Legacy,

 

We have all heard the word “legacy” and it is used to describe various things or people.  Webster’s Dictionary says:

1.      Something that is willed to someone by a person who has died.

2.      Something transmitted by or received from an ancestor or predecessor or from the past.

3.      A candidate for membership in an organization who is given special status because of a familial relationship to a member.

 

All of these are focused on something given or received, whether it is money, property, membership sponsorship.  A legacy can also be the person who came before, who left the legacy behind.

 

If you have read any of previous writings, you have seen how I sometimes draw on songs that have words or thoughts that incorporate into them.  This is one of those:  Randy Travis, the country singer, titled “Three Wooden Crosses”, which was released in 2002 and rose to number one.  This is part of the chorus:

“It’s not what you take when you leave this world behind you, it’s what you leave behind you when you go.”

 

Jesus Christ came into the world like the rest of us as a newborn baby.  The last three years of the 33 he was here formed his ministry.  When he left and returned to his father in heaven, he left behind a fledgling legacy, a small movement with the 12 members.  These 12 men took this legacy and carried it out into the whole world, named after its founder, Christianity.

 

Over the next 20 centuries, it grew into a movement that spanned the entire world.  It grew and shrunk, its members were glorified and persecuted, but his legacy lives on and continues to grow.  There are variations of it, but the one bottom line is they all praise and glorify Jesus Christ.

 

Enough of history.   Everyone is a candidate for membership.  We are all related to Jesus Christ, we all have the same father.  That gives us all that special status.  Those of us who are his followers, Christians all, come from all walks of life, every ethnic group.  Some of us practice our belief daily, some only weekly, and some have lapsed in following his legacy.  He welcomes all of us regardless of our level of dedication.  He loves us all.

 

Go back and read that part of Randy Travis’ song.  You are going to leave your legacy to those who come after you.  What is that going to be?  Is it something that will grow his legacy even more?  Like the last line goes, “It’s what you leave behind you when you go.”

 

What are you going to leave behind, what will be your legacy?

 

 

The Scavenger Hunt

 Several years ago when our two local grandsons were little, we came up with an idea to add a little fun to Christmas. We called it “The Scavenger Hunt”. Basically, we gave one of them a piece of paper with a clue to go somewhere in the house. Once there, he would find another clue to go to another place. The last clue took him to where his present was hidden. Then we did the same to the other one. We did this every year since then and each year they, now grown adults, ask if there is going to be another scavenger hunt. 

I am in charge of creating these clues for the hunt and I use a simple poetic format for each one. Here is a sample taken from one of the sets of clues: 

So there’s no need to grumble and shout, 

Nor to race and run to the place. 

Go take a chance, 

With more than a glance, 

To the cooker that slides in and out. 

The cooker is a drawer microwave. If you aren’t familiar with it, it is a microwave mounted in a drawer and slides out and in with a button on the front. I am up to putting seven clues in each set and create three or four sets each year. In addition to the two guys, we also include a girlfriend or wife in the game. Some people hunt for God the same way. They may go to one person who has a message, but not a complete one. So they go to someone else or to one church and another church and still another. Perhaps each stop points the way to the next, or it is frustration at not finding God yet. Finally, they receive the whole message and find God and his loving message. It may have been a minister, a priest, a rabbi, a friend, a church, or the bible. However they did it and not how long or difficult the search, they now have the ultimate prize, the ultimate gift, God’s love. God’s love was always there, as it is for all of us, but he or she had to find him and let him into their lives. How about you? Have you found God and are living in his love? Or, are you still searching, bouncing from one clue to another? Don’t quit! God is leading you down the path you need to walk. He is not going to give up or quit on you, so don’t you quit either. The ultimate prize is worth the struggle.

Twinkle, Twinkle ...

