Month: October 2020

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Is This Where the Tale of Two Americas Splits in Two?

Little bit of a different post today. It’s kind of hard to believe, but this is my last post before the election. Strangely, it’s possible that by this time next week, we still won’t know the final results.

It’s been a long time since Americans were this divided. Things are ugly out there.

At first I wasn’t sure how to approach this week’s post. I toyed with the whole “how would Jesus vote?” idea, but then I thought about it a bit more. The funny thing is, if Jesus were eligible to vote in the American election and I asked Him how He planned to vote, I figure He’d probably say something like “I think it’s adorable that you think I need to vote in order to get the outcome I want.”

Instead I thought I might take a different direction. There are two major competing visions for America right now, represented by the two main Presidential candidates. As a veteran of the armed forces it pains me to say it, but regardless of the election outcome, I think we might need to start looking at the possibility of (peacefully) splitting our nation into two separate entities.

In our case, I think it’s fairly easy to see that it’s getting more and more difficult for people of opposing political persuasions to live in harmony under the same Federal government. Case in point: whoever you’re voting for in the presidential election, can you imagine living under a government where the opposite party controls the White House and both houses of Congress? Unless something seriously changes course fast, we’re not going to keep living in peace. Some places have already boiled over (Portland Oregon, and more recently, Philadelphia Pennsylvania).

If the cause of all the riots boils down to political differences, why don’t we make an amicable split and let the two new nations, one liberal and one conservative, follow their core principles to whatever extreme their constituents desire?

I don’t have the details about how it would work, but here are a couple of thought prompts:

  1. I’m not sure of the boundaries, however, both new entities would be allowed access to both Pacific and Atlantic coasts; traditionally blue regions will be part of the new liberal nation, while traditionally red regions will be part of the new conservative nation.
  2. Neither entity would have Washington DC as their capital
  3. Once the announcement is made, people have a set period of time (say, five years) to declare their new citizenship and move to that country’s territory. With all the apps available today, I’m sure we could come up with a “house-trading” app, where you can have your home inspected by a certified official/appraiser, and you’re welcome to offer to trade your home for a similarly valued one in your desired country or region.
  4. Both new nations start out with the same Constitutional framework as we currently have, but the Liberal nation can modify it to their more modern views while the Conservative nation adheres to what they believe was the original intent of the founders. Hot-button issues like climate change and gun rights can be legislated according to the constituents’ preferences, and both nations can decide how many Supreme Court Justices should make up the court.
  5. Citizens are subject to the Federal, State, and Local tax laws of their new nation.
  6. Current Supreme Court Justices appointed by Democratic presidents will serve as Supreme Court Justices for the liberal nation, and Justices appointed by Republican presidents will remain a Supreme Court Justice for the conservative nation. Politicians will have to run for election for their new office.
  7. Ordinary citizens traveling between the two countries will initially have relaxed restrictions (a passport may not be necessary initially), but over time normal international protocols will phase in.
  8. The military will initially stay unified to serve both countries as part of the North American Joint Force, but will be split over time (though will likely be very cooperative in R&D and airspace defense missions, so long as the civilian leadership of both nations remains amicable).

Kind of a different take on things. I just know that it’s getting more and more difficult for neighbors from two different political perspectives to be friendly toward one another. Rather than spiral toward violence or other types of crime on a large scale, would it be worth citing “Irreconcilable Differences” and making an amicable break before it’s too late? Just thinking way outside the box.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. It’s been almost 250 years; is our current America able to be saved?

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Fortune Favors the Prepared

People in the Air Force regularly have to pass a physical fitness test. As long as you remember that Uncle Sam is paying you to stay in shape and even gives you time on duty to work out, it’s generally not difficult to stay in decent shape as long as you have some discipline and routine in place. When I was on active duty, a few times a week I usually did pushups and sit ups at my dorm or house in the morning before I left for work, and a few times a week I’d leave work early to do some running, swimming, or other type of cardio at the gym. Not a lot at once, just consistently.

I remember one occasion where a handful of us were getting ready to take a PT test. We paired off to help each other count repetitions and monitor proper form. The guy I paired with was older and more senior in rank than I, and we talked about the number of pushups we expected to perform. Things have changed since I last took an Air Force PT test, but the way it used to work is that there were several components (push-ups, crunches, run, body fat measurement), and you get a different amount of points for each component depending on how well you perform. Once you’ve performed all the components, you add up the points, and the total needs to be at least a certain number in order to pass. Each component also has a minimum passing score, and a maximum number of repetitions (once you hit the max number, you don’t get any additional points for doing extra crunches, for example).

