Forgetting Mister Rogers And Rock Of Ages

 

Forgetting Mister Rogers And Rock Of Ages

Two great ones remembered tonight from February 13, 2018!
One source I use to supplement my teaching of the scriptures is a series of lessons by Philip Yancey called The Jesus I Never Knew. Based on his book of the same name, Yancey, a journalist by trade, uses clips from movies to illustrate parts of the life of Jesus. Last Thursday, I used a section in which three vastly different portrayals of the Savior from cinema were presented and had the students describe what they witnessed on our screen. During the course of the year, we see many men playing Jesus in the videos we use on an almost daily basis. The overwhelming majority of the actors who are depicting the perfect Son of God are taller, more handsome, and dressed in cleaner clothes than those surrounding them- the Yancey clips from much older movies weren't what we were used to watching. But what surprised me wasn't the clips themselves- I've been using them for years. In setting up the first movie segment, from Cecil B. DeMille's King Of Kings, Yancey describes a very gentle Jesus as shown in this silent film as, "Mr. Rogers  with a beard..." After the short piece, out of curiosity, I asked one of my classes how many of them knew Mr. Rogers. Out of twenty-three, the total was ....... ZERO. The response was perhaps skewed by the presence of seven international students but, come on; not one American  has ever heard of Mr. Rogers and his neighborhood? One young man did relate that he knew of Eddie Murphy's parody on SNL called Mister Robinson's Neighborhood but that was as close as we got. Talk about cultural illiteracy- it's an issue!

I am not quite sure what to make of the erasing of the children's television icon but I guess it has to do with generational drift. Three years ago, I wrote a blog about my students having no clue of the identity of Bob Dylan as we watched a clip of We Are The World, the fund raiser to help feed the hungry in Ethiopia, set in roughly the same time as Mister Rogers. I know, I had no idea of some of the stars my dad spoke of when I was in high school but the advent of the Internet would seem to help galvanize at least a few more memories. As we spoke, I next asked if any of them knew the hymn, Rock Of Ages. The answer again was negative. Hoe could kids, most of them raised with some sort of Christian background, not know Rock Of Ages? You know, cleft for me? Augustus Toplady's song, first published in 1775, almost simultaneous with the American Revolution, stood the test of time for more than two centuries. Maybe the language is outdated- lots of thees and no kid knows the definition of riven. Maybe the tune is difficult- I'm no music expert but the melody is instantly recognizable. Maybe the theme is gut wrenching- our utter hopelessness without the Savior's sacrifice is irrevocable. I just feel a certain sadness when valuable parts of our culture, but more importantly, our faith, fade into obscurity like the names engraved on gravestones in overgrown cemeteries. What's worth keeping and what needs forgetting? Each generation makes its own choices. I just wish this humble man who was Fred Rogers and the soul searching hymn that was Rock Of Ages could have survived one or two more generations in the ancestry of our civilization. We would be the richer.

To listen to a beautiful rendition of Rock Of Ages, click or copy/paste the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gM7gt_cSxjw

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood,
From Thy riven side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure,
Cleanse me from its guilt and power.

Not the labour of my hands
Can fulfill Thy law's demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone;
Thou must save, and Thou alone.

Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to Thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress;
Helpless, look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Saviour, or I die!

While I draw this fleeting breath,
When mine eyes shall close in death,
When I soar to worlds unknown,
See Thee on Thy judgement throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee.

Applicable quote of the day:
"One of the greatest dignities of humankind is that each successive
generation is invested in the welfare of each new generation."
Fred Rogers

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

Neil Young And My Apartment

 

Neil Young And My Apartment

Our basketball season concluded three weeks ago so I have a little room to breathe. I sometimes get overwhelmed and neglect being a good housekeeper. Some things have not changed in my life as this entry from October 27, 2005 illustrates. It was one of my very first blogs.

Any Neil Young fans out there? The rocker is still at it, in his fifth decade of writing and performing music. In 1972, Young offended a number of people with a song he composed called A Man Needs A Maid from his Harvest album. Allegedly describing his love affair with an actress, he struck some nerves with the following lines:
"I was thinking maybe I'd get a maid.
Find a place nearby for her to stay.
Just someone to clean my house, fix my meals, and go away."
Neil's apologists insist he meant no disrespect to the fairer gender. Many of his defenders are women so that's good enough for me. I wasn't offended so my opinion counts little. It wasn't my favorite song on the album, anyway.

