A Grateful Nation

Of all our national holidays, I for one will attest to the splendor and glory that President’s Day holds for me.  Ever since I was a young boy leafing through my parent’s set of encyclopedias and came across the pictures of our 37 (at that time) chief executives, I’ve been fascinated by the men who have selflessly given their service, and in some cases their lives, to lead this nation we love so dearly.  And, as is the case with many things in life, I can’t help but root for the underdog even when it comes to ranking my favorite presidents.  Maybe it stems from James Buchanan, often considered the worst of all when ranked by scholars and historians, having been born in my home county of Franklin, some 220 years ago.  Other names come to mind also as favorite sons never given much credit for their roles in shaping our history: Millard Fillmore, Rutherford Hayes, Chester Arthur, and Warren Harding.  But the man I would focus on today is our fourteenth president. A handsome, young, military hero son of New Hampshire.  A friend of such literary and historical contemporaries as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and, unfortunately, Jefferson Davis.  Known as Young Hickory of the Granite Hills, his name was Franklin Pierce.

Did Franklin Pierce even come close to resembling a good president?  No.  But the argument can be made that his failings in national politics make him all the more interesting of a subject to study.  We can learn much from the mistakes of those who precede us.  And when we look closely at Pierce the man, we find tragic and sad circumstances in his personal life that could not be cured, but only intensified, by an elevated career and the cumbersome mantle of the presidency.  Pierce battled alcoholism for much of his life.  And even upon his retirement from public life, his opponents never ceased to point out claims as a Southern sympathizer, cowardice as a soldier, and questions of his patriotism.  But at the forefront of this man’s life was his family: His wife, Jane, and his three sons.  Their first son died at birth.  The second son died at the age of four from typhoid fever.  The third son, Bennie, was tragically killed in a train derailment accident just two months before Pierce was inaugurated.  Still in mourning, Pierce’s wife suffered from depression and locked herself away in the upstairs of the White House for much of his presidency, writing letters to her dead sons.  Imagine the weight of such responsibilities on one man: professional, spiritual, physical, emotional, political, psychological, social, personal and national.  All the more reason to consider his survival of four years in office as a success.

The following lines from Pierce’s 1853 inaugural address summed up much of what weighed heavily on this 48-year old man’s heart: “I ought to be, and am, truly grateful for the rare manifestation of the nation's confidence; but this, so far from lightening my obligations, only adds to their weight. You have summoned me in my weakness; you must sustain me by your strength.” Unfortunately, our nation was also facing a tumult of epic proportions that failed to sustain even the slightest weakness in our chosen leader.  When we read of tragedies, both on personal and national levels, like those faced by President Pierce; perhaps it can give us strength to know that a realization of our weakness is the first step in spiritual recovery.  When we can face our demons and understand that true strength comes only from the saving power of Jesus Christ; when we can rely on His promises and His truth in the face of both curses and blessings; and when we can emerge reborn in His likeness from the depths of despair and misery . . . then we can experience what Franklin Pierce desperately cried out for from His country on the East Portico of the Capitol Building.  Sustenance like no other from the unmatched strength of a perfect Savior for a body weak in faith and born into a sinful and broken world.  The context of history may paint different legacies for all men, but great or otherwise, we all fall short of expectations without the love of the Lamb of God.  May the history books be tempered with the grace and mercy He has shown each of us.  And let him who is without fault, cast the first stone.  Amen.

Celtics, Buffalo and Sideburns

This week’s blog will begin and end with a quote.  To start us off, let’s consider what happens when we combine two of my favorite pastimes: music and basketball.  Hear now these words from, of all people, the legendary Boston Celtics cigar-smoking championship coach, Red Auerbach . . .

"Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life."

That’s the beautiful thing about music.  It can dramatically affect people from all different walks of life and it brings people together from diverging cultures and from geographic locations thousands of miles apart. And it can turn athletes into poets.  Quite a blessing from the Creator of all things great and glorious, eh?

