A Sunday night surprise

It gave every indication of being one of our usual Sunday evenings: church attendance at 6:00 PM and then an evening meal afterwards. For years Cleo and I have enjoyed a routine of “breakfast at night” on Sundays (either at home or in a local restaurant) and on this particular Sunday we had chosen an establishment near the Arundel Mills area that served breakfast type dishes around the clock.

I had finished off my senior omelette, Cleo had done damage on her “slam” of choice, we had enjoyed a second cup of coffee, and our young waitress was inquiring as to whether or not we would like to order dessert. Now we enjoy desserts, but hardly ever after a meal of “breakfast” ingredients, so I declined for the two of us and requested my check. A smile formed on her face and she said, “The gentleman in the brown sweater two booths behind has paid for your meal.” Well, I thought she must have been mistaken and told her so, but she insisted that she was simply the messenger of these tidings. I ventured a glance over my shoulder and saw a very young man sitting in the booth in question with two young ladies. I asked the obvious question, “Why?” or perhaps it was more specific, Why us?” She said he was a friend from ’church’ (she did not specify which church and I did not ask) and that he just liked to do this from time-to-time.

After assuring me that he had also given her the “tip” for the meal, she left and Cleo and I began to theorize  the possible ‘reason’ for this generous act. Could he have witnessed our prayer before the meal? Was he a fabulously rich young man who thought his riches  would feel better inwardly if he sometimes shared them with others? Had he picked out an elderly couple he thought might be having difficulty attempting to survive on Social Security in this day and time? Or was this a random “act of kindness” that is often used by evangelical Christians to open the door for a witness for the Lord? Our minds were filled with questions such as who was he; had his parents taught him this gesture; and what, really, was his motive?

We gathered our belongings and walked back to his booth to thank him for his financial gesture of kindness. He shyly received our gratitude but obviously did not want us to make a “big deal” out of it. We left shortly thereafter with our “why” questions unanswered but with a far greater knowledge that there are still some persons in this greedy, narcisstic, me-first, world who want to share themselves — and their goods — with others. Did our young man do this out of a love and commitment to Christ? I don’t know but I hope so. Regardless — his action is a reminder for all of us that the words of Jesus are still relevant and true, “It is better to give than receive”. Maybe his actions — and the GEM it has spawned — will motivate us to “go and do likewise”.

                                         Pastor Jimmy, November 9, 2009

‘A night out with the boys’

I don’t know, nor am I inclined to research the subject, of where the phrase, “a night out with the boys” originated. It obviously alludes to adult behavior rather than that of teenagers and as ordinarily used speaks of an action by someone of male gender. (If female gender is involved – that will call for a separate GEM!!) My best bet of its origin sees the moment as being one of the following: bad argument with the wife, an unexpected arrival of one’s mother-in-law, or the wife is ‘out’ so why not?? But there could be another application – such as a Men’s Retreat!! Yeah – and these are my thoughts regarding that night last week.

It was cold; it was wet, and it was foggy – all of which could have dampened the spirit and enthusiasm of anyone. But on the other side of the experience – the food was great, the fellowship was warm, and the Spirit was present. Our group of men were meeting at Skycroft Conference Center outside Middletown, Maryland and whether lucky or not, I arrived first and gained the honor of choosing my bunk (literally!) first in gorgeous (‘yeah’!) Valley View Lodge. I’d been coming to Skycroft for over 20 years, mostly as a staff member of the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware (BCMD) but this was my first overnighter in that particular location. Upon arriving, (after locating someone to unlock the door for me) I turned on the heat in the two bunk-rooms and the ‘group-gathering’ room, tested the functionality of both bathrooms (they either ‘worked’ or we would move!), and made my bed. Then I walked over to the dining hall, plunked down in the lobby with Mike Huckabee’s newest book, and waited for our guys to start arriving.

“Getting away” every once-in-awhile is good medicine for each of us. The stress in life with which all of us deal guarantees that we will often be “tied in knots” inwardly and a removal from that environment – even if for only 24 hours – can often be as good for the soul as it is for the body. In our ‘retreat setting’ we were just a group of men enjoying the company of one another while at the same time imploring the Lord to grant us a refreshing of His Spirit. In the night’s service there was worship – singing, praying, and hearing God’s Word taught by one of our laymen. What a joy to see ‘men leading men’ without the need of “clergy”. There the Pastor and I were simply participants like all the other men with no big distinction between ‘clergy’ and ‘laity’!

