Thankful for that old country church

I am convinced that I was the only kid around who never saw “The Wizard of Oz” in its entirety as I was growing up.

Back in the 60's, that classic film was always on TV on Sunday night. It either came on before I went to church or started so that I saw the end after I got back home. I pieced it together enough that I knew the story, but I never saw it in one sitting until I watched with my oldest child 20 years later.

And for not seeing all of a movie classic, I am thankful. I'm much more thankful now, than I was then.

I am thankful for Corinth Christian Church and the influence it has had on me. Call me old-fashioned, I will wear that badge of my heritage with honor.

If you have never seen that house of worship, it comes up on you kind of quickly. You can be driving either way along Alton Station Road with nothing much around other than the cattle grazing when all of a sudden you see this large building that sits on a small hill. Some of my friends used to joke it was kind of like Emerald City.

But that was not the church.

The church was Mrs. Eudenia, as I called her. Fifty years later, I can still see her entering my pre-school classroom, her red hair never having one strand out of place. At the time, she was a widow, but when she remarried, her husband, Buford, always looked me up after church to talk about the Cincinnati Reds, playing the guitar or to tell me about the fish he'd caught that week. It stayed that way until the day he drew his last breath.

That wonderful church was Mrs. Mary. I can't say I remember a lot about that class of six- to eight-year-olds other than Mrs. Mary got after me one Sunday morning for making fun of one of the other children in the class. Yet, she did so with such grace, it has stayed with me over 40 years.

Who can't be thankful for Imogene? This incredible lady taught kids 9-11 as long as I can remember, encouraging us to just be in church. She encouraged to take part in camp. And, with a simple wisdom she made me think. “What do you do when you want to watch one thing on TV and someone else in your house wants to watch something else,” she asked one Sunday. In a time when most had a single set, often just a black-and-white job, it was an effective way of emphasizing the idea of putting others before yourself.

I think of Gene, the guy who led the teenagers. He'd cut up with us. Never mind that he was kinfolk, I thought he was just cool. The reasons? He sang in a gospel quartet and wore boots. And he cared. At the time, I didn't realize how much he really did care about each of us and even today, I can't put my finger on it. It's just one of those things you know is true.

I am thankful for those preachers – Melvin Styons, Lowell Thornton and Nelson Lee – all of whom helped shape my thinking. None of them were from Kentucky, so they put up with our countless Wildcat basketball jokes. Most importantly they taught the Bible with a passion.

I am thankful for those summer nights when we'd pack that church building with the only air conditioning being open windows and fans from Gordon Funeral Home. Some out-of-town quartet would bring “special music” – I thought the Mel-o-Tones were cool because they had a guy who could flat pick an electric guitar – and a visiting preacher would keep going until he felt like stopping.

Twenty minutes? Are you kidding? That was just the warmup.

And I am thankful for those all day singings and dinner on the ground – or was it all day dinner and singing on the ground?

I'm thankful for all of those people who drove down to the Salt River and turned their cars so the lights would shine to that place along the bank where I was baptized that night in 1969.

Many of those folk have passed on to a wonderful reward. Yet their legacy lives on.

Most of all, I am thankful that my mom and dad made me attend -- yes, there were times they MADE me attend --  that wonderful country church.

Even if it meant missing The Wizard of Oz.

Living in harmony with God's will

I was sitting in the Big Barn at Renfro Valley, Ky., earlier this year when two thoughts about God's blessings almost simultaneously overwhelmed me.

My family was taking in a concert by the Oak Ridge Boys for the first time in several years. The break was simply because I had lost much of my hearing 20 years ago and, as much as I had loved listening to the Oaks before then, I had never justified spending money on tickets for something I did not think I would be able to enjoy.

I had undergone cochlear implant surgery in 2003, but that did not help much when it came to music. However, when I received a second implant, making my hearing binaural, in 2010, I started seeing vast improvements in understanding and hearing music. I had even purchased a few CDs and had been to a solo concert by another favorite, gospel singer Guy Penrod.

Sitting about 10 rows from the stage, I began to hear Joe, Duane, William Lee and Richard in that incredible four-part harmony that I had grown to love even as a 1970s teen. I was amazed at the technology that had been developed that not only simply allowed me to understand speech, but had taken things much deeper. I can enjoy the music I cherish and can honestly tell my daughter, who is learning to play the clarinet, “Hey, that sounds good!”

