The Introduction

 

There are times we meet people who may have profoundly changed our existence long before we were born. This is about such a case. It's from Christmas, 2009.

Dave brought an elderly couple to meet me after worship service this past Sunday morning. I am introduced to many people but the Cheathams were special. I found out that Brother and Sister Willis Cheatham knew our parents from college and that he sat on the same row in chapel as my mom and her cousin, Gena. (It was alphabetical seating and their maiden names were Chesshir.) They know our Uncle Bill, one of the best uncles you could have asked for as a kid. But the most intriguing story I heard was that this husband and wife, before they were husband and wife, had double dated with our parents, before they were joined in matrimony. I don't know about you but I cannot envision my folks as a couple before they said, 'I do.' Maybe something happened that night causing Roger Hawley and Nelda Chesshir to gaze into each others' eyes a little more soulfully. All I know is that I'm here and it could be the Cheathams had something to do with it. So, I'm eternally grateful for the gift of birth as should be Dave, Scott, Zach, Meagan, Ben, Karis, Seth, Nathan, Harper, and Noah, Hawleys all.

I like connections. Yesterday, I was turning into a Starbucks several blocks from Dave and Sally's when Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse Of The Heart drifted out of my radio. It has to be the most overly dramatic tune ever to hit the airwaves but that's not what came to mind. Automatically, I thought of Rachel Nicks and the airport in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Eleven years ago, we were waiting for our flight back to the US from a mission trip and the conversation turned to an anti-drug presentation we had both seen in chapel services. The vignette centered on a mock funeral with the cast singing Total Eclipse Of The Heart and for some reason, Rachel and I began belting out our own unique version right there in a crowded terminal in the heart of Central America. It was probably embarrassing but we were too tired to care and fatigue can spawn silliness. The point is that I associate Rachel, and an unbelievable mission trip, with Bonnie Tyler and I smile when I hear that song. It's a link, in some small way, like a genealogy. Both Matthew and Luke connect the Israelite generations in a chain that led to Jesus. That was important to the Jewish believers as they could trace the Messiah back to Abraham in the book of Matthew and Adam in the Gospel of Luke. I find that since my folks passed away, I am so grateful for the letters or pictures or furniture left behind as reminders of my mom and dad. Now, the Cheathams, through an outing with another young couple six decades ago, have been added to my emotional treasure chest. I just need to decide if Bonnie Tyler can fit in there, too.

Applicable quote of the day:
“We all have our time machines. Some take us back, they're called memories. Some take us forward, they're called dreams.”
Jeremy Irons

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

The Witnesses

 

The Witnesses

I loved what Coach O does with our middle school football squad and the encouragement they got from Coach Krimm and our high school team!. This is from August 26, 2014.
After lifting this afternoon, I dropped by our WCS West Campus and watched our middle school football team play for roughly a quarter and a half. I'm pretty sure we didn't win- I left with time remaining and we were down three touchdowns- but not winning doesn't mean we lost. Our junior Wildcats were outmanned if that's the proper term for 6-7-8th grade boys. Let me put it in perspective. The school we played had fifteen- 15!- cheerleaders and we only have twelve young men on our squad. Only one sub. Everybody plays both ways on offense and defense and on punt teams....and kickoffs...and kickoff return. I should also mention the temperature was mid 90s and the humidity off the charts. Kenneth Okwuonu does a masterful job coaching these kids up. They fought tooth and nail against much bigger, and also well-coached kids, and held their own. Several of our players are in my 8th grade Bible class- I feel like I should give them some bonus points on the test we took today!

As usually happens, there was a favorite moment for me. Our high school team, which opens their season in three days, was practicing on the adjacent field on our facility. The Wildcats, led by new coach Mark Krimm, finished their workout and moved over to watch their little brothers compete. But they didn't just watch. They cheered. The encouraged. They moved on the sidelines as the ball spot shifted. There was a change in the atmosphere when the big kids showed up. That's how it should be at a school like ours. The big kids- they've been through these junior high battles and survived. The younger kids need to know.

