There is just something about that mountain. Thoreau had his favorite birch tree, but I have a mountain. My introduction to it came as a young teen with a gang of older boys on a wild trip through the woods to that special place. There was a forestry tower on top, and it was still manned at that time. Sometimes I would take a date for a hike there.  I wouldn’t climb the forestry tower out of fear of heights, but the ranger was willing to supervise the girl’s climb so she could get to appreciate the view.

I was middle-age before I had the intestinal fortitude to climb that tower, for even at the base of the tower, one is looking at a drop-off of hundreds of feet. Every year I take groups of individuals to that spot to enjoy what I’ve loved and experienced over the years.

Maybe you could join us. We snowshoe it every February. In one particular spot, we actually tie a rope so people can pull themselves up a stretch of about 200 feet.  Coming down is a thrill.

Homeland Security built a communication tower on top. To build it, they had to bulldoze a very steep road on the other side of the mountain. Some friends actually took us jeeping to the top, using Homeland Security’s trail.

There’s another place that has my heart and I haven’t even experienced it yet. The name of that place is heaven.  My soul aches because I so desire to take as many people there as I can.

1 Peter 1:4

and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,

Some day we could all gather there and what a view.

Think about it.

Gary

“Cat’s in the Cradle” is a 1974 folk rock song by Harry Chapin from the album, Verities & Balderdash. It’s probably the only song he ever made some big money on. The song was so successful because of the huge numbers of English-speaking fathers out there who are living with a mountain of regret for not spending quality time with their sons. I’d rather be water-boarded than listen to that song.

The Bible offers some very good advice for fathers:

Ephesians 6:4

Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

We need to inform young men that life is but a vapor and you only go around once. Take the time, cut some things out of your selfish endeavors, and put those you brought into this world to the forefront of all responsibilities. Neglect in this area will be something you’ll pay for in guilt somewhere down the road.

Give it some thought.

Gary

He was a combat marine just getting back from Vietnam and starting college. The only way he got into the service was because someone else provided him some urine.  Yes, that’s how it was.  He wouldn’t pass because of a kidney problem. He got caught with that stunt once by a medical officer and told the officer that only the military could provide him with the means to get a college education.  The doctor was sympathetic to this young, focused marine and let it pass. He made it through his war experience with only the haunting memories that all combat veterans have to carry.

During his first year of college, he had two veterans for roommates, but one got a teaching position which left him in need of another roommate. He knew of a kid just graduating from high school who needed someone older and wiser to take him under his wing. Yes, I was that person and he was right. He came into my life just at the right time.

To make a long story short, he was the best man at my wedding, and years later, I officiated at the weddings of all three of his sons. One of those boys flew my wife and me to California for his wedding. That was the same son who gave his dad a kidney some years later. Some family, isn’t it?

This account is about a real friend whose friendship doesn’t diminish with time, distance or circumstances. With friends like that helping you, navigating the uncertainties of life is easier.

This is my Scripture for individuals such as these who help pave the way for others:

Proverbs 17:17

A true friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need.

Make a list of your friends and acknowledge their input in your life and be thankful to God for them.

Think about it.

Gary

I looked in the review mirror and watched that state trooper walking up to my car. In my mind I’m thinking, this is going to be at least two hundred dollars.  My quick, mental calculation of a lifetime of speeding gave me comfort for the time I’d saved during past transgressions. Discussing my experience on those previous highway miles would not be brought up by me.  My hair wasn’t gray yet and I didn’t know him personally, so I didn’t have much hope of influencing the outcome.

The officer stated that I was speeding and asked, “Did I have any reason for such egregious view of the law?” Maybe not in those exact words but that’s how I interpreted his question.

Looking him right in the eye with a sad expression on my face, I said, “No, Officer, I was speeding and there is absolutely no excuse for it.” He didn’t pull his Glock, spray me with mace, hit me with that wooden stick at his side, or give me a ticket. He just said, “Slow it down.” Then he returned to his cruiser and drove away.

Some people tell a lie to make money. In this case I told the truth and didn’t lose any money.

The Scripture says the following about the truth:

3 John 1:4

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

That old fellow that is always a passenger with me would have had me say, “Tell him your mother’s in the hospital and wants to see you before she expires. Tell him your speedometer doesn’t work. Tell him you were thinking of joining the state police and needed to talk to a trooper. Tell him your chest hurts, pain is radiating down your left arm, you’re diaphoretic and you have jaw pain.”

The new man with me said, “No, tell him the truth.

Think about it.

Gary

“Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows; it empties today of its strength.”—Corrie Ten Boom

There’s enough constructive stuff that can keep one occupied today to cloud out that beast that torments us, often referred to as worry. My parents were worried about the possibility of the Russians attacking because that’s what Americans were supposed to do in the fifties. The Soviets never showed up. Someone actually built a bomb shelter in a small town in northern Maine. The Russians had no plans to attack that small community. All that time worrying was wasted.

I was always worried that I wouldn’t be promoted to the next grade. So many of my friends had to repeat and lost a year of their lives. It never happened to me because all I had to do was my homework.

My great concern was not being tall enough to do well playing basketball, when height had little to do with the sport.

Matthew 6:27

Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

The Bible clearly addresses this useless endeavor that we engage in:

Matthew 6:25-26

“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

I don’t have this one beat yet, but it sure helps to go over the Scriptures referring to it.

Think about it.

Gary

You have seen pictures of race horses or old westerns where teams of horses pull a stagecoach. Have you ever wondered why blinders have been placed on the head of the animal? The blinders cover the rear vision of the horse, forcing it to see only in a forward direction and keeping it on track. Blinders are also useful to reduce the chances of the horse’s being spooked from the side and making a run for it while still attached to the wagon.

This illustrates the way in which God desires us to view things. We can worry about the past catching up to us or many scary things broadsiding us. However, the Holy Spirit desires us to focus on the future and what God has in store.

Luke 9:62

Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

Colossians 3:2

 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

Go to the great optometrist and have Him improve your vision with spiritual devices that work.

Give it some thought.

Gary

“Flowers on the Wall” is a song made famous by American country music group, The Statler Brothers. Written and composed by the group’s original tenor, Lew DeWitt, the song peaked in popularity in January 1966, spending four weeks at No. 2. I’ll mention one stanza to give you an idea of the uselessness of the life mentioned in the song.

Counting flowers on the wall, that don’t bother me at all
Playing solitaire ’til dawn with a deck of fifty one
Smoking cigarettes and watching Captain Kangaroo
Now don’t tell me I’ve nothing to do

When God placed Adam in the garden, he gave him a job to do. That was to dress it and keep it. Adam certainly failed in the second part of the responsibility.

God didn’t save us to be a wallflower or a potted plant. His desire is that we work out what He has worked in.

Ephesians 2:10

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Ephesians 4:28

Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.

Don’t be like Adam and fail to keep what God has given you to do. You will suffer if you are negligent and so will many others because of you.

Give it some thought.

Gary