Gray-headed crown

The last time I was at the salon, my hairstylist, remarked, "You sure do have a lot of gray hair."  She said it more with more surprise than compliment in her voice.  Personally, I have always thought gray hair was attractive on many people, but I did share her concern that I was graying in my late twenties.

The Book of Proverbs declares that, "Gray hair is a mark of distinction; it is a gift of righteous living."  Why is something that our culture usually tries to hide considered an attractive feature in Biblical times?  I think a couple of reasons could be presented as valid.  Gray hair is usually associated with advancing age.  The Old Testament writers firmly believed that as a general rule the righteous would outlive the wicked.  While everyone knows of good people who die young and cruel-hearted people who live to be elderly, it is true that many ungodly choices lead to a decline in physical health.  Violence, drugs and alcohol and decisions made while impaired can all rob a person of the years that lead to gray hair.  I believe there is another reason that gray hair is considered virtuous in Scripture as well.  Many people associate gray hair with worry.  While it is certainly not good to be a worried individual, according to this reasoning gray hair could well be a sign that a person has convictions and has made hard decisions.  People who never consider the consequences of their actions and who never wrestle with difficult moral choices cannot appreciate the beauty of wrinkles and the righteousness of gray hair.  Men with a conscience and an awareness of their own shortcomings bear these realizations in their physical bodies.  If gray hair is caused by stress, every thinking person should have a few gray hairs due to situations faced and overcome.

The next time you are looking in the mirror and see some wrinkles and some gray staring back at you, be thankful.  Many people never reach the maturity to see these signs of age.  With each line and each gray hair you can remember battles fought and won.  You will be able to say, "I may have gray hair, but I have a story for every single one."  Let us remember that maturing of the internal is more important than the adoring of the external.  Let us embrace who we are and the challenges and blessings that made us that way.

Birthday blessing

As of early this morning, I am now 28-years-old.  My life is a mixture of family, education, church activities, sickness, blessings and regrets.  Over the years, I have done many things I take pleasure in remembering.  At other times, however, I have done much to regret.  What I must always try to remember is that now is the only time I can come close to controlling.  I cannot go back and undo my mistakes anymore than I can continue to live in my past successes.  Each day, each hour, each moment of the present must be spent in growing and maturing as a person.  I want to be the type of person that other people can follow to a more Christian way of life.  I want people to be able to imitate me and, in doing so, become more like Christ.  I pray that we all will continue to grow up into the image of Christ regardless of what age we are.  May God continue to bless us as we continue to grow in Him.

“Try not to become a man of success. Rather become a man of value.”

~Albert Einstein

Never doubt influence...

“The one indispensable requirement for producing godly, mature Christians is godly, mature Christians.” 

~Kevin DeYoung

"Treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you help them become what they are capable of becoming."

~Goethe

Pi Day

It is March 14, 2012 (3/14/12).  

Some of my more academic (dare I say, nerdy) friends call this day Pi Day based on the mathematical figure that begins 3.14 and carries on into infinity.  Other friends will be marking today as the halfway point of Lent as they are on their journey to the cross.  For me it is Wednesday, the day in the middle, never my favorite day.  Wednesday seems so far from the social times and fun of the weekend ahead and also so distant from the refreshment of last Sunday's worship.  The vast majority of our lives it can seem are spent in the middle...looking back on past failures and successes and dreaming of future adventures yet to come.

Learning to live well on days that in all ways seem ordinary is a skill that it is wise to develop.  Not everyday can bring excitement and if we had excitement everyday it would no long excite us.  Not everyday can lead to breakthroughs and beginnings for us.  Some days are just in the middle of life and have no outward specialness of their own.  We don't grow most though on our birthdays, but rather we grow on the 364 days between the lighting of candles and eating of cake.  Never forget that even in the most ordinary of days you have an opportunity to grow.  Whether it is in renewing a friendship, expanding your mind or being good to your body, the small acts of kindness you pay to yourself will in the end define your days.  Be gentle with yourself and use the ordinary to grow better and bolder.

The Real SMASH

With the new show SMASH creating quite a stir on cable, I thought some of you might be interested to see a brief clip from Lea Salonga's audition for Miss Saigon.  You will see the two writers (who also wrote Les Miserables - one is the man who gives the autograph and plays piano) and you will also spy a very young Cameron Mackintosh on the panel.  Salonga would originate the role of Kim in Miss Saigon, play both female leads in Les Miserables at different points, and later be known for being the singing voice for Disney princesses.  This clip is so raw and she is just starting out, but it seems as if the people in the room know that she is going to be something very special.

