TRUTH

It's a wonderful Wednesday morning, and for those who know me well, Wednesday is like Friday in most peoples lives.  I look forward to Wednesday night services, because they are usually populated with people seeking to worship and grow in spiritual knowledge.  So, for that reason alone, I'm feeling excited about this day.   It's five in the morning, I'm sitting with my laptop in my recliner.  Glenda has left for work, and I have the house to myself.  This is my quiet time for writing emails, blogs, or editing my book I'm writing.  It's that wonderful time of year when I can open a window or a door and let the cool crisp air flow in from the outside.  It's just a little muggier than I like, but getting the stuffiness out of the room feels good.  

Sadly, the sparrows haven't awakened yet.  It's peaceful and calm outside.  

I don't usually use this blog to comment on political matters, because they are usually filled with the strife of people trying to exert influence over others through whatever means necessary.  Politics is the arena of human nature.  It is a place where peace rarely rests its hat.  Within the United States the two political forces can be summed up in simple ideology.  Those who claim to be liberal, want everyone to believe that all people are inherently good and that everyone has worth.  If you don't agree with their view, you are inherently evil, and have no worth.  They cling to a view that everyone will eventually grow into a cosmic whole of love, peace, and unity of purpose.  They (the left) are convinced that if we would all come to accept and believe what they believe, the world would be a better place. If you don't agree with that view, you are unworthy of human status.  

On the other end of that spectrum is the view that everything has to stay as it is, without question, without variation, without a hint of change.  Nothing changes, all is as it was, and people who want to change are frightening.  The radical right is defined by castes, cliques, and clubs.  If you don't agree with us, you are subversive, and destructive.  It is predicated upon the view that all people are incapable of making proper choices and should be directed into purpose as they define it.  

Both extremes of the political spectrum have committed evil in the propagation of their beliefs.  

With that said, I'm going to dip my toe into the political firestorm of the Judge Kavanaugh affair.  I hope this will be the first and last time I do something like this with this blog.  Why?  Because, there is a need for something more valuable than political purposes here. With a view to transparency (Is there any really needed here?) I am an evangelical conservative Christian.  For me, Judge Kavanaugh is someone I can support.  Although, he is Catholic, his conservative views are in line with what I hold.  Yet, there is one value yet to be validated.  Truth!

As anyone who has read my blogs knows, I am all about peace.  Not peace as men know it, but peace as given by a loving creator.  That peace transcends spiritual matters into the affairs of men.  I could go through a long list of spiritual matters that will not transcend into human affairs, because without a relationship with God, they hold no import.  However, TRUTH is one of those things that determine justice, and in turn affects peace.  Without truth, their is conflict in every aspect of life.  I realize some cultures value cunning, and deception.  Without deception of one kind or another, I truly believe humans would obliterate one another.  As humans, we withhold truth in order to maintain relationship, and we believe we have peace.  At a personal level, if we knew what people really believed about us, we would become murderous, and isolated.  Perhaps, that is why God didn't give us His ability to know what another person is thinking.  So, when I say truth brings peace, I am saying truth in as far as people resolving conflict.

So, what do we as Christians do when we are confronted with what we see in the current state of affairs between a nominated Judge, and an accusing woman.  WE SEEK TRUTH.  

For one thing, we don't know what happened 36 years ago.  We don't know who is telling the truth.  I hate to say it, but just because the accuser is a woman, doesn't mean she deserves to be believed.  Just because she may not have a reason to falsely accuse Judge Kavanaugh doesn't mean she should be believed.  On the other hand, just because Judge Kavanaugh has led an exemplary adult life, doesn't mean he didn't do what he is accused of doing.  Somewhere in the midst of this struggle that is outside the arena of this present truth, there is another struggle going on that makes the truth of greater import.  

I want Judge Kavanaugh to be confirmed to the Supreme Court, but not at the expense of the truth.  If I am willing to sacrifice the truth for an expedient end, I am no better than those who distort the truth in both sides of the media circus surrounding this story.  So as a Christian what do I do?  

Answer, I will choose to cherish truth.  I will cry out to my loving creator to bring truth to the forefront.

