↓
 
Accessible Success

Accessible Success

Have you read it yet?

Banner with Logo
  • References
  • Blog
  • Shop
  • Connect
  • About Larry
Home→Blog - Page 4 << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >>

Post navigation

<< 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >>

Science Fiction’s Black Hole

Accessible Success Posted on February 2, 2024 by LarryFebruary 2, 2024

I’ve been a science fiction fan all my life.  I enjoy the imaginative places it can take us, the speculations on what might be.  Creative juices can flow free as ever more improbable alien worlds unfold along with futures both terrifying and delightful. As a child I imagined myself in those worlds, furtively exploring like a stowaway aboard one of the many space vessels warping through my ever-expanding universe as I read anything I could get.

But as I grew older, I began to see the fatal flaws in these fantastic fables.  Most of them launch from an unstable platform.  There is no foundation.  The gravity is artificial, and it can’t hold anything together.  God is either missing or he’s some kind of powerful alien, thus not really God at all.

I still enjoy it, but now with a tinge of sadness, because there is no life in most of it.  There is room for Christians to explore some of its themes and I have read a few authors who have done so, but I have yet to find anyone doing it as well as I think it could be done.

Recently I had a new thought about it.  I’m sure it is only a new thought to me, because it seems an obvious conclusion for anyone who believes that we are creations of Yahweh, intended for relationship with Him.  Much of science fiction expresses humanity’s desire for something greater than itself.  We crave relationship.  We recognize the insufficiency of other people to meet that need, so we look to the stars.

If there is no God, then surely there must be something.  We cannot possibly be alone in this great big universe.  If probability alone dictates our existence, then we ourselves should not exist, but that does not keep us from hoping that there is something more and imagining what it might be.

There it is. I call it the black hole in science fiction.  No construct survives it, because the truth of God cannot be denied.  It is appropriate that science fiction is often grouped in the same category as fantasy. The alien most likely belongs with the elf and the fairy, the ghost and the goblin.

Might God have created other worlds and other-worldly creatures to inhabit them?  If so, it raises some interesting theological questions.  What we are learning about the universe seems to make that unlikely, but despite what I’ve just written I would hesitate to say that he has not done so.  He is certainly capable of operating in realms and in ways that are beyond our understanding.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • WhatsApp
  • Email
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

Those Awkward Moments

Accessible Success Posted on February 1, 2024 by LarryFebruary 1, 2024

We’ve all had them; those uncomfortable situations when there is some misunderstanding and there seems to be no graceful way to recover. We’ve crossed some social boundary and may not even know exactly what happened. Add a characteristic that makes you different in some way from those around you and the opportunities for misunderstanding multiply. It’s important for us to remember in those moments that we’re not the only one who’s in an uncomfortable situation. More often than I would like, I wish I could go back and handle it better.

One day, I decided to walk to the Starbuck’s a mile from my house. I had just come off of an all-night software installation at work and wanted to stay awake and not get off-schedule. Maybe that is my excuse. The place was crowded. The line stretched around the back of the room, and I couldn’t find the end of it. That was my first interaction with the lady. I didn’t know her. She didn’t fit the image one might have of a typical barista at Starbuck’s, but because she approached me while I was near the front counter trying to get my bearings, I thought she worked there. I let her help me find the end of the line.

After I placed my order, I moved to the general area where pickups would be made and waited. There did not appear to be any place to sit, and I was content to put off that quest until after I had coffee and breakfast in hand. They called the breakfast items out and I went up to get them. Again, the helpful lady appeared and assisted me in finding the items I ordered. There were so many people I can only hope that I didn’t actually pick up items meant for someone who was ahead of me.

I kept waiting for the coffee order. I kept waiting for the coffee order. I kept waiting for the coffee order. Finally, Ms. helpful lady appeared again and asked me what I ordered. Still thinking she worked there, I told her, and then I kept waiting for the coffee order. When she approached me again, it finally became apparent to me that she was just another customer trying to be helpful. At this point I should have taken control of the situation, but she was trying to be helpful and rather than add to the awkwardness of the whole thing further I just let her go back up and ask on my behalf.

