Prepare for the Good Times

It's Friday but Sunday's coming

Sunday morning, I plan on acknowledging to my church the fact that some of them are facing adversity right now. Some have been facing adversity for over a year.

As a preacher, I feel called to urge them to grow close to God, and plan now how they will live for God should he bless them. They cannot be caught off guard. It will not be spiritual. Chances are, in this country, they will someday find the time of blessing again—a time of triumph and success.

Rare is the person in the U. S. that lives and dies and knows only poverty. I know they are out there, and I know they congregate together and form a sad community. We serve them. But this is a small portion of society. And chances are extremely good no one in my audience will be one of them.

My dad’s parents were sharecroppers from 1919 until the 1950s. Then through opportunity, and help from their children, who by then had become adults, built themselves a three bedroom house. For many, it was not comparable by today's standards. They did not have air conditioning and they had no central heating, just space heaters. But, the house was what they wanted and they were happy with it. They started a little factory where they manufactured mattresses. It burned down, so they faced adversity. Then they went into the cattle business. They had some good years and bad years. But, even the bad years were better than the 1930s and 1940s were for them.

Sunday morning, I’m telling my folks that chances are, they are going to have some really good times. When those times come, what will they do with God? What I have seen too many times is a guy makes it professionally—
and then leaves his wife. A wife becomes successful, and she has an affair. A couple sacrifices for years to raise their kids and they succeed---only to leave each other when the nest becomes empty.

Our nation is having severe problems, not because of poverty and depression; it is because of years and years and years of prosperity. As a nation, we have taken God's blessing and created appetites that demand even more.

In II Samuel 5-8, we see David experience triumph. He has walked with God for twenty years of unrelenting crisis, and he has grown stronger with God. Yet, even more incredibly, in these chapters, as David reaches his peak professionally and attains glory, he grows closer to God. I’ve preached many a time on the passages of scripture that warn us to prepare for pain and suffering. Here is a story with a warning applied for us to prepare for—the good times.


Books, Books, Books

Last Saturday, I experienced one of those serendipities that I occasionally enjoy at the public library. They had a bunch of new books available for checkout, so I did—about 10 of them. Saturday night, I mainly skimmed each to see if I want to purchase any in the future.

As for the science books, the one I liked the most was THE LANGUAGE OF LIFE: DNA AND THE REVOLUTION IN PERSONALIZED MEDICINE. It is written by Francis Collins, a geneticists and evangelical Christian, who helped cracked the gene code back in the late 1990s. He writes well for a popular audience. He stretches my thinking—he believes evolution is a gift of God that expresses God’s beauty. He is also a highly respected scientist. This book deals with much of current medical, political, and cultural life.

Jack Valenti completed a robust autobiography shortly before his death entitled THIS TIME, THIS PLACE: MY LIFE IN WAR, THE WHITE HOUSE AND HOLLYWOOD. The White House years fascinated me because of his relationship with Lyndon Johnson. (Valenti was a member of Johnson’s staff.) The Hollywood years are interesting because Valenti facilitated the development of the ratings system: G, PG, M (remember M? Mature audiences only), R and X. This is a quick and easy read.

Ditto that for LITERARY LIFE by Larry McMurtry. I enjoyed, greatly, his first volume of memoirs WALTER BENJAMIN AT THE DAIRY QUEEN--REFLECTIONS AT 60 AND BEYOND. LITERARY LIFE is a shorter book. McMurtry focuses on his books and experiences writing. It is 175 pages long but reads shorter—I finished it in less than a week. I look forward to volume three covering his relationship with Hollywood.

GARFIELD: A BIOGRAPHY, is an update of Allan Peskin’s earlier work on President James Garfield. Garfield was the only preacher elected president. He was assassinated six months into office, a treacherous act, which I hope was not inspired by Garfield’s being a preacher. Little is said about Garfield’s preaching and religion, which is why I wish Jerry Rushford would publish his dissertation on Garfield.

Finally, COUNTEFEIT GODS: THE EMPTY PROMISES OF MONEY, SEX, AND POWER, AND THE ONLY HOPE THAT MATTERS is the newest book by Timothy Keller. I was interested in this book because he is a preacher in New York City and his books sell well. I was surprised at how biblical he is; I figured this would have destroyed his sales. Yet, he has made a connection between scripture and the secular Northeast. I don’t agree with everything, but I would enjoy a more methodical read of the book.

Happy Reading!


Five Things I Think I Think (with a nod to Peter King for this idea)

1. Welcome to this world, Cora Elise Smith. I know your parents, missionaries to Peru, Kyle and Larissa, are proud of you.

2. Good grief, I discovered I know a national celebrity. I stumbled upon a story on our own Morgan Ashbreck in the well-respected magazine GUIDEPOSTS. Her story in volleyball, which I have related her last fall, was cited as one of “The Most Inspiring Sports Stories of 2009”. I must emphasize it was not MY version that was picked up by the magazine, but that’s okay. Here is a link: http://www.guideposts.com/story/most-inspiring-sports-stories-2009?page=0%2C7

3. I saw that Apple introduced its new iPad this week. One of the talking heads said something that made me realize: my laptop is now my desktop and my iPhone is now my laptop. Could it be that someday, the iPad will replace my laptop?

4. I predict Brett Favre returns next year to play. The last three seasons, the last pass he threw was intercepted. If he continues to try, someday, his last pass will be completed, or at least fall incomplete.

5. I want to see the documentary JOHNNY CASH’S AMERICA. Sounds fascinating.


Have a great weekend!