I don't fear the mid-term elections, or a hypothetical outcome I can't see.  I don't sacrifice truth in the rush to put someone into a seat of power that God may not want them in.  If I can't trust God with the day to day existence of my life human life, then I should stop serving him completely.  He knows the truth, and as the Bible says, the truth will set you free.  Christians shouldn't become part of the feeding frenzy that is this current political battle.  We should be the calming voice calling for truth.  At the same time, the truth doesn't take forever.  IF it is the truth, Perhaps, nearly 36 years ago a little 15 year old girl should have told her parents that she'd gone to a party with older kids and in their drunken stupor she'd almost been raped. We're told by her own account that she feared her parents reactions. Now, the truth may be forever marred by human opinion.  That is the price of secrecy.  The truth is already compromised by fear. Courage is the bosom buddy of truth.  

I often tell the men I pastor of a time in my childhood when I was a serial liar.  As a toddler my Dad caught me with my hand in the cookie jar and I still declared 'I didn't do it.'  Throughout my adolescence I would lie all the time.  Then one day, my brother used one of my dad's tools to repair his bicycle and left it outside to be rained on.  Dad found it in the yard and immediately blamed me.  I denied it vehemently, but it was of no avail, in his mind I was a liar, and I was lying then.  I received one of the worst whippings of my childhood, not because of its severity, but because as each stroke of the belt fell on my body, I knew I hadn't done what I was accused of.  I was innocent of the crime.  As I sat in my room crying a truth hit me that affected the course of my life forever.  I would tell the truth to my dad no matter what.  If it meant I would be punished, at least I would be punished for what I did.  I would tell him when I'd violated his personal spaces, strayed beyond decency, and experimented with my growing sexual urges.  In short, he and my mother would be privy to the truth of my life, even in the embarrassing stuff.  Because of that, my father eventually began to trust me when I made my declination of events I didn't do. Since that time I haven't always told the truth, and I haven't always revealed my deepest darkest secrets.  I've done things I'm ashamed of to this day, and I believe they are better locked away in the past.  To many people, those 'crimes' would be laughable.  At the same time to others they would be horrifying. If asked, however, I would tell the truth.  I have to believe that Judge Kavanaugh has learned the same lessons as myself, or I would not want him on the highest court in our land.  

Tomorrow, Judge Kavanaugh, and his accuser will both tell their stories to a nation in political turmoil.  In the wings of that chamber of human endeavors will be truth.  Believe me, there is truth out there, and that truth will win, no matter the outcome.  I can say that because I believe in a loving, and just God who judges above the will and and whims of humankind.  When this is all over with, the question for Christians isn't whether truth won out or not.  Truth doesn't always win out in the court of human affairs. My brother never got a whipping for leaving that wrench outside.  Everyday, innocent people die, the weak suffer, the poor get overridden, and despots continue to subdue. Yet, in the affairs of God, truth will be revealed.  All will be revealed.  When humans fail to believe that, the truth is of no value.  Without the truth, peace becomes elusive, and tyranny prevails.  These are things I know from my short 63 years on this earth.  I've seen the price of half-truths, outright lies, and hidden truth first hand.  I've seen what happens when we value secrecy more than transparency.  

So, I will try my hardest to watch the full Senate hearings, not the encapsulated reports of either side of the media.  I will pray that the truth prevails, no matter the political outcome, because I know a just judge is presiding over tomorrows proceedings.  I will ask Him to reveal the truth, because I know He values truth.  I will lay aside my anxious heart, my dubious musings, and my preconceptions for a moment of peace.  I will ask Holy Spirit to remove my prejudice and replace it with wisdom from His throne.  Like Solomon of old, I will ask for the means to know who is telling the truth.  I urge all of my Christian brothers and sisters to trust God and believe that He will reveal the truth.  Why?  

Because only the truth can bring peace.  

As a final word, the horizon is beginning to turn a beautiful deep blue as this world spins its daily course around our lovely sun.  I am beginning to hear the faint chirps of sparrows in the tree outside my eastern window.  They are waking up to a new day, unconcerned with the mess of human events, and the political wranglings I am focused on.  They will spend their day looking for food, seeking shelter, and living out their day trusting in the one who provides them with this awesome universe in which we live.  Tomorrow will come whether they live to see it or not.  Tomorrow will come, and that is all the truth they need to know.  

IF

There is a word in my vocabulary that isn't very big, but has an immense power beyond its size.  That word is 'IF'.  

