Modern Anger

Anger seems to always result in negative spillover. I don’t think there’s a person alive who has never experienced it. Sometimes we see it coming and other times it takes us by surprise.

While cleaning files the other day, I found a paper where I had written about my father’s great anger toward me over several issues he had never mentioned before. In fact, he never mentioned them again, but I still wonder what brought that on?

Anger’s bottom line is emotional displeasure. Someone has mistreated us, misinterpreted our intentions, or opposed us in some way. Our first thought is retaliation.

Social media has done many good things. I can’t imagine our world without it, but I’m blown away by how it brings out the worst in so many people.

I’ve seen for myself some of the rabid responses to the most non-controversial postings. I always wonder why do people respond so harshly? Would they say that face-to-face?  I have my doubts.

Is it possible to have peace on social media? I read the other day that we are to forgive even those who have a difference, a grievance, or a complaint against us (Colossians 3:13 AMP).   

My first thought was are you kidding me? Forgiveness seems more important for those who have cheated, lied, or physically hurt me or my family. Then I had another thought.

In middle school, our choir sang, “Let There Be Peace on Earth and Let It Begin With Me.” That message stuck with me.

Can one person really create peace? Try this: Think of one media post as one penny, one hundred pennies add up to a dollar. Spread those pennies out over the world and you have a whole lot of dollars doing good.

Have you been accosted unfairly on social media? Ask yourself, “Is this negative or cutting comment really worth my response?"

Since modern anger seems easily played out in words, perhaps your lack of words (no response) could be a source of peace, even personal peace.

  

Little Diamonds in the Dark

Diamonds can create a lot of excitement, especially an engagement ring. My ring was not large, but it was mine. That’s what made it important to me.

The birth of a natural diamond can begin even one hundred miles below the earth’s surface. Pressure upon pure carbon creates this finite resource. A full-carat diamond is becoming rarer by the day.

It seems to me that babies are like little diamonds in the dark. I’m pretty sure pregnant moms would verify that there’s pressure involved.  

I’ve never been pregnant, but I have great respect for women way beyond the “baby bump!”

Just like diamonds, babies lie in the darkness of their mother’s womb until they are brought to the light. Blessed is each baby whose family and friends look forward to THE birth day.

Birthing babies and mining diamonds both require effort. Raw diamonds come in different sizes and weights, as do infants. Diamonds are graded on four C’s: Carat, Clarity, Color, and Cut.

Newborns are given an Apgar Score. One minute after birth they are tested to see how well they tolerated the birthing process. Preferably no later than five minutes they are tested in five areas: Breathing effort, heart rate, muscle tone, reflexes, and skin color.

Just like a jeweler, parents are expected to shape their little diamonds in the rough.

Solomon gave some advice: “Train up a child in the way he should go (and in keeping with his individual gift or bent) and when he is old he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6, AMP).

The Message Bible simply says, “Point your kids in the right direction---when they’re old they won’t be lost.” This could include spiritual training, education, morals, and manners. It’s important to fit into the society and culture into which you are born.

If you have been blessed with a little diamond in the dark, consider it a treasure. Not everyone gets to have one.

  

Movies and Memories

I think it’s a blessing to have selective memories. Movies are just one way we are reminded of things.

Tonight, for me, it’s a movie where I remember the character, but not the title. Let me explain.

I was moved to tears as the female character was diagnosed with breast cancer. It wasn’t just her medical report, however, it was how she had to walk her journey alone.

I can tell you from experience that it’s a shock to be told, “You have cancer that has spread and you need treatment right away.”

Being told I had Stage Three breast cancer meant I was facing a huge health challenge. But it became even more challenging when, due to an insurance mix-up, I had no access to immediate treatment.

By the time I got an appointment with an oncologist, I also had Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) which is very painful. I was told having both a lump and IBC is not common.

It’s not unusual to count life events before or after pivotal years. For me, that became 2007. I had eight sessions of chemo, a modified radical mastectomy, removal of eighteen lymph nodes, plus nearly seven weeks of radiation.

It’s not hard to thank God for making my treatments work. I’m thankful for His answers to prayer for excellent doctors and technicians.

God’s presence was very real and His word trustworthy. He was the Good Shepherd who walked with me through the valley of the shadow of death (Psalm 23:4).

I experienced His nearness to the brokenhearted (Psalm 34:18). I also experienced hope and joy as I put my trust in Him (Psalm 33:20-22).

Fourteen years have brought many challenges and changes. What has not changed is my source of hope. I still read His word and pray personal prayers on an everyday basis.

Facing tough times? This hope can be yours, too. 

My Favorite Four-Letter Word

 

I used to say it was love, but I have moved on to hope. Love is a very good word, but it varies from the mundane to the sublime: I love lemon pie, I love going on vacation, I love my husband, I love God and God loves me.

As a personal choice, hope ranks first. Levels of love may vary, depending on other people. For example, I expected lemon pie with meringue but it came with whipped topping. As for vacations, did I really love them all?

If I’m honest, my love for my husband went down at times of misunderstanding. And, though I love God, I don’t always fully understand how much He loves Me!

Job is one of the best examples of hope despite a challenging relationship. His wife had no patience with his suffering. She said, “Why don’t you just curse God and die?” (Job 2:9-10).

Job let her negativity float on by. Hope was his choice and he would not give it up: “Should I accept only good things from God, and nothing bad?”

He had an even stronger answer when three well-meaning but non-comforting friends came by: “Even if God kills me, I’ll still trust Him” (Job 13:15).

