Month: February 2018

I am sure most who read this will think the title a little strange. I have to admit, I employed an advertising device called a ‘hook’. Something to catch the eye and peak the interest. Guilty as charged.

But the truth is, I was born in the TV generation. Hard to believe but there were still radio shows and dramas on when I was young. My mother, when she was home, loved a show called the “Breakfast Club” hosted by Don McNeil. I remember listening to it on Chicago’s WGN’s radio station in the mornings as a kid. And there were still night time dramas on such as, “Johnny Dollar”. But nothing captured my attention more than the clunky box with the 17” screen, our black and white television set.

It held the predominant spot in our front room and when I was off school in the afternoon, I remember sitting on the floor in front of it watching everything from the Lone Ranger to a kid’s show called Garfield Goose. But by far my favorites were slap stick comedies such as the Three Stooges. For some of you who have never seen their ‘idiocy’ here is a brief description. Starting as a vaudeville act, in the late 1930’s they were hired by Columbia Studios to do what were called ‘shorts’ which were shown before or between feature films. Made up, in their original form, of two Howard brothers, Moe and Curly along with Larry Fine, each episode was filled with slaps, nose pinches and downright violence. And as a kid I found them hilarious. Hours were filled watching them or others of that time era: Abbott and Castello, W.C. Fields, and the Keystone Cops. Even as a youth I found the absurdity of what they did was what I would laugh at. I knew none of it was ‘real’.
But here is the kicker. Even though I knew what I was watching was totally fake, it had an affect on my behavior none the less.

The more I watched aggressive programming the more aggressive I became. No, I never tried to hit any of my friends or enemies in the head with ball peen hammers but being a natural mimic, I did act out in ways that gained me a reputation as ‘trouble maker’. The problem was there was no balance in my life. No spiritual input to offset any of the ‘garbage’ I was ingesting.

Ok, so what is my point? I guess it is pretty simple. We are what we see, what we watch, what we daily ingest from all the media around us. You know, I can go on YouTube and watch almost every short the Three Stooges ever made. I could fill my whole day with ‘binges’ of every show produced by man since the founding of the television industry on Netflix. I can watch every ‘reality’ show series from beginning to end absorbing every unreality they throw out. Let alone news media and every kind of talk show or opinion. The world is available at the touch of the screen or the flick of the remote. But there is another option.

There was a time when Jesus Himself had a decision to make. A time when the whole world was offered to Him. Let’s take a look. In the gospel of Matthew, we find the account called: Jesus is Tested in the Wilderness, Chapter 4:1-11. We are told that he was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, after being baptized by John, to be tempted. Jesus put himself in a position where he knew he would be vulnerable. Forty days he fasted. Stating the obvious, he was hungry. Then the gospel says the tempter, Satan, comes after him in his weaken state. Three times he is tempted. But for this blog, I just want to look at the third temptation. “Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All of this I will give you”, he said, “if you just fall down and worship me.” (Matthew 4:9) And I believe the lesson I need for today and maybe you do too is in the answer Jesus gives, “Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan. For it is written: “Worship the Lord your God and serve him only. (Matthew 4:10)

There are a couple of things in his answer that may help everyone of us in our day to day walk if it is our goal to grow closer to Jesus daily. First, it is plain Jesus knew that whatever ‘reality’ Satan offered, no matter how pleasing it sounded, those promises were not ‘real’, they were not true. We have that same choice every day. Bombarded by media trying to capture us. Offering us the world. Can we see what is real and what is not? Our only hope comes in how Jesus answers Satan. He quotes from the Word of God. His connection with his Father is so strong because he had ingested and absorbed the Word. He knows you cannot serve two masters. Quoting from Deuteronomy 6: 13-14, Jesus makes Satan flee.

So again, I say it is simple. We are what we ingest. I was what I ingested as a kid. You and your children are what you absorb through media. No, I am not saying all media is bad. But if today you find yourself placing anything “…before the Lord your God”, maybe you should take another look at where it is leading you to. As a former Three Stooges addict, I know where it led me. So today I am spending quality time in the Word, shutting out the world. Making the ‘Jesus’ choice, why not join me.