I eventually got my coffee, but then it got worse. There were no open tables. I didn’t know this for sure, but I knew that if there were they would not be easy to find, so I let the woman guide me to a chair. It was not at an empty table. The woman already seated there told us someone was coming to join her. At this point I am trying to bow out gracefully, but Ms. helpful isn’t done yet. The table where she was trying to seat me was the high table meant to accommodate wheelchairs. The empty chair being spoken for, she grabbed one from another table, moved it to the occupied table, and insisted that since it was meant for handicapped people I could sit there.

This is where I messed up. Some people seem to be uneducable, but I should have at least tried. She did mean well. Instead, I bolted. I hit the front door and found myself a table outside. No one benefited from that exchange. Ms. Helpful was probably offended and confused. One can only guess what the young lady at the table thought about the whole thing.

I tell this story for two reasons. I hope it serves as an instructional aid for those who really want to be helpful but need a little guidance as to how to do it best. Put yourself in the other person’s place. Don’t assume you know what they need. Ask them. In this woman’s defense, she did ask at a couple of points during our interaction. Where she really went wrong was at the end. She was going to get me a chair regardless of what I or anyone else affected thought about it. The awkwardness of the situation for me didn’t occur to her.

There is also a lesson for those of us on the receiving end here. It’s easy to get offended by the presumption and disrespect we sometimes get from people, but these are often teachable moments. Instead of being offended, be delighted that they mean well and help them to do better the next time they meet someone who seems to have a need. Make a new friend and also help those whom they will meet after you.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • WhatsApp
  • Email
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

Is Truth Relative?

Accessible Success Posted on January 30, 2024 by LarryJanuary 30, 2024

It amazes me that intelligent people embrace the idea that truth is a subjective concept. If you are one of those people, I would like to engage you directly. The modern trend is to compartmentalize religious belief, reducing its relevance to the realities of life. Yet most of us acknowledge God in some form. I’m not going to try to address atheism here. That requires a different treatment as an atheist believes he knows the truth. I would speak to you who consider faith a personal matter with no absolutes. I freely admit that I hope to convince you that there is only one source of truth and ultimately that is the God described by the Christian Bible, but for now, I just want you to think about your beliefs logically.

When we speak of faith in religious terms it somehow becomes less substantial, yet even the Bible uses words such as substance and evidence to describe what faith is. It is no less real for being intangible. We put our faith in things and in people every day. Why should our faith in God be any different? It should be the strongest faith we have. He will never fail us. That’s not to say that He won’t disappoint us from time to time. Being God, he doesn’t always do what we think He should, but He knows the best for us. We usually cannot see what that is.

Yes, I’m now speaking out of my own faith. My belief in God cannot be shaken, but I would be foolish not to doubt my understanding of all the truth about Him. I have faith in Him, but not in me. That is as it should be. I am sure of a few things. He is the creator, so His definition of good is the only one that matters. He is good, and He has provided through Jesus the means by which we may all know that goodness. It remains for us only to choose.

We have faith because we believe something to be true. It may be as simple as the certainty that the chair upon which you are about to sit will hold you up or as abstract as the trust you put in a person you believe to be of good character. It is when what we believe to be true turns out to be false that our faith is shaken.

How then can truth be relative? How can truth and falsehood vary from person to person? Would we apply this idea to any other area of our lives? Let’s say I believe the earth is flat. That works for me. It gives me comfort because if it’s flat and I stay away from the edge I can never fall off. It makes me happy to believe that. Is it true? What if I lack the means to prove that the earth is round? Is it flat because I can’t prove it is round?

Some things are admittedly a bit harder to prove, but let’s start by establishing that truth exists whether or not we know what it is. Without that basis, all other arguments are worthless. If something is so just because I believe it and it doesn’t have to be so for anyone else, what is the point of discussion? The very idea of relative truth is unsupportable because the idea itself cannot be deemed true. It’s a comforting delusion because it frees us from responsibility but try that in a court of law.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • WhatsApp
  • Email
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

Why Say Yahweh?

