Tuesday, March 29, 2011
A Society of Haters?
I was reading the news on line this morning and noticed that the 13 year old girl (Rebbecca Black) who has a YouTube song about the weekend will soon surpass Justin Bieber's song "Baby" as the most hated. I have not seen Justin Bieber's video and have not heard the song all the way through (my niece and nephews can occasionally be heard singing, "baby, baby, baby"). I have seen a part of Black's video. __________________ My daughter called me into the study a week or so ago to watch something she said was "appalling". I watched a clip of what my daughter had obviously watched in its entirety several times... I feel certain that she is one of the many who have "hated" this video. It's interesting, however mediocre the song, that anyone would be interested in "hating" the efforts of a thirteen year old girl. When I said as much to my daughter she replied that if the girl didn't want to be hated that she shouldn't have put herself out there. Hmmm... When my own daughter "put herself out there" it was in the context of performances at church (flute) which, in the early days, were well... mediocre. She wasn't "hated", however, she was loved and encouraged. ________________________ I notice that a lot of hating that happens on the web. I get my news from the Internet and at the bottom of most articles is a space for commenting. There are typically hundreds of comments, most of them full of sarcasm and hate. Maybe it's just the really angry people who feel moved to comment... It's bad enough that we feel we have to compound the bad news we hear in the news with our own tirades full of hate, but I think we cross a line when we think we have to let a 13 year old girl know that we don't like her video. I'm betting that most folk's efforts at 13 were mediocre at best (I know mine were). ________________________ There are many indications that our society is in bad shape. I think this propensity to be haters is one of the more troubling. I don't know about you, but I do not want to be defined by what I'm against or what I hate. Instead, I want people to know what I'm for - what I love.
Friday, March 25, 2011
One of the Good Guys
Have you noticed that there really aren't that many good guys? I mean bonafide, genuine good guys. The real thing. We live in an age marked by selfishness and narcissism. Good guys today are rare.
It's not glamorous or sexy being good. In fact, to be really good, one would have to be deliberately low key. Good guys - real ones - don't draw attention to themselves. I know a few of these individuals. My Uncle Ted is one of them.
Uncle Ted is a guy who shows up when he's needed. He's dependable. He offers his strength rather than his opinions. He is a man who loves his family. He's provided a stable, normal, nuclear family for his children and grand children. It's not surprising that his three kids are still married. They've had a great example to follow.
Uncle Ted is good with his hands. He offers to fix things that are broken. He grows a garden and shares the vegetables. His home is a place where people like to gather, partly because my Aunt is such a fantastic cook, and partly because he's created such a beautiful space in the country.
You won't read about Uncle Ted's antics in the paper. He won't show up in the news. He hasn't had 15 minutes of fame. But he's left his mark on everyone who knows him. His son is very much like his dad and so is his grandson. He's invested his life in others who will also be (already are) good guys. I don't think the importance of this can be overstated.
Uncle Ted is in the last days of his life. Cancer will claim him very soon. But without any sort of notoriety, Uncle Ted is leaving the world a better place than he found it. He leaves behind two good guys to step into his shoes. He leaves his mark on the hearts of too many people to count, through his quiet life and his good deeds. When those who knew Ted stand over his casket, they will tell stories of his goodness. They will say what a fine and loving man he was - that he was one of the good guys.
I know that I want to be one of the good girls. I want to leave a legacy of goodness and good deeds behind me when I go - to have raised a good girl and a good guy myself... To leave two in my place to step up into this hurting and lonely world and leave it better than they found it.
When people stand over your casket, what do you want them to say about you?
It's not glamorous or sexy being good. In fact, to be really good, one would have to be deliberately low key. Good guys - real ones - don't draw attention to themselves. I know a few of these individuals. My Uncle Ted is one of them.
Uncle Ted is a guy who shows up when he's needed. He's dependable. He offers his strength rather than his opinions. He is a man who loves his family. He's provided a stable, normal, nuclear family for his children and grand children. It's not surprising that his three kids are still married. They've had a great example to follow.
Uncle Ted is good with his hands. He offers to fix things that are broken. He grows a garden and shares the vegetables. His home is a place where people like to gather, partly because my Aunt is such a fantastic cook, and partly because he's created such a beautiful space in the country.
