.

1 Peter 1:18–19

But still consequences for ourselves, our families, ourchurches, our society.

Be sober. And leave a legacy.

(Thereis no word yet from the City Commissioner whether there are plans to rename thejail.)

LIP-READING!

2012-01-21T23:18:00.000-06:00

Babieslip-read. That’s what developmental psychologists say in a study to bepublished next week in the Proceedings ofthe National Academy of Sciences. Babies lip-read.

Scientistsfrom Florida Atlantic University discovered that at about 6 months, during thatmagical phase when babbling becomes syllabic and gibberish becomes “mama” and“dada,” babies go from staring intently into speakers’ eyes to studyingintently speakers’ mouths.

Babieslip-read. They’re trying to imitate the speaker in an attempt to figure out howto shape their lips to make the same sounds.

Dr.David Lewkowicz and his team studied over 150 babies of English speakers. Theyshowed these babies videos of a woman speaking English or Spanish and monitoredthe babies’ gazes with a gadget on a headband. When the language was English,4-month-olds gazed into eyes, 6-month-olds equally into eyes and at mouths, and8- and 10-month olds mostly at mouths. The 12-month-olds shifted back tostaring mostly at eyes … unless they were hearing Spanish.

Whenthey heard the unfamiliar language, these 12-month-olds kept on studying themouth, like their younger counterparts. They needed the extra lip information to decipher unfamiliar sounds.

Prettyintriguing, isn’t it, that babies lip-read? They seem to know what they need tolearn and how they need to learn; and they focus on what’s important—mouths.Babies lip-read.

I’mconvinced what we need to do as children of God, as those who have placed theirtrust in Jesus Christ as our only God and Savior, is to “Read His lips!”

I have not departed

from the command of His lips;

I have treasured the words ofHis mouth

more than my necessary food.

Job 23:12

Indeed!Jesus affirmed that sentiment.

“Man shall not live on breadalone,

but on every word that proceeds

out of the mouth of God.”

Matthew 4:4

Itis only by lip-reading God that we stand firm, steadfast, unshakeable.

As for the deeds of men,

by the word of Your lips

I have kept from the paths ofthe violent.

My steps have held fast to Yourpaths.

My feet have not slipped.

Psalm 17:4–5

Babieslip-read. The new research this week offers evidence that face-time with yourbaby is probably very critical for speech development, more than the latestbaby DVD or phonics program. Babies lip-read. That’s how they learn to speak.

Forwe aren’t born with facile lips that speak well, or hearts that feel well, or mindsthat think well, or hands and feet that work well.

Then I said, “Woe is me, for Iam ruined!

Because I am a man of uncleanlips,

And I live among a people ofunclean lips;

For my eyes have seen the King,the LORD of hosts.”

Isaiah 6:5

Sewe need to relearn our speech. By “lip-reading” God.

I shall delight in Yourstatutes;

I shall not forget Your word.

Psalm 119:16

Andthereby our lips are trained.

“… I will give to the peoplespurified lips,

That all of them may call on

the name of the LORD.”

Zephaniah 3:9

Andwe need to be lip-reading all our lives, not just for the first few months oflife. So that we may speak as God would want us to, all our days.

Because Your lovingkindness is

better than life, My lips willpraise You.

So I will bless You as long asI live;

I will lift up my hands in Yourname ….

And my mouth offers praiseswith joyful lips.

Psalm 63:3–5

ReadGod’s lips. Hang on to his every word!

INTERRUPTION!

2012-01-15T00:00:00.000-06:00

Anunusual instrument was added to a rendition of Mahler’s Ninth Symphony theother day. An iPhone. To Mahler’s Ninth. I doubt whether Mr. Mahler would’veenjoyed it last week being played by a New York Philharmonic + iPhone combo.

Butit wasn’t the fault of the NYPO or its conductor that day, Alan Gilbert.

Itjust so happened that someone’s iPhone went off in the middle of the lastmovement: Adagio. Sehr langsam und noch zurückhaltend = very slowand even cautious/reluctant. The offending gadget was neither slow norreluctant. It went off piercingly and unhesitatingly with its proprietary marimbaringtone.

Usually,everyone just ignores such unconscionable interruptions, for the mortifiedpatron, in normal situations, silences electronic gizmo in a millisecond.

Nope,not this time. The bold marimba kept on marimbating. With aplomb. In the middleof Mahler’s Ninth! No one stopped the ring.

Finally,Mr. Gilbert downed his baton, his fiddlers their bows, the trumpeters theirhorns, the drummers their sticks, etc. Yup, Mahler’s Ninth came to a dead haltin mid-performance last week. Because of an iPhone. Nope, Mahler would not havebeen amused with a digital marimba in the middle of his Adagio. Sehr langsam und nochzurückhaltend.

Someone(probably from Wall Street) shouted, “$1,000 fine.” Another yelled, “Kick himout!” This was New York, after all.

Shockingly,the ring just went on. "Nothing happened," Gilbert told reporters."Nobody was owning up to it. It was surreal.”

Thensomeone pointed to a couple sitting in the audience who just kept on staring backat Mr. Gilbert who was, understandably, trying to strangle them with his eyes. Finally,the man put his hand to his pocket. The marimba quit.

Allit took was an iPhone. And everything fell apart.

AnotherFall a long time ago was caused by something seemingly small. A bite. From apiece of fruit.

When the woman saw that

the tree was good for food,

and that it was a delight tothe eyes,

and that the tree was desirable

to make one wise,

she took from its fruit and ate;

and she gave also to herhusband with her,

and he ate.

Genesis 3:6

Cellphones continue their pestilential ringing in churches, classrooms, movietheaters, concert halls …, despite vigorous warnings announced loudly anddisplayed prominently.

The LORD God commanded the man,saying,

“ … from the tree of theknowledge

of good and evil you shall noteat.”

Genesis 2:16–17

Nomatter. Marimbas still keep going off. Fruit still keeps being eaten. And sin continuesto reign.

Despitethreats.

“… for in the day that you eatfrom it

you will surely die.”

Genesis 2:16–17

Or,as the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, TX (a movie-theater) warns: “Follow ourrules, or get the h#*% out and don’t come back till you can.” (Not that thatstops anyone._

Mahler’sNinth, “some of the most spiritual and peaceful music ever written,” disturbed.

AndGod’s “very good” creation disrupted.

For the wages of sin is death.

Romans 6:23

After the noisome scourge was silenced, Mr. Gilbertapologized to the audience to loud cheers and applause, and segued the NYPO backinto Adagio. Sehr langsam und noch zurückhaltend. Theperformance ended without any further interference from iPhones.

God’s got a plan, too, to finish his performance.

… but the free gift of God is

eternal life in Christ Jesusour Lord.

Romans 6:23

Forall who believe in Jesus Christ as only God and Savior, there is redemptionfrom sin and life eternal with God.

TheFall reversed. Performance back on course.

TIMELESS?

2012-01-07T21:38:00.003-06:00

HarryPotter had it—a cloak of invisibility, one of the fabled Deathly Hallows. Thisfascinating piece of cloth, which “endures eternally, giving constant andimpenetrable concealment, no matter what spells are cast at it,” renders thewearer invisible—i.e., others can’t see theone with the cloak. But creatures such as cats (Mrs. Norris) and snakes(Nagini), relying more on smell, hearing, heat-detection, etc., can sense thepresence of cloak-wearers. Or dementors, who, though they have no sight orsmell or such, can sense human despair. Invisibility cloaks don’t do nothin’ tohide desperation! Oh, and Alastor Moody’s magic eye: it can see throughinvisibility cloaks.

Inany case, dementors and cats and snakes and Moody notwithstanding, I wouldn’tmind having an invisibility cloak.

Oryou could employ a disillusionment charm or a bedazzlement hex to keep othersfrom seeing you.

Farcry, all these, from reality, though.

Butscientists are coming up with an even better idea than J. K. Rowling could:hiding an event using time!

Nowgranted, aforementioned author did conceive of a Time-Turner, an hourglass thatcould turn back time by any number of hours. But physicists at Cornell arethinking one better.

“Temporalcloaking.” Interrupting light to create a seeming gap in time in which an eventcan be hidden. This month’s first issue of Naturereported on the team succeeding to create a time gap about 50 trillionthsof a second!

One50 trillionths of a second. OK, far from reality!

Allthis trouble to “cloak” time and to hide from it. After all the trouble Godwent to, to “create” time.

Amidstall the controversy and confrontation and conflict regarding Genesis 1, thereis something interesting there in that chapter.

Allthose descriptions of days and evenings and mornings.

And there was evening and therewas morning, one day.

Genesis 1:5

And there was evening and therewas morning, a second day.

Genesis 1:8

There was evening, and therewas morning, a third day.

Genesis 1:13

There was evening, and therewas morning, a fourth day.

Genesis 1:19

There was evening and there wasmorning, a fifth day.

Genesis 1:23

And there was evening and therewas morning, the sixth day.

Genesis 1:31

By the seventh day Godcompleted His work.

Genesis 2:2

Thistime-marked account reminds us that God also created time and the fundamentalrhythms of life in God’s creation: evening + morning. Not only that, Godcreated in six such “evening + morning = day” sets. In other words, God createdin time.

Atranscendental God immanently involved in his creation—he entered into his work,speaking, evaluating, deliberating, forming, animating. This is a God who isdeeply involved with his creation.

Thisis no negligent watchmaker whocreated, and then wound up his creation and forgot all about it. No hecontinues to care for his creation—always, continuously, and forever.

In Him all things holdtogether.

Colossians 1:17

Neitheris he a blind watchmaker who, atbest, randomly created without design, purpose, or plan.

[God] works all things afterthe counsel of His will.

Ephesians 1:11

I know that You can do allthings,

And that no purpose of Yourscan be thwarted.

Job 42:2

Nope,this is a God who is involved with his creation. This is a God who cares.

The LORD is good to all,

And His mercies are over allHis works.

Psalm 145:9

For God so loved the world, Hegave …

John 3:16

He loves. He cares. He gives.

Have a terrific 2012, knowing that this God is ourGod!

RESOLUTIONS!

2011-12-31T17:53:00.002-06:00

Christmasis over for most of the world. For Eastern Christians—primarily those in Ethiopia, Russia, Ukraine,and Moldova—it comes on January 6 (or 19, depending on the calendar used,Julian or Gregorian), in connection with Epiphany.