Why the Neil Young reference? It has to do with my living quarters. My dad says I am a minimalist- I get by without alot of stuff. There was a time when I only had one fork; I either lost it or threw it away. Have you tried to eat salad with a spoon? Some people from school intervened with a set of Wal-Mart cutlery, greatly expanding my dining capability. My good friends, Sandy and Thom Besso, decided my life would be better with some China so they gave me a very nice table setting for eight: plates, cups, bowls, platters, etc. (Sandy did make the provision that I had to cook dinner for some lovely lady but she put no timetable on the agreement.) When I moved to Houston, it took two years to get my pictures and plaques out of the boxes and on the wall. My furniture consists of one bed, one couch, one desk, one table, several chairs, and a television. Sounds like it should be easy to keep the place spotless. Obviously, you don't know me very well.

My brother Dave was here over the weekend. Dave comes to Houston each October to put on a tennis clinic for our kids at Westbury Christian. I started straightening up weeks ago. I detest housekeeping. I'm not dirty- I'm messy and there is a difference. I hate to dust and vacuum but I don't let my apartment get filthy. I can live with an acceptable level of chaos. As always , it took hours to scrub the joint. Finally, right before I left to pick Dave up at Hobby Airport, I finished. The toilet and bathtubs were sanitized, the dishes were washed and put away, the dust had been removed from the ceiling fan, the bed had been made with new sheets, and the air was filled with the scintillating combination fragrance of Febreze and Carpet Fresh. I was so proud- I should have been in Better Homes and Gardens. That was Friday. Dave left Sunday morning and today is Thursday. I was going to do better this time. It occurred to me that I enjoy a spotless apartment. I made myself a promise that I would keep the place neat after he went home and I did.... for a day. Then, the inevitable happened. A T-shirt was left on the floor. The cap was left off the shaving cream and toothpaste was not wiped up from the sink. One bowl on the coffee table became three. Coffee cups litter the living room. The dishes are piling up in the kitchen. Before I know it, I'm right back where I started- 11222 Braesridge Apartments, # 3329 in total disarray.

I had good intentions and I started off strong. It's like the rest of my life. I want to make changes and I do great- for awhile. Then, just like my apartment, the messiness returns. I get discouraged and I tend to concede defeat. Consistency of effort is so hard to maintain in some areas. I am religious in staying on my weight lifting schedule but not in keeping up with my checkbook balance. I never miss worship service but my prayer life is erratic. I'm never late about turning in lesson plans but my goal to be semi-fluent in Spanish by next summer has fallen by the wayside. I'm like that Neil Young song. I need someone to keep order in my existence. I do have someone. His name is Jesus. He does what I can't. He picks me up when I fall on my face. He loves me in spite of my flaws and unkempt house. He tells me to always pray and not give up. He understands me. He know my life follows the same ebb and flow of my apartment's cleanliness. He straightens up the shambles of my heart and lets me feel I am presentable again. Some men may need a maid but all men need a Savior. By the grace of God, I have one. Does that mean I will reform my ways and keep my bachelor pad in a perpetual state of perfection? Not quite- but at least I can live with myself. Jesus told his apostles he was going to prepare a home for them. I am looking forward to those new accommodations-I'll be able to throw my vacuum cleaner away! It's just a matter of time.


Applicable quote of the day:
"I just wrote one song at a time. Kinda like an alcoholic. One day at a time."
Neil Young

Copy and paste the link below to hear Neil Young sing A Man Needs A Maid:
http://youtu.be/bORW_YEmHwY


God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

Bube's Afternoon

 

Bube's Afternoon

What we do is always noticed by others. This is from January 23, 2014.
We played our last game of the season this afternoon and we won 38-30. It was a tough day for me- my last time coaching my five eighth graders in a game, even though we will still practice during first period until the end of the school year. I'm going to miss my eighth graders. Natalia, Elizabeth, and Sarena were new to us this year. Madison completed her second tour of duty with me and it was Jenna's third. We started all five of the eighth graders even though only two of them normally are on the court at the tip. I was surprised that we came out flat but that's girls for you. We had an emotional pre-game talk in which both myself and our Head of School, Greg Glenn, told all twelve of the players how proud we are of them and for them. At half time, we honored the 8th graders with a ceremony and since one of the girl's folks had been held up, I was the stand in escort. I've never been a dad before. Do I have to pay for her wedding in ten years???