So far – so good regarding the ‘night out with the boys’ BUT bed-time had to follow, and here’s where I missed my bed, my wife, my home the most. Following is a “time synopsis” of that night:

11:15 PM  placed head on pillow, closed eyes, ready for sleep

11:20 PM  opened eyes wondering if from the sounds in the adjacent room,   a bunch of teenagers had invaded our lodge

11:21 PM  repeated actions of 11:15

11:25 PM  gave up actions of 11:21 and starred at bottom of bunk above me while overhearing the tale tails emanating from next-door until miraculously falling asleep

 1:00 AM  awakened by one of our men who decided at the last minute that sleep was a part of the retreat

 2:00 AM  awakened by snoring in our room which probably accounted for lights going on all over the campus (had a bomb exploded or was it the sound of an approaching storm?)

 3:00 AM  awakened by a need that affects most people of my age – ah, the trek down the cold hallway to an even colder bathroom

 4:00 AM  awakened by a discovery of how ‘cold’ I was (could I have been the  idiot who turned off the heat in our room?)

 5:00 AM  awakened from a deep sleep thinking that the “stink bugs” which had attacked our conference room in force were in our room (thank goodness – false alarm!)

 5:45 AM  having been unable to return to sleep, I somehow managed to free myself of sheet and blanket, prepared myself for a new day, and with eyes drooping and body badly in need of coffee, struggled to the dining hall, where I promptly fell asleep in one of its soft chairs

So accounts for my “night out with the boys”! I’m reminded that you ‘win some and you lose some’. The Retreat receives high marks; my “night” just barely gets a passing grade; and the worst thing of it all (even after being warned by my wife) is that I left my pillow behind when I headed home! Oh well, it’s only once a year!! 

                                        Pastor Jimmy, November 2, 2009

 

 

 

When you want to ask ‘why’?

Why? Why? WHY? Isn’t that what everyone wants to ask when there is a death in which we think it either should not have happened or it happened too soon? Examples abound: a young adult cut down by a terrible disease; a teenager killed in a tragic accident; or an infant who struggled to live outside its mother’s womb but simply could not prevail? The latter has in the last few days befallen members of my extended family and, even in the midst of great faith, has, nonetheless, brought much pain and heartache.

Gabriella Grace Jackson, the first child born to my great nephew Matthew and his wife Shannon, after 29 days lost her fight to live last Thursday. She came into this world via a very complicated delivery. From her first moments of life (here) there were indications of the difficulties that faced her. Breathing difficulties, swallowing difficulties, joint difficulties – these and others conspired to afflict her in such ways that there was hardly any way she could have survived.

Having been called on in the course of my decades of ministry to minister to parents and family members in similar situations, I have witnessed the shock, the sadness, the grief that is always present at such times. Non-believers always want to “blame” God even when they do not believe in Him. Some folks will claim that it’s not “fair”, as if everything else in life is. Some will give in to despair, and allow such to practically overwhelm them for weeks, months, even years. But there are always those followers of the Christ, who with tears flowing down their cheeks and a tremble in their voices echo the words of Job, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” (1:21 NIV) Gabbi’s (as she was affectionately labeled) parents have already strongly identified themselves in this latter category. Following are Matthew’s own words, posted on his Facebook wall, shortly after his daughter’s death: “Our little girl is in the arms of Jesus. Thank you to all of those that have prayed for Gabbi! She was a beautiful, remarkable, and powerful little girl. Her mother and I are the unfortunate ones that we didn’t… get to see Gabbi grow up. But she is praising around the throne today, and we will see her again.” I say, “AMEN, and may God embrace these young parents with His personal love and strength.”

It may be OK to ask the “why” question as long as one realizes that it is most likely that there will be no answer forthcoming. The Christian, rather than pressing God for an answer, stands upon his/her personal faith with the solid belief that God is good; that God does not make mistakes; and that there are reasons beyond our understanding for which we may have to wait until eternity for an explanation. As a child of God, one needs to remember that the Father would never do anything to harm a member of His own great family, but rather that His acts are to be seen in the context of knowing “that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him…”.  So to Matthew and Shannon, family members, and all who have suffered similar losses – take heart, be strong, know that many are still praying for you, and above all, remember that God loves you and that you, like David of old, will be united with your dear little one in “the sweet by and by”.