Try going more than five minutes without using the word.  I doubt seriously any english speaking person can go that long.  I looked up the word 'if' in as many languages as I could and found out that it is a small word in almost all languages.  Yet, as small as the word is, it signifies a profound understanding of the universe around us.  'IF' forms the basis of most computational programs across the globe.  'IF' forms the basis of most of our decisions as humans.  It is common to almost all cultures, and people groups.  IF is also the basis for most religions across our globe.  As a Christian, though, the word IF has come to be a symbol of doubt.  Within the word IF you find uncertainty and to some degree ignorance.  This weekend I made a statement concerning an action I wished to occur and used the word IF.  I was immediately rebuked for doubting and expressing negativity.  After much thought, I came to accept the rebuke, but at the same time I hold the same thought in mind to measure the degree of uncertainty with which I do not know the will of God for the situation I was speaking about.  In other words, God's plan may not be my will.  That is the danger of 'Word of Faith.'  Even when we know God's expressed will about general things in this life, we are often confronted with instances where His plan circumvents or overrides his will.  The problem with 'if' is that it can be presumptuous or it can be fearful.  IF is always a question.  A question implies choices and sometimes we don't do choices well.  We especially don't do choices well when it comes to the will of God.   We know from scripture that it is not God's will that anyone should perish, but that all should come to eternal life.  We also know that there will be those that won't.  Every day people die without repenting or accepting the saving grace of God. This is not God's will, but it is the truth.  The reason for this, is that God loves us so much, He gives us choices.  It is a loving God that allows us to have free will, even when that will brings Him pain, and even when it ends in separation from Him.  God gave us the 'if' so we could be uniquely able to accept or reject Him.  Anyone who looks beyond the next moment is confronted with 'if'.  Our choices determine not only our future, but the future of those we touch everyday, as well as unborn generations to follow.  In my own life, I've come face to face with a bad choice made many years ago by someone I love greatly.  That choice now has the energy to bring great love, or great disaster  to our family.  It was not that person's desire, nor their intent at the time to do harm, but it can.  It also can bring great joy to all affected IF those affected by the decision choose to let go of fear.  That choice so many years ago brought a great goodness into this earth, but the cost could be inestimable if forgiveness isn't offered.  I've seen in my short 63 years upon this earth that when we make decisions or choices that were wrong at the moment, God affords us an opportunity to make it right somewhere along the line.  Giving someone the opportunity to be forgiven is what God is all about. IF can color our days with joy, or sadness.  IF can shade us with peace, or burn us with fear.  Eternity hangs on IF. 

Humankind has immortalized IF in so many ways.  "If only,"  "If he/she,"  "if they", "if I,"  and a host of other variations filled with regret.  We often couch our regrets in "if I could do it all over again," then we fill in the blanks.  The thing with regrets, is that they do nothing to change what happened.  "I'm sorry" is nice as a sentiment, but it reveals a failure to value the 'if' choice.  Sometimes our 'IF' choices result in the death of another, or great bodily injury to another, and the apology that follows rings small in comparison to the harm done.  There are also many 'if' choices that we'll never see the results of, but down the road will play out in future generations.  "I'm sorry," will not remove or ease the sting of those choices.  That is why God gave us two laws to 'live' by.  His commandments should guide us at that point where IF connects with action.  Living by the greater law of love moves us into a higher threshold of IF.  The law of love removes selfish consideration from the 'if/then' equation.  Once that happens, love conquers fear, and peace becomes the expression of that love.  Love makes our choices clearer and less cluttered with IF.  Love is the word of faith we should all live by.  That is why the Apostle Paul could say in 1st Corinthians 13: 13 (KJV)  and NOW abideth faith, hope, and charity (love), but the greatest of these is charity. 

Faith and hope are 'IF's, love is certain.  When you live LOVE, you solidify faith, and strengthen hope.  Without LOVE, faith and hope are empty vessels, heavy weights, and tormenting burdens.  It is LOVE that shapes peace.  

This is where we are greater than the sparrows.  As I'm writing this the eastern horizon is beginning to glow with the promise of the sunrise.  I can see thin clouds in the grey blue sky, but they can't hide the fact that above them the sun will shine whether I see it our not.  don't worry that the sun isn't shining on me, because I know that somewhere it is shining.  I may not live another day to see the sun shine again, but I know the sun will shine.  As long as I can awaken to God's grace, and love, I will not fear. In that way the sparrow has me beat.   I can hear a dog barking, and yes my gentle sparrows are already chirping and playing outside my office window.  As much as I enjoy the sparrows perch, there is one thing I know... they can't know the love I know in Christ Jesus.  This is the power of 'if' in my life.  When I fulfill the law of Christ, my regrets are fewer, I have less apologies to make, and IF doesn't rule my life.  I can then live in Peace.  

