Right Man...Right Time

Sir Winston Churchill was Prime Minister of Great Britain during the dark years of World War II.  Perhaps never in history has such a great leader emerged at just the right time and in the right place to effect a change in the course of human history.

The German war machine under the guidance of Adolph Hitler, was building strength, conquering nations, and placing much of Europe under the tyranny of the Nazi regime.  Churchill knew that if they were to be stopped, Great Britain would be the one to stop it.  He knew he would have to call on all of the strength and reserve of the British Empire as well as the United States in order to reverse the steamroller that was the German war machine.

And he made no bones about invoking the power of God, just as he did in this excerpt from his first speech to Parliament following his installation as Prime Minister.  The speech was given on this day in 1940.  Read through this part of his speech.  Think about the war and all that it meant for not only Great Britain, but for all of civilization at that time.  Yes, Mr. Churchill was one of a kind…the right kind…in the right place…at the right time.

"I would say to the House, as I said to those who have joined this government: 'I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat.' We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many, many long months of struggle and of suffering.

You ask, ‘What is our policy?’ I can say: It is to wage war, by sea, land, and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us; to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy.

You ask, ‘What is our aim?’ I can answer in one word: It is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival. Let that be realized; no survival for the British Empire, no survival for all that the British Empire has stood for, no survival for the urge and impulse of the ages, that mankind will move forward towards its goal.

But I take up my task with buoyancy and hope. I feel sure that our cause will not be suffered to fail among men. At this time I feel entitled to claim the aid of all, and I say, 'Come then, let us go forward together with our united strength.'"

Thought Provoking

A couple of things happened this past weekend that made me think.  I don’t know that they are related, particularly, except that they both provoked some thought in the cobwebs of my head.  I’ll tell them in no particular order.

We went to “Bearlesque 2013”, a production of the fine arts department of Northwest High School.  One of our teens invited us (actually, she sold me a couple of tickets) to the show as she and one other teen from our youth group was in the production.

There were about 200 teens that participated overall, and overall, it was a great production and performed well.  The teens were on their best behavior, and there were not a few tears shed when they put up senior pictures on the back screen and introduced each of the seniors that were involved in the production.  This was the last “big deal” for them before graduation.

I couldn’t help but think, however, as I saw all the fresh faces and talented kids, that sadly enough, more than one or two of those kids has been abused in some way; has been neglected in some way; has been put down and denigrated in some way.  If statistics are correct, close to ¼ or more will have had some kind of preventable trauma in their lives at the hand of parents or other adults.  This is one reason, sadly, why we need places like Carpenter Place, which I’ll mention in the next section.

I also couldn’t help but think of the resilience of those young people as they put on a smile, danced and sang (and sometimes played), and performed their best for a very appreciative audience.  I had to wonder where each of them would be in five years; ten years; thirty years.

Second, I saw a FB post Saturday from Jennifer, the house mom for the young adult women at Carpenter Place.  She was looking for someone who could help move a bed mattress and springs for a young woman who was moving out of the Carpenter Place campus and on her own in her own apartment.  I volunteered and shortly thereafter was on my way to help.

I don’t even know the young lady’s name, but she knew me.  She rode with me to her new apartment in order to be able to tell me how to get there.  As we went, I asked her how long she had been at Carpenter Place.  She said, “About a year.”  I also said,  “So, this move is a big deal for you.”  She agreed that it was.

As we moved her rather meager things into the apartment (my pickup with the mattress and springs, and an SUV with her other stuff), I wondered what it would be like for her on her first night in her own place.  She had a job, she said, but no vehicle.  Her possessions consisted of little more than what would fit in a regular bedroom closet, except for the bed.

Yet she was nervous, happy, and probably a little scared at being on her own.  Oh, I know Jennifer will always be available, and so will others.  But it’s a big deal, these kinds of moves, and I pray her safety and God’s hand on her as she makes her way in the world.  I wondered, too about where she would be in five years; ten years; thirty years.  And I was humbled and awed that I could have a small part in the success of these young women as I volunteer from time to time fixing things, hauling things, or just encouraging.

So, those are some of my thoughts this past weekend.  Certainly not earth-shattering to say the least.  But if they provoke some thought within you as they did me, so much the better.

It Never Ends

Yesterday, our little food ministry pantry at our church served 78 people.  That’s quite a lot for a little one-room pantry run by volunteers a few hours each week.  In fact, it was a record number of people in need of food that we served yesterday.  The supplies we received just a week to ten days ago ran out, and the shelves were very, very bare yesterday when they closed.

Today I went to the store and bought several hundred dollars worth of green beans, corn, peanut butter, canned chili, cereal, and other staples.  All was for our food pantry.  My pickup bed was covered, and there were sacks in the passenger seat when I left the store.  In the store, I had four shopping carts completely filled with case-lots of cans and boxes.  The check-out staff was very helpful, and they didn’t even ask if they could help me out!  The sacker hooked three carts together in a sort of train and pulled on the lead cart.  I took out two more carts.  It took four of us to move stuff from the carts to the truck.

After all of that, I was in my office and Rick came in.  We visited a bit, and then we talked about the pantry need.  I told him that this was one of those never-ending needs.  No matter how hard we worked, how much we contributed, how much food we bought, there would always be hungry people.  Especially toward the end of the month when food stamps and other services run out, people are hungry.

In one respect, that is a kind of a downer.  I have to realize that whatever we do will barely put a dent into the need; that all the food I brought from Dillons today will be gone by next week.  And still they will come.

In another, though, Jesus himself said that the poor we would always have with us.  He wasn’t being sarcastic or mean; he was just telling the truth.  As long as we are part of this world; this creation; this fallen existence, we will have the poor with us.