Accessible Success Posted on January 29, 2024 by LarryJanuary 29, 2024

If you have read the book, you may have noticed some of the Bible quotes look a little different than what you see in most translations. In particular, where you probably have “The LORD” in your Bible, this one says “Yahweh.” There’s some history around how that came to be, but for the sake of brevity I will leave that for another time. Suffice it to say for now that the use of God’s personal name, Yahweh, Given to Moses in Exodus 3:14-15, is a more accurate translation. There are several passages throughout the Old Testament that make a lot more sense when God’s name appears where it should.

Generally, in order to avoid confusion for those who may not know this and to avoid offending those who feel that we should take more care in the use of the holy name, I have chosen of late to continue the conventional use of God or the Lord when I write. However, at times I think it is preferable to be specific. The appellation, God, does not necessarily draw to mind the Christian God that in times past would have been understood.

God has been defined in many ways, often in conflict with the Judeo-Christian understanding of who and what He is. My Hindu friend once mentioned to me that as part of a ceremony he prayed to God. I did not ask him which god, but I have very little doubt that Yahweh was not that god. So, when I talk or write about the one true God, I like to use His name. I want to leave no doubt as to Who I am referencing. Glory to His name alone!

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • WhatsApp
  • Email
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

It’s Crazy to Be Lazy

Accessible Success Posted on January 26, 2024 by LarryJanuary 26, 2024

In the book, I made reference to the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-30. What follows is a deeper dive into the concepts it holds, along with a similar parable that Jesus told in Luke 19:11-27. It explains in greater detail the thinking that went into what I wrote.

Though these stories are similar, they differ in significant ways and so I take them to be told by Jesus on separate occasions.  It appears from context that he shared them at the approximate time of His entry into Jerusalem days before the crucifixion.  They both share a theme of responsible stewardship while the master is not present.  Mathew’s account is part of a series of parables emphasizing preparedness for His return.  Luke tells us in 19:11 that Jesus is responding specifically to the belief that His kingdom would be established immediately.  The string of parables in Mathew may be a response to a similarly motivated question (Matt 24:3.)  Both highlight three slaves, though Luke says that there were ten slaves given one mina each.

Both parables feature a master giving charge of money to his slaves.  In Matthew’s account each was given resources according to his ability.  Luke’s version gives the same amount to all.  In Matthew the two successful slaves double what they have been given.  In Luke they increase ten times and five times respectively.

Luke adds another dimension to his story by recording that the master was a ruling official.  Jesus is clearly illustrating His kingdom in this parable.  The dissidents who refuse His rule are to be slain before him, just as all who reject Jesus will face a final judgment when He returns.

The accounts of the unproductive slave seem to differ only in minor detail.  The major points are consistent between them.  They both have an unreasonable fear of the master born of a misunderstanding of his character.  They describe him as opportunistic and demanding at best.  The description they provide implies evil rather than good (Matt 25:24; Luke 19:21.)  They both choose to hide their master’s money instead of using it for the purpose he intended.  They attempt to justify their action by means of the accusations cited above.

In both cases the master’s response is also similar.  Since both slaves behaved in the same manner, we may apply the judgments of the master in both passages to both slaves.  They are described as lazy, wicked, and worthless.  It appears that if they had even done the minimum of putting the money into a bank they would have been spared.  I will not attempt to address the implied indictment of banks except to point out that God had commanded His people not to charge each other interest (Ex 22:25.)  Jesus is speaking to Jewish people here, so this is the context they would have for the reference to banks.

Both slaves have their money taken away and given to the most productive.  In Matthew Jesus goes on to say that the worthless slave is to be thrown out into “the outer darkness.”  He uses language here common to other references that He makes to Hell.  We may safely deduce that the slave of Luke’s story is bound for the same fate.

These are illustrations of principles of the Kingdom of God.  They tell us what God is going to do, how we must respond, and what will be the consequences of our response.  Jesus is master and king.  He gives us different resources in the form of money, ability, circumstance or anything else that we may use.  Some things are given according to our ability to use them.  Others are given to everyone equally.  We all have access to His love, grace and mercy.  All who have believed in the Lord Jesus have been given of His Spirit (1 John 4:13.)

