Living a dream

(My Anderson News column from May 8, 2013)

There is just something about those quiet types, you know.

Not a lot of chatter, not a lot of extraneous noise. When they talk, it's generally to the point.

In the lustrous annals of University of Kentucky basketball, there probably have been few quieter than A'dia Mathies.

That means when she speaks, we'd do well to listen.

Mathies, who just finished her career at the University of Kentucky, spoke loudly in her Wildcat career. She is one of only five players – Valerie Still, Dan Issel, Kenny Walker and Jack Givens are the others – to score over 2,000 points while wearing the Blue and White. During her career, UK advanced to the women's basketball Elite Eight three times.

To put that in perspective, before Mathies arrived on campus in the fall of 2009, Kentucky had made the regional final once. Only once, back in 1982.

UK won an SEC championship and began to make regular appearances in the Top 10.

Even though Mathies was not even ranked in the nation's Top 50 players coming out of Louisville's Iroquois High School, where she won a state championship and was named Miss Basketball, the Los Angeles Sparks made her the 10^th pick in the WNBA draft.

If you follow women's basketball at all, you probably already knew what I just typed out.

And you know that Mathies is worthy to be heard.

The All-American was in Lawrenceburg last Monday to speak at Turner Elementary School.

Her mission was simple and to the point: Do your best in everything you do if you want to be successful.

“I tried to talk about practice and working hard and taking control of your opportunities,” said Mathies, who brought UK teammate Azia Bishop along for the ride.

Mathies got an enormous opportunity because of an ability to play basketball. Because of that ability, she now has a college degree – she graduated from UK on Sunday – and her contract with the Sparks will likely be much more lucrative than the average entry level job for a college graduate.

“I used basketball as a tool,” Mathies said.

A two-time SEC Player of the Year, there is little doubt that Mathies became skilled in her craft, but at the same time, she became a well-rounded person.

The quiet young lady from Louisville eventually became one of the most recognizable – and most beloved – faces of UK women's basketball.

“In order to grow and be the person I need to be, I know I need to interact with people,” Mathies said with a smile.

Last Monday, Mathies showed just how much she has grown since casting her lot with Kentucky. Mathies spoke briefly, then took questions from Wildcat wannabes.

Her sport?

“Take your sport seriously and work hard,” Mathies said. “If you do, your college will be able to pay for going to school.”

But always, Mathies said, take advantage of the opportunities.

That is exactly what Mathies did when she surprised many observers by turning down a chance to play for her hometown team, winding up 75 miles east.

Still scored more points and a handful of other Wildcat women have been higher-ranked recruits than Mathies coming out of high school. But it can be argued that A'dia Mathies is the most important player to ever ink with the Kentucky women. Surely, it would be hard to envision the kind of success UK has had over the last few years without Adia Mathies.

That Mathies, the high school senior, chose UK the same year Louisville made its first appearance in the women's Final Four is significant.

“I wanted to get a little bit away from Louisville,” Mathies said.

But she also invoked the name of a Cardinal great for her ambition. “I wanted to be the Angel McCoughtry for the UK team,” Mathies said.

While Mathies was never able to lead the Wildcats into the Final Four – UConn ended the run the last two years – she unquestionably fueled the transformation of UK Hoops from SEC also-ran to contender.

“I'm glad I made that choice,” Mathies said. “It worked out really well.”

Mathies was planning to leave for Los Angeles after her graduation. The Sparks' first pre-season game is Sunday with the first regular season game set for June 1 in San Antonio.

(The best chance for Kentucky fans to catch Mathies in person will be when the Sparks visit the Indiana Fever on Thursday, Aug. 8 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.)

But last week, A'dia Mathies, the quiet superstar, left her mark in Lawrenceburg.

“It's a rush,” she smiled when asked if she liked going into the schools. “I hope I got through to just one of them.”

It is the message all should hear and believe.

“If you continue to work hard and put your grades first,” Mathies said, “you can live out a dream like I have.”

Change is inevitable, conflict doesn't have to be

(My column from the April 24, 2013 Anderson News)

When you’ve been writing sports 28 years, the names and the games often run together and the details blur or fade away.

But you distinctly remember the big game-winners.

You don’t forget Miranda Drury's line drive between shortstop and third base to end a 14-inning regional tournament thriller, Seth Carmichael connecting with Matt Sprague to beat Conner or C.J. Penny's 3-pointer to beat Shelby County.

