Declare His Faithfulness Unto All Generations

My wife and I recently received some amazing news. Our oldest son and his wife will, by the grace of God, bring their first child into this world sometime in mid-September. It is our first grandchild, my in-laws' first great-grandchild, and will inevitably be the object of seemingly inexhaustible attention, affection and interest. I'm looking forward to the messy, sloppy, noisy, energetic unconditional love that infants provide in abundance. Pray that I will forebear reminding my son of his "individuality" as a child while he copes with this bundle of willful and playful cuddliness.

My life has entered a new room filled with toys, cribs, powders and oils. The nicest part? It is in someone else's house. I get to go home to my "comfyness" when I am too tired to bounce, lift, smile, tickle, clean, hug, or kiss any longer. Wait--never too tired to kiss or hug this grandchild, but the feeling may not be mutual every time.

I guess I am officially an old geezer, although some have declared this of me long before. I have ceased to offer a defense to the charge. Rather, I now wear the distinction with all the pomp and satisfaction of a king's crown.

Now to the title significance. In Psalms 89:1 Ethan the Ezrahite declares "I will sing of the steadfast love of the LORD, forever; with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations." I am confident my son knows of his incredible responsibility to nurture and admonish his child (Eph. 6:4) . My prayer for my son, his wife and for all our family is that we, as the psalmist says, would speak of God's mercy and faithfulness to our children and their children. Moreover, we will show this precious little one through our words and actions that God is our Creator and that the sum total of our life is to glorify Him and love Him forever.

But don't expect me to change any diapers.

Who's Thankful for You?

My 53rd Thanksgiving day has raced past. The only challenge remaining is to argue with the bathroom scale. A pointless endeavor, it seems. At this point in my life, I can no longer eat for enjoyment--I must eat for atonement.

I've spent most of the first 52 Thanksgivings of my life dutifully thanking God for all that I have been graciously given from Him. I'm sure many others do the same. I have been given much more than I deserve: A happy 28-year marriage; 5 terrific children plus two perfectly charming daughters-in-law; a tremendous ministry opportunity and so many other things that will only grow richer throughout my life and eternity.

Being thankful for these is the easiest thing imaginable. While gratitude is a good thing, my Pastor said something in a recent sermon that added a whole new perspective. Preaching from Philemon, he said it is not enough just to be grateful for God's blessings--we must live our lives so that others are thankful for us.

As I ponder this I recall many missed opportunities to be this kind of man. A simple smile, a thoughtful gesture, a kind word, some frank advice--things that illuminate lives. I also realize how easy these things can be; how simple and free of cost. Yet, they bring value to peoples' lives. Sometimes what may be indiscernable to them now may yield immeasurable benefit later.

It is not for us to judge or estimate whether a person deserves these things. As the Apostle Paul was earnest in reminding Philemon to be merciful, we must also not let "mercy and truth forsake [us]" as well (Proverbs 3:3). For some of the people we know, this can be very difficult, but we must not let the conduct of others control our obedience to God.

As you enjoy yet another turkey sandwich over the next several days, I encourage you to set new goals for yourself. Throughout this next year, seek every opportunity to serve the Lord faithfully. One way to do that is to live for others' benefit. It elevates our spirits to think outside this "box" we call our lives. I pray as you become more grateful to God, that others would become more grateful for you.

Thus it begins

We have begun a new school year at Bob Jones University. It amazes me that even after 20 years, each new semester brings fresh faces, new challenges and plenty of butterflies. Can you believe it? Teachers get butterflies.

Some would never admit this. They view it as a sign of fallibilty or weakness. Others fear gaining a reputation of incompetence or insecurity. They miss the point. If there be any weaknesses, fallibilities, incompetence or angst they will manifest themselves in so many other ways. Perhaps if teachers would admit they aren't perfect, they would find that the respect level would rise on both sides of the desk.

For me, it is the tasks of molding young lives to prepare for time and eternity; modeling Christ-like behavior; knowing that students will often remember the careless or thoughtless word uttered whimsically. This flutters my insides.

So take heart students everywhere. Teachers are human. There are very few androids or aliens left in classrooms these days. And you probably already know who they are.

Allow me to introduce myself

Welcome to the maiden voyage of my blog. Hopefully its future will be more substantive than the Titanic on ITS maiden voyage. One must wonder how many blog surfers want to hear anything I have to say.

I am a middle aged man. Hence the title of my blog. At this stage of life, I notice that my viewpoint has changed. I used to think blogging was a bit narcissistic. However, I have to enjoy the beauty a technology that allows obscure people such as me to have even a small voice. Whatever the reason, I have changed my attitude.

Maybe it is because I'm going through a life transition. My household is getting smaller. I have three children who have flown the coop and two boys at home. Maybe it is because I'm on vacation and have things running through my mind that demand an outlet. Maybe because it is my birthday. I am 52.

I have probably lost you with those last two sentences. I've probably already lost many who saw the title of my blog and were hoping for quotes from Chaucer. Not going to happen. However, I hope to offer the perspective of my years in a non-authoritarian manner. That might or might not be an improvement for many of you forced to hear the bloviation of us old geezers who think they are the oracle of God.

That's the long and short of it. I'll try to keep this posted from time to time. I would enjoy your comments. If you need free advice, I'll be glad to offer some. Just remember it is probably worth no more than what you paid for it. At least with this advice, you won't have me harassing you to see if you followed it unconditionally. My Dad used to do that. Got to be a bit much.

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