We must now choose what we will do with what we have been given.  It was given to us to put to use.  It is expected that we will cause it to multiply.  Some of us will produce an abundance so great that it seems to others to be too much.  Some of us might not be able to produce very much at all.  God’s requirement is that we do all that we are able to do.  We bring Him joy when we put His gifts to good use, and He will reward us accordingly.

The lazy slaves in these parables are not simply complacent nor are they ignorant of the master’s expectations.  They have made a conscious decision not to do what has been asked of them.  This becomes clear as they attempt to justify their actions upon the master’s return.  Despite the evidence of his goodness, they deem him to be unreasonable, demanding, and dishonest; taking what does not belong to him.

We do the same.  We redefine God in a manner that permits us to do as we choose.  Perverting the good news of His grace we cite our inability to live according to His standard and falsely justify our sin.  We take what He has given and hide it in a hole where it can do no good for us or anyone else.  We make Him into a fierce and tyrannical being and then act in self-righteous rebellion against our manufactured nemesis.  All the while our true enemy laughs, knowing that we have sealed our own doom.

Another thing that strikes me about these parables is that there does not seem to be an expectation that the money is to be returned.  Though it clearly belongs to the master and each slave brings it back along with the increase they have made from it, he seems to indicate that it will remain in their charge as if it were their own (Matt 25:28; Luke 19:24.)  This exposes another flaw in the thinking of the lazy slaves.  The money was given to the slaves for their own benefit, not that of their master.  By returning unused what was given to them, they completely missed the master’s intent, which was to bless them, insulting him on several levels.

God loves us.  From the beginning he intended to lavish it upon us and that we would in turn give it to each other.  This is how we return everything that we have been given.  We multiply it by sharing with those around us.  When we keep it to ourselves thinking that we need only return it to Him in exchange for salvation, we have become worthless for His purposes.

What follows is hard for us to accept, especially in our culture of increasingly socialist ideas of equality.  It even sounds cruel.  Take away from the one who has nothing even what he does have and give it to the richest one?  How is that justice?  This tells us several things.  God rewards success.  He even rewards extra success with extra blessing.  This is true justice, for the one who works hardest deserves reward commensurate with his effort.  This does not mean that God in his grace and mercy cannot reward equally someone who though just as committed did not produce as much.  See Matthew 20:1-16.

Consider also that none of these slaves had anything before their master entrusted it to them.  In the same way we have nothing that God did not give us, therefore it is foolish of us to judge Him for doing as He pleases with that which is His in the first place.  The unproductive slave had nothing even when he had the money for two reasons.  First, as we have just seen it is his master’s money.  Second, he made no use of it.  It did him no good because he hid it away and did nothing with it.

This should serve as a strong warning to all of us.  We may genuinely cherish what we have, both the tangible and the intangible.  Imagine you inherited a collection of rare and beautiful art.  You have a family and you have been struggling to make ends meet.  This collection will set you for life and allow you to care for your family.  Invested wisely the proceeds would benefit generations to come.  However, you cannot bear to part with it.  You keep it in a closet.  Every so often you secretly pull it out and admire it.  Maybe you even let your closest friends get a peak at it, but then you hide it away again.  Meanwhile your children go hungry.  We recognize that as wrong.  Yet it is exactly what we do with a gift that is far more precious than anything man ever created on this earth.  We hide it behind the walls of our churches and grudgingly let a few people slip in and have a look.  It does not occur to most of us to take it outside and share it.  If it does, it’s often someone else’s job.  We just keep this life saving gift all to ourselves.  If this is our attitude, maybe we need to question whether we really have it at all.  It is a gift that is of no value to us or to our Lord if we will not share it.