                                        Pastor Jimmy, October 26, 2009        

The help a good lunch can provide

I just returned from a very interesting lunch meeting with some of my ministry peers. The gathering was hosted by BCMD (specifically Bob Simpson) and included not only a very fine meal, but helpful discussions about our ministries, needs and happenings in our churches, and some comments concerning a book from an earlier meeting Bob had given us to read. The most intriguing part of the entire session, however, was conducted by Dr. Tom Rodgerson, professor at Loyola, an adjunct staff member at BCMD for years and until recently Director of the Centrepointe (Christian) Counseling Service. He shared with us the importance of knowing – and understanding – both the timeline (or “history”) of the churches we are serving and one’s own personal background/history.

Now you would think that each person – whether he/she is engaged in professional “church-work”, would already be well aware of his/her own personal history. Dr. Rodgerson made it quite clear, however, that many such persons do NOT simply because their knowledge, and thus their understanding, of their personal history is often too limited. He insisted that knowledge of three sets of “families” would be necessary for a true grasp of one’s personal situation. The three families are: (1) family of origins (dating back to one’s grandparents); (2) immediate family; and, (3) of special significance to Christians, one’s church family. In what was almost a three point sermon, he claimed that the ARENA in which we live and move – the aforementioned three families – should be areas of relationships of love; that one’s ATTITUDE at all times must be one of openness to revelation (by which he means what we can learn from others) and should at all times seek to be consistent with the “mind of Christ”; and that there always needs to be AWARENESS of movement from outside to the inside in one’s life and visa-versa. By this he means that things ‘outside us’ are to be internalized and from who one truly is, internally, find their way outward into everyday living. Finally, he is a firm believer that in the “church family” side of this three-pronged equation, the history of one’s church (events, leadership, traumas, attitudes, successes, failures, strengths, weaknesses, friends, enemies, etc.) play an immense part in developing and rounding-out these areas of arena, attitude, and awareness. Dr. Rodgerson is a professional counselor, a teaching professor, and a former Baptist pastor. He is a highly respected leader and a long-time personal friend. His father, Phil Rodgerson, was a personal peer Director of State Missions (Virginia) when I held the same position in Maryland/Delaware.

You may wonder why I am writing of this meeting in today’s GEM. There are at least the following three reasons: (1) I am a firm believer in Rodgerson’s basic thesis, namely that knowledge and understanding of one’s three families is very important; (2) Rodgerson’s presentation today that the development of the right kind of attitudes depends to a great degree upon one’s willingness to be open to what others reveal to him/her about oneself: and (3) in a spirit of total honesty – I needed a topic for today’s article. Lying awake last night did not produce one; coming to work early with a prayer that the right one would be evident to me when I sat down at my computer didn’t work either; but lo, and behold, after a meal that included both crab-cakes and crème brulee, I was sufficiently enthused, informed and inspired to produce – for you, my readers – this essay that undoubtedly will do for you one of two things: either add greatly to your personal accumulation of educational information or be the cause of an absolute certainly that this is the last GEM you will ever read!

I’ll be delighted to know your decision.

                                         Pastor Jimmy, October 19, 2009

Multiple uses for your Sunday bulletin

Because I am, technically, a “part-time” staff employee of our church, I have very specific tasks and responsibilities that were written into my contract when I was called to this position in the summer of 2006. However, with the passage of time, and as in many similar situations, needs change, responsibilities are added or deleted, etc. In my case, since the start of our early service in April, 2008, I have taken upon myself the task of making certain after the early service that in preparation for the late service the pews and floor are free of left-overbulletins/inserts/Kleenex/trash etc.. Then on Mondays, I do the same – “cleaning up” after the late service of the day before. You (unless you are the one or ones doing it!) would be surprised what I find in the pews and on the floor. Gum-wrappers and candy foils are to be expected as are a certain number of soiled tissues – BUT – the most interesting items I find are always the bulletins that have been used as writing pads, and left behind. Across the last few months I have collected a few – saving them until an appropriate time to incorporate them into one of my GEMS. Well, since finding a very special one yesterday, I can wait no longer.