A strange thing happened midway through the second half- the game came to a complete stand-still. One of our kids- I forget who- took a shot from the right side and it wedged between the rim and the backboard. The rule states that under those circumstances, a jump ball is called and the alternate arrow is in effect to determine possession. That was simple enough but there was another issue. How do we get the ball down? Neither of the referees were physically capable and none of the dads appeared to have any ups in their legs. I was dressed up and not stretched so that's my excuse. The normal protocol would be to throw another basketball to dislodge it but at half time, we lock all the basketballs up in the locker room. To send someone to retrieve another basketball might have taken two minutes and the game needed to continue. That's when I saw Bube. Bube Mokolo is a senior in our boys' basketball program. He was in the bleachers at the far end of the gym. I called to him and he ran to the other end, launched his 6'4" frame off the floor, and knocked the ball loose, earning himself a nice round of applause from fans of both teams. The game resumed and like I mentioned, we won and our season is history.

Bube's moment, it was a simple thing. He didn't come to our game expecting anything memorable to happen- he just likes basketball. And when he was called upon, he delivered. That's the way life works, isn't it? We never know when we'll be needed by a friend or a coach or a stranger. I think it's our Christian duty to be on call for the world, to do small necessary tasks within our capabilities and time constraints. Availability is not listed as one of the fruits of the Spirit but it makes a nice companion to the list. Helpful people are at a premium in a world of breakneck living and increased isolation. So, always have your kicks ready to save a basketball in distress. Oh, and Bube wasn't finished for the evening. After all the players and parents and officials had gone home to beat the incoming storm, I watched Bube assist our Athletic Director, Morris Gurnell, move the bleachers which are only partly mechanical back to their resting place against the wall. Then he rolled up the carpet that serves as a walkway in front of those bleachers. I'd say he had a very serviceable day. This would be a better world if more of us opened our eyes and simply followed Bube's example. It's breathtakingly simple.

Applicable quote of the day:
"Leadership is about being a servant first."
Allen West

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

The Honest Truth

 

The Honest Truth

                                                                           

I learn a great deal from my international students! This is from January 21, 2014. 
Nichole was flushed coming into class today. She has PE right before her 7th period Bible 1 class and Coach Ott is making them work! She turned in the card she started in class on Friday for Josh Hernandez' grandmother whose husband passed on Christmas Day. Nichole's card was beautiful and elegant and thoughtful. When I asked her how long it took to make the card, Nichole told me three days but  I think she probably meant parts of three days. You see, Nichole is from China and like many international students, the nuances of English are problematic. I have no problem with the nuances of Mandarin- my vocabulary consists of US, hello, thank you, a little, and watermelon. (We ate watermelon frequently in the orphanage where I stayed for a month in rural Hunan Province!) Nicole is an absolutely wonderful young lady, the kind of youngster who makes teaching a joy and not just a paycheck!

I have two students who keep me hopping in my seventh period class which is predominantly international teenagers from Asia with the occasional student from Ecuador and Tanzania thrown in for good measure. One is Nichole and the other is Leo, who is also from China. They constantly ask for definitions during quizzes and I am happy to oblige. I particularly enjoy Nichole's,  "Excuse me, please??" always prefaced with a huge smile when she needs clarification on a term on her quiz. She is so dedicated to her schoolwork and wants it to be perfect. I don't think I'm breaking any confidentiality laws by revealing her grade went up seven points from the first nine weeks to the second and she has maintained that high A average through the first ten grades of this new third nine weeks.

