What's Next...

 5 Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. II Corinthians 3:5-6

Across our nation, men and women of good conscience celebrated the U. S. Supreme Court’s decision which rolled back Roe v. Wade. Like me, they mourned the death of voiceless innocents. But, if we place our faith in dubious political machinations gained through gaming the system, we lean upon a weak reed indeed. I remember a world before Roe v. Wade, a world in which abortions took place. It was also a world in which many Christians counted that as a decision between a woman and her doctor. Changing the law, while a good thing, will not solve the foundational problems.

We still exist in a culture that glorifies violence in its many guises. Just as Roe v. Wade was transient, this current change is transient. Given the nature of our political system, so dependent upon voter energy, a few election cycles may bring in a new crop of justices willing to reinstate an updated version of Roe v. Wade. The group of politicians, willing to carefully engage in a long-term campaign designed to game the system and place justices of their own stripe on the bench, may find themselves among the retired ranks next cycle, leaving behind a judiciary far out of touch with the citizenry as a whole and bereft of credibility. And we will be no closer to solving the problems which result in so many abortions. I find it astonishing that a group of people who decry the ability of law to solve human problems placed so much faith in changing the law and not working on the conditions that brought about such carnage. Now, those angered by this change will be all the more animated in reversing the change, leaving us a much more difficult task. If we truly believe in the sanctity of life, we must address the current cultural conditions which devalue life, starting with our infatuation with violence. 

Over the past fifty years or so, we have carefully constructed a culture that glorifies violence in many different forms and venues. Movies, music, video-games, all contain many graphic and realistic depictions of violence in all its forms. The glorification of violence extends to sports. We love a good smashing hit in football or hockey. Motorsports fans ooh and ahh over a multi-vehicle crash that reduces cars to spinning, rapidly disintegrating, often flaming hulks. We must look at how our predilection of violence has spread to national and local policy. We increasingly look to armed force as the first solution to problems. This misalignment drives ever-growing military budgets. Increasingly police patrol our streets kitted out with all the equipment of military forces going into battle. We would do well to take a pause and reconsider how our devotion to and enjoyment of violence reflects a culture devoted to death instead of life. We need to reeducate ourselves concerning the ways of peace.

If we wish to defend life we need to pour more of our resources into education. We need to stop bleeding off precious resources into various schemes that target the wealthy and focus our efforts on strengthening the public institutions that serve the more vulnerable sectors of our body politic. The public education institutions, and those who work in them, shape the future. They need our support and help, not continual badgering. We must invest in their well-being through adequate salary, appropriate resources, and fewer intrusions into the classroom. Our children spend eight hours a day with them for most of the year, and the future health of the nation depends on them.

We must also continue to address healthcare. Far too many of our nation perish through inadequate healthcare. It is to our shame that the most prosperous nation in the world neglects so many of its citizens by not providing basic healthcare. We stand alone in the developed world in our intransigence regarding providing healthcare. All other developed nations provide some sort of universal healthcare; but, we continue to shirk this responsibility, claiming that it is too problematic, too hard. Surely, we can do much better than this, and we must if we truly believe in the sanctity of life. We have the resources at hand, we just lack the willingness to redirect them into this needful activity. Many suffer from a much-degraded quality of life due, in large part, to a simple lack of resources.

Those of us who honor the sanctity of life should also honor work. We need to address the tremendous wage inequity that exists in our culture. Since I graduated from high school, in 1979, wages for the top one percent of earners have grown by 179%, while wages for the bottom ninety percent have grown by twenty-eight percent. 2 The resulting wage gap forces many to maintain two or three part-time jobs just to make ends meet. Due to their expertise, the upper echelons will always enjoy greater remuneration for their labors; however, those of us that embrace the right to life ought to embrace the concept of a living wage for all workers, including appropriate benefits. Without adequate pay, we consign large sectors of our society to lives of endless work, near poverty, and no hope of improvement. Many families endure an existence that is only one problem away from homelessness and abject poverty. Their pay provides for a minimal life just above poverty, and nothing else. They rarely take vacations, live in fear of significant illness, drive marginal cars, and have no real hope of elevating their, or their children’s, expectations. We need to develop a culture that honors work through appropriate pay and benefits. We have the resources; we just need to strengthen our empathy.