SUFFERING WITH OTHERS

As a handyman, I'm often called out to inspect damage, and give estimates for fixing the situation.  Most of the time, I'm satisfied that what I tell the prospective customer is valid and affordable.  I tend to lean more toward the affordable solution than one that is costly.  I know what it is like to have something break down or stop working without having the funds to fix it.  So, I tend to be just a little sensitive to people's financial needs.  Sometimes I will have a customer tell me that money is not an issue, but you know it is. 
There are times I go out to look at a job and find myself wishing I'd never gone out to look at it.  Such was the case for me this last week.  I was asked to go make a bid for putting a deck up around a double wide modular home way out in the country.  The couple had bought the home and were in the process of getting it moved when the husband died from a massive heart attack.  AS anyone knows who's gone through the death of a loved one, it can take well over a year before you get your feet back on the ground.  Such was the case with this customer.  When I drove out to the location of the home, I discovered that the two halves of the home were never fully joined together and that the ridge cap on the roof was never installed.  In simple terms, the home had sat open to the elements for over a year.  The movers had brought over the decking and materials only to throw them in heaps. 
I grew up in the mobile home industry from the time I was six or seven years old, and I can tell you that double-wides left open to the elements rarely go back together well.  As I looked at the home in shambles, my heart broke for the woman who'd called me out to look at it.   I had nothing but bad news to give her, and she didn't have a husband to help her bear the brunt of the bad news.  Even putting up the deck would be a disaster, and cost much more than I'd 'primed' her for before I went out. 
So, you might be wondering what if anything this has to do with the Sparrow's Perch and the peace of God.  Let me tell you.
The peace of God is ours even in the midst of tragedy.  As this week has unfolded, I've watched with great sorrow the slow and methodical approach of hurricane Florence.  As I write this, I know it will slam North Carolina like a freight train.  It will be a miracle if no one is killed, and an even greater miracle if there is no great property damage.  Just the predicted rain amounts alone are catastrophic.  Sometime this week, someone will be faced with death and destruction.  What do you say to console, or offer comfort?  What do you do? 
This brought the situation with my customer into even greater focus.  I'm on point with the customer.  They are part of my faith family, and someone I want to bless.  Sadly, I don't have the means to bless them.  I will continue to worship with her, and will shake her hand every time she comes to church, but I'll also know that I could not do anything to change her situation.  It is in God's hands. 
And that is the purpose of this blog.  Being in God's hands means that we can face the discouragements and the joys with the same trust in God.  There is an old Hebrew tradition called two pockets.  In one pocket you carry a note that says: "The Universe was created for me."  In the other is the statement; "I am but dust."  It is the essence of finding peace in God.  I know that God's peace is found both in the joys and the sorrows of this life. 
There is another Hebrew story that says King Solomon was tasked to provide a statement that would be applicable in all situations of life.  Solomon had his craftsman forge a ring with the inscription "and this too shall pass away."  Whether we are overcome with great joy, giddy happiness, pride from great achievements, or just the fruits of our labors, we know that it will pass amidst the inevitability of death, sickness, disaster, and even failure.  What is true of these things is that the terrors that beset us by night will soon fade and pass away into greater joy, happiness, and yes, peace. 
The sparrows have already begun to sing outside in my front yard.  The majestic silver maple that had been their perch for many years was cut down last week because the ants had devoured it from the inside out.  They have now taken up residence in the smaller pin oak on the corner of my lot.  They didn't lose faith in God because the maple was gone, no, they moved on to another tree.  I felt sorry for them when I had to cut the tree down, but soon realized that they weren't destroyed by the situation. 
I grieved all last week for my beloved sister in the Lord because I knew that I didn't have a solution for her.  I wanted to make it better for her, but it isn't in my power to do so.  Just the materials alone are beyond my financial ability to repair her home.  Could she sue the people who left her home open to the elements?  I don't know.  Would that even help?   What is the answer?  I know I'm not.  I grieve with her, and feel compassion for her.  I was ready to try and get the men of our fellowship to help me put the house right, but it would be a process that would take weeks.  I cried when I told her how much I thought it would cost to fix the home.  She doesn't have it.  What will be the story after Florence hits North Carolina?  Will someone like me have to tell a customer that their home of many years is destroyed beyond repair.  Do we miss the entire point to this? 
At least you are alive to be told the bad news.  The good news is that this too shall pass.