I just returned from the DAV Thrift Store just down the street as I had some items to drop off. While unloading the stuff from my car I noticed an old (I mean "really" old) television setting in the parking lot. People had gathered around it admiring this piece of antiquity! They searched through some bins to find the "rabbit ears" that surely must go with it! I was amused at first, but then I wondered about the eyes that had viewed this unique piece of furniture.
I wondered when some technician assembled this video antique, probably in the early 1950s, did he ever think that his piece of equipment would end up in a parking lot in Williamsburg, VA? Probably not! The technician is probably long gone and any dreams or goals that he had are now history. He may have taken a great deal of pride in being among the very first people who worked on televisions, but his efforts ended up in a parking lot!
My thoughts went to the number of children that must have laughed with Howdy Doody and Buffalo Bob Smith and Phinias T. Bluster, the mayor of Doodyville! How many little boys had watched the Lone Ranger (and his faithful companion, Tonto) capture the bad guys and save the community once again? Did those folk thrill seeing "Father Knows Best" or "Ozzie and Harriet" as much as I did? Most of us boys had a little crush on Cathy and we never could figure out what Ozzie Nelson did for a living! Oh, what memories!
But, there it sat in the hot sunshine awaiting its fate! No more would it bring laughter and tears to a family gathered around it in the evening. No more sounds of Dennis James callling out the exploits of professional wrestler, Don Eagle. It was doomed to be put in the big old truck and hauled off to be priced and sold...maybe!
Such is life! We are so real, viable and alive, but there comes a time when we are passed over by the newer and more highly technical gadgets of another generation. Our joys, motives, and dreams were all so very real, but now are forgotten and many of our dreams left unfulfilled!
Unlike that old television, we have a wonderful destiny ahead of us if we believe in a heavenly Father! The one that gave his one and only Son for us! If we give ourselves to Him through faith and obedience, we will find our future is much brighter than our present and more glorious than our past!
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Saturday, May 10, 2008
"Lock your keys in your car?"
Have you ever felt the sense of helplessness by locking your keys in your car? The moment you hear the door shut there is a clear signal that the keys did not exit the car with you! What if you locked the keys in your car, left the motor running and the CD player blasting today's newest songs? Now, consider how you would feel if this were your mother's car and she was coming out of the store to go home and her keys were the ones you were using! Got the picture?
This morning as I left my Saturday morning hang-out... Cracker Barrel...a young man was standing between my car and a blue Chevrolet. His countenance was suggestive of someone who had just lost his best friend. He was trying to run a stick down between the rubber and glass in one of the car's rear doors. As I approached him, he asked, "Mr., would you happen to have a coat hanger in your car?" Now, in a moment of stupidity, I asked, "Lock your keys in your car?" My first thought was of the answer given by one of the "Blue Collar" comedians, "Nope, just washed it and I want to hang it up to dry! Here's your sign...!" Then, I checked through the stuff in the backseat and under my golf clubs in the trunk, but no coat-hanger! I told the young man that I would go to my office and get one and bring it back to him. "It will only take ten minutes and I will be right back," I added.
Ten minutes later, I pulled back in the parking lot and there was the blue Chevy, but another person had been added to the scene. Yep, his mother! Her expression was one of disbelief that a son of hers could be so foolish as to lock her keys in her car! The words were scarce between them as the young man was sitting on the front bumper and his mother was leaning on the trunk lid. I gave them the hanger, wished them well, and made a quick exit!
I wonder what the conversation was like on the way home? Did the son remind his mother that it was Mother's Day weekend and he hoped she had a wonderful day tomorrow? Did he load her favorite CD? Was their a mutual laugh at the son's expense? Will either of them share this story with the husband/father, so he can remind them of their stupidity for years to come?
Oh, well, I will never know! One thing I do know is that I feel a bit better for having taken a few minutes of my time to try to help out a friend! A friend? Yes! You see, I think a stranger is just a friend that I have not met! It was only a few minutes of time, fifty cents worth of gas, and a little inconvenience, but I have the rest of the day to enjoy the blessings of helping someone who was stuck in Cracker Barrel's parking lot!
It is a goooooood feeling!
