Making excuses makes one weak.
I was reading an article in which Jesse James, Sandra Bullock’s soon to be ex-husband, blamed his actions on a bad childhood in which he was treated badly.
It didn’t wash with me. I can understand making mistakes, but to blame it on “mom and ‘em” is a cop out.
We are the sum total of our life’s experiences. Those experiences are both good and bad, pleasant and not so pleasant. We are who we are because of who we were. Our mistakes, our growing up, all shaped us. We had blessings and we had lessons; lessons which we internalized and digested oftentimes led to blessings.
It is especially important for kids and youth to get this lesson. Every single adult in the world can point to a time when he or she got treated not so good, to when he or she was hurt by a parent or relative, when he or she felt unloved and unwanted.
The reason the world keeps on going, though, is because some people choose to remember the bad experiences as lessons and maybe even blessings, instead of “the reason” they are like they are, in a negative sense.
Langston Hughes wrote “life ain’t been no crystal stair.” No matter who we are, what color, sex, gender or physical condition, that statement is true. At the end of the day, though, we have to decide how we are going to use the splinters we have all gotten by walking on rugged, rough wooden steps.
When we look at the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, what stands out is everyone trying to blame someone else, in essence making excuses for an oil spill which resulted from an oil rig which exploded.
It is a sign of weakness. I would so much more have respected BP had it said, “we messed up and we are sorry and we will fix it.” Instead, fingers are pointing all over the place. Meanwhile, the environment is getting messed up, peoples’ livelihoods are threatened, and the oil continues to spew out, mercilessly.
I would hope and pray that you, young people, do not get in the habit of making excuses. We can always find a way out; our challenge is to find a way up and over all obstacles, no matter what they may be.
And I would hope that we older folks, if we have been in the habit of making excuses, that we would stop it and change course.
Making excuses makes us weak, and we have too much to do…to be weak.
Have a good week!
Pastor Smith
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
The Price of Being President
Black farmers are increasing pressure on President Obama to get the federal government money owed them, following a settlement reached 11 years ago.
The farmers were promised $1.25 billion as the result of a suit filed charging discrimination from the federal government. Black farmers were consistently unable to get federal loans and were denied support from or of federal programs because of the color of their skin. Their allegations were ruled to be legitimate.
But to date, not a single farmer has received any money, and the black farmers are getting more and more frustrated. Their frustration is increased by their belief that the president is avoiding the problem because this is clearly a black issue, and they believe that Mr. Obama stays away from issues that might align him too closely with African Americans.
The 1997 case, Pigford vs. Glickman, was settled out of court, but, it seems, hundreds of thousands of black farmers missed a deadline to submit claims.
Mr. Obama reopened the case in 2008 when he was still a senator and in February of this year was able to broker a case for the $1.25 billion payout. But Congress missed a March 31 deadline to fund it and now another deadline to fund it is looming, May 30. The farmers are worried that the funding will not come and that Mr. Obama will not push for the funding to come.
Some might say give the president a break; there is a lot on his plate, and that is true. These farmers, however, have been waiting a long time for justice. Too often, the cry for justice from black people is put on the back burner; that it feels like an African American president is putting this issue on the back burner is grating the farmers’ emotions.
Mr. Obama is trying to position himself to win the 2012 presidential election and it has always seemed that in light of that, he has shied away from being “too black.”
But just as risky was pushing for health care reform. Mr. Obama undoubtedly lost a lot of supporters from those who thought he did too much and from those who think he did too little. That is politics. Immigration reform now looms in front of him, as does Wall Street reform. None of these issues are going to be easy to tackle, and yet he will.
It would be a grave mistake for him to even be perceived as having ignored the cries, pleas and needs of black farmers …just because he just doesn’t want to be perceived as being “too black.” Even if that perception is not true, the fact of the matter is that perception becomes truth. I sure hope the president pushes as hard for the farmers now as he did when he was a senator.
Otherwise, he runs the risk of being just another politician, a person who will do anything and say anything just to get elected. Surely, that cannot be the image or legacy he wants to leave.
Have a good week!
The farmers were promised $1.25 billion as the result of a suit filed charging discrimination from the federal government. Black farmers were consistently unable to get federal loans and were denied support from or of federal programs because of the color of their skin. Their allegations were ruled to be legitimate.
