It's All About Who You Know

During an international conference, my husband met a man who shared with him an experience he had while trying to enter the United States of America. My husband and I travel so much that I am very aware of how tricky it can be to enter some other countries, but hadn't given much thought as to what others go through trying to enter my home country.

This gentleman had come to America many times as part of a mission organization. Once when he arrived in America and went through customs and immigration, he was interrogated thoroughly. The agent asked him, "Why do you come to America so much? Why don't you just stay home?" The rudeness of this comment nearly took my breath away. I was embarrassed to think that this man had received that kind of treatment from Americans.

 

It got worse. The agent told him he did not have appropriate documentation and that he would be sent back to his home country on the next flight.

He spent quite some time waiting for all the arrangements to be made when another agent came to him and asked, " Don't you have any kind of paper that gives you permission to come here to do what you do?" The man opened his briefcase and pulled out everything he had. 

In doing so, he and the immigration officer came across a letter from Henry Kissinger (Secretary of State) that was addressed to "whom it may concern." He asked that anyone representing the organization this man belonged to be given the best of treatment. Even though this man had never personally met Henry Kissinger, his name was on the list. The agent immediately said, "Why didn't you give us this in the first place? We would have escorted you through ourselves without any problem."

Some day I will be at heaven's gate. I will have no problems getting in - not because I deserve to be there - but because Jesus belongs there and I am one of His disciples. Thanks to Him and His sacrifice as the Lamb of God, my name is on the list. no one...shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life (Revelation 21:27).

I could never enter the gates of heaven on my own. Neither could you. Through Jesus our entry is guaranteed. 

Jesus answered, "Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God" (John 3:3). "But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you. Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:31-32).

Deadly Words

I remember when I was in grade school and some child was being bullied and was brave enough to say to the bully, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." In trying to get the other child (or group of children) to stop, the bullied child was trying to imply their taunts were not getting anywhere.

We now know those poor children were wrong. Words can hurt you. Not only can those words hurt, but countless numbers have been so adversely affected the damage to their self-esteem lasted for a lifetime. Withdrawal and depression often result from being bullied in the past.

The most serious consequence for this callous behavior has been suicide. New words have even been created for this terrible outbreak. "Bullycide" refers to a suicide committed as a result of being bullied. Cyberbullying is so prevalent that new laws and policies are being developed to try to control it.

Statistics are staggering. At the time of this writing, nearly 30 percent of students are bullies or victims of bullying, bully victims are between 2 to 9 times more likely to commit suicide than non-victims and in Britain at least half of suicides among young people were related to bullying.

Relationships have been crushed and lives have been destroyed because of words. Even in America, where the law clearly states that one is innocent until proven guilty, the mere accusation of a crime can ruin a life.

The Bible is full of warning about this very thing. The verses that have to do with our controlling our tongue - our speech - are abundant throughout scripture. Once when I did a detailed study of Proverbs, I was taken with the number of references to the words of the wicked and the terrible consequences of those words.

Jesus was on the receiving end of this kind of evil. He was human and I am certain those words hurt. His bullies eventually had Him hung on a cross. For your sake and for mine, He allowed this to happen so that we could be with Him someday where words will never hurt us.

Jesus said, "Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted and by your words you will be condemned" (Matthew 12:34-37).

The Owners of the Instruments

My husband and I once had lunch in the home of two lovely young ladies - sisters - who use their musical gifts in the church where we were serving. These ladies had left their home country to come to Vienna in order to study with the best teachers to help them sharpen their skills on their instruments. It took a lot of sacrifice for them to get accepted into their schools. They and their family were also sacrificing a great deal to keep them there. God miraculously provided for them. They were honoring Him with their lives and their gifts.

Philippe Mercier - French artist. In public domain both in France and U.S.A.

In junior high school I played viola and then violin in our orchestra. When I moved, there was not an orchestra in the next school. There was only a band. So I didn't continue with violin lessons, but I had played long enough to know how very difficult it is to get a good sound out of the instrument. I had just gotten past the squealing stage when I had to quit.

