Friday Morning at Walmart

I don’t often go to Walmart, but when I do, I try to go really early to avoid lines.  If you know me at all you know that I hate waiting in line.  I needed a few things for the weekend, so I was at the MetroWest Superstore at 7 am . . . along with 20 other people who had the same idea.  We all met together at the front of the store waiting on two checkers.  Two slow checkers who were likely finishing up their overnight shifts.  I think we all had the same question, “Why are all these people here at 7 am on Friday?”

Not a good situation for any of us. 

Normally I don’t handle situations like this well.  I often just put my stuff down and walk off.  Another store another time.

I handled it differently today because of the verses I read this morning. 

May God be gracious to us and bless us
  and make his face shine on us
so that your ways may be known on earth,
  your salvation among all nations.  (Psalms 67:1-2, NIV)

Here is how I connected these verses to waiting in line at Walmart.  (It is a bit complicated so stay with me.)  These verses say that when asking God for his blessing, for his favor, there is a specific goal or purpose in mind.  And that goal is for other people to see God ways and his salvation.  God’s blessing to me is an object lesson to the rest of the world.  People who don’t know God see how God loves in how he treats me

Here is the complicated part.  What happens when I ask for God’s blessing and he sticks me in long line at Walmart?  I don’t feel blessed, I don’t feel God’s face shining on me, but the purpose of my life is still unchanged.  My life is an object lesson to the rest of the world of the love of God.

So I waited.

I smiled

I waited some more

I smiled some more

I greeted the clerk with a “Good Morning”

And thanked her for her work

And then on the way out, God did shine his face on me.  I left with a clean conscience and a heart full of thankfulness for victory over temptation.  A great way to start my Friday.

Have a great day, showing the world God’s ways and salvation

Thoughts on Principles

 

Much of the deadlock in many areas of society – political, economic, social and religious results from people standing on principle.  In each of these areas there are real differences within our society but there are also small but significant steps of progress that could be made.  But often those small steps of progress are held back by those standing on principle.
I came across an interesting movie where a man compromised his principles and I think it was the right thing to do.  The movie is a 1964 black and white, called the Americanization of Emily.  Starring James Garner and Julie Andrews it tells the story of a man whose war time job is to supply the best in food, drink and women to high ranking military officers.  He is not an attractive character, has no morals and is a self described coward.  During the war he meets an English girl, Emily, played by Julie Andrews, and of course they fall in love.  Over time what he comes to realize is that the good life is not wine, women and song, but family life with a woman who loves you.
As Hollywood would have it, this coward ends up as the first man on the beaches on D-Day.  There has been no change of heart, rather his superior officer, a Navy General, decides that it would be good publicity for the Navy if the first casualty was an Navy man and if that casualty was captured on film.  And that is apparently what happens, James Garner is forced onto the beach by the gunshots of his commanding officer and appears to die in battle.  And the Navy has it’s hero.
One flaw in the scheme, a week later, Garner returns from France on a hospital ship.  No problem to the General however, a live hero is even better than a dead one.  But Garner is furious, he was forced to risk his life for a publicity stunt.  He is determined to expose the hypocrisy of war, once and for all.  And when reminded of the price he would pay, he responds that it is a matter of principle.  But in a dramatic scene in the few moments before the press appears, Julie Andrews reminds Garner of the cost they will pay for standing up for his principles.  He will lose his job, his career, his freedom, his friendships and most likely her.  Is he willing to give up all that really matters, a wife and a home, for his principles?  He is not, and so he takes a deep breath, swallows his pride, allows himself to be used by the military PR machine so he can get what really matters, a wife and a family.
Principles like most things, come in sizes.  There are some big principles that we hold onto no matter what.  They are not subject to compromise and are worth any price to maintain.  But there are smaller principles, things that are important to us, yet at times must be compromised to make life work.  Compromising principles is never easy, is often messy and should never be taken lightly.  But at times we have to sacrifice important beliefs to accomplish what really matters.
I think this is part of what Pope Francis is trying to say.  The principles of sanctity of life and marriage are important principles.  But if those two issues are the primary issues for which the church is known, what happened to the greater principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ?

Have you ever really listened to “Good King Wenceslas”

Good King Wenceslas is one of those Christmas Carols that we have all heard but few of us have ever listened to.  The song is actually a story told by a narrator with dialog from King Wenceslas and his Page.  The story includes need, compassion, action, a miracle and a couple of lessons.

• Need – King Wenceslas sees a poor man out on a cold snowy night gathering fuel

• Compassion – The King ask his Page who the poor man is.  Learning that the poor man lives a long ways off the King moved by compassion prepares food, wine and logs for the poor man

• Action – The King and the Page walk through the cold and snowy night to carry the gift to the poor man’s house

• Miracle – The winter is so cold that the Page is unable to keep going.  The King instructs the Page to walk in his footsteps.  In doing so the Page finds that there is heat in the foot prints of the king.

• Lesson 1 – When we care for the poor in the name of Christ we find a blessing for ourselves

• Lesson 2 – When we walk in the steps of the King we find strength to complete the tasks.

Here are the lyrics.