This morning as I left my Saturday morning hang-out... Cracker Barrel...a young man was standing between my car and a blue Chevrolet. His countenance was suggestive of someone who had just lost his best friend. He was trying to run a stick down between the rubber and glass in one of the car's rear doors. As I approached him, he asked, "Mr., would you happen to have a coat hanger in your car?" Now, in a moment of stupidity, I asked, "Lock your keys in your car?" My first thought was of the answer given by one of the "Blue Collar" comedians, "Nope, just washed it and I want to hang it up to dry! Here's your sign...!" Then, I checked through the stuff in the backseat and under my golf clubs in the trunk, but no coat-hanger! I told the young man that I would go to my office and get one and bring it back to him. "It will only take ten minutes and I will be right back," I added.
Ten minutes later, I pulled back in the parking lot and there was the blue Chevy, but another person had been added to the scene. Yep, his mother! Her expression was one of disbelief that a son of hers could be so foolish as to lock her keys in her car! The words were scarce between them as the young man was sitting on the front bumper and his mother was leaning on the trunk lid. I gave them the hanger, wished them well, and made a quick exit!
I wonder what the conversation was like on the way home? Did the son remind his mother that it was Mother's Day weekend and he hoped she had a wonderful day tomorrow? Did he load her favorite CD? Was their a mutual laugh at the son's expense? Will either of them share this story with the husband/father, so he can remind them of their stupidity for years to come?
Oh, well, I will never know! One thing I do know is that I feel a bit better for having taken a few minutes of my time to try to help out a friend! A friend? Yes! You see, I think a stranger is just a friend that I have not met! It was only a few minutes of time, fifty cents worth of gas, and a little inconvenience, but I have the rest of the day to enjoy the blessings of helping someone who was stuck in Cracker Barrel's parking lot!
It is a goooooood feeling!
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Where is "Presidents Park?"
One of the more recent additions to the historical flavor of our area is "Presidents Park." I must admit that I have never visited this site, but have driven by it dozens of times and have admired it from a distance. Within the park are busts of all our presidents from the first to the current, Mr. Bush. They are made out of concrete and stand 25-30 feet tall. I am told the likenesses are very close and that the sulptor did a marvelous job!
The reason I mention this today is that I overheard a person trying to explain to one of our tourists how to find "Presidents Park." It was the usual turn right, go three lights, turn left, go straight for about two miles...," but then the local guide said, "Or, you could turn left, go four miles and then turn right, on and on." The guide's final comment was, "Either way you are going to end up in the same place!"
I wondered to myself how many times that is the approach to one's relationship to much more important matters in life! What if one were to say, "You date this person and then that one and a couple more...on and on! It really does not matter because you are going to end up married to someone!" Or, what if we were told, "Try out this car and then that one because they are all about the same and will not last too long anyway!" No doubt we would balk at such suggestions regarding a lifetime relationship or six years of car payments, but why are other matters of much more importance taken so casually?
What of one's relationship with God? Are we to assume that finding God is like the "hunt and peck" style of using a computer keyboard? You know, you will get the email written anyway, so what makes a difference how you type it! My good friend, seeking God is much, much more important than sending an email to a friend!
The Bible says that there is only one way to reach the Father and that is through Jesus Christ! It is said that Jesus is "the way, the truth, and the life!" There is no other way to God, except through His Son, Jesus Christ! No other way...none! Searching for God is not a matter of guesswork or unplanned action...it is a conscious search for divine leadership!
You may be able to get to "Presidents Park" a dozen different ways, but there is only one way to God!
The reason I mention this today is that I overheard a person trying to explain to one of our tourists how to find "Presidents Park." It was the usual turn right, go three lights, turn left, go straight for about two miles...," but then the local guide said, "Or, you could turn left, go four miles and then turn right, on and on." The guide's final comment was, "Either way you are going to end up in the same place!"
I wondered to myself how many times that is the approach to one's relationship to much more important matters in life! What if one were to say, "You date this person and then that one and a couple more...on and on! It really does not matter because you are going to end up married to someone!" Or, what if we were told, "Try out this car and then that one because they are all about the same and will not last too long anyway!" No doubt we would balk at such suggestions regarding a lifetime relationship or six years of car payments, but why are other matters of much more importance taken so casually?
What of one's relationship with God? Are we to assume that finding God is like the "hunt and peck" style of using a computer keyboard? You know, you will get the email written anyway, so what makes a difference how you type it! My good friend, seeking God is much, much more important than sending an email to a friend!
