The Kindness Club

My wife, who is a Registered Nurse, referred to me, her loving husband, a patient of hers who for reasons I won't go into couldn't get transportation to the doctor.  So I took this woman to her doctor's appointment, which is some 70 miles away from her residence.  As is my habit, I brought along a book to read while waiting in the waiting room.  Lately I've been reading Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas whose link is here: http://www.christianbook.com/bonhoeffer-pastor-martyr-prophet-spy/eric-metaxas/9781595551382/pd/551382 .  I'll be posting my reflections on the book, a very engrossing and captivating read, in the days to come.  But I digress.  

While I was in the doctor's waiting room, I was asked by a woman patient, "who's that on the cover on that book?"     

"Bonhoeffer.  Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  Do you know who he was?" I asked her kindly. 

"Was he Russian or something?" she replied.

"No, he was German," I answered back. 

"Oh, what kind of German?" she inquired. 

"The kind who gave up his life to be against Hitler and the Third Reich," I matter of factly stated. 

A long pause ensued.

"So Hitler killed him?" she timidly exclaimed.

"Those under his authority, yes," I answered calmly.  He was executed in prison weeks before the Allies had a chance to find him and to set him free."

Another long pause ensued.

"Who wrote the book?" she asked.

"Eric Metaxas," I replied.  He's a guy the late Charles Colson of Prison Fellowship mentored, who now shares the commentator duties like Chuck did on the Breakpoint program found on the radio and the Internet."

"Charles Colson?" she excitedly exclaimed.  "Prison Fellowship?"  Her eyes grew wider and her expression of recognizing a friend was unmistakable. 

"Yes, Charles Colson of Watergate fame and Prison Fellowship Ministries.  You've heard of him?" I asked.

"Oh, I certainly have!" she exuded.  "I have a son who is a young adult in State prison in Delano."  I gave a sad looking look of recognizance in reply.

She gave her story of woe to me about her son.  Long story short, she is concerned that he will reoffend again and break the law, landing himself in prison once again, becoming an habitual offender and be locked away for years. . . maybe decades.  His heart is not at peace with God, and even though he has watched the thought provoking film The Shawshank Redemption over and over while in prison, is in contact with the chaplain there and sees Prison Fellowship volunteers, he has yet to truly give up control of his life and turn the control over his life to God.  This is the stark reality he is in in the midst of the extreme lack of privacy and the confinement prison affords.

Funny that my employment happens to be behind bars these days as an education professional. . . well, no.  Serendipitous, actually.  The Lord knows what he is doing, and placed such a one as this mother in my purview while I was waiting for the one in their doctor's care.  Get this: seated right next to this woman was another lady, whose husband is locked up in prison for a longer period - decades, from what I heard.  In his case, he has made his reconciliation with God and has received forgiveness for his many sins, and though he is a prisoner and locked up for many more years, the Lord has truly set him free in his heart and spirit!  Across the aisle, yet another woman knew of Chuck Colson and Prison Fellowship. . . I don't remember any of her other details right now.  Was this a God moment or what?

The most natural thing to do in a moment like this, after our first lady poured our her heart concerning her fears about what could happen to her son, and seeing the literal "cloud of witnesses" that shared in her suffering and related to her situation. . . was to pray.  I led us in doing so, all of us holding hands right there under the watch of the medical office's receptionist, who I suppose didn't bat an eye!  (smile)  Tears of joy were shed at the end, and warm hugs as well.  

This kind of moment I'll call "The Kindness Club."  To become a member of it, like Dietrich Bonhoeffer knew so well, one must endure suffering.  But not suffering alone. . . hope is present as well.  Hope in the things of Eternity, where there is no prison except in Hell. . .  and we shall feast at His table, rejoicing at what the Lord Jesus did for us in remitting our many sins. The Apostle Paul knew of suffering and its connection with hope, to wit:  

(Romans 5:3-5, ESV)

  ³ Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, ⁴ and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, ⁵ and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

James also knew of trials and suffering through the testing of one's faith, and its response in (unnatural from the world's perspective) joy:

(James 1:2-4, NASB)

² Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various ^[a]trials, ³ knowing that the testing of your faith produces ^[b] endurance. ⁴ And let ^[c] endurance have its perfect ^[d]result, so that you may be ^[e] perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

John records Jesus saying these immortal words on our subject:

(John 16:33, ESV)

³³ I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

John, later in his life, undoubtably reflected some more on these words of our Lord in this part of his letter (1 John 5:4, ESV):

⁴ For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world— our faith.