Naturally, from time to time I see tic-tac-toe games – mostly in which there is no winner. I also see quite a few ‘stick persons’ who one would think were drawn by young children, but then one really does NOT know. (I’ve known a few adults who couldn’t draw a straight line if their lives depended on it!) There are also pictures of animals. Sometimes it is difficult to know whether it is a dog, horse, or dinosaur that is being portrayed! In one bulletin I found the owner was a “counter” with circles around the Order of Service items which were in italics and bold print with a big Arabic numeral after each one. (Maybe each item was being “graded”; who knows?) Then there are the bulletins were the writer has chosen to draw symbols, write “names’ (his/her own, or someone else’s?), numbers (I was fascinated by the one who wrote everything in “fractions”. Maybe getting ready for a test or deciding an offering amount!) There are the usual number or a name plus a name within a big heart – yeah, we all recognize that activity!

Of course there are the ones which are obviously two-part (or more) where statements are said or questions are asked. Rather unusual was the bulletin that contained the question “Did u like the nacho? Did u like the nugget?” and then of all things, asked “Did u like the confetti?” Pray tell – what did that mean? One asked “Why did you NOT like ….? (a certain girl’s name). One of my favorites (and, oh yes, I do have favorites and I just love trying to imagine who wrote what!!) was the bulletin that had the following two statements on the front page: “Your (no, that’s not a misprint) making me hungry” and “Do you think we could go look for black pants today?” You make the correlation; I can’t! Naturally you are thinking that all of these are written/drawn by children and/or adolescents. Well, how do you interpret the one I found that said, “Hi, … (girl’s name), “Are you glad I’m your dad?” Fortunately, the respondent answered, “yes”.

But yesterday’s ‘find’ took the first place ribbon. Someone, most likely a child, had taken the “Deacon Nominating” insert sheet and on both the back and front had used it to write the word JESUS in various ways 10 times. There were also ‘hearts’ and ‘emphasis lines’. I thought: “Whether listening to the sermon or not, this one somewhere had gotten the message.”  JESUS is the message; wouldn’t you agree?

As a kind of  post-script to this article, I want it known that on the days I preach, I take the bulletins I find and throw them away without researching what they might contain. Draw your own conclusion!

                                       Pastor Jimmy, October 12, 2009

 

Goodbye, guilt!

Here it is, Friday, my day “off”, and I’m feeling really guilty! (Now before we get into the cause of such I should confess to you that because some Mondays are rather hectic, it is not at all unusual for me to write my GEM for the next week at an early date.) But back to my feelings of “guilt”!

I think it all stems from the fact that I stayed in bed an hour longer this morning than I usually do. You see, my usual ‘sleep time’, as I wrote in a GEM a few weeks ago, is to retire somewhere around midnight (the entire Jackson clan have always been ‘night-owls’) and rise at 7:00. My ‘body clock’ is set for that time and thus, I nearly every day am awake a few minutes before the alarm goes off. In fact, the last several months have seen me often wide awake 30-45 minutes earlier, and rising out of bed at that time to start the day. (What is the use of lying in bed, fully awake and knowing that you can’t go back to sleep?)

Well, this morning my eyes flew open at 6:53. I drug myself out of bed, careful to not awaken Cleo (she wants those last 6-7 minutes of sleep!); traipsed to the bathroom, but then instead of beginning the morning ‘ritual’, returned to bed, climbed in, and was “out” before the alarm went off. I don’t even remember hearing the alarm, but at some time I was conscious of Cleo leaving the bed and then before I knew it the clock on our TV registered 8:10! I thought to myself, “That’s obviously a mistake. When there is so much to do — and so little time to do it — how could I have stayed in bed an extra hour? NO WAY!” I laid there thinking that I should be ‘up’ and doing something constructive  –  like re-reading the latest refusal of my health insurance company to pay my medical obligations or writing a “to do” list for, say, the first week in December or re-arranging my ‘sock’ drawer or trying to decide in which dumpster to throw our bathroom scales or play a game of Solitaire on the computer or go outside and flick some stray ‘grass-in-the-wind’ off Cleo’s new car!! See — s-o-o-o-o much that I could have been doing, but, no — lazy me sawing logs in bed for an extra, non-productive hour! Yikes! I could have even used the time to write next week’s GEM!

