Category: Editorials

Past submissions to a private newspaper on a variety of topics.

Perspicuity

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

The English language is a beautiful thing.

According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary this word is obsolete, but the definition is, “the quality or state of being clear to the understanding : lucidity in expression or development of ideas.”

Today’s version of perspicuity would be “full transparency.” So, when I was prompted to write today on the question: “What’s the best advice you’d give to someone younger than you?” I would tell them to live a life of Perspicuity. They wouldn’t get it, because nobody uses this word anymore. They would look at me in their youthful way and say, “What are you talking about old man?” In the same way in which smart phones have replaced landlines, the English language has evolved. And don’t even get me started on the texting shorthand in usage today on all the “smart” devices. Even that sentence is absurd to me. Texting in shorthand? Really?

Everyone knows “LOL” means “Laughing out loud.” That’s an easy one. For everyone over 55 see if you can figure out these common shorthand abbreviations the “youths” (Yutes?) are using to communicate today…

  • NVM
  • SMH
  • TMI
  • ICYMI
  • RN
  • FOMO
  • YOLO
  • BFF
  • DM
  • BRB
  • OMG
  • LMK
  • TTYL
  • TBH

I think the last abbreviation in this list is the most appropriate to discuss under today’s topic.
TBH- “to be honest.”

Think about the phrase itself. “To be honest.” Does that mean everything up to this point in the conversation has been something less than honest? Have you been telling the truth so far? The ambiguity of the phrase itself boggles the mind. Which leads me back to my advice to those younger than myself.

My advice? Be authentically you. Be transparent. Live in perspicuity! Don’t use phrases like “to be honest.” Just be truthful in all your ways. Do the next right thing. Own your mistakes. Make lots of mistakes, so you can learn what not to do. Do not fear failure. Mistakes and failures are God’s way of shaping us and forming us into what He wants us to become. None of us are perfect. Own this too.

My second piece of advice is to seek help for living from the life giver Himself. God has created you uniquely you. You don’t have to be someone else, you just have to be you. And God’s WORD is another great example of Perspicuity. In every way possible the Bible is forthcoming with the Truth of what God wants you to know about Him. From the very beginning statement all the way to the last, God tells humanity His thoughts about life. He reveals Himself in His attributes and activities. He defines what love looks like on a grand scale. The Book, which includes 66 different works by different authors, explains with complete transparency, everything we humans need to know to live honestly, humbly, and lovingly among the other human companions who cross our paths.

Finally, the thing I love about the Word of God is that God never begins any statement with “To be honest…”

He doesn’t because He isn’t holding anything back. He gives it to us straight!

Lead, follow, or get out of the way…

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

What makes a good leader?

A good leader is one who has walked where the followers are now walking.

A good leader is a good listener.

A good leader praises and admonishes the followers, instructs and corrects the followers, models actions for the followers, then evaluates the characteristics or goals to be achieved by the followers.

A good leader is encouraging and understanding, not condemning or belittling.

A good leader is self-aware and leads others to be self-aware.

A good leader never assigns a task which the leader has never done, would never do, or isn’t willing to do.

A good leader is head of the tribe, not a lone wolf in a pack of lone wolves.

A good leader inspires then enables every follower to become a leader.

A good leader, leads.

It’s So Morantic

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

Words.
The old Bee Gees song lyric was, 
“It’s only words, and words are all I have to take your heart away…”

Words are what make us unique from every other species on the planet.
We communicate in language… in words.

I may occasionally use the wrong word with the right intention and be completely misunderstood.

On rarer occasions still, because my tone was correct, or my inflection convincing, your own five sense look past the words as they fall on your ears, and see my heart loving you, beyond any word known to man.

When our eyes meet, when I feel the gentle stroke of your hand on mine, is it any wonder that I struggle to put two words into a sentence that make sense to the world?

When we say the exact same thing, at the exact same time, and laugh out loud at the timing of such a silly thing, it’s not really the words at all… it’s the connection we share, the fleeting intimate moments of oneness.

You know when I say bass-akwards, the meaning is something else.
Just like when I heard you say, “It’s so morantic,” I knew exactly what you meant.

So, proving the old Bee Gees song is in fact just good lyrical writing, it’s not about the words so much at all is it?

In the end, it’s about being…
Romantic
Kind
Funny
Generous
Forgiving
and … first, last, and always…
Loving

It’s about us.
And I choose us.

Jukebox

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I guess I never really understood the power of music.
Music meaning the sum total of meter, rhythm, melody, lyrics, instruments, vocals.
Every note a new heart stopping vibration touching the sinews of my soul.
Intention, motivation, desire wrapped around, into and through a simple lyric.
The soul of a cello, the siren song of a flute, the silence between the notes full of anticipation and fulfillment.
The hum of my computer hard drive, powering up when I send some “e”.
iTunes playing the latest in my “you’ve got to listen to this!” list.
Movement in the air from the Vornado on the far side of the room adding not just background noise, but ambience to every sound, thought, feeling.