Hence the title from the old Gospel hymn, "Faith is the Victory!"  I love indeed the refrain from that song so much. . . in fact, the whole song.  Here it is:

Wonderful to see folks from the United Arab Emirates who are - I take it - literate or becoming literate in English partaking of the Christian faith and singing this marvelous, uplifting old Ira Sankey hymn.  This is how I learned the words to 1 John 5:4. . . and how you can too!  It is part of the "music rumbling through my head," as I mentioned awhile back in a previous post. 

It's not how polished you are in singing it - or living out your faith.  It's about taking His hand and letting him completing the journey with you, taking his yoke upon you, and having a lighter burden, since you allow Jesus to carry the load.  Trusting Jesus, walking with Jesus. . . all the way.  That's how to have true freedom in a place like prison, my friends!  Out of prison too. . .   Until next time. . .

Selah.

Seeds of Destruction

What do the following statements have in common?

• ". . . I'm not understanding what you mean by 'wrong.'"  -- (then) Penn State University President Graham Spanier, February 26, 2001 (1)
• "The janitors were afraid of being fired by reporting a powerful football coach."  -- Judge Louis Freeh, July 12, 2012 (2)
• "With the benefit of hindsight, I wish I had done more."  -- fired Penn State University football coach Joe Paterno, November 9, 2011 (2)

A lack of moral clarity.  A "don't rock the boat" mentality.  Lack of moral courage to do what is right.

I kid you not. . . I have been troubled to hear the news lately regarding the entire Penn State football coaching staff scandal.  An entire university football program is likely in jeopardy and may not continue for a time.  Penalties may well be assessed that will hurt the school's football program and its lucrative financial dealings.  I'm not a fan of football generally speaking, and so a lot of this didn't get on my radar screen until it became headline news.  I'm certainly paying attention now, though. 

It's easy to shrug one's shoulders, give a look of disapproval, and condemn what's already happened at Penn State, which certainly could use prayers from God's people right about now.  The more difficult task is to know how to deal with such a situation and to quote a well known television character from the Andy Griffith Show, Barney Fife, "Nip it in the bud."  For starters. . . 

1) Call a spade a spade.  Call the wrongdoing what it really is.  Sin.  That's right, sin.  Sin is evil, you know.  And sin separates one from the Love of God found in Jesus Christ.  

 27 But he will say, ‘I tell you, tI do not know where you come from. vDepart from me, all you workers of evil!’  (Luke 13:27)  (All verses ESV unless noted otherwise)

From Hebrews 10:

²⁶ For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, ²⁷ but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.

And

  ³¹ It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Admittedly, these are words not often heard from church pulpits in North America.  Yet they remain the true words of God.  Sin and evil are therefore serious business.  I remember well the verse from James 3:1 (NASB): 
Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a ^[a]stricter judgment.

2) The above statement implies, quite rightly, that those who teach - have moral and educational authority over others in their care - have a duty to be accountable to others. . . and most importantly, God Himself.  Here's a selection of some pertinent Scriptures: 

Proverbs 27:17:

Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.

Matthew 18:15-17:

“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.

Galatians 6:1-2:

Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12:

Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

Ezekiel 33:7-9:

⁷ “So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. ⁸ If I say to the wicked, O wicked one, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked person shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. ⁹ But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, that person shall die in his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul.

The Penn State football program had gotten to the point where it dominated the University and had unparalleled power and influence.  What the trustees and those charged with carrying out its mission forgot is sin is pervasive and endemic to the human heart, resulting in death.  That lack of knowledge about sin isn't just from those associated with Penn State, however.  Consider the following exchange I had with a fellow customer at Costco the other day:

Me: Kinda busy in the food court today, eh?

Her: Yeah.  I can deal with it, though.  I just wait and get through it.  Gotta be patient. 

Me: Patience is still a virtue.  Good to know you are willing to be that way. 

Her: Well, I'm really not.  You know, everyone is so busy these days, they make you pushy when you're in line for something.

Me: They make you pushy?

Her: Yeah, they do quite a lot these days.

Me: A wise man once said, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?"  (Jeremiah 17:9, NKJV)  

__________________

Well, that ended the conversation right then and there.  You hopefully get the point. . . they didn't make her pushy. . . she did out of her own volitional will, from her own heart.  But she undoubtedly let this bit of wisdom from God's Word pass her by. . . just like the "common sense" wisdom even the janitors at Penn State had and ignored, allowing Jerry Sandusky to continue his criminal acts in the locker room with his young "guests."  James has this very appropriate word for us to consider:

Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.  (James 4:17 NASB)

That verse has always convicted me.  Ouch!