Maybe you think that you have nothing to offer.  In one sense that’s true of all of us.  We have nothing that is not from God.  If you have received Him, you have the greatest gift of all, and it is your responsibility to share it.  God didn’t stop there.  I know He has given you other things that he intends for you to share.  We have known people hardly able to move or to communicate.  They have a purpose in God’s kingdom.  I liked to remind them that one doesn’t need a mouth to pray, and that God responds to intercessory prayer.  No matter how much or how little we think we have been given, God expects us to multiply it.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • WhatsApp
  • Email
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

For the Love of Dog

Accessible Success Posted on January 25, 2024 by LarryJanuary 25, 2024

I like dogs. I believe God uniquely created them to meet our needs just as he created everything else on this earth. I am amazed by the diversity of things they have been bread and trained to do. I have had pictures and statues of them everywhere. I certainly do not wish to give offense to anyone who loves these amazing animals. Please know this as you continue reading.

One day I came across a video that really got to me. I’ve never quite been able to understand having a deep emotional attachment to an animal, yet watching a video of a complete stranger whose dog was shot right in front of him about did me in. The screaming of the dog and the crying of the man replayed my memory like a very bad dream. I think maybe the Lord let me see that so that I would react with more compassion toward people who are close to their animals. I don’t know if it changes my opinion of how things should be, but it certainly changed my attitude toward the way things are.

When I was growing up, we had dogs at different times, but due to changing circumstances we never seemed to be able to keep one. Like many children, we wanted to have a dog, but usually didn’t do a very good job of caring for it when we got one. I suppose I loved them, but I would characterize it as the kind of affection a child might have for a favorite toy. Yet probably due to the books and television shows that depicted dogs larger than life, I always had an idealized picture of what a dog might be. I wanted the myth more than I wanted the reality. How many animals end up in shelters to be put down for much the same reason?

Even so, I never came to think of dogs as other than animals. The idea of loving a dog or any animal in the same way that we love other people is hard for me to understand. No dog can take the place of a human being. It is incomprehensible to me that anyone would put the needs of a pet over the needs of a family member or any human being for that matter. A pet may be considered a family member only in the broadest of terms. It may be loved and cared for by the family but should never be considered as an equal.

People say their dogs love them unconditionally. I don’t know if a dog is capable of love. I don’t suppose that anyone can be certain of such things. Certainly, there are verifiable accounts to be found of dogs doing things that sure look like love to us. I will share one here.  I do not claim to know where the line should be drawn between instinctive and emotive behavior. After all, I will concede that much of my understanding of animal behavior comes from the same people who believe that we are nothing more than sophisticated apes. Despite such preposterous pretenders as the Pet Psychic of past television fame, none of us really know what they are feeling or thinking. As I think it through, it’s not unreasonable to suppose that some level of emotional attachment exists, just as a young child who cannot intellectualize what he feels still loves his mother and father. He may continue to love them even if he comes to understand that they do not love him.

I think that what happens between pets and people is often an unhealthy replacement for missing human relationships. Because the creature does appear to offer unconditional love and lacks the capacity to hurt us in the way that another human can, we find it to be a safe way to meet our need. However, it does not meet the need. There is no suitable replacement in the animal kingdom for the human relationships that God designed us to have. As childlike as a dog may be in many ways, it cannot ever be a child. It may perform actions that you interpret as love, but it can never tell you that it loves you in words. It has no real concept of words or the conscious and coherent thoughts which produce them. It does not simply lack the means to speak. It lacks the concept of speech. It can neither substitute for a child nor a real friend. It can only be what it was created to be, a dog. When the unequal relationship between human and dog impairs or supplants the God-given relationship between human and human, something is tragically wrong.

Unhealthy relationships with animals can even destroy human connections. I recognized the potential for this in my own life before it had a chance to become a problem. It was 1997 and I had just moved to Dallas. I was living alone in an apartment, and I had been thinking about getting a dog for some time. This was the first place I lived on my own where it was permitted. I learned that a local shelter brought adoptable dogs to the pet store a reasonable walking distance from my apartment. I went up to look, but something didn’t feel right. The first week I didn’t bring one home. I had that feeling in the pit of my stomach that usually meant God was telling me “no.” That’s not the answer I wanted to hear, so I rationalized it and went back the second week.