Learning to teach

"Good teaching is one-fourth preparation and three-fourths pure theatre."

 ~ Gail Godwin

One of the great things about getting to teach so often is that one gets to present ideas in a way that is both educational and entertaining.  I believe that teaching is a gift that, while it can be honed, is usually a natural talent.  The best teachers I have had, whether in the church, the classroom or in the realm of life, made learning exciting and fun.  A certain element of drama is involved in teaching.  Certainly knowledge and preparation are important as a teacher, but at least as equally as important is the ability to translate that raw information in a lively and thoughtful way. 

My grandmother is a gifted storyteller and was wonderful at the presentation part of teaching.  What she lacked in knowledge about pirates, Native Americans and famous battles from the past, she compensated with a dynamic delivery and cliff-hanging presentation style.  This method of teaching encouraged us as children to then investigate the subject further in our own time.  Had it not been for her detailed and dynamic style, I might never have been motivated to such a great interest in history and folklore.  Fortunately, I was blessed with a childhood that encouraged reading, investigating and learning.  I believe this attitude toward learning demonstrated by my grandparents and parents motivated my sister and I to be life-long learners.  One benefit of loving to learn is that you will almost naturally come to love to share your knowledge with others.

In addition to family influence, another teaching example stands out to me.  I had a brillant Bible teacher during my undergraduate education.  In his class on Acts of the Apostles, he demonstrated a breadth of knowledge that far out-distanced my previous experience with the material.  Having more than just knowledge, he taught the course as if you were really there with the early Christians experiencing the same dramatic events that are witnessed in that book.  I learned so much in that class both from his knowledge and his teaching ability.

If you are preparing to teach please remember: knowledge of the subject matter is valuable and essential but so is the ability to relate that information to your audience.  When these two elements are joined together in the right proportion for the situation, learning is sure to result.

Life's Photo Album

I was online yesterday and saw some photos that a couple that are friends of mine had posted.  The photos chronicled the first 2000 days of the couple's marriage and life together.  It was neat to see the scenes change from wedding day to times with friends to mission work they shared to the birth of their first child.  All the photos were marked as Day 1, Day 298, Day 1,000 and so on.  They had clearly thought about taking photos along the journey and documenting their life together.

Seeing this collage of photos made me think about all the various events that have happened in my life since I became a Christian.  Day 1 might read baptized into Christ in Alamo, TN.  After a few months, a day would be set aside for preaching my first sermon.  Still later dates would record mission trips, attending a Christian college, baptisms performed, weddings officiated and on and on.  Hopefully, just as my friends saw their marriage grow, my Christian life has been growing as well.  Each one of us is adding an entry to the journal of life with each day that passes.  Some days we want to remember while other days we would rather forget.  As we live the Christian life, I hope that we are having a positive impact on others.  I hope we are growing in a knowledge of God's word and will for our lives.  I hope we are becoming stronger rather than weaker in our service to God and to others.

We all have photo albums or computer files filled with photos.  We may use these to remember the Christmas of the bad haircut or the graduation where we had gained some weight.  We document so much of our family life, our community life and our social life.  Let us not forget to at least mentally take snapshots of our spiritual progress.  As we do this hopefully we will be able to look back and see change, difference and growth as we mature in Christ.

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” 

-Mae West

Pure emotion...

School starts back

When I was a child, one of my favorite experiences each year was the return of school in August.  I always enjoyed school and school activities and never dreaded the prospect of returning to the classroom.  August meant the start of preseason football, being assigned new teachers and seeing which friends were in each class.

When college arrived, I continued to look forward to the start of school.  After my freshman year, I always arrived back on campus early to help the new students move into the dorms.  It was always exciting to learn what everyone had done over the summer and to start the year together.

Best wishes to those, young and old, who are starting a new school year.  May you learn much and enjoy your experiences!

Sharing troubles

It has been said that troubles or worries kept to one's self will only multiply while trouble shared is divided and therefore easier to bear.  I am not sure what I think about that sentiment, but I was able to mutually share some troubles and worries with a couple of great friends this week.

