Faith Sense

I could tell about the time when I was 12 years old and lied to my dad about someone stealing my gym clothes, but that is probably not the worst mistake I have made. I could tell you about a time when my daughter was two and I was explaining to her when she should not do what she had just done ever again. I held her by both arms and spoke very sternly to her. The next day I saw where there were bruises on the inside to both of her arms where I had been holding her attention. But I don’t want to you about that.

So I think I will tell you about them long ago. I had bought a doughnut shop, the same one which had worked as a high-school boy. The first year-and-a-half of the business, we did very well. Then the union workers of the chemical plant in our community went on strike. I was invited to cross the picket line and take doughnuts in to the salaried personnel that were running the plant during the strike. I was promised I would be guaranteed to sell hundred dozen doughnuts a day for the duration of the strike. I declined to take the offer, for couple of reasons.

First, I had grown up in a union home it and it would’ve gone against my conscience to cross a picket line, even though by that time my dad was salaried and in the plant. Second, I was fairly certain that the strike would not last for long and I did not want to alienate friends and customers if I crossed the picket line.

But the strike lasted for 13 weeks. Those union workers had a very hard time it recouping from the strike. We found out that donuts are a luxury, if you don’t have money you don’t buy doughnuts.

I could have made enough money during the strike to a pay off my business loans and would have been able to weather any storms after the strike. But because the decision I made not to cross the picket line, my business fell off by a more than 65%. We worked very hard for more than a year to try to make a comeback. But it was not to be and we the lost business. In some ways that was a mistake. But that decision led to other decisions that took me back to school, tio getting my degrees, and led to my life in ministry, rather than rolling in the dough.

I guess I was meant to be a holy man and not a hole-y man.

There is a story in Judges, chapter 9, that needs to be brought to our attention occasionally. A wicked man, Abimelech, killed seventy men to insure that he would be chosen king of Shechem. When the righteous Jotham heard that Abimelech had indeed been appointed, he told a very pointed parable about the trees.

The trees were seeking a king ad sought first to anoint the olive tree, who refused for a seemingly good reason. Next the fig tree was approached, but he also refused. Eventually the grape vine was asked to serve, but he likewise declined. Finally the trees requested the bramble (thorn bush) to become their king. Verse 15 says, “And the bramble said to the trees, If in truth you are anointing me as king over you, come and take refuge in my shade.” J

otham used the parable to make a point about the situation in which he found himself. I’d like to make one about more current circumstances. It seems to me that the trees showed good judgment initially in recognizing the one who ought to be their leader, the one with the most talent. Undaunted by the olive’s refusal they turned to the fig, who was nearly as talented as the olive. Imagine the frustration felt by the entire group as they could get no one who qualified to lead take up the leadership responsibility. As the frustration mounted, they turned to the worthless, even troublesome thorn bush.

I am afraid that phenomenon is not isolated to imaginary forests, but that it is true in the jungle of humanity. We desperately need leaders, everyone recognizes it. And yet we have refusal after refusal on the part of important and blessed men. If we have the talent and do not supply it to those that need it, we surrender the right to complain about the way we are led by a thorn bush. If I am not mistaken, you have to crawl to get in the shade of a bramble!

In going through Mom’s things after her death, Dad found a little thought jotted on a piece of yellowing paper tucked away in her Bible. It said, “Do the most. Say the best. Leave the rest.” No doubt she had heard that in a sermon or a Bible class lesson ad thought it worth preserving. Not only that, but I think she must have thought it worth living.

My mother was like anyone else, human, with her weaknesses, but her faith was strong in difficulty. And she seemed to have a handle on her eternal destination. It occurs to me that she was on God’s side. Some people try to get God on their side through their actions. Their worship, their offerings and their prayers are aimed at securing Divine approval. But that will not work.

On the other hand, a man on God’s side can’t lose. He may have some failures or be overcome in the battle with disease or other struggles, but each o these contribute to the ultimate success and sweetness of the final victory.

Satan appeared to have won at Calvary. But then the resurrection came and God resoundingly turned Satan’s worst to a glorious triumph for both himself and man. Redemption was made possible for those who would align themselves the plumb line of the Testament of Christ. That’s what Mom did and she taught some very vivid lessons of faith and courage in her fight with cancer. I hope they are truly learned.

Thank goodness that, “in all thins we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.”

(originally written in November, 1983)

A good friend of mine has decided to put together a Book Club gathering of bloggers each month. She will post a book for any one who is interested in participating to read by the 25th of the month. Then each participant will post his or her report on the book on their own blog, with a link to the book club site. My friend will include links back to the various posts so that the participants can peruse the other posted reports. The book to be read for the month of April is To Kill A Mockingbird. I have not read it since high school, so I will pick up a copy at the library and give it a reread. The whole idea sounds like fun to me, and of course, the more the merrier!

There are many good reasons for Moms, and any one else that likes to express their love, to buy birthday cards from Cards Direct. What mom would not benefit a great deal by saving the time it takes to go to the card shop or department store for just the right card for her loved one? And what mom would not enjoy the savings that are realized from making her purchases through Cards Direct? Or which mom would not like to send a high quality card that had been personalized just for her, so that the sentiments expressed are the perfect ones for her loved one?

The answer, of course, is that every mom would like to have a few extra minutes in a day to catch her breath and a few extra pennies in her purse, especially when it does not detract from her purpose. Another benefit of buying from Cards Direct is that stocking up on cards makes sense, as there are discounts for quantities purchased.

The selection of cards offered by Cards Direct is substantial. My favorite card is the elegant looking gold filigree birthday card. It presents the greetings with a touch of class!

                                                                  

My wife and I were young and not too smart when we married. She was nineteen and I was still eighteen. Neither of us had a job nor a car. We borrowed a car from a friend and eloped to Lawton, Oklahoma. We married and then drove to my home to introduce my wife to my mother. They had never met. It was an ill conceived way to begin our life together. But yesterday was our 41st anniversary and we are still going! Thank you, Lord!