We need to know that in life, too, even as adults. Others have made it. Others survived the same difficulties we encounter every day. Not just money matters or health issues or relationship problems- spiritual matters, too. One of the best known New Testament verses, Hebrews 12:1, phrases it in the context of a roster full of saints:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.....
We aren't alone- we're surrounded! And not just by the evil which rears its ugly head, but by the memory and example of heroes of faith and martyrs. We might seem outnumbered, like our football kids this afternoon, but we're not. In 2nd Kings 6:16, the prophet Elisha spoke the greatest scouting report ever to his servant who feared the surrounding Syrian army:
"Don't be afraid," the prophet answered. "Those who are with us are more than those who are with them."
In God's protection, we are never outnumbered no matter how it appears. I like those odds, even if we are an underdog to the untrained eyes of the world. The final score isn't final.

Applicable quote of the day:
"People who work together will win, whether it be against complex football defenses, or the problems of modern society."

Vince Lombardi

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

Perfecting Recommendations To A T(ee)

 

Perfecting Recommendations To A T(ee)

Our graduating seniors from last spring are checking into their college dorms about now! This is from August 23, 2016.
Let me get this out of the way right off the bat: I'm no Texas A & M fan. I grew up in Nebraska and that's really the only team I'll ever cheer for on the college level. And except for my first cousin, Marsha, receiving her Ph.D. in College Station, I don't even think I've had any kinfolk who matriculated at A & M. That being said, I've worn Texas A & M t-shirts to our last two Bible studies this past Sunday and Wednesday evenings respectively. If you know me, you know I never buy t-shirts for personal use! I get more than an adequate supply from my brother, Dave, and from my coaching gig here at WCS. These two maroon shirts were actually compensation from former students. I write a good number of college letters of recommendation each year and I always tell the freshmen to be I expect an XL t-shirt of their new alma mater should they be accepted. Within five days, both Jose and Krystal paid up on their end of the bargain. Most kids forget and it doesn't worry me. One of the best compliments a teacher can be given is to be asked to pen these letters that can profoundly change a teenager's lifetime fortunes. That's really all the payment that's necessary- but I still love the shirts!

The seniors who ask me to recommend them always bring me a short resume' of their high school careers with interests, accomplishments, goals, strengths, etc. I don't look at them. The institutions of higher learning want to know what I think. I've been with these soon to be adults for at least a year, often two years, and if they played for me, up to four. I've seen them in class, in the halls, at chapel, sitting with friends at lunch, in good times and bad. I've seen them in times of A's and times of grades they wish they could get a reset on. I've seen them when they were praised and sometimes when they were in trouble, although that is rare. In 2 Corinthians 3, Paul writes to his brothers and sisters about recommendations. His point was that the lives they lead are the best argument they could make:
 
2 You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. 3 You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

I understand the need for formal introductions to total strangers and the need to understand as much as possible the potential student you may select as worthy to enroll. But paper only tells part of the story. What a great word picture Paul  paints when he refers to tablets of human hearts. When we truly know and love/respect/care for someone, there isn't enough paper in the world to adequately express it. I always make my letters fit on one side of a sheet of stationery. If the admissions office can't figure out what a jewel this WCS product is in three paragraphs, then maybe it just isn't a good fit. But you know what is a good fit? An XL t-shirt with that college's logo when they are smart enough to take me at my word! I hate to say this ..... but GIG 'EM!

Applicable quote of the day:
“92% of respondents reported that a positive recommendation from a friend,
family member, or someone they trust is the biggest influence on whether they buy a product or service.” 
Paul M. Rand

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

Song Of Memory

 

Song Of Memory

I'm not emotional but I am sentimental. I love old schools and I love old school songs. This is from November 6, 2011.
Several weeks ago, I found myself singing the Georgia Christian School alma mater. I don't know why it popped into my head but I found myself becoming misty eyed. Although I'm not an alumnus, Georgia Christian was my first teaching and coaching job right out of college and the good folks there took me in. The words went like this:

In the heart of southern Georgia
'Neath the sun's warm glow
Lies the home of Georgia Christian
Finest place we know.

Chorus
May we cherish thy traditions
Hold the banner high,
Ever guard thy name with fervor
Live to do or die.

Tho' we leave thy walls forever
Many miles go hence,
May our love for Georgia Christian
Only have commenced.