Butwhile Santa has come and gone, and while decisions as to whether one had beennaughty or nice in the year have been made, and while gifts have been receivedand even returned, for one sector of the economy, even here in America,Christmas goes well into mid-February. A sizable portion of their annualrevenue comes between January 1 and February 15. All because Americans want tolook good.

Gyms!

It’slike someone is orchestrating this with a timer. As if by clockwork, gymmemberships explode the first six weeks of every year, recession or no,depression or no, inflation or no. Everyone wants to look good, lose weight,trim the fat, bulge the muscle, lubricate the joint, crank the tendon, let theblood flow, let the adrenaline rise, etc.

Thereis, typically, a 75–150% increase in membership sales around New Year’s. And mostquit by Valentine’s!

Forhealth clubs, weight-loss centers, and other enterprises in the“self-improvement” industry, recidivism is great for the bottom line! Lastyear, Americans spent $62 billion on these. This industry thrives on ourfailure to stick to it. They expect us to return again for six weeks next year.

Asone commentator noted, this just doesn’t make much sense. In an economicdownturn, one could save money by just running outside than on a treadmill, orby lifting cinder blocks than weights. And why do folks give up after sixweeks. “It makes more sense to keep that workout going through the winter sothat your summer body is sculpted come the first beach day.”

Onewriter speculates that “People across the country join gyms en masse nowbecause they believe that just having a Gold’s Gym membership willautomatically whip them into shape.”

Everyonewants to look good. The key word here is “wants.” Everyone wants to look good. But those “wants” don’t last for more than sixweeks, unfortunately. Those “wants” don’t translate into lasting action.Resolutions galore. Execution? A different matter altogether.

Whilelooking good in body is a worthwhile goal, the Bible wants us to look good inspirit, too.

… yourself for the purpose ofgodliness;

for bodily discipline is onlyof little profit,

but godliness is profitable forall things,

since it holds promise for thepresent life

and also for the life tocome.

1 Timothy 4:7–8

Nodoubt, there are things other than poundage that we need to shed, habits weneed to flee from, in our move towards godliness.

Flee immorality.

1 Corinthians 6:18

… flee from idolatry.

1 Corinthians 10:14

…flee from these things [thelove of money].

1 Timothy 6:11

…flee from youthful lusts.

2 Timothy 2:22

Thehard work involved in changing lifestyles is not as attractive as the mirage ofa svelte body. The mirage fades in six weeks and hard work begins to hurt. Andwe quit.

“Exerciseisn’t easy. Most people don’t like it,” one health club executive agrees. “Butif they can get past a certain point—usually it’s about two months or 12workouts—they get committed.”

He’sright. Habits take time to inculcate. Hanging in there is essential.

Submit therefore to God.

Resist the devil

and he will flee from you.

James 4:7

Itcalls for an act of trust in the One who empowers.

I can do all things through Him

who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13

Wecan. And He will.

GIFT!

2011-12-24T22:02:00.000-06:00

It’sa bit late today, but you can begin planning for next year.

Geta yurt. For the one who has everything. Only $75,000. A yurt, a luxury tentthat Mongol nomads use. With one-of-a-kind designer down-filled pillows andeven a crystal chandelier (see picture). In a yurt. Only $75K.

Oryou could get a $125,000 custom library with custom-carpeting, objets d’art, framed prints, and 250books of your choice.

Ora $420,000 international flower show tour for ten that goes throughSwitzerland, Athens, Avignon (France), and Chelsea (London).

Allavailable from Neiman Marcus. All in their Christmas book, an annual display ofpricey fantasy gifts, first published in 1926.

Oh,and for $1 million you can buy his-and-her dancing water fountains designed bythe company that did the fancy water spouts at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Ofcourse, you’ll need an estate to install that.

I’daccept a $400,000 limited-edition Ferrari. Or a $45,000 ping-pong table.

Thecars, by the way, sell out every year, says Neiman Marcus’ vice president ofcorporate communications, Ginger Reeder. So plan early.

Otherstuff that Neiman Marcus has offered over the years? His-and-hers ancientEgyptian sarcophagi (1971; a museum purchased it … and found a mummy in one!).A camel (1967). A bag of uncut diamonds (1972). A thoroughbred racing horsefarm with 12–15 horses (2008; $10 million). A zepellin (2004; also $10million). Ten thousands gallons of Aramis cologne (1969). Mr. Potato Headcovered in Swarovski crystals (2004; $8,000).

Someoneneeds to give me one of these odd things. Instead I get JIF. Woe is me!

I’mgonna have to have a serious talk with Santa.

Cometo think of it, I think I’ve already gotten a far better gift than any ofthose. Making me richer than I can ever be.

Foryou know the

graceof our Lord Jesus Christ,

thatthough He was rich,

yetfor your sake He became poor,

sothat you through His poverty

mightbecome rich.

2Corinthians 8:9

Rich.That’s what I’ve become, because of this Gift. The Gift of a Person whoransomed me.

…the Son of Man

didnot come to be served,

butto serve, and to give His life

aransom for many.

Matthew20:28

Ransomedfrom the penalty and power and (one day) from the presence of sin. Were it notfor this Gift, I’d be in big trouble.

Forthe wages of sin is death …,

Romans6:23

Withoutthe Gift, death would separate me forever from God.

…but the free gift of God is

eternallife in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans6:23

Allbecause of God the Giver who loved me.

ForGod so loved the world,

thatHe gave His only begotten Son,

thatwhoever believes in Him

shallnot perish, but have eternal life.

John3:16

AndJesus the Gift who gave himself for me.

Hehumbled Himself

bybecoming obedient

tothe point of death,

evendeath on a cross.

Philippians2:8

Andso now I’m rich.

…blessed …

withevery spiritual blessing

inthe heavenly places in Christ,

Ephesians1:3

And so I don’t need no Ferrari, no yurt, nosarcophagus, no fancy fountain.

I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold;
I’d rather be His than have riches untold;
I’d rather have Jesus than houses or lands;
I’d rather be led by His nail-pierced hand

Than to be the king of a vast domain
And be held in sin’s dread sway;
I’d rather have Jesus than anything
This world affords today.

Rhea F. Miller, 1922

(I still could use JIF!)

WEALTH!

2011-12-17T23:54:00.000-06:00

WARNING:The following story may be too graphic. It might cause emotional disturbances.Viewer and reader discretion is advised.

Atleast $1 million dollars worth of damages, possibly more. In one fell swoop. Sixtyseconds. In one massive 14-car pile-up on a highway in Japan in Yamaguchiprefecture.

All,luxury-car enthusiasts, were driving to a super car gathering in nearbyHiroshima when it happened, destroying eight (yup, EIGHT!) Ferraris, twoLamborghinis, and a few sundry Mercedes Benzes. The most expensive auto mishapever, at least for 2011.

Onsecond thought: I forgot about the Texan guy who drove his Bugatti Veyron(valued at over $1million) into a salt marsh near Galveston a couple of yearsago. He told police that a low-flying pelican (yup, PELICAN!) had distractedhim! Go figure! Police suspect insurance fraud. Wrecker driver Gilbert Harrisonof MCH Truck and Auto, who had the joy of fishing out the million-dollarvehicle now thoroughly marinated in brine, told the Houston Chronicle that thedriver had taken his rather expensive marshy detour in his stride. “He wascalm,” Harrison told the Chronicle. “If it had been me, I'd have been cussing,but he was calm.” I agree; if that had happened to me (and if I weren’t aseminary prof), I’d have cussed too. It’s a good thing seminary profs don’tdrive Ferraris. What would we do?

Anyhow… back to ye olde land of Nippon.

Itall began when one Ferrari driver, in the process of changing lanes, hit themedian. This guy spun across the freeway and everyone behind collided witheveryone else while attempting avoid the first wreck.

Sothere it was, a cluster of bright red Ferraris with their “Prancing Horse”medallions, cluttering the freeway in bits and pieces.

Thankfully,no one was injured in the mayhem on the Japanese highway. Serious dents in somewallets did occur, no doubt. Though the owners of these vehicles probably hadenough wealth in the first place that those were only minor dents. Scratches.What’s a million dollars? Easy come, easy go.

Do not weary yourself to gainwealth,

Cease from your consideration of it.

When you set your eyes on it,it is gone.

For wealth certainly makes itself wings

Like an eagle that flies toward the heavens.

Proverbs23:4–5

Hereone instant. Gone the next.

Insteadthe Bible gives us some better ideas regarding wealth.

…the imperishable quality

of a gentle and quiet spirit,

which is precious in the sightof God.

1Peter 3:4

… rich in faith and heirs ofthe kingdom

which He promised

to those who love Him.

James2:5

… be rich in good works,

to be generous and ready toshare.

1Timothy 6:18

Take my instruction and notsilver,

And knowledge rather thanchoicest gold.

For wisdom is better thanjewels;

And all desirable things

cannot compare with her.

Proverbs8:10–11

… the unfathomable riches ofChrist.

Ephesians3:8

… God … has blessed us

with every spiritual blessing …in Christ.

Ephesians1:3

Notto mention the wealth of the rewards in the afterlife.

Do not store up for yourselves

treasures on earth,

where moth and rust destroy,

and where thieves break in andsteal.

But store up for yourselves

treasures in heaven,

where neither moth nor rustdestroys,

and where thieves do not breakin or steal.

Matthew6:19–20

Yup,there’s more to wealth than is visible here in dollars and cents, wallets andpurses, stocks and IRAs. Much more.

Ferraris,Lamborghinis, and the rest. All will disappear. Only “wealth” reckoned by Godwill last. For ever!

DOOR!

2011-12-10T17:12:00.001-06:00

OK,I have found the answer.

Theother day, I went downstairs for something. When I got downstairs, I forgotwhat I had come down for. (And that’s not the first time.)

ButI have found the answer and it is not age.

(ThoughI won’t deny that I am become a tad ancient and those brain cells—unionized, Ibet!—are becoming a bit rebellious, refusing to obey management. And not only that: my hairline isin recession, my weight is in inflation, and overall I’m in depression. I’m awalking economy!)

Butback to this thing about memory. Names, numbers, places, things. All are fadingrapidly. But now I know why, courtesy of Dr. Radvansky, psychology professor atNotre Dame.