The Bible says that there is only one way to reach the Father and that is through Jesus Christ! It is said that Jesus is "the way, the truth, and the life!" There is no other way to God, except through His Son, Jesus Christ! No other way...none! Searching for God is not a matter of guesswork or unplanned action...it is a conscious search for divine leadership!
You may be able to get to "Presidents Park" a dozen different ways, but there is only one way to God!
Sunday, April 27, 2008
"Super Cold Vanilla Ice Cream Cone!"
After church this morning, Linda and I ate lunch at the Golden Corral on ByPass Road as we do quite often. It is not that quiet little romantic spot for two, but it is pretty much a "family affair" for us because we have been going there ever since it opened in 1997, therefore, we know nearly everyone on a first name basis. Anyway, today was a bit different! One of the servers knew that Linda's birthday was yesterday, so she had some of her coworkers sing "Happy Birthday" (Golden Corral rendition) to her. She was so embarrassed, but I loved it!
But, later, a beautiful blue-eyed little girl in a long blue dress caught our attention. She was sitting two tables away from us, but she was just a little doll! As I went by, I spoke to her mother and another lady with her and the little one's face lit up as she smiled! On my way back to my table, the child was eating an ice cream cone. That's when she yelled with great excitement, "Super cold!" That's all, "Super cold!" Everyone laughed at the joy such a little thing could bring into a child's life!
I began to wonder how nice it would be if we all could get so excited over something as simple as a vanilla ice cream cone! Sounds to simple, doesn't it? With so many other more important things in the world, an ice cream cone is just not worth our thoughts.
Wait a minute!
Maybe it is all those other things that are really less important! Those things that we can do nothing to alter even if we wanted to do so. I am so disappointed in the quagmire in Iraq that I wish I could get all those brave warriors home today, but I don't know how to do that and I am not sure anyone else knows how! I cannot change their situation. There are those who are hospitalized with painful terminal diseases that I wish I could heal, but I cannot! Families are mourning the loss of a father and grandfather, but I cannot remove the empitness they feel! The list is endless of things that I cannot do, but one thing I can do is have a "super cold vanilla ice cream cone!" I can enjoy this little bit of life's delight!
Can you take the time today or tomorrow to pause and enjoy the blessings of the present without spoiling that precious moment with thoughts of a regrettable past or a hopeless future? Can you? No, will you?
Hey, Dairy Queen's open right now! Anyone for a "super cold vanilla ice cream cone?"
But, later, a beautiful blue-eyed little girl in a long blue dress caught our attention. She was sitting two tables away from us, but she was just a little doll! As I went by, I spoke to her mother and another lady with her and the little one's face lit up as she smiled! On my way back to my table, the child was eating an ice cream cone. That's when she yelled with great excitement, "Super cold!" That's all, "Super cold!" Everyone laughed at the joy such a little thing could bring into a child's life!
I began to wonder how nice it would be if we all could get so excited over something as simple as a vanilla ice cream cone! Sounds to simple, doesn't it? With so many other more important things in the world, an ice cream cone is just not worth our thoughts.
Wait a minute!
Maybe it is all those other things that are really less important! Those things that we can do nothing to alter even if we wanted to do so. I am so disappointed in the quagmire in Iraq that I wish I could get all those brave warriors home today, but I don't know how to do that and I am not sure anyone else knows how! I cannot change their situation. There are those who are hospitalized with painful terminal diseases that I wish I could heal, but I cannot! Families are mourning the loss of a father and grandfather, but I cannot remove the empitness they feel! The list is endless of things that I cannot do, but one thing I can do is have a "super cold vanilla ice cream cone!" I can enjoy this little bit of life's delight!
Can you take the time today or tomorrow to pause and enjoy the blessings of the present without spoiling that precious moment with thoughts of a regrettable past or a hopeless future? Can you? No, will you?
Hey, Dairy Queen's open right now! Anyone for a "super cold vanilla ice cream cone?"
Friday, April 25, 2008
"Take Me Home Country Roads!"
John Denver, the horn-rimmed glasses wearing folk singer from Colorado, made his name composing and singing songs about "home." Such songs as "Rocky Mountain High" and "Take Me Home Country Roads" were among his signature renderings. Of course, being a West Virginia (I still bleed blue and gold during football season!), I am a bit partial to the latter song. "Country Roads" is not the state song of the Mountain state ("Oh, Those West Virginia Hills" is the official song), but it has become the most accepted song for the folk up home.