My desk vibrates with the pounding subwoofer found lying on the floor, its base elements beating in my chest.
Keyboards and fingers, drumsticks and guitars, symbols, congas, altos and bases, long soul-full moans and tight fisted high notes.
It may be all in the mix, but for me it is a singular driving force that makes me think of you.

Melody.
The essence of the lyrics, and I can’t escape the emotion of wanting you more than ever before.
Closing my eyes only enhances the desire.

I can’t sleep because I dream of you.
I can’t eat because I’m not with you.
I can’t work because I find myself wanting to be with you.
The hours drag by until I can see you smiling at me again.

So what do I do?
I put another quarter in the Jukebox.

Swept away into a mystical far away place and suddenly we are … together.
Do you know what time it is?

It’s time to put another quarter in… the Jukebox.

Holding Toes

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

Hands were meant for holding it seems, and long have been the standard for acceptable public  displays of affection… holding hands.

Walking down the street.

Heading into the restaurant.

Watching the movie.

Waiting for your meal to be delivered to your table.

All these times of holding hands are special and wonderful events of simple love.

When observed from a nearby viewer who has no hand to hold, it could bring sadness or hope, but the hand-holders wouldn’t know.

But when we get back home.

When we are alone on the sofa.

Watching that favorite show, or movie, or listening to the Piano music on Spotify, that most intimate of times has arrived.

The time for holding toes.

You have beautiful toes.

I’ve said it many times, and it’s clear it may embarrass  you, but the fact remains, I love those toes.

When your neuropathy is overwhelming and I rub your feet, I pay attention to those toes.

When I’m pursuing your love, when I want to make it ultimately clear just how much I love you, I kiss those toes.

The amazing thing about toes is how important they are to how we move.

Dancing.  Posture.  Balance.  Walking, running, jumping.  All dependent on the toes.

I love watching you dance.

I love watching you walk, to me… and away from me.

I love how you glide across a room like a perfectly balanced high-wire tight-rope walker.

It makes my soul want to walk with you on the not-so-beaten path and see what none has seen before.

It makes my heart jump like the silly frog leaping from pad to pad in the pond.

It makes me want to run to you again and again and again.

I’ve said it over and over, until I’m sure you must tire of hearing it, but once again… I love your toes.

When we’re laughing, when we’re crying, watching that favorite show, when the lights around the pool have waned to just a faint glow… it is the touch of your toe that I crave.

That one last touch at night before I go off to sleep, that first hello as morning breaks again, it is the touch of your toe that I crave.

For me, forever, it will be… about… touching toes.

Faces

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Some years ago it occurred to me that even though my life lacked romance and intimacy, that these were elements of my life I hoped would come to me one day. Using this as motivation, I wrote a series of free-form verses of poetry. Sometimes they rhyme, many times they don’t. Yet each conveys a yearning for something more… and I have finally found it. This is the first I’ll share, with a few more to come, until the love of my life says “that’s enough.” I’m not sure she ever will… for they reflect what I have found in her.

_________________________________________________________________

Faces

The smile.
The frown.
Sadness.
Disbelief.
Comprehension.
Fear.
Doubt.
Peace.

Just a few of the faces I’ve seen.
All coming from one set of muscles designed to demonstrate unlimited tales of emotion.
The face.

Yours is beyond beautiful.
The lines of time in all the right places, enhancing your glow, casting spells on all who care to see.
The eyes, nose, cheeks, lips all perfectly placed, what a marvelous creation.
Each expression a diamond mine to explore until time is no more.
And even then, there would be no end to the joy that is your face.

Mine seems to be one dimensional compared to yours.
I lack the luster, and grace of the excitement of your eyes.
My nose just sits there whether I talk or listen.
Yours with all it’s tiny curls and twitches brings brilliance to every laugh, drama to every tear.
My lips too long have drawn taunt with frustration, anger, depression.
Yours always inviting conversation and the taste of life and love.

Why is it that women’s faces are always so beautiful, and men’s always so worn and chiseled?
It doesn’t seem fair until I realize one simple truth.
Men were never intended to look into mirrors.


They were created to look into the divine and bring him glory.
And to facilitate that end, God in his infinite wisdom gave man the greatest of all gifts.

The faces of the woman he loves.

once upon a time…

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

Usually when a narrative begins this way it means you are reading a children’s story, and the event in question happened a long time ago.  Occasionally the phrase relates to something that happened in the past and you are sad that the “something” no longer happens.

For example, today the media and certain other political hacks might write:

Once upon a time there was no racism on the earth, and all people’s lived in harmony and unity regardless of skin color or language or religious beliefs or economic status or educational background.

But both my heart and my mind tell me this is total fiction.  Never since the garden of Eden has there been two people or two million people who behaved in the fictional setting just described.

