LOYAL:to what?

 We are loyal to things we remember--people, places, events, ideas--things we value and don't want to lose.  As I write this, memories are coming up, with the Memorial Day holiday next week.  We are hearing and reading of ways people have observed this day;  I happened to read a story of "selling" crepe-paper poppies on the street to passers-by, to be worn in a lapel or pinned on a shirt or jacket  in memory of both those who lost their lives in wartime, and those who had served in wartime. (They were made by veterans organizations on or around Memorial Day and Veteran's Day.)  When I was in high school, a students' service organization I was involved with would be asked to participate, and there was recognition of those who did well for the cause. I don't recall there being a specific price; we accepted whatever people offered. The history of the "poppy" was that there were small red poppies that grew in fields in Belgium and France where there had been great loss of life, including American and allied soldiers, from World War I, and the wildflowers that came back after the battles are the subject of a famous poem.  Most people were happy to wear a poppy, and I remember smiling until my face hurt.  The Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Legion have installed a Poppy Memorial exhibit on the National Mall in Washington for this weekend with 645,000 flowers, one for each war casualty since World War I.

Memorial Day is a good reminder of how experiences and people in our past can strengthen our commitment to our families, communities, countries and other memories; and also negative experiences can break down loyalties, some of which are in need of revision, and may change as we live and grow.  Change is a part of life; and we are reminded that we are in this world temporarily. Memorial services remind me that life is limited; it's not a question of "if" but of how and when. We sometimes act as if we're going to be here forever.  We are told that we do have life beyond this life, but we don't know anything other than that we will be held responsible for our relationship with our Creator. I suspect that there are things in our lives that we will need to be willing to give up; that are imcompatible with His Kingdom.

We do live in a world that can be full of fear.  As scary as life can appear to be, we need to remember that our fundamental loyalties are to the things that mean the most to us. We can get hung up on things that are not important in the real world; and we need to learn to recognize what is real.  What is real is what is in our hearts, and those of everybody else in the world.  Hardware looks scary in today's world, but what we have in our hearts and minds control what we do. And we need to learn a lot more about how to deal with what's in minds.  We read that going all the way back to the beginning, Cain killed his brother. We don't know how; that's not the point. He may not have needed anything more than his bare hands.  If there are people out there whose hearts and minds wish us dead, it really doesn't make a difference what they have in their hands.  People have hijacked airplanes with boxcutters. On the other hand, if they mean us no harm, again, it doesn't make a difference what they have in their hands. Where are our loyalties, and what are our fears?

Observations on Truth --by Linden Malki

                   

It is too easy in today's pop culture to think that Christians are not intellectually up to the modern world. What some folks think is the newest and best truth is actually the oldest untruth.   We are all different, and some of us are not as dumb as some folks think. God made our brains, and He expects us to use as much of it as we can. He also made us curious, and that can get out of hand. I am constantly amazed at what we can come up with--not just in the last century or so, but all the way back to as early as we have any information.

We have several thousand years of artwork, literature, inventions, even tax records and student's homework. Cowrie shells, used as currency in ancient Indian Ocean trade have been found in the North Sea. It seems that when very ancient buildings or monuments or just about anything showing the touch of mankind, we find  some kind of artwork, something that appears to be writing, and trade goods from surprising places. We have interminable lists of hundreds of civil servants and the builders and staffing lists from Solomon's Temple: to me they look like real bureaucrats rather than fictional characters--who would bother to make that up?

We live in a world produced by a Creator that is open to our questions; also  a world that is full of wrong answers. Some of them are merely incomplete; some are our own guesses; some are deliberate attempts to lead us down a bad road.  We can spend a lot of time and effort observing this universe and looking for the right answers, or we can make up our own answers for our own reasons or for misleading others into "answers" that lead away from the real search for truth.  Some folks are satisfied with "truth" that serves their own purpose; we are called to Truth that is always beyond us but is a strait and narrow path to the real door with all the real answers.

