Spectacular

This evening, me and my children came home from my son's baseball practice – my daughter playing with her friend, a sister of one of my son's teammates. My wife had a meeting to attend at our children's school. The particulars aren't so important as my point, a question.

We came home, and had homework to finish. We all sat in the kitchen, I recited spelling words to my daughter – she got them all correct. We made it more silly, reminding my daughter that I learned how to spell 'able' by sounding out the 'a-b' followed by 'l-e', pronounced lee: ab-le. She smiled and said that she's using it.

We made silly comments – my son joining in – about things we all knew.

While doing this, a bucket of mac & cheese heated in the microwave. I microwaved another for my son. The kids love mac and cheese buckets. I heated up mixed vegetables with rice – add soy sauce, sriracha sauce, red pepper and garlic powder, and the flavor is nothing short of spectacular to me, I'm serious. True, nights like this have a way of making everything spectacular, but I digress.

The lightheartedness continued with my son's science. In reviewing the chapter for a test, we spoke silly, came up with different ways to remember. My son appeared to pickup on everything and likes science.

As we wrapped up studying and my son finished up on a few questions of grammar, my daughter commented on the light over the stove. “It looks like the light of a campfire.”

I immediately understood the soft glow of firelight. This lead to an idea. My wife's meeting had ended and she would be driving home soon. We turned out all the lights in the kitchen and dining room. My daughter jumped up and brought a lamp with a candle as the source of light. We lit it, sat around the kitchen and pretended to sit around a campfire.

We told stories, the kids giggled throughout and, when my wife came home, it was smiles all around.

The time was later than usual, the kids went to bed with smiles, hugs and kisses for everyone.

Ever have an experience like this? Normal, ordinary life made spectacular with a little imagination and pleasant thoughts?

The only thing to make it better would be if my wife was with us. Still, there did come the moment she came home: Spectacular.

Before and after: Spectacular.

True Love Lead To The Cross

Christ saved us.

That's a blessed miracle in and of itself. There's so many ways to look at what he accomplished, so many things we can learn and take from it. At the moment, I am thinking of one in particular, one that shows the consistency of his message to us.

Christ allowed this to happen to Himself for us.

Now, put yourself in his position. Your captors punished you, forced a crown of thorns on top of your head, the pricks deep enough to draw blood to trickle droplets down your face and through your hair. You're being beaten, whipped, spit at, jeered, humiliated and ridiculed. Your friends are hiding and watching from a distance. You know why you're doing it and you understand that it's the only way to accomplish the reason for your assuming life as man.

Christ never fought back.

You hung on a cross between two thieves who argue. One mocks you, the other asks for you to remember him. One lacked faith and the other became filled with it.

Christ forgave.

He told the prisoner with faith that he would have a place in Heaven. He asked his Father to forgive those who did this, for they knew not what they were doing.

At no point in this story did Christ resist. He gave himself up willingly and accepted more pain and agony than the human body and mind could stand without an iron strength of will and desire.

Finally – and here's what strikes me – at any point in time during all of this, he could have stopped it. He could have crushed all those against him and took over the world. After all, wasn't he God?

So why didn't he?

Love.

The Truth Of Ambition

The world tells us that we have to be ambitious, to strive for success. As true as this may be, there is another truth about success that we would be wise not to forget.

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Two son's of Z, Jimmy and Johnny, worked hard and followed their teacher's instruction. As far as they were concerned, their teacher owed them something.

Knowing they expected something for their efforts -- ambitious to make their ascent in the group -- the teacher asked them, “Okay, you two, what do you want from me?”

Jimmy and Johnny stood confidently, “We want to share your glory. When your greatness is revealed, we want to sit at your left and right.”

The teacher knew his business better than they did, though. “Are you sure that's what you want? Are you sure you can hang with me and handle what comes with it?”

Without hesitation, they replied, “Absolutely.”

Now, the other ten in the group didn't like Jimmy and Johnny's attitude and started making noise, so the teacher called them over. “You know that those who rule make sure those under them know who's boss and make sure they feel it, too.

“But it's not going to be that way with all of you,” he had their attention, “and if any of you wish to be great, you're going to find yourselves serving. Anyone of you wishes to be first, you're going to find yourself last and the slave of all.

“For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” [Mark 10:45, the rest adapted from Mark 10:35-44]

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This may be part of what speaks of Christ being handed over to crucifixion, but make no mistake about it, within these words and Christ's example, unless we recognize our responsibility to serve one another, we will find ourselves as part of the greater problem that plagues this world at every turn.

In these words, there's a reality we can't escape. The more we have, the more that's required of us. The more we gain, the more we have to give.

And it goes much further than just finding ways that will fit into our lives. Rather, we have to accept that we will constantly be pulled out of our comfort zone and out of certainty. That no matter what we have, it can vanish just as quickly. No matter how comfortable things appear, there will always be uncertainty.

The only assurance lies with the fact that our lives will always challenge us. To meet the challenges as Christ met His, is not heroic. It's expected.