My two friends are very different from each other, but all of us have experienced ups and downs since college.  Both of my friends are in graduate programs and hearing their insights about romance, education, politics and religion was refreshing.  I am seldom around people my own age especially people struggling with some of the same questions I wrestle with.  This week proved very positive as I was able to look back over the last decade and see how my life has grown and changed. 

Having old friends is a blessing and seeing them is even better.

Life changes and perspective

Those of you who know me well know that I am not the best at romantic relationships.  In college I dated a lot of people for various lengths of time.  Currently three of my former girlfriends who were all significant in my life and growth as a person are now married and expecting their first child. 

This fact has made me realize a couple of things: one, that I would not change any of those relationships or how they turned out.  These three ladies are now each happily married and very happy in their locations, careers and families.  I am not married, as you know, but am in a quite content season of life as a single person doing a job I love. 

Secondly, I am glad for the ability to remember good times in my dating relationships.  Each of these women were enjoyable to be around, good at listening and are genuinely caring people.  Just because we did not form lasting romantic relationships does not mean I do not still think highly of each of them. 

Finally, I realized that I have changed a lot since college.  Obviously, my health problems have played a part in those changes, but I think the maturity that has come in the last five years has radically altered the way I view life and relationships.  Since leaving college dating behind, I have had a positive, adult relationship with a wonderful woman.  While that relationship ultimately evolved from a dating situation to a mutual friendship, I learned so much about what I want in life as a result.

For along time I was ashamed of my dating behaviors in college.  I was inexperienced and immature.  Now I realize that past mistakes do not have to define my future in any area of my life.  I am looking forward to whatever life has to offer and hope that the lessons I have learned will enable me to meet its challenges.

Thank you for all the cards, e-mails, Facebook messages and Happy Birthday expressions over the last few days. As we grow older, we begin to think about our lives and if we are making an impact on the people around us. While the words we say are important, the example we set is even more so.
What do you want to accomplish spiritually in the rest of 2011? Perhaps you need to be more faithful in your attendance at worship and Bible Study. Perhaps you need to make a public commitment to Christ by being baptized into His church. Perhaps you need to begin reading the Bible across the course of your week. Some of us no doubt need to improve our prayer life. We may even need to make things right between ourselves and someone we've offended or hurt.
Whatever we need to do to improve our relationship with our Heavenly Father, we can start today. God is always ready to hear and see us and He wants us to make the changes we need to in order to spend eternity with Him.

All the chapel bells are ringing...

Over the last couple of days I have been writing out two different wedding ceremonies that I am going to perform in the next few months.  Both are young couples from the Lebanon congregation where I preach and I am excited that they each have asked me to share their special event.
I am one of those people that usually cry at weddings, births, funerals and baptisms.  I just find milestone moments in life both sad and happy at the same time.  These two couples, for example, will be leaving behind a measure of freedom that they have had and exchanging it for the responsibilities of marriage.  Of course great blessings also come with marriage that are not available to them as single people.  It is hard for me to realize that a great number of my friends are married and many of them are having children.  Life certainly moves fast and the days have seemed to speed up lately.
I am just hanging on for the ride!

In this moment...

"Progress means not just changing, but changing for the better." -C.S. Lewis

What progress have I made lately in the realm of the spiritual?  True, I may have outwardly left off some vices and be displaying a more steady religion, but what about the inward person?  I feel often times that I draw near to God with my lips, my actions and my deeds but my heart is far from Him.

O, LORD
Give me a purer heart I pray,
A greater willingness to be still
and in that stillness, find Thee.

An ole feelin'...

Talking with a friend about changes we need to make in our lives and we both agreed that we both need to develop a fuller, deeper spiritual existence.  It is hard sometimes in a world that demands instant gratification to learn to wait patiently for each gift in its season.  Following my recent season of physical and spiritual sickness, I feel the need for renewal and refurbishing.  My weekly sojourn with the church in Dresden is helping me remember why I first started preaching.  I first ascended a pulpit because I believed I had something to say that was new and fresh and could speak things about life and God and the God-life in a way that no one I knew was speaking.  I felt connection with the congregations I spoke to and I felt they connected with me and, through me, to God.  I am beginning to feel those same emotions again.   In my study to help communicate eternal truth to them, I am finding truths again and again for myself.  I am feeling less lonely, less isolated.  God is meeting me in the pages of His Word, in the lyrics of hymns and praise songs, in the conversations with family and friends.  It feels good to be friends with God again.  I believe He is glad too.