My takeaway questions I ask myself are these:

• Do I possess moral clarity in my thoughts, words and actions?
• Do I allow myself to be accountable to others who know me and submit to what is right in the sight of God - and most importantly God's Will for me?
• Do I have the moral courage to do the right thing in the face of moral lapses of judgment in others?

I pray God may find me worthy in these despite my manifold shortcomings, and in that Wonderful Day when I am translated into Eternity.

One of David's Psalms gives some insight and perspective I find useful.  From Psalm 139:

 O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
² You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
³ You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
⁴ Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.
⁵ You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
⁶ Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high; I cannot attain it.

⁷ Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
⁸ If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
⁹ If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
¹⁰ even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.
¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light about me be night,”
¹² even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you.

¹³ For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
¹⁴ I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.^[a]
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
¹⁵ My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
¹⁶ Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.

¹⁷ How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
¹⁸ If I would count them, they are more than the sand.
I awake, and I am still with you.

¹⁹ Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God!
O men of blood, depart from me!
²⁰ They speak against you with malicious intent;
your enemies take your name in vain.^[b]
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?
²² I hate them with complete hatred;
I count them my enemies.

²³ Search me, O God, and know my heart!
Try me and know my thoughts!^[c]
24 And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting!^[d]

^{Please pray with me for all those affected by the Penn State football scandal, especially the young men who were once boys that were abused. . . they surely need them.  Until next time. . .}

^Selah.

^{___________________}

^References:

⁽¹⁾

http://www.citizenlink.com/2012/07/12/penn-state-falls-into-a-pit/

(2)

http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/396509-press-release-07-12-12.html

For more background and sources:

http://chronicle.com/article/The-Freeh-Report-Complete/132803/

Some startling statistics on Bible reading. . . and an Antidote

Yesterday, I had the opportunity and the privilege to teach some of the incarcerated youth in one of the several sites Los Angeles County has established for youthful lawbreakers; Challenger Memorial Youth Facility.  The teacher I worked with is a very culturally aware guy, and can speak the kids' language and idioms very well. . . he connects with them tremendously.  Your tax dollars well spent!  

The teacher, Mr. Banks, has several ways to attract his young charges to willingly learn new material and progress in their education.  One of these is the adaptation of the syndicated television Jeopardy! game show for use to these students.  He has category titles such as Nature, Movies, Sports, Football, and HipHop, allowing for his participative groups to contribute thoughtful answers from a knowledge base they currently possess. . . from their life lived on the streets and the 'hood.  He even has a "Final Jeopardy!" question (sans the well known show's musical number so many know the world over) to end each game, worth more points (no dollars behind the locked walls of a county youth camp) than the regular questions.  One of them was "In what year did the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression happen?"  Interesting to see these educationally challenged students reach for textbooks to eagerly search and find the answer. . . 1929.  The winning group erupted in glee!

Mr. Banks also has some language and thinking prompts to start the day he writes on the board each morning.  One of these was entitled "Number Phrases."  Written on the white dry erase board were these three clues to each phrase: "12 s of the Z," "7 D S," and "9 L of the C."  Of course these were 12 signs of the Zodiac, 7 Deadly Sins, and 9 Lives of the Cat.  Guess which one of these three was the most difficult to solve for these students?  Seven Deadly Sins.  They had honestly never heard the term, though they had heard of the Nine Lives phrase and had heard of the Zodiac.  And of course they didn't know that Sins, or Sin caused death.  There you are. . . 

But before we cast a condemning glance to these incarcerated, educationally challenged youth, let's consider some more evidence I've recently come across concerning the larger culture.  Looking at the United States, the general literacy rate in the District of Columbia - where adults read at or below basic levels is 61 per cent.  In Utah, it's 33 per cent.  California is at 46 per cent.  

• 43% of American adults function at or below basic literacy levels – making them incapable of meaningful Bible reading.

• People who are functionally illiterate process information differently than people who are literate – they require story telling and dialog, not exposition, to understand and retain information.

• Only 54% of Protestant adults read the Bible each week.

• 65% of adults who identified themselves as Bible readers have never read the entire New Testament.

The above statistics are courtesy of Faith Comes by Hearing, whose Internet site is here: http://www.faithcomesbyhearing.com/    The link for this particular set of statistics, and more besides, is here: http://www.faithcomesbyhearing.com/pastors-support-materials  Click on "Did You Know?" for the details.  Fascinating stuff. 