Something else, I like about this passage. Not once did Christ point the finger and tell them how wrong they were. Instead, he accepted their humanity.

What he did was not just about him, the Son of Man. Rather, it was also about serving His Father as the Son of God. So too, our lives are not just about us, but God.

Maybe we could take the hint and start reflecting more, instead of praising ourselves and pointing the finger. Let's be prepared.

Faith Or Sink

Life has many pitfalls, but the trickiest is one we create ourselves.

Sitting in a boat, they watched the man standing on the shore. He stared at them as they wondered what he would do. Then a miracle happened. The man on the shore began to walk out onto the sea.

Not in it, but on it. As much as they believed in this man, it still had to shock them to witness any man walking on the sea. Even though they knew Him to be more than flesh and blood, they feared him as a ghost, an apparition. To make matters worse, the waves tossed the boat about due to the strong winds that raged around them.

He stood at a distance from them and said, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid."

Could it be true? Was it their teacher? One of the men, to be sure, spoke out. "Lord, if it is really you, command me to come to you on the water."

The Lord simply replied, "Come."

The man did and, to his amazement, he too walked on water. He believed.

But then he noticed the waves around him, the wind. Soon he saw the dangers and his belief began to fade. As it did, he began to sink in fear. Water all around him, he had nowhere to go for safety. He realized that there was only one option. He shouted, "Lord, save me!"

The Lord immediately stretched out his hand and lifted him up. "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"

Just like that, once safely holding the hand of Christ, he no longer sank. The waves settled and Christ directed him back to the boat.

At that moment, they witnessed his power and believed. So, too, each moment we find ourselves in need of faith to keep us from sinking, we can see his power, if only we believe.

To Be Afraid Or To Be At Peace

There was a man sleeping in a boat with friends around him fishing. The boat rocked gently as the friends fished, quietly talking, happy to allow this one man a much needed rest.

The boat might have been small but they weren't afraid.

But then clouds rolled in, the waves began to rise. The clouds darkened and, with the daytime sun covered by such thick clouds overhead, day quickly appeared night. The rain began to fall, large drops, cold and heavy. Lightning appeared, thunder roared close behind it, soon confusing the senses to the lightnings proximity.

At first, the suddenness of the storm stunned them to silence. Quickly, they pulled in the nets and prepared the boat as the waves tossed it, waves so big, the men could barely see their direction, until they reached the top and then found themselves pushed back down and side to side.

Now they were afraid.

As their confusion grew they began to look at the man still sleeping. They wondered how he could remain asleep with the raging storm that seemed to push and pull their boat at will, never letting it rest, the boards creaking, sounding as if they'd break at any moment, leaving them with nowhere to go but down into the depths of the sea.

They forced the man to wake. He wiped the sleep from his eyes and looked at their terrified expressions. They watched him, confused by his calm. He stood as they observed, raised his hands and said, “Peace.”

Just like that, the storm stopped, the waves lessened and they, once more, felt in control, whether they were or not.

This one man above all others had the means to be in complete control, but only did as directed. This one man could force all of creation to bow to his will, but He only did what was necessary, not for his safety and protection, but for the good of all mankind.

Think about it.

A Child's Peace

Protect our children, an extremely popular thing to say and, I trust, all those reading this believe. If we bring in the subject of abortion, there's division, but that becomes a matter of definition and/or denial. I'm not here to judge who's right or wrong – not the point of this writing – but, if you see the unborn child as a child, the only possible result, it's murder. If you see it as a possible liability of some sort, then there's a right to choose.

As I said, though, I have no wish to continue with this volatile topic because I have another one in mind, perhaps, not as hotly debated, but it's worth considering; that topic being the safety of children. After all, we can agree that a child's life needs to be protected.

I recently found myself involved with a collision of thoughts, when I began considering my own children and how important it is to teach them how to live and how to work hard, to find happiness. When I look at them, I also think of their safety and my hope that they remain close to their faith in God, love of neighbor. Along with this, I began to think about how they have changed in such a short time and will continue to change, eventually becoming a man and woman and, I pray, the man and woman that God created them to be.

My mind didn't stop there. I also began to consider those around them and how they would grow. I then branched into society as a whole and I continued right back to the beginning: The fact that my children – as well as others of today – might, one day, become parents of their own children, at the very least, adults whose actions would affect the world's boys and girls.

There were other ideas, but these were the highlights and more on point. The others, I'll leave for a more fictitious topic.

So, here I was looking at the society my children are becoming increasingly a part of with each year of school, of life. I also, as mentioned above, wondered at their safety and the concern of all loving parents for the protection of their own children, of societies concern for the youth. I also wondered about the viability of a possible solution to this major concern.

A thought then occurred to me. If our concern is truly for our children, then should it not be for ourselves, as well? And if our concern is also for ourselves, that concern should also include our actions, just as we are concerned with our children's actions.