 Much of this discussion revolves around our ability to feel empathy and express it through actions and policy. Too often we hide behind the bromide of, “the church should do this kind of work.” I agree that the church should labor in these areas of endeavor, and some are doing splendid work; however, the need is great. Also, as Christians, we ought to raise our voices and cast our votes for compassionate policies and practices. We exist in a time of unprecedented riches and abilities. Our nation enjoys great prosperity. We need to adjust our priorities, and our priorities need to include helping the less fortunate among us. There is plenty of room at the table. 

1. https://www.apa.org/pi/prevent-violence/resources/violence-youth.pdf 

2. https://bit.ly/3QXFUVN 

Party Peril

 However combinations or associations of the above description may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely, in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people, and to usurp for themselves the reins of government; destroying afterwards the very engines, which have lifted them to unjust dominion. George Washington’s Farewell Address 1796 1

When I was a shavetail lieutenant, a presidential candidate came to Augusta, Georgia where I was stationed. A couple of LT’s decided to swing by the rally to check it out. While there, a national news team filmed them and aired a clip of them on a national television network during the evening news. The next day the commanding general called them to his office and summarily dismissed them from the service. They had no particular party affiliation and went to the event simply to gawp; however, they attended in uniform, unwittingly giving some the impression that the Army sided with a particular candidate and party, something the Army steadfastly seeks to avoid. Throughout my tenure as an enlisted soldier and commissioned officer the Army eschewed any linkage to party. It was not until late in my career that the Army summoned the temerity to encourage soldiers to vote. Consumed with day to day mission efforts, normally you had no idea of the political leanings of those around you and those who commanded you. We served at the pleasure of the president, whatever party they came from. I served every president from Ronald Reagan through Barrack Obama and did so without a qualm. Each of them did things I liked and things I did not like. Party did not matter. Now as a retired officer, I look out on the landscape of a country convulsed and divided by rampant party affiliation. 

President Washington addressed party affiliation and various other issues in his final missive. With the help of Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, Washington composed in his “Farewell Address,” to provide guidance for the new nation. With great prescience, Washington understood the seductive nature of political parties and their attendant perils, particularly the lever they provided “cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled” individuals in tearing down the institutions of our government while maintaining the façade of democracy. We see this sad inclination at work every day.

Sooner or later parties seek to gain and maintain power as their primary goal. Born out of the desire of like-minded individuals to band together to secure change, they eventually become focused on continued existence and continued control of the levers of government. When this occurs, they shift from being a legitimate participant in the exercise of government to something else. They no longer serve the people, they serve themselves. Unscrupulous individuals exploit them, and their unsuspecting supporters by mouthing party-line platitudes all the while taking actions primarily designed to consolidate power and influence unto themselves. Washington understood the threat this posed to the healthy development of democracy and the overall health of the nation.

Intense feelings of party affiliation shape the landscape of contemporary American culture. According to a Public Religion Research Institute poll the percentage of Americans that would be unhappy if their son or daughter married someone of a different party has grown from the single digits in the 1960s to forty-five percent in 2016. 2 This percentage exceeds the percentage of religious people who would be unhappy if their children married outside their faith by a substantial margin. The Army measured my worth by my competence and willingness to do what was required to secure mission accomplishment. Now in the civilian world, many, if not most, judge my fitness based on perceived party affiliation. I know that in the teaching field, teachers carefully measure what they teach against the prevailing party yardstick in their community. They understand that should they depart from the community “norm” they will have to answer to belligerent parents, a hostile school administration, or some combination of both. Instead, they engage in self-censorship, degrading classroom instruction, and students suffer. All of this in the name of party, a failed human institution. This ought not to be.

No party gets everything correctly. Each party, conceived of and constructed by humans, espouses certain things incorrectly. When I join a party, I join all their platform. I cannot in good faith do that. Recently a major party added a “plank” to their platform that promulgated belief in something demonstrably false. If I were to join that party, I would join myself to something I know to be untrue. This would be the case for any party. We are human and we are failed, anything that proceeds from the mind of man bears the indelible imprint of failure, which is why I choose to be an independent voter. Washington understood the perils of factions, as parties were known then, and counseled for nurturing an independent American political landscape. Most would enjoin that the world Washington inhabited was fundamentally different than ours today. In Ecclesiastes, the writer addresses this idea.

