Aftermath

Tragedy strikes all of us at one time or another. Whether it be death of a loved one or the devastation of home & livelihood its effects upon us are shattering. The experience, the loss, is overwhelming; it crushes our spirit and sucks out our very life’s-breath. Most of us have experienced such tragedies in our lives, leaving us empty and numb. Words of comfort and solace barely get through my blank detachment.

Then comes the aftermath— sorting through the remnants of a life, trying to rebuild, trying to make sense of the physical and personal destruction that has just consumed every fiber of your being. There are the BIG things— replacing a home, a business, a livelihood; taking care of children, parents, employees, those who are crushed and exhausted. For some, it means even rebuilding a country after a catastrophic national disaster or defeat. Yes, these things must be addressed, even though your energies are already spent.

In some way, though, it is the small things that are more difficult to deal with— the loss of photos, of a history that was filled with joy and frivolity; a loss of trinkets, personal gifts, torn shreds of clothing that once draped a loved one in grace & beauty. Memories all, now gone.

It is in the aftermath of destruction & loss that our metal is proven. It is the manner in which we face the aftermath that we reveal our courage or collapse into a mire of grief & despondency. There is not always hope after some of the volleys life sends our way. But there is always strength to be found in arms of the God who created us, sustains us, and now carries us…, if we will but let Him do so.

Never discount the succor and rejuvenation that flow from the Life-Source of all Being. The God of the Universe— Jesus Christ.

Have a nice week,

Gary

…of bed-boards and springboards

At this moment I am sitting by my mother’s side as she lies on a bed dying. She always preferred her bed to be on the firmer side. Not too much so, but sufficiently so. Bed-boards always make a soft bed so much more comfortable. She lies on such a bed at this moment. Not that it matters to her that much. She is in pain, breathing with some degree of difficulty.

She is leaving us.

Yet as she lies in this bed, she is also taking her first steps onto a springboard. This will be her launching step into a world filled with glory, golden light, and the exuberance of a new life, peace, and rest for a weary traveler. Each of us, unquestionably, will come to this point. The only questions are when, where, and how? Will it be gentle, rough? Drawn out, or quick? Surrounded by friends & family; or alone?

Though we may wish it, this is not the case for everyone. The springboard does not always launch to a place of celebration—rather, it shatters, plunging its load into an abyss of captivity. It is a dark place where people can avoid each other; a place where they will finally get what they truly want—a world of total independence, with no responsibility to care for others. It is a world devoid of God, His love, and His perimeters of protection set in motion on this planet to guard its inhabitants from self-destruction. In this underworld those safe-guards do not exist.

It is now late into the night. I sit here alone with my mother…, waiting for her to take that initial leap from a springboard, propelling her into that new, exhilarating, vibrant life. For that has been her life’s desire, “to dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

For some of my friends, my dear close friends, this is not their desire. Their desire is to have all that this world has to give them. And that is what they will receive.

I weep for them.

Sitting here, I am envious that my mother, so much the gracious servant during her time in this realm, will soon get to play and dance and sing in the courtroom of heaven. There’s just the matter of this human shell to discard.

It is true; we all will come to that point of crossing-over. For my mother, it will be from a bed-board to a springboard, to life. When our time comes to step up onto the springboard, what will be our next step? Where will we come down? And what must we do beforehand to prepare?

[On Saturday, January 19^th, 2013, at 1:57 p.m., Florence Adelaine Andersen Davis, jumped into the arms of our heavenly Father; there to celebrate His glory forever. She was 97 years old, by our reckoning. I am soooooo jealous.]

Following in the family footsteps,

Gary

But….

“BUT wait! There’s more!” “I agree with everything you say Senator, BUT… .” “There is significant truth in what you say, BUT… .” “No, really, you look stunning in that color, BUT… .” “I’ve always been one of your greatest supporters, BUT… .” “This is obviously the best option to meet our goals, BUT… .”

BUT! BUT! BUT! BUT! BUT! Doesn’t that word just make you want to kick some people in the, a, er, BUTT!?!

BUT can signify an agreeable disagreeability. It signals “You’ve missed something.” It implies a lack of consideration of extraneous observations, facts, circumstances. Or, it can be a curt interruption that subtly, or not so subtly, counters your ideas with mine— “Yes, BUT… .” Which is a polite manner of saying, “You are so wrong I can’t believe it!” or “How can you be so stupid!?!” “Now listen to what I have to say!”

The problem is that we can be so far into formulating our BUT, our counterpoint, our objections, that we often fail to fully listen to the other person’s presentation.

Why is that?

Set forth somewhat callously, we have to WIN. No matter how reasonable or thoroughly developed the other person’s point of view, WE have to be the one who is not only right, BUT more right. So we rudely interrupt, speak LOUDER, use ad hominem (go on the attack), or slander through innuendo. Granted, genuine disagreements DO exist between people, businesses, and governments. BUT in an attempt to be more right, we rarely listen to the rationale and heart-felt beliefs undergirding someone else’s perspective. WINNING has supplanted listening as the modus operandi. Far be it from most of us to take the lower seat and listen to the opposition’s case. And the thought of being gracious in the heat of argument obviously reveals weakness. Much easier to be rude and interrupt.

Seriously, in what ways does WINNING against the opposition trump careful listening and reconciliation? It is true that some things are worth fighting for. BUT at the expense of human decency and graciousness!?! I pray not. [Most of us do not have that nice a butt to begin with, anyway.]

So help us God.

Gary

unexpected expectations

“A thing long expected takes the form of the unexpected when at last it comes.” – Mark Twain

What is it that you look forward to? What is it that causes you anticipation, glee, tummy tumbling joy? What is it that brings elation and hope to your daily life? Not merely that relaxing drink with close friends at the end of the day; or the exotic cheese platter awaiting your indulgence when you arrive home; not even that imminent winter break in Mexico or the Mediterranean. What are the really BIG things that draw you into the future with anticipation, as if a vision of grandeur were summoning you to greatness?

When we are young we aspire to all kinds of greatness. “I want to be a doctor.” “I want to be a Senator.” “I want to be a futbol star.” In my youth I schemed of being a CIA agent. Er, never mind; let’s not go there.

Charlie Brown (Peanuts comic strip) once said, “I’ve taken 100 shots and hit my target every time!” Lucy asks, “What was your target?” “Earth.” There is a common axiom that reads— If you aim at nothing you are bound to hit it. How many of us go through our lives aiming at nothing? Hitting marks that do not matter. Winning at checkers or tic-tac-toe.

Could it be that our expectations of what’s to come are too meager, insufficient to meet life’s challenge, pathetic yearnings that barely offer us glimpses of what could be if we only put out just a smidgen more effort? We aim at earth…, and that is all we get. There must be more.

The key secret of life is to set our aspirations HIGH, even though we may never achieve them, the stretch will take us further than we might have imagined.

But there is another secret to realizing our expectations— learning to adapt. The reality of what we expect to come may arrive quite differently than we had expected. God’s little surprises that reshape us and recreate what we thought was great, morphing into something so much more. Never doubt that the God of the Universe will grant you greatness; but it may not be the greatness you expected.

Great expectations ahead!

Gary

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