Many of us would probably say that music has been a huge part of our lives and, yes, I’m no different.  It seems like a trite and unoriginal thing to say, but – hey - if it’s true – run with it I suppose.  Although it’s taken me until I’ve reached my fifth decade on this earth, my musical self has been unleashed nevertheless.  Singing in my church’s praise team and writing praise songs have become passions that I relish and I’d never have discovered if not for that rare combination of faith and creativity that our contemporary worship service has allowed.

This past year has also been a blessing musically for others I hold dear in this life.  In the past few years our church has developed a bond with an up-and-coming Christian band known as Relevant Worship from Buffalo, New York. Their music and their testimony had a profound impact on our congregation from the moment we first heard them at Creation Festival when they were still new and relatively unknown beyond Western New York.  Since that time, they have taken giant strides in their ministry and careers to evolve into a recording act known as Brothers McClurg for a major music label with an amazingly bright future ahead of them.  Even far removed from them here in South Central Pennsylvania, we still swell with pride as we watch them grow in faith and stature as disciples of Jesus Christ.

Their example has also shone brightly on my family and, in particular, my youngest son.  A talented guitar player at the ripe old age of 17, he has grown into the role of our church’s Praise Team Leader and has forged a musical identity of his own with three fellow musicians as part of a band called Lectionary77.  The band recently played its first gig at a local church and, as we’d hoped and prayed for, word of mouth has spread to open avenues for additional performances.  We look forward to exploring the path the Lord has set before him and his bandmates as they continue to write and record songs and play them for His unrivaled renown.  Success is measured in many ways when it comes to music.  But whether their ministry catches fire and leads them to years of prosperity, exotic places and larger venues or whether it’s God’s will that their role is meant to be something more obscure and remote – we rejoice in the knowledge that their time, talents and hard work is spent in something so worthy as the spread of God’s good news.

As the life of a Christian band goes, so it goes for all of us.  Don’t allow your life to be lived at any level of earthly success or failure without first knowing that you’ve given your all for the success of His kingdom here on Earth.  Live your life and pursue your life’s ministry at full volume, always to the roar of the crowd, always expectant of one more encore, and always to the best of your abilities.  And in the words of one of Red Auerbach’s legendary contemporaries . . .

“For those about to rock, we salute you!” – Angus Young, 1982

You can find out more about Brothers McClurg at www.facebook.com/brothersmcclurg and www.relevantworshipmusic.com

You can find out more about Lectionary77 at www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Lectionary77/138786109499954

Follow the Leader

As a big fan of the U.S Presidents, I’ve always been fascinated by their personalities as well as their policies.  My family will tell you, “Don’t even get him started talking about them or you’ll be sorry you asked.” But regardless of whether it’s our nation’s commander-in-chief or a small town politician, I’ve always appreciated the concept of term limits.  It can be argued that certain leaders are so good at what they do that an exception should be made, but it can equally be argued that too many politicians become “lifers” making a career out of something that was intended as a service rather than a vocation.  I, too, have recently had my eyes opened to the benefits of “term limits” when it comes to church leadership.

As 2011 rolled around, the position of Contemporary Worship Coordinator (my previous position) at my church was eliminated and the two pastors took over the many various duties associated with making our worship service happen.  I decided to take a few weeks off while this transition occurred to refocus and reevaluate.  I hadn’t been away from my home church for more than a week or two a year for the past six plus years.  And even during those weeks off, I was still deeply involved with planning the orders of worship, scheduling volunteers, and helping to shape the musical offerings for the week.  My month away was refreshing and gave me ample time to visit some other churches to sample their worship styles.  I also attended my home church for a week simply as a member of the congregation and found myself feeling strangely unfamiliar with that perspective.