Today, our quiz covered John 4:1-26, one of Jesus' famous encounters, the one with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well in the village of Sychar. Question 1 read as follows:
14. Jesus tells her that God wants people to worship Him in ____________ and ______________.
With my background of having a church of Christ preacher for a dad, I could have answered that correctly by age four. The right answers are, of course, spirit and truth. After we had finished grading the quizzes, Nichole approached me with a smile on her face and "Excuse me, please??" She had her sheet of the side by side translations of the verses in English and Mandarin and explained that she used the word honest instead of the word truth  because that's how she interpreted it in her native language. Now, I'm flexible but I really am picky with quizzes because that's the best way to insure the students read the Word closely. I told her I would look at it and I did and her wrong answer just became correct. Do you see that symbol at the top of the page? That's the traditional Chinese symbol for honesty but I only know that because Google tells me so. I know one might be able to make a case that something can be true and not be honest and vice versa but that's not the point. Don't we use honest truth as an example of redundancy? Here's another lesson I heard from Dad; the Bereans were noble in Acts 17:11 because they searched the Scriptures daily. That's what Nichole and many of her classmates are doing daily- searching the Scriptures. That's pretty noble to me. And in case you are wondering, the online Merriam-Webster explains noble as having, showing, or coming from personal qualities that people admire (such as honesty, generosity, courage, etc.) I like that word in red there towards the end- sounds like the definition of someone I know.

Applicable quote of the day:
"It is discouraging how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit."
Noel Coward 

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

The Recidivists In Our Midst

 

The Recidivists In Our Midst

Sometimes, we use big words in my classes! This entry, from January 19, 2014, is about one of them!
I'm going to spend a good deal of time tomorrow during our MLK Holiday break grading tests from my five sections. On Friday, we took the first test of the second semester. The final question of the exam was this:
Define: recidivism __________________________
The answer I expected was to be a repeat offender. I referenced Larry Frank, the prison minster for my congregation and how he works with the incarcerated. (Larry's daughter, the awesome Maggie, is in my sixth period class and I am confident she made an A+ on the test!) I explain that recidivism is a term most often used in regards to inmates returning to prison after they have been paroled. Who would want to go back to the loss of freedom and often dangerous conditions? And yet so many do. We talk about our personal struggle with sin. I ask how many have sinned, prayed for forgiveness, vowing never to do it again.........and then we do it again. Most raise their hands and perhaps we all should. Sin, at least certain sins, seem to almost have an addictive nature to us, even though we try to resist and we know we will be hurt in the long run. The ancients had the same fight. In Romans 7:15, Paul wrote,
" I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do."
My students would all say AMEN even though I am sure many have never read Romans. But fortunately, Paul does not stop there, at the intersection of despair and hopelessness. Look at what he pens ten verses later!
 ^"What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?  Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!"
We can escape the prison of guilt and shame through the blessing of the Savior who arranged for my pardon through the ultimate sacrifice. We can be set free! Tear down the bars.

Applicable quote of the day:
"The Bible will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from the Bible."
Dwight L. Moody

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

The Truman Doctrine

 

The Truman Doctrine

This blog, from January 20, 2014, is about one of the best movies I've ever seen.
A number of years ago, I made a promise to myself that I would never watch another Jim Carrey movie. What I saw in Ace Ventura was enough to make me realize his brand of humor was not funny in my book. (I also made the same promise not to watch anything by Martin Lawrence for the same reason.) And yet, I broke the oath I took to myself a number of years ago and watched The Truman Show, starring none other than Jim Carrey. Here's a rundown if you've never watched this 1998 film. Carrey brilliantly plays Truman Burbank whose life is a reality television show and everyone on earth knows it except Truman. All the people in his life are actors and every move is scripted. Shot in a dome, the 24 hour per day show has no ads and makes money only though product placement. At age thirty, though, Truman becomes suspicious of his life and tries to escape, leading to a confrontation with the producer/director, a man named Christof who is played by Ed Harris. Honestly, I had forgotten much of the movie in the close to fifteen years since I rented it and had to do a Cliff Notes-like search online as a refresher.  Last week, as I do on a daily basis, I searched for a film clip to begin class and I wanted one about making choices. I found this clip from The Truman Show on wingclips.com, a fantastic website with a myriad of short clips which provoke thought on a number of  Christian based themes. If you wouldn't mind, click on the link below (or copy and paste if need be) and watch what my students watched last week.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZMZYrdXtP0&list=PL86FC5F0AD263028C&index=9