Racism has been alive and well in various forms since the beginning of time.  History proves it, just read a book.  Racism along with all its contemptuous consequences has been with us since the dawn of time.

No, this doesn’t make it right.  Racism is morally wrong, and at our core we know this, because God created us with the innate understanding of how wrong it is.  But even if God hadn’t designed us with the ability to make this distinction, we do know that because of what Adam and Eve did we all now have the “knowledge to the tree of good and evil.”  The very fact that we have this knowledge means there is no justification for racism.

However, let me be clear.  Racism is not the main systemic problem in the United States today, or around the world.

Today, as the insidious nature of the knowledge of evil has made its way to the streets of our cities, looters and rioters have found their voice and true self, hurling rocks, bricks, and Molotov cocktails through store windows.  These revelers acting out the evil have taken lives.  Some of them black lives.  Even while their nearby protestor friends carry signs that say “Black Lives Matter” they pillage and plunder.  While the pundits continue to pontificate, “once upon a time …” and what comes trickling out of those evil mouths is pure fiction.

The mayhem of the last two weeks is not about systemic racism.  The pandemonium seen nightly in the streets is about taking down a government.  The evil behind these protestors – turned rioters – turned killers – has an agenda which results in the decimation of the United States as a nation.  This evil is aimed at destroying what was just a few months ago a burgeoning economy.  This evil is 100% committed to annihilate Christianity, Islam, or Orthodoxy of any kind in America.  They are an equal-opportunity hate-filled group.  Fathers, sons, daughters, mothers, beware.  If they have come this far, if not stopped, they are coming for you.

Now stop.  I know one of the popular phrases in the protestor signs is “I can’t breathe.”

But that isn’t true either is it?  Just stop it and think.  If you aren’t breathing, you’re dead.  Dead people don’t carry signs that read “I can’t breathe.”  George Floyd said this because he was dying.  If you are carrying a sign, you aren’t dying, you are protesting his death.  And you have every right to do that.  This isn’t the problem either.

When you have black people schooling white people on why they shouldn’t be destroying public property or private businesses, then we are no longer in the land of “once upon a time…”

Some people think what I’m about to say is the equivalent of “once upon a time…” maybe because I’ve shouted it like a mantra for years now.  Just because I’ve repeated it over and over and over in these blogs… doesn’t make it any less true.  So, here it is.

The systemic problem in our country and our world today is that we have wandered so far off the beaten path of believing God is in control.  For example, there are those with no faith who will say, “How could the God who loves mankind allow these atrocities to be happening?”  Others will say, “Maybe God is out there somewhere, but He seems to have turned His back on us, and we’re on our own.”  Still others will say, “God is more like an official observer, not a referee, or enforcer.”  And on and on it goes with any number of reasons why God is definitely not in control of what happens in our world.

So, what to do?  Now it’s my turn.

“Once upon a time”, and I remember this time like it was yesterday, when crisis came to a person’s world instead of picking up bricks, people picked up bibles.  And instead of running into stores grabbing whatever they could carry out in their own strength, they ran into places of worship and got down on their knees to pray.  They searched the bible for direction, and they prayed to the LORD for answers, because they believed God was still in Control.

Well, God IS still in control.  Even when people don’t believe it today… even so-called people of faith.

What will be our future?  Today, tomorrow, next year, or 20 years?  Will we even still be here?

I don’t know.  But I know I’m reading my bible today, and I’m praying for God’s wisdom and answers about how to live…

Today… not “once upon a time.”

Intentionality

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

Right about now even the strongest hearts and minds are subject to the efforts of Satan, to use COVID-19 spreading fear and panic among human beings across the world.  While each of us wants to be strong and courageous, modeling our faith and trust in the LORD for those around us, we can easily be defeated from reaching this goal without some specific intentionality in our daily lives.

One aspect of this crisis is the car-crash syndrome.  You know what I mean.  You’ve been in traffic jams before.  There are those events which take an inordinate amount of time to continually creep toward what is causing the long delays.  The highway during these times resembles more of a long winding parking lot.  Arriving on the scene of some horrific entanglement of metal and road, you discover the delay was someone’s life being altered forever in the vehicle that was crushed.

On the other hand, you have probably been in those traffic tie-ups that slowed everyone down for miles and miles, only to have the traffic suddenly return to normal speeds, with no evidence at all of what caused all the fuss.  I’ve said on more than one occasion, “What was that all about?”

When we look back in the weeks ahead at this very frustrating couple of months we are still working through, for some, life will have changed forever. For others, it will be more like life returning to normal, after a brutal slow-down period of isolation and social distancing, toilet paper hoarding and disruption of lifestyles.

What can you do right now to make your experience in this crisis more tolerable?  One is to be more intentional about everyday life, and the activities that help you pass this time while preserving your sanity and peace.  There are going to be those who say this would be a great time to binge watch that old favorite TV show on whatever streaming media channel you use for entertainment.  And this will surely while away the hours, but is this the best use of your time?