9 What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. 10 Is there a thing of which it is said, “See, this is new”? It has been already in the ages before us. Ecclesiastes 1:9-10 English Standard Version

While our world differs greatly from the world Washington knew, people have not changed. We still connive and grasp after power. Parties do simplify things. The party leadership sits down and determines the appropriate response to various issues and then promulgates the party platform and all the associated planks, saving you and me from the difficult task of research and thought. We place our trust in men and women far removed from our daily walk and individual belief structures. We do not know them or what their personal motivations and beliefs. And we incorrectly assume that those who wear the Donkey or Elephant on their lapel, bumper-sticker, or yard sign hold to the things we think are important. We also make the invalid assumption that those who wear the opposite trappings are somehow the enemy. Parties serve to isolate us in intellectual laziness, prejudice, and ignorance. We do not know the other and assume that we do. We spend our time and effort policing what we think is doctrinal purity, while failing to address the pernicious issues which confront us. We evaluate our elected officials based on perceived adherence to some sort of party litmus test instead of their ability to get things done. We glare at each other across the canyon carved by party purity and fail to lift a finger to solve the challenges we all face as a community. We fall into the trap of pursuing power and influence over working toward actual solutions to the problems that vex us. Washington saw this day coming and warned us. We desperately need to work on the problems we face, not savage each other for belonging to the “wrong” party. We need to resurrect the idea of an independent voter who carefully examines the issues and holds their elected officials accountable for their actions, not their clever sound bites. 

1. https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/resources/pdf/Washingtons_Farewell_Address.pdf

2. https://www.prri.org/research/american-democracy-in-crisis-the-fate-of-pluralism-in-a-divided-nation/ 

Truth

 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Isaiah 5:20 English Standard Version

Truth is not fungible. Many try and make it so; however, no matter what they say, it is not. We endure a cultural penchant for seeking out inputs that reinforce our previously held positions. In many ways we have things backward, seeking proof for our preconceived ideas before understanding the facts. Yet, adherence to truth forms the foundation for the creation of a workable and defensible worldview. A worldview, well-grounded in truth, provides the basis for successfully interacting with an increasingly chaotic and challenging world. Our world is increasingly integrated, linked to far distant people and places with their own requirements and desires. Decisions made in ignorance and self-centered isolation lead to conflicts, conflicts avoidable if we take the time to search out and integrate truth into our worldview; however, people increasingly ignore truth, seeking out those who say the things they want to hear.

3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. II Timothy 4:3-4

This is nothing new. Paul spoke to this over two millennia ago. We like to think that we have moved past believing myths; however, when we actively seek out those that say what our “itching ears” want to hear instead of engaging in the struggle required to integrate truth into our worldview, we choose to believe a myth of our own making. We see this in almost every aspect of modern society; social, political, economic, and religious. Rather than actively seek the light of truth, we build our worldview and then go off in search of those who support our worldview. Then when things go awry, we conveniently blame the other. After all, if they would but adjust their worldview, we would not need to deal with those pesky facts. This cultural penchant makes us weak and easy prey.

Unscrupulous men and women exploit our ignorance. Realizing that we remain wedded to a very specific worldview, they parrot the same dogma, using it to hide their own personal agenda, which is normally gaining and maintaining power. They understand that for many of us, fealty to worldview outweighs truth, which is ironic. We forget that for those of us who claim the mantle of Christian, Jesus made some very potent claims regarding this subject.

6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6

When we embrace the name of Christ, we embrace fidelity to truth. For the Christian, truth matters, words matter. They matter more than political party, economic system, or personal philosophy. Search for the truth and you’re searching for Jesus, the Word made flesh. Sometimes people will say that truth is hard to find. I do not think finding truth is the problem we face. The problem is facing the truth that we find. Often, we mistakenly go in search of facts to support our beliefs instead of looking for facts and letting them shape our worldview. We fall into the trap of shaping our worldview first and then finding someone who speaks to our “itching ears.” Ultimately, we end up in a sort of echo chamber which serves to reinforce our preexisting beliefs instead of educating us. We do not like the facts so we invent our own. We must unflinchingly face facts, letting them inform our understanding of the world around us. Some might complain that this type of reasoning works against faith. I do not believe that it does. Jesus said that he was the truth. Ultimately truth will lead us to Jesus, not away from Jesus. 

To Whom Much is Given...