Thus began a mighty tough week. I brought home a chihuahua dubbed Mickey by the shelter, but thinking every big-eared chihuahua in the country is probably called Mickey, I changed his name to Mighty. The name kept the mouse theme, and I thought it was a great appellation for a little tiny chihuahua. He wasn’t the sort of dog I imagined having. I’ve never really liked them. Most of them I’ve ever known were noisy and neurotic. Mighty was friendly and mostly quiet.

With the vet checkup, food, and supplies plus the pet deposit I dropped $500 on that free dog before the day was out, but I had everything I thought we would need. I still remember the feeling I had sitting in the chair next to the TV with Mighty on my lap. I had a friend. I had something to love. I imagined the beginning of a fulfilling companionship that would last for years and keep me from being alone. We played with the squeaky ball and rolled around on the floor, and I had what I wanted.

I knew better. Even then I knew what I was trying to do. I needed a friend. That little dog could never really be the friend I needed. As you might guess, the next few days brought home the reality of owning a dog, particularly a house dog. Due in part to the emotional instability I was experiencing at the time, I soon realized I couldn’t handle it. I wish now I had been able to hang on. The no-kill shelter took him back and I suspect he found a good home, but I’ll never know. I did learn my lesson though. God wanted me to leave room for real relationships in my life and not to substitute anything less.

Eventually I took in another one. When I moved to where I live now I not-so-subtly hinted that I would like to have Savanna, a chow/collie mix that had originally belonged to my sister and was with my parents at the time. I wasn’t sure how attached they were to her, so I didn’t want to come right out and ask. I had always liked her. She was sweet as they come (provided you didn’t walk on four legs) and smart. She was an outside dog, though well behaved in the house. She preferred to be outside and wanted me to be outside with her.

By then I was in a very different place in my life. She didn’t come with the same expectations. I enjoyed having her around. I always felt guilty though. Dogs may just be animals, but when we take them for our own, we have a responsibility to meet their needs too. It’s even written in the Bible. Proverbs 10:12 says in part “A righteous man has regard for the life of his animal…” My life was just too busy. I worked downtown, often had church functions, and spent most of the remainder of my time in front of the computer at home. Most of the time my interaction with Savanna was to go out and fill her food and water bowls. Like the clichéd guilty parent, I bought her toys hoping she would occupy herself with them, but it’s hard to play fetch with yourself. So, when my sister moved back to a place where she could have a dog and was considering one for her kids, I told her she should take Savanna back. I did miss her when she left. Every time I walked past the back door where she would stand begging me to come out and play, I felt a little pang of sadness.

I believe it was best, at least with the information I had at the time. God made dogs to be social creatures. They need lots of interaction with people and with their own kind. If you want a well-behaved dog around people, the former needs to be foremost. I would not have willingly taken on another unless circumstances changed such that I had a need for the dog or the desire to spend the time necessary to treat it right.

But I did. Her name was Tia. She came with the wife. I was actually happy to have her in the beginning. She was the perfect dog for me; someone else’s responsibility yet available to me when I felt like interacting with it. At first, I walked her, tried to play with her and establish a bond. The relationship quickly soured. Linda and I had very different ideas about what was acceptable behavior and about a dog’s place in the household. Tia had been a companion and source of comfort to Linda for many years, and neither seemed very willing to make adjustments for me. That isn’t entirely true, but it was hard for me to see it.

Though not able to really understand Linda’s feelings about the dog, I recognized that nothing I could do would change them. I knew that trying to force my preferences on her would only keep Tia between us even after she was no longer with us. I didn’t hate the dog. She had some behavioral issues, but she was just a dog. She could not have any concept of the emotional tumult surrounding her, much less have any responsibility for it. She simply acted like a dog.

I think the Lord was dealing with me on what I really needed to do. As an act of love for my wife, I needed to make a best effort to love the dog. I couldn’t bring myself to do it. The best I could manage was to treat Tia with kindness and not take my pain and frustration out on her.

God is gracious. Despite my reluctance to do what I needed to do, He moved Linda to take the first step. She agreed to a change I wanted from the beginning. That issue was the greatest obstacle to me being able to accept Tia and believe that I was really the most important to Linda. We had a major training breakthrough and my whole attitude changed. I loved my wife more than ever, and I tried to learn to love the dog too.