Thisguy is an expert on doors. Yes, doors. His research has found the answer. Hereit is:

Passingthrough doorways is the cause of these memory lapses!

“Enteringor exiting through a doorway serves as an ‘event boundary’ in the mind, whichseparates episodes of activity and files them away,” Radvansky explainshelpfully. “Recalling the decision or activity that was made in a differentroom is difficult because it has been compartmentalized.” Boxed, packed, andcarted away.

Doorways!Who’d’ve thunk it?

Prof.Radvansky performed experiments on college students (rewarded with course credits)in both real and virtual environments. They had to go into a room (real orvirtual) pick up an object (red cube or blue wedge or some such) and go intoanother room and exchange it for another object. Randomly they were quizzedabout what they were carrying or what they had just dropped off (they couldn’tsee what they were carrying in a virtual experiment; in a real one, they werenot allowed to look). The result? More errors if they were interrogated afterpassing through a doorway, than if they were in the middle of a room: the “location-updatingeffect” (a.k.a. “senior moment”). Memory was worse with a location shift. Thefunny thing was that even when they returned to the same room (after goingthrough a series of rooms) memory did not improve. It seems that just goingthrough doors does something to your brain, impeding your ability to retrievethoughts or decisions made in a different room.

So?Live in a place with no doors and your memory will be pristine!

(Iwonder if car doors can do that to you, too. I’m gonna get me a motorcycle!)

Anyhow,I was intrigued to learn that doorways turn out to be “event boundaries.” Remarkable!

Maybethat’s why Jesus called himself a “door.”

“I am the door;

if anyone enters through Me,

he will be saved.”

John 10:9

Forit is through him that one has access to the Father.

For through Him we … have our access

in one Spirit to the Father.

Ephesians 2:18

Itis the passage through this “event boundary” that changes our eternal destiny.It changes everything!

Therefore, having beenjustified by faith,

we have peace with God

through our Lord Jesus Christ,

through whom also we haveobtained

access by faith into this grace

in which we stand.

Romans 5:1–2

An“event boundary” indeed! The past is forgiven. From sin I am free.

Andyou know what, that Door does things to God’s memory, too.

“… and their sins and theirlawless deeds

I will remember no more.”

Hebrews 10:17

Amazing,that “Event-Boundary”!

Open to me the gates ofrighteousness;

I shall enter through them,

I shall give thanks to theLORD.

This is the gate of the LORD;

The righteous will enterthrough it.

Psalm 118:19–20

Enter.And forget.

JOB!

2011-12-03T20:50:00.001-06:00

Ipreached at a funeral service in Houston yesterday. Those are always hard.Particularly so, when it is the home-going celebration of a delightfulgentleman, the father of a close friend. And Bobby’s Dad was about my father’sage. We’d had a 2+ decade-long association when we were all part of a churchplant in ye olde city of Houston, in the days of my medical training there.

Iremember this sprightly septuagenarian (in those days) crazy about Indian foodand, particularly, Indian sweets.

Oh,and he was also crazy about Christ! So crazy he’d share Christ with anyone. Anyone!

Ithought I knew him reasonably well. But I learnt something about Dr. Mathewtoday. When Bobby spoke at the service, in tribute to his father, he mentioneda rather curious incident that happened many years ago.

Hisfather was an anesthesiologist and had, at one time, worked with the surgicalteam of the venerable Dr. Denton Cooley in Texas Heart Institute (THI). Cooley,one might remember, was the founder and surgeon-in-chief at THI, famous forperforming the first implantation of a totally artificial heart.

Apparently,one of Dr. Mathew’s “crazy” habits was, after a busy day in Cooley’s OR, to goout into the streets of Texas Medical Center (TMC) in Houston handing outgospel tracts to passersby. You might want to know that TMC is the largest medical center in the worldwith 50+ medicine-related institutions, including two (yes, TWO) medicalschools, four nursing schools, a zillion other schools (of dentistry, publichealth, pharmacy, …), 20-something hospitals, and on and on and on. This is anacademically dense place.

Andour man was handing out tracts after work, on TMC’s campus. Probably lookingdisheveled in his overworked scrubs, and undisciplined hair. One recipient ofDr. Mathew’s tract took offence at the sight of this scruffy Indian guydoling out shady “cultic” literature in a high-tech, high-brow, high-salaryenvironment, that had a budget larger than the city of Houston’s, and that boasted moreemployees than ye olde city. Yup, he was ticked off. Ticked off good andproper. How dare this strange-looking person purvey disreputable products in arespectable location?

Andso he vented on the dodgy distributor: “Get a job, man!” he said—to thisanesthesiologist in camouflage. “Get a job!”

Hewas doing his job. He was discharging his God-appointedcommission.

“Go therefore and makedisciples

of all the nations, baptizingthem

in the name of the Father

and the Son and the HolySpirit,

teaching them to observe

all that I commanded you;

and lo, I am with you always,

even to the end of the age.”

Matthew 28:19–20

Dr.Mathew retired from active practice more than a decade ago. But you know what?He continued his “job.” Earnestly. Diligently. Conscientiously. This man was anevangelist par excellence. Crazy forChrist. He never stopped telling folks about Jesus.

Therefore, we are ambassadorsfor Christ;

… we beg you on behalf ofChrist,

be reconciled to God.

2 Corinthians 5:20

Thatwas his life!

And Jesus said …,

“Follow Me, and I will make you

fishers of men.”

Mark 1:17

Thatwas his job: he followed; he fished!

Andso I wasn’t surprised at all when the family requested only one thing of me,when I preached yesterday. “Make sure the Gospel is presented,” they exhorted.

Andso I did. I performed my “job” as requested. I was simply following the goodman’s footsteps.

But you, be sober in allthings,

endure hardship,

do the work of an evangelist,

fulfill your ministry.

2 Timothy 4:5

Ilove this “job”!

NOW!

2011-11-26T20:20:00.001-06:00

Thisguy knows his stuff. Microsoft paid him a cool $115 million for something hecreated—Farecast, a predictor of airline ticket prices in the future. It’s nowincorporated into the travel website of Bing, with those green, light green,yellow, orange, and red arrows that indicate whether the fare you have searchedfor is worthy buying (green: “fares will rise”) or not (red: “fares willdrop”).

OrenEtzioni. That’s the guy. Expert on data mining and artificial intelligence. Teachescomputer science at University of Washington and is Director of its TuringCenter. Professor Etzioni.

Intime for the season, Prof E decided to direct his skills to the unique phenomenonof Black Friday shopping. According to the New York Times, after examiningbillions of prices of consumer electronics, Etzioni decided to spend his Black Friday scuba-diving in Bali(sunny; 84°F; winds from the W at 5 mph). Smart man!

Theguy’s research points to early December as being the best time to get bargainsfor electronics, that many of us misguided folks think we could get cheap onBlack Friday. Etzioni explains: “The bottom line is, Black Friday is for theretailers to go from the red into the black. It’s not really for people to getgreat deals on the most popular products.” “Black Friday is about cheap stuffat cheap prices, and I mean cheap in every connotation of the word,” saidanother deal tracker who works with Dealnews, Dan de Grandpre. Cheap laptops,and cheap models of other stuff. de Grandpre agrees with Etzioni that the weekbeginning Cyber Monday is the moment of opportunity, the time to buy!

Theexplanation for all this is simple, according to de Grandpre. Toys and stufflike that are useless after Dec 26 for the retailer, so they cut prices earlyin December. However, there is only a brief moment of opportunity, a window, ifyou will, for grabbing things at low prices at this time. For, in a week or sobefore Christmas, prices escalate again, to exploit those procrastinating last-minuteshoppers, who then are left with no choice but to ante up. You wait, you pay!

AforementionedProfessor Etzioni has a website dedicated to searching for deals on electronics.It is appropriately called decide.com. It will tell you when to buy somethingyou want. And it will also inform you how confident it is about the decision.The opportune moment … to decide.

Oh,yes, and there is an app for that: “decide com.” To help you come to the timeof decision.

Butthe Bible tells us, regarding another important matter:

Behold, now is the acceptabletime,

behold, now is the day ofsalvation.

2Corinthians 6:2

Now!Don’t put it off. Salvation comes with believing in Jesus Christ as your onlyGod and Savior.

For God so loved the world,

that He gave His only begottenSon,

that whoever believes in Him

shall not perish, but haveeternal life.

John3:16

Sorry,no app for that. But it is as simple as placing your trust in Jesus as the onewho died for your sin and rose again.

Delaycan only create problems!

For the wages of sin is death,

but the free gift of God iseternal life

in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans6:23

Etzioni,from Bali, urged everyone to “look at all the amazing volatility, and wait forthe price drops.”

I’dsay, look at the volatility of life. And don’t wait.

It is appointed for men to dieonce

and after this comes judgment.

Hebrews9:27

Thearrow is GREEN! Now!

POSTURE!

2011-11-19T20:59:00.001-06:00

ApparentlyMom was right! “Don’t slouch!” “Stand up straight!” “Keep your head up and yourchest out!” Etc. She was right after all.

Itseems, or so the studies say, that not only does poor posture wreak havoc onyour spine and neck, not to mention the awful impressions of yourself that youmake, it can also make you emotionally susceptible to feeling more pain!

Universityof Toronto scientists claim in the Journalof Experimental Social Psychology that adopting a “submissive posture”increases your sensitivity to pain. And those who adopted “dominant poses”displayed higher pain thresholds. This complements earlier studies that showedthat powerful postures in some way change hormonal levels and enables them totake greater risks. It has also been demonstrated perceptions of self-control affectmothers’ sensitivity to pain in childbirth.

Peoplefeel more powerful, sense more control, and tolerate more distress. Who knew? I’mgonna keep a clenched fist and tight jaw from now on.

Becausecurling up into a ball or appearing cowed into submission makes the painfulexperience more painful, perhaps byone’s sense of losing control or by one’s anticipation of pain. Insteadstanding up straight and performing expansive gestures (e.g., arms away fromthe body, etc.) create a sense of power and make whatever the painful stimulusis, more tolerable.

Hmm….

Thatled me to wonder about postures children of God must adopt before theirheavenly Father.

Allkinds of postures seem acceptable to God.

Kneeling,of course, is standard policy.

For this reason I [Paul]

bow my knees before the Father ….

