The Phone Number

 

The Phone Number

This entry, from September 10, 2018 is about one of the two most important phone numbers in my life.
I may or may not have mentioned that I am making two trips back to my home town of York, Nebraska in this, the fall of 2018. My brother, Dave, is being inducted into two Hall of Fames this autumn, one in October and one in November. In October, it will be the York College honor and in November, York High School will be bestowing the award. Both venues will have other inductees as well. I'm also really excited that our cousin-in-law, Laura Hastings Hawley, is going to be a  York College HOFer as well! Several weeks ago, I received a postcard as a York College Panther letterman, reminding me that I needed to reserve a seat at the YC festivities, which will coincide with Homecoming next month. So, this afternoon during one of my planning periods, I took several minutes to RSVP for the event, which will be held at the renowned Chances ''R'' Restaurant, one of my all-time favorite dining experiences. I spoke to a wonderful young lady at the college and I am guaranteed a seat!! Only five weeks to go!

While I had the phone in my hand and a few spare minutes, I acted on a hunch. I dialed 402-362-4990. There was no need to look it up. It had been years, decades since I made that call. The last time was using a dial telephone but I could not begin to tell you when that was. You see, that was probably the first phone number I ever memorized, back in the day where you learned it by rote or you wrote it down. It was my dad's office phone at the East Hill Church of Christ. He was the first preacher for that congregation and that was his phone number when we arrived in York in 1959 from Brooklyn, New York. I was not disappointed this afternoon. A familiar voice answered the phone, a voice that sounded eerily like Dad. It was the new (two years!) preacher at the church, a young man named Glenn whose last name happens to be Hawley. We talked about family and life in York and I explained why I called. Lord willing, I'll get to see my first cousin and a few other kinfolk over the next eighty days or so. I just think there is a neat circle of life in that the first and latest ministers of the Gospel share the same DNA and the same family heritage. I like symmetry and I think that fits the definition.

My best guess is that phone number for the church has been operational for more than sixty years. During my formative years, I am sure I called it more than any other number. I called it to relay messages to Dad or just because I was a little boy who felt like calling. It might have been Mom needed him to run an errand- we only had one car for much of my early childhood. Maybe I even prank called- I was no angel! But take me out of  the equation. How much has transpired over that line with that number over the years? How many announcements of births and tragic deaths? How much counseling of members and college students and citizens of that town of 6,000, and not just from Dad and Glenn but from all the preachers who came in between? How much good was done done and how many tears have been shed? How many disputes have been ironed out and how any apologies offered and accepted? I can still see my father's name plate on his desk in his church office and now it resides with me. Not sure why I'm nostalgic tonight. I do wish Dad had lived to see and hear his nephew preach the word from the same pulpit that he once graced. But this afternoon, I settled for a call to a far away phone which brought memories very near. If only a phone number could talk! Then again, preachers reside in a world of confidentiality. Those confidences live on with Glenn.

Applicable quote of the day:
I don't understand this whole Twitter, Facebook stuff. I don't get it. Make a phone call. Talk to somebody.
James Avery


God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

The Interpretation

 

The Interpretation

I've been translated a lot, mostly when I was preaching or teaching Bible classes or communion services. This is about a unique interpretation. It is from October 21, 2012. 

We had an interesting Chinese worship this morning. Normally, the sermon by our minister, Ronnie Chang, is translated by Nina to the non-Mandarin speakers, through headsets. But today, the communication devices were not available so we had a dilemma. Ronnie's sermon was longer than normal, about forty-five minutes, so to do a traditional say a line/translate a line interpretation would have made the message ninety minutes. This creates another problem as we eat together right after worship so to delay 3/4 of an hour might have caused food issues. Ronnie came up with a unique solution; six of the Chinese Christians translated for us non-speakers independently, spread out over the Fireplace Room where we gather. Yirong was my personal translator and it all worked out perfectly, just a little louder than normal. I always tell my students being bilingual is a gift. Today illustrated the point.

I wish I could speak Chinese or Vietnamese or Spanish but I can't. I've heard it said that the only way to learn a foreign language is immersion in another country with marriage to a native speaker a plus. On the other hand, people in other countries are attracted to me as they assume, rightly so, that I speak English which is a magic door for education and career advancement in the eyes of many. My birth language might be my best asset in spreading the Gospel, at least in the short term. But when I preach in Vietnam or China, I need help and it comes in the form of brothers and sisters in Christ. Today, Ronnie imparted the Gospel to me but he did it through the words of Yirong. Translation is always a two person skill.