Others might suggest getting outdoors for a walk or run and soaking up some sun.  Or heating up the swimming pool and floating in the sun, all the while imagining yourself on that deserted Caribbean beach with white sands and cool tropical breezes.  I’m sure both options could help with the cooped up feelings we struggle with right now.

May I suggest another activity that also has the inherent ability to bring encouragement and peace when things are not always looking so bright and cheery.  Get that Book of all books, and turn to Paul’s letter to the church of Colossae.  Specifically, and with intentionality, focus your thoughts on Jesus Christ, the LORD.  Read with the idea of learning something new, or rediscovering something that will help you personally during these trying times of isolation.

Paul wrote with this intention: Colossians 1:10-12

“… so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.”

If anyone today should be “walking” with confidence and assurance, without fear of anxiety, it ought to be those true Christ-followers who serve the risen LORD Jesus!  Paul says we should be “strengthened…attaining all steadfastness and patience, and living in joyous thanksgiving.”  This words are not just lip-service to spiritual philosophies, Paul modeled firsthand for us how to do this while he struggled to serve Jesus.

But how do we get there from here?  We are so diverted by all the stories of the virus.  We are so concerned about the unknown nature of the virus and when it will all be over.  We are cutoff from our friends and family.  How do we become strong again?  How do we maintain peace and patience?  And many you might be thinking “what is there to be joyously thanking God for right now?”

I’m so glad you asked! Verse 13 is the answer to those very questions!

For He (the Father) rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son (Jesus), in who we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

We have been rescued from something far more deadly than the Coronavirus.  Jesus has rescued us from ourselves.  He rescued us from that God-defying willful shaking of our fist at our Creator and saying “I don’t need you!”  When we said “yes” to God’s love and turned away from our own thoughts of how to save ourselves, Jesus rescued us from “the domain of darkness.”

So during these dark days of social distancing and isolationism, let’s focus on the ONE who can restore our strength, help us be strong and courageous, and joyously thank Him for rescuing us from ourselves.

Here He is.  Read it slowly.  Dwell on the words, letting them sink deep into your thoughts and hearts.  His name is Jesus.

Colossians 1:15-20
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.

He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

Everything we need, right this minute, is found in Jesus Christ the LORD.  Nothing else satisfies.  Nothing else matters.  Did you see it?  Do you see it now?  Right in the middle of this deep theological truth written by the Apostle Paul, is the singular truth that must be the foundation of our intentionality for living.

He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

My dear friends the only reason any of us are still here is because Jesus is holding this world together.  This one fact alone should cause our lips to joyously praise Him and thank Him for His steadfast love.

Today, as you face another day of Coronavirus madness, turn your eyes upon Jesus and say “Thank you, LORD, for rescuing me. Thank you, LORD, for holding everything together.”

Missing You

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

Since the time I was a teenager out in West Texas, I’ve followed basketball, football, and golf.  I have favorite teams or players like many of you do.  You may be into soccer, or bowling, opera, theater, going to movies or concerts.  During this time of world-wide crisis we have all been told to just stay home.  I have no problem with this directive.  In spite of whatever inconvenience this may impose, radical times call for radical measures.

I have to say it though, I don’t miss watching the NCAA tournament, my favorite golfers playing on the grass so green, or spring training games for my baseball team, the Texas Rangers.  This reality was quite an eye-opening experience for me, since I’ve been athletic all my life.  Yet, I still don’t miss it.

I don’t miss going out to a movie.  I certainly don’t miss Hollywood’s elite telling me how stupid I am for supporting our President.  That whole make-believe industry holds no sway over me these days.  I just don’t miss it.

“Missing you” is reserved for those of my personal family I haven’t seen in awhile, or those men and women who are part of the two Bible study times I lead.  In the incomparable words of Lowman Pauling, and Ralph Bass, and their 1971 hit, my blog today is “Dedicated to the One I Love.”  I love and miss my friends from church.  These are the folks I am connected to.  One thing we all cannot afford to do is lose the connection with our friends and family… just because we are adhering to the “stay home” element required by all of us at this time.

I remember when the telephone on the table was connected by wire to a plug on the wall.  You picked up the phone, you got a dial tone, then dialed the number of a friend and waited.  Waited until the friend answered, or until a message machine guided you to “leave a message.”  We still have the “leave a message” option on our cell phones today.  But there is so much more you can do with your cell phone than just calling someone.  Today we can “text” someone a message, or Skype or FaceTime with each other like a video conference call.

If you can send or receive an email from your mobile device, then more than likely you can also send and receive still image pictures, as well as short video clips.  All of these activities can serve to preserve the emotional and spiritual connections between people who love each other.

In addition to your cell phone, there is always the opportunity to practice a lost art: writing cards or letters to those we love.

Now think on these words of Jesus..

