Complainers

My son has duly chastised me for not blogging more regularly on this blog.  I told him I was keeping up with my other one on the church website, but that didn’t seem to matter.  I told him to “stay tuned,” so this is the response to that.

It’s been a busy three weeks or so since I’ve last blogged.  The rain has gone.  The heat (although not as high as the last two years) is here.  The blocking high pressure that normally sets up over Kansas in late June or July has now set up in mid-August.  So we’re back to watering and sweltering.  But this time the end is in sight because September is just around the corner.

We’ve been able to enjoy a little fruit of the garden.  We planted everything late, so things are just now getting going.  Tomatoes are ripening, and I’ve picked a couple of cantaloupe.  Onions are harvested (some time ago), and watermelon is on the vine.  If I can keep the critters (read that raccoons and opossums) out of the garden area, we’ll do fine.

We both are busy at work.  With the wife’s new job (at the same employer), she works more hours each day.  And I’m busy getting ready for fall Bible classes, the re-start of Life Groups, and several other things into which I’ve inserted myself by not saying, “No.”

Now that you’ve caught up a little on our lives, I’ll briefly get to the heart of what I’d like to say today.  Never, ever allow yourself to get into a complaining or whiny mood…it’s not worth it.  If you just knew all of the blessings that have and continue to come your way, any complaining seems petty and small.

We are complainers by nature.  I don’t know if it’s the western culture, or whether it is something we are born with.  But I do know that complaining is not a sign of maturity.  It is not a sign of contentment.  It is not a sign of a well-balanced life.  It is a sign of selfishness.  It is a sign of immaturity.  It is a sign of ignorance.

I know it’s hard to NOT complain when the traffic lights all seem to turn red when you’re about 200 feet away.  I know it’s hard to NOT complain when something on the car breaks down.  I know it’s hard to NOT complain when someone treats you with less than human dignity and respect.  And maybe that’s one reason why it seems so many folks complain…it’s the easy way out and it takes the responsibility off of the complainer and puts it on the complainee.

Think about it next time you are tempted to think or utter complaining thoughts.  Live in contentment.  Live in peace.  And live in the glow of the One who created you.

Concerts and Memories

A good friend of mine took three young ladies to the Taylor Swift concert last night in Wichita.  She posted on Facebook this morning about the experience.  She said that one of the girls she took, who has been through personal issues in the past year, said through tears, “I can’t even believe I’m alive and sober, let alone here!”

Jen’s post got me to thinking about the concerts I have attended over the years.  I think the first one was the Lennon Sisters at the Kansas State Fair back in 1966 (I think).  The most recent was a Bill Cosby concert at the Orpheum in downtown Wichita.

In between has been The Lettermen, Lilly Tomlin, the Gaither Vocal Band, Red Skelton, the Statler Brothers, Hal Holbrook, Amy Grant, The Martins, Roy Clark, The Oak Ridge Boys, Sandy Patti, and others I’ve probably forgotten, at least temporarily.

Good concerts are really memory-makers.  For singers, if one knows some of the songs of that singer or group, when they perform them live at concert, it makes the song come alive in a way that it never could on CD (or years ago, on vinyl).  At other concerts, such as Hal Holbrook’s portrayal of Mark Twain, the memories come in other ways.  For me, they stem from a phonograph record I have of Mr. Holbrook portraying Mark Twain back in the early 1960’s.  Seeing him in person was rewarding and, in a very real way, kind of a closure…a full circle, so to speak.

Some folks may think it’s a waste of money to spend it on tickets to a concert.  I suppose there is some validity to that argument, but there’s also validity to the notion of spending money on a house that’s bigger than we need, or on two cars when public transportation and bicycles would work.  Or of buying round steak when cheaper turkey would provide as much nutrition.

Now, I’m not advocating we spend money that we don’t have.  But a concert venue once in a while using money we’ve put aside specifically for that purpose can be not only enjoyable, but also provide lasting memories and pleasant times with loved ones and friends.

I’ll never forget the raucous, “rolling on the floor” laughter at the Red Skelton concert.  I’ll never forget who I was sitting next to at the Lennon Sisters concert.  Nor will I soon forget the powerful renditions of favorite songs of the Gaither Vocal Band at the Fair.  I don’t have enough space to talk about the uplifting performances of Amy Grant and The Martins.  And Bill Cosby was as funny as you know him to be on TV.

So go ahead.  Set aside some money and get tickets for the next concert you’d like to attend.  And take someone with you if at all possible.  I think you’ll be glad you did.