But to date, not a single farmer has received any money, and the black farmers are getting more and more frustrated. Their frustration is increased by their belief that the president is avoiding the problem because this is clearly a black issue, and they believe that Mr. Obama stays away from issues that might align him too closely with African Americans.
The 1997 case, Pigford vs. Glickman, was settled out of court, but, it seems, hundreds of thousands of black farmers missed a deadline to submit claims.
Mr. Obama reopened the case in 2008 when he was still a senator and in February of this year was able to broker a case for the $1.25 billion payout. But Congress missed a March 31 deadline to fund it and now another deadline to fund it is looming, May 30. The farmers are worried that the funding will not come and that Mr. Obama will not push for the funding to come.
Some might say give the president a break; there is a lot on his plate, and that is true. These farmers, however, have been waiting a long time for justice. Too often, the cry for justice from black people is put on the back burner; that it feels like an African American president is putting this issue on the back burner is grating the farmers’ emotions.
Mr. Obama is trying to position himself to win the 2012 presidential election and it has always seemed that in light of that, he has shied away from being “too black.”
But just as risky was pushing for health care reform. Mr. Obama undoubtedly lost a lot of supporters from those who thought he did too much and from those who think he did too little. That is politics. Immigration reform now looms in front of him, as does Wall Street reform. None of these issues are going to be easy to tackle, and yet he will.
It would be a grave mistake for him to even be perceived as having ignored the cries, pleas and needs of black farmers …just because he just doesn’t want to be perceived as being “too black.” Even if that perception is not true, the fact of the matter is that perception becomes truth. I sure hope the president pushes as hard for the farmers now as he did when he was a senator.
Otherwise, he runs the risk of being just another politician, a person who will do anything and say anything just to get elected. Surely, that cannot be the image or legacy he wants to leave.
Have a good week!
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Let the Rocks Be Silent!!
Today you will hear a couple of “crazy faith” stories from members of our congregation.
Why? Because without crazy faith, there can be no movement, no transformation, no change.
We are in a wonderful yet critical time of our life as a church, a fork in the road, so to speak. God is calling us to move, to be transformative in what we do and how we do it, and in order to do that, we will have to have …crazy faith.
I shared in Wednesday afternoon Bible study that the one thing that makes me crazy is for people to say what we cannot do. I know there are limits based on money and resources, but there is also God, a God who tells me we can do all things, no matter the obstacles.
From the very beginning of our existence, we had great limitations over which hovered a great God. There were rumors that we would fall off the map and doubts that we could survive a number of different experiences we had. Yet, God hovered and we persevered.
What have we learned? For the few who have been here from the beginning, we have learned that with God, nothing is impossible. Things have looked bleak, like they did for the woman in 1 Kings 4 who, though she had “just a little oil,” was told to collect jars and fill them with oil in order to pay her bills. Whatever doubts and concerns she had, she put them aside and did as she was told, and God blessed her. God stood Ezekiel before a field, a valley of dry bones and asked the prophet if the bones could live, and though Ezekiel most probably believed that those bones could not live, he yielded the floor to God, so to speak, prophesied to the bones as God commanded, and saw life come from death.
We are not dead, far from it, but we are being called to greater vitality. We are being called to heights that are so far beyond what any of us can imagine …and yet the call is there. And so I ask you to listen today, to internalize just a tad of crazy faith, and hold on even as you ride.
I am in Washington D.C. today but this is the last Sunday I will be out for 2010. Though I need to go out to make more money, I also need to do my work here. I have to have crazy faith, too, or, I should say, more faith than I have. God is, and God always has been …so there’s no reason for me to believe that God will not continue to be.
My prayer is that Advent UCC enter this new chapter of the book that is being written about how faith works with excitement and fervor. God did not put us here to languish. God put us here …and has kept us here…to show how good God is. If we do not do what God is calling us to do, the very rocks will cry out.
O rocks, be silent!
Pastor Smith
Why? Because without crazy faith, there can be no movement, no transformation, no change.
We are in a wonderful yet critical time of our life as a church, a fork in the road, so to speak. God is calling us to move, to be transformative in what we do and how we do it, and in order to do that, we will have to have …crazy faith.
I shared in Wednesday afternoon Bible study that the one thing that makes me crazy is for people to say what we cannot do. I know there are limits based on money and resources, but there is also God, a God who tells me we can do all things, no matter the obstacles.