John 13:35
By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

Missing my friends should not paralyze me.  Just the opposite.  My missing people should stimulate me to be creative in the ways I try to reach out and “touch” people “virtually.”  That has been my goal for the last few days of writing these blogs.  We are all in the same boat of danger from this virus.  The phrase used by scientists is “flatten the curve of the pandemic”; that just means slowing the spread of infection.  The number one way you and I can help is “social distancing.” The current thought is to not be in a group larger than 10-15 people.  One of the greatest privileges of our time in history, is using technology to stay connected while not in the same physical space or location.

The old adage is true, and this current disruption to every facet of our lives proves it to be true:

Absence makes the heart grow fonder.

My version is:  I’m Missing You.

Just how serious should we take all this?  You may or may not know these statistics:

As of 8:53pm March 17th (last night), according to NPR’s Elena Renken and Daniel Wood, 6353 people in the USA have tested positive for COVID-19.  Of this number, 108 have died from complications derived from the virus.

In this same report, in Texas, 110 have tested positive as infected, and 1 person has died.

That is serious enough for me.  I want to help. I want to be actively part of the solution. So I will keep on missing you.  As more time passes before we can gather again without fearing the unknown of this virus, I will miss you more and more.

Missing you will inspire me to write more articles for this blog.  I will do my best to stay current and relevant to the things that concern us all.  The Minister of Senior Adults in our church emphasized the importance of these key activities you can do at this time:

HERE IS MY REQUEST:

  • Pray for God to stop this virus.
  • Pray for families to use this time to re-connect with each other and to God
  • Protect yourself
  • Pray for healing for those infected

I guess I just want to add my two-cents worth, as you miss those whom you call “friends” try to connect with them through your phone, by email, by text, or some means that you feel comfortable with.

While we wait, and trust in God, stay connected, and…

1 Thessalonians 5:17
Pray without ceasing.

 

 

 

Please share these blogs with friends and family in whatever way you can.

Purposes

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I’ve lived for years in solitude.  My vocational choices led me to spend time among people occasionally, but the bulk of my work, both secular and in ministry, was alone in an office.  While some of those jobs also challenged me to work with several people in the office, the most number of people I was around on a daily basis was 8-10.  Even there I spent every day on the phone, or planning, or writing proposals or sermons or lessons, in what sometimes felt like solitary confinement.  In many different ways, I’m as prepared as I ever could be, for social distancing.

While in the throes of this COVID-19 chaos, we’re being told to go home, stay home, and live in a secluded fashion with the purpose of stemming the flow of the virus to other people, including ourselves.  Many people who don’t deal well with confinement, will see this time alone as pure torture, agony, or undue suffering.  In fact, not being alone, and not being still long enough to think rationally and logically about anything is an ancient problem, not a new 21st-Century challenge.

The Psalmist writes how God is the refuge of His people in Psalm 46.  But I especially have always looked to verse 10 for solace.

“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

The Hebrew text indicates this word means to sink, or relax.

Sink into what?  Relax, are you kidding me?  No really, this is exactly God’s purpose for what we need most – right this minute.  We need to know, not just intellectually understand or comprehend, but really get what God expects from us, indeed commands us. The command of God is total surrender to Him as the LORD – in control, having all authority, and present in our world today.  More and more, activities people around the world would normally flock to have either been postponed to a later date, or cancelled completely.  This could be easily construed as the LORD of heaven on purpose saying to all of humanity, “You’ve been worshiping at pagan places filled with idols.  I will help you be still, and remember who I AM, by using this virus to get your mind off of sports, movie theaters, works of art, concerts, playoffs, or any other venue-oriented entertainment escape.”

One of the hardest things for many people I’ve known is the concept of just “being still” for more than 10 seconds.  Add to not knowing how to be still, the idea of being cooped up with children, or spouses, or grandparents who all would drive you crazy when there was no virus, and this command of God might seem impossible to achieve.

Could God’s purpose for this virus really be that we need to stop worshiping other things and just be still?  Well, being still is only half this equation.  Because if you are capable of being still, that alone does not ensure you will focus where you need to focus, on the LORD of heaven.  After all, the being still part is really just to create a space in your world where you can experience Truth.

“… and know that I am God.”

Our minds and our hearts have in recent years become numbingly indifferent to the nature and character of God.  I really do believe it is time for a reset for us.  Why?  Think about the last several years of turmoil in our United States government.  Now filter everything you’ve seen, read, or heard on television, radio, or online apps, and read these words:

2 Timothy 3:1-5
But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.

Do these descriptions essentially fit to form a fairly accurate description of life in the USA and other places around the world today?  Does Paul really have a vision of life in the 21st-century?  Men and women of power and means, blatantly denying the existence of God, must really be taxing to the LORD of creation, don’t you think?

It doesn’t take much understanding to realize we have no control whatsoever over this virus.  The leaders of our world, the scientists, the manufacturers of the health products we need, all are working around the clock to solve a currently unsolvable problem. The virus will run its course. And we do not yet know the extent of the damage, or where or how it will all end.  We’re in the throes.