Maybe I stayed in bed that extra time because I was afraid to get up. It probably had something to do with the dream I was having — a dream about certain of our church membership  deciding that they had enough  of my foolishness  and wasting their time by insisting that they read my weekly mailout. In the dream it seemed that I had told them how brilliant my words were, how “well-thought-out” my articles were, how accolades were pouring in regarding my manner of sharing my far-above-average intelligence by means of sentences and paragraphs. They had listened; they had read; and they were appalled! They felt slighted, cheated, manipulated — and those were only the ’nice’ words they used — as they drug me toward the river! Most of them knew my inability to swim, having never done so in my youth, and after failing lessons in ay adult years having simply given up trying to learn. They knew that throwing me off the bridge would result in folks believing I had taken my own life — a direct result of being unable to assimilate all the negative mail I had received from people who had read my GEMS and concluded that their days were ruined!

That’s when I awakened! Climbing out of bed as quickly as possible I vowed I would do the right thing — namely, write a GEM that would explain all and secure the forgiveness of those misguided weekly readers who have been ’hooked’ on my ’easy-to-read-without-saying-anything’ blog. And I would be free of my “guilt”!

Mission completed!! Do I ever feel better! The truth sometime hurts — even when you’re asleep! Today’s GEM has helped in absolving my guilt and so now, until next week, and my next Pulitzer article – adieu.

                                              Pastor Jimmy, October 5, 2009

Commercials and Scripture

A great deal of my time when I am home is spent watching “sports” events. Whatever the “season” might be – football, basketball, baseball, golf, tennis, auto racing, track and field, etc. – you might find me before my TV set. Now, just in case you think me lazy, you should know that I often multitask while watching TV. It’s not unusual for me to be also reading, studying, writing, vacuuming the floor around my feet (well, at least the first three were honest and three out of four ain’t bad!) 

But all of the above is simply to relate that I also see an awful lot of  commercials. I’m really fascinated by the “catch” statement at the end of certain of these which undoubtedly are to unable people to remember the product when they hear or see the statement. For example, “Think outside the bun” should make us think of – right, Taco Bell. Now what I’ve done is take some of these statements and attempt to see if they could be made to help us think of certain Scriptures. Want an example? OK, let’s try Toyota’s which is “Moving Forward”.  In Exodus 14:15 (KJV) with Moses and the Israelites at the Red Sea, God says, “…speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward.”  

Now that you have the method in mind, follow me with a few others –

Wells Fargo, “Together we’ll go far” – Matthew 4:19 (NIV) “Come follow me, Jesus said, and I will make you fishers of men.”

Southwest Airlines, “Grab your bag – it’s ON” – Joshua 1:11 (NIV) “Go through the camp and tell the people, ‘get your supplies ready. Three days from now you will cross the Jordan…’.”

PNC Bank, “Leading the Way” – Exodus 13:21 (NIV) “By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or by night.”

Wendy’s, “It’s way better than fast food” – John 21: 12, 13 (NIV) “Jesus said to them, ‘Come and have breakfast’…Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish.”

Nationwide Insurance, “I’m on your side” – Matthew 28:20 (NIV) “…And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

McDonald’s, “I’m lovin’ it” – John 3:16  (KJV) “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

State Farm Insurance, “Like a Good Neighbor” – Luke 10:36, 37 (NIV)  “‘Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The expert in the law replied, ‘The one who had mercy on him.’ Jesus told him, ‘Go and do likewise.’”

AT & T, “Your world delivered” – Genesis 2:1, 2 (NIV) “Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work that He had been doing…”

Met Life (Insurance). “For the ‘if’ in Life” – James 4:14 (NIV) “…You do not even know what will happen tomorrow….”

New York Life (Insurance), “The Company you keep” – Psalm 1:1 (NIV) “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers.”

Ford, “Drive one” – 2 Kings 9:21 (NIV) “‘Hitch up my chariot,’ Joram ordered. And when it was hitched up, Joram king of Israel…rode out.. to meet Jehu.”