These sweet girls played the violin and the cello. They had purchased what they could afford. Their instruments were not the best. Neither were the bows. The violin player even laughingly described the crookedness in her bow.

I can attest to the fact that these girls made beautiful music come out of those instruments. They told us others had tried to play their instruments but always complained stating they didn't know how these girls were able to play with them. The girls admitted that the music was not the same when others tried to use their instruments.

The Touch of the Master's Hand by Myra Brooks Welch is a well-known poem that describes an auction where the bid for an old violin increased one thousand fold after an old man came to the front and played a sweet melody on it. The difference was the touch of the master's hand.

In the case of my two friends, the master's touch was so intimate that each of them was the only person who could make beautiful music come out of what others considered an inferior instrument.

I belong to Jesus. In His hands I can be an instrument of usefulness - but only in His hands.

for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).

Door Jam

Occasionally my husband has been asked to teach a Bible study at the United Nations in Vienna, Austria. As might be expected, the facility is very secure. It takes special permission to get in. There are security guards when you leave.

After he finished one day, I followed him out through the revolving door. Revolving doors are comprised of three or four panels. I think this one had four. My mistake was that I followed him into the same panel. The spacing in these revolving door panels must have been designed for just one person. I should have known that since the security is so tight. I barely fit behind him.

Unfortunately, my big bag did not fit. I was able to get out of the building myself, but my purse was hung in the revolving door. You can imagine my chagrin at having to make my husband wait for me while I asked a guard for help. The guard tried unsuccessfully to retrieve my purse from the inside. He finally had to go to the control room and ask the engineer to release the control on the door. Then he reached in, got my purse and told me to come back through and retrieve it.

I made an embarrassing mistake, but I got over it. I was much more fortunate than 492 people who perished in flames in a 1942 fire in the Cocoanut Grove, a popular night club in Boston, Massachusetts. One of the reasons for the large number of deaths was the single revolving door at the entrance. As the panicked mob attempted to use the door to escape, it became jammed, trapping many of them between the door and the crowd pushing toward it.

Jesus is the Door to Heaven. There is no entrance except through Him. There is no possibility of a door jam because He greets us one by one as we come to Him in faith.

If we don't go through the Door, we would spend eternity in everlasting flames. When the end of time has come, there will be no need for security. There will be gates of splendor but they will never be closed. 

And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband....It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates...In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it; and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life (Revelation 21:2,12, 25).

Ladies and Gentlemen

The British television series Downton Abbey has been an overwhelming and surprising success. Not only is it extremely popular in England and America, but it is one of the most viewed exports in Australia, Norway, Belgium, Israel and Iceland and is also a hit in Sweden, South Korea, the Middle East and many other countries. The writer and actors of this series have been blown away by the response.

Richard Munckton from Windsor, Melbourne, Australia posted to Flicker

The New York Times described Downton Abbey as a "British dramedy of manners." Could it be that one of the reasons for its popularity is the refreshing reappearing of good old-fashioned manners - something that has become rather scarce in this day and age?

I know I appreciate it when manners are practiced - when men hold open a door for a woman, when children say "please" and "thank you." Unfortunately, because it is not as common as it used to be, when someone is practicing good manners, they stand out.

Speeches and formal announcements still begin with Ladies and Gentlemen - a greeting considerably more distinguished than Women and Men. When a man is called a true gentleman, that is meant as a compliment. When a woman is referred to as a lady, her gentle characteristics are recognized. Not every woman is a lady, nor is every man a gentleman.

Ladies and gentleman are people of character. Every young female is a girl and every adult female is a woman, but it takes effort to be a lady. Every young male is a boy and every adult male is a man, but it takes work to be a gentleman.

God wants His sons and daughters to be people of good, gentle character. He can even take people with very rough, crude backgrounds and transform them into ladies and gentlemen.

