Second in Command

   

I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.   -First Timothy 2:1-4

  I am enjoying my job teaching 5th grade at Calvary Christian Academy.  A few weeks ago, one of my students made a comment that got my mind working overtime.  

     "It must be so easy being Vice-President.  You just follow the President around and wait for him to die so you can have a job, and if he doesn't, you just get to hang out in Washington, DC!"  I realized that I needed to correct this misconception.  Being the Vice-President is a real job.  A very hard job.  Sometimes, a very thankless one.  

     I put a lot of thought into this.  Including current Vice-President Mike Pence, there are six living Vice-Presidents.  Some, I have a very high opinion of and agree with.  Others, I do not.  However, all of them have done (or are currently doing) a very difficult job for our country, and deserve respect if nothing else.  People who accuse any President or Vice-President of simply being "stupid" are completely wrong.  

  

   

     I have twelve students in my class.  What if I were to place them in groups of two, and have them each do a report on one of these men?  That is exactly what I have done.

     We are currently working on major history fair projects, so I plan to start this project in March, due in early April.  However, I knew one aspect of it needed to be taken care of as soon as possible.  I had each group write a letter to their chosen Vice-President.  They did that today.  I wanted to give them plenty of time to respond (if they do) so that the students can use the return letter in their reports.

     Doing this took a lot of planning and research on my part beforehand, including tracking down mailing addresses for former Vice-Presidents.  They're not exactly listed in my local phone book with poison control and the police department.  I also had to try to find out the respectful way to address a former Vice-President who is now a private citizen.  I learned that, unlike Presidents, who may still be called "Mr. President" after leaving office, Vice-Presidents do not take that title with them.  Rather, they should be addressed by the highest office they held prior to the Vice-Presidency.  Did you know that?  I didn't.  This meant Dick Cheney would be Mr. Cheney, while Walter Mondale, Dan Quayle, Al Gore, and Joe Biden would all be addressed as Senator.   So much to learn!  

     Having found all this out, I came up with a form letter for my students to follow.  The first paragraph in each was virtually identical:  "We are in 5th grade at Calvary Christian Academy.  We have been placed in groups to write reports about Vice Presidents.  We are learning about what the Vice President does.  We chose you for our report."  

     The next paragraph was blank.  I had each team come over and tell me what they wanted to ask their Vice-President.  Some questions, I tried to steer them away from.  We eventually came up with some good letters.  I printed out the letters and had the kids sign them.  

     I was really proud that each group wanted to include the question, "Are you a Christian" in their letter.  I told them that probably all of these men would say "yes" to this question.  I told them that personally, I have read the salvation experiences of both Dan Quayle and Mike Pence.  The rest, I explained, I'm truly not certain of.  I was proud my students cared about their relationships with the Lord.  I didn't have them include that question in their letters, because, as I said, I believe their answer would simply be "yes" either way, and I wanted them to focus on the role of Vice-President.  Perhaps that was wrong of me.  Maybe that would have been my students' witness.  We did identify our Christian school, and were extremely respectful (we closed each letter with "Thank you for serving our country!"  Before their signatures, we put "Most Respectfully,".  Still, perhaps it would have been good for me to let the kids actually ask if they were Christians.

     Some of the things the kids said and wanted to say were sweet and funny.  For example...

     The group writing to Mike Pence asked him if he got into traffic jams on his way home from the White House every night.  They explained that we have bad traffic in Albuquerque.  They asked if other people on the freeway recognized him as the Vice-President and tried it honk and wave at him.  They also told him our class is praying for him and President Trump.  I thought that was a nice touch (and it is the truth, too)

     The group writing to Al Gore asked him what he does for fun.  They also asked him what he thought the most interesting thing was that happened when he was Vice President.  I thought this was a good question, and of course let them keep it in (I just hope that if he writes back, he doesn't say the Monica Lewinsky scandal!)  

     The group writing to Walter Mondale wanted to ask him how much gas used to cost back then (I told them that he was the only Vice-President I didn't remember out of all of them, so I guess they assumed it was really far back!).  I encouraged them to keep it more general (the man's in his 90's!).

     I think the funniest thing was the group writing to Dan Quayle.  They had specifically requested him, because they're sort of on a George H.W. Bush kick (since he passed so recently, and I had also told my students he was President when I was their age).  One of the boys on the team wanted to ask Quayle, "How was it working with George H.W. Bush?"  His partner immediately stopped him.  "You shouldn't mention him!  Dan Quayle probably misses him now that he's dead, and that question might make him cry."  I had to stifle laughter at this, trying to imagine Dan Quayle opening their letter and bursting into inconsolable tears.  But their concern was very sweet.  I told them that the question was appropriate and they could keep it in.  