Blessings John
2/28/18

At church on Sabbath I told the children’s story. To be honest I was not prepared to do so but seeing RuthAnn oversees getting someone to share each week, we are sometimes left with the idea that either her or I will do it, if no one else can be found. That was the circumstance this week, again.

When Thursday rolled around, and the bulletin needed to be printed, it was obvious that I needed to volunteer, which I did. But now what story was I going to tell? When I went to bed Thursday night I did not have a clue but did pray about it before I shut my eyes. And as happens so often, when I got up in the morning I knew what my story would center on. That is the way the Holy Spirit works with and through me and I am blessed by it, go to bed clueless and get up inspired. This time I knew the story would center around my childhood dog, Specks.

He was an unbelievable dog. I am not sure what year he came into our home, but I was pretty young. I guess my Dad picked him up at the pound, like so many before him, but I do not remember that either. What I do know is that he was a Springer Spaniel mix and was smart as a whip. Also, that we became best friends.

It wasn’t so much on my part. I think I was a pretty lousy friend. Always off to school or basketball or out playing with my human friends. But it was him. He was loyal, faithful, and full of love. Patiently waiting for me to get home from school or my other activities, then he would be there to be my best friend. Ready to play. Ready to listen. Ready to be there when I was sad or happy. In his eyes there was nothing I could do that would stop him from loving me.

And intending no blaspheme, that is the exact way I see our Savior, Jesus Christ. I sometimes think that God brought pets in our lives to show us what real love looks like. The problem is that we take their love for granted the same way I think we take Christ’s love for us. In some way believing that we deserve His love and do not have to return it.

There is no doubt that God loves us in spite of our reaction to Him or His Son Jesus: “God shows his love for us that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8) But can we ever have a true relationship with Him unless we recognize what He has done to save us and how much He loves us? I know the answer to that one and it is a definite, n-o!

The strange thing is that if we loved as our loyal dogs do we would find ourselves exactly where Jesus wants us to be. Here is what I mean. Jesus said this, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these (Mark 12:30-31) Do you see it! Complete faithful, loyal love! Without any strings attached. That is how your dog loves you. That is how my dog Specks loved me. A single-minded love.

But our problem is we cannot seem to commit to it. The book of James puts it like this in the New Living Translation: “Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.” (James 1:8) Other translations say we are “double-minded” Our faithfulness, our loyalty is divided, and the results are we cannot love God as He asks and do not love our neighbor as Jesus did.

So, the question is how do we become more like our faithful dogs? I bet you never thought of asking yourself that question! But the answer is essential, and it comes in one word, surrender. Every faithful being, be it angel, man or beast must be able to submit his or her will to their master. In my case to God. It is the hardest lesson I have had to learn as a follower of Jesus. I must be willing as He was; to submit all as He did on the cross. I need to heed the Savior’s words: “Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 16:24-25) Faithful, loyal, following my master wherever he leads.

My Sabbath story was not as complete as this blog, but I hope the kids got the idea. I showed a few pictures of Specks and me. I thought I would post one with this as a reminder of what a good and loyal servant looks like. May we all become that to the Lord today.

Blessings John
2/26/18

I was alone. The house was just about empty. It felt strange to me after so many years to be leaving the place I thought I would spend the rest of my life in. Back in 2005 when we had bought the house, it had needed so much work. It took over a year of driving back and forth from the bay area of Northern California to make all the repairs and do the remodeling. Now almost 12 years later I was ready to leave it behind.

In about an hour I would be picking up my new bride from the Medford, Oregon airport. She was flying all the way from Georgia, so we could drive back there together. As I sat on the only couch left, I felt both sad and overjoyed all at once. All the memories of the years gone by seemed to need revisiting.

I thought of happy times when family had come over. Kids, grandkids and even great-grandkids. How would I live without them dropping by whenever? Sad times in the year 2014 when this house had become a hospice for my dying wife. As I looked over in the corner of the dining room where the hospital bed had been, I remembered the final struggles of her life. Shaking my head, I got up and went out the front door to take a final look at the yard. It was winter now. The garden and all the flowering plants and trees lay dormant. But I could see them in their spring beauty. Was I sure I wanted to leave this place I felt so comfortable in?