Iris Blue's testimony is a wonderful example of what God can do. She was a very rebellious young person, ran away from home, got involved in drugs and was sentenced to eight years in prison on armed robbery charges. Her attitude in prison was so bad that she had to serve an even longer sentence. After leaving prison, she continued on her path of rebellion until a young man told her about Jesus Christ and how He loved her. She responded to His love and her testimony is that she "knelt down a tramp and stood up a lady."

God's design for Iris was to transform her so she could share HIs love with others, which she does.

True manners are not pretentious. Ladies and gentleman practice manners because they are considerate of others and have a gentle spirit. That is how we should represent our Father. It is part of the the fruit of His Spirit.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:23). Let your gentle spirit be know to all men. The Lord is near (Philippians 4:5 NAS).

Reboot

I am not high-tech savvy, but I have discovered one thing. Rebooting solves a lot of problems. When your computer or e-reader is frozen, when the electronic camera on either doesn't work or if an accessory plugged into your device decides to stop functioning, reboot.

I have read that rebooting becomes necessary when your computer develops system problems because of running into an endless program loop or your internet connection breaks down. Shutting off your computer and restarting it can stop the loop or repair the connection.

Life is like that as well. Sometimes we allow negativity to loop over and over in our minds until we become non-productive.

As I travel, I often  visit with someone undergoing a problem, they are often frozen in that endless loop of negative thinking. Sometimes he can't see a light ahead because present circumstances are so dire. Often she can't forgive herself for something she has done. Maybe he believes his life is useless because he had not been able to accomplish his dreams. She may tell me how her parents, husband, co-workers give her such negative input that she believes that she has nothing to contribute to her family or her job.

It may be hard to believe, but these conversations are with Christians - people who should know better. It is Satan that wants us to believe the negatives in that endless program loop and be incapable of stopping the loop and repairing the connection.

I listen with a heavy heart to these conversations, pray about any advice God may have for them and without exception have told them that what they need is to go back to the place where they met God in the first place and remember the joy they encountered when they first met Jesus and made Him Lord of their lives. Sin can for a time disturb our connection with God. It is up to us to recognize it and ask Him to restore the joy we once knew. We often need to reboot.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me (Psalm 51:12 NIV).

When The Construction is Done

National Construction

I travel quite a bit in Europe. There are cities I return to time and again and lately have noticed construction everywhere. Road construction, new skyscrapers, remodeling - you name it. Many European cities are currently under construction.

Even though it sometimes makes getting to my destination more difficult (construction crews
slow traffic down, roads are rerouted, sidewalks are blocked because of building cranes, etc.), I am thrilled to see construction in these cities I have come to love. It speaks of prosperity and growth.

Much of this construction has been possible because of the investment by the European Union. The EU invests, rightly so, because the pay off will benefit all of Europe. Where there is construction, there is progress. Inconveniences experienced during the period of construction will be worth it.

Home Construction

I have watched my husband do remodeling and construction work on our home. Skill and patience is required for the process can be very labor intensive. When construction is completed, not only is there a great feeling of accomplishment but we are able to enjoy the benefits of the completed project.

Personal Construction

Ruth Bell Graham, driving through an area where construction had finally been completed, came upon a sign - "End of Construction. Thank you for your patience." She told her husband, Billy, that she wanted that inscription on her gravestone. And so it is.

Author Billy Hathorn/ Comment: I took photo at Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, NC with Canon camera/Date 7/12/2012/ source Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, NC

When I am able to return to the European cities where I have observed construction and when my husband completes a building project, I take great pleasure in the result. The projects were worth the wait and the investment of time and money.

Believers in Christ can only glorify God when we yield ourselves to His patient construction work. He does it all. His investment includes our creation, our salvation through Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit working in and through us. 

God continues working with us until He has completed the goal He had in mind. Certainly, we must try His patience during the process. We should thank Him for His long-suffering toward us. When the work is complete, He will call us home - just as He did Ruth Bell Graham. 

The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6). For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).