Ephesians3:14–15

Butso also is standing …

“Wheneveryou stand praying, forgive,

ifyou have anything against anyone,

sothat your Father who is in heaven

willalso forgive you your transgressions.”

Mark11:25

Andsitting …

ThenDavid the king went in

andsat before the LORD, and he said,

“Whoam I, O Lord GOD,

andwhat is my house,

thatYou have brought me this far?”

2Samuel 7:18

Andlying down …

WhenI remember You on my bed,

Imeditate on You in the night watches.

Psalm63:6

Orprostrating oneself …

AndHe [Jesus] … fell on His face

andprayed, saying,

“MyFather, if it is possible,

letthis cup pass from Me;

yetnot as I will, but as You will.”

Matthew26:39

Headsbowed? Sure.

Come,let us worship and bow down.

Psalm95:6

Handsraised? Why not?

Liftup your hands to the sanctuary

Andbless the LORD.

Psalm134:2

Eyesopen? Jesus did it.

ThenJesus raised His eyes, and said,

“Father,I thank You that You have heard Me.”

John11:41

Loudly…

Thenfalling on his knees,

he [Stephen] cried out with a loud voice,

“Lord,do not hold this sin against them!”

Acts7:60

Orsilently …

Nowit came about,

asshe continued praying before the LORD,

…she [Hannah] was speaking in her heart,

onlyher lips were moving,

buther voice was not heard.

1Samuel 1:12–13

Oreven weeping …

She[Hannah], greatly distressed,

prayedto the LORD and wept bitterly.

1Samuel 1:10

Rejoicing…

Oclap your hands, all peoples;

Shoutto God with the voice of joy.

Psalm47:1

Andsinging …

Servethe LORD with gladness;

Comebefore Him with joyful singing.

Psalm100:2

Oreven dancing!

PraiseHim with timbrel and dancing.

Psalm150:4

Thankfully,the efficacy of prayer is not gauged by posture or the levels of hormones.

OYou who hear prayer,

ToYou all people come.

Psalm65:2

Hehears! Ours is a prayer-hearing God!

GENERATIONS!

2011-11-12T23:47:00.000-06:00

Last week I was in Chicago. Moody Bible Institute had its Spiritual Enrichment Week and I was the designated chapel speaker for this event. What fun!

The preaching itself was fun, of course! I enjoy preaching anyway and to do something you enjoy with an appreciative crowd is makes it even more enjoyable.

But the energy of these kids was contagious and innervating. Add to that a delightful staff, friendly faculty, and a gracious President, you have a mix that is a powerful influence for Jesus Christ in the world.

Moody is a huge enterprise of education, radio, and publishing arms. The education part is the Bible Institute for undergrads with 20 odd programs catering to about 1500 students, and the Theological Seminary for several hundred grad students.

I was impressed with the students. Besides the fact that they hoot and cheer enthusiastically in chapel (we need to do that at Dallas Seminary!), they also sing wonderfully. And having a music department means that the student-led music, with a different band each day, is of high caliber. What joy!

And, then, as guest speaker, during my free times, the school signed up students who wanted to chat with me, giving each a half-hour slot. What a delight. Lots of questions. Lots of probing. Lots of zeal. (Not surprisingly, celibacy and singleness was the area that had many of the students curious.) Inspiring!

Then the casual conversations over lunch (and over the din in the Student Dining Room). Breakfast with President Nyquist. Coffee with a DTS alum and a former student, now a youth pastor in the area, who was visiting with a few of the youth in his church interested in Moody. Delightful!

A visit to a dorm floor at the request of an RA, led to a one-hour chat with a “round table” of students. More questions. More probing. More demonstration of zeal. And then these guys laid hands and prayed for me! Powerful!

I was thrilled with their fervor for Christ and their passion for ministry. It was wonderful to see that their parents and churches and mentors were successfully passing on the faith to the next generation.

I could see why Paul wrote to his ward Timothy:

For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you,

which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois

and your mother Eunice,

and I am sure that it is in you as well.

2 Timothy 1:5

Somebody had done a good job in the previous generation.

You, however, continue in

the things you have learned

and become convinced of,

knowing from whom you have learned them,

and that from childhood you have known

the sacred writings which are able

to give you the wisdom

that leads to salvation through faith

which is in Christ Jesus.

2 Timothy 3:14–15

Youngsters taught well. Youths pointed to the Scriptures. Godliness modeled to the next generation. What a blessing!

It is a tremendous feeling to know you are part of a passing generation that is responsible to hand on the baton to the succeeding new batch of youths. It is joy inexpressible to realize that that baton-passing is happening successfully. Praise God! May they, in their own time, pass it on further.

You therefore, my son, be strong

in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

The things which you have heard from me

in the presence of many witnesses,

entrust these to faithful men

who will be able to teach others also.

2 Timothy 2:1–2

Nope, we are not the last generation. There is hope in the next. Much hope, thank God!

BROKEN!

2011-11-05T23:14:00.000-05:00

In the early eighties James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling, both social scientists, introduced the “broken windows theory” in criminology. While the debate continues about the virtues of such a theory, it is quite an interesting idea.

Here’s how the name came about: A building with a few broken windows that aren’t repaired, might be a temptation for vandals to break a few more windows, maybe even to break into the building, or even occupy it as squatters, and so on. Or if there is a sidewalk with some litter, soon more litter accumulates, and even bags of trash. With all of these, the neighborhood becomes unlivable, respectable residents flee, unscrupulous and unruly elements take over, and the rest is history!

Wilson, Kelling and their cohorts believe that a successful strategy to prevent crime is to take care of problems when they are small. Repair the few broken windows quickly; clean up the sidewalk daily; and the tendency for vandalism to escalate is neutralized.

Low-level antisocial behavior leads to petty crime leads to major crime.

Apparently the logic of all this is that an orderly environment sends the signal that this is a locale that is monitored and that residents conform to the norms of law-abiding behavior. On the other hand, an environment that is littered and studded with broken windows sends the opposite signal: “You can do what you want and you can even get away with crime, because no one cares and no one is watching.” It’s that slippery slope idea.

This “broken window” theory was implemented by NY City’s Transit Authority and Police. When Rudy Giuliani became mayor in 1993, the strategy was adopted more widely, as a “zero tolerance” philosophy against fare evasion, public drinking, urination, and squeegee extortionists (who wipe windshields, demanding payment). Crime, both petty and serious, fell suddenly and significantly, and continued its downward trend for a whole decade. Albuquerque, NM, and Lowell, MA, have reported similar successes. In the mid 2000s, Netherlands worked to clear not only broken windows, but litter and graffiti as well; officials secretly monitored the locations to see if people behaved differently, now that the environment had become orderly. They did.

Small bad behaviors can encourage more bad behaviors.

While the Broken Window Theory is still controversial in criminology, I think there is something to it, in the Christian life.

Small bad behaviors can foster worse habits in one’s own life. One thing does lead to another. Sloppiness in one area of life is pervasive and soon other areas are affected. Lack of control with regard to food, time, leisure, expenditure. Loss of discipline in thought, in feelings, in words spoken, in actions undertaken.

Weeds tend to grow if the yard is neglected. Satan needs only a toe-hold to start his nefarious operations. I need only a gentle nudge to topple me down that slippery slope. One thing invariably leads to another.

Like the Holy One who called you,

be holy yourselves also

in all your behavior;

1 Peter 1:15

Be holy FULLY!

… because it is written,

“You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

If you address as Father the One

who impartially judges

according to each one's work,

conduct yourselves in fear

during the time of your stay on earth;

1 Peter 1:16–17

Be holy FEARFULLY!

… knowing that you were not redeemed

with perishable things like silver or gold

from your futile way of life …

but with precious blood,

as of a lamb unblemished and spotless,

the blood of Christ.

1 Peter 1:18–19

Be holy GRATEFULLY!

No more broken windows!

MEMORY!

2011-10-29T23:24:00.001-05:00

Information. We’re addicted to it. And we have incredible access to it.

A ballgame score? A chi-square test? Weather in a particular zip code? Treatment options for psoriasis? Dustin Hoffman’s character in Rainman? Directions to a specific street address in a specific city in a specific country? Particulars of the most esoteric kind—all available on the net. Things that would have been virtually impossible to locate, find, or identify a decade ago are within finger-reach today.

Laptops, tablets, smartphones. Google, Bing, and Wikipedia. Information sources outside the finite confines of our skulls. External brains. To keep us from forgetting all that stuff—mostly trivia, inanities, and minutiae.

But some things we must remember.

Bless the LORD, O my soul,

And forget none of His benefits;

Psalm 103:2

This external brain deal is not entirely new. In days past (and perhaps even now) our companions, parents, teachers, etc., served as sources of information from without our bodies. Somebody knew what we were seeking, and we simply tapped into their brains.

And that’s true about remembering God as well. In a community of believers, we remind one another about who he is and what he has done. Especially the future generation, our kids.

… tell to the generation to come

the praises of the Lord,

And His strength and His wondrous works

that He has done.

For He established a testimony in Jacob

And appointed a law in Israel,

Which He commanded our fathers

That they should teach them

to their children,

That the generation to come might know,

the children to be born,

That they may arise and

tell them to their children,

That they should

put their confidence in God

And not forget the works of God,

But keep His commandments.

Psalm 78:4–7

These days online search engines, internet archives, encyclopedias have become the first recourse for information of every kind.

Complaints have been raised galore about how our thinking patterns have changed—for the worse—since we don’t need to retain all that information in our sulci and gyri of our cerebral cortices. In fact, researchers have shown empirically that believing the information will be available easily elsewhere enhances memory not about the information or data itself, but where and how that information may be accessed. Often our memories prioritize not the “what” of memory, but the “where,” especially when we expect the “what” to remain continuously available, as we wont to expect with online access. It’s all on the web! So, more than remember the actual details of the item, we are more likely to remember where to find those details. Thus internet and all its fractal arms and appendages serve us as external memory storage devices that may be accessed at will and as necessary. Whenever. Wherever.

But to remember God, we must go to the most reliable source, the “external brain” par excellence.

I shall delight in Your statutes;

I shall not forget Your word.

Psalm 119:16

The processes and practices of human memory are adapting to new computing and communication technology. One writer declared that we are becoming symbiotic with our computer tools; we know not the datum of information itself, but where to find it. Of course, this depends on being constantly wired and online—a possibility that has become reality in most places.

