A number of years ago Michael W. Smith wrote a song that said, "Friends are friends forever if the Lord's the Lord of them and a friend will not say never 'cause the welcome will not end . . . in the Father's hands we know That a lifetime's not too long To live as friends"

Over the years because of my vocation and my travels I have had the privilege of meeting many wonderful people. In fact, you could say my life has in many respects been all about people. Some of you know that for nearly 40 years now I have been a Baptist pastor/teacher. What you may not know is that virtually all my life has been church related. I often have said that I was born and raised a Baptist but became a Christian by the Grace of God . . . I digress.

The point is, life has given me the opportunity to meet many people. I am a firm believer that every life that we touch and that touches us becomes a part of the fabric of our life. Edith Schaefer's book "The Tapestry" is a magnificent example of this concept. That being the case my life is literally made up of thousands of weavings. Some threads are momentary meetings as with the young Celtic fellow on the pier at the Circular Quay in Sydney and some long and constant such as a life lived with my dear wife. There are literally thousands of threads with more colors than Jacob's coat woven into who I am.

Some of these were pleasant and some were hard to bear. Some threads were woven by kind people while others were woven by those who deemed themselves my enemy. Taken together the weaving of these threads and my responses to them have made me who I am.

Now having said that let me be clear that while there have been many, literally thousands, of people with whom I have had personal contact over the years unlike Facebook I cannot call them all "friends." For me, the word 'friend" is reserved for a handful out of those thousands who have stood with me through the many challenges, losses, struggles, stumbling and failures of my life. The others are dearly loved acquaintances and very special in their own way but they do not quiet rise to the level of "friend." This is through no fault of mine or theirs. Our lives may have only touched for a moment in time and in an official or passing manner.

To be sure not everyone who called me "friend" proved to be a friend. As long as things were going well or I was able to balance upon the pedestal upon which they had placed me or I was able to serve their purpose they were there. But when the dark days came or I failed to measure up to their expectation or I simply refused or failed to stay on the pedestal they turned away from me or perhaps even turned on me. I have long since gotten past the anger and disappointment of those relationships and sought to seek God's purpose in them. I believe I am better today because of mine enemies.

Again, I digress. What I really want to say is that over the years there has been a "few good men" (perhaps to be politically correct I should say "people") who have stood with me in life. When things were going well they were there to laugh, congratulate and celebrate with me and when things went badly they were there to console, support and sustain me. When I was riding the wave and when the wave came crashing done upon me . . . they were there. They were there standing with me. They did not judge me; did not condemn me; did not reject or abandon me . . . they stood with me.

These handful of people are the ones for whom the term "friend" is reserved. I have often expressed my thanks to God for these wonderful Christlike people that God has so wonderful placed in my life. They have been a part of the "my grace is sufficient for thee" in my life.

Speaking of "my grace is sufficient" I must not forget to mention that among my friends there has been one friend who has been closer to me than any brother I could have. I have known him since I was eleven years old though he knew me before I was born. He promised that he'd never forsake me and he never has. I am proud to say that among my many friends, my best friend is Jesus. Now here is the good part, he can be your best friend too.

The Greatest Day In The Morning

I recall many years ago we used to have an annual "high attendance" push that culminated in a Sunday morning we called "Great Day in the Morning." The point was it would be a great day if on that Sunday morning we broke our single service attendance record. But on the evening prior to Easter Sunday my thoughts have turned to another Great Day in the Morning event. I am talking about that Sunday morning when a group of women approached the grave where Jesus had been placed after his crucifixion and to their utter astonishment found it empty. That was and is the Greatest Day in the Morning in the history of the humanity. Here is what that day means to me:

First, It Means I can Trust The Scripture. The Bible had predicted that he would die and that on the third day he would rise again . . . and Jesus did just that. No one has yet been able to disprove the resurrection.

If the resurrection is true, and I believe that it is, then it validates the Scripture and that being the case then Scripture should play a large role in our lives. If this book is true, and the resurrection of Christ validates it's reliability, then it ought to be a major part of our lives. Because of the resurrection its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding, its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable. We read it to be wise, believe it to be safe and practice it to be holy. It should allow it fill our memory, rule our heart and guide our feet. If the resurrection is not true, throw the Bible away, use it for kindling. But if the resurrection is true, embrace the Bible with all your heart.