I like to be part of something where when I work on it, it eventually comes to completion and I can move on to something else.  Working in a food pantry will not be that type of work.  There will always be need.  There will always be those who are hungry.  There will always be someone coming to the door wanting food.  No matter how much and how long I work, it will never be enough.

It’s at times like this that I need to remind myself that I may not be able to do everything, but I can do something.  I can do my part.  I can make a difference for someone, even if not for everyone.  And that’s the key.  One person at a time.  One meal at a time.  One family at a time.  One sack of groceries at a time.  God doesn’t ask us to fix the world.  He’s working on that himself.  But he does ask us to partner with him in that work and do what we can with what we have available.

I was pleased I was able to do what little I did today for our food pantry.  I know there will be more need than we can possibly fill, but I also know that I helped just a little, and that the God who loves us all will take that little, along with the little of the other volunteers and contributors, and make it into something that is truly amazing.

Communication

As I sit in my office at the church, I hear things going on down the hall, in the secretary’s office, and in other offices in the area.  Sometimes the conversations are animated; sometimes they are hushed.  Sometimes three or more are in the same conversation; sometimes it’s just between two people, or one person on the telephone.

Sometimes the conversations are intense.  Other times they’re light hearted and funny.  Still others are more routine, such as those giving out information or directions.  Sometimes someone will stop in and want to use the bathroom facilities or get a drink of water.  Still others want to know where our food pantry is located (across the street) or want to visit with a minister.  The conversations are many and varied.

I have to wonder about this thing called communication.  On the surface it seems such an easy thing to accomplish.  The word literally means, “The exchange of information between people by means of speaking, writing, or using a common system of signs or behavior.”  One would think that members of the human race who share a common language and behavioral signs would be able to communicate very well and without much problem.

Such doesn’t seem to be the case, however.  Good communication is difficult at best sometimes.  Many books have been written; many seminars attended; many lectures given; all with the idea of helping humans better communicate.  We don’t hear what the other person says.  We miss words in a written communication or have a different opinion of what that word or phrase means.  We can get so jumbled up with mis-communication that we, frustrated, just stop all communication attempts for awhile.

I could say something simple like, “It’s cold outside.”  That could mean many things depending on the time of year, my sensitivity to cold, what I consider to be cold, or whether the wind is blowing or snow is on the ground.  It could also mean something different if I was talking about the attitude of persons who were outside, even if it was a hundred degrees in July.  There could even be a difference of opinion on just where “outside” really is.  Is it on the carport?  In the garage?  Under a bridge where the homeless are?

And why would I even say that sentence to begin with?  Am I getting ready to go outside and want to know what I should wear?  Am I concerned about the homeless and those who are working outside in the cold?  Is the temperature lower than normal in August?  Or am I just making conversation?  All of these color my statement and give a little different edge to the meaning.

When we look at all the variables, it’s a wonder we communicate as well as we do.  No wonder when legislatures pass bills, they include a section that defines what certain words in the legislation mean.  And they sometimes have rather torturous definitions just so the meaning and intent of the legislation is clear.  Some of the biggest legal battles in courts are over the meaning of words and phrases and what the legislature intended when they passed the bill.

So, the next time you hear a conversation, even in passing, know that there is a complex mixture at work within your mind helping you sort out just what is meant.  And understand that you cannot possibly perfectly interpret what is being said, and indeed may be way off the mark.  So don’t get too upset or fly off the handle too quickly until you are certain you understand what is trying to be communicated by the other person or persons.

And work on your own communication skills.  They aren’t perfect either.  Cut some slack.  Give a break.  Work at it.

Come Quickly

A dear relative just posted on Facebook about someone she knew about whose daughter was admitted to the hospital with anorexia.  The girl is in her early teens and quite ill.  Someone responded with prayers and a closing thought, “So many hurting…”

And it’s true.  There are so many hurting people in the world.  I am amazed at the number of people I see and know who are hurting in some way; who have chronic illness; who have emotional pain in their lives.  People who screw up courage just to get up each day and face what is coming.  They live those days knowing that things aren’t going to get better anytime soon.  They will continue to have to deal with the pain, suffering, and trauma that life is dealing them right now and for the foreseeable future.

If you don’t know anyone who is in chronic pain or hurt, you don’t know many people, or else you’ve been living under a rock.  Who do you know who is divorcing?  Who do you know who has a chronic health condition?  Who do you know who has a child with a physical, mental, or emotional illness?  Who do you know who is caring for a loved one with chronic conditions?  Who do you know who doesn’t have use of all of his/her limbs, digits, or other sensory organs?  Who do you know who is in a wheelchair?  Who do you know who has lost a spouse to death?  A son?  A daughter?

Who do you know who is struggling with the demons of schizophrenia, PTSD, anorexia, alcohol and drug addiction, or one of any number of other conditions, either in themselves or in others that they love and care for?  Who do you know who has been trafficked, is a runaway, is struggling to find a job and keep above water, or daily deals with a sorry public transportation system because they can’t afford a car?  Who do you know who decides whether to buy food or medicine this month because they can’t do both?  Who do you know who wonders whether the electric will be shut off for non-payment before the gas is shut off because they don’t have the money to pay them?

Yes, in many ways this is a wonderful world.  God has provided blessings in abundance and we and others are enjoying the bounty.  But there is much in this world that is wrong…so much so that the creation itself, Paul says, groans, longing for release from the bondage of sin and death.

We thank God for the blessings.  We ask God to right the wrongs.  And we pray, even as John did at the end of Revelation, “Come quickly.”