Applicable quote of the day:

"Translation is like a woman. If it is beautiful, it is not faithful. If it is faithful, it is most certainly not beautiful."
Yevgeny Yevtushenko

God bless,

Steve
Luke 18:1

Small Town Hope

 

Small Town Hope

Football season is upon us! I thought you might enjoy a football story today that has less to do with money and fame and more to do with the one thing we all need, HOPE. This is from October 12, 2006. Much has happened since I wrote this  years ago.To read more about the origin of this squad, click this link: http://www.espn.com/espn/eticket/story?page=tundra

Rarely do I watch movies more than once. When I know what's coming next, the enjoyment is drained from the story. I have made an exception with The Music Man, the 1962 musical written by Meredith Wilson, starring Shirley Jones and Robert Preston. A scam artist arrives in a small Iowa town and sells the locals on the idea of a boys' band, complete with uniforms and instruments. It's a hoax, uncovered by the old maid librarian (Jones) who threatens to expose the con artist (Preston) until she falls in love with him. As the scheme unravels and the pretend band director is about to be tarred and feathered, the Iowans make a fascinating discovery. The band, even though it was a swindle, had the ripple effect of giving the town a passion for living and raising the expectations of a bunch of aimless kids. The conniving Professor Harold Hill unintentionally gives River City a new lease on life.

This week, espn.com features an intriguing story of a town and its high school football team. Barrow, Alaska is the furthest northern community in the United States, located above the Arctic Circle. Due to a grant last year and a new school superintendent, the local high school has inaugurated a football program. With no experience and no culture of the sport, the team took tiny baby steps this season. The decision to add a gridiron squad has bitterly divided this village of less than 5,000. Detractors claim the price tag, in excess of $200,000, was too steep and the funds should have been spent toward more traditional educational goals. Supporters counter that the kids in Barrow, drowning in a sea of alcohol, drugs, and vandalism, now have positive goals to focus on. The jury is out on the long-term outcome of this football experiment in one of the coldest inhabited spots on earth but it is a gripping tale of what can draw a hamlet together or drive a wedge into its collective soul. One thing is for certain; kids who play under those weather conditions on an essentially gravel field can handle adversity.

I have come to realize in my teaching that perhaps the biggest motivator a child has is hope. If a young person has a reason to keep trying, a purpose for persevering, the odds of their realizing any level of success multiplies. Praise stimulates some while others thrive on any sense of belonging. The value of extracurriculars can't be overstated. The bond of pushing toward any sort of collective dream can be priceless with students who feel there is a reward for hanging on in a educational culture that can be daunting and bewildering. Drama productions, literary meets, or any variety of clubs, it really doesn't seem to matter as long as there is a legitimate involvement. Hope is a major theme in the writings of the apostle Paul, who used the term fifty-two times in his epistles. In Romans 5, he places it at the conclusion of a four part listing of ascending levels of spiritual maturity; suffering, perseverance, character, hope. He concludes the thought by stating that "hope does not disappoint us," due to God's love abiding in us through the Holy Spirit. In our academic-social-career-family lives, hope can make our existence bearable. In our spiritual lives, hope makes our Christian walk possible. Whether in a fictional band, a real-life high school football team, or a soul reaching out for heavenly assistance, hope is a runway for a flight into the possible.


Applicable quote of the day:
"If God wanted women to understand men, football would never have been created."
Roger Simon


God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

A Toast To Mack Brown

 

A Toast To Mack Brown

A lot has changed since I wrote this on October 12, 2o13!
It's amazing how a life can turn around in one day. When he woke up this morning, University of Texas football coach Mack Brown was as good as fired from everything I heard on the radio. Some were even saying he might get his walking papers in the stadium parking lot in Dallas after today's annual Red River Shootout with the Oklahoma Sooners, a series dominated in recent years by their rivals to the north. You might want to hold off on those career obituaries for Coach Brown as his Longhorns routed the undefeated and heavily favored OU squad this afternoon by a 36-20 tally. The wolves may still be at the door for the second winningest coach in the history of UT football but they aren't howling quite so loud as the sun sets this evening in Austin.