From the very beginning of our existence, we had great limitations over which hovered a great God. There were rumors that we would fall off the map and doubts that we could survive a number of different experiences we had. Yet, God hovered and we persevered.
What have we learned? For the few who have been here from the beginning, we have learned that with God, nothing is impossible. Things have looked bleak, like they did for the woman in 1 Kings 4 who, though she had “just a little oil,” was told to collect jars and fill them with oil in order to pay her bills. Whatever doubts and concerns she had, she put them aside and did as she was told, and God blessed her. God stood Ezekiel before a field, a valley of dry bones and asked the prophet if the bones could live, and though Ezekiel most probably believed that those bones could not live, he yielded the floor to God, so to speak, prophesied to the bones as God commanded, and saw life come from death.
We are not dead, far from it, but we are being called to greater vitality. We are being called to heights that are so far beyond what any of us can imagine …and yet the call is there. And so I ask you to listen today, to internalize just a tad of crazy faith, and hold on even as you ride.
I am in Washington D.C. today but this is the last Sunday I will be out for 2010. Though I need to go out to make more money, I also need to do my work here. I have to have crazy faith, too, or, I should say, more faith than I have. God is, and God always has been …so there’s no reason for me to believe that God will not continue to be.
My prayer is that Advent UCC enter this new chapter of the book that is being written about how faith works with excitement and fervor. God did not put us here to languish. God put us here …and has kept us here…to show how good God is. If we do not do what God is calling us to do, the very rocks will cry out.
O rocks, be silent!
Pastor Smith
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Dear Mothers:
Today is a special day, not because someone a long time ago decided that there ought to be a day dedicated to mothers, but because you are responsible for all that has ever gone on in this world.
How you have nurtured the greatest people in this world! It was your love, your wisdom, your kindness and sternness that helped shape the people who have made an impact in life and society.
Whether you were the mother of a Moses or Rahab, the mother of Adam the first man on earth or Adam Clayton Powell, the mother of Martin Luther or Rev Dr Martin Luther King, it was you who gave the world its values and strength.
In spite of the stain of sexism which has always been a part of life, you pressed on and did what only a mother could and can do. Isn’t it strange and ironic that the men who YOU shaped had the audacity later to say that women were inferior? Yet, though you knew that to be the case and though you probably taught the little boys and girls that sexism was right, you still taught enough other things that helped some people push through the biases to make a new world.
You held your babies close to your heart when they came from the womb, and you kept that place open for them always, no matter how old they got. You worried and worry whether they were and are 3 or 93. The children were always your children, deserving of a love that has no bounds.
Some of you buried babies or children who died too young, and next to your heart, or perhaps in your heart, you carried a grief that has never gone away. You never let the grief stop you, though, and by moving through your pain, you taught your children to do the same.
You made your children mad, but your anger helped them grow and they in turn made you proud. You ached when you had to give tough love lessons, and did not let the children see the tears of pain and fear that fell from your eyes as you watched them make horrible mistakes, only to later make honorable decisions borne from the wisdom the mistakes imparted to them.
You cooked when there was little to cook; you washed and ironed and sewed and cleaned. You rocked the children when there was nobody to rock you. You learned to “make do” and in so doing, helped the children learn that as well.
Some of you couldn’t be mothers when your children were young. Life and life’s issues got to you, and you did things you wish you hadn’t. You missed valuable time with your children when they were little, and you ache about that today.
But here’s the best thing: whether you were there for your children or not, you have a mother too, in Christ Jesus, who is there for you, no matter what. Mary raised her boy well; Jesus loved us all and loves us all, no matter how much we did or did not do for our children, no matter how much or how little we were there.
You have a mother in Christ Jesus who loves you, even if your own mother didn’t, and so for that you should rejoice. The children who pout because you were not there have a mother as well in Christ Jesus. And this Jesus loves you so much that he was there for your children even when you could not be there, or would not be there.
This is the same Jesus who has been there for me, ever since my mother died when I was so young. It’s the same Jesus who was there for so many people who did not have a mother they could feel and touch. The maternal spirit of our God reached down and touched us through Jesus, and for that we can all be thankful.