There are not many days as I am out and about here in Williamsburg that someone doesn't ask, "Where you from?" It is a pretty safe question around here because it seems that most of our townspeople are from "some place else!" When I tell them of my roots, I usually get the ancient comments: "Well, you must be one of thos hillbillies that doesn't walk with a limp from standing on the side of a mountain!" Or, the ever popular, "How old were you before you had your first pair of shoes?" I always grin and tell folk that I never lived on the side of a mountain and I got my first pair of shoes when I learned to walk!
"Home" is a pretty neat word, isn't it? We say things like, "Home is where the heart is!" Or, "Home Sweet Home!" And, "There's no place quite like home!" All of those are profound truths IF those are the memories one has of home. However, not everyone can look back on a childhood of pleasant times! "Home" to some conjures up thoughts about abuse, poverty, absentee parents, neglect, and abandonment! That's hard, folk, real hard!
It makes it pretty difficult to convince someone that they want to go to "home and be with God" someday when "home" is not their source of happiness and joy! It's like trying to describe the love of God as the love of a father! What if one's experience of "fatherhood" has been very, very unpleasant? When "home" is a place you could not wait to leave and "father" was the reason you needed to run, our efforts at sharing the eternal joy with God become more difficult!
Try to understand the reluctance of some to jump for joy about something that is so joyous to many! It will do you and them a lot of good if you will try to understand!
There are not many days as I am out and about here in Williamsburg that someone doesn't ask, "Where you from?" It is a pretty safe question around here because it seems that most of our townspeople are from "some place else!" When I tell them of my roots, I usually get the ancient comments: "Well, you must be one of thos hillbillies that doesn't walk with a limp from standing on the side of a mountain!" Or, the ever popular, "How old were you before you had your first pair of shoes?" I always grin and tell folk that I never lived on the side of a mountain and I got my first pair of shoes when I learned to walk!
"Home" is a pretty neat word, isn't it? We say things like, "Home is where the heart is!" Or, "Home Sweet Home!" And, "There's no place quite like home!" All of those are profound truths IF those are the memories one has of home. However, not everyone can look back on a childhood of pleasant times! "Home" to some conjures up thoughts about abuse, poverty, absentee parents, neglect, and abandonment! That's hard, folk, real hard!
It makes it pretty difficult to convince someone that they want to go to "home and be with God" someday when "home" is not their source of happiness and joy! It's like trying to describe the love of God as the love of a father! What if one's experience of "fatherhood" has been very, very unpleasant? When "home" is a place you could not wait to leave and "father" was the reason you needed to run, our efforts at sharing the eternal joy with God become more difficult!
Try to understand the reluctance of some to jump for joy about something that is so joyous to many! It will do you and them a lot of good if you will try to understand!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Tuesday Is "Senior Citizens' Day!"
Twice today I was reminded that this is "senior citizens' day" at some of the local stores. First, I saw Doug and Catherine going to Farm Fresh to "check out the specials" and, then I went to one of my favorite shopping places...the DAV Thrift Store! Yes, that's right, I like to shop at thrift stores! So, does my wife! I am amazed at the things people donate to various charitable organizations as many of them are in near perfect condition. Sometimes they still have the tags on them from where they were purchased. Today, the lady cashier, said, "Now theirs a gentleman that knows when to get things on sale!" I had no idea what she was talking about because how can you have a sale at a thrift store. It was "senior citizens' day," again!
As I checked out, I wondered what brought these people to a thrift store! The folk right in front of me spoke very little English, but were fluent in Spanish. Two young girls from the Far East were trying on shoes. Others were shopping for clothes, appliances, shoes, and toys. Obviously, I have no idea why all the others were finding their bargains at the DAV, but I know they were not too proud to shop where they could save a few dollars.
Pride is the sin of the age in my estimation. Pride is the epitome of self-centeredness. Pride's clarion call is, "It's all about me!"
If there is one human characteristic that is completely removed from the traits of Jesus, it would be pride! Never a more humble being ever walked this earth. He had no home...no place to lay his head down...nothing! But, even though he had nothing, he had everything! It all belonged to him! Jesus was a "giver," not a "taker!" He knew the folly of pride and we should discover it, also!