One of a Kind--by Linden Malki

You are the only one of you that has ever existed in the history of humanity.  Everything God makes is one of a kind: and we are no exception. I was reminded of this today, three of my four kids and most of their families were here for an early Mothers' Day lunch. Thinking back  it became  obvious that each one of them was different.  The farthest off a main curve is my younger son. He was writing and drawing as soon as he could hold a pencil, and was part of a youth drama team we had at what was then Calvary Baptist  20 years ago (that also included Pastor Chris).  He is still writing and drawing, with several books and weird stuff online--he can take an idea places that constantly amaze me.

Some of the most interesting people out there are Individualists.  They could be thought of as God's "wild cards", that are often called to fill a special niche in God's plan. We read the 3000 year old story of Saul, who was God's choice as the first King of Israel. He was an outstanding soldier and general, From what we know, he was also a good father--his son Jonathan was also a gifted soldier and true friend; one of the very few good fathers we have in the whole Old Testament.  However, he did have some of the same problems that are common to individualists--he had a tendency to act impulsively and unwisely, and was subject to depression and anger.

David, his successor, was also a talented military leader. He unfortunately was a unwise father whose sons were trouble for him, his complicated family, and the nation. Even the son who was blessed with God's gift of wisdom made unwise decisions, and David's grandson compounded the disaster by losing the loyalty of the northern tribes, who became a rival nation that lost their relationship with God. Their descendants became the Samaritans, who were a continuing problem for several centuries of  Judean history. 

Scattered for the next 2000 years of the history of the Church and of the world  we find occasional individuals who, like King Saul, stood head and shoulders above their contemporaries. Some of them were great servants of God, and some were enemies of God's people.  The history of our world has been affected by great movements of societies and nations, and many of them are the stories of individuals who have left long shadows for both good and evil--religiously, political, artistic, literary, as well as those who have not used their special talents well.  God has always used people of widely variable gifts and talents; one of our responsibilities is to recognize and develop the potentials of all His people.

Not by Might, but by the Spirit--by Linden Malki

God is generous with His gifts, but demanding of our use of them. Look at the story of very first response we know of: first, God asked for a share of what He had provided for them. Abel brought a suitable sacrifice: the best parts of the finest lamb of his flock. Cain brought something unacceptable; we don't know exactly why it was not what he had been asked for, but possibly the poorest fruits of his field. In any case, God blessed Abel  and offered Cain a chance to repent and try again. What was Cain's response? To take his failure out on his brother. Cain was allowed to flee, with God's protection, and he became a patriarch of a powerful clan. We aren't told much about them other than some of their inventions, as well as judgments on their society.

Cain put the stinginess of his offering ahead of obedience to God,
and a lie and an excuse as an answer to God.
This is a risk that God takes; He is aware of how much power we each have for good and for evil. He is also aware that we are more likely to put ourselves, our time, our efforts, and strength first. God has given His people talents and abilities to be used as an offering in His service, but what can happen? It is easy to use great ability for our own benefit, for the adulation  of the crowd, for the favor of those in power, and put these things ahead of the service of God. It is easy to think that you deserve all the goodies--that you are being rewarded with stuff for being such a talented and faithful person.

I am reminded of an early "Peanuts" cartoon: Lucy is saying that she doesn't want "ups and downs" in life, she wants "ups and ups". One problem is that "downs" happen; and it can mess you up. You can try to avoid failure by trying even harder, taking more shortcuts. stabbing more backs. You can also avoid failure by choosing to avoid risk. Sometimes this may be a wise choice, but it can also be an excuse for failure. You can blame God, bad luck, people with grudges, karma, where you are, where you're not, on and on, everything except your own shortcomings, stupidity, and reality. The question can be how much you learn (if anything)by recognizing alternatives and keeping your feet out of bear traps.

This is not to say that we are not blessed; there are things that happen that we cannot predict nor explain, both bad and good. There are blessings that we can recognize by their unexpectedness and their appropriateness. There are times that we can be puzzling over Doors #1, 2, & 3 -- and Door #4 suddenly opens. Very often, if we are willing to give our talents and efforts to God, He will lead us to amazing challenges. These can be things that are better, more solid, more loving, more satisfying that anything we can imagine.