And I remember the night Tracy Wells showed up late for a girls' basketball game.

“I can't believe you remember that,” Wells, now Tracy Price, said in an e-mail from her home in Morehead City, N.C., this week.

How could I forget? I don't remember all the details but was working a game at Boyle County High School, wondering where one of the starters for a very good Anderson County team was. About halftime, Wells walked in with her parents, went directly to the locker room, changed clothes and played the second half.

It was a Wednesday night and Tracy had been to church first. This Bible college graduate sat in a simultaneous awe and shame that a teenage girl was living a life lesson.

Playing on a church night “didn’t happen as commonly as it does now,” wrote Price, who is married to a Church of Christ minister. “It was just an assumed fact in our family that we would go to church but my parents were always willing to try to accommodate both if possible. So we went to church in Danville that night and as soon as it was over went on to the game.”

Twenty-five years later, I still say, “Wow!”

It's pertinent today with the decision by the Kentucky High School Athletic Association last week to move the state championship basketball games to Sunday beginning with the 2014 season. As nearly anyone who follows sports in Kentucky knows, the boys' championship game was played in Rupp Arena on Sunday afternoon, March 10, this year after the Kentucky Wildcats' game with Florida was scheduled for noon on March 9.

With UK getting priority, the traditional format of Saturday morning semi-finals followed by the championship game on Saturday night was impossible.

UK beat Florida at noon, the high school semis were played that night and on Sunday afternoon, over 17,000 saw Madison Central's dramatic win over Ballard.

The girls' tournament, held at Western Kentucky University, kept the old format but will be changing to the new setup next year as well.

For years, I have felt the semi-finals and finals should be played on different days. That will now happen with the new format and that’s good.

But is it really good to tread where this will inevitably lead?

There are some religious concerns, but to its credit, the KHSAA apparently took those in consideration, scheduling the boys' final late enough (2 p.m.) that anyone wanting to attend Sunday church services could do so before the game.

However, you have to wonder if that will be changed in the future.

The change is not setting a precedent. Over the last 10 or 15 years, Sunday games have been creeping onto high school schedules, like it or not. Three years ago, the Anderson girls played in a showcase at Rupp Arena on a Sunday afternoon. While I attended church that morning, it just felt strange to be covering a high school game later that day.

Some might say it is hypocritical to watch games or attend college or pro sports events on Sunday, which I have done. However, that is a different animal. It is about a choice made, not something scheduled and forced upon the one participating.

Bill Pickett was Tracy Price's high school coach at Anderson County. After 15 years on the sidelines, he left to become principal of East Jessamine Middle School, from which he retired. He still lives in Lawrenceburg and remembers that night one of his starters was not there. Some of the details are fuzzy but the fact that he respected his player's decision is vivid.

“It was a decision between the parents and the kid,” Pickett said. “I would think that their spiritual well-being would take precedence.”

Price says Pickett even joked about it the situation. “It seems like he made some comment about being afraid God would make him run if he made me run,” she wrote.

Today, though, things are different. Athletic events have long been a fixture on Wednesday. Youth sports have long used Sundays as game day with “traveling teams” often playing all day long. Sunday is just another day to many.

At the same time, the Wednesday night “prayer meeting” is becoming a relic of the past and church attendance is declining.

“When I was principal (at Shelby County High School), it was on the books there would be no Wednesday night or Sunday activities without the board approval,” Sam Chandler remembered last week.

Mr. Chandler served at Shelby from 1975-1988 and was a member of the KHSAA Board of Control four years. He's now retired and enjoying his family, which I married into. He's my wife's uncle.

Chandler was in Rupp last month when Madison Central beat Ballard for the title. “It felt strange going to the Sweet 16 on Sunday afternoon,” he said. “I went to church that morning and drove over to the game.”

A huge basketball fan, Chandler does not have a problem with the game itself being played on Sunday. “We have a lot of activities on Sunday and it can be a family activity,” he says.

However, like Pickett, Chandler sees what is happening as a reflection of society today. “There are so many things people accept today they did not 20-25 years ago,” Chandler said.

Are sports aiding a secularization of society?

“Whether it is intentional or not, I don't know,” Pickett said. “It is an outgrowth of today's lifestyle and we are not taking a conscious consideration of a person's spiritual needs.”

The 1981 movie “Chariots of Fire” told the story of British runner Eric Liddell, a devout Christian, who refused to run the Olympic 100-meter dash on Sunday despite intense pressure to do so.