You won't read about Uncle Ted's antics in the paper. He won't show up in the news. He hasn't had 15 minutes of fame. But he's left his mark on everyone who knows him. His son is very much like his dad and so is his grandson. He's invested his life in others who will also be (already are) good guys. I don't think the importance of this can be overstated.
Uncle Ted is in the last days of his life. Cancer will claim him very soon. But without any sort of notoriety, Uncle Ted is leaving the world a better place than he found it. He leaves behind two good guys to step into his shoes. He leaves his mark on the hearts of too many people to count, through his quiet life and his good deeds. When those who knew Ted stand over his casket, they will tell stories of his goodness. They will say what a fine and loving man he was - that he was one of the good guys.
I know that I want to be one of the good girls. I want to leave a legacy of goodness and good deeds behind me when I go - to have raised a good girl and a good guy myself... To leave two in my place to step up into this hurting and lonely world and leave it better than they found it.
When people stand over your casket, what do you want them to say about you?
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
What Do You Want Me to Do For You?
A couple of weeks ago I was leading a Bible study for the Saturday Lunch Ministry at my church. The group is studying Matthew and they'd made it to chapter 20. The next day the same passage was a part of the Sunday School lesson. Hmmm... I don't know about you, but whenever I "coincidentally" encounter the same biblical passage in a short amount of time, I pay attention.
Matthew 20 consists of a parable and two others "scenes" from the life of Jesus. The parable is about the workers hired at different points during the day to work in a vineyard. Jesus stuns his hearers by having the estate manager pay those who'd only worked one hour the same as those who had worked twelve hours. This is a story that doesn't offend in the theoretical, but if you were one of the workers, you'd probably feel outrage at the unfairness.
The next scene in the chapter involves James and John's mother asking Jesus to see to it that her sons sit - one on his right and the other on his left - in the Kingdom. Jesus uses the request to reorient the disciples on what leadership in the Kingdom of God looks like - servanthood.
Finally, the chapter closes with Jesus' encounter with two blind men. When they hear that Jesus is passing by they begin to shout out to him. Jesus asks the men what they want him to do for them. They wanted to see. Jesus has compassion on them, heals them, and they followed him.
The parable about the workers in the vineyard and the vignette where James and John's mother are seeking honor and power for her sons set up opportunities for Jesus to explain what Eugene Peterson likes to call "The Great Reversal". In the healing story, the blind men have their sight restored and follow Jesus. Could these physically blind men serve as a foil for the spiritual blindness that was depicted in the previous scenes in Matthew?
As the Lenten season begins it's good to ponder the ways that we may experience blindness. The Kingdom of God operates very differently from the kingdom of the world, where we often feel very much at home. Lent is a time to shed our false beliefs about what is fair, what we deserve, and what we should have and learn to follow the Savior, who is bound for the cross.
Matthew 20 consists of a parable and two others "scenes" from the life of Jesus. The parable is about the workers hired at different points during the day to work in a vineyard. Jesus stuns his hearers by having the estate manager pay those who'd only worked one hour the same as those who had worked twelve hours. This is a story that doesn't offend in the theoretical, but if you were one of the workers, you'd probably feel outrage at the unfairness.
The next scene in the chapter involves James and John's mother asking Jesus to see to it that her sons sit - one on his right and the other on his left - in the Kingdom. Jesus uses the request to reorient the disciples on what leadership in the Kingdom of God looks like - servanthood.
Finally, the chapter closes with Jesus' encounter with two blind men. When they hear that Jesus is passing by they begin to shout out to him. Jesus asks the men what they want him to do for them. They wanted to see. Jesus has compassion on them, heals them, and they followed him.
The parable about the workers in the vineyard and the vignette where James and John's mother are seeking honor and power for her sons set up opportunities for Jesus to explain what Eugene Peterson likes to call "The Great Reversal". In the healing story, the blind men have their sight restored and follow Jesus. Could these physically blind men serve as a foil for the spiritual blindness that was depicted in the previous scenes in Matthew?
As the Lenten season begins it's good to ponder the ways that we may experience blindness. The Kingdom of God operates very differently from the kingdom of the world, where we often feel very much at home. Lent is a time to shed our false beliefs about what is fair, what we deserve, and what we should have and learn to follow the Savior, who is bound for the cross.
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