I can’t say I ever really got there, but there was a positive development in 2013, not long before we lost her.  Linda has multiple sclerosis.  In January of that year, she experienced a major attack and was hospitalized for several weeks.  We had a dog door. It was common for Tia to go in and out several times as she roamed the house, but when I would come home from the hospital and sit down at my desk, I began to notice she was doing it more frequently.  I’d hear the slap of the flap as she went out and came back in, then the jingle of her tags as she paced up and down the hall.  It finally occurred to me what was going on.  She was searching for Linda.  When we’re both gone, we almost always come back together.  But something was wrong.  I was there but Linda wasn’t.  Did Tia love Linda?  I suppose that only God knows for sure, but I’m certainly not going to say she didn’t.  I did feel a little closer to Tia after that experience.

A few months later, we lost her.  Partially deaf and blind and under the influence of medication that the vet had given her so they could work on her ears, she wandered into the pool and drowned.  Thinking that she was asleep on the sofa, neither of us knew what had happened until it was far too late.  Naturally it was much harder on Linda than me.  I listened and let her grieve in her own time and way.

Will there be another dog in our lives?  Probably not.  We considered the idea for a while, but there are too many practical reasons why we shouldn’t.  My attitude has softened, but I still think it best to focus my emotional energy on human relationships.  I have a hard enough time doing that to accept any substitute.  But I have no doubt that God gave us the dog and knew what He was doing, so who knows?  I’m much less quick to judge now, and I am willing to accept that some time in the future there may be room in my heart for a furry friend.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • WhatsApp
  • Email
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

You Deserve It

Accessible Success Posted on January 24, 2024 by LarryJanuary 24, 2024

We’ve all heard the words.  We’ve probably all said them.  Advertisements tell you the words are true, and we’re all too ready to believe them.  Are they true?  Whatever “it” is, do we really deserve it?

When we speak of ourselves or someone else deserving something, we’re relying on our concept of justice to make that determination.  Whether the thing is good or bad, we did something for which it is a just consequence.  We may use the concept more generally regarding someone’s overall character, but character is revealed in action.

I cannot at this moment recall any time I have heard the phrase “I/You deserve it” spoken truthfully.  The speaker may have believed it, but that didn’t make it true.  We usually have an inflated view of ourselves and what we deserve.  God tells us what we deserve through the Bible (Romans 6:23) and there’s nothing good about it.  We deserve death.  Every breath we take is an act of His mercy.  Every good thing we have comes from Him (James 1:17.)  When we start thinking this way our whole attitude changes.  Demands are replaced with expressions of gratitude.  Pride is overcome by humility.  There is no room for jealousy.  We will find ourselves glorifying Yahweh, creator and Lord of all that is and the only one who truly does deserve it.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • WhatsApp
  • Email
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

Us Preachers’ Kids

Accessible Success Posted on January 23, 2024 by LarryJanuary 23, 2024

Some years ago, a near tragedy in the family of a pastor friend of mine started me wondering if preachers’ kids really deserve their reputation.  I first did a quick search to see if I could find any hard data on the behavioral and psychological health of the children of ministers versus other children.  I hoped I might find some kind of clinical study, though I suspect that if I had found it the bias would have been extreme. 

I found some blogs and forum posts by preachers’ kids.  I wasn’t that impressed.  I read their stories of how they felt pressure to be especially good and how it made life harder for them among their friends.  Some of them used that as an excuse for their rebellious behavior.  I don’t doubt that those pressures and feelings exist.  I don’t remember feeling particularly put upon because I was a preachers’ kid, but my siblings may see things differently.  My final impression was of a bunch of psychobabble that allowed them to justify in their own minds the way they felt or what they did.

I found a couple of ministries devoted to preachers’ kids.  They didn’t move me either.  They seemed designed to affirm the kids’ feelings, treating them as if they really had a hard life.  We do face some atypical challenges.  There is a higher expectation of us.  So what?  High expectations are good!  Did we sometimes get neglected in favor of church or ministry activities?  Maybe, but how is that different than children of working parents in any profession?  I’ll grant that few