This is not a day to be angry or sad if your own mother was not there for you; God sent Jesus to fill in the gap, to stand in the breach. Nor is this a day for you to put yourself down if you feel you fell short as a mother; God sent Jesus as well to let you know that there is no condemnation.
But as there is no condemnation from Jesus, let there not be condemnation from you toward your mother for her shortcomings. She can only be as she is; love her for what she was able to give you. Give that to the children in your life, whether biological or adopted, and then add the love that Jesus gave YOU as you endured the lack in your own life.
Do not mourn this day because your mother is dead, or because perhaps your mother is not what you need her to be. Lean on the arms of Jesus and absorb his unfailing love. Take off the bandages that cover old sores and let God’s maternal love touch you.
And then, give to some other child what you feel your mother didn’t give to you…and in so doing, be the mother to someone else that Jesus was to you, even when you didn’t know it.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Pastor Smith
Today is a special day, not because someone a long time ago decided that there ought to be a day dedicated to mothers, but because you are responsible for all that has ever gone on in this world.
How you have nurtured the greatest people in this world! It was your love, your wisdom, your kindness and sternness that helped shape the people who have made an impact in life and society.
Whether you were the mother of a Moses or Rahab, the mother of Adam the first man on earth or Adam Clayton Powell, the mother of Martin Luther or Rev Dr Martin Luther King, it was you who gave the world its values and strength.
In spite of the stain of sexism which has always been a part of life, you pressed on and did what only a mother could and can do. Isn’t it strange and ironic that the men who YOU shaped had the audacity later to say that women were inferior? Yet, though you knew that to be the case and though you probably taught the little boys and girls that sexism was right, you still taught enough other things that helped some people push through the biases to make a new world.
You held your babies close to your heart when they came from the womb, and you kept that place open for them always, no matter how old they got. You worried and worry whether they were and are 3 or 93. The children were always your children, deserving of a love that has no bounds.
Some of you buried babies or children who died too young, and next to your heart, or perhaps in your heart, you carried a grief that has never gone away. You never let the grief stop you, though, and by moving through your pain, you taught your children to do the same.
You made your children mad, but your anger helped them grow and they in turn made you proud. You ached when you had to give tough love lessons, and did not let the children see the tears of pain and fear that fell from your eyes as you watched them make horrible mistakes, only to later make honorable decisions borne from the wisdom the mistakes imparted to them.
You cooked when there was little to cook; you washed and ironed and sewed and cleaned. You rocked the children when there was nobody to rock you. You learned to “make do” and in so doing, helped the children learn that as well.
Some of you couldn’t be mothers when your children were young. Life and life’s issues got to you, and you did things you wish you hadn’t. You missed valuable time with your children when they were little, and you ache about that today.
But here’s the best thing: whether you were there for your children or not, you have a mother too, in Christ Jesus, who is there for you, no matter what. Mary raised her boy well; Jesus loved us all and loves us all, no matter how much we did or did not do for our children, no matter how much or how little we were there.
You have a mother in Christ Jesus who loves you, even if your own mother didn’t, and so for that you should rejoice. The children who pout because you were not there have a mother as well in Christ Jesus. And this Jesus loves you so much that he was there for your children even when you could not be there, or would not be there.
This is the same Jesus who has been there for me, ever since my mother died when I was so young. It’s the same Jesus who was there for so many people who did not have a mother they could feel and touch. The maternal spirit of our God reached down and touched us through Jesus, and for that we can all be thankful.
This is not a day to be angry or sad if your own mother was not there for you; God sent Jesus to fill in the gap, to stand in the breach. Nor is this a day for you to put yourself down if you feel you fell short as a mother; God sent Jesus as well to let you know that there is no condemnation.
But as there is no condemnation from Jesus, let there not be condemnation from you toward your mother for her shortcomings. She can only be as she is; love her for what she was able to give you. Give that to the children in your life, whether biological or adopted, and then add the love that Jesus gave YOU as you endured the lack in your own life.
Do not mourn this day because your mother is dead, or because perhaps your mother is not what you need her to be. Lean on the arms of Jesus and absorb his unfailing love. Take off the bandages that cover old sores and let God’s maternal love touch you.
And then, give to some other child what you feel your mother didn’t give to you…and in so doing, be the mother to someone else that Jesus was to you, even when you didn’t know it.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Pastor Smith
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