*  *  *

There's good news regarding this predicament: the Good News.  The Faith Comes by Hearing folks have developed an Internet site, http://www.bible.is, which has audio Bibles in hundreds of languages for innumerable people groups.  Russian, Arabic, Korean, Tagalog. . . you name it, they have an audio Bible for you to listen to and read along in, via a home computer, MP3 player, or even by using your cell phone.  Bible sticks for the computer literate to use while on the go. . . and military Bible sticks for the U. S. Armed Forces as well.  The English language versions of the Bible - of which there are scores of - are available here also.  Some of the materials developed through them are free. . . others are of a nominal cost.  The English Standard Version I've been listening to lately is well enunciated and read with different voice actors - my favorite avocation which soon, God willing, will become my vocation - to great effect.  Theatrical and memorable audio recordings through these folks.  Well worth your time while at home, at play, or in the car on a commute. . . no more excuses to not get into the Word of God on a regular, even daily basis. 

The English version of the audio Bible I described above is FREE!  This includes both Old and New Testaments.  Simply go to    http://www.bible.is/audiodownloader?dl=1&DAMID=ENGESVN2DA and follow the three easy steps they give.  You'll need to make an account first. . . scroll down to the bottom of the page to click on the blue button to create your user account.  Once an account is made, you may then download the Bible version of your choice for FREE.  

Bottom line: there's now no excuse for people with Internet access - 85 per cent of all Americans - to not read (and hear) the Bible in a version they connect with and understand easily.  I've given the links already to the places on the Internet which provide the Antidote to our Biblical Illiteracy.  Now we need to simply  Read (hear). the. Bible. everyday.  There.  I said it.  I'm talking to me more than I'm talking to you. 

Willing to join me on my journey?  My pastor has challenged our church congregation to read and hear through the New Testament in a 40 day period, reading/hearing about seven chapters a day on average. Let me know if you are joining me on this journey.  I'd love to hear from my readers via the Comments feature.  

A Welcome Respite

While doing the weekly marketing Friday, I came upon a long forgotten occurrence: actual kindness by doing the right thing!  Let me explain.

I was in my local Costco warehouse getting a few things - I avoid getting a shopping cart when I can hold them in my hands, which in itself is countercultural, keeping me focused on just what's on the shopping list - and in line with others at a checkout register stand.  Probably a good two thirds of the registers were manned by the employees. . . a typically busy Friday. 

The checkout lines were on the long side, and I knew that in time another register would open up in all likelihood.  I was right. . . one did to the right of me and the woman ahead of me, who had a cart.  We were asked to move to the newly open checkout stand by the clerk, Patty S., and we proceeded to do so in an orderly fashion. 

This did not suit one Costco member with a cart that insisted on having their own way, however.  This particular woman aggressively barged right in to take the first spot in line in front of us at this newly opened checkout stand.  I sighed. . . and then. . .

"Ma'am, I asked the woman in back of you to come over to my register.  Please allow her to be served and get in back of the gentleman in back of her,"
 Patty S. crisply, but unemotionally stated.  Patty looked directly at her eyes to communicate "I'm not going to check you out until I get the woman I asked to come over to me checked out, and the man behind her."  She never flinched.  What courage!  What chutzpah!  She never took her eyes off the offender of the store's protocol. . . and the opportunistic woman backed down after several tenuous seconds of debating in her mind if she, in fact, could get away with it. 

I thanked Patty S. in person as she checked me out.  I also took the time to let the front end staffers - the people who supervise the checkstand clerks - know just how "by the book" and "old school" this particular action by Patty S. was.  So old, rare and ancient an act, it actually made me think I was transported back into the days of my youth!  I was, of course, enraptured at the proper and gutsy treatment Patty gave the offending woman.  I still am as I'm writing this. 

My encouragement to this retail establishment, Costco, is simply this: be consistent.  Have all clerks do this kind of action in the face of such rudeness as what was on display from the offending woman Costco member.  Over time, and with such united resolve, I believe it is possible to get the general membership of such a place as Costco to change their behavior to one that is less pushy, less shoving and demanding, and frankly, more safe in the physical sense. 

You see, I have a balance problem due to a neurological difference I've had all my life - but was only finally correctly diagnosed in my later adulthood - which makes it difficult for me to keep standing up.  I'm easily knocked down, compared to others.  So from that vantage point, following proper and safe procedures such as the ones Patty S. followed that day reassure me that as I move about, I'm not going to be physically run into by shovers that put me off balance, causing me to fall. . . and quite possibly, get injured.  So major kudos to Patty S. and Costco!  Well earned and deserved praise. 