The next day, I sent an e-mail to my audiologist at the University of Kentucky, telling her, “You won't believe this, but I could actually pick out all four parts they were singing!”

As Jerry Clower used to say, “Ain't God good!!”

During the middle of the show, the Oaks sang a spine-chilling a capella version of the old hymn, “Farther Along.”

Farther along, we'll know all about it

Farther along, we'll understand why

Cheer up, my brother, live in the sunshine

We'll understand it, all by and by.

It was vintage Oaks, singing in harmony about living in harmony with God's will

(I became a huge fan of the Oaks when a friend let me listen to their “Light” album in the summer of 1973. Not long after that, I saw them in concert at Lafayette High School in Lexington, Ky. The crowd was probably less than 150 people, but man, what an afternoon of gospel music. I ran across this YouTube video of how they sounded – and looked – singing one of my favorite gospel songs. Love the sport coats!  The band has completely changed, but the singers are the same, except Joe Bonsall has replaced Willie Wynn on tenor. Enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60GJgTSiKtA )

Now, back to the main thought.

I believe it is important live in harmony in at least four areas: Self, family, others and, most importantly, God.

Too many people do not live in harmony with themselves. They wander along aimlessly, searching for answers in life, often miserable even when successful in the world’s eyes. I am often amazed at how often people think money, things or power will bring happiness. It just doesn’t happen.

Family values are constantly under attack today on many fronts. Divorce is rampant. I know, I have been through it and been through the pain. Many families that stay together do so despite dysfunction or chaos. That can’t be what God intended for us.

Being civil in our world is almost a forgotten virtue, it seems. Try driving in any major city at rush hour if you disagree!

I could go on and on but the answer to living in harmony with ourselves and with others is to live in harmony with God.  Psalm 139:14 says “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”  When we understand and act upon the fact that we are a wonderful creation of God with a purpose to serve Him, we can start living as He intends.

When we put God first in our families, such as what is written in Ephesians 5 “Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” we can have the kind of home life we are intended to have.

The same holds true with our relationships with each other. In Matthew 22, Jesus says the first commandment is to love God with all our heart, mind and soul and the second is to ‘'Love your neighbor as yourself.”

We are all imperfect people and fall short of what God intends.  Living in harmony can only come when we realize it is by God’s Amazing Grace we can have meaning in our lives.

Today, the Oaks are still singing about that too.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNDNTo7SNFQ 

(All Scripture quotations are from The New International Version.)

Back to this little corner of my world

-->

Welcome back to another corner of my world.

Yes, I said, “Welcome back.”

About three years ago, I started posting on this, my own blog space, as a supplement to what I was doing as sports editor of The Anderson News. I had some off-the-wall posts, some looks at the sporting world and got into a few other things. But mainly, it was sports.

For reasons I won't go into, I stopped blogging here after several months.

I wish I hadn't.

This was never intended to be just a look at sports. In fact, that was to be a very small portion of the content here.

So I am back.

Except for one difference. This blog will focus on faith and the world around us. No sports talk allowed, unless it deals with faith. For example, I might talk about Tim Tebow, but it will be for his Christian faith, not about whether he should be the starting quarterback for the New York Jets.

(If you go back, you will notice I have taken down every post, except for those dealing with an aspect of faith.)

You should know that anything I post here is my own opinion, not that of my employers or co-workers. It might not even be my wife's viewpoint.

Most people know me as the sports editor of a small-town paper. It is a lifestyle I have enjoyed since 1985 and have made many friends along the way. Some of them have been kids I wrote about while they played high school sports, others have been their coaches or parents.

Occasionally, I get a note from someone that just likes, or dislikes, something I have written.

Yet, for some time, I have struggled with the idea that while writing about sports is fun and often is the positive news in a negative world, it still doesn't last. Several years ago, I intereviewed someone who had won several accolades as a high school athlete. Now, however, he was in a ministry and said something along the line, “All the trophies and championships don't mean anything compared to what I am doing now.”

(That is not a direct quote, but the gist of what he said and I am unable to locate the original quote right now.)

Anyway, that has tugged at me for some time.

While most who read this know me as the sports guy, my training is that of a minister. I graduated from Roanoke Bible College, which is now known as Mid-Atlantic Christian University, in Elizabeth City, N.C. I also have a Master of Arts from Cincinnati Christian University and was in the ministry for over 20 years.