But, in the end, I came to realize it was a good experience and one that I need to pursue more often.  During my time away, I found that others had a greater opportunity to participate in leadership roles and to grow as fellow worship leaders.  By being a constant leadership presence, I was doing something I love but was unwittingly inhibiting others from fulfilling their call.  I was also inhibiting myself from being an active worship participant and was not being sufficiently fed as I concentrated so intently on feeding others.  There are many of us called to serve as leaders, but it is a duty we should be willing to share equally with others.  We are not called to dominate leadership or to preclude leadership by others.  God wants us all to feel the privilege of leading others into His presence and towards His gospel. And we definitely grow most effectively as a congregation when we allow greater and more frequent opportunities for others to grow into leadership roles.  This includes all ages as well as men and women.  Church leadership is a gift to be shared, nurtured and grown and not one to be monopolized and coveted.  It’s my prayer that those of us in the background make an effort in the coming year to step forward, and those at the forefront may humbly step back and encourage our fellow members so that others can mature in faith and experience the joy of serving Christ and His church as our future leaders. 

As we read in Proverbs 11:14,

“Where there is no wise guidance, the nation falls, but in the multitude of counselors there is victory.”

Praise be to God!

Extra! Extra!

As a person who enjoys writing, as well as reading, you begin to take notice to how an author crafts his story.  After all, any good book, article, poem, song or blog is only as good as the story it tells.  From a spiritual point of view, each of our lives is a book and each of us has a story.  A question I recently saw posed is whether we expect to develop a relationship with God that advances our story OR will that relationship be one where our story becomes synchronized with God’s story and serves to convey the Gospel through our actions?  As a writer, you become sensitive to the idea that this piece I’ve spent so much time on, poured so much emotion into, and suffered for is my story and mine alone.  Once it’s published or hits the airwaves or is heard by other ears, it is forever stamped with my seal and I will live on through time every time the story is repeated.

But the written word and life are completely different animals.  Life is a gift from God that is meant to be enjoyed by each of us, and part of that enjoyment is establishing a strong and lasting spiritual connection with Him.  But to fully appreciate the benefits of this God relationship, we must do something that creative types and artists have such trouble doing: turn over control to another, completely and without remorse.  Could any premise be more opposite to the ways of the world?  Although we still enjoy the freedoms that come with being a child of God, our lives are no longer truly our own.  We belong to God 100% and cannot allow our own earthly life stories to supersede God’s great eternal story.  As followers of His Son, Jesus Christ, we must allow God sole authorship of this newfound community and be satisfied that our own stories are at best an interesting subplot in the continuing Gospel of His good news.  From an artistic point of view it may sound compromising, but from a spiritual perspective it is not a sacrifice but rather a boon.  We have joined the ultimate creative team that will redefine the story of all stories for generations of believers and faithful and we will revel in the joy as His love extends from page to page embracing every audience to whom it is opened.   No story was, is, or ever will be greater, nor will any story ever connect with more of the masses.  God, the ultimate creator, is busy at life’s storyboard right now mapping out the next chapter. And each of us is called to help promote that tale for maximum readership and maximum subscription.  Extra!  Extra!  Read all about it!  Amen.

Times Are Changing

We all face changes in our lives.  Every day.  Every year.  Some of us handle aging gracefully.  Others . . . not so much.  I recently came across the following interview for Christianity Today magazine with a man who was once voted "The Greatest Living American", 92-year young Reverend Billy Graham.  I thought it did an excellent job of offering each of us sage advice on growing old gracefully and growing old in the grace of Jesus Christ.

http://ht.ly/3HYF9

What Do I Say?

I recently saw a Facebook post from a friend of mine that read as follows:

“My best friend died this week, my heart is broken, I feel alone . . . I miss my friend with all my heart.” 