Then, at my next stop at my regular grocery store, Winco, I encountered a young mother trying to get her young recalcitrant son to get in the shopping cart. . . due to his running around without regard to other shoppers' safety or need to select their own grocery items in an unencumbered manner.  I see far too many kids running around without regard to other shoppers and causing a safety hazard at this store, much less reducing the kindness of allowing each shopper to find their own items hassle free.

"Son, did you hear your own mother?" I asked the boy.  He looked at me quizzically as If I were a space alien from some distant planet. 

"Well, did you?" I repeated to him. 

He dutifully climbed in the shopping cart his mom was using. 

"See, mom!" I chirped back to the now happy mother.  "There's folks who care about your kids here.  I'm old enough to be his grandfather.  Since his dad isn't here, I took his place.  Hope you don't mind. . . "

She smiled and expressed her thanks.  Another moment of bliss on this present Earth.  

*  *  *

I found a YouTube video clip that expresses what doing the right thing with character and integrity does to others around you and can even change the culture, if done consistently and often enough.  Here 'tis:

 

From 1 Corinthians 13 (ESV):

⁴ Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant ⁵ or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;^{[b] 6} it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Patient. . . kind. . . not arrogant or rude. . . not insisting on its own way. . . not irritable or resentful.  Such a world. . . and the World to Come, wherein dwells righteousness!  Ahhh. . . (smile)

Selah.

Pithy Postulates for finances

Time to consider the financial and material side of this present life. . . if only because we have to deal with it.  Heaven, of course, will have far different riches and objects one deals with - mansions, streets of gold, and a banqueting table I very much look forward to sitting at, for starters - and is always a wise place to store one's belongings and treasure.  Indeed!  (smile)  Eternity is what I sometimes wryly refer to as my "deferred compensation plan."

I came across an interesting fellow blogger here on blogspot who came up with what he calls "quotable quotes."  If you know me well, I do my very best to avoid trite and worn out phrases, so I have renamed this post to something far less trite and far more fresh. . . Introducing what may well become an irregular yet periodic feature here, "Pithy Postulates."  I'm reusing his oft-repeated sayings here, while the reflections will be my own.  Just another reminder that true wisdom comes down from the Father of Lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow (James 1).  Those of us who are in tune with what God says in the Scriptures - and most importantly his heart - are hopefully more aware of the generous spreading around of that wisdom among his special creation, humankind.  Hat tip to Robert Platt Bell, whose original post is here: http://livingstingy.blogspot.com/2011/02/quotable-quotes.html  I'd also recommend reading his blog generally. . . from the bit I've read already, he has some sound down home tested from the trenches wisdom about financial management that so many lack.  That intro out of the way, here goes:

•   The more complicated you can make any financial transaction, the easier it is to fleece the consumer.

Buying cars or real estate come to mind here. . . but it needn't be that expensive.  Free toasters when you open an account at a financial institution are an old ploy, as are interest rate deals at the store.  Then there are the television commercials that tell you - always late in the two minute ad - you will get two of the item (such as a magic knife) for the same "low" price if you act now. . . Here's how to order.  For calls in the United States, call 1-800-blah blah blah.  Beware.  Avoiding these could save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars in the transaction. 

• They throw pennies at us, hoping we spend dollars.

This is where the "cash back" deals and the "free miles" from the airlines try to hook you into buying from them, and not their competitors.  I did a bit of calculating on the AmEx credit card offer regarding Costco purchases, especially gasoline, and concluded it was worth perhaps $10 to $20 a month max.  The downside is you pay a monthly statement, not pay as you go.  Pay as you go lets you know the exact state of your finances, if you manage them well (and believe me, I do).  You always spend more using a credit card. . . I learned that back in my marketing classes I took years ago.  Avoid.

• Generate your own normative cues!

The advertising industry - Madison Avenue, as it's called in the trade (hey, back in the day I even took an entire college course on the subject, earning my easiest "A" ever while sleeping through class most of the time) is full of it.  Constantly trying to get you to work against your own self interest financially speaking, buying things you can ill afford.  Ignore them!  I said, Ignore them!  Who invited them into your house as a guest?  You did.  Turn off the TV and/or throw away the direct mail.  You'll be better off for it.  And. . . learn to be more like Jesus, and less like Madison Avenue.  That means you'll be spending more time in the Scriptures, and less time watching the boob tube.  Try it. . . you'll like it!

• Any business relationship predicated on a lie, no matter how trivial, will inevitably go down from there. 