     I mailed these letters at the Post Office after work.  I think it would be really great if they wrote back to the kids.  I think it was a great thing for the kids to do this.  I look forward to eventually hearing what these students come up with in their reports.  I'm certain they'll never underestimate the Vice-Presidency again!  

Top Ten Things that Bug me...and probably you too!

     I was raised to have a positive attitude and try not to complain.  But life isn't perfect, and some things are annoying.  The Bible even talks about annoying things, particularly in the book of Proverbs, such as: a neighbor who wears out his welcome (Proverbs 25;17), a complaining wife (Proverbs 27:15), and greeting someone early in the morning (Proverbs 27:14), among other things.  The following are the top ten things that annoy me, and probably annoy you too!  If you can think of anything to add to the list, let me know!  This is meant mostly for laughs (but not entirely), and also just for people to relate to.

10)  When I'm wearing a long skirt, such as in church, and I bend over to pick something up, and step on the skirt unknowingly, and then inadvertently pull it down when I stand up!  One time, I was in front of the church years ago, sitting on the platform, and then when I stood up, I heard this loud RRRIP!  I had stood on it and ripped it!  I was sure everyone heard it.  The whole seam ripped, and I had to hold it together and walk out of the church sideways!  A close "cousin" of this experience is when I'm wearing lightweight, loose-fitting slacks, and I put something in my pocket (such as keys), and then, when I run, or walk more quickly, the weight of the thing in the pocket pulls my pants down.  I've had that one happen in public a few times, where my pants came all the way down!

9)  Traffic!  No further explanation needed with this one!  I loved having very little traffic to speak of in South Dakota.  I'm learning my way around Albuquerque, and figuring out the best time to leave in the mornings to avoid rush hour (which, like LA traffic, doesn't rush!).  I'm also seeing which side-streets are more direct than the freeway. Even Jesus must relate to this, because Matthew 8:18 says, Now when Jesus saw the crowd around Him, He gave orders to depart to the other side of the sea.

8)  When someone brings you a drink you enjoy (soda, iced tea, water...whatever), but it's 3/4 full of ice with very little liquid.  If it's water, you just don't get enough to quench your thirst, which is annoying in and of itself.  If it's any other beverage, it's the same problem, plus the added annoyance that all that ice waters down the flavor.  I prefer no ice in my drinks if it's already refrigerated.  If it is room temperature, I like very light ice to cool it, but not much. 

7)  When you're at someone's home for dinner, and they're getting the salad ready while you're all visiting before the meal.  You watch them cut up the veggies and it looks delicious and mouth-watering.  Then they add the one vegetable you don't like, and put it all over the salad and it kind of ruins it for you!  You would have loved the salad otherwise, but the thing they added (for me, it's onions) makes it so you can't enjoy it, and it is usually applied to the salad in a way that you can't politely pick it out (or even if you can, it alters the flavor enough that, even if you remove it, the taste lingers).  For the record, if you ever come to my house for dinner, I always set up a salad bar, so people can put what they want on it.  

6)  This happens to me at Walmart all the time, but has happened at other places too.  When I'm at the Walmart photo center printing pictures or having photos put on a disk (which I do a lot), there is seldom an actual employee behind the counter or anywhere near.  If there is any problem at all with the machine, or if I have any question at all, I have to leave my stuff there in the machine, go to some other department (hopefully the electronics, which is right next to photos, but sometimes I have to go further) and find someone, who usually doesn't know anything about photos, and has to run and find someone who does, and it turns out they don't come in for another hour or two.  Yikes!  If this happens at Walgreens (the other place I often go to print pictures), the store is so much smaller than Walmart that it is easier to get help, but this still happens.

5)  This is a big teacher one.  It can happen at church, school...wherever, and has happened with all ages.  If a child I am in charge of in some way is acting out, being disrespectful, or especially if they are doing something dangerous, but their parent is right there, I'm left not knowing if it is appropriate for me to correct them.  What's worse, sometimes I forget myself and correct kids who aren't my responsibility at all, and I've had to go back and apologize to parents.  The pet peeve here isn't really the child acting up (because they all do, it's normal), but that awkwardness of having the parent right there and not being sure how to intervene, or even if I should.  This most often happens during drop off or pick up times when both parent and teacher are present.