 …Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more. Luke 12:48

I enjoyed promotions in the Army. Promotions come with more respect, greater authority, and of course, higher pay. As a young private, I stood at the bottom of the ladder, the base of the pyramid. Everyone around me had more authority than I. Their innate intelligence did not matter. They might be a rock with lips (Army speak for dumb), but if they had more rank, they expected and required me to do as they said. On the upside, no one expected much from a private. If I showed up at the right place, in the right uniform, and on time, I was a step ahead of the crowd. Truthfully, in later years, I would look back wistfully on being a private; however, as is usual, I persevered and promotions came, sometimes not when I wanted, but they came, nonetheless. Eventually, the Army promoted me to Lieutenant Colonel, proving once again that if you avoid getting killed on a deployment and wait long enough, the Army will promote anyone. Promotions bring honor.

Suddenly, those who yesterday were my peers were now my subordinates, required to comply with my lawful orders. My pay went up, sometimes substantially. All in all, despite having to purchase new rank insignia, promotion was fun. Then came in the additional responsibility. With promotion comes new levels of requirements, new burdens, new challenges to face, and new decisions to make. Toward the end of my career, I worked around general officers. It stunned me to find that in many ways, I enjoyed more freedom than they. Their days were no longer their own. Some aid with a schedule governed their activities, sometimes down to the minute. Advanced rank comes with advanced requirements. It is much the same in the kingdom of God.

We yearn for the abundant life Jesus speaks of in John 10:10. Jesus yearns to give it to us. He did become human, live on this earth, and die in order that we might partake in this abundant life. But there is the question of what we do with this abundant life? James, the brother of Jesus wrote, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” James 4:3 God, through James, reminds us that He gives us an abundant life to glorify His name and forward the kingdom, not spend in on our own passions. In a like fashion, the Army did not promote me to give me more glory, I was promoted in order to better serve. Yes, higher rank came with a certain amount of glory. I got new shiny bits to pin on my uniform. Higher rank came with greater responsibility. James clearly links answered prayer with proper motives. For what will I use the abundance God provides? Am I willing to let the Holy Spirit mold me into a vessel fit for service, or do I seek my own fleshly desires? 

One final illustration from the Army promotion system. The Army does not promote based on past performance. The Army promotes based on demonstrated ability to think, speak, and operate at the next higher level. When I was a captain, the Army wanted to see me thinking like a major, speaking like a major, and operating like a major before granting me that level of responsibility. Living into the abundant life that Jesus speaks of comes with many attendant responsibilities. Those who live in that abundance walk circumspectly, giving God glory in all their actions. Abundant livers make decisions that point toward God. Abundant livers take steps that others shy away from. They willingly pour out their lives, as Jesus did, as a fragrant offering to God. I want the abundant life. He wants to provide it. Will I demonstrate the responsibility of living into that kind of life? 

Still Learning

 They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green, Psalm 92:14

Throughout our nation young people recently donned funny hats and gowns, gathered with peers, and paraded across a stage to the delight of family, friends, and especially teachers. All of this done to the solemn strains of a song over a century old. It is graduation season! My Facebook page overflows with pictures of happy grads full of hope and confidence for the future. I remember my graduation from High School, some forty-three years ago! I could not tell you who spoke, but I remember standing with my row, walking down the aisle, and shaking the hand of Mr. Chester Mcalpin, the vice-principal of Abilene High. I was finally through and ready to take on the world. I brimmed with confidence in my ability to conquer whatever the future held. I was through with learning. Like most of my peers, I viewed my parents, grandparents, and teachers’ generation with some level of suspicion. They were old and outdated. I was ready and did not really need their instruction anymore. Forty-three years later, my view is different.

I’m blessed with the presence of my parents here in Lubbock. While both approach their nineties, they still live on their own and enjoy some measure of good health. And they still teach me many things, needful things as my future unfolds. They instruct me on how to love your spouse fully. They model gentleness and patience, with me as well as with each other. They show me how to age gracefully, accepting the deleterious effects of passing years without complaint. They unfailingly display concern for those around them, minimizing their own complaints and suffering. Each day they walk out the path in front of them with dignity and aplomb. As the Lord grants them the ability, they continue to serve. Most Sundays, they join us for a traditional sit-down lunch. My mother never forgets to ask if there is anything she can bring. She’s serious about the offer, still gladly whipping up some sort of addition to our repast. Through example and conversation, they still work on scuffing off the rough edges of their eldest son. And when I pray for them each day, I seek the Lord’s blessing on their health and vigor, reminding my heavenly father that my earthly father still has a few things he needs to teach his children.