He gave me his anticipated number, which wasn’t very high. I told him that I expected to max out my number of pushups and crunches. Almost dismissively, he said “yeah, well, you’ve got that muscular build.”

I was a little taken aback and didn’t quite know what to say or how to react. Did he think I accidentally had the capability to max out my pushups and crunches, or maybe that the capability was just handed to me? The responsibility to pass a PT test belongs to each individual in the Air Force. It’s not like the military branch’s leadership kept it a secret that we’d have to take these tests periodically, or that as a professional warrior susceptible to being deployed to warzones it might be a good idea to have a reasonably good baseline fitness level.

I never figured out whether he was serious or not. It certainly left an impression though.

If you know you have a test coming up…in any aspect of life…and you want to do well on it, it would behoove you to prepare for it. There’s an old saying: “Fortune favors the prepared.” It means that people who prepare for challenges tend to be more successful in overcoming them than the people that don’t prepare. Jesus said in John chapter 16 that “in this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Although Jesus was talking to His disciples right before the events of His arrest, trial, and execution, I believe the same message applies for Christ-followers today. If that’s not an indication of an upcoming test, maybe 2 Timothy 3:12 will spell it out a little clearer. “In fact, everyone who wants to live a Godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”

No bones about it. If you follow Jesus, and other people know you follow Jesus, you’re going to have to take some flak. Bet on it.

So there you have it: you have a test coming up. It may be today, it may be decades from now, but you know it’s coming. To pass the test you may not have to “beat” the one doing the persecuting; passing the test might simply mean bearing up under the pressure or not giving in to what all the voices around you are saying.

Are you spending time in God’s word more than just whenever you go to church? Do you pray more than just basic prayers, and more than just at meal times? Do you read books or articles that help explain the things that are in the Bible? If you listen to podcasts about the stock market, retirement, politics, etc., those things are important, but are you also finding the time to listen or learn about something that has a longer-lasting effect?

Christ Jesus loves you (and those confronting you), will empower you, and will be with you until He returns or calls you home. In the meantime, just like in the Air Force, it’s the responsibility of everyone who wants to pass the test to prepare for it. Not a lot at once, just consistently.

Your test is coming, and fortune favors the prepared.

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A New Spin on an Old Story

I’m pretty sure COVID is never mentioned in the Bible, but the book contains lessons we can apply to our current circumstances. I’m actually kind of surprised this hasn’t occurred to me before.

After centuries of God telling His people, the Israelites, that they need to straighten up (and centuries of them not doing it), He finally dropped the hammer on them. He warned them time and again, but they’d ignore or even kill the prophets. Once He had enough of it, He allowed the Persian Empire (Babylon) to raid Jerusalem and carry away most of the people as captives back to Babylon.

Many of the people refused to accept what was going on. They’d been brought up to believe that as Jews, God favored them. While true, that’s only part of the story. God selected the Jews to be His people, but warned them many times to follow His ways and pursue Him. By failing to do that corporately, over and over again, God finally had enough and allowed Babylon to serve as his instrument of judgment.

Still some chose not to believe what was happening. These people started giving ear to false prophets that popped up. One of them claimed (Jeremiah chapter 28, paraphrased) “Everybody, take heart! God will deliver us from this and we’ll be back home in Jerusalem inside of two years!” This message, though false, appealed to the people, so they believed it and threw their support behind prophets that proclaimed this message.

God, however, intended for these exiles to stay in Babylon for 70 years, and He didn’t hide His intent. Now, if you’re one of these people, living in a foreign land against your will, you’re going to live your life differently if you believe you’re only going to be there two years than if you believed you were probably going to spend the rest of your life there. Of course God wasn’t going to let this be the end of the Jews, but He works on His own timeline, not the one that people decide He should.

To help set the record straight, God had Jeremiah write them a letter. Paraphrasing from Jeremiah chapter 29, the prophet writes “look, everybody, you’re gonna be here for awhile. Build houses for yourself. Plant gardens and eat the stuff that grows in them. Get married to each other and have kids, and give those kids away in marriage. For now, this is your normal. No, it won’t always be like this, but that’s what it is for now.”

That’s our modern-day tie-in. The basic question here is “how many people have put off or canceled major life events because of the current circumstances?” Countless weddings have been postponed, untold numbers of students missed the opportunity to have a traditional in-person graduation ceremony, and it’s simply impossible to know how many other major trips or events have dropped or otherwise been put on hold.

The deeper question, and the one that has a more permanent impact, is “what God-honoring things have been put off or canceled because people decided that the world no longer met their definition of what the world should look like?” There are obvious things, like the cancellation of church services or outreach programs, but there have been varying degrees of success regarding the thing that have taken their place. For example, most churches this past summer probably either completely canceled or had a greatly scaled-back version of Vacation Bible School (VBS). Children are especially open to hearing about what Christ has done for them, and it’s important that Christians reach them. The challenge is addressing the same needs through different means, and the missed opportunities come when there’s no attempt to fill the gap.