As a chilly breeze picked up I went back inside. Thoughts of friends I would not see every day. My best friend Larry, how I would miss our Monday lunches. So many others. What about the Soup Kitchen? For five years I had nurtured and loved that ministry. How would I spend my Tuesdays? My family and my church family all now would be a continent away. Was this really what God wanted?

I guess that is a question many of us have asked. How are we ever sure that the decisions we make are God’s plan. As I sat in my almost empty house that day I sure had doubts. But when I thought about it I knew those were not really doubts at all but fears. And as I sit here in my Georgia home more than a year later I see that even in those fears I had trusted that God had a plan and I believed. As much as sometimes we want to follow our emotions, God says:

“Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and do not lean on your own understanding, in all ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

But maybe you will ask is trust enough? Well, I don’t think God ever leaves you without practical assurances, if your mind is open to see them. In RuthAnn and my case there was a preponderance of reasons, good solid reasons to believe God was leading us to make our life in Georgia. And as we checked off each one of them the balance sheet on the ‘staying in Oregon’ side just didn’t measure up. But in the end, it was not for any of those reasons that I stepped out it faith with my wife. In the end it was all about prayer and another verse from the Bible:

“…For where you go I will go and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people will become my people and your God my God.” (Ruth 1:16)

As I prayed about the move, yes there were a ton of fears and I knew I would forever miss my family and friends. But this special love, that I knew was a gift from God, kept being coupled with this verse Ruth says to Naomi. I could see God wanted me to step out of my comfort zone. If I was ever to grow closer to Him, it was in Georgia with RuthAnn. I knew it was His plan.

By the time I reached the Medford airport, my fears had vanished and as soon as I saw RuthAnn coming toward me in the terminal I couldn’t wait to start our adventures together. I was home. Because home was where He was leading, it really did not matter if it was Georgia or Timbuktu. I was with the woman he gave me and really this earth is not our home anyway.

Our last year has been amazing. Trials and joys. But I have never doubted for a moment that we were exactly where God wanted us to be. And as much as I miss my Oregon family and friends. I have gained even more than this guy deserves. So today, my friends, if you are making a decision: trust in God, seek advice of Godly people, read his Word, and pray. “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you, he will never leave your nor forsake you. (Deuteronomy 31:6) He’s with you, you can’t lose!

Blessings John
2/21/18

I have worked on quite a few bridges during my years in construction. Most were simple overpasses. You see them every time you are on a highway or freeway. Every road or walkway that passes over needs a bridge. Construction of these are normally not too complicated, only the coordination of how they will affect the traffic in the area.

But there were a few times in my career that I worked on bridges that were built to span over a body of water or join to landmasses that could only be connected by a man-made structure. The challenges in building these are usually extreme. One that I have in mind which spanned a river was especially difficult not because the river was too wide or that it was too dangerous to span. No, the problem with this bridge was in the anchorage on either side of the river. One side was solid granite and the other was soft loamy soil. Each of these extremes created its own problems.

Granite which is a fantastic anchor caused problems because of its shape and formation. A lot of blasting and jackhammering had to be done to get it to where it was workable to build a suitable abutment on the one side. The complete opposite treatment was needed for the other side. Many piles needed to be driven and even then, much excavation was needed along with backfill of more acceptable soil for its abutment.

Working on either side had its challenges for all the companies and crews involved. As I remember it there was a lot of frustration, along with a few stops and starts. But with perseverance and patience the abutments were built and eventually the river was spanned. A picture of this bridge came to mind as I was reading an article online the other day about Jesus being our ‘bridge’.

It is a concept that I had not thought about before but one that, at least for me as a builder, gave me a deeper understanding of Jesus’ saving work and the cross. I mean, when you think about it, what is the purpose of a bridge? Its sole purpose is to span a gap between point A and point B. And when we apply that same thought to mankind and God there is a huge gap that only Jesus can span and join.

The question is, how did we get so far from God? How did this huge gap occur? I think the Apostle Paul illustrates it best in the book of Ephesians: “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience- among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. (Ephesians 2:1-3) As I did myself for so many years, we become dead in sin believing in the world and the lies Satan tells us every day. Our disobedience opens a huge gap from our Holy God. And the problem is that we can’t reach across it. At least by ourselves.