Isn’t it time to just stop?  Stop being scared?  Stop listening to the talking heads on TV telling us what to think and how to feel?  Isn’t it time to just BE STILL, AND KNOW that the One who created us, also has intended purposes for this event that we can’t possibly know or understand?

When was the last time you picked up your Bible to give you hope and clarity, rather than tuning into Talk Radio, or some 24 hour news station on the television?  If you are a true Christ-follower, you are being watched right now, whether you know it or not.  In days of calamity and chaos, even the ungodly are brought to a place where they must recognize they are not in control.  God is.  Do you portray this truth in how you are dealing with COVID-19?

Right now, are you modeling for your neighbor who is spiritually far from God, the truth that God is not far from any one of us?  Are you criticizing everything and everyone, or contributing a solution by inviting God to intervene in our world with healing?  The true Christ-follower knows how to “be still” and in prayerful worship, trust God for the outcome.

Are you a lover of self, money, or power?  Have you become boastful, arrogant, ungrateful, and unholy? Are you like those holding onto a “form of godliness” all the timing denying the power of the Creator to control this virus?

Be still. Know that I AM is still God.

Keep saying it.  Allow you mind to constantly repeat:

I am in God’s care.
He loves me more than I love myself.
Jesus gave Himself for me so that I might know the truth of God’s love.
I am who He says I am, and He says I am His child.
He is in Control.
He has absolute Authority over my life.
And He is right here with me… whatever may come.
His name is Jesus.

And I will not face death, until all my days are done, so I will be still, and know that God is..

 

You might want to share this post with your friends or family, either on social media or by email.

Mortality

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

This is going to be a very interesting few weeks ahead.  My prayer is that this post brings you hope.  But you might want to read it carefully…

The one fear plaguing mankind since the very beginning is the reality and certainty of death.  Those without hope, those without love, those blind to the eternal nature of the human spirit, are most possessed and effected by the ultimate eventuality of their own death.  The natural reaction to something like COVID-19 then, is for a person in this lost and hopeless condition is to panic, act illogically, and do whatever they can to find a way to increase their own ability to survive.

What a shame.  What a loss of time.  What a sad, sad, testament to a life which was designed for exactly the opposite result.

I don’t know when you last spent much time reading Psalm 139, but right about now would be a great time to dust off the old Bible sitting on the shelf, near all those self-help, nonsense works, that haven’t made a difference, and do a little reading and thinking.  Stay with me here, I’m not just making this stuff up.  We’ll go slowly, so you can soak some truth into that truth-starved soul and mind that might be upset about what is happening in our world.

Psalm 139:1-2
O LORD, You have searched me and know me.  You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thoughts from afar.

So, just on the face of it, God sees exactly where you are right now.  He knows the condition of your body, and He knows how panicked you are, and how hopeless you feel.  He knows what you’ve been doing, and how you’ve reacted to this virus scare.

Psalm 139:3-4
You scrutinize my path, and my lying down, and are intimately acquainted with all my ways.  Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O LORD, You know it all.

The Psalmist doesn’t want us to just skate by those first two verses, but spends a little more time detailing the exhaustive nature of God’s understanding and awareness of our condition, our thought patterns, and daily routines.  He knows ALL our ways.

Psalm 139:5-6
You have enclosed me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me.  Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is too high, I cannot attain it.

Here the thought shifts to gaining a little perspective of God’s control on matters of my life and yours, by understanding God’s presence all around us, all the time.  It’s mind-boggling for sure, but that doesn’t negate the truth of it.

Psalm 139:7-10
Where can I go from Your Spirit?  Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.  If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Your hand will lay hold of me.

Stop here a minute.  Don’t just read the words.  Re-read them until the truth of what is stated sinks in.  There is no place in this universe where you can go to hide from, escape from, or avoid God’s touch.  His hand will lay hold of you, when it is time.

Psalm 139:11-12
If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, and the light around me will be night. Even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day.  Darkness and light are alike to You.

These are dark days for many people around the world.  The virus is continuing to spread, with deadly results for some, and debilitating effects for others.  Yet there is nothing hidden or dark or unknown about this virus to God.  He sees it all with absolute clarity.

Psalm 139:13-15
For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb.  I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;

Knowing that we are created, and knowing there is a Creator, also serves to give us perspective on our existence.  Knowing and understanding the natural human experience of procreation, that I am a product of God’s will through the efforts of human love, should also bring some basic assurance of God’s awareness of not just my being but also my plot in life.  God knows when you took your first breath, your first step, spoke your first word, had your heart broken for the first time.  God knows because He is deeply invested in you.  He made you in your mother’s womb.

Now comes the part I’ve anticipated writing about, so don’t miss this next part!

Psalm 139:16
Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them.

Carefully read that again.

What does it mean?  I believe that no one will die out of the sight of God, or at a time different than that which God chooses.