Few today would hold such an absolute stance against simply competing but the potential for conflict is real.

“What it boils down to,” Pickett says, “is that a child will do what adults encourage.”

As for Tracy Wells Price, she's now encouraging her own son to do as she did. “I’ve got a 15-year-old playing Babe Ruth baseball and occasionally he has games on Sunday afternoon or evenings,” she wrote. “We do the same thing – go to church and fit the game around that. I think it’s unfortunate that they put families in the position of having to make that choice when it can be avoided.

“It puts additional pressure on kids who are trying to do right – as if they need any more pressure.”

A sports lesson the news media should learn

(This ran in the Feb. 20 edition of The Anderson News.  JH)

That one little piece of journalistic advice offered on a hot August morning nearly 28 years ago is still the one that drives my career as a sports journalist.

I was attending my first University of Kentucky Football Media Day gathering at Commonwealth Stadium. Looking for a chance to be known as a hot-shot writer, I made my way over to the best in the business: Cawood Ledford.

Extremely nervous talking to the giant who would eventually call Wildcat games on the radio for 39 years, I was undoubtedly conducted one of the worst interviews ever, but so true to his nature, Cawood was gracious. I also asked him how he balanced being a fan and being a journalist.

His answer was simple, yet profound. I have shared it in print on several occasions.

“You can't be around a team and not want them to win, but you have to tell the truth.”

The older I get, the more I realize that is almost a prerequisite for successful local sports journalism.

You want the team to do well, but the journalist is still charged with telling the truth.

I have pondered that early lesson quite a bit lately and wonder if many on the news side of journalism need to heed the words of one of all-time greats.

“You can't be around a team and not want them to win, but you have to tell the truth.”

Never have I seen some journalistic standards more egregiously overlooked than following President Obama's State of the Union speech several weeks ago.

I did not get to watch most of the speech live as I was covering a high school basketball game. I got home in time to see about the last five minutes, but later found the entire text online and read word-for-word.

What I did see live was the Republican response by Florida Senator Marco Rubio, who, among other things, shared his remarkable success story. So, yes, I saw the reply before reading Obama's speech. Not that it really mattered.

After all, Sen. Rubio had to take a sip of water.

Repeat. The man's mouth got dry and he took a sip of water.

The next day, I saw commentary on CBS, ABC, CNN and Fox News. Some were even discussing whether a sip of water had killed Rubio's chance at the White House in 2016. You have GOT to be kidding me.

You might like Sen. Rubio or you might disagree with his stands. Honest debate is healthy for the country. But a sip of water even being news?

(Full disclosure: I am a conservative Christian. My world view has been formed with that background. I see no reason to change and am proud of that heritage. However, I am more than willing to discuss the issues with those who disagree, but that is for another day.)

The question lingers. Why did the broadcast media seem to overlook some of the spurious claims in the President's speech? Why was there precious little about his claim that businesses had created over 6 million new jobs? Or that the federal deficit had been cut by $2.5 trillion? Or how about his claim of 500,000 new manufacturing jobs?

Thankfully, some other major news sources did their job. The Washington Post, never known as a bastion of conservatism, published rebuttals to some of the President's claims, including some I listed, and rightly noted that he used some numbers that amounted to “cherry-picking.” There were others.

I might have missed it but saw relatively little analysis about the substance of the State of the Union message in the powerful broadcast media. But had I watched enough, I might have known how many drops of water Sen. Rubio swallowed.

The conservative Daily Caller claims MSNBC ran clips of Sen. Rubio taking a sip of water 155 times the following day, CNN 34 and Fox News 12.

 Really, who cares? Someone's mouth got dry. It happens. Is that what we have become in the media? Is that what people want to know?

Have we forgotten what is really important in the news?

No wonder so many are frustrated with the national media.

Since they are human beings, it would be unreasonable to think a journalist cannot or will not have political preferences.

But he still has to set that aside and tell the truth.

Following God's Plan

(Note: This appeared in a special edition of The Anderson News on Jan. 28, 2013. I am reposting here.)

Sara Beth Fentress knew the formula: Get a good education, find a good job, raise a family and live happily ever after.

Little did she know what kind of reward would be waiting if she took a different path.

“My life has never been typical,” says Fentress, who grew up in Anderson County and is the founder of 127 Worldwide, a Christian ministry with the stated mission of “restoring hope to widows and orphans.”