It Also Means I can Have Forgiveness of Sin. In First Corinthians we read that if Christ has not been raised . . . you are still in your sins. There can be no forgiveness of sin apart from the resurrection of Jesus Christ. If Jesus died on the cross but didn't rise from the grave, then, at best, He died for His own sins and was never qualified to die for ours.

The assurance of our forgiveness is based on a voluntary, sacrificial and vicarious death of a sinless Savior and only the resurrection can validate that Jesus was and is that Savior. In Acts 2:24 we read that God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power. Why? Because there was no sin in His life to require His death. He laid down His life of His own accord and He took it up again.

The resurrection of Christ proves that our forgiveness is real. As there was no sin to hold Jesus in the grave, there is no sin in our lives which is not covered by His precious blood. When Jesus instituted the Lord's supper, He took the cup and said, this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins (Matt. 26:28). The resurrection says, "amen, it is so, it is so."

There are sins in my life that I can never forget, but God can. There have been times when the greatest struggle of my soul was to forgive myself, but long before I managed to, God already had. The fact of forgiveness is validated by the resurrection of Christ because it proves that Jesus could and did lay down His life for my sins.

The Resurrection Validates Our Faith In Jesus. Paul writes, "If Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless." Romans 1:4 says of Jesus that He was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness.

Why should we believe in Jesus and not Buddha? Because Buddha's grave isn't empty. Why should we believe in Jesus and not Confucius? Because Confucius' grave isn't empty. Why should we believe in Jesus and not Mohammed? Because Mohammed's grave isn't empty.

If I can't believe in the resurrection of Christ, then I can't believe anything else Jesus taught or promised because it means He lied about the most important thing He ever promised. But if I can believe in the resurrection of Christ, I must believe everything else Jesus taught and promised.

The Resurrection of Jesus Validates Our Faithfulness as Servants. In 1 Cor. 15, Paul concludes his great treatise on the resurrection of Christ and those who believe in Him by saying, "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord" Why not? Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, regardless of what the evidence seems to say, our faithfulness and service is never in vain. I see a lot of people who take lightly these matters of faithfulness and service. Unfaithfulness always reflects a negative mindset about the things of God.

Being faithful to the Lord means something. It means something because the One we serve and the One to Whom we're faithful is the One who rose from the grave. If Jesus Christ had the power to conquer death, then Jesus Christ is all the incentive we need for our service and faithfulness even when we can't see where it's making any practical difference anywhere or in anyone's life. It is He who promises, Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life (Rev. 2:10). The resurrection validates our faithfulness, even until death.

And Finally, The Resurrection Validates Our Future. Jesus said in John "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. In John 14 Jesus promised to prepare a place for us and to come again to receive us to Himself that we might be with Him in the Father's house forever. And in verse 19 of that chapter He said, because I live, you shall live also. The resurrection is the guarantee of these promises.

I believe in heaven and the longer I live in this crazy world the more precious heaven becomes and the more excited I get. Paul says that if Christ did not rise from the dead; If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.

Easter is truly a great day in the morning for Christ is risen from the grave - and today, I rejoice.

One of my favorite old hymns says it all for me . . . . .

"I serve a risen Savior, He's in the world today;
I know that He is living, whatever men may say;
I see His hand of mercy, I hear His voice of cheer,
And just the time I need Him He's always near.
He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me and talks with me along life's narrow way.
He lives, He lives, salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know He lives: He lives within my heart."

Not What I Want But It Is On My Mind

I didn't want it on my mind but everywhere I turned there it was. It was the topic at the barber shop; it was on my television and radio; the people in line at the grocery store; it appears on the pages of Facebook; it's just about everywhere. What is it? It is the budget and the debate or from my point of view the incessant bickering over what to cut and why we should or should not cut expenditures.