Lowe’s, “Let’s build something together” – Matthew 7:24, 25 (NIV) “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house upon a rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock.”

There are lots more but I’ll end with my favorite (with somewhat  ‘tongue in cheek’) –

Cialis, “When the moment is right – you can be ready” – 1 Peter 3:15 (KJV) “…and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.”

So the next time you hear a commercial’s ‘tag’ line, why not change it into Scripture!

                                     Pastor Jimmy, September 28, 2009

What is it about this word “UP”?

Some months ago one of the men in our church sent me the following ‘article’ with the title, “What is it about this word ‘UP’”? I’ve saved it for just such a day as today when my brain seems to be dried “UP”!!  Read and enjoy!

Lovers of the English language might enjoy this…..How do non-natives ever learn all the nuances of English???

There is a two-letter word that perhaps has more meanings than any other two-letter word, and that word is “UP”

It’s easy to understand UP, meaning toward the sky or at the top of the list, but when we awaken in the morning, why do we wake UP?

At a meeting, why does a topic come UP? Why do we speak UP and why are the officers UP for election and why is it UP to the secretary to write UP a report?

We call UP our friends and we use it to brighten UP a room, polish UP the silver, warm UP the leftovers and clean UP the kitchen. We lock UP the house and some folks fix UP the old car.

People stir up trouble, line UP for tickets, work UP an appetite, and think UP excuses.

To be dressed is one thing but to be dressed UP is special.   

This following up is really confusing: a drain must be opened UP because it is stopped UP.

We open UP a store in the morning but we close it UP at night. We seem to be pretty mixed UP about UP!

When it threatens to rain, we say it is clouding UP. When the sun comes out we say it is clearing UP.  When it rains, it wets UP the earth.

When it doesn’t rain for awhile, things dry UP.

To be knowledgeable about the proper uses of UP, look the word UP in the dictionary. In a desk-sized dictionary, it takes UP almost 1/4 of the page and can add UP to about thirty definitions.

If you are UP to it, you might try building UP a list of the many ways UP is used. It will take UP a lot of your time, but if you don’t give UP, you may wind UP with a hundred or more.

Now I could go on and on but that would most likely truly try your patience. So, since my time is UP and this GEM needs to be wrapped UP, I’ll simply shut UP!  Blessings —

                                            Pastor Jimmy, September 21, 2009

The saga of buying a new car!

In American society, too often it seems that purchasing a new automobile is often thought of as something just slightly less than having won the lottery! No matter the debt incurred, the pressure for some of life’s more pressing needs, or the worth of less glamorous acquisitions, a “new” car says to all concerned — instant, visible success! Believe me when I say that’s not what I had in mind a few weeks ago when I signed on the dotted line for a brand new Honda Accord. 

It all began in the spring of 1998 when I purchased a 1997 Mercury Sable automobile. Due to my superior (?) intelligence I knew even then that if I lived long enough I would have to buy yet another car! Not that I would want to – for to me an auto has always been simply a vehicle for transportation and not in any way a status symbol. But a few weeks ago the “time” finally arrived. Following is the context of this decision.

It begins with 126,000 miles and ends with a $250 repair bill that is significant, not because of its price, but because it was necessitated by a highway break-down incident that was both scary and terribly inconvenient. During the eleven year interval, the car ran well – but — set me back mucho dollars in repairs. It was for this reason that I, under my breath, gave it the name Vesuvius because I never knew when it might erupt! It was basically Cleo’s car and lately I began to worry much more as to when the next incident might take place. Thus the impetus for first searching for, and then purchasing a new car.

Why is it that you can’t walk into a “Walmart for cars”, find what you want, take it to the check-out counter, pay the money, bag it and take it home? No, NO!! That’s not the way it works. First you must deal with the countless “brands”. Yes, I know that G.M. is losing some of theirs, but because of our insatiable desire for differences there are still too many. Then there is the matter of which “model”, and some brands still offer a couple of dozen. Next a decision must be made regarding the number of cylinders you want under the hood. Once you have settled on brand, model and cylinders there is the entire alphabet with which one must deal. In my case it was EX, LX, or LXP — and I insisted they stop there before the salesman sang the “alphabet song” we all learned as children. Of course there is the decision regarding “color”. Why can’t cars just be blue instead of “heaven’s magic” or red instead of “fire’s flame” or, in my case, gray instead of “polished metal”? Following the decision on color, one must be made regarding the shade of the interior. Then there is the matter of transmission — manual or automatic? Wheels – “alloy” or other? Accessories ad nauseam! But finally — it’s the car that you want!

