The Reading of Books

Hello, my name is Gary.  I am a book addict.   For the most part I am a reader with recurring urges to also write.  Maybe that writing urge will be satisfied during the years known as retirement.  Until then, I will continue reading.

Reading runs in the family.  My wife taught first grade for many years before equally that number of years by teaching Reading Recovery.  As our grandchildren were born, she quickly became the “book grandma.”  Now our two oldest grandchildren have their own Kindles and are constantly downloading new, challenging books.  Usually they read for 30 minutes every night before going to sleep.

While I read a number of professional or issue related books that are connected to my vocation, I like to read escape fiction that would be classified as suspense or mystery – spies, lawyers, and investigators are central characters.

Since September 2011, these have been my favorite reads:

Stieg Larsson’s trilogy – The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo; The Girl Who Played with Fire; and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest.

Suzanne Collins’ trilogy – The Hunger Games; Catching Fire; and Mockingjay.

John Grisham – The Litigators; Calico Joe

Boyd Morrison – The Ark

Christopher Reich – The Rules of Deception; The Rules of Vengeance; The Rules of Betrayal;  Numbered Account; Devil’s Banker.

Yesterday I turn to my thoughts to nonfiction and began Laura Hilldenbrand”s book Unbroken.

By the way tonight is World Book Night.  Maybe that is reminder for all of to read – inspiration, challenge, knowledge, fun, or escape – it is time to read.

Appearance Is Not the Final Evaluation

Beautiful people catch our attention.  In terms of celebrities, if their natural beauty is not sufficient for the entertainment industry to promote, then capped teeth, plastic surgery, crash diets, and personal trainers are the alternative.  Some studies even show that the better looking a person is, the better job and higher pay they receive.

But there are times that we must be reminded that the surface appearance of a person is not the final evaluation of that person.  In the Bible in the Old Testament, God sent Samuel to anoint a future king for Israel.  Jesse was a man with many fine sons.  When Samuel saw the oldest son, he determined that this must be the man that God had in mind because he appeared so “kingly.”  God had to remind Samuel that God looks at the heart, not just the outward appearance of the person.  Samuel would eventually anoint the youngest of Jesse’s sons David to be the future king.

Watching this YouTube video from Britain’s Got Talent, I was reminded how wrong we can be if we only judge or evaluate a person based on their appearance.

Jonathan and Charlotte sure have a way of helping us look past appearances and see (in this case hear) from the heart.

Do you know some people that need a second look today – a look at the heart instead of their appearance?

Thoughts about a Good Friend

This week a good friend of mine passed away suddenly.  George Ray and I did doctoral work together in the late 70s. He and I were both pastors of churches at the time.  His church decided to start a new church.  He called and invited me to become the pastor of that new church in 1980.  That started a relationship that grew into a deep friendship, not just between us, but also involving our families.

George was a man who loved his family and genuinely cared about all people.  He was a man who loved God and served Him faithfully in both his public and private life.  He was a man of honesty and integrity – his character was beyond reproach.  Those qualities, plus many more, resulted in the churches that he pastored loving him and positively responding to his leadership.

To me, he was an ongoing source of encouragement.  In 1980 and following, I discovered how little I knew and how difficult starting a new church can be.  George was always available to hear my tale of woe and offer practical suggestions and solutions.  His mix of wisdom, practicality, and humor became the mainstays of keeping me from giving up.

When George and his family moved to West Texas, we stayed in touch.  He and his wife and my wife and I would arrange a lunch or dinner at various conventions and conferences that we attended in common.  The smile, the humor, and the warmth were always present in those times of being together.

After talking to his daughter today, I found myself sobbing.  My tears were not for George.  Afterall, he is now rejoicing in the reality of what he preached – he is in the very presence of God.  In some measure, my tears were for his wife, his children, and their children.  The head of the family is no longer physically present.  However, each one of them have so much of his personality and character that it seems as if his presence is still there.  Probably most of my tears were for me.  While we hadn’t seen each other often in recent years, the reality is “I miss my friend.”  My guess is that there are literally hundreds and perhaps thousands of people that will feel the same way as they learn of the passing of George Ray.

He was my good friend.  And he greatly influenced my life.  Thank you God for allowing me the privilege of knowing George Ray.

Just wondering now, if you might have or have had a good friend to either call or visit or to remember today and give thanks for their influence in your life.