• First as I watch and listen I wonder if we as people ever do really grow up. The whole discussion sounds like a bunch of children arguing over some inane thing rather than serious minded people sorting out serious problems. Quiet frankly the level of discussion and apparently the ability to reason have been lost. When in a democratic republic did the practice of compromise become a bad thing? What I'd like to see is some "grown-up" talk about the budget issues that involve an effort to spread the pain of the cuts across the board to everyone. With that in mind create a budget that includes a category called Debt Retirement and start paying the debt down and not just reducing it's rate of growth.


• Secondly, I am just plan tired of the hysteria about the budget deficit and what it means to my grandchildren. Here's the deal, if the hysteria were based in fact we would have ended the Bush Tax credits and added more than $800 billion to the treasury (according to the Congressional Budget Office). Oh to be sure the Nation Debt and it's rate of growth is a major concern and needs to be addressed but it needs to be addressed seriously. You can't eat an elephant all at once and you will not solve the Nation Debt in one action. But, by all means, let's sit down and start eating or it will eat us.


• It will not fix the debt problem but it will make me feel better if we'd just quit arguing about tax percentages and adopt a national sales tax in place of the income tax that includes everything except maybe medicines and food or a flat income tax that applies to everyone equally with no upper income maximum or low income minimum and no deductions of any kind.


• I have come to despise the phrase, "The American people want." That phrase assumes we are as a nation a homogeneous group thinking with one mind and that just isn't so. As a nation we are more like Baptist than anything else. You put three Baptist in a room and they will agree on some fundamental principles of faith but on everything else you will get three opinions. That's how we are as a nation. We agree on the basic principles of Liberty, Justice etc but on everything else there are as many opinions as there are people. Again, this is where the principle of compromise comes into play.


• Lastly, for my Right Wing Religious friends who keep reminding us that we are a "Christian" nation. All I can say is: If we are in fact or should in fact be a"Christian" nation then our federal budget should reflect that fact. For the answer to this we have to ask ourselves what we are doing as a nation to fulfill the social mission that Jesus laid out for us in Matthew 25:35-40, namely feeding the hungry, caring for the sick, visiting the imprisoned, clothing the naked etc. All this without asking how they came to be in that circumstance but simply responding to the need at hand.

Anyway, that's what's on my mind right now . . . . that and my upcoming trip to Florida. See I am not a fanatic as I just changed the subject.

It Started in Our Youth

I awoke this morning to news that another member of my high school graduating class had died. It caught me off guard. This was due largely because we had chatted back and forth on Facebook and were Farmville neighbors and yet I had no clue that Shirely was having health issues. She was a woman of great faith and always seemed to find just the right words to encourage us. Shirely will be missed. Our prayers go out on behalf of her family. As I thought about Shirley's passing and her faith my thoughts turn to the days we were thrown together at Pasadena High School back in 1962. We came from Junior High campuses all over town but a large number of us came by way of Jackson Junior High. Some of us had known each other since our elementery school days while we became aquainted with others in Junior High School. But somewhere along the way we became the Pasadena High School Class of 1965 . . . a remarkable collection of personalities. Ours was largely an inclusive group. Oh to be sure we all had our circle of "best friends." But, ultimately we have become the Class of 1965 and the passing of one of us is genuinely felt by us all. I discovered via Facebook that while we may not all be "churchy" people we are largely a very spiritual people with a strong evangelical faith. That didn't "just happen. It started somewhere and I believe it might just have been in the churches we attended as youth. One of the things that I have come to recognize with the passing of time and as we have matured (and gotten older) is the influence our individual churhes had on us. Pasadena had in those day no Mega-church just a collection of small to medium size community congregations. My own high school years were spent at the Boulevard Baptist Church which is now long since gone. It was there that I trusted Christ; was called to the preaching/teaching ministry; was married; and celebrated the birth of my oldest daughter. The pastor, Estol Williams, had a profound influence on my life. He was my first Greek teacher and instilled in me a love for and desire to know the Word of God and allowed me to preach during services and generally mentored me. That local church made up largely of refinery workers, family members, and a few enterprising small businessmen made a major investment in my life and the life of scores of youth. Being a Baptist I naturally think of all the Baptist Churches of that day when I think about the spiritual develoment of the PHS Class of 1965. In addition to my church home there was Richey Street Baptist Church where Dalton Havard was pastor; Memorial Baptist where H.D. Hale served; and across the street South Main where B.J. Martin was pastor; Queens Road Baptist with Raymond Blount; and of course the First Baptist church and L.D Morgan; Thomas Avenue Baptist Church with Cullen Hawkins; I remember these churches and these pastors because they all had a special interest in our spiritual development. There were other churches as well, Sunset Methodist and Asbury Methodist as well as Central Baptist, First Presbyterian and the Christian Church on Harris and of course St Pius Catholic church sandwiched between Shaver and Main Streets. I believe we, the PHS Class of 1965, owe a great debt of gratitude to the churches of our youth. They not only taught us in Sunday School but they coached our ball teams, funded our Youth activities, and generally invested there lives in ours. Most of these people now in their 80's or already gone have no idea the influence they have had. Yet I see it every day on Facebook as members of the PHS Class of 1965 willingly respond to the hurts and losses of their Facebook Friends. It is a great comfort for me to know that when I pass from this life to the next I will not only be reunited with family but also so many of the members of the Class of 1965. As a dear friend of my says, "I'll see you here, there or in the air."