However, I have failed many times as a person. The Bible says we are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God. I am one of the worst. I have gone through divorce, not once, but twice. The Bible says that is sin, no question. But the Bible also says salvation is through Jesus Christ and we can be forgiven.

I know. I am living it and am much more on fire for the Lord now than I ever was as a minister. Some might find that strange, but let's just say that I have experienced forgiveness and the joy that comes from finally letting God have control. I certainly don't have all the answers and some of the things I might write about may come more from experience than theological study.

At the same time, I will firmly stand for what I believe, whether writing a sports story, talking with someone or blogging in this space.

As my wonderful wife and a few close friends know, I have been praying about this for some time. I believe the Lord has led me back here and I do hope I have something to offer. You see, writing sports is fun and the games are important to those who play. But eventually, trophies tarnish and memories fade.

If what I say here prompts one person to accept Christ or even take his relationship with the Lord more seriously, it means more than any of the nine regional championships I have covered.

I might talk about religion. I might talk about politics. I might talk about something funny that happened to me in my job -- trust me, I could write a book about that.

I might make you laugh. I might make you cry. I might even make you mad. 

Most of all, I want to inspire you to think.

I write from a conservative Christian viewpoint, but that doesn't mean I have all the answers. Nor does it mean those who may not agree have nothing to offer. I read Dana Milbank and E.J. Dionne as much as I read George Will and Cal Thomas.

I am a country guy through and through. Outside of writing, the biggest thing I ever won was having the Reserve Grand Champion Bull at the Kentucky Polled Hereford show one year. Laugh if you want, but I was smiling big.

I believe there is no athlete greater than Johnny Bench and no actor quite like John Wayne. And, of course, the Oak Ridge Boys are the greatest musicians that ever lived.

I will post when I can. Hopefully that will be at least once a week and I welcome your feedback.

Hang on and enjoy.

Losing my patience with the Tebow-bashing

Patience is a supposed to be a virtue, but I am beginning to lose my patience with the continual bashing of those who stand for the Christian world view.

Namely Tim Tebow.

Since I posted to my blog two weeks ago – sorry for the delay in coming back, by the way – the Super Bowl, along with a commercial starring Tim Tebow and his mother, have come and gone.
Too bad that those who hold a dissenting viewpoint can't do the same.

I am sure you have seen the commercial, either when it aired early in Sunday's game or by going to www.focusonthefamily.org to take a look.

For all of the Tebow-bashing, this commercial was very benign. Pam Tebow just told a little bit of the story until her son, a Heisman Trophy winner at the University of Florida, tackled her in a light moment.

“Still worried about me, Mom?” he said.

I might interject, I have stood within a few feet of Tebow while working the sideline of a Kentucky-Florida game at Commonwealth Stadium. Let's just say he is one big hombre.

Pam Tebow laughingly told her big boy to stop because she was trying to tell their story. It was obviously an invitation to go the Focus on the Family website where there is an interview, lasting approximately eight minutes, with Bob and Pam Tebow, who rejected advice to abort the baby that eventually became one of the greatest college football players in history. The message was simply to celebrate the family and is obviously pro-life.

It apparently worked as the ministry's website had over 760,000 hits and had Focus on the Family president Jim Daly joking with USA Today that the website was crashing.

But after the ad ran, the response by National Organization for Women president Terry O'Neill was so ridiculous I had to read it several times to make sure my eyes were not failing me.

She was quoted in the Los Angeles Times, "I am blown away at the celebration of the violence against women in it. That's what comes across to me even more strongly than the anti-abortion message. I myself am a survivor of domestic violence, and I don't find it charming. I think CBS should be ashamed of itself."

You have GOT to be kidding me.

As many have pointed out, there was no outcry when 88-year old Betty White was tackled in an earlier commercial. I guess the Golden Girls are held to a different standard.

My feeling is that the Focus on the Family ad really was aired with the intention of getting people to celebrate the family, which has become widely fractured in these times. And, of course, there was a distinctly pro-life message in the ad, which I am sure that Focus on the Family wanted.
But an second result of the ad has been to show just how ridiculous the “pro-choice” advocates have become. As Sally Jenkins pointed out in The Washington Post, those people preach tolerance, but are actually the intolerant ones here.

I might add that I never thought The Washington Post would be one of the Tebow allies. To read the entire column by Jenkins, check it out at this address.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/01/AR2010020102067.html

Thank you Tebows for standing for what is right and speaking a positive message.