But we find the power of Jesus to bridge that gap in the next two verses: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Jesus Christ- by grace you have been saved.” (Ephesians 2:4-5) In Jesus we are made righteous and even as dead as we were, through the cross we are saved. God’s grace! God’s love!

Our job in building the bridge is believing in the bridge builder, but the good news is that even that is done by grace: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not of your own doing, it is a gift from God.” (Ephesians 2:8) Today we can turn away from the life we are now living and turn to Him who willingly died for us while we were still sinners, only He can bridge the gap that keeps us from the everlasting relationship with God that He desires for us.

I certainly in my time, thought of myself as a good bridge builder. But in my life, I found no way to build the one which would bring me into a right relationship with God. Not until I accepted Jesus and he bridged the long span I had created was I able to begin my journey to the Father. Jesus said it this way, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) He is truly our bridge and we all need to cross it soon!

Blessings John
2/19/18

I worked for a lot of companies as an Ironworker. Is part of the trade to travel and follow the work. Some of those companies, especially when I worked in the mountain states were small and not that well run. I can say this with all honesty because I owned two companies myself and as good as I was at doing my job, I was a terrible owner/operator.

But there is one company that stands out from all the rest, including my own. I won’t use its real name, to protect the innocent (I learned this from years of watching Dragnet as a kid). Let’s just call it Valley Steel.

I came to work for them in the mid 80’s. Pretty much at the height of my alcohol usage. But also, at the height of my working career. My addictions never kept me from working and being good at what I did. But it meant that I put every sober effort into my work while my personal life was a disaster. With that being said, I had a reputation of being a good project manager and field superintendent. That is what I was hired to do for Valley Steel.

Everything should have been good. We have plenty of work, some decent projects. I had a couple of great foremen and hard-working crews. My problem was the owner. He either made bad decisions when required or would over-rule my field decisions after the fact. Despite the best efforts of our field crews, we gained a reputation as a company on the brink of disaster. Not good!

The problem got so bad that I decided to do something, anything to wake up the owner. I decided to have bright yellow tee shirts made up with a popular saying going around at the time, “Who da boss?” brazened across the back. With a picture of the character who made it popular on the front. I gave these shirts to all my crews to wear anytime I knew our ‘boss’ was going to be on a job.

Within a week he called me into his office. Of course, he asked me what the shirts meant. And once I explained it to him he asked whose idea it was. It was a sure thing I was about to be fired, but the way things were going I didn’t think this company would be around next year, so…. I told him it was me. The amazing thing is, he did not fire me. In fact, we had one of the best conversations I have ever had with an owner. Things began to improve.

So why do I tell this story. Because I think many times this is exactly how I live my life. I believe I forget way to often who is the boss.  Just the other day I was in a crisis over a sermon I am working on. I have been struggling with the ideas for this for weeks. I keep putting it away and going to another topic, but I know this subject is what the Holy Spirit is leading me to share. But even knowing that I am bound and determined to make decisions without prayer or overrule the ideas I get after I finally do pray. Result is, well, a disaster.

So today as I took time out to write this I decided to clear my head to really be open to the promise of Romans 8:26-27: “In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.” Because when I am humbled in the idea that I do not even know what I should pray, it certainly helps me see that I can never make right decisions without His leading. Allowing God’s Spirit to be my boss.

What it came down to with that owner years ago, was that he would have to come to a place where he could trust in me. Sure enough he and I could hash problems out, but bottom line was trust and faith in me to run his company. You know what? He did that! He trusted a booze soaked drunk to make right decisions. And I can thank God today, most of them I made were ok. He allowed me to be his company’s boss.

How much simpler is our decision today? There are no risks in allowing God to be the boss. Here is what He says: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future,” (Jeremiah 29:11) God has the plan, he knows the business of life and salvation. We can and need to trust Him.

So, I am looking forward to His inspiration as I finish this sermon. My prayer today is that you take a moment to know, “Who da boss!” When you are struggling with that next BIG thing allow the Boss to take care of it. He’s got it handled!

Blessings and Happy Sabbath,
2/16/18