Verse 1

Narrator:

Good King Wenceslas looked out
On the feast of Stephen
When the snow lay round about
Deep and crisp and even
Brightly shone the moon that night
Though the frost was cruel
When a poor man came in sight
Gath'ring winter fuel

Verse 2

King:

"Hither, page, and stand by me
If thou know'st it, telling
Yonder peasant, who is he?
Where and what his dwelling?"

Page:

"Sire, he lives a good league hence
Underneath the mountain
Right against the forest fence
By Saint Agnes' fountain."

Verse 3

King:

"Bring me flesh and bring me wine
Bring me pine logs hither
Thou and I will see him dine
When we bear him thither."

Narrator:

Page and monarch forth they went
Forth they went together
Through the rude wind's wild lament
And the bitter weather

Verse 4

Page:

"Sire, the night is darker now
And the wind blows stronger
Fails my heart, I know not how,
I can go no longer."

King:

"Mark my footsteps, my good page
Tread thou in them boldly
Thou shalt find the winter's rage
Freeze thy blood less coldly."

Verse 5

Narrator

In his master's steps he trod
Where the snow lay dinted
Heat was in the very sod
Which the Saint had printed
Therefore, Christian men, be sure
Wealth or rank possessing
Ye who now will bless the poor
Shall yourselves find blessing

Here is a link to Bing Crosby’s version of the song

One Solitary Life

On Friday night we went to a Christmas concert at which they performed a narration of the birth and life of Jesus interspersed with Christmas carols.  One section of the narration is called One Solitary Life.  

He was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman; he grew up in still another village, where he worked in a carpenter shop until he was thirty. Then for three years He was an itinerant preacher. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family or owned a house. He didn’t go to college. He never visited a big city. He never traveled two hundred miles from the place where He was born. He did none of the things one usually associates with greatness. He had no credentials but Himself. He was only thirty-three when the tide of public opinion turned against Him. His friends ran away. He was turned over to his enemies and went through a mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross, between two thieves. While He was dying, his executioners gambled for his clothing, the only property He had on Earth. When He was dead, He was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend. Twenty centuries have come and gone, and today He is considered by many to be the central figure of the human race and the leader of mankind’s progress.
All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man on this Earth as much as that One Solitary Life.

(If this sounds familiar to you, it may be that you heard it as part of the Candle Light Procession at Epcot Center where it has been performed for many years.)

Very inspiring statement about the impact of Jesus.  And it it only part of the story.  The rest of the story is the forgiveness of sin and the restoration of our relationship with God which he made possible.  This is the real reason we remember and celebrate his birth, life, death and resurrection.

Have a joyful Christmas,

Bruce

One solitary text copied from - http://wdwradio.com/forums/ask-disney-experts/10042-candlelight-processional.html

Song of the Week – “Fixer Upper” from Disney’s Frozen

I’m always on the lookout for songs that speak about marriage.  (Someday Carol and I will do a marriage seminar based some great songs that speak to marriage.) 

I found another one in the new Disney movie, Frozen.  No spoilers here, but the story line involves a princess who runs away from the castle and meets a county bumpkin.  The guy takes her home to his family who assumes that she is to be his bride.  When she hesitates his family sings a really cute song, “Fixer Upper.” 

The songs starts with his family listing a few of his flaws.  Then they sing these words:

     So he’s a bit of a fixer-upper, but this we’re certain of
     You can fix this fixer-upper up with a little bit of love!

When he indicates questions about her they sing

     Everyone’s a bit of a fixer-upper, but when push comes to shove
     The only fixer-upper fixer that can fix up a fixer-upper is —
     True, true, true, true, true, true, love

Good message – We are all fixer uppers.  No need to hide that.  And the way to fix another is love. 

Again, I won’t spoil it for you, but the movie does a good job of showing what real love is and is not.  While the movie does not use these words it certainly conveys the meaning of real love, the kind the Apostle Paul wrote about in I Corinthians 13:

Love is patient, love is kind.

It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,

it keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails.

The words are below but to really get the full impact, go see the movie.  It is a good uplifting story.

Fixer Upper

 
Is it the clumpy way he walks or the grumpy way he talks?
Or the pear-shaped, square-shaped weirdness of his feet?
And though we know he washes well-he always ends up sort of smelly
But you’ll never meet a fellow who’s as sensitive and sweet!
So he’s a bit of a fixer-upper, so he’s got a few flaws
Like his peculiar brain-dear, his thing with the reindeer
That’s a little outside of nature’s laws!
So he’s a bit of a fixer-upper, but this we’re certain of
You can fix this fixer-upper up with a little bit of love!

Is it the way that he runs scared, or that he’s socially impaired
Or that he only likes to tinkle in the woods — what?!
Are you holding back your fondness due to his unmanly blondness
Or the way he covers up that he’s the honest goods
He’s just a bit of a fixer-upper, he’s got a couple of bugs
His isolation is confirmation of his desperation for human hugs
So he’s a bit of a fixer-upper, but we know what to do
The way to fix up this fixer-upper is to fix him up with you!