We have all heard that nursery rhyme, that one that goes, “Twinkle, twinkle, little star…” And those of us who have kids have most likely repeated it to them. Did you ever stop and realize that this is the first astronomy lesson? It’s true. Remember that stars twinkle and planets do not because they are reflecting the light from the sun. the same as the moon’s light is a reflection of sun light. I am writing this in Dallas, Texas and it is mid-November. Once the sun has set and it is dark, there are these planets visible without a telescope: Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn. Venus is a mere 25 million miles away from us, Jupiter 360 million miles, and Saturn 800 million miles from Earth. Now think about this: the distance from the sun to Saturn and back to Earth is only 1.7 billion miles. And yet we ca still see it unaided. It takes a total of two hours, 22 minutes for the light to make that journey! That is how bright our sun is. 

God created the planets, stars, and other things that are out there … and he is still doing it. The age of the universe is about 10 billion years old, but new stars and planets are being born and old ones die. Maybe this is how the supreme being has fun. And they are all different sizes. There is a red dwarf star that is 1/7th the size of our sun. The largest known star is UY Scuti. It is so large that you could take our solar system almost to Saturn, just about a 100 million miles less than its distance from the sun, and put it inside UY Scuti. It has a radius of 738 million miles. And God created both, the dwarf and the largest. 

Some night walk out and away from surrounding lights and look up and reflect on the wonder and glory of all of the stars and planets you can see unaided. There are about 5,000 stars visible. Our galaxy, the Milky Way, has about 400 billion stars, and there are about 170 million galaxies … and God created all of it, and is still doing so. 

The next time you read about creation in the bible, that God created the heavens and the earth, try to wrap your head around just how enormous is all you can see and can’t see and stand there in total awe of God and all he has created, far beyond the limits of what we can imagine. It the words of that old hymn, “Out God is an awesome God.” Truly he is.

The Silence

 Silence: the opposite of sound, or the lack of it. Silence is present in word and action throughout our lives, in song and entertainment and life. We hear that “Silence is golden” and songs like “The Sounds of Silence” by Simon and Garfunkel from 1967, the movie “Silence of the Lambs”, a cliché tells us the silence was deafening. Then there are people who live in silence. I’m not talking about dead people here. In the Catholic Church, the Trappist Monks live in silence and prayer and contemplation of God.

We have all, at one time or another, experienced God’s silence. We know that when we pray to God, whether in praise or the request something, he hears us. It is a tenet of our faith that God answers all of our prayers, sometimes with a “yes” and sometimes with a “no”. But how about all of the other times when all we get from God in answer to our prayers is … nothing. Silence. We pray, we make offerings, sometimes we try to make a deal with him. And more nothing, more silence.

 I wrote a piece a few years back titled “God’s Good Time”. And that is sometimes how it is when we pray. We just aren’t ready for the answer yet.

Maybe sometimes God has a different motive for being silent. Think back to the story of Job in the Old Testament. He lost it all: family, crops, animals, buildings, health. Three of his friends insisted he must have done something really wrong to make God so angry that he visited all of these things on Job. We know that the purpose was to show Satan that Job’s faith was strong, that regardless of what befell him, he did not break faith with God. Surely, Job wondered why God was silent, not answering his prayers for relief and deliverance. In the end, Job was richly rewarded by God for his unwavering faith. 

How about us? Do you think that maybe God is giving us an opportunity to show our faith? It would certainly be easy to turn our back on God when we aren’t getting any response from him. Some may even go to the point of questioning God’s very existence. There is another cliché, “Keep the faith, baby”. That is what it is all about, staying faithful regardless of what happens to us, in that silence period. And when it is done, when God responds once again, what has happened to your faith? It has gotten stronger. You have added to the strength of your faith and are more able to resist the attacks of the Enemy. Remember, that in order for a muscle to get stronger, it must be damaged first and the healing gives it strength. The point where a bone breaks is stronger there after it heals than the rest of the bone. So, it is with our faith in that when we have come through a period of trial, our faith is even stronger than before. 