Yes, I really believe this, based on Psalm 139:16.  But it wasn’t just David, the Psalmist who spoke this truth.  The Author of Truth, the One who called Himself, the Truth, also said:

Matthew 6:27
And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?

And there it is.  We don’t die out of God’s timing, awareness, or plan for us.  All our days are written, the details of each day, hour and minute, in God’s own book.  He knows us better than we even know ourselves, because He knows when we will finally see Him face to face.

This virus has no power except that given to it by God, not man.  If it is man-made, then God allowed this for some purpose we don’t know and can’t know or see.  If the virus is an un-natural mutation of another strain of the flu, then that too didn’t escape God’s notice as if done in darkness.  He knew when it happened, allowed it, and has a purpose for allowing it within His sovereign will for mankind.

But make no mistake here.  COVID-19 is limited by God’s own all-powerful control.  No more will get sick than God allows.  No more will die, than is predetermined by God’s plan. Since neither you nor I can do anything to alter this fact, then maybe this knowledge will help us alter our own concerns about what is happening around us.

I am in God’s care.
He loves me more than I love myself.
Jesus gave Himself for me so that I might know the truth of God’s love.
I am who He says I am, and He says I am His child.
He is in Control.
He has absolute Authority over my life.
And He is right here with me… whatever may come.

And I will not face death, until all my days are done.

Snoopy said to Charlie Brown one day, “We’re all going to die someday.”

Charlie Brown’s response bears remembering:

“But, not today.”

 

 

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Trump is not Jesus…

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

That’s right.  I said it.

I’ll go further still, the visible celebration among the Democratic leaders in the House of Representatives gives visual authentication to their verbal assignations that they are blind, deaf, and dumb.  Putting a “face” on it, putting a “name” on it, the mask of hypocrisy and the name of injustice, is Nancy Pelosi.  And no, Trump isn’t Jesus, but what happened on Wednesday, January 15, 2020 could be viewed much like the drama that took place when an innocent man was nailed to a Roman cross. Yet, it was all on the allegations and nonsense of a 1st-century group of leaders who were also blind, deaf, and dumb.

The Pharisees didn’t want to hear the truth.  They had already made up their own “truth” with literally thousands of extra interpretations of the Laws God had already given them.  These “lawyers” were jealous of Jesus because He challenged their authority; because He intentionally disobeyed their man-made interpretations of God’s Law; but worse, because the common people loved Him.  Does that sound like anyone else you know?  Perhaps the one person who cares about the common man and woman in this country more than anyone else right now, is Donald J. Trump.

I’m not debating whether Trump is a true Christ-follower or not.  I know, because I’ve listened to him for the past three years. I’ve read much of his twitter feed.  Because I’ve done this, I can without equivocation say: President Trump is a mortal man, neither A god, nor The God.  In my view, He is a name-calling, intimidating, seemingly prideful and arrogant business man, with little regard for how he might make those who challenge him feel. In these ways, he is not at all like Jesus.  In these ways, he is just the opposite of Jesus.

That said, only a few people I know think he’s done anything that even resembles abuse of power or obstruction of Congress.  But that doesn’t matter.  What’s at stake here is whether the common people of the United States are going to allow an election to be overturned, just because a group of people who call themselves the nation’s leaders don’t “like” that duly elected President.  In fact, they don’t just “not like” him, they hate his guts with such passion and fervor, that given the opportunity, I honestly believe they would kill him… if they could get away with it.

Clearer minds must have prevailed, at least in the sense of eliminating him by taking his life.  But how is what they are doing now, not the equivalent of silencing him, destroying his reputation, and denying him the same honor and esteem due the office of the President when one of their own sits in that chair?

Look, I’m just one of the commoners.  I know my voice won’t change, alter, or even influence the events about to take place in the Senate as this impeachment trial gets underway.  I suppose by writing this blog post, I can at least vent a little, but that is not my primary motive for writing.  I’m sad, I’m mad, I’m hurt, but mostly I’m motivated to have whatever voice I can have.  What the political left is doing is wrong.  And when I say “political left” I’m not just talking about elected officials.

The television/radio media, social media, political pundits, and politicians who began this process within months of President Trump’s election, are all responsible for the destructive course this nation is traveling.  I’m concerned about future generations of Americans who will live with the consequences of next weeks actions.  We can’t go back and change all the rhetoric, no matter how badly we might want to.  Yesterday is gone forever.  The house passed their articles of impeachment, and that is over, in the past, it is history.

But the future remains uncertain.  We don’t see it yet.  We haven’t lived it yet.  And there is still time to do the right thing.  Love him or hate him, President Trump is not our enemy.  He is not the enemy of America in general, or you in particular.  President Trump cares about you and your family.  He wants you to have a job, to be free, and to provide for your families needs, without breaking your back or your will to do it.  Those who have passed articles designed to impeach him, then extricate him from office, want exactly the opposite for you.  They want to control what you think.  They want to control what you spend your money on.  They want to tax you so they can provide healthcare and rights and privileges to those who actually are enemies to our country.