Car dealers that shout from billboards or direct mailers "$199 a month for (blank make/model new car)" are lying to you.  Lying!  Double the figure and you'll get the ballpark real purchase price.  Don't lease.  Ever.  Unless you own a business and use the vehicle in your business.  Who ever only travels 12,000 miles a year like the lease invariably states?  No one.  They'll charge you dearly for the extra miles, costing you hundreds or thousands extra at the end of the lease.  Avoid, avoid unsolicited telephone calls from pitchmen and direct mail directing you what to do with the envelope (the "urgent" marking on the outside envelope ploy or similar).  Just say to the caller, "we have a policy of not accepting unsolicited calls from people we don't have a business relationship with" will do the trick nicely.  I know from experience.  And throw the yucky direct mail away.  Don't even look at the stuff!  'Nuff said.

While in the process of going through the day's activities, a young woman came to the door and stated she was a friend of ours from Tennessee.  We're in California. . . and so that raised my wife's and my own suspicions as to her trustworthiness (lying to us).  Sure enough, she was here to sell us some kind of subscription to get her a scholarship for college - heard that before for many many years.  Told her we as a family policy don't do unsolicted business with folks we don't ask to see. . . she walked away.  See!  Works like a charm! 

• If someone tries to sell you "Peace of Mind," keep one hand on your wallet.

I once worked for an automobile extended warranty company in Tustin, California.  Shady characters.  They "gamed" the company to favor those dealers who sold the most contracts, and favored customer payouts to those who bought extended warranties from these dealers. . . while stonewalling and denying legitimate claims from those who bought their contracts from dealers that didn't sell enough extended warranties to suit the company's liking.  Lawsuits invariably ensued.  If you can't afford the item, do without it.  Don't be a materialist and seek life through your posessions.  True peace, of course, comes only from knowing Jesus.  Not from buying some insurance plan or something. 

• So when someone asks you to cheat, chances are, it is because they want to cheat YOU. 

Don't be involved in a crooked deal.  The only one benefitting from the deal will be the crook!  Don't fall for the car deal that's "too good to be true."  It is. . . and when you wire that money to the person who never showed you the car in person, you can bet your bottom dollar it's never going to be shipped to you.  So don't be a sucker.

• Using the tax code as an investment guide is a bad idea. 

Making purchases or doing things just because there's a deduction or credit in the tax code is just plain stupid.  The tax code changes all the time, and is "gamed" to favor those in political power anyway.  Don't have a K Street lobbyist?  You're not named Warren Buffet or Oprah Winfrey?  Then don't play their game!  Remember, it's not about the abundance of things you possess on this present earth.  It's not about getting the lowest tax bill.  It's about pleasing God while obeying the government taxwise.  Spending money to save money always results in spending money in the long run.  Which reminds me. . .

• You can't deduct your way to wealth!

Oh yeah, some years ago there were these electric golf cart vehicles like the ones Lee Iacocca was involved in that were supposed to pay for themselves via tax credits.  The tax credit was good for the first year, then the government closed that loophole.  Those that fell for this ended up with golf carts that ended up being far from free.  Whatever happened to all those golf carts?  Were they such a good buy after all was said and done?  You be the judge. 

Similarly, lately we've had "Cash for Clunkers" and new car tax credits to spur new car sales.  Those who bought cars then got a better deal than I did, who bought my new car 15 days after the credit expired.  Sigh.  But both of us ended up spending money for new cars, new car purchase tax credit or not.  Spending money is not saving money.  Don't let the tax code rule you. . . let Jesus be your kindly, gentle benevolent ruler and live life according to His will, not the tax code's.

• Act Rationally in an Irrational World

Whatever the hype is, go the other way.  Be like a salmon. . . swim upstream, not with the crowd.  The crowd takes the wide superhighway. . . the pilgrim takes the Road Less Traveled. 

I remember getting sales pitches via the telephone and direct mail telling me now was the moment to buy into real estate.  Buy a house, rent it out for a while, and "flip" it for the easy profit with house prices rising.  Funny thing is. . . as with any purchase, there is a downside risk.  What if you become "upside down" in the rental house's mortgage?  It's happened a lot these days.  We all know how the real estate market is now, right?  Considerably down from where it was a few years ago.  Stay a step ahead of the get rich quick schemers.  Ignore them!

• All advertising is based on the simple premise of persuading a consumer to act in a manner that is NOT in their own financial self interest. 

In other words, why listen to advertisers?  No reason to, unless you like ads for entertainment purposes.  They are acting at cross purposes with what you are trying to accomplish in life.  