Recognizing Wisdom

This past weekend my wife and I were talking about some of the people that touched our lives in the various churches I was privileged to serve as pastor.  In each of those four congregations we could name a person who demonstrated love and consideration for us in very special ways.

But we also recognize another ingredient in their lives.  Each of these special people were very wise.  What we had to admit this weekend was that we didn’t always recognize or appreciate the depth of their wisdom years ago.  Is it hindsight or our own aging process that has caused us to see the wisdom that was there twenty, thirty, and forty years ago?  Almost all of us have expereinced this type of phenomenon with our own parents.  When we were teenagers, our parents knew absolutely nothing.  As we moved through college, into marriage, and then having our own children, our parents suddenly experienced a burst of knowledge and wisdom.  Or at least we became aware of what had always been.

If I could relive some of those earlier years and remember what I know now, I think that I would listen more and talk less.  I think that I would pay attention to those who had already been through my stage of life long enough to reflect upon their own mistakes and successes along the way.  The Bible speaks a great deal about the older men teaching the younger men and the older women teaching the younger women.

I know that just because a person ages doesn’t mean that the same person is any wiser. I also know that being smart does not make a person wise.  Some wise individuals lack the degrees and recognitions that people equate with being smart.  Likewise, some extremely intelligent people have great information but lack the wisdom to live a life of character and integrity that others desire to be taught.  Recognizing wisdom requires listening skills, discernment, and comparison to those things that are deemed wise by multiple generations like the Bible.

I don’t know that I will ever be mentioned by anyone as being a person that they considered wise.  A  five-year old girl once told  me that I shouldn’t be a preacher.  I asked her what she thought I ought to be then.  She suggested that I ought to be a clown.  The truth is that sometimes I am – not in makeup and costume but in behavior and comments.  While I really can’t evaluate my own wisdom rating (fairly low on the scale I think), I do know that I have been blessed to have met and be befriended by some extremely wise individuals.  I hope you have also.  If not, I encourage to begin to look for some of those indivduals that may be going unnoticed that are already near you today.  You may just need to take the time required to recognize their wisdom.

Giving Thanks for a Doctor’s Wife

Along the path of this journey we call life, a few people make a lasting impact on our lives. Occasionally, it is good to stop and give thanks for those special individuals by name.

I was not quite four years old when my parents moved from being renters to homeowners. Today that house seems extremely small, but back then it was large and spacious. Or at least it seemed large until a few months later when a new friend and I wandered up the street about a block and saw a house that took up the whole block – at least the yard and house did together. We could see from the front sidewalk a large swing set that seemed to tower above all of the shrubs and trees. We had no choice but to try and sneak into that backyard and see the swing set up close. Carefully and quietly we made our way from the front to the back. There it was – simply the most magnificent swing set a child could imagine. While we knew we should leave, the temptation was too great. We had to try it out. Hopefully, no one was home and we wouldn’t get caught. We had just started to swing when a voice from a second floor balcony spoke – “So who are you boys? Do you like to swing?” We were caught and figured we were in real trouble now. But it was then that I met a lady who touch my life in several ways over the next twenty years.

Mrs. G.V. Brindley Sr. was the wife of a doctor and the mother of three more doctors. She not only told us we could swing in her backyard, but she also had someone bring us cookies for a snack.

Several years later, as a teenager, she was the director of the Sunday School department for high school students at the church I attended. Two of her sons were my teachers. Each year she gave gifts to all the graduating seniors in the department. When I was a junior, she called me and asked if I could come to her house on a certain day and drive her car to help her deliver all the gifts. That was my most nervous day to that point in my journey. I became even more nervous when we found ourselves at the bottom of our town’s “Suicide Hill.” How could we get up the hill and still drive slowly. Mrs. Brindley asked if I had ever driven my car up the hill. When I told her yes, her reply was, “Well, step on the gas and let’s go.”

A few years later while in college, I had fallen in love and we were planning our wedding. One Sunday we were back in my hometown. I had the opportunity to introduce my future wife (she still is 43 years later). Mrs. Brindley asked if we could drop by her home while we were in town. We went to her home later that day. It was then that she offered to let us use her beautiful lace tablecloth at our wedding reception.

She had a generous spirit – a swing set, cookies, an adventure, and a tablecloth! Mrs. Brindley cared about people. Her husband and sons were all outstanding physicians and helped many people with their medical knowledge and skills. Mrs. Brindley helped people with a warm smile and a caring heart.

Today I am thankful for the influence Mrs. Brindley had upon my life and the lives of so many others.