4)  When someone loses a significant amount of weight and suddenly wants to give you all their "fat clothes".  Please, people, just give them to goodwill!  I've had people offer me clothes five to ten sizes bigger than I wear!  I was left thinking, "Wow, I must give off the illusion of being a lot bigger than I am."  That is incredibly awkward.  Some people are perfectly satisfied with their weight and body image, and some are terribly insecure.  Either way, offering someone your big clothes is not complimentary, even if your intention is to be kind and helpful.  Please just give them to goodwill.  Or find a creative way to reuse.  I had a coworker who lost 80 pounds, and had the clever idea of saving her clothes for pregnancy, so she didn't have to buy maternity clothes.  She got good use out of them when she was pregnant.

3)  When your favorite TV show kills off important characters!  Pictured below are a few people they've killed off from my favorite shows over the years...and it was a big mistake!  I'm still trying to get over When Calls the Heart having Jack die!  Cruel!  I guess it goes to show we shouldn't get too emotionally attached to fictional characters.

2)  People asking indelicate or vulgar questions.  A friend of mine is constantly asked when her baby is due...and she isn't pregnant!  She even gets strangers coming up and touching her belly!  It really offends her, understandably!  When I was in high school, it was, "When are you going to college?  How will you pay for it?  What job are you getting?  What?  You're not working yet?  What's wrong with you?  How will you ever pay for school or a car or insurance?  You know that's expensive, right?"  As a teenager, I was very overwhelmed by this, and I walked away without a word.  When I was a single adult, it was, "Why aren't you married yet?  You need to get out more!  Ditch that little church God called you to do ministry at and join a big church that has a singles group, just for the express purpose of meeting someone, because this singleness thing is a curse that needs to be broken, and that's more important than following God's plan for your life and trusting His sovereignty. (okay, I'm paraphrasing slightly!)"  My response to this reasoning was a hyperbole, "Because I'm a reject nobody wants!" just to get them to realize how rude they were being.  Today, it's "Why don't you have kids yet?  You're getting old!  What if you can't have any?"  As if I don't feel rotten enough about it every time I look on Facebook an see that people a decade younger than us and who have been married less time than us are having kids, and we aren't.  We want to be happy for our friends, so it is a quiet pain to bear.  My answer to this most indecent question is, "Gee, I don't know why we don't have kids yet, but we sure enjoy trying!"  I figure if people are going to ask a vulgar question, they can expect to get a vulgar answer.  Sometimes, this is a good way to be a little bit funny, but also establish a boundary.  

AND THE MOST ANNOYING THING TO ME IS (the envelope please...drum roll)

1) When I tell someone about an experience I had after the fact, and they say, "Well, if I was there, I would have...".  First, that not only implies that I handled it wrongly, but also that the person I'm talking to would handle it so much better. This is arrogant.  Even if this was true and I did handle it wrongly and should have handled it their way, the situation is over, and someone telling me how they would have handled it doesn't help me in the present.  It's useless.  It helps no one  And really, no one really knows what they would do in a situation until they're in it.  It's one thing to hear someone talk about a situation and think how you'd handle it, but it is entirely different to actually have the situation thrown at you, sometimes without a chance to reflect on the best response.  I've gotten to the point where, when someone says, "Well, I would have..." I say, "I'm sure you would have.  Maybe that's why God put me there and not you."  This shuts them up!

     What things annoy you?  Have you dealt with any of the ones I listed here?  

My side of the street

     I recently saw a post on Facebook that shared a little story.  The gist of it went something like this:  A man went to church and forgot to turn off his cell phone.  It went off during prayer.  Everyone was really offended with him and let him know it in no uncertain terms.  He determined never to go to church again because of their harshness.  Later that same day, he went to a bar, and everyone treated him kindly and respectfully, so he spent the rest of his life going there.  The story ended with an admonishment toward Christians to watch how we act, because we're sending people to hell.

     I've heard this stuff before.  While I completely agree that we need to be kind to people, we are not responsible for anyone else's choices, nor are we responsible for anyone else's eternal destiny.  In the story above, the man made his choice.  The people at the church who were rude to him will be held responsible for being rude, but they are not responsible for him choosing to go to the bar and never return to church.  That's on him.  This story is a long list of tactics meant to vilify the church and Christians.  Unfortunately, Christians are often all too eager to accept the blame and pass on the Facebook posts.  