Ever notice that companies about to go out of business or are poorly run often do the most advertising?  Why are they advertising in the first place?  Because they don't have good "word of mouth."  They have to recruit folks who've never tried them, the young, the new immigrants, the unaware, the unsuspecting.  And they do it with great precision, let me tell you. Circuit City, Hollywood Video, Blockbuster Video and Montgomery Ward (!) come to mind.  Only one of these is still in regular business anymore.  Two of them are with new owners selling via the Internet.  Don't get me started. . . (grrr. . ..)

• While it may be safer in the center of the herd, the grass is all trampled down and pooped upon.

Don't let the world squeeze you into its own mold; be willing to take appropriate risks in life.  It's hard to eat grass the other cows have eaten.  Get some elbow room - take risks to earn an income and grow your financial situation by not always following the crowd. 

Consider the real estate market from say, 1995 to 2005.  In 1995 most people were risk averse to buying - always a good signal to check out and see if it makes sense to buy (because many folks took their losses in the immediate years prior).  Conversely, in 2005 I had letters and phone calls begging me to sell my property - a good sign that the market was becoming overheated and unsustainable, and yes, about to collapse - a signal to get out of the market.  And it did of course collapse.  As we know now, everyone else was buying at the top of the real estate market in 2005 when that was the time to actually sell.    

Another mistake some people make is to buy every insurance policy covering every circumstance known to mankind.  This include buying extended warranties on things like garbage disposers and home computer printers.  Do yourself a favor: keep your hard earned money and just say no.  Cover the true catastrophic sitations that would bankrupt you, and for the things that you typically go out and replace, don't even consider buying an extended warranty!  Please, folks!  Don't make me beg. . . 

• Never confuse getting lucky with being brilliant.

Don't be overconfident just because you've made some decisions that have panned out financially in a short period of time.  Everyone eventually lucks out and makes worse decisions. . . the law of averages kicks in, you know.  "Take heed where you stand lest you fall," the Apostle Paul said.  Apropos not only spiritually, but financially as well.  Good advice.  Don't overplay the hand God gives you to play.  

• If someone can't explain what they do for a living in ten words or less, they are probably lying to you.

If you hear buzzwords, politically correct talk, or lots of technospeak that sounds really good but doesn't make any sense to you, raise your red flag.  Check it out!  Probably not worth your while to invest in them, employ them, rent to them, or (ahem) marry them.  Who wants to lose from a liar, anyways?  "Let your yes, be yes, and your no be no," James wrote in his letter to the twelve tribes scattered abroad.  Makes good sense, and excellent advice.  Be honest and to the point wherever possible, even if it hurts.  

Please feel free to continue the discussion via the "Comments" hyperlink below.  It would be nice to hear your thoughts as well.

Words (and music) from a fellow Pilgrim

No, I didn't say it, but I wish I had.  Guess who is our guest blogger?

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We get awfully big when we have all that assurance, and all that confidence, and all that jazz.  It's just hard to give it up and get in to where you really want to go.  If you're a very brave person, I highly recommend a serious reading of the scriptures, and instead of always trying to understand it, so that it fits your theology, I would just really like to challenge you to read it and say, "That's what it says; of course it doesn't make sense, it's true!"  And Truth very seldom makes sense. 

We want to become healthy and prosperous and unaffected by the world, and He wants us to encounter the world in such a way as He did, which is a way that will eventually kill us.  So we ask for all the wrong things and we get all the wrong things.  That's why I think it's hard for a rich person to get into heaven, because they've been going the wrong direction for so long it's hard to turn around. 

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These words are from the late great Rich Mullins, who may be gone from this present Earth but not forgotten in many a Pilgrim's heart, including especially mine.  Rich spoke them during one of the last concerts he ever gave two weeks before he died in a tragic Jeep/commercial truck accident in Illinois in 1997.  The story of how he came to give this concert and stay with a family there, plus the concert, words, music and all, are on the following YouTube video.  Enjoy!

If you're looking for the song Rich sang after saying the words I quoted above, here it is:

Is Death a friend?

Yesterday my wife and I attended a funeral for a friend's husband.  He had suffered from Alzheimer's Disease for several years before the moment of death occurred, and his memory departed, leaving his wife, a jewel of a woman, with someone whom she knew. . . but he no longer knew her. 

I give great credit to her for staying with her husband and caring for him in the Alzheimer's facility he was cared for at, even in the face of cross words and unkind thoughts verbally expressed.  Great, great credit.  Difficult to keep with such an unlovely person. . . but by the Grace of God, she did.  The easy approach is to run from and disown such a one. . . and again, to her great credit, she relied on the Grace of God to allow her to love her unlovely husband in the midst of the trial and heartbreak that is Alzheimer's.  That is a great story that she may be proud of to tell others for the rest of her life!