We talk considerably in my classes how our lives can change instantly, for the good or for the bad and more likely for the unknown. Several weeks ago, my terrific, long time dentist was killed in Tennessee and also in Tennessee the same weekend, the husband of one of my former basketball  players was almost killed, also in a motorcycle wreck. I know their days didn't begin with the dread of what was to come. We've seen public figures go from prominence to disgrace in one news cycle as one scandal or another comes to light. But sometimes, one can also go from anonymity to acclaim almost instantly in this media driven culture. Who can forget an   unknown pilot named Chesley Sullenberger who became an overnight national hero when he safely landed his passenger on the Hudson River on January 16, 2009? Too bad they all don't have a happy ending like that!

But sometimes they do.......and even more amazingly than the Miracle On The Hudson. My students have been studying the soap opera which was Jacob's family in the last week and now we are focused on Joseph and how he ended up going from the favored son of a wealthy man to a slave in one day; how he ended up in the home of an Egyptian official where he was falsely accused of attempted rape; how he did a favor for a fellow prisoner who forgot that he owed him a real big one. And yet, by interpreting the dreams of Pharaoh enabled through the spirit of God, Joseph at the age of thirty, wakes up one morning in jail and goes to bed that night as the second most powerful man in the most powerful nation on earth. I cannot think of anything I've ever heard that remotely approaches that reversal of fortune. Imagine if you went to work at 6 AM on the breakfast shift at McDonald's and by suppertime you were the CEO of Microsoft! Or, try to conceive being a student manager on a small college football team when you get out of bed and that night, you're the new quarterback of the Denver Broncos, replacing Peyton Manning! But our God had a plan for His people and that plan included having Joseph in the position where he would reunite with his brothers, the ones who sold him into slavery. Hey, we know what the Scriptures say in Jeremiah 32:27, don't we?
"I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?"
The answer to the Father's inquiry, of course, is a resounding NO. There is no impossible with God, no difficulty factor nor any limits on the power which created the universe. When seen through that prism, my issues and struggles seem infinitely tiny. And who knows, I might wake up tomorrow as the Secretary of State.......and Mack Brown might win another national championship. We never predict what the day will hold only that it is held by the Creator.

Applicable quote of the day:
“Immediate are the acts of God, more swift than time or motion.” John Milton, Paradise Lost

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

Dressed For Success

 

Dressed For Success

Part of life in a small school is Homecoming! The following is from October 26, 2006.


It's Homecoming Week at Westbury Christian School. Tomorrow evening, the court will be presented, a queen will be crowned, and our football team will battle Fort Bend Baptist Academy on what promises to be a very muddy field. Part of the tradition of the week is the foregoing of school uniforms and having special dress days. The schedule reads like this:
Monday/ Pajama Day
Tuesday/ Tacky Day
Wednesday/ Retro Day
Thursday/ Superhero-Cartoon Character Day
Friday/ Blue and Gold Spirit Day

I really enjoy the dressing up part. I am in disagreement with some of my fellow teachers in that I think it is easier to get work accomplished in class because the kids are excited about the activities. Usually, I don't dress up- I really only feel professional when I have my normal teaching clothes on. Today, I did make a concession, wearing a Superman tie. I received several compliments and fit in with a number of students sporting the Man Of Steel motif. We had terrific outfits from the Smurfs to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, from Dora the Explorer to Sponge Bob. One young man was a priest and one young lady came as Tinker Belle. My favorite character was one worn by one of our freshmen, Cameron, who dressed in jeans and a sweater. I asked his identity. His reply: Comfortable Man. I missed that comic book!

This week, the kids agonize over what to wear each day. Classes vie for points based on costume rankings and the sophomores, juniors, and seniors really compete. It fosters a sense of cooperation that sometimes is lacking in the world of individuality that has spilled over into schools. Outfits that catch the eyes of faculty judges benefit the group as a whole so clever costumes bring accolades to a young person who sometimes gets overlooked. In the same vein, some kids seem more self-assured dressed as someone else than they do dressed as themselves. Maybe they believe that when they can pick a new personality/identity, they are a better fit in the world. What they don't realize is that all of us can choose a new identity in Christ. It's just hard to escape ourselves and believe we can become not just a changed person but a better one. In Galatians 3, Paul wrote, "for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." That would be the winning outfit, a costume that would always fit. That's why my dress up winner of the day would have to be Cameron Thomas. You can't go wrong with Comfortable Man!