The ministry's name is a constant reminder of its focus. It reflects the teaching of James 1:27, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep one's self from being polluted by the world (NIV).”

The strikingly simple concept came to Fentress as she was working with International Sports Federation, an Atlanta-based ministry that uses sports to reach people around the world. Fentress was moved when she joined a group for a trip to Kenya. While there she saw incredible poverty.

“Some of the kids were so malnourished,” she recalls. “They couldn't participate in the sports camp.

“The director of the orphanage and school had invited us to do the camp. At the time, there were about 60 kids in the school and 10 in the orphanage, but when we got there, we heard her vision to really reach out to the whole community. We started a very grass roots movement and we wanted to build a partnership with her.”

Since that day in 2007, the school has grown to more than 300 children in preschool to eighth grade and 55 being served in the orphanage. Fentress and others involved in the ministry are convinced the increase is the result of God working through people who have taken a hands-on approach.

“We take volunteer teams to the school,” she says. “We help fund raise. We help dig the well or build an orphanage. The main thing about 127 is we want to find partnerships with people. She is Kenyan. She can reach her community better than we can.”

Anderson County native Laura Eaton Cannon is one of many people with local ties who has been part of the ministry. In the summer of 2009, Eaton spent two weeks working with the Tumaini Miles of Smiles Children's Home and School in Malava, Kenya. Working with Fentress and a group of 11 others, Cannon says her experience was an eye-opener.

“During the day, our team ran a Vacation Bible School,” Cannon said in a message from her Facebook account. “We would love on kids, bandage and treat any minor cuts and scrapes and have a blast just playing games and hearing the voices of children.

“After school, our team would help with daily chores of the children's home, like draining water from the well and carrying it to the orphanage, which is way harder than I ever thought, and washing dishes. We would also aid in making and carrying bricks to help build a great house at the children's home or with anything that needed to be done.”

Cannon went to change lives, but came back changed herself. “I went to Tumaini with a lot of prideful expectations of what I was going to do to help them, but I quickly learned that this trip was going to be a learning experience for me as well,” she said. “It opened my 19-year-old eyes to a whole new perspective.”

Which is exactly what Fentress wants to happen even while people are serving those in another country. The ministry is currently serving in east Africa and plans to expand into Honduras this year and eventually into Southeast Asia.

“In the Third World, there is no welfare. Most of the governments are corrupt,” she says. “A lot of these children don't have a chance to succeed. We want to help them to have a chance.””

The ministry is more than just handing out food. “We don't want to be humanitarian and meet their physical needs without meeting their spiritual needs,” Fentress says.

The problem of empty stomachs is one most Americans cannot understand, Fentress believes.

“We don't have an idea,” she says. “It is like trying to understand what the Grand Canyon is like without seeing it. You can see pictures of it. You can listen to me tell about it, but until you have seen it, you are not going to relate.

“It is overwhelming. The problem is overwhelming. What we decided to do is dig deep and try to make a difference. We are really giving them a hope that their life can be better.

“You break the cycle of poverty one child at a time.”

Fentress says that she and people who want to be involved in the partnerships 127 Worldwide is building can have relationships with the children they sponsor. In her case, it has gone even farther as she is in the process of adopting two girls from Uganda, who will live with her in her Smyrna, Tenn. home.

For Fentress, it is a workable formula for her passion for children. Her parents, former Anderson County school superintendent Sonny Fentress and his wife, the late Ruthie Fentress, spent their working lives with children. “Mom and dad love people,” she says. “For them, they used their passion for kids to educate people.”

It is no coincidence that part of the mission of 127 is to educate people who live in the affluence of the United States about poverty and what can be done. “Everyone kind of knows there is a problem with poverty, but you can make a difference, whether it is a small difference or a huge difference.

“If you make more than $40,000 a year, you are in the top two percent in the world.”

The statistics flow easily as Fentress shares the work of 127 Worldwide. “If you have a passion, you start researching,” the former Anderson County High School basketball player smiles. “If you love UK basketball, you are going to know all of the statistics.”

Knowing those statistics and being convicted in her heart prompted Fentress to found the ministry. “So many told me with the bad economy this was not a good time to start a non-profit,” she says. “I felt the need and felt like God was calling me to do this. Logically, it doesn’t make sense, but God has a plan.”

In the first 18 months of the ministry, 127 Worldwide has raised over $250,000.

Living on donations and teaching others about those far less fortunate is far different from the plan Fentress saw herself taking when she was growing up or even attending Carson-Newman College and Southwestern Seminary.

