Today is the anniversary of the day we all said we would never forget.  We all remember where we were when those planes slammed into the twin towers, but to some, the newness has worn off and life has become business as usual.  We have captured or killed all who are responsible for the attacks with the exception of one.  But have we forgotten that we have not yet caught Osama Bin Laden?  We have not completely shut down Al Quaida, but many say that we have no business going after Bin Laden where they believe he is hiding in Pakistan.

We were attacked.  Many, many brave men and women gave their lives that day to try to rescue their fellow New Yorkers trapped in the burning twin towers.  We remember those brave fire fighters and policemen and other first responders who gave their lives on that day.  Equally, we remember those brave soldiers who have laid down their lives in the war on terror wherever it may have taken them.  The Bible says, “greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friend”.  These have all displayed what Jesus defines as the greatest love that there is and I, for one, will not forget them.

Many want to simply slide back into the slumber that this sleeping giant of a nation was in prior to those planes slamming into those buildings and killing our fellow Americans.  Many would like to simply stick their head in the sand and pretend that terrorists will simply go away if we talk nicely to them.  Many come up with rhetoric sounding like the defense of this nation has somehow made us less safe than we were on 9-11-2001, but my friends many have laid down their lives to insure our safety and I, for one will not belittle their sacrifice by saying that it counted for nothing.

Let me just say that everyone who has worked to insure that the US does not have another attack here on our soil is a hero, from the soldier who fights for us overseas in Iraq, Afghanistan and several other fronts in the world; to the FBI and CIA agent intercepting chatter of plans to unleash another attack here and foiled that plot; to the Homeland security people and the airport screeners and the local and state police to the National Guard and the Coast Guard, I say thank you and we will not forget your sacrifices to keep all of us safe. And while I’m at it (though I’m quite sure he won’t see this blog), thank you President George W. Bush and your administration for doing what is right and not necessarily what is popular to keep our nation safe even though many don’t appreciate your efforts.  History will record that we had the right man in the White House for just this occasion.  Thank you Mr. President.

Many, for political reasons, would like us to move the events of 911 into the back of our minds and lull the sleeping giant back to sleep.  I will not EVER forget that day and how it changed this nation forever.  We said we would never forget and that we would never give up, we would not falter and we would not fail.  Let’s honor the memory of everyone who has touched our lives in the war on terror.  Today, if you see a policeman, fireman, soldier or public official, walk right up to them and shake their hand, buy their lunch, thank them or whatever you can do,  but remember that we live in safety today because they lay down their lives EVERY DAY for us. 

God bless you and God bless America!!!

Until later,

Don

I have spent most of my adult life in ministry.  Now, the word minister means servant and I, for one, take that title (servant) to heart.  Often, without regard for the inconvenience to me, my family or even the church, I and others in leadership at the fellowship where I serve will go the extra mile for a person who needs help.  It may come in the form of helping someone who is in a personal crisis of some sort.  That same person (of which there have been many) may come back and receive help time and time again, which is not a problem in the least.  What do we ask in return?  Why nothing of course.  We don’t even take the pat on the back but properly turn that person’s attention towards the one who really deserves the honor.  This has been the pattern of how I serve God and how the leadership of this fellowship serves and I believe it is right and proper. 

The sadness that is in my heart is that there is more to the pattern and it has broken my heart over and over again since I have been in ministry and I’m not sure that there is anything that I or anyone else can do about it.  There will eventually come a time, when I am unable to help and everyone else in leadership is tied up as well and the help that an individual has come to expect (and take for granted I might add) is not available at the moment or maybe God has told us we have become enablers and it’s time to help the person stand on their own two feet.  Whatever the case, without fail, those people begin to rant and rave and rail against me and the church and it’s leaders.  This past week I was literally cussed out over a period of days (via text message) by an individual that myself and others in the church have repeatedly reached out to for years helping with rent, helping with food, helping with counsel and many other things simply because we are unable to help at this time.

It breaks my heart that those we seem to be helping don’t get the message of how much God loves them and they only seem to look at whatever we can do for them today.  There really is a powerful message of God’s grace, His mercy and His compassion.  He wants to change our lives from the inside out, but when a person who has nothing but good to say about us when we are giving to that person cannot understand that we are not God and will not always be there to help.  When that person begins their hateful diatribe against the very same place they defended as good and wonderful and right just a few days previously, it makes me wonder if they understood the message at all.

Do we not understand that the man who stands before us Sunday after Sunday and Wednesday after Wednesday is just a man?  Do we not understand that the others who lead various groups in the church are simply men and women who are laying their lives down to serve others and doing the best they can?  Do they not understand that whether the church has run out of benevolence because it’s summer and giving is down that God still loves them and will provide for them another way? 

The purpose of this blog is two fold.  One, for those who from time to time need help and find that help at Grace, please don’t look to me or to the one who may be helping at the time as your source for truly God is the only one who will never leave us and never forsake us.  We are only people and are not everywhere at once and we depend on others as well to volunteer and help in the service we do for God.  So thank God when we are able to help, but thank Him as well when we cannot that God is bigger than we are and He has not forsaken you and neither has the church when we must sometimes sadly say that we can’t help.

Secondly, for those who are called to serve others, please don’t go in with eyes shut.  What happens at Grace, happens everywhere where there are people with needs and we are called to help those people.  We don’t do it for a pat on the back.  We don’t do it for them to shout our praises.  We do it to serve God and to serve His people.  Someone said to me long ago and it holds true today.  Hurt people hurt people.  We should not be surprised when we have run out of resources or time or the ability to help, for people to get angry with us.  They got angry with Jesus, so why not us?  We must look to the God who always loves us and likes us and understand how God must feel sometimes.  We must look at those people who are spewing hatred at us for trying to help them and we MUST love them as Christ loves us and loved us even while we were His enemies.

So, don’t be discouraged in serving others.  Some people do get the message of God’s love and let’s rejoice in that.  Others only come with their hand out and that person may never understand why we are truly here, but God is still good.  He still loves us.  We must never look to the approval of man, but always to the approval of God.  Ultimately, He alone is the one we serve, even as we endeavor to serve the least of these.  “For as much as you have done it unto the least of these, my brethren, you have done it unto me”  Matt 25:40

In the word of Larry Norman, a hero of mine:

I’ve been shot down

Talked about

Some people scandalize my name

But here I am talking ‘bout Jesus just the same

God bless all of you,

Don

Many of you may not know who Larry Norman is, but some of you do. He was a pioneer of Christian Rock in the 60s. Songs like "Why Should the devil have all the Good Music", "I Wish We'd All Been Ready" and "Why Don't You Look Into Jesus" and others helped to shape the direction of what was then called Jesus Rock.

He was a major influence on me as a kid. I think the main message I learned from Larry was to be me and not apologize for it. Live my Christian life not like everyone else, but the way God created me. That’s how he lived his life and he didn’t care what people said about it. I call that a major influence and I thank God for the times I got to see him and listen to him and for the few emails I got from him in his later years. I still sit down with my guitar and sing some of his tunes. I will truly miss him.

Don