Applicable quote of the day:
"Everyday, each of us wakes up, reaches into drawers and closets, pulls out a costume for the day, and proceeds to dress in a style that can only be called preposterous."
Mary Schmich


God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

First Place

 

First Place

Most of  my flights now are international! The following is about one of my most memorable airline adventures; it ran on August 18, 2007.

It's never happened before and it may never happen again. Yesterday, I flew back from St. Louis to Houston. As always, I flew on Southwest Airlines. Arriving only an hour before the flight, I wasn't sure what boarding group I would be placed in but I made the A, or first, section. If you've never flown Southwest, first in line is first in walking down the tunnel into the plane. Our flight originated in Louisville so we had to wait until it arrived and docked. I came out of the bathroom and saw our plane in place. Amazingly, no one had claimed a spot in line! I walked up and for the only time in my life, I was the first person in all the boarding groups! Immediately, as soon as I took my spot, the line formed behind me. Talk about being a trend-setter! I was so proud. The man handling boarding passes even let me keep mine to hand to the flight attendant so she would know the regular boarding had commenced. I had my pick of seats and selected a window chair behind the right wing. I must confess there was a tremendous feeling of satisfaction in knowing what I had accomplished in my boarding coup.

We like to be first, don't we? We see it in little kids at school who imagine being first at the water fountain somehow makes the water more abundant or sweeter tasting. Jesus cautioned about desiring supremacy in several parables and situations with his men. There is no virtue in our placement in most scenarios. Take my flight. The plane was half-full so being first...rewarded me with the same seat as if I were fiftieth. The real kicker came as my journey was concluding. The good friends who were picking me up.... forgot. I deplaned at 2:00 and hopped in their car at 5:30 PM. Being the first passenger, excluding families with small children, to walk onto Flight 71 netted me three-and-a-half hours of waiting in the 100 percent humidity of the passenger pickup area of Hobby Airport. What was it that Jesus said? Something about the first shall be last and vice versa? He must have known my itinerary.

Applicable quote of the day:
"I feel about airplanes the way I feel about diets. It seems to me that they are wonderful things for other people to go on."
Jean Kerr

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

Losing A Customer On Labor Day

 

Losing A Customer On Labor Day

I'm not saying it's because of the issues presented here but this branch has shut down. This entry is from September 4, 2018.
It's Labor Day! I'm getting ready for a presentation on my trip to Vietnam this Wednesday so that has dominated my mind this weekend. I actually gave it to our faculty and staff at WCS but that was three weeks ago and I need to touch it up a bit. Over the past three days, I've erased a lot of things on my to do list; cleaning my classroom, grading tests, laundry, working out, etc. Even though the year has just begun for us, it's still nice to have an extra day and a four day week. I lifted early this morning, enjoyed a phone call with my good friend, Greg Glenn, and decided to do a little shopping. I had seen an ad for a nearby store and I was interested in what they were offering. When I walked in, I noticed I was the only customer. By the cash register counter, though, there was a conference going on. Three employees were involved with one doing most of the speaking. It was loud enough for me to follow along with as I meandered. The gist of the discussion was the policy for closing up at night and the order in which the procedures took place. The person in charge seemed to be angry and chewing out one if not both of the other workers. I decided I had had enough and left within and a minute or two. As I walked out the door, I heard the typical have a nice day or thanks for coming in or something along those lines. The words rang pretty hollow. You know, I went in with the intention of buying something this morning and might have found what I was looking for in a few more minutes. I like this store and I've had good experiences there but it will be a long time till I darken their doors again. One of their franchises is within a two minute drive of my brother Dave's house and since I'll be in Wichita at times for three consecutive months, I'll think I'll just wait until then.

There are always going to be differences in families and businesses, teams and organizations. Policies need to be hammered out and clearly defined..... but not in a heated way in front of those you hope to be your clients or customers or members. The same goes for churches. Jesus said others would know His disciples by their love, not by their disagreements. Differing opinions are part of life but handling them in private with kindness and respect is the proper way to handle them. Otherwise, you might drive away those you are trying to win. Like me. I wonder if they'll miss me.

Applicable quote of the day:
The only part of an argument that really matters is what we think of the people arguing. 
Kim Stanley Robinson

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1