“If I were writing my story, this is not the way I would have written it,” she says. “This was not even on the radar. I thought I would be working in counseling, something a little more stable and secure.”

But it would not have been making the difference 127 is making, one child at a time.

And Cannon says the ministry makes a difference one worker at a time, too. “The trip to Kenya was life-changing and eye-opening for me,” she said. “I am so anxious for the day I can go back. Even though I am far away from there, I can honestly say there is not a day that goes by that I don’t think about it and what it taught me.”

That shows the concept is working.

“I really want to connect people,” Fentress says. “That is my passion. I think what makes 127 different is that I have a lot of friends in these partnerships that I trust. We build relationships with the people.

“When people go and see, they want to get involved.”

An unexpected award

I received some awards Friday. Six of them, to be exact.

I was fortunate enough to have some of the work I produce for The Anderson News recognized by the Kentucky Press Association. Two of my entries won their categories, four others were awarded third place, with two of the thirds coming in divisions where I also was awarded first place.

I would be lying if I said it was not nice to be recognized for excellence by my peers. I have received many various awards over the years with the plaques and trophies commemorating the first-place finishes having a prominent place in my office. I am a competitor, whether it is on the basketball court or typing out something on a keyboard.

Being the best is my goal every day and those six awards are the exclamation points behind the long hours and hard work that I invest in my job as sports editor of The Anderson News. And I will admit I am proud of them.

But those six awards paled in comparison to the one I had received earlier in the day. In fact, there really was no comparison.

My iPhone alerted me of an incoming Facebook message. It was a name I had not seen or heard for decades.

It was from a girl who had been a part of the church youth group in my first ministry. It was way back in 1978-79. Jimmy Carter was in the White House, I drove a Plymouth Duster and Robin Williams was becoming a household name for his antics on “Mork and Mindy.”

“Long time no see....yet (it) seems like only yesterday you were youth minister and staying with us at mom and dad's,” she wrote.

We had seen each other a time or two after I left the church but drifted apart, as I have with so many people over the years. I can't honestly say the last time I saw Suzie (not her real name), but would guess it has been at least 30 years.

I remembered her family and the fun I used to have in their home. I also knew they liked me quite a bit when I served in that church.

Through the miracle of Facebook, Suzie found me and said she remembered me “being a youth minister, friend and big brother all rolled into one, watching ball games and chatting about what the past week's events held, and advice and inspirational talks and support for a teen trying to just make it through another week of high school.”

I was floored.

Suzie shared some of her personal story, then wrote, “being just a teen back then i probably didn't say at all or not enough thank you for the difference you made in my life, giving me stepping stones to rise above the challenges and continue on a road less traveled … so if you ever doubt that your life has made a (difference) and no one has told you it has, I'm telling you now, and thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

Sitting in the parking lot of the Lawrenceburg Kroger, I was literally in tears.

I never knew.

The rewards that I received that night? Nice. They do look good on the resume. They do mean that people in my profession believe my work meets or exceeds a standard of excellence. But I also know that many different things could happen to tear down the platform with which I have been incredibly blessed.

And one day I will be gone. A hundred years from now, it is doubtful anyone would know who John Herndon was.

But what Suzie told me? That is eternal. It is a reward that can't be put on a plaque and nailed to a wall.

Suzie ministered to me in a way she probably did not know either. You see, I was a little down Friday. I was exhausted from a long week and was looking at a busy weekend. 

Suddenly, I had a spring in my step.

Have you told someone how they have impacted your life?

It's easy to criticize. I know. I might be the world's worst. At times, it serves me well as a journalist, but in human relations, it's not always the best trait to own.

Have you built someone up today?

Paul said in I Thessalonians 5:10-11, “He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”

“Thank you for the difference you made in my life, giving me stepping stones to rise above the challenges and continue on a road less traveled .”

And thank you, Suzie, from the bottom of my heart. You have now made a huge difference in my life, too.

Getting out of "The Christmas Spirit"

I believe I have been into what we call “The Christmas Spirit” more in 2012 than recent years. I don't know why, but I have.

I haven't spent more money on presents this year, but I do know that I have just been more in tune with the story of the birth of Jesus Christ than in the past. I have also felt a little more generous, for some reason.

I do know that I had been listening to some Christmas music – Joy to the World is my favorite – since before Thanksgiving. I can never remember doing that.