So, why does God do these things or allow them to happen? It could be that we need to discover just how strong we really are. Perhaps God knows we are going to come to a period of trial that tests our faith, and he is preparing us by making us stronger. 

How about you? Is God answering your prayers? If so, great. Are you experiencing God’s gift of silence? Also great! We may see his purpose then or it may be off in our future. It is a gift and you have the chance to use it wisely. So just accept it, just do it.

The In-Between

 In 1954 the movie, White Christmas was released. It starred Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and Vera Allen. One of the many songs was sung by Rosemary Clooney and Vera Allen. That song was “Sisters”. The last two lines of the song are:

 “Lord help the mister who comes between me and my sister.

             And Lord help the sister who comes between me and my man.” 

It was a cute and humorous song and, yes, it is out there on YouTube. (You knew I was going to say that, didn’t you?) 

The simple message is obvious, of course, that neither sister would let someone coming between them and, equally, neither sister would tolerate her sister interfering with her and her man. 

Let me expand on that a bit and how that sentiment should be a part of our lives. Bottom line, what do you allow to come between you and the rest of your life and your life around you. Do you allow your job or hobby take you away from your family, whether that be parents and siblings or spouse and children? Yes, most of us have to work and having a hobby or other outside interest is not a bad thing. It is finding the right balance that is important. Sometimes that which comes between a couple is when one spouse has an affair. There is no way to balance that. 

How about the spiritual side of your life? Those of us who are believers need and want God to be an integral part of our lives. Yet, too many of us allow or even encourage something or someone to come between us and God. On a day when you should be focusing on God, what is there instead? I know that not everyone who believes in God goes to church. There are many who worship God in private or worship online or by watching a service on television. Is what comes between us, between work, a hobby, the worn out statement that starts with, “This is the only day I can …”? Really? Of the 168 hours in a week, there isn’t any way to fix your activities so you can give one or two to God? If you developed a new interest, I’ll bet you would find some way to adjust your schedule to fit it in. God isn’t a new interest, but why not treat it that way? If you can fit in a new hobby or activity, then you can definitely find time for God. It is all about what is really important. 

Life is what it is and there are many parts to it. Is God one of those parts? If not, what is coming between you and the one who created you and loves you? What can you do to change it? More importantly, what are you going to do to change it? To paraphrase the last line of that song: 

“Lord help the (something) that comes between me and my God.”

It's Reality

Recently I was looking for a book to read. I am one of those people who always have at least one book in progress, sometimes two or three. Looking through the books and wanting something I had not read in a while, I picked up “Heaven Is For Real" by Todd Burpo. It is a true story about his son, Colton. A couple of months before his fourth birthday, he became extremely sick and was finally diagnosed with a burst appendix and was taken into emergency. While he was in surgery, he went to heaven. He met the Trinity, a grandfather he never knew and a sister whom his mother lost while pregnant. He saw many and experienced many wonderful things. I’m not going to recreate the book or the subsequent movie other than to say you should read the book. One of the interesting photos in the book is a painting of Jesus Christ. It was done by an eight year old girl, Akiane Kramarik, who had started having visions of heaven when she was four. When Colton saw the painting, he told his dad that this is what Jesus looks like.

It would be easy to blow off the book or Colton’s experiences. After all, there are other books by people who had near-death experiences and saw Jesus and dead relatives. Some scientists and doctors debunk the stories by saying these people were starved for oxygen and these were hallucinations. I don’t know whether they are true or not. Colton’s story is totally believable. Go read it.

Throughout the book, Colton describes his experiences in bits and pieces. He tells many details about what heaven is like, both in terms of everyone he met and what it looked like, a place of wonder and beauty. We have other descriptions of heaven, Revelations and other parts of the bible. Colton’s descriptions of God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, bring a reality to just how wonderful and loving they are, and what being in heaven is like. This is the reward that awaits us when it is our turn to go. It is far more vivid and real than the other descriptions from the many ministers I have heard. 