I only know ONE way to effect change in this nation.  Pray.

I’m asking anyone who does read this blog post to pray.  Pray in your church, pray in your car, pray in your closet, wherever you are most comfortable pouring your heart out to God, just pray.  Please.

Pray.

In the book of James it says:

The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. (James 5:16)

 

Acts 11:1-30

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

Transmogrification

ActsBibleStudyWebpage_Email Header

Just a reminder there will be no study lesson on November 24th, 2019.

On December 1st, we will finish the lessons for this fall, and continue again on January 12th after the holidays.

Also, feel free to share this post or these links on your social media for your friends or loved ones who want to join the study!

Lesson:

Acts 11_1-30 outline

Acts 11_1-30 Takeaway

 

All the Colors

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

Leaves 1

More than anything else, this image reminds us that things change.  Time marches on. The grains of sand in an hour glass fall painfully slow at times.  Then, when you least expect it, you observe there’s very little sand in the upper globe indicating a “season” of time is almost at an end.  When Fall begins, the same thing is true.  What was green turns to a rainbow array of colors in the trees.  The leaves fall over time, sometimes slowly, other times in a day. Things change.

Depending on whether  you are a “glass-half-full” or “glass-half-empty” sort of person significantly affects your view of this tree, and its many colors.  On a recent trip to Arkansas I had high hopes of catching a view of the fall foliage from Mount Magazine, north of Hot Springs.  I’m sure it would have been a lovely drive, and the view would have been spectacular, were it not for the dense fog encompassing the mountain.  When we arrived at the peak, we could see less than 40 feet in any direction we looked.  Since we were only there for a day, we hoped it would burn off quickly.  The reality is it didn’t, so we left, with a tiny bit of sadness and sense of loss.

I took the photo image above, looking North from my backdoor, on Sunday morning.  It reminded me of the singular truth found in the first 11 verses of Ecclesiastes 3.  “There is an appointed time for everything” (vs.1)… and … “He has made everything appropriate in its time” (vs.11).  In between these two statements are couplets of contrasting thoughts describing almost every aspect of human life on earth.  The dichotomy of living a human existence here on earth is captured in the joy and sorrow juxtaposed in the words, “a time to…”

Give birth vs. die, plant vs. uproot, kill vs. heal, tear down vs. build up.
Weep vs. laugh, mourn vs. dance, thrown stones vs. gather stones.
Embrace vs. shun embracing, search vs. give up as lost, keep vs. throw away.
Tear apart vs. sew together, be silent vs. speak, love vs. hate, war vs. peace.

I really like Eugene Petersen’s “The Message” translation of the Bible for passages like Ecclesiastes.  It is just easier to relate to I guess.  In each of these verses Petersen’s translation begins, “A right time …”  These words help us see that God designed all of these events into the human existence and we really don’t have any control over them. Today, see if you can hear God speak to you through Solomon, in verses 14-15 of The Message.

I’ve also concluded that whatever God does, that’s the way it’s going to be, always. No addition, no subtraction. God’s done it and that’s it. That’s so we’ll quit asking questions and simply worship in holy fear.

Whatever was, is.
Whatever will be, is.
That’s how it always is with God.

Trusting in Jesus as LORD, in its essence, is knowing these words Solomon wrote are true absolutely.  Proclaiming Jesus as LORD is declaring He is in Control of all things, all the events of my life.  Serving Jesus as LORD requires an understanding and commitment that He is the sole Authority in my life today.  Knowing in fact, that I am alive and serve at His pleasure, whatever may come my way.  The third, and maybe the most awesome truth of declaring Jesus as LORD, is knowing and believing, the Living LORD Jesus is present right now with me.  When one of the “a time to…”-events happens in my life, I am not alone to face them.  Jesus is with me continually.

It’s fall, and the LORD is demonstrating His Creative power in all the colors.  As the blustery North wind blows creating a sea of leaves ripping through the air, do you see Him?  Do you know Him?  Is He LORD of your life today?

Acts Bible Study Resumes!!

Dr. J.D. WilkinsLeave a comment

Hello friends.  This past Sunday afternoon we resumed our study of the Acts of the Apostles.

The title of the study is: “Acts – the Unfinished work of Jesus”

The theme of the study is to see the LORDSHIP attributes of Jesus displayed in all the activities of the early 1st century church.

This week’s start was a little rough in the technology department.  The recorder was goofy again, but it could have been operator error for all I know.

That said, to receive the lesson simply click on the link below and read the notes I used to present the study.

This will at least allow you to be caught up and ready for next week’s lesson.

Thank you for your patience while I figure this out.

Lesson for Acts 6:8-15 …  August 8 2019

Acts 6_8-15 outline

Acts 6_8-15 takeaway handout