Constantly wired and online … with God.

When I remember You on my bed,

I meditate on You in the night watches.

Psalm 63:6

Remember!

I shall remember

the deeds of the LORD;

Surely I will remember

Your wonders of old.

Psalm 77:11

And pass it on!

ADDICTION!

2011-10-22T23:12:00.000-05:00

Yes, it’s true. What dermatologists have been declaring for a long time now has been proven. It’s true: Tanning is addictive—tanorexia!

Addiction researchers at ye olde city, Dallas (at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center), have shown that ultraviolet from a tanning bed stimulates reward pathways in the brains of those who tan frequently, not very different from the response pathways caused by other pleasurable stimuli, including food and sex and drugs and stuff. Beta-endorphin (a naturally occurring molecule related to morphine and opium) is released by the skin and reaches the brain, activating those pathways that induce feelings of relaxation and euphoria.

“Frequent tanners” (those who had used sunbeds at least twice weekly in the past 3 months) were recruited to be exposed to UV light and non-UV light. Of course, the “experiementees” did not know which was which. But they did, even without being told! The researchers found an increase in cerebral blood flow in those areas of the brain associated with rewards. Tanners could tell the difference between a sunbed generating the real thing and one producing non-stimulating rays!

These folks were also asked, before and after UV exposure, to rate their desire to tan again. The level of desire went down when they received the actual UV rays, but remained high with the fake light. They knew what they had gotten! And they wanted more: engaging in the suspect behavior despite negative consequences, is a characteristic of addictions.

More than 1 million cases of skin cancer per year in the US. One in five Americans will get it in their lifetime. Incidence of melanoma increasing steadily for the past 30 years, and it is the most common form of cancer for young adults 25–29 years of age, and the second most common cancer for adolescents. One American dies of melanoma every hour.

And people still tan! The power of pleasure!

I know, I come face to face with this weekly: Folks unwilling to give up tanning. Even some who have had skin cancers. Unbelievable, but true.

Tanning “addicts” also demonstrate other common symptoms of addiction: tolerance (needing more and more of the behavior to get the desired pleasurable effect), withdrawal (unpleasant symptoms arising when the behavior is abandoned), guilt, and an unhealthy mental preoccupation.

It’s not very difficult to get trapped, whether it is addiction to ultraviolet or to some other disturbing behavior (and it doesn’t have to be food, drugs, or sex). We are primed to go after the instant gratification, the pleasure generated, the kick, the ecstasy, the enchantment. No, not difficult at all.

Do not love the world

nor the things in the world.

If anyone loves the world,

the love of the Father

is not in him.

For all that is in the world,

the lust of the flesh and

the lust of the eyes and

the boastful pride of life,

is not from the Father,

but is from the world.

1 John 2:15–16

Rather the Bible tells us to seek gratification in the things of God, in the things above.

Therefore if you have been

raised up with Christ,

keep seeking the things above,

where Christ is,

seated at the right hand of God.

Set your mind on the things above,

not on the things that are on earth.

Colossians 3:1–3

It may not result in “instant” gratification, but gratify it will, one day, soon, and that will be a gratification for eternity.

In Your [God’s] presence is fullness of joy;

In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.

Psalm 16:11

Let’s not be hooked!

AMBITION!

2011-10-15T23:35:00.000-05:00

A study in the Journal of Consumer Research reports that ambition makes you happier!

Study subjects, 134 in all, were part of an experiment that involved them picking stocks, fixing a target goal—a rate of return that would be satisfactory—and then finding out how happy they later were with the actual financial yields of their portfolios. Measuring the level of satisfaction with achieved goals, it was found that those who had set high goals for themselves were happier. Ambition makes you happier!

“The moral of the story,” observed University of California-Riverside professor Cecile K. Cho, “is don’t sell yourself short. Aim high.”

Apparently safe bets are less valuable. One’s satisfaction is somewhat reduced once the safe and easier goal has been met, since it didn’t cost one much to attain it. On the other had if one aims high—a risky shot—and achieves it, satisfaction is much greater, since the cost was also greater.

Aim high. How high? As children of God, we have one grand ambition:

Therefore we also have as our ambition,

whether at home or absent,

to be pleasing to Him.

2 Corinthians 5:9

This is the essence of Paul’s ministry, to see his flock pleasing God.

We have not ceased to pray for you

and to ask that you may be filled

with the knowledge of His will

in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,

so that you will walk in a manner

worthy of the Lord,

to please Him in all respects ….

Colossians 1:9–10

How exactly does one go about pleasing God? Here’s Peter’s answer:

Applying all diligence,

in your faith supply moral excellence,

and in your moral excellence, knowledge,

and in your knowledge, self-control,

and in your self-control, perseverance,

and in your perseverance, godliness,

and in your godliness, brotherly kindness,

and in your brotherly kindness, love.

For if these qualities are yours

and are increasing,

they render you neither useless

nor unfruitful in the true knowledge

of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Peter 1:5–8

Useful! Fruitful! Pleasing God! A high aim, indeed!

Of course things are not as simple as that in the social science studies that were reported. Just aiming for the sky doesn’t make one happy. All of that mighty ambition must be balanced by a healthy dose of realism: Is the grand goal achievable, even remotely? If not, and when failure inevitably ensues, depression, rather than happiness, is bound to be the result.

So what about the Christian life? Is it remotely possible to please God? Is this a realistic goal? If not, why bother? Why fret about something beyond our reach, to end up in depression?

If you backtrack a few verses in 2 Peter 1, the reasonableness of the Apostle’s recipe for pleasing God is explained.

Grace and peace be multiplied to you

in the knowledge of God

and of Jesus our Lord;

seeing that His divine power

has granted to us everything

pertaining to life and godliness,

through the true knowledge of Him

who called us by His own glory and excellence.

For by these He has granted to us

His precious and magnificent promises,

so that by them you may become

partakers of the divine nature ….

2 Peter 1:2–4

That’s amazing. Not only does God require of us a life pleasing to him, he then proceeds to grant us the means to achieve that great goal.

Do this and live, the Law commands;

But gives me neither feet nor hands.

A better way His grace doth bring;

It bids me fly and gives me wings.

Aim high and fly! Please God!

JOBS!

2011-10-08T23:49:00.000-05:00

Steven Paul “Steve” Jobs, “a crazy round peg in the square hole,” “an insufferable and unrepeatable genius,” passed away on October 5^th, 2011 after a long struggle with pancreatic cancer. He was 56. The Apple chairman and former CEO put the “personal” in “personal computer” and the “smart” in “smartphone,” and made both fun to use. And he introduced them into every bag, pocket, desk, and dorm. If there is one in yours, it is because Mr. Jobs created it, or because others were wise enough to copy his genius. “He changed the way movies are made, music is sold, stories are told, and the way we interact with the world around us.”

In a way, he endowed machines with … humanity! That is to say, he made them creative, he made them artful, he made them beautiful, he made them fun!

From humble beginnings to greatness. Given up for adoption by unmarried parents. Grew up in all the strangeness of the 60s. Had an illegitimate child. Dropped out of college. Started Apple in a garage. Developed the Mac. Was fired. Started Pixar. Married. Reunited with biological mother and sister. Came back to Apple. Made it the most valuable company in the world, surpassing, for a time, even the behemoth Exxon-Mobil. Seven times on the cover of TIME.

In the line of great American entrepreneurs, Ford, Rockefeller, Walton, …. But, unlike these, who created new business models, Jobs just made a bunch of cool products everyone decided they wanted. And wanted again. And again.

iMac. OS X. iPod. iTunes. iPhone. iPad.

Bill Gates, yesterday, said: “The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come.”

Someone else wrote: “Goodbye, Mr. Jobs. … Now the world will suffer a bit more without your love for perfection, your hyperbolic obsession with magical devices, your insanely great ideas and ‘booms’ and ‘one more things.’ Fanboys and haters, friends and foes—especially your foes, who now will not be able to imitate you anymore—will miss you.”

This century is only a decade old. But it's a safe bet that in 2099, when analysts and pundits turn their eyes back on the decades past, Steve Jobs will be remembered as one of the giants of 21st century business.

He will be missed—501 Levis, black mock turtleneck, New Balance running shoes, and all.

Several years ago, delivering the commencement address at Stanford, Mr. Jobs observed:

“When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: ‘If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right.’ It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’”

Life is short. Do your best. Trust in God.

You turn man back into dust

And say, "Return, O children of men."

For a thousand years in Your sight

Are like yesterday when it passes by,

Or as a watch in the night.

As for the days of our life,

they contain seventy years,

Or if due to strength, eighty years,

Yet their pride is labor and sorrow;

For soon it is gone and we fly away.

So teach us to number our days,

That we may present to You

a heart of wisdom.

Psalm 90:3–4, 10, 12

Be wise.

And … have fun!

DEAL!

2011-10-01T23:01:00.003-05:00

The other day our local CBS affiliate reported on an odd deal.

An auto repair shop offered customers a break on the price of a full service if they could quote John 3:16. Half off. But you have to say the verse.

For God so loved the world,

that He gave His only begotten Son,

that whoever believes in Him

shall not perish,

but have eternal life.

John 3:16

The owner put coupons advertising his deal on doorknobs all over Plano.

Of course, some are raising the issue of “discrimination.”

But store owner Charlie Whittington ain’t budging. If you want a deal, he declared, you need John 3:16. “If I’m standing for what I believe, so be it,” he said. “Bring it on.”

And if you actually do believe the verse, the deal is eternal. Yup, eternal! And, yup, by believing. Having faith.

For by grace you have been saved

through faith;

and that not of yourselves,

it is the gift of God;

not as a result of works,

so that no one may boast.

Ephesians 2:8–9

Far more than an oil change, I assure you! Eternal life …

[God] raised us up with Him [Jesus],

and seated us with Him

in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

so that in the ages to come He might show

the surpassing riches of His grace

in kindness toward us

in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:6–7

The motive of the autoshop owner? Whittington said he did it as a conversation starter in an effort to talk to people about what he believes. Not a bad idea. And yes, he did get plenty of publicity! Mostly good.

God’s motive for John 3:16 deal?

But God, being rich in mercy,

because of His great love

with which He loved us,

even when we were dead

in our transgressions,

made us alive together with Christ

(by grace you have been saved).

