Religion and Spirituality

Remembering the Proper Order of Our Prayers

/ Bill Jones / 4 Comments

 

Wilderness Camping

Wilderness Camping

Several years ago I participated in a Wood Badge course for Boy Scout Leaders. Most of the class work was done on weekend camping trips over about a six month period. Along with instruction in the details of leading a troop the Boy Scout way, and being taught how young boys learn best, the camping setting allowed us to practice outdoor skills we could pass along.

I remember one of the first activities was related to setting up camp. The instructor led us on a short hike into the woods, stopped and gathered us around him, and asked “What’s the first thing you do in setting up camp?”

After a moment of the entire group’s silence, my reply was “You look around.”

Everybody burst into laughter and the instructor was laughing loudest. He repeated my statement, gave the old “what a stupid thing to say” chuckle and head shake, and moved on into his spiel. The answer he had wanted, and then gave us was  “set up a tent or shelter.”

He continued “Make sure you pick a good spot – don’t set up where you might get a flash flood in mountainous terrain or end up in a puddle of water here in flatland south Georgia. Is there space for a fire? Check for ant beds on the ground and rotten limbs hanging over the area. etc., etc.”

After my initial aggravation at being laughed at, I did get a kick out of listening to him, in effect, tell us the first thing to do: “you look around.” Some of the others may have also picked up on that, but the instructor never seemed to make the connection.

All of us may remember times when we were right, and were either laughed at, or not believed. As you see, that one is readily available in my memory. But, I hope I remember the incident more from the lesson to be learned. When setting up camp, or in any task, or plan, it’s best to look around first.

Sometimes we think we have the answer all figured out – Praying, “Lord, please bless this thing I want to do.” before the “looking around” prayer that should come first. “Lord, please guide me in what I should do next.”

“Show me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.” Psalms 25:4-5

Lay Aside the Weights Which Hinder Us in Our Race

/ Bill Jones / Leave a comment
Bent Power Pole

Bent Power Pole

This power pole is next to US Highway 80, along the route between our house and the church we attend. So, for quite awhile, on my trips to and from church, I’ve watched it bend a little more each year. (Yes, we electric utility engineers do notice the power lines as we drive along.)

It’s not leaning. You can see it’s straight at ground level. Leaning would mean the foundation is weak, but the foundation is strong (in this case it’s the dirt around about 6 feet of pole in the ground.) No, it’s just bending.

The pull of the attached cable that goes off to the right is causing the bend. Is the pole in danger of breaking? Probably not, unless it stays a long time, with enough bending and enough age (like our bodies, a pole’s strength lessens as it gets older.)

The more the pole bends, the more gravity comes into the equation. When it’s straight up and down, the entire pole carries the weight. But, as it bends, the weight of the top of the pole and, in this case, the weight of the transformer, create offset forces that increase the bending even more. That concentrates more force at particular locations along the pole (think of breaking a stick with your hands – it bends, then breaks at a particular point.)

If it’s not likely to break, what’s the problem? A power pole has one purpose – to hold things up. This next picture shows the span of cable that goes off the pole.

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You can consider the two photos and see that, as the pole bends more, the cable will sag closer to the ground. If it’s significant enough, the clearance to the ground can become unsafe. The pole’s purpose – to hold things up – can be compromised by weights and pulls and burdens. Even while just doing it’s job.

As I’ve passed the pole these many years, my thoughts often go to Hebrews 12:1-3: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Our purpose is to glorify and worship God. Laying aside sin is obviously needed for us to fulfill that purpose (run the race). But, the Scripture verses and the pole in the picture remind us there are also weights and pulls and burdens, even “good” ones, that can hinder our race and compromise our purpose – slow us down, or get us off track, or cause us to sag under the burden. Those can be subtle and require continual self assessment to keep under control. And, as the verse also says, keeping our eyes on Jesus, and remembering what He has done, will help to reinforce the purpose in our life, and allow us to lay aside the sin and weights that hinder us.

What are some of these weights, and pulls and burdens that you’ve come across in your life?

My New Book Will Be Available Next Week – Thank the Lord!

/ Bill Jones / 10 Comments

 

FrontCoverImage

 

 

Createspace says it should be available on Amazon in 3-5 days. The Kindle ebook is in progress and I’ll have more info on all of this soon.

Here’s the back cover info –

What Biblical lessons can you learn from falling out of your uncle’s pickup truck, accidentally hitting your cousin in the eye with a paddleball, or watching toads patiently wait for tasty bugs? Bill Jones pondered those, and other memories and observations of everyday life, and found the lessons God gives in them. Such thinking crystallized his understanding  that God’s goodness and greatness are all around us, and He is with us every step of our journey through life.

The stories told in these devotional readings illustrate how God uses the happenings in our life, both the good and bad, and the small and large, to show us His love and mercy, and teach us how we should live. Mixing touches of humor and unconventional perspectives, the author gives us the opportunity to do some thinking about our great and gracious God, and, hopefully, get a little closer to Him.

Bill Jones and his wife, Sharon, live in a rural area of southeastern Georgia where they attend a small community church. He has had inspirational articles published in Evangel, Keys to Living and The Christian Journal magazines.

 

 

More on Extras in Movies and God’s Purposes – was this cricket a Columbo star?

/ Bill Jones / Leave a comment

 

Cricket Extra

Cricket Extra

 

I watched an old Columbo TV show the other day, and as a car drove by in an outdoor night scene, you could hear one of the cast members making noises in the bushes. The sound of a cricket’s chirps rang out, trying to convince the viewers they really were outside at night.

I’m sure he wasn’t listed in the credits, but, he was probably the cricket cast member for Columbo. If there was a nighttime chirping part to fill, I imagine the sound effects editor  pulled out the same “cricket 101” tape and over-dubbed it on the soundtrack. Perfection every time. Never missed his mark or had to do a re-take.

I wondered if this cricket was featured in other soundtracks. Had I heard him before but didn’t recognize him? Maybe he was a mega-star among crickets and recordings of his chirp were shared among the studios, and his “voice” heard in hundreds of shows and movies. Or was he even an international star – you wouldn’t need subtitles for that, because they all seem to speak the same in any language. (Actually not speaking, of course, but rubbing their wings together.)

I don’t know the answer to those questions or to the cricket’s stardom status. As you see, this relates to my last blog on “extras” in TV and movies. Slightly different because this one isn’t human, and we don’t see him but only hear him. Either way, his purpose is the same as other extras – to improve the quality of the environment, or as one comment said, to enhance the ambience of the scene – to make it more enjoyable.

Again, like my last post, that gives another aspect of being an “extra” that relates to our responsibility as Christians. Like the cricket who was heard and not seen, and perhaps noticed by only one person out of hundreds, we are to make life for others more enjoyable, without searching for praise and glory.

Jesus gave us instructions to enhance the ambience of any scene we’re a part of when He said “You are the salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13) and “You are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). Then, He made it clear that we are the extras and the glory goes to where it truly belongs:

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16 ESV)