My point, our perception of what it means to care about another should involve more of our concern for the other than what we gain from the friendship. When we find that special someone, make the relationship about how thankful we are for what we can do for them as opposed to what they can do for us. When we suffer a wrong, make justice about correcting the wrong rather than gaining from the situation. Men: When we look at what a woman has to offer us, see them as the individual God created them to be, something that far exceeds the superficial physical and monetary gain that might come with them. Women, too, need to seek the goodness that a man has to offer and settle for nothing less, regardless of the physical or monetary gain.

At this point, though the jokes might be flying for some, I hope that the message isn't lost. I like to have fun like the next person, however, I don't want the importance of these words to be lost, because the true message is this: Instead of JUST being concerned with the safety of our children, let us also be concerned with the care we have for one another. Turn away from those things that bring about selfishness and hate and anger. Turn away from greed and revenge and judgment.

From here, I couldn't help my next thought, a memory of something I grew up believing from the moment, as a child, I heard the words sung in church on Sunday:

Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.

O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; it is in dying that we are born again to eternal life.

Peace.

A Word On Cowardliness

Words can be twisted and turned to mean most anything. However, the fact of the word and its definitions can't be disputed. What follows is an attempt to put some perspective on a word that we tend to see as a matter of weakness, a person who is a victim. What follows shows that it's also a word that applies to those with much power who victimize others while attempting to make themselves the victim.

When I sit and watch television or go to the movies, one thing that appears to be laced in just about all of what I see -- the point that appears to underlie so many story lines, plots and news stories -- involves cowardliness in one form or another.

Now, before I go on and people begin to lose direction, I want to make one thing perfectly clear. This is NOT about pointing fingers, nor is it about saying this is what people want to see or any other manner of attempting to form a negative opinion about media for doing it. Rather, this is an attempt to bring something to the readers attention -- as well as my own -- something that can allow us to, perhaps, see things in a different light than we might, otherwise, perceive, that a story line, plot or news story might direct us.

So, let's begin with the term of coward, cowardly, cowardliness. When I look at the definition in dictionaries, I see 'with tail between the legs', 'destitute of courage', 'timidity', 'wanting courage', 'not brave'. I see that cowardly 'implies a weak or ignoble, pusillanimous, mean-spirited and contemptible lack of courage', or 'the cowardly or skulking commission of an outrageous crime', or 'cowardly submission under a threat'.

When I saw the word pusillanimous, my first reaction: Where did that word come from?

My second reaction: What a cool sounding word, wonder what it means?

The third reaction brought me to the first step of what follows. I checked, and the definition I saw, goes like this: Destitute of manly strength and firmness of mind; cowardly; weak or mean-spirited; arising from weakness of spirit and want of courage.'

Destitute of manly strength. Part of me worried about offending. However, when I think of the term, I realized something rather quickly. Manly here, means that of man, which includes woman by the virtue of man being included in both. I do have thoughts on this topic of how we, man and woman, treat one another, but that's for another time. Here, I hope to continue with the definition at hand, coward, pusillanimous. Consequently, a touch of cowardliness I will bring to the topic of men and women (male and female), but that's for another time, as well.

So, with the terms out before us, a coward is not only someone who hides from a fight, does not stand up for his beliefs, cowers when challenged. In essence, someone who tucks tail between the legs and runs.

A coward is also someone who lies and doesn't own up to it, cheats in an effort to get away with it, steals what doesn't belong to the person.

A coward is also someone who is weak or mean-spirited -- pusillanimous. In other words, takes advantage of a situation where they are stronger than the other, whether this has to do with having more money, physical strength, political power, or just knows how to speak in such a way to make sure they appear more correct than someone else, and not by facts but, rather, the use of popular opinion -- group think is a good communications term for it -- or popular belief; and popular opinion and belief tends to lead to greater confusion, a safe place to appear a hero without being heroic.

My point: A person who makes sure the situation they put themselves in, protects them while bringing harm to others. This is a coward. Someone who doesn't want to work in truth but, rather, in advantage.

People can twist this to make themselves appear the offended as opposed to the offender. Right now, people can point the finger at examples. None of that matters.

The truth of it is in the point. When we watch a news story that's sensationalized, we're receiving a coward's version of the story. Or a news story, that shows a heinous crime without following it through to the actual conclusion or skewing the conclusion, we're receiving a coward's version. When we see television show or movie where a politician uses their influence for an outcome that serves them over the common good, we witness a story about a coward. When we see a politician point the finger at another within the same government to appear correct, we witness a coward.

A movie where an individual stalks around and kills others while staying in the shadows for cover, we do NOT witness strength. Rather, we witness a coward, weak and mean-spirited, destitute of strength or courage.

Bottom line, a coward is a liar, a thief, a cheat, and a person who holds others up to the highest standards of perfection, while they point the finger at others. This coward wishes for everyone else to accept that they're not perfect, that they're human, and not what they truly are, cowards; and they agree with the truth of appearances, as long as they're on top.

There's more, but it's a start......