Job’s hope gave him the strength to stay focused on his faith.

Hope results in joy. A characteristic of believers is to be joyful in hope, patient

in affliction, and faithful in prayer (Romans 12:12, NIV).

Since patience and faithfulness are listed among the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22), it would seem that hope, and the joy it brings, have a purpose.

Job’s story is one of patience, perseverance, and the ability to endure. The way I see it, hope might have been Job’s favorite four-letter word, too.

 

Labels Are For Pickles

 

I enjoy the taste of a good pickle and rarely meet one I don’t like.  As a child, I enjoyed going to our cellar for watermelon rind pickles or bread and butter chips.

There’s a certain beauty in row upon row of pickles in glass jars.

While living in an old farmhouse, I once got inspired to try canning pickles. The key word is once. During the process, I dropped a very large jar of pickles and brine. You can imagine the mess!

Labels remind me of another aspect of childhood. You could drive by any church in town and read their label. It might be Baptist, Methodist, Lutheran, Assemblies of God, Catholic, or a variety of others.  

Have you noticed that church labels today are more generic? I’m sure our town is not unique in the number of non-denominational labels and community church names.

Dad taught by example that labels are for pickles. As a minister, it didn’t matter what town we lived in, he always joined the ministerial association. 

He believed Psalm 133:1: How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity. When I grew up, I came to appreciate his example even more.

As an adult, I was always surprised to hear people say, “When I was growing up, I could only be friends with kids from my own church.”

Dad's advice was, "Friends don’t have to be just from your denomination. You can always find a friend who loves Jesus.”

Thanks to Dad, my life was enriched by a variety of friends. We didn’t always agree on some points of doctrine, but our hearts were knit together in Christian love with God’s Word as our guide for living.

I associate labels and pickles with Dad because he had his favorites. But, lucky for me, when it came to people, he loved them all.

 

Weep With Those Who Weep

Doesn't it seem like lately we've had way too many opportunities to do this? Worldwide Covid-19 deaths, Hurricane Ida flooding, plus the Afghanistan situation have created plenty of tears. Plus, today was 9/11, complete with memorials for the unsuspecting citizens, twenty years ago, who were held hostage on rogue flights they never planned.

One of those planes hit the Pentagon. I saw a review of that tragedy on Friday. Today I tried to watch the other two memorials.

I started with the one near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, Flight 93 National Memorial. As names were read of brave citizens who acted in solidarity to bring the rogue plane down, I couldn’t help it---I wept.

I tried switching to the memorial in New York. It only brought more tears. Twenty years have not erased the impact of this tragedy.

While listening to names read at Ground Zero, I had one question. Why did so many people have the same last names?

I was satisfied with the information in an article titled “The World Trade Towers Collapsed on Will Jimeno. How Did He Survive?” You can find this article by Garrett M. Graff (09/10/2021) on the web.

Never having been to New York, I did not know The World Trade Center actually consisted of seven buildings on sixteen acres. The Twin Towers famously dominated the skyline. Statistics say there were more than 50,000 daily occupants and over 200,000 daily visitors.

Will Jimeno, a NY Port Authority Police Officer trapped for thirteen hours in rubble between the two towers before he was rescued, has written a book: Sunrise Through the Darkness.

In his article, Mr. Graff, historian, journalist, podcaster, and author of a NY Times Best Seller (The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11), gave Will Jimeno’s book a thumbs up: “It’s the most hopeful and inspiring story from that day I’ve ever found.”

After speaking engagements, people usually say they can’t think of a worse thing to happen. Will, having dealt with physical injuries, survivor guilt and PTSD still has the heart to weep with those who weep (Romans 15:12, NLT).

He says, “Whatever tragic event is happening in your life, at that moment, you have your own World Trade Center. It isn’t comparative or competitive. At some point, in all our lives, we’re going to feel like the World Trade Center fell on top of us. It’s what we do in that moment---and who we are after---that matters most.”

Thanks, Will, for your example of bravery and compassion.

  

The Way I Remember It

Everything we do creates a memory. Memories are part of our human composition. 

Memories are like sunshine and shadow and that variety makes life interesting. It’s one reason I enjoy reading autobiographies. Thoughtful authors acknowledge that others in the same events may not have the same memories.

Have you ever noticed how memories seem to be triggered by our five senses? We smell something and a memory comes floating back. Or we see, hear or taste something that conjures up the familiar. Sometimes they pop up from something we’ve touched.

During the Exodus from slavery to freedom, out in the middle of the desert, people began to remember some tasty food from the old days (Numbers 11:4-6).

Conversations went something like this: “Remember that fresh fish in Egypt? Oh,

and what about those delicious cucumbers and melons we used to enjoy? This daily manna is so unappetizing. What I wouldn’t give to be able to flavor it with some leeks, onions, or garlic.”

Sometimes memories need a little help. The people above had positive memories, but they let them trigger negative attitudes. If caught in such conversations, try to be the catalyst for change.

Happy memories can be a choice. Sometimes I remember especially encouraging people. Other times I relive vacations or special events. I’ve had a variety of jobs and lived in a variety of places. That simply means I find even more memories to enjoy.

Was everything in my life positive? No, but why dwell on the negative?

Psalm 126:3 says, “The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.” Choice memories make it easy to give God thanks, and science has proven that being thankful is a positive trait for health.

If someone disagrees with your memory, you have an out. Simply say, “That’s the way I remember it!”