Then there is the issue of the NCAA considering a ban on eye-black messages. Surely you have seen how Tebow would put a Bible verse on his eye black. Sometimes it was John 3:16. He had Ephesians 2:8-10 written several times, along with other verses of scripture. I never heard Tebow quoting scripture or proselytizing someone. These were just simple invitations to go check out the Bible verses.

Yet the NCAA is looking at banning the practice. By waiting, the powers that be undoubtedly realized how much of an outcry would have arisen if enacted during the immensely popular Tebow's career. Still, I can't understand why there is an outcry of someone sharing a verse of Scripture.

If someone wants to look it up in the Bible, that's great. If someone doesn't want to look, that is his choice.

What it really boils down to is that many simply want to remove all references to God in our society. That is an incredibly simple critique of the situation but, it really is the bottom line.

And we wonder why our country is in the mess it is in.

We can all learn from Tim Tebow

The Tim Tebow-bashing has gone too far.

Gripe about his ability on the football field, if you want. If you are like me, it has likely been after he has torched your team again.

You can even poke fun at the fact that he cried after the Florida Gators lost in the SEC championship game. Of course, the people making fun did so out of jealousy because of the aforementioned point.

(I might interject that in 25 years of writing I have found that if you show me someone that sheds tears after losing a big game, I will show you someone that loses very few of them. But I digress.)

Talk about how he's not the prototype NFL quarterback, too. That's fair when you are talking about anyone that is playing a sport at the highest level.

But the latest round of attacks has crossed the line of questionable into the realm of the idiotic.
Tebow's crime? He's a Christian. And he's not afraid to speak up about it. You've seen countless photos of Tebow wearing his eye-black with a Bible verse inscribed.

And, unless you have been exiled to the outer reaches of the Yukon recently, you know that a firestorm has emerged about the story of how Tebow's mom, Pam, became seriously ill and was advised to terminate her fifth pregnancy. She refused to have the abortion and gave birth to a son who would go on to become one of the greatest college football players ever.

The story is going to be told during a Super Bowl commercial paid for by Focus on the Family.
Of course the National Organization for Women has begun howling in protest.

"This ad is frankly offensive, " Erin Matson, the Action Vice President of the National Organization for Women, was quoted as saying. "It is hate masquerading as love. It sends a message that abortion is always a mistake."

Let's see if I get this right. The story of a woman carrying her child to birth is a story of hate?
You have to wonder how low someone can go to make a ridiculous statement like that. Also, the commercial has not been aired. How does Matson know it is a “message of hate?"

Unless, of course, a “message of hate” is one that differs from the NOW's agenda.

Then there was the over-hyped Jay Mariotti's ridiculous rant on Fanhouse.

He said that this year we get to see commercials about “a smart-aleck baby,” and “Danica Patrick dressed as Marilyn Monroe” among other things.

He then decries the Focus on the Family commercial.

“There is a time and a place for serious crusades about life issues. A commercial during the NFL's championship game, our national holiday of fun and frolic and heavy drinking and heavier gambling, is not one of them. We're all impressed by the fascinating story of Pam Tebow, who was advised by a doctor in the Philippines to have an abortion in 1987 because of a life-threatening illness. She had the baby anyway during a mission trip, and, wonders be, her son grew up to become a Heisman Trophy winner, a two-time national football champion and one of the most inspirational collegiate athletes ever. But just as you don't have a Boy Scout convention in a casino, you do not take sides on a volatile issue -- pro-life -- during the Super Bowl,” he wrote.

Huh?

You give up who you are for a few hours of football? Because Jay Mariotti and those like him don't like the message?

(If you want to read Mariotti's column, here is the link: http://jay-mariotti.fanhouse.com/2010/01/27/super-bowl-no-place-for-tebows-views/#comments

As you can tell, I agree with Tebow's stance. The death of over a million babies a year in the name of “choice” is the greatest tragedy of our time.

And I admire Tim Tebow for taking a stand.

I noted that Mariotti had no problem with “Cheap Trick helping Audi with a cute environmental theme.”

What is the difference of taking an environmental theme and telling a pro-family story?

Tebow is within his right to say what is dear to his heart. If someone doesn't like it, he or she can turn the TV off during the commercial.

Tebow is living his life as he believes God wants him to do and does not answer to organizations like NOW or politically-correct writers who don't like the Christian message.

I wish all of us had the same backbone as Tim Tebow.

Our country would be a much better place.