Repeat chorus

I've heard the same tune in other schools' alma maters but it isn't the music as much as the words. I guess what hit me was the return mentally to a time when I didn't know anything but I thought I did. I had no clue about the mistakes I would make or the opportunities I would squander. My salary was probably only 1/4 of what it is now but I doubt I was worth even that. That song reminds me of all the kids I taught and coached who aren't kids anymore. It reminds me of games and trips and classroom discussions and situations and growing; of building a baseball field and lifelong friendships, maintained even without being in the presence of those same friends. In short, that short song is a map to the past.

Two of the most beautiful songs I know are alma maters which coincidentally are two of the first songs I remember learning. One is the Harding College (now University) alma mater. I recall my parents singing it when I was little, even the second verse which I think few know anymore. The other was the York College alma mater which I began hearing when Dad started taking Dave and me to YC basketball games when I was four. Interestingly, I graduated from both institutions and as a bit of trivia (in case you are ever on Jeopardy!), both Harding's and York's alma maters conclude with the same word: Hail! I'm not sure why schools have alma maters but it must have something to do with memories tied into tradition and history. Maybe that's why this time of the year is so important in our culture with the emphasis, once we get past the commercialism, on family. I like the same songs and traditions and food and places that I did when I was a small child. The Lord gave us the gift of memory which can be a blessing or a curse, based on our choice of its usage. My memories focus on my parents more from November through New Years than at any other time of the year. They taught me to love those schools and those songs and most importantly, the God those schools and their anthems are founded upon. I wish I could tell you I learned that alma mater means nourishing mother while in Latin class at York High School but that would not quite be the case. It wasn't Mrs. Nettleton's fault, though; I just wasn't grown up enough to know the meaning of nostalgia. That comes with age.

Applicable quote of the day:
"Everybody needs his memories.  They keep the wolf of insignificance from the door." 
Saul Bellow

Beautiful rendition of Harding's Alma Mater
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RTFzt4GHBc

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

Age Appropriate

 

Age Appropriate

School is back in session! You run across some odd circumstances like this one: my mother taught a sixteen year old in fourth grade during her education career in Arkansas. Age is sometimes no more than a number or it can be the cause for deception, as it was in this entry from June 13, 2007.

She was moving up fast in the entertainment business in 1998. Just nineteen, Riley Weston owned a leading role on the hit television series, Felicity, and was attracting attention for her script-writing skills. Weston was billed as one of the hottest young creative forces in show business, signing a huge contract to write for Disney. There was only one small problem. Instead of being a teenager, Riley Weston was actually thirty-two years old. When outed, her contracts with the television show were not renewed and the deal with Disney never was finalized. In the nine years since the scandal broke, her acting career has fizzled although she recently published a novel, Before I Go. On a recent CBS Sunday Morning Show segment focusing on honesty, Weston defended her deception as the only way she could have been hired. She also advised other actresses/actors to do the same if they want the parts that are particularly age-specific. (Rumor has it, in a reversal of such logic, the mother of a student at Westbury Christian told people she was fifty when she turned forty. Their response? "Man, you look good for fifty!") Ironically, what tripped up Weston was another set of digits the gainfully employed must possess, her Social Security Number. A suspicious co-worker checked and the numbers didn't add up. Well, they did add up but the sum total was not nineteen.

She didn't use the term but I think Riley Weston would consider her indiscretion a victimless crime: nobody got hurt. My feeling is an actress who otherwise might have landed the part would beg to differ. In 2001, youth baseball was shaken as pitcher Danny Almonte, who starred for the Brooklyn entry in the Little League World Series, was found to be fourteen, two years past the age limit of twelve. Now pitching in the low minor leagues, Almonte refuses to dwell on his brush with fame with devolved into infamy. At least he doesn't try to justify his behavior, which occurred when he was a very young teen and under the influence of adults who stood to profit from the team's success. Solomon wrote in Proverbs 21:6 that, "A fortune made by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a deadly snare." Dishonesty eventually gets its revenge and humiliation is the punishment. Too bad that society continues to excuse situational fraud with the mentality that it's only wrong if it's illegal. During the last week of school, the mother of one our our elementary students asked me about my wife and guessed I was thirty. My reply was that I'm still single and I'm not thirty..... and I left it at that. Hey, it worked for Riley Weston for awhile! But stay away from my Social Security Number!