There are some limits, of course. Earlier this week, I was in the doctor's office for my annual physical when the nurse asked where I had done my shopping. My quick answer was, “Online.” The implication is that I avoided the mobs and traffic jams at the mall.

And when gas went up 35 cents a gallon in one day, it was enough to make me cry, “Bah, Humbug!”

It makes me wonder, “What really is the Christmas spirit?” On top of that, “Do we really need it?”

Whoa! I am sure some would think I have lost my mind when I ask if we really need “The Christmas Spirit,” but just keep reading.

In our society today, the Christmas season has come to mean two things: Expanded consumerism and seasonal awareness of those who are less fortunate.

Christians and churches are far from immune to these aspects of the world's understanding of Christmas. In fact, I am sometimes amazed at how deeply it is ingrained in those who claim to be different from the world around them.

Over the last few years, it has become stylish in Christian circles to utter the words, “I can't wait to see what God has in store next.”

They might take different forms, but the words are a reasonable facsimile of that sentence, conveying the thought: “I can't wait to see what is in it for me (or us.)”

To be fair, I do believe some share those thoughts without thinking of the connotation. At least I hope so. I would like to think many utter those thoughts with the idea of “I am expecting to enjoy" or “I am looking to be uplifted or lift someone else up.” Perhaps the words are intended to reflect a desire for the “experience” of worship.

Yet, I often wonder if this is a product of our consumerism. Really, what more does God need to have in store for us? He has already given his son for our salvation. The basis of the Christian faith is on the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Do we need more?

By saying this, I am not saying we should not look for blessings. They are everywhere and often found when we are least expecting them. Nor am I saying that worship should be a cold, dull and sullen affair. Just as a sports fan can get excited about what his team does, a Christian has even more reason to be joyous. The salvation that we have through Jesus is infinitely greater than anything our favorite team can give and we should be excited.

It reminds me of the old preacher I once heard say he wished he could get in the pulpit and yell, “Two bits, four bits, six bits, a dollar. All for Jesus, stand up and holler.”

The key is who is the most important? Do we direct our worship and the way we carry our lives, which the book of Romans tells us is our worship, to God or is it for our “experience?” Are our lives “for Jesus” or “for us?”

Are we really focusing on being disciples of Jesus Christ or are we looking for the latest religious fad that makes us feel good, then move on when something else tickles our fancy?

Have we made Christianity religious version of looking for a bargain on Black Friday?

We also need to get rid of The Christmas Spirit in how we view those who are less fortunate.

Christmas is a time when we DO think about giving. Even those who have no desire to be involved in organized faith often refer to the Christmas season as “a time of giving.”

Churches often put together food baskets, gather clothing or have toy drives at Christmas time. Other organizations do many of the same things. These are wonderful opportunities to minister to people at a time when having material needs is magnified. When someone is unable to share in our traditions of Christmas because of a sickness, injury, a loss of a job, or many other reasons, it seems to be a double blow.

There are many people around the world who live in poverty and would welcome any gesture of good will. My family prepared several boxes for Operation Christmas Child, a wonderful outreach of Samaritan's Purse, an organization headed by Franklin Graham. That is just one of the many good opportunities to give just a small amount to reach others in another country.

But what about people who have needs in March, May or August? Do we meet needs then too? Are we as cognizant then?

There are many good organizations, such as World Vision, Compassion International and Save the Children, to name a few, where we can contribute.

Sadly, however, we often overlook those with needs in our own back yards. In our relative affluence, I am as guilty of that as anyone.

The church I attend is one of many that sponsors a “No Sale Yard Sale” designed to reach out to those in the community by simply giving clothes away. Another church I attended when I was living elsewhere had a creative ministry of people working on cars as a ministry to those who cannot afford repairs. The examples are countless.

However, are we as cognizant of people with needs in July as we are in December? Do we really help others in our every day lives, not waiting for a church or organization to help when we can reach out on our own?

If we only reach out during the Christmas season, then we need to expand that Christmas spirit to a 12-month proposition.

Obviously, many people faithfully offer heartfelt worship and reach out to others. Many of their efforts go unnoticed here on earth, but we know that the One who matters notices.

But I fear the secularization of our society has led to a different gospel than the one Jesus charged us with.

Peace when asking "Why?"

Heinous. Vicious. Atrocious.

None of those adjectives could come close to describing the murder of 20 defenseless first-graders and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.

Incomprehensible.

