daily java

Daily Java:

No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house. For all that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all. (Luke 8:16-17)

I was reading an article about conservatives in Hollywood. It mentioned that, for the most part, they have to stay underground. Hollywood is hostile to conservatism and liberals rule almost everything. So the average conservative has to lay low.

I have heard of the same thing happening there with Christians. Christians espouse a lifestyle that Hollywood hates. So if they want to have work, they have to be careful.

I have problems with that. On the one hand, I can see the difficulty. It is like Christians in Muslim countries, or in the old Communist countries. They had to be careful if they wanted to stay alive, much less worship.

On the other hand, what good does it do to be a Christian if you cannot ell anyone? Jesus was very forceful with what he believed, as were the apostles and preachers in the book of Acts. They said what they believed and suffered greatly for it.

Of course, there is a lot to be said in living behind the scenes, changing things as you can. And someone living behind the scenes is better than no one living at all. There is that.

It does seem a shame to have to hide (or if not hide, then greatly diminish) your Christianity in order to survive. And I am not sure Hollywood is worth the sacrifice. I do know and have read often of Christians coming to Hollywood determined to make a big difference and then being turned.

And it is a shame. Not surprising, considering the influence Hollywood has on our culture, that it could turn some lowly actor or director.

I would hate to have to live like that.

your life as a letter

The only letter of recommendation we need is you yourselves. Your lives are a letter written in our[a] hearts; everyone can read it and recognize our good work among you. (1 Corinthians 3:2)

I just finished a book and it made me sad.

It was a Larry McMurtry book about Billy the Kid and it was extremely well-written. McMurtry’s books almost always are.

But about 30 – 40 pages from the end, I knew I was coming to a close. And I was reluctant.

A good book makes me that way. It makes me want to put it down and go do something else for a while, if nothing else just to put the ending of the book off.

When I finish, it is (if a good book) a sad thing. And I will have to admit that almost any book will affect me that way.

I read the Bible through every year. And when I come to the end of Revelation, it has that same impact.

He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!” Amen, come Lord Jesus! May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s holy people.

John ends with the invitation to come on, be through, come get us now. Of course, it has been over 1900 years since then, but I feel that way myself.

Ending a book does not mean ending life. It just means you go on to the next. In the case of the Bible, it means I start over again.

I re-read some books. The McMurtry book I just finished I have read before. But I love his writing style and his endings are so good. They just stop. No real ending, just stopping.

The same with the Bible. It is on-going in the lives of the believer. It continues in what we do and say. Yes, the writing part stopped, but the voice of God is still active and alive.

When we live in him, that written word continues, just as surely as if there are extra chapters and extra books. When it comes down to it, we are books of his, we are, as the apostle Paul said, his epistles. People see in us, or should see in us, that which God says and believes and gives to the world.

When we die, our book stops, but those we have touched are able to read it further in their remembering what we have said and done and in the writing of their own books.

daily java

Daily Java:

Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? You must have the qualities of salt among yourselves and live in peace with each other. (Mark 9:50 NLT)

Make a flip comment that turns out wrong and you understand what this verse means.

It means that once you have lost your moral power, your ethical strength, it is virtually impossible to recover. At least among the people where you lost it.

Our influence is like salt. It flavors all we do and say, and in fact all we are. People see us through the prism of that influence.

If your influence is bad, people see you as bad. If it is wishy-washy, that is how people see you. If you lie a lot, or even if you don’t always keep your word, people see you as basically, if not dishonest, then undependable.

A Christ-follower keeps his or her influence as sharp and clean as possible. Because once it is lost, it is just about irrecoverable.

In the old days, salt was not all that stable like it is today. If it got wet, or exposed to the elements, it would lose it saltiness and become nothing more than No-Salt, that horrible tasting fake salt we used to use. In other words, it became worthless.

And since salt was sometimes used as currency (the old expression “worth his salt” came from that), it had to be kept covered and protected or you lost something valuable. If you lost your salt, nothing tasted all that good anymore.

If you lose your “salt”, your moral imperative, your influence, you have lost something valuable. That currency of influence we all want to have, that aura that makes people respect us as ethical, is gone. And all because you didn’t keep it safe.

It may be your influence in your business, or among your friends or even with your children. They know, more than anyone, whether or not you keep your word and your promises. You may fool a lot of people, but you will not fool your kids.

And once they see you as not keeping your word, there is little you can teach them.

Guard that power. Otherwise you will not be able to encourage others with wholesome teaching and show those who oppose it where they are wrong (Titus 1:9). All they will see is another waffler like they are.

ps  On this note, George Savage in his article on Leadership Lessons from the US Military in ricochet.com, said:

Credibility is essential, takes a lifetime to earn and a moment to throw away.  Subordinates will listen to what you say but always compare your words to what you do and who you are.  Hone authenticity and earn credibility if you expect to lead. Guess what?  This is hard work – no shortcuts.

 Absolutely true.

daily java

Daily Java: As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor. (Ecclesiastes 10:1)

It doesn’t take much to ruin something good. A couple of dead flies in the perfume and the perfume, no matter  how expensive is less desirable. A roach crawls across a sirloin steak and it is no longer appetizing. A crack is in a Waterford crystal vase and it is less valuable.

Somebody says something really stupid and it ruins any wisdom credits he has attained. He just looks silly, no matter how wise he looked before.

I have said things in my desire to be cute that removed the aura of wisdom and knowledge I had so carefully cultivated. This has not happened a lot, but when it did, I would almost give an arm to call the words back in.

As I said in an earlier post, I have a big mouth that sometimes, even now, seems to speak of its own volition. When it does, it makes me look foolish. And I hate looking foolish.

A preacher devotes his life to doing good stuff, but then has an affair. The rest of everything is overwhelmed by the affair. It now doesn’t matter to people how many people he has brought to Christ, or how well he writes, or how many degrees he has. He has committed an overt, public sin, and that folly outweighs all the wisdom and honor he may have had before.

The dead flies of his foolishness give his life perfume a bad smell.

The same with a public official who says something incredibly foolish, or is caught taking a bribe or something else foolish. It doesn’t matter what else he has done. A little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

A lie is told, something is stolen, someone is betrayed in some way – no matter how the person was before, this is now remembered. The dead flies and the little folly come in.

But it is not fair, the person says. And he is right. It is not fair to have a moment of weakness take over a person’s whole legacy. But it happens.

A prominent senator does a lot in his life, but there was a marital infidelity in his past that resulted in a car crash and the death of his mistress. He gets off due to family connections but his life is never the same. Even though he is respected, people still remember that.

A president has a moment of weakness with a young intern, and no matter what else happens, that is remembered.

A prominent minister is caught with a prostitute, and no matter his repentance, the damage is done and his ministry is forever altered. His church is a fraction of its former size.

A senator is caught on a boat with young woman and the picture is everywhere. No matter what he did before and the potential he had, his promising career is derailed.

It doesn’t take much. People are watching for stuff anyway. Sometimes you can overcome it by, if nothing else, sheer fortitude and hard work.

But the flies have ruined the perfume and the folly has outweighed the wisdom and honor.

Life is tough and then you die. And life is not fair. And you have to sleep in the bed you make. A hundred aphorisms come to mind. But the point is, watch your life.

And shut up once in a while.