Ephesians 2:4–5

What a deal! SOMETHING for nothing!

Well … nothing on our part. Somebody did have to pay …

But God demonstrates

His own love toward us, in that

while we were yet sinners,

Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8

He absorbed the “cost”!

He [God] made Him [Jesus]

who knew no sin

to be sin on our behalf,

so that we might become

the righteousness of God in Him.

2 Corinthians 5:21

One guy came into the shop in Plano, verse on a notecard in his hand, and then had second thoughts. “Why should I be compelled to quote something I do not feel comfortable to quote?” he asked. After arguing with the manager, who declined to give him the break without said verse, the customer refused to quote the passage and ended up paying more than twice what he had hoped to, in the first place.

Nope, no fudging on the deal. That’s the only way to get half off. No other way.

He who believes in Him is not condemned;

he who does not believe

has been condemned already,

because he has not believed in the name

of the only begotten Son of God.

John 3:18

Texas state Attorney General had no comment about Whittington’s deal and couldn’t point out any laws this unusual offer was breaking. Another local attorney, with experience in discrimination and denial-of-service cases, said that without any connection to federal monies, the discount was well within the pale of the law.

“The study of the Bible has many rewards,” he said. “I’m not sure that God intended a lube discount to be among its many riches.”

Way better!

OBITUARY!

2011-09-24T23:18:00.000-05:00

It is said that toward the end of the nineteenth century, Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel awoke one morning to read his own obituary in the local newspaper: “The merchant of death is dead. Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, who died yesterday, devised a way for more people to be killed in a war than ever before, and he died a very rich man.”

Apparently, it was Alfred's older brother who had died; somebody on the paper had bungled the epitaph. Needless to say, Nobel was quite taken aback. But the account had a profound effect on the man. It is believed that the emotion of reading his own obituary led him to set aside the bulk of his estate to establish the Nobel Foundation that bestows annual awards for cultural and scientific advances, as well as for the Nobel Peace Prize, presented to those who foster peace.

“Every man,” Nobel said, “ought to have the chance to correct his epitaph in midstream and write a new one.”

What a grand idea!

Something like that happened to Kelsey Grammer, playing Dr. Frasier Crane in the TV show Frasier. He had to go to the ER one day, but after a long wait, returned home.

Soon after, his name was called in the ER, and someone else in line answered, just to get ahead. But then this guy suddenly died of a heart attack in the ER and the evening news reported that Frasier Crane had passed way. The newspaper published his obituary the next day.

Frasier, reading the report, is understandably shocked. But then he suddenly realizes that he is actually not dead yet, decides that this misreporting is a wake-up call. So he goes ahead and writes his own obituary, as an impetus to do what he had hitherto left undone in life.

“Dr. Crane came late to athletics, he became a fixture in the Seattle marathon, the America’s Cup yacht race, as well as the Kentucky Derby [as a stable owner].” He also added that he had taught psychiatry to children online, traveled to South America, taken up rafting, and that he had been fluent in Russian.

Impressive!

But you know, while the concept of correcting one’s own epitaph in midstream and writing a new one is exhilarating, it can get out of hand, like it did with Frasier.

Some kind of focus and concentration is essential. One just cannot do everything. Write books, play the cello, find the cure for melanoma, be the best preacher ever, play for a national cricket team, be an authority on Bach, ride a Harley across the country, eat a cheesecake every day, …. Oh, well.

Life is short. Obituaries need to be written. What will yours and mine say?

One thing I do:

forgetting what lies behind and

reaching forward to what lies ahead …

Philippians 3:13

No point fretting over lost time and years. No point agonizing over missed opportunities and foolish actions. Past sins and follies are just that—past. For the believer in Christ those are forgiven and forgotten.

Paul exhorts us to look ahead for the rewards in heaven. Prepare for those prizes.

… I press on toward the goal

for the prize of the upward call

of God in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:14

Focus on a few things. Or even one thing. And let’s do it the best we can, for the glory of God, in the power of the Spirit, for the sake of Jesus Christ.

… whatever you do,

do all to the glory of God.

1 Corinthians 10:31

R.I.P. @

NUMB?

2011-09-17T23:53:00.003-05:00

A recent study reported in Psychology Today provided some surprising findings.

In 2004 researchers at Carnegie Mellon University tested the effects of two letters asking for a donation (no more than $5) to Save the Children. The first letter contained statistics about the suffering of children in Africa: food shortages in Malawi affecting more than 3 million children; 11 million in Ethiopia needing food assistance; etc. The second letter had information about one specific young girl.

“Any money that you donate will go to Rokia, a 7-year-old girl in Mali. She is desperately poor and in near starvation. With your help, Save the Children will work with Rokia’s family to help feed and educate her, and provide her with necessary medical care.”

There were three groups in the study: Group 1 got the statistical letter; Group 2 got Rokia’s sad story; Group 3 got both.

Here are the results:

Group 1 (statistical letter) gave, on average, $1.15

Group 2 (Rokia’s story) gave, on average, $2.40, over twice what those who read the numbers gave.

The smaller donations for the statistical letter is what is called the “drop in the bucket effect.” Overwhelmed by the scale of the problem—the starvation of millions—donors feel their small amounts are meaningless.

But here’s the strange finding.

Group 3 (statistical letter and Rokia’s story) gave, on average, $1.40, almost a dollar less than what those who got just the story gave.

For some strange reason, the statistics actually made donors less willing to give, less likely to be turned on emotionally—the “statistical numbing effect.”

While it seems heartless to care only for one and not for many, it actually makes perfect sense. “You are a person, not a number. You don't see digits in the mirror, you see a face. And you don't see a crowd. You see an individual. So you and I relate more powerfully to the reality of a single person than to the numbing faceless nameless lifeless abstraction of numbers.” As one psychologist put it, “Statistics are human beings with the tears dried off.”

Mother Teresa was right: “If I look at the mass, I will never act. If I look at the one, I will.”

Perhaps it is because we tend to identify with a concrete face, a specific name, a particular suffering, than with the pathos of a faceless and nameless crowd.

All this to say, it is very easy to become numb. How quickly we lose compassion. Hearts tend to harden almost by default.

“I feel compassion for the people

because they have remained with Me

now three days and have nothing to eat.

If I send them away hungry to their homes,

they will faint on the way.”

Mark 8:2–3

And Jesus proceeded to feed 4,000! A large crowd, but they were not faceless or nameless to him. Compassionate, not numb.

So must we be.

He who oppresses the poor

taunts his Maker,

But he who is gracious to the needy

honors Him.

Proverbs 14:31

One who is gracious to a poor man

lends to the LORD,

And He will repay him

for his good deed.

Proverbs 19:17

He who shuts his ear

to the cry of the poor

Will also cry himself

and not be answered.

Proverbs 21:13

He who is generous

will be blessed,

For he gives some of his food

to the poor.

Proverbs 22:9

He who gives to the poor

will never want,

But he who shuts his eyes

will have many curses.

Proverbs 28:27

May we never be numb to the plight of others. Compassionate, not numb!

DUST!

2011-09-10T23:38:00.000-05:00

Jacques Lowe was an internationally renowned photographer and photojournalist best known for his portraits of the big names in politics, business, and entertainment. He contributed to TIME, LIFE, Saturday Evening Post, etc. He got to know the Kennedys and subsequently went on to document JFK’s campaign, the Kennedy White House, and the life of the first family. All of this resulted in six books, numerous international exhibitions, television shows, and magazine covers. Reviewers credited Lowe's “natural, warm, and intimate images of the president and his family and the workings of the presidency with keeping alive the Kennedy flame for generations yet to come.” Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., (“court historian” for the Kennedys) said that “Jacques Lowe was monumentally self-effacing. This, I believe, is why his camera caught so much human truth. There are no orchestrated photo-opportunities here.”

Lowe's work—and this includes much more than his work with the Kennedys—is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Elysée Museum in Lausanne, the European Center of Photography in Paris, the Kennedy Library Museum in Boston, the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas, as well as in hundreds of private and institutional collections. Before he died in 2001, he was honored with the Crystal Eagle Award for Impact on Photo Journalism, a lifetime achievement award granted by the School of Journalism, University of Missouri and the Eastman Kodak Company. It was only the fourth time the award has been granted.

Mr. Lowe’s daughter, Thomasina, recalls how attached her father was to his Kennedy negatives. When he moved to Europe in the late 60s, these negatives had a plane seat for themselves, next to their creator. He was denied insurance on those pictures, because insurance companies deemed them priceless. She writes: “I went with him on countless occasions to the J.P. Morgan Chase Bank vault to retrieve or return negatives. There was always an air of solemnity in the room when he reached for one of the many manila envelopes as though what we were about to see and touch would bring us closer to something historic. Back out on the street, walking up West Broadway, he clutched his treasure trove until it was safe and sound in his studio.”

You might be interested to know that this J. P. Morgan Chase vault was located in the World Trade Center. And, yes, the negatives—all 40,000 of them—perished ten years ago today.

I close my eyes,

Only for a moment and the moment's gone;

All my dreams

Pass before my eyes a curiosity;

Dust in the wind,

All they are is dust in the wind!

Same old song,

Just a drop of water in an endless sea;

All we do

Crumbles to the ground though we refuse to see;

Dust in the wind,

All we are is dust in the wind!

Kansas, 1977

“Naked I came from my mother's womb,

And naked I shall return there.”

Job 1:21

Indeed! We came without anything, we go without anything.

But we can send things across … while we are still alive.

Do not store up for yourselves

treasures on earth,

where moth and rust destroy, and

where thieves break in and steal.

But store up for yourselves

treasures in heaven,

where neither moth nor rust destroys, and

where thieves do not break in or steal.

Matthew 6:19–20

For children of God this means …

… to do good, to be rich in good works …,

storing up for themselves

the treasure of a good foundation

for the future ….

1 Timothy 6:18–19

Everything else is “dust in the wind.”

FLOATING!

2011-09-03T23:50:00.000-05:00

While in Ketchikan, Alaska, my Dad and I did a short jaunt on a seaplane. Such water aircraft are often used in the Alaskan and Canadian wilderness, blessed as they are by a large number of lakes. This was my first flight on one of these machines and, surprisingly enough, even on a rather rough day on the sea, even given the small size of the aircraft, its takeoff, flight, and landing were quite smooth. Nonetheless, it never ceases to make me wonder how these heavy contraptions can float on, lift off from, and return to, water!