The Eye of A Needle

Someone recently said to me that it looked to them that we were trying to balance the budget (US Federal Budget) on the backs of the poor and giving the rich a pass on taxes. Now there is a lot that can be said here and perhaps someday we will do so. The rabbit trails are many. I want to comment on my reply which was, "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Now for those who do not know about this statement found in Mark 10, Luke 18 and Matthew 19, it comes from Jesus as he speaks to his disciples about why the rich young man to whom he was previously speaking went away sorrowing. Here we have Jesus speaking to a young man who apparently was a top notch fellow. He had kept all the commandments and made all the right choices in his life to this point. To get the young man to recognize where his devotion really was Jesus said that in spite of all the high qualities he appeared possess there was one thing that was keeping him from being truly great . . . his great wealth. (Keep in mind that wealth is always measured against what others have or do not have). If he wants to truly find eternal life he must "go sell all that he possess and give the proceeds to the poor." Now clearly the message is that if one is to enter the kingdom of God he must give all of himself to God. In this case giving to God is meeting the needs of those who are "poor." You will notice that Jesus does not offer any qualifiers. It is just "to the poor." He does not consider how they became poor; why they remained poor; or anything else regarding their condition. All we are to know is that they are poor. We might get some idea of what may have been in his mind when he said the word "poor" from his definition of pure religion as caring for widows and orphans. We might be further enlightened by the fact that he defined ministry to himself by his followers as caring for those in prison, those who were destitute (hungry, thirsty and naked) homeless (stranger) or sick. The young man went away sorrowing because according to Jesus "he had great riches" and it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Hence we must never underestimate the power of the desire for wealth to deceive and divert us from the narrow way of kingdom life, i.e. caring for the needy in our society. My point in referring to this saying of Jesus regarding the balancing of the budget is that what we do in our budgeting will reveal whether we are a kingdom people or not. If indeed we are a "Christian nation," as some believe, then why are we balancing our budget on the backs of our poor and our elderly. ("straight is the way and narrow is the gate that leads to everlasting life"). If we are a truly Christian nation our budget should reflect it. What one does with his/her money says a lot about where their heart really is. Wealth makes a great servant but a nasty master.

I recently posted a link on my Facebook page about a Dance Studio in Spring, Texas that was offering Pole Dancing for Christian women as a means of exercising. Seem they learn to do pole routines (I assume similar to those in strip clubs) to "Christian" music. That got me thinking about, as one friend put it, "the use of Jesus in Marketing."

The more I thought about it the more directions my thinking began to go. My first thought was, "How did we get here?" I remember growing up in a church tradition where singers and evangelists were not allowed to sell their tapes and records in the sanctuary or even to promote them, from the platform. In fact, the only words spoken about the availability of these products would be something like, "There is a table in the hall adjacent to the sanctuary where you will find some things our guest has available for you to purchase." Now we announce the availability of virtually any and everything including but not limited to DVD's, CD's, pictures, T-shirts, and almost anything else.