So we attended the funeral at her church.  The pastor there, whom I've not ever met, stood up and offered some words.  Considering what trials her husband went through, and that of the surviving wife present, thinking of the "slow goodbye" which is Alzheimer's, where one's memory eventually fades and is no more, he offered the following thought: "Death can be a friend," the pastor confided to the assembled friends and family in attendance.  He proceeded to say other words in the vein of comforting those present, considering his audience with certain care and forethought.  No words chosen at the last minute from what I could see.  Again, I'm giving this pastor the benefit of the doubt.  I really believe his aim was to be of comfort and encouragement at that moment.  This particular church has gone through a lot of change of late, not much for the better either.  It is now comprised of elderly women as its mainstay, with not many men in attendance anymore.  Not many in their younger years go there anymore, either.  So this church probably deals in death more often than it would like, I would hazard.  Again, I'm seeking to be charitable, especially since this pastor and I have never met or discussed the content of his words spoken yesterday. 

After a nap, my wife and I left for a Gospel Quartet music fest in Bakersfield.  Delightful evening, and loads of unity in the Spirit and hand clapping to boot. . . with moments of funnin' and letting one's hair down!  Wonderful time there.  But I digress.  

As I was driving down the road, I asked my wife, "did you hear that pastor talk about death?"  "Yes," she replied.  "Did you hear what he said about death, though?" I shot back.  "What?" she quizzically mumbled as she relaxed in semisleep with the seat laid back for rest.  

"He said death can be your friend, or death is your friend. . . words like that.  Remember?" I recalled to her.  "Uh, huh. . . I remember that, yes," she said.  

"Now think a minute.  Death is your friend.  What kind of person thinks that kind of thought or says it?" I warbled my forming thoughts out to her.  

"I dunno."

"How about folks overdosing on drugs, suicide victims, people like that?" I pointedly zinged back.  

Ouch. . . 

"You mean. . . " she began as she sleepily formed some thoughts.

"That's right, dear.  This pastor we heard probably meant to say words like 'God was merciful to him by allowing death to finally occur,' but instead it was less precisely said. . . to a point where if one didn't listen closely or know the situation of this man's life or know this pastor well, you might reasonably conclude he believed that death is your friend.  Nothing could be further than the truth, though, right?" I convincingly proffered.  

"Right, honey," she swiftly vocalized to me.  "Death is never good.  How then could it be your friend?"

"Exactly!" I exclaimed.  "You've got it!  Death is never your friend.  In fact, the Scriptures say that Jesus is the victor over Death.  If Jesus defeated death, and Jesus abhors death, how could a state of being that Jesus hates ever be our friend?"

*  *  *

"The thief comes only to kill and destroy.  I came that they may have life and have it abundantly," Jesus told us in John 10:10.  "I am the resurrection and the life.  Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.  Do you believe this?" Jesus asked Martha in John 11:25-26.  I get chills up my spine when I remember these verses from John 11.

⁶ So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, ⁷ for we walk by faith, not by sight. ⁸ Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. ⁹ So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. ¹⁰ For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. (2 Corinthians 5:6-10, ESV)

The King James Version renders 2 Corinthians 5:8 as  ". . . to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord."  Rather countercultural, that.  Yep, this present world isn't all what it's cracked up to be, for sure!  Note that the believer is taken from the body, which dies, and is immediately in the Lord's presence.  Pretty neat, eh?  From death to life. . . Jesus is about life!

⁵⁰ I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. ⁵¹ Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, ⁵² in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. ⁵³ For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. ⁵⁴ When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
⁵⁵ “O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”

⁵⁶ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. ⁵⁷ But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁵⁸ Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:50-58, ESV)

Also:

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:4, ESV)

And:

¹⁷   . . .  “Fear not, I am the first and the last, ¹⁸ and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.  (Revelation 1:17b-18, ESV)

I think it's rather evident from the above Scripture passages that Jesus is not a friend of Death.  Instead, he put death away forever and holds the very keys of Death and Hades! 

Is Death a friend?  I think not!  Time to unfriend Death. . . it separates us from the love of God.  Jesus is the friend of sinners, but not of Death.  We need to be that same way. 

Jesus is the author of life. . . and Satan is the author of death. . . God always being good, Satan always being evil.  Goes with the territory.  Those who say, "God took (name of loved one) away from me!" are speaking from uninformed emotion, methinks, and not from searching the Scriptures with all one's heart and soul and mind.  Angry at death?  Me too!  But get angry at Satan, not God.  Satan is the originator of death.  God isn't.


Selah.