Of course, it would be even more fascinating to walk on water, but only one Person could do that successfully.

There’s an episode in Mark 6 that recounts Jesus’ maritime perambulations! Mark is subtly comparing that event with Exodus 14, the overthrow of the Egyptian army in the Red Sea. Both stories manifest the visible presence of God in a dramatic and miraculous mid-sea rescue. The parallels are so remarkable that there are very few words (in the Greek versions) found in one that are not found in the other! The power of God, which had once delivered God’s people, was now working though Jesus and available to God’s people again.

Unfortunately, this unique thrust of the encounter in Mark 6:45–52 is completely lost on the disciples—their reaction is sheer terror, the opposite of what was intended.

But when they saw Him

walking on the sea,

they supposed that it was a ghost,

and cried out; for they all saw Him

and were terrified.

But immediately He spoke with them

and said to them,

“Take courage; it is I, do not be afraid.”

Mark 6:49–50

What is interesting is that Jesus had earlier sent his disciples on this journey alone, ahead of him, in a boat on a stormy sea. The verb is a strong one—he is compelling them to go on.

Immediately Jesus compelled His disciples

to get into the boat and go ahead.

Mark 6:45

This has all the signs of being a test. He sends them on, removing himself from the scene. One might remember that in the feeding of the 5000 that just precedes this story, Jesus had actually expected them to provide the multitudes with food.

They had failed the test there; they fail it again here, and panic in the storm. So Jesus does his gravity-defying thing, walking on water.

But the disciples still don’t get it: they think Jesus is a phantasm, a spooky specter.

The connection between the feeding miracle and the one of walking on water clearly link these two miracles, in turn, to the wonders of the Exodus period—the provision of manna and the crossing of the sea. The disciples, just having observed Jesus reenact the former (5000 fed), should have been prepared for the latter. But their hearts, Mark informs us, had been hardened.

... their heart was hardened.

Mark 6:52

Anyhow, Jesus walks over (on water!), gets into the boat, and the storm is stilled. They arrive on shore.

When they got out of the boat,

immediately the people recognized Him.

Mark 6:54

The irony is unmistakable. The ones close to Jesus didn’t know who he was. The nameless, faceless crowd—they immediately recognize him. The crowd’s response to Jesus is vigorous and enthusiastic: they run, they carry the afflicted here and there, to wherever Jesus is, acknowledging the power of this one, whom the disciples had failed even to recognize.

The walking-on-water Man is God himself, powerful to save. Do we recognize him in our lives?

EAGLE!

2011-08-27T23:58:00.000-05:00

The bald eagle. The only sea eagle endemic to North America. And, of course, the national bird of the United States of America.

Why “bald”? Looks like it has enough stuff on its head to be “hairy”!

Probably has something to do with the Celtic bal (= white patch) or the Greek phalos (= white). Nothing really to do with loss of hair, unless loss of aforementioned scalp appendage resulted in a shiny pate that kinda looked white. Anyhow, our bird of interest has plenty of tufts on its head. They are white. So “bald.” Thus Haliaeetus leucocephalus (leuco = white; and cephalus = head). Of course, it also has a white tail.

Plenty of these in Alaska. About 40,000–50,000 in that state. We saw them everywhere on our recent trip. Since 2007, this bird of prey is no longer on the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife.

The founders of the United States employed many a Roman symbol for their patriotic metaphors and official imagery. The eagle was one such borrowed emblem, standing for strength and courage and farsightedness and even immortality—a figure of the Romans’ Jupiter and the Greeks’ Zeus. Apex predators, the bald eagle is called, for they have no superior in the wild; nothing preys on them. They are at the top, the apex. Powerful image!

In fact God compares himself with the bird several times in Scripture, drafting the eagle’s legendary care for its young, to describe his own care for his people.

“You yourselves have seen …

how I bore you on eagles' wings,

and brought you to Myself.”

Exodus 19:4

In 1782, the Continental Congress incorporated the bald eagle into the Great Seal of the United States, with the bird grasping 13 arrows and a 13-leaved olive branch in its talons: peace and war. Haliaeetus leucocephalus also shows up on a number of official seals and logos of federal agencies, including the Presidential Seal.

Much though those offices and officialdom needs respect, it won’t be President or agency or government or federation that carries us and cares for us. Nope!

For the LORD's portion is His people;

Jacob is the allotment of His inheritance.

He found him in a desert land,

And in the howling waste

of a wilderness;

He encircled him, He cared for him,

He guarded him as the pupil of His eye.

Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,

That hovers over its young,

He spread His wings and caught them,

He carried them on His pinions.

Deuteronomy 32:9–11

Like the eagle, faithful to its mate for life, God cares for his own.

And so, we, browbeaten, bulldozed, and bludgeoned by a bullying world, rest confident in the knowledge of God’s care, the care of one, who like the eagle, is at the apex. Indeed, he is The APEX!

Though youths grow weary and tired,

And vigorous young men stumble badly,

Yet those who wait for the LORD

Will gain new strength;

They will mount up with wings like eagles,

They will run and not get tired,

They will walk and not become weary.

Isaiah 40:30

And so we bless the Lord, because now, we have become eagles!

Bless the LORD, O my soul,

And all that is within me,

bless His holy name. …

Bless the LORD, O my soul,

And forget none of His benefits;

Who pardons all your iniquities,

Who heals all your diseases; …

Who crowns you with

lovingkindness and compassion;

Who satisfies your years

with good things,

So that your youth is renewed

like the eagle.

Psalm 103:1–5

Fly high!

ICEBERG!

2011-08-20T23:43:00.000-05:00

An amazing piece of God’s handiwork in the Tracy Arm Fjord off Juneau, in Alaska.

ice·berg (ìsbûrg´) noun from the Dutch ijsberg = ice mountain

This one is small. The tallest known piece in the North Atlantic was over 500 feet above sea level, the height of a 50-floor building! The one labeled “Iceberg B-15,” spotted by satellite in 2000, was about 200 miles × 25 miles, with a mass estimated to be 3 billion tonnes! The largest one, though, was sighted in 1956, 12,000 square miles in area, making it larger than Belgium!

The density of pure ice is about 920 kg/m³. That of sea water is about 1025 kg/m³. So the iceberg floats, with about 11% of the iceberg above water.

All of this makes it a hazard for ships, as the disaster of the Titanic proved in 1912.

Before that catastrophe, there was no official tracking of icebergs to keep navigation channels safe. In 1913, the International Conference on the Safety of Ice at Sea met in London to come up with a plan. Soon maritime nations formed the International Ice Patrol to monitor currents, ice-flow, salinity, water temperatures, etc. Aerial surveys joined the coalition in the 1930s, and radar and computers and satellites soon after.

All of this because the dangers of an unseen hazard was acknowledged.

“I cannot imagine any condition which could cause this ship to flounder. I cannot conceive of any vital disaster happening to the vessel. Modern shipbuilding has gone beyond that.” So declared Captain E. I. Smith, the master of the Titanic, before its voyage in 1912.

Unlike aforesaid mariner, God’s children are called to be careful, watching out for those “icebergs.”

Therefore let the one who thinks he stands

take heed that he does not fall.

1 Corinthians 10:12

All kinds of icebergs lurk underwater.

Supernatural foes.

But the Spirit explicitly says that

in later times some will fall away

from the faith,

paying attention to deceitful spirits

and doctrines of demons.

1 Timothy 4:1

Ungodly teaching.

You therefore, beloved,

knowing this beforehand,

be on your guard

so that you are not carried away

by the error of unprincipled men and

fall from your own steadfastness.

2 Peter 3:17

The seduction of wealth.

But those who want to get rich

fall into temptation and a snare and

many foolish and harmful desires

which plunge people

into ruin and destruction.

1 Timothy 6:9

Or food.

All things are lawful for me,

but not all things are profitable.

All things are lawful for me,

but I will not be mastered by anything.

Food is for the stomach and

the stomach is for food,

but God will do away with both of them.

1 Corinthians 6:12–13

And sex.

Flee immorality.

Every other sin that one commits

is outside the body,

but the immoral person

sins against his own body.

1 Corinthians 6:18

And on and on.

Walk as children of light, …

trying to learn

what is pleasing to the Lord.

Do not participate in the

unfruitful deeds of darkness ….

Therefore be careful how you walk,

not as unwise men but as wise.

Ephesians 5:8, 10–11, 15

Complacency and cockiness only leads to catastrophe. There is no such thing as an unsinkable ship!

… fight the good fight,

keeping faith and a good conscience,

which some have rejected

and suffered shipwreck

in regard to their faith.

1 Timothy 1:18–19

No one can stand firm on one’s own.

Therefore,

… be strong in the Lord and

in the strength of His might.

Ephesians 6:10

And watch out for those icebergs!

SPOILER!

2011-08-14T00:08:00.000-05:00

Nope, it’s been proved. No need to get annoyed, frustrated, irked, or irate. Don’t waste the adrenaline. It’s true.

Spoilers actually enhance enjoyment of movies and books.

That’s what researchers at University of California at San Diego have established in work to be published in Psychological Science. Spoilers magnify the delight! And if they are right, we knew it, in our heart of hearts. We just were in denial.

Even for those suspense-driven plot lines, on paper or on celluloid.

“I was quite surprised by the results,” researcher Nicholas Christenfeld said in an interview. “Like most people, I don't turn to the end of a book to see who dies or what happens.”

In the study, each candidate story was read by about two dozen people, in one of two formats—with the original ending or with a spoiler inserted into the story. It didn’t matter what type of story it was—ironic-twist, mystery, or literary. It didn’t matter who wrote it—John Updike, Roald Dahl, or Agatha Christie. Always, readers preferred the “spoiled” version.

Christenfeld has an explanation. Though plots are important, like a skeleton or a coat hanger, upon which to hang flesh or fabric, he asserts that “the plot itself isn’t critical.”

That explains why I can read the Harry Potter books over and over again. Or see Seinfeld for the umpteenth time. And reread Calvin and Hobbes. They are still enjoyable, even if one knows exactly what will happen. Not “spoilers.” Maybe “sprucers,” since they shape and sharpen and spruce up the story, heightening the excitement and thrill.