Later we began to see these things pop-up on the shelves of "Christian" book stores and now they are marketed through every conceivable outlet. In point of fact, for many of these people the sale of their "stuff" provides a major portion of their income. More than a few have become remarkably wealthy via this process.

Now we are seeing things like the afore mentioned "pole" dancing spring classes up in Spring, Texas and no doubt will beginning popping up elsewhere . . . . especially if it brings in a few bucks.

Now back in the "old days" we began justifying the sale of these essentially commercial products on the premise that it was a ministry extension. That is, the tapes, records, CD's & DVD's were a way to get the gospel "in song" out to a wider audience to enjoy. Sounds good to me. The more who can hear and enjoy "Christian music" and Gospel preaching the better . . . Right! Well, maybe.

It appears to me that somewhere along the line we changed from getting the gospel message out to promoting a product or a person. Now there has been an element of that all along in church circles. We have always advertised revivals, concerts, etc. by word of mouth or through newspaper ads and radio & television spots not to mention door to door flyer's and direct mail. Essentially we used good marketing techniques to get the word out about our product. In those instances our product was Jesus. We wanted people to come to our meetings, hear the gospel and become Christians. Somewhere along the line people began hiring publicists and others to promote not the gospel but their products. All of this was to get people to buy a product that in some form or fashion pointed to Jesus.

Having said all that let's get back to the "Pole Dancing" for Jesus stuff. I suspect that these folks have discovered that using Jesus as an advertising element will drive "Christians" to do business with them. Certainly there can't be anything wrong with this because we have been doing it through Christian book stores and the like for years. I heard the participants say that "Pole dancing" for Jesus was a spiritual experience . . . "that you could just feel the His presence as you danced." Besides, your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and you need to keep it in as good a shape as possible and pole dancing helps with this.

We have borrowed so much from the secular world to promote our faith and all its trappings and I am wondering if maybe we have gone too far. I remember an old preacher way back in the 1960's telling me one time that this kind of stuff was going to take us where we don't want to go so you best be careful with it. Well, the question is, "has it?" I wonder.

So, what do you think? Have we gone too far?

What's Your Plan For 2011 . . . I Have A Suggestion

It's New Years Day. Well, it is almost almost New Year's Day. It is also almost my birthday. You see New Year's Day and my birthday are one and the same. Both are great occasions to reflect a little on what has transpired since the last New Year's Day and in my case my last birthday.

I really can't say that anything unusual or particularly exciting occurred. Well, that's not entirely true. After all my youngest daughter presented me with a grandson and that is exciting. In fact he has been pretty much the center of attention these past several months. That by itself makes 2010 a successful year.

Personally I am not to big on reflecting on the past except for nostalgic reasons. The past is just that, the past.

New Year's Day and for me, my birthday, should be spent looking forward. I think it was Beecher who said that "every man should be born again on the first day of January . . . let every man gird himself once more, with his face to the front . . ." Or as the great Apostle said, "forgetting those things that are past I press on . . ."

That is what I suggest we all do today. Face the future with a determination to make the year that lies before us as happy and prosperous as possible. To that end I have a suggestion.

Recently I was in conversation with a friend and told him that my father had taught me how to die and that another friend who is now gone taught me the real meaning of giving. His response was, "Isn't that what life really is about . . . giving?"

You know, he is right. The only way to make 2011 really happy and successful is to give of yourself. Scripture is not in error when it says, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." Let me suggest that you determine that in 2011 you find some way to give of yourself. That may involve making some financial gifts. These will no doubt be needed and are important to meeting some of the human needs around you. More importantly it should involve giving of yourself and that means taking time for others.

Don't waste your time looking for someone worthy of your help. No one is worthy and the truth is neither are you and I. It is not a question of worthiness but of need. God Himself modeled this truth for us when he loved us while we were still sinners and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sin. He did not give us what our worthiness had earned but rather He gave us what we needed. We are to do likewise. I still hear Jesus' words to the woman caught in adultery, "neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more." Ours is not to pass judgement . . . ours is to offer redemption (the help needed).

Call me deluded call me an idealist I really don't mind because I really do believe that if we would all light one little candle in the darkness that fills so many of our friends and neighbor's lives what a wonderful world this could be.