So she’s a bit of a fixer-upper, that’s a minor thing
This quote ‘engagement’ is a flex arrangement
And by the way I don’t see no ring!
So she’s a bit of a fixer-upper, her brain’s a bit betwixt
Get the fiance out of the way and the whole thing will be fixed
We’re not saying you can change her, ‘cuz people don’t really change
We’re only saying that love’s a force that’s powerful and strange
People make bad choices if they’re mad, or scared, or stressed
Throw a little love their way (throw a little love their way) and you’ll bring out their best
True love brings out their best!
Everyone’s a bit of a fixer-upper, that’s what it’s all about!
Father! Sister! Brother! We need each other to raise us up and round us out
Everyone’s a bit of a fixer-upper, but when push comes to shove

The only fixer-upper fixer that can fix up a fixer-upper is —
True, true, true, true, true, true, love
True love, love, love, love, love, true love

Lyrics from - http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/frozen/articles/222981/title/frozen-fixer-upper-lyrics-warning-spoilers

Bible quote from Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®   I Corinthians 13: 4 - 8a

Song of the Week - When Father Papered the Parlour

I love silly songs.  Most of my favorites come from “Silly Songs with Larry.”  Not sure what makes a song silly as opposed to stupid but I know a silly song when I hear one.  I had a good laugh one a couple of weeks ago.

When my in-laws were in town my wife and her mom were sitting at the table talking while I was there but multitasking.  The topic was wall papering and in the middle Lois started singing a song.  It took a few minutes for me to realize what had happened.  Then I blurted out, “Did you just sing a song about wallpaper?”  Sure enough she did.  “When Father Papered the Parlour.”  Hear it for yourself.  Written in 1910

 

And here are the lyrics. 

Our parlor wanted papering,
And Pa says it was waste
To call a paperhanger in,
And so he made some paste.
He bought some rolls of paper,
Got a ladder and a brush
And with my mummy's nightgown on,
At it he made a rush.

Chorus: When Father papered the parlour
You couldn't see him for paste
Dabbing it here! dabbing it there!
Paste and paper everywhere
Mother was stuck to the ceiling
The children stuck to the floor
I never knew a blooming family
So stuck up before.

Soon dad fell down the stairs
and dropp'd his paperhanger's can
On little Henrietta sitting there
with her young man,
The paste stuck them together,
as we thought t'would be for life,
We had to fetch the parson in
to make them man and wife.

Chorus:

The pattern was 'blue roses'
with its leaves red, white, and brown;
He'd stuck it wrong way up and now,
we all walk upside down.
And when he trimm'd the edging
off the paper with the shears,
The cat got underneath it,
and dad cut off both its ears.

Chorus:

We're never going to move away
from that house any more
For Father's gone and stuck the chairs
and table to the floor,
We can't find our piano,
though it's broad and rather tall,
We think that it's behind the paper
Pa stuck on the wall.

Chorus:

Now, Father's sticking in the pub,
through treading in the paste,
And all the family's so upset,
they've all gone pasty faced.
While Pa says, now that Ma has spread
the news from north to south,
He wishes he had dropped a blob
of paste in Mother's mouth.

Chorus:

Lyrics from http://www.dmi.me.uk/music/lyrics/misc/-/when-father-papered-the-parlour/

Make it a great day.

Bruce

Are you caring for your goose?

While waiting for church to start last Saturday the fable of the goose that laid the golden egg came to mind.  Does anyone else have random thoughts pop into their head, apparently out of nowhere?

Here is the story if you have never heard it or forgotten it.

The Goose With the Golden Egg

ONE day a countryman going to the nest of his Goose found there an egg all yellow and glittering. When he took it up it was as heavy as lead and he was going to throw it away, because he thought a trick had been played upon him. But he took it home on second thoughts, and soon found to his delight that it was an egg of pure gold. Every morning the same thing occurred, and he soon became rich by selling his eggs. As he grew rich he grew greedy; and thinking to get at once all the gold the Goose could give, he killed it and opened it only to find,—nothing.

Over the past week, I’ve been thinking a lot about this countryman or ordinary farmer.  Did he really think that he would find the goose full of gold?  And even if the goose was full of gold, how many eggs could one goose contain?  Five, Ten, Twenty.  No matter how greedy, surely he could have seen the folly in killing the goose. 

But what if didn’t kill the goose, he just let it die.  I could see that happening.  He gets so busy spending, saving, investing the eggs that he forgets to care for the goose.  He fails to notice the dirty water dish, the empty food dish, the skinny goose. Until one day there is no goose and no egg.  No egg that day, no egg ever again.  That sounds like something I could do.

So to keep my goose that lays the golden egg alive, here are questions I need to ask myself:

1.  What is my goose or what provides the blessings in my life?

2.  Am I taking care of my goose so that the blessings keep coming?

I’ll answer the first question now.  I have at least four geese that lay golden eggs for me.

• Marriage
• Health
• Integrity
• Care for others

The second question is one that I need to answer everyday.  What will I do today to protect and grow my marriage, my physical health, my personal integrity and my care for others.  These four questions in one form or another need to be part of my regular self examination and planning time.  And yours too.

Make it a great day.  Grow your goose!!

Bruce