Wow.  How does someone respond accordingly to such raw emotion on a social networking site?  Does it even need a response or is the poster simply venting?  Ultimately, the posting received 139 return comments.  I started to read through these comments, and while they conveyed the appropriate condolences and sympathy that you’d expect, none of them really hit on a solution to the grief and sorrow and confusion that was raining down on that young man’s life at that very moment.  After thinking about it long and hard, I decided that sometimes just a few words are best to get to the heart of the situation.  I posted three short words that I hope to remember again anytime a tragedy arises where the spoken word fails to capture anything worth verbalizing.

“God is near.”

Remember that uncomfortable feeling that often accompanies reading a familiar obituary, or waiting in line at a funeral home or church to empathize with the grieving family?   We want to find the right words that will erase the terrible feelings and emotions that are dominating the moment.  We want to be a hero who can put death and suffering into the proper perspective so the burdens of the world can be that much lighter.  But the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ gave us all the hope and truth we need to face these troubled times.  We don’t have to play the hero.  Jesus has already filled that role as our Savior and Redeemer and he proved that God loves us so much that he lived among us, suffered with us, and defeated death and sin for you and I and all His children.  His promise and His proximity is all the comfort we need whether the days are exceptionally bright or increasingly dark.  You and I can’t change that and we can’t improve on it.  But we can remind each other because these are three words that will never grow stale, will never fail to open doors for healing, and will mean that we are never alone or friendless.

Artist? Yes. But My Favorite Ninja Turtle was Donatello.

As the holidays fall ever further away in the rear-view mirror, the winter months increase their icy grip on us.  And what better way to warm yourself than to curl up with a good book and lose yourself in the imagination of a gifted writer’s prose and plots and characters? Over the last few years I’ve become a voracious reader with an appetite for more and more books.  Just before Christmas, I found myself empty of new books with which to satisfy my craving.  I resigned myself to the hope that some new books would find their way to me on Christmas morning, which they did.  But, in the meantime, I grabbed an old book off the shelf to grant some temporary relief.  Now here we are a month later and I’m still engrossed with this old book while the new ones patiently wait their turn.  Strangely enough I never would’ve guessed that the book to unexpectedly hold my attention for so many weeks would be a book about the works of the Renaissance artist, Michelangelo.

The works produced by this man are indescribably amazing.  Whether as a sculptor or a painter, the trail of artistry he left as a legacy continues to inspire people centuries after his death.  To see the detail in his sculpture of David and in the Pieta (the grieving Mary holding the lifeless body of Jesus following the crucifixion) brings the Bible vividly to life for even the most casual observer.  And the intricacy and the painstaking dedication of the Sistine Chapel’s portrayal of the Last Judgement, the Creation, the Great Flood, the Prophets, the Ancestors of Christ and the Fall of Adam and Eve are humbling and a lasting tribute to the gifts that God gives each of us to share with the world.

One of Michelangelo’s most-admired qualities among fellow artists is something known as “terribilita.” It has been translated in many ways, but my favorite likens it to a sense of awe-inspiring grandeur.  Sounds like something all artists (writers, painters, musicians, sculptors, poets, actors, craftsmen) should aspire to epitomize. And while it’s difficult to imagine an artist on a far grander scale than Michelangelo, an artist who embodies “terribilita” in every piece of art he or she creates, that is exactly what we have in God.  What we have in Jesus.  And what we have inside each of us in the Holy Spirit.  Creation itself as told to us in Genesis is as grandiose and awesome as it gets.  Living a perfect life according to God’s will as Jesus did is beauty.  Enduring His Passion for all of us was “terribilita.”  When a new life enters the world we celebrate one more piece of God’s craftsmanship.  And when a life leaves this existence and enters into Paradise, we celebrate the soulful artistry of God’s handiwork.  As this winter slowly plods along, use those snowy days and cold nights to practice your appreciation for God’s artistry.  After all, every snowfall is His Pieta.  Every child’s laugh is His Sistine Chapel.  Every smile is His Mona Lisa.  Every act of kindness and compassion is His Romeo and Juliet.  And every moment of your life is but another verse in His unending epic poem of Creation.    Amen.