That’s just an example. There are elementary-age needs, middle-school-aged needs, high-school-aged needs, needs for singles, for engaged or newlyweds, for men, for women, for families, for widows/widowers, for seniors, for professionals, for stay-at-home parents, and countless sub-groups of any of these demographics. The world needs you…whether it’s your creativity, your technological savvy, a spacious or special property you own, or a brand new idea that can be used to reach people in the name of Christ…this is your opportunity to step out in faith and make an eternal difference.

In this season of COVID, remember not to live like you’re still in Jerusalem. For the moment, we’re in Babylon, and we have to live out our Christianity and witness to non-believers within the parameters of our Babylonian environment. Build houses, plant gardens, and pursue long-term relationships. We may be here for awhile or we may not, but either way, we don’t have the option of letting the ministry opportunities stop. You might be the only thing that an important new undertaking is waiting for.

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Stop To Think About Why You Just Did That

I’ve got a twofer for you this time.

Way back when the world was normal and people went to work and shook hands and stuff, my wife would watch her friends’ kids when they were in a jam or just needed to run a quick errand.

I’m a very blessed guy, and my kids are still young enough to come give me a hug when I walk in the door from work. One day as I arrived home, I didn’t know it, by my wife was watching a friend’s little girl, Emmy. Emmy was younger than my kiddos, and she kind of followed their lead in whatever they were playing.

I walked in the door and my kids, who were a bit more wired than normal from running and playing with someone else, came running to hug me and gave a few shouts of “Daddyyyyyyyy!” It was a sweet moment for any dad, but I couldn’t help but smile as I watched Emmy try to figure out what to do. She was excited right along with the rest of the kids, but she wasn’t about to run up and hug some grown-up dude that wasn’t in her life other than right now at this very moment. She came running over to where we all were, and with a big smile, started jumping up and down. She was happy, but she didn’t know why.

Then, on another note, this past summer our family took a vacation to see some other family up in northwestern Ohio. This area was very near Lake Erie, and our family up there enjoys taking the ferry out to Kelley’s Island for a day of biking and walking around on the island. At the end of our island visit we all headed back onto the ferry for the ride back across to “the mainland.”

Now, I don’t know why this happens, but it’s one of those inexplicable “guy things.” I was standing at the back of the ferry with my son and one of my nephews, watching the island fade further into the distance. As I looked down at the wake the ferry made as it plowed through the lake, I gave in to the overwhelming urge to spit into the water. I think it was to get a sense of how fast we were going. Inside two seconds, and without a word, both my son and my nephew had also spit over the rail.

These are two fun little stories that help illustrate one very simple idea: no matter who you are, whether you’re a nine-year old playing with a little kid or a sunburned uncle on a family vacation, you have influence on other people. At the same time, other people have influence on you. Be mindful of the way you’re using the influence you possess; when it comes to meaningful interactions, are you using it to build people up or to tear them down? Assume there is no middle or neutral ground…can people see glimpses of Christ in you?

It’s also important to be mindful of those you allow to influence you. The authors you read, the speakers and songs you hear, and the entertainment you watch are all defining the norms you may adopt as your own. This is why it’s so important for Christians to spend time regularly reading the Bible. If you’re a Christian that doesn’t spend time reading the letter God wrote to you, it makes it much harder to “be in the world but not of it.” Instead the principles of Christian living get elbowed out of the way and shoved toward the back of your mind, while the stronger influences take root and play a more central role in guiding your thoughts and actions.

Our lives look much different than they did a year ago. There’s much more time for binge-watching things or ripping through a lot more books than normal. I urge you to guard your mind. (If you’re already making excuses about why it’s okay to spend so much time with one of the things you’ve been watching/reading, that may be an indicator that you and your conscience need to get on more honest terms.)

Well hey, we’re getting closer to the weekend. I hope you’re hanging in there and that you have (or that you had) a great day today. Use your influence to point others to Christ and what He’s done for them. They may not know.

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If You Just Need a Smile

You know, considering everything that’s going on in our nation right now, I just kind of feel like it would be a good idea to try to help you smile.

I’ve got three kids, and they’ve each got their own distinct personality. When they were little and they did something cute or funny, we’d write it down in what we now refer to as “the quote book.” It’s full of little stories or fun quotes that came from the kids or the sleep-deprived things that we did as parents of young kiddos. Now that it’s at least a few years after some of the quotes, our kids enjoy when I pull out the book and relay some stories we’ve written down.