Now, you think, here comes the “fun” part — negotiating the cost and my stomach was doing flips. I knew my credit was good — but did the computer say it was? Then there were the options: lease? buy with cash? mortgage your future with payments for 24, 36, 48, 60, or even 72 months? (I chose “layaway” at $5.00 a week but was informed that such was not an option!) Then there was also the matter of “trade-in”. When I was told how much Vesuvius would bring — or in my case not bring — my emotional self wanted to cry while my pragmatic self said ‘Yes’! And once the price was decided I was only half-way through the money maze for then I had to deal with warranties, Lo-Jac insurance, tags and taxes. By then, I was wondering if there were a used rickshaw for sale somewhere in the area! But suddenly it was done — they had my signature, likewise Cleo’s, and our check. I could only hope that the bank would not laugh when the dealership sought to cash it!

And now I hope for you, my faithful readers, that when your “time” comes that you have as little misery and as much fun as I did in this entire episode. And also I hope that you get to drive it sometime — just like I do about myself with Cleo’s new car!!

                                     Pastor Jimmy, September 14, 2009

All in a day’s cycle #3: WORK

In the third and final part of my writing about a day’s 24 hour cycle, today’s GEM deals with WORK. Once again I remind my readers that it is usually agreed that our days are broken down into the following three (3) equal parts of eight (8) hours each — work/ personal time (or play)/sleep – and since the publishing of this article will take place during this year’s Labor Day weekend it seemed appropriate to consign this topic to this time-frame.

If you are Biblically literate you know that the necessity of “labor” in the human situation can be traced to God’s statements to Adam and Eve after their sin in the Garden of Eden. He said to Adam that as one ramification of his sin, “by the sweat of your brow you will eat your food…” (Genesis 3:19a  NIV) thus signifying that “work” was to be a necessity for surviving in life. Many have interpreted this requirement as a “curse” upon mankind — and thus have come to believe that all “work” is punishment of one sort or another. However, it does us well to realize that whereas the Book states that God did place a curse upon the serpent and likewise upon the ground, He never used that term in pronouncing His judgments upon the man and the woman. Also, since God had already given the task of “labor” to Adam (“The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.”  Genesis 2:15 NIV) it is difficult to see this as a new part of God’s plan. Naturally the curse upon the ground would make all work harder and the survival of the human race would be dependent upon such, but to think of it as an addendum to God’s plan and as punishment only is a ‘stretch’ I am unwilling to make.

I state the above because it seems to me that many persons, caught in the complicated web of today’s fast-moving pace of life, and often hating the jobs to which they are bound, want to blame God even for the necessity of “work”. When they say, “Work is hard; work is long; work takes me from other things that I would rather be doing!”  they would be right. But what they are omitting is that in God’s sight, work is important! Could this be the basis for Paul’s comment, “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” (II Thessalonians 3:10b NIV) Yes, I’m aware that the context of Paul’s words deal with “idleness”, but even so, he is saying that work is God’s plan!

Whether a man or a woman, one’s labor should produce ’more’ than just food on the table and a roof overhead. It should produce productivity in the larger context of the society in which one lives and bring personal fulfillment in one’s life. I have real sorrow for any person who hates his job and feels that every day is simply a grind in order to live.

I love my work! “Why don’t I retire?” some ask me and my answer remains the same — I love what I have been called to do. I would hope that each person who has access to these  words, whatever his or her ‘work’ is, would feel the same way — that God has placed them there, given them a job to do, and will bless them in their labor. After all, our labor here will be good preparation for the life to come. What?? Surely you don’t really believe that all we are going to do in Heaven is sit on a cloud, strum our harp, and be lazy! Nope, not me. There will be work to do there and we will LOVE it! My advice — get ready for it here by doing the very best you can in the work that you have been given and are privileged to do.

                                              Pastor Jimmy, 09/07/09