We simply can't fathom how someone could be so sick, so deranged to force his way into an elementary school, the home of bright eyes, toothless smiles and looks of wonder.

Why?

Just why?

How could anyone methodically aim a gun at such innocence and pull a trigger? Not just once, but, according to reports, multiple times.

For that matter, how could anyone purposely take the life of anyone, any age?

We are searching for answers but will find that the answers simply are not there. We can only assume that the young man who committed one of the most dastardly crimes in our nation's history was deranged. We can only explain that he suffered from mental illness and demons that few could understand.

What else can we do?

When the depths of evil became apparent Friday, it was as if someone had kicked us in the stomach. We asked ourselves, “What in the world has happened to common decency?” Or, “Has good left our world?”

I wanted to write Friday. I am glad I did not. I was angry. Angry at many things, but mostly angry because there are no explanations.

I am glad I waited. Less than nine hours after seeing the first report of the shooting pop up on my iPhone, I was privileged to attend the Gaither Christmas Homecoming concert at the Bank of Kentucky Arena on the campus of Northern Kentucky University.

Early in the evening, Bill Gaither, one of the greatest Christian song writers ever, joined singer Charlotte Ritchie on stage, then led a crowd of nearly 10,000 people in prayer for Newtown.

Then, we worshiped.

Yes, the people on the stage were gifted musicians and singers. Some have had success in fields other than gospel music. Yet, the program was one of worship and a message of hope.

How we need that hope today!

Immediately after the news of the shootings the debate about what to do got even stronger. On one hand, those who support stronger gun-control laws immediately called on those in power to act. Obviously, they point out, stronger gun-control would have prevented such a tragedy.

I believe those people really are well-meaning. Most of them truly believe the world would be safer with stronger regulations.

But they are incredibly naïve. That assumes that those who commit crimes are going to get guns legally, if they are still available on the market, or will not get them if guns are not available. The reality is that if someone is determined to commit a crime, he will find a way to get a weapon.

Gun control is just a band-aid.

On the other hand, I have seen many calls for armed law enforcement or allowing people with Concealed Carry Deadly Weapons permits to be at school all the time. The idea, of course, is if someone enters a school to commit a crime, there is at least a fighting chance to stop it quickly. This might have some teeth to it, but it is just a band-aid as well. Bigger perhaps, but still a band-aid.

What if the shooter takes out the officer first? And do we really want our schools to be armed camps?

Others have called for other measures, such as metal detectors, even more lockdowns and the like.

Just more band-aids.

I am not downplaying security measures in any way. Unfortunately, we live in a time that calls for utmost vigilance.

The problem, however, is much deeper than how we are going to protect ourselves from violence.

There is evil in the world. There has been ever since the Garden of Eden and will be until the end of the world. However, it sure seems like we are seeing much more of it today.

I believe the answer is found in Jesus Christ.

The question has been asked so many times why God has allowed so many unbelievable crimes to happen in recent years. My answer is that when we push God out of society, this is what happens. When we thumb our nose at Him, evil reigns.

Think about it.

We have allowed God to be taken out of schools. When I attended elementary school from 1964-1970, we openly talked about God. We prayed. Teachers read the Bible.

The problems we had? Cutting line, chewing gum or something of that sort.

And, looking back now, one of my favorite memories of childhood is that of my aunt, the principal of the school, taking a carload of her students to church on Sunday morning. She simply asked them to go.

Now, it seems like educators doing the same would be facing a lawsuit.

More than the schools, however, we have pushed God out of society. We have glorified sin and called it by many other names. We buy our kids video games that depict people taking out other people. We see box office success with gore and the fantasy of, again, taking someone's life.

And we wonder why?

We hurt with the people in Connecticut. Surely many of the parents have presents under their Christmas trees that will never be unwrapped. Santa Claus might by-pass some of those houses where the victims lived.

It's Christmas, a time of joy that has been stolen from many people.

Yet, coming up on Christmas, it is important to remember the one whose birth we celebrate is called the “Prince of Peace.”

It is a peace that can only be found in our hearts, for as long as there is evil in the world, there will be stories like Sandy Hook or Columbine or Virginia Tech or Heath.

Jesus said his kingdom is “not of this world” (John 18:36) meaning it dwells in his people. Hearts belonging to God have true peace that does not and cannot exist in a world where evil is rampant.

That kind of peace is not just a band-aid.

It is the real cure for what ails the world.

“Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace, good will to men.”