We talked about living in a world where you are protected and safe but is that really living? We referenced The Wizard Of OZ, a common view of many of the nature of God, an old man who pulls strings behind the clouds and thunder. Contrast Truman's world with the world we know, the one where we find heartache and disaster but also joy and fulfillment and most of all, freedom. Christof believed Truman could not leave because of fear, the same obstacle many of us face in our daily lives. Christof was wrong, I take it, because he underestimated the human spirit and he underestimated Truman. Our God created His children for worship and greatness but along with the free will He placed in our hearts comes the capacity to fail... and the capacity to get back on our feet. In that regard, our lives are really reality, and we can't be afraid to walk through the open doors He has placed in front of us.

Applicable quote of the day:
“Because to take away a man's freedom of choice, even his freedom to make the wrong choice, is to manipulate him as though he were a puppet and not a person.”
Madeleine L'Engle

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

Being There

 

Being There

Taraka is all grown up now! But a few years ago, she played basketball for me in middle school!  Here is a story I wrote about her on September 23, 2007.

Every evening when I call my father in the nursing home, I tell him what happened during the day for me. Five times per week, this means reporting on life at school. Friday night, I told him about one of the girls on my basketball team and he informed me that she deserves for me to write about her. Knowing the Biblical references to Honor your father and mother, I am compelled to obey Dad. This is the story.

Early in the school year, my basketball team works primarily on skill and fundamental development, including a heavy dose of footwork. On Fridays, however, we play. On Fridays, I divide the kids up and we have a simulated game called Continuous Four On Four. It is played full court and if your team scores, you come back the other direction against a fresh defensive team. If you get a steal or rebound on defense, you come the other way as the new offensive team. The girls really like it because drills become boring and this game is very competitive. On the way to school Friday, I was mentally making up teams. I had to factor in one less girl because Taraka, one of my eighth graders, was undergoing an appendectomy that day. As I came down at 7:35 AM to prepare for first period workout which starts at 7:40, I wondered who who do Taraka's job of getting out the Hula Hoop when we stack it up. (See Hula Hoop Rules, 6-20-09.) As the girls huddled to pray, I looked up....and there stood Taraka! I was startled, asking if she wasn't still scheduled for surgery. This was Taraka's reply:
"I am but it isn't until three o'clock."
Take into account that Friday was an abbreviated day due to it being the end of the six weeks and that classes were only thirty minutes in duration instead of forty-six. Take into account that everyone expected Taraka to stay at home and focus on the surgery. Take into account whatever you will but when school started, Taraka was present and she completed the day as if it were any other. Some might argue that appendectomies are routine but I believe no surgery is routine, especially when it involves a child and especially when it involves you. I had hernia surgery more than a decade ago and I guarantee I didn't think it was routine when they put the IV drip in my arm to knock me out. Taraka appeared to be very calm throughout the day. She was prayed for, believe me.This is what I take out of the situation:
1. Taraka thinks school is important.
2. Taraka's parents think school is important.
Taraka is a terrific student, one of the best in my Bible classes. Last week, she was inducted into the National Junior Honor Society. I don't have her younger brother, Terrell, in class but based on teacher comments, he is following in big sister's footsteps. In Deuteronomy 6, Moses was instructing the Israelites in the manner in which they should pass on the importance of the commandments:
"Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."
Let me paraphrase Moses: model the behavior the Lord wants in front of your kids. We imitate what is constantly before our eyes. Obviously, Taraka's folks think it's important for her to be in school if at all possible. Since Westbury Christian is a private school, Taraka's mother and father pay us to teach their youngsters. We don't give refunds when a child is absent. They want their money's worth. On Friday, there was no doubt they got it.

Applicable quote of the day:
"America's future will be determined by the home and the school. The child becomes largely what he is taught; hence, we must watch what we teach and how we live."
Jane Addams

PS: Please pray for Taraka to have a quick recovery!

God bless,
Steve/ Taraka's teacher and coach
Luke 18:1