The wise Solomon said that "Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall!" Let each of us examine ourselves to see how close pride has taken us to destruction!
The thrift store is just down the street on Merrimac Trail...drop in sometime! (Tuesday is "senior citizens' day!" Pass the word along!)
As I checked out, I wondered what brought these people to a thrift store! The folk right in front of me spoke very little English, but were fluent in Spanish. Two young girls from the Far East were trying on shoes. Others were shopping for clothes, appliances, shoes, and toys. Obviously, I have no idea why all the others were finding their bargains at the DAV, but I know they were not too proud to shop where they could save a few dollars.
Pride is the sin of the age in my estimation. Pride is the epitome of self-centeredness. Pride's clarion call is, "It's all about me!"
If there is one human characteristic that is completely removed from the traits of Jesus, it would be pride! Never a more humble being ever walked this earth. He had no home...no place to lay his head down...nothing! But, even though he had nothing, he had everything! It all belonged to him! Jesus was a "giver," not a "taker!" He knew the folly of pride and we should discover it, also!
The wise Solomon said that "Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall!" Let each of us examine ourselves to see how close pride has taken us to destruction!
The thrift store is just down the street on Merrimac Trail...drop in sometime! (Tuesday is "senior citizens' day!" Pass the word along!)
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Is Your "Love Tank" Full?
Williamsburg is one of those rapidly growing communities here in Virginia! It is not the "small town village" that it was years ago when the Rockefellers decided that history should be rebuilt. In the twelve years that I have lived here the population has increased, stores have sprung up all over town, "New Town" was designed and built, "Main Street" is under construction, and scores of people have decided to call Williamsburg, "Home !"
Now I take no credit for this explosion (nor blame depending upon which segment of our town is being queried), but I must say that it has been a joy to watch it happen! I have never lived in a town where it was so easy to become acquainted with so many people with diverse backgrounds.
But, I wonder how many of our friends and neighbors may be running on "empty!" Dr. Gary Chapman wrote a book entitled, "Five Love Languages," and it he labels each of these "languages." Chapman is not considering the "romance languages" (Italian, French, etc.), but rather the languages that speak love to others. His list is interesting!
1. Words of affirmation -- If your spouse, child, or parent needs to be told they are loved and appreciated, you should provide that language for them. Compliment them. Affirm them.
2. Quality time -- That "special" person may enjoy spending time with you, but the time should be valuable. Going out to eat for an hour is one thing, but spending that hour in meaningful dialogue is totally different.
3. Receiving gifts -- I know it is more blessed to give than it is to receive, but in your mates love language a gift ungiven may represent a lack of love.
4. Acts of service -- If this is your love language and your mate does one of your chores for no apparent reason, then you feel very loved and appreciated.
5. Physical touch -- There is no replacement for the physical touch of the person who loves you! There is a reassurance in that touch that speaks loudly those wonderful words, "I love you!"
Check your "love tank" and, remember, if you are running on empty it will not be long before your love comes to a complete stop! You do not want that to happen!
Now I take no credit for this explosion (nor blame depending upon which segment of our town is being queried), but I must say that it has been a joy to watch it happen! I have never lived in a town where it was so easy to become acquainted with so many people with diverse backgrounds.
But, I wonder how many of our friends and neighbors may be running on "empty!" Dr. Gary Chapman wrote a book entitled, "Five Love Languages," and it he labels each of these "languages." Chapman is not considering the "romance languages" (Italian, French, etc.), but rather the languages that speak love to others. His list is interesting!
1. Words of affirmation -- If your spouse, child, or parent needs to be told they are loved and appreciated, you should provide that language for them. Compliment them. Affirm them.
2. Quality time -- That "special" person may enjoy spending time with you, but the time should be valuable. Going out to eat for an hour is one thing, but spending that hour in meaningful dialogue is totally different.
3. Receiving gifts -- I know it is more blessed to give than it is to receive, but in your mates love language a gift ungiven may represent a lack of love.
4. Acts of service -- If this is your love language and your mate does one of your chores for no apparent reason, then you feel very loved and appreciated.
5. Physical touch -- There is no replacement for the physical touch of the person who loves you! There is a reassurance in that touch that speaks loudly those wonderful words, "I love you!"
Check your "love tank" and, remember, if you are running on empty it will not be long before your love comes to a complete stop! You do not want that to happen!
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