This is what awaits you, as God’s good and faithful servant. This is your reward for being one of God’s people. So the message of this writing is to follow him, obey his laws and commandments and live forever in eternity in the presence of God’

Where Are The Men?

Once upon a time, men were men and manly. The dad was the head of the family and his wife and children looked up to him as the leader. He was the one whose praise and approval were most sought. If you messed up, there was no more fear-inducing statement that your mother could make than, “Wait until your father gets home.” His physical stature didn’t matter so much as the stature of his position as the husband and father. He was looked up to and admired. Boys wanted to be what their father was when they grew up. Girls wanted to marry a guy who was just like their dad. It was a time when men, husbands, and fathers, were looked up to and respected just because that is the way it was. Men knew their duty, their place, and acted in that role. Today, that falls under the heading of, “Once upon a time…” 

So, what happened to those days? They were depicted in TV shows such as “Father Knows Best” and “My Three Sons”. Sons bragged about their dads, even to the silly, “My dad can beat up your dad!” 

Today, we see a totally different picture. Too often we hear women complaining that their husbands do nothing, they don’t take charge or make decisions, or only act when asked rather than initiating action when it is needed. Men today won’t even make a decision about which restaurant to visit when taking their wife out to eat. The awe or fear that was once felt by their children has been replaced by indifference or annoyance and disbelief. Today, men seem to see their role as bringing home the money that buys the bacon. The kids bypass him and go to their mother for the leadership and approval they once received from him. The role that God created in the very beginning for men has, in too many households, disappeared. The sad thing is men have allowed it to happen, and even support the new status quo. They don’t see themselves as leaders. Their attitude seems to be that they can’t change it so they might as well accept it. They grew up in a matriarchal family and handed over the reins to their wives after they got married. 

While there are certainly many different ideas and theories why this has happened, here is mine. We are influenced by what we see and hear. One of the strongest sources of that influence is television programming. Since the 1950’s, men have been depicted more as fools than as heroes on situation comedies. The standard scenario is, at the end of the program, the wife comes across as the “wise woman” and the husband is depicted as the bumbler, the fool. Think of the original “I Love Lucy” shows. While Lucy was shown as being foolish and in trouble at the beginning and through the middle of the episode, at the end, it was her husband, Desi, who was the fool and she was the wise one. Carry that same train of thought through “The Dick Van Dyke Show” and others from that era. 

Do you want a look at more recent times? How about “Everybody Loves Raymond”? Both Raymond and his father were bumblers, constantly being overshadowed by their wives. The sexual side of marriage was constantly being ridiculed. Raymond was depicted as having to practically beg his wife to make love, and it was often shown as his reward for good behavior rather than a joyous sharing of love and affection between two people who loved each other. 

Imagine a scenario for a situation comedy starring three women who live in the same house: a career woman, her sister, who is a professional, and the sister’s teenage daughter. The career woman amuses herself by cruising the bars and bringing home a guy whose name she doesn’t remember the next morning. The professional sister is socially inept, divorced, and unable to form a lasting relationship. The teenage daughter is rude and disrespectful to both of them. Can you just hear the objections from women calling the show degrading, disrespectful, and a total insult to women? Well, that show was on television for many years, except it is called, “Two and A Half Men!” Just think of the picture it portrays of men and how that could influence people and their view of how men act in this society. By the way, who is the “wise woman” in that show? The housekeeper, of course. 

Your natural objection to the above is, “But these are just comedies, no one takes them seriously, right?” Perhaps they aren’t meant to be taken seriously, but a sixty year diet of them can’t help but influence how men are looked at and treated. God did not create men to be fools or dunces. He did not set them down to be the servant, but rather to lead, to make the critical decisions that need to be made. It is time for men to return to the role which God ordained in the beginning, not as dictators, but has loving leaders.