Applicable quote of the day:
"Good roles are hard to find no matter what age."
Glenn Close


God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

A Matter Of Trust

 

A Matter Of Trust

Some parts of my job fall into the category of things I would rather not do, but they still have to be done. Dress code is one of these things. This is about that task, taken from September 12, 2006.

As do all first period teachers at Westbury Christian School, I am in charge of dress code verification for my class. Since we wear school uniforms at WCS, this might seem a very simple exercise but it has a number of facets. Our students are required to wear one of two monogrammed Westbury Christian shirts along with khaki pants/shorts/skirt. But beside the major components of the uniform, we also have to check to insure the following criterion are met:

Shirt tucked in
Belt worn if shorts/pants have loops
Pants/shorts worn at waist level with belt showing
Skirts no more than two inches above the knee
Shoes tied or fastened
T-shirt under oxford/polo shirt must be white
Socks must be worn

After checking for a while, you can take care of the procedure with a glance. My first period class is my basketball team. My players are in a different situation than other students in that they come to school dressed to practice. I am not able to check until we change after practice and are preparing for our intercom devotional. This morning, as I was performing my inspection, I could not see socks on one of my players. Styles have changed in recent years and a number of our kids wear footies, which are cut below the visible level of running shoes. Chelsea, one of my eighth graders, responded to my inquiry about her socks by starting to remove her shoes. I stopped her and pulled her aside. I don't know Chelsea very well- she didn't play last year and wasn't in my class until this August. Her reaction to my question was that she believed she had to show me. My response to Chelsea was that I trusted her and if she tells me she is wearing socks, I believe her. Calling all seventeen of the young ladies together, I tried to make the point that trust is earned as is distrust. Chelsea is a good girl, an excellent student who is working hard in basketball, a game completely foreign to her. I trust her as I do the other girls- I have no reason not to. Honesty is a trademark of the Christian life. My Bible class students grade their daily quizzes and at the bottom of their papers, I have them write, "I will not cheat." Last school year, one of my Asian students, a young lady from China, used a slight variation, stating, "I would not cheat." I like that better. It implies that I never have to doubt her honesty, even in the smallest matter. To quote Billy Joel, "It's always been a matter of trust." I guess that even applies to socks.

To listen to Billy Joel's A Matter Of Trust, click or copy/paste the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yYchgX1fMw

Applicable quote of the day:
"To be trusted is a better compliment than to be loved."
George Macdonald


God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

Prayer And Major Appliances

 

Prayer And Major Appliances

Several summers ago, I received a new dishwasher, stove, and fridge as a part of an apartment upgrade. This entry, from May 1, 2010, was about when another appliance showed up in my place!

It was installed by the time I returned home from school on Thursday. The good gentlemen in our apartment maintenance department had delivered, unloaded, and set up my new GE refrigerator. They had taken what was remaining in my old fridge and carefully placed it in the right compartment in the new one; dairy, vegetable drawer, etc. They even took the magnets (Brazil mission, Hillcroft Automotive) off the old model and attached them to the new. I keep going in and gazing at it. It has quite a bit more room and an ice maker that works. The suction on the door is incredible; I am already mentally calculating my electric savings in the coming months.

You might wonder what the big deal is about a new appliance. I've lived here twelve years and the complex supplies the stove and refrigerator. My previous refrigerator still ran okay but it made noise and the big thing, its outside had been covered with rust. Several weeks ago, I asked the office if they might have possibly a refrigerator in better condition than mine that they could swap out. Our complex has five hundred units so I knew there could be a supply. Here's the neat thing. I had no idea that my replacement would be brand new, right out of the crate! I thought I would get a slightly less rusty upgrade. Instead, I was blessed with something much better, something way past my meager expectations. It's like I hit the SEARS jackpot!

Does your prayer life ever resemble my refrigerator scenario? I know mine does. I pray for something- nothing spectacular, mind you- and wonder if the Lord is listening when it seems there is no response. In due time, though, my prayer is answered in a manner so much better than I dreamed of. I think I limit the Lord mentally because I have such short sightedness. I'm not really talking about material things but situations and plans and goals. I'm glad our God is not limited by my Day-Timer sense of answering prayers. His ways are not...well, you know how that verse ends. I was thinking, though, that my old stove is kind of corroded...

Applicable quote of the day:
"One time, I went to a museum where all the work had been done by children. They had all the paintings up on refrigerators.''

Stephen Wright

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1