     The ultimate questions is this:  What did you do with Jesus Christ?  If you made Him your Savior, you have eternal life.  If not, then you have an eternity apart from God in the lake of fire.  No one else is responsible for what you do with Jesus Christ and His offer of salvation.  There will be no finger-pointing at the judgment.  No one can say, "People at church were rude," and have God accept that as a valid answer as to why they rejected Jesus Christ.  It isn't about other people.  It's about you and Jesus.

     I have enough guilt for my own sins.  I don't need guilt heaped on me by being told I'm sending people to hell.  I don't have that kind of power.  I feel strongly about this, and there is a reason.  Several years ago, in my early 20's, I had a ministry superior become very angry with me for the way I handled a situation.  This woman's anger was out of proportion to the situation.  Looking back, I can see that I could have handled things a little differently, but my heart was in the right place.  All I really needed was a little admonishment from the boss.  That isn't want I got.  I got shouted at, and accused of sending people to hell.  

     Do you want to know what had happened?  I have shared this story before, in earlier posts.  We were having our Christian Youth in Action camp at California Baptist University.  The University had a swimming pool, but one of their rules was that women had to wear one-piece swimsuits.  Several of our females students knew this, but brought bikinis anyway (testing the limits).  My superior told the girls she was going to give them "grace" and let them wear their bikinis anyway.  That's fine and dandy, but it wasn't her pool or her rules.  My superior made me take these students to the pool.  The lifeguard saw those bikinis and wouldn't let them swim.  He came down on me about it, since I was the staff present.  He asked me, "Why don't you think you have to follow our rules like everyone else?"  He was exactly right.  My superior had no business telling the girls it was okay to break the rules.  I took the girls back to my superior, who became enraged at me (as if I were the one responsible).  She told me I was judging and legalistic.  She then told the girls to try going to the pool again and see if the lifeguard would change his mind.  I absolutely refused to go back with them, and my superior told me I was prideful.  Makes perfect sense, eh?  

     Anyway, there were a lot of problems with girls dressing immodestly and breaking rules all through training.  These girls were rude and had bad attitudes in every other aspect of camp as well, not just clothing.  The last night, I gave a little impromptu talk about why it was important to obey rules.  Some of what I said was a little zealous, and I would probably reword some of it today.  However, none of it was wrong.  A lot of people liked what I said.  But my superior was furious.  That was when she told me I was responsible for sending people to hell.  She physically shook and trembled as she raged at me.  As an evangelist who wants to see people saved, I was hurt deeply by this remark.  

     I can't speak to my superior's other decisions that week.  But as for her comment that I'm sending people to hell, I have this to say.  If someone rejects Jesus, they're sending themselves to hell.  They don't need anyone's help.  If what I said in my little talk was wrong, then I'm responsible for that.  But I'm not responsible for someone's actions as a result of my talk.  If they got mad at mean, legalistic me and decided not to follow Christ, they're a big baby who needs to grow up.  It doesn't sound like they had any interest in Christ to begin with.  I have heard many people say things I disagreed with, but I didn't reject Jesus because of it.  I just decided that I disagreed with that person and left it at that.  I've had other believers make mistakes that have hurt me.  I think we all have experienced that.  We don't reject Jesus because of it.  If someone does, his faith wasn't in Jesus anyway, but in people.  

     I found it interesting that my superior wanted to show "grace" to girls who were intentionally breaking rules, but not to me, her own ministry worker, who was doing my best and maybe got overzealous.  No grace for that.  But lots of grace for intentional sin.  What's with that?

     One thing I've learned is that I need to focus on my "side of the street".  What am I responsible for?  If I do wrong, how am I responsible for making it right?  Making things right again is just as important as doing right to begin with.  If I sin against someone (even unintentionally), going back and making it right can make all the difference in the world, and bring Christ the glory.  That's all my side of the street.  My responsibility ends at that.  What the other person does is their side of the street, and I refuse to take guilt for that.  The same is true for good choices.  If I do right and someone comes to Christ as a result, it's God, not me.  I just did what was right.  I can't take guilt or credit for other people.

     I am very open to examining myself, and making things right.  I will own my choices and mistakes.  However, I will never, ever taken on guilt for other people's sin.  That's their side of the street.  I have enough on my own to deal with.  

   
     In conclusion, we are not responsible for sending anyone to hell.  We are not responsible for anyone's sin but our own.  One day, as believers, we will stand before the judgment seat of Christ and give an account.  We'll receive or lose heavenly rewards.  But our sins are gone forever because of the Blood of Jesus.  Trusting Christ is the first step to taking care of our side of the street.  No one else can do that for us, nor can we do that for anyone else.  Let's stop taking blame and start doing right.