Lately I’ve been taking a look through the book, and thought I’d share a few entries with you. Just for context, I’ve got a daughter, then a son, then another daughter.

My older daughter used to pick the most inopportune times to tell us about her day. When you have multiple young kids in the house, life is a blur. There’s not a whole lot of conscious thought that extends out past the next meal or bedtime. The minutes leading up to dinner were a mad rush of “go potty,” “okay, who still needs to wash their hands?” all while getting hot food on the table and scooping out some of the hot food early so it can cool off enough for the kids. Right as we sat down and things got quiet enough to pray, our daughter would pick that moment to start telling all of us about some event from earlier that day that was memorable in her mind. We’d all sit around the table, holding hands, about to pray but unable to begin. We could’ve shushed her, but…that just didn’t seem right. Then, just as she finished recounting her tale, but before we could jump in and start praying, her spellbound little brother would ask a question about her epic yarn. (“Nooooo!!!”) This happened at bedtime on a regular basis, too.

She could also open “childproof” caps before she could put together a complete sentence. We kept them away from her for awhile, and she lost the knack for it, but it still kept us on our toes.

She could also open “childproof” caps before she could put together a complete sentence. We kept them away from her for awhile, and she lost the knack for it, but it still kept us on our toes.

My little guy was the craziest blend of sweet and sour. He had heart-melting moments when you just couldn’t believe how compassionate or kind he was, and he’d have moments that make you want to pull out your hair. When he was little enough that he still slept in a crib, there was a time when my wife and I were laying him down and he saw his favorite little stuffed dog laying in the crib waiting for him, and my little guy let out a giggle. It made me appreciate how wonderful it must be to laugh simply because you’re happy.

On the flip side of his personality, there were other times he’d just utter blatant, unprompted lies. If he said “I don’t have anything in my mouth,” it’s a solid bet he just got into some snacks that he knew he wasn’t supposed to touch. He also knew that naptimes were for napping, but he loved to get up and look out the window. As he got big enough to come downstairs on his own after a nap, he’d reassure us by seeing us and saying right away “I wasn’t looking out my window.” The stool near the disheveled curtains suggested otherwise.

It’s also fun to look through the book and find little exchanges like when he and I were watching the winter Olympics on TV together when he was probably about 3. During a ski-jumping event, I told him “That guy’s from Norway.” He looked at the screen, interested, and said “Oh, is that his home planet?”

There are some slapstick memories, too. Parenting is a full-contact sport. All of our kids enjoyed when my wife and I read books to them. My younger daughter, when she was a toddler, had no concept of causing pain in other people. If I was laying on the floor and said to her “do you want me to read a book?”…man, I’d better watch out. She’d take off and find a book to read, which was great, but on her return trip, I needed to keep my gloves up. She’d come bouncing back at me in a full-speed toddler waddle, holding the book out in front of her. In the beginning, I figured she’d slow down as she got close. Nope. She came running with her arms stretched out in front of her, and she didn’t stop until she slammed me in the head with the book. (It didn’t take me long to learn to pay attention when she came running with a book, though I think it took me longer than it should have.)

This is the same little one who, when I held her in church during the live music, would watch intently everything going on up on stage. One time everything was quiet as the worship leader prayed, but my little girl kept her eyes open and was mesmerized by all the light reflecting off the shiny instruments. During the prayer, when her face was about six inches away from mine, she let slip a little burp that smelled like Cheerios.

Also, as our third child, she’s the only one I’ve used a dust-buster on.

And finally, to cap it off, here’s a story with all three. There was a phase (at least, I hope it’s a phase) where my older daughter liked to over-dramatize things, so she’d pretend to cry at certain things. The problem was that anytime my younger daughter saw someone cry, she thought it was her cue to start apologizing, even if it wasn’t her fault or she didn’t know what was happening. She’d keep doing it until someone acknowledged her, too, and would get louder as she went. Making it more fun was the fact that she couldn’t pronounce an “r” sound very well at that age. There was one instance where I sat in the living room and my wife and all three kids were in the kitchen. My wife and older daughter started acting silly, and began pretending to cry about something. Right around then my son, who needed to hear the same thing three times before it started sinking in, got hyper and did something he shouldn’t have, which distracted my wife. Imagine the sound of fake crying from one daughter, my wife talking firmly to my little guy, and an ever-more-persistent little voice saying “sowwy. Sowwy! SOWWY!”

You know, despite what you see on TV, there’s still some good stuff going on out there. Despite what you may see and hear, there are some good people in the world. Keep your chin up and keep smiling, because like I’ve said before, your joy and positive attitude in Christ is one of the things that will make people take notice, especially in times like this.

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