Here’s Christenfeld again: “As a film director, your job isn't really to come to the conclusion that the butler did it. A single line would do that.” Whodunnit ain’t the key. It’s just that the story is written well. “Plots are just excuses for great writing,” and that’s what’s appreciated.

Once you’ve discovered the ending of a book or film, you want to read it or view it again to see how everything makes sense and connects and coheres. Things that didn’t make sense without the spoiler, begin to make sense with it. And you also begin to appreciate in a greater way, the art of the writer or director.

Christenfeld and co-author Jonathan Leavitt conclude: “Perhaps birthday presents are better when wrapped in cellophane, and engagement rings are better when not concealed in chocolate mousse.”

OK, spoiler alert. We’re all part of a story the ending of which we know.

The trumpet will sound,

and the dead will be raised imperishable,

and we will be changed.

The sting of death is sin,

and the power of sin is the law;

but thanks be to God,

who gives us the victory

through our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:52, 56–57

Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men,

and He will dwell among them,

and they shall be His people, …

and He will wipe away

every tear from their eyes;

and there will no longer be any death;

there will no longer be any mourning,

or crying, or pain.

Revelation 21:3–4

There will no longer be any curse; …

and His bond-servants will serve Him;

they will see His face,

and His name will be on their foreheads.

And there will no longer be any night;

and they will not have need of

the light of a lamp nor

the light of the sun,

because the Lord God will illumine them;

and they will reign forever and ever.

Revelation 22:3

Enjoy the art and grace of the Author; the ending has been “spoiled”!

GLACIAL!

2011-08-06T23:13:00.000-05:00

Tracy Arm Fjord is a magnificent 30-mile long glacier-created fjord, about 60 miles southeast of Juneau. A bright green body of water between sheer, glacier-carved granite cliffs shrouded in mist, with innumerable waterfalls cascading into the fjord. An amazing sight. Naturalist John Muir, in the early 20^th century, even went so far as to claim that the region was even more spectacular than the Yosemite valley.

And then those glaciers at the end of the fjord (or is it the beginning?)! What a sight! And the sea lions frolicking all around. Not to mention the “calving,” the dislodging of huge chunks of ice that plunge with a thunderous sound into the frigid waters below. And so the fjord is filled with icebergs, all bright blue, just like the parent glacier.

Technically, these masses of ice are the result of accumulation of snow and sleet at a faster rate than it can melt. Over centuries it hardens into tens and hundreds (and, occasionally thousands) of square miles of ice: glaciation. And it moves: its weight, the surface slope, gravity, water at the interface of ice and land, etc., contributing to its motion. It moves … glacially.

gla·cial (glâ¹shel) adjective 1.a. Of, relating to, or derived from a glacier. b. Suggesting the extreme slowness of a glacier.

The word has come to be a synonym for slowness (though that may be unfair to the glaciers: they’ve been known to move as fast as 100 feet a day). But all in all, “glaciality” is a typical feature of glaciers. Their movements are not apparent unless one observes them across decades or centuries.

Nothing seems to happen, but things are … at a glacial pace.

Life is often like that. Glacial. Or so we think. Simply because we can’t see things happening.

But God is working. On his own timetable. In his own scale.

For a thousand years in Your sight

Are like yesterday when it passes by,

Or as a watch in the night.

Psalm 90:4

Peter agreed.

But do not let this one fact

escape your notice, beloved,

that with the Lord one day

is like a thousand years,

and a thousand years like one day.

2 Peter 3:8

Isaac Watts put it well three centuries ago:

Our God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home.

Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting Thou art God,
To endless years the same.

A thousand ages in Thy sight
Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.

Isaac Watts, 1719

So even if we can’t see it, hear it, or feel it, something is happening. Because God is working. Always is. Never stops. No vacations. No breaks. No naps.

He who keeps you will not slumber.

Behold, He who keeps Israel

Will neither slumber nor sleep.

Psalm 121:3–4

Glacial? Maybe. But not on God’s clock or calendar. And maybe that’s the operation of time we must adopt and follow.

Therefore be patient, brethren,

until the coming of the Lord.

The farmer waits for

the precious produce of the soil,

being patient about it ….

You too be patient; strengthen your hearts,

for the coming of the Lord is near.

James 5:7–8

And what about all the evil—in us, around us, against us? God is doing something about it; it began with the victory of Jesus Christ on the cross. And it will reach its consummation soon and very soon.

Hang in there!

PROVISION!

2011-07-30T23:28:00.000-05:00

We took a tour of the ship’s galley when we were on a cruise a couple of weeks ago.

134 people work in it. 3,000 dinner plates, 7,000 dessert plates, 2,000 side plates, 5,000 glasses, etc. are washed daily. 4,000 dinner rolls, 800 croissants, etc., baked.

And an average cruise on the M. V. Oosterdam, consumes 12,000 lbs of meat, 3,900 lbs of poultry, 3,000 lbs of fish, 2,600 lbs of seafood, 13,800 lbs of vegetables, 23,000 eggs, 5,600 qts of dairy, 3,000 lbs of sugar, and 1,200 gallons of ice cream. Not to mention a million gallons of potable water. By 2,200 guests and 900 crew.

What an operation!

There’s an interesting story in Mark’s Gospel about a grander operation. It happens after Jesus had fed 5,000 with five loaves and two fish (Mark 6), and after another episode where he had fed 4,000, this time with seven loaves and “a few small fish” (Mark 8). Jesus and his disciples are on a boat.

And they had forgotten to take bread,

and did not have more than one loaf

in the boat with them.

Mark 8:14

Yeah, but they did have one loaf. For 13 people.

They began to discuss with one another

the fact that they had no bread.

Mark 8:16

The 12 are worried. No bread. They could starve. They could wither away and die. Life is tough!

And Jesus, aware of this, said to them,

“Why do you discuss that you have no bread?

Do you not yet see or understand?

Do you have a hardened heart? …

And do you not remember,

when I broke the five loaves

for the five thousand,

how many baskets full of broken pieces

you picked up?”

They said to Him, “Twelve.”

“And the seven loaves for the four thousand,

how many large baskets full

of broken pieces did you pick up?”

And they said to Him, “Seven.”

And He was saying to them,

“Do you not yet understand?”

Mark 8:17–21

Nope, they didn’t understand. They didn’t understand that though they didn’t have any bread, they had the Bread of Life on board.

Well, they did have one loaf. But, nope, they didn’t understand that with that one loaf, their ratio of loaves:people was way better than 5:5000 or 7:4000 that Jesus had successfully fed. And that’s not calculating the residue and leftovers.

Forgotten. Not remembering. Ignorant. Faithless.

We, too.

But, the promise of God stands firm:

And my God will supply all your needs

according to His riches in glory

in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:19

All our needs! All!

Jesus explained it well:

“For this reason I say to you,

do not be worried about your life,

what you will eat or what you will drink;

nor for your body, what you will put on.

Is not life more than food,

and the body more than clothing?

Look at the birds of the air,

that they do not sow,

nor reap nor gather into barns,

and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.

Are you not worth much more than they? …

Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’

or ‘What will we drink?’

or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’

For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things;

for your heavenly Father knows
that you need all these things.”

Matthew 6:25–26, 31–32

We have a Father who is aware. And so, instead of worrying we trust.

“But seek first His kingdom

and His righteousness, and

all these things will be added to you.”

Matthew 6:33

Give us this day our daily bread …

PILOT!

2011-07-23T23:21:00.000-05:00

Last month my father and I took a cruise to Alaska. Spectacular! (Rest assured, you’ll see more of that trip in the aBeLOG.)

Glacier Bay in southeastern Alaska was one of the visual treats of this trip. The Bay has numerous inlets and lagoons and channels and islands, and is a popular cruise ship destination, especially in the summer, when folks like us attempt to escape, albeit briefly, the torrid temperatures of ye olde city called Dallas (101° yesterday).

The National Park Service, however, places restrictions on visiting vessels to Glacier Bay (which is part of the Glacier Bay National Park): only 2 cruise ships, 3 tour boats, 6 charter vessels, and 25 private boats can enter the Bay each day. Even then, in 2009, about 450,000 tourists visited Glacier Bay, 420,000 of them being cruise ship passengers.

Among the restrictions of Alaska waters is the requirement of a maritime pilot—one who guides ships through harbors and river mouths and bay inlets that are congested and/or dangerous.

Jesus, Savior, pilot me
Over life’s tempestuous sea;
Unknown waves before me roll,
Hiding rock and treacherous shoal.
Chart and compass come from Thee;
Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

For You are my rock and my fortress;

For Your name's sake

You will lead me and guide me.

Psalm 31:3

We had one come on board our ship as we entered Glacier Bay. The expert, navigating dangerous seas for us, to keep us safe.

As a mother stills her child,
Thou canst hush the ocean wild;
Boisterous waves obey Thy will,
When Thou sayest to them, “Be still!”
Wondrous Sovereign of the sea,
Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

With Your counsel You will guide me,

And afterward receive me to glory.

Psalm 73:24

Yes, we might often feel we can handle it all. We might feel we are experienced captains in full control. We couldn’t be further from the truth: we need God.

Though the sea be smooth and bright,
Sparkling with the stars of night,
And my ship’s path be ablaze
With the light of halcyon days,
Still I know my need of Thee;
Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

For such is God,

Our God forever and ever;

He will guide us until death.

Psalm 48:14

Life’s journey is long. Life’s journey is messy. Life’s journey is treacherous. Through it all, God’s presence through his Spirit, and the Word given to us, guide us.

But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes,

He will guide you into all the truth.

John 16:13

And for those who have trusted in God’s Son as their only God and Savior, a passage to God’s presence is assured at death. For Jesus Christ paid the price of our sins.

When at last I near the shore,
And the fearful breakers roar
’Twixt me and the peaceful rest,
Then, while leaning on Thy breast,
May I hear Thee say to me,
“Fear not, I will pilot thee.”

Edward Hopper, 1871

… the Sunrise from on high will visit us,

To shine upon those who sit in darkness

And the shadow of death,

To guide our feet into the way of peace.

Luke 1:78—79

And then at last, we’ll be at home!

"They will hunger no longer,

nor thirst anymore;

nor will the sun beat down on them,

nor any heat;

For Lamb in the center of the throne

will be their shepherd,

and will guide them

to springs of the water of life;

and God will wipe

every tear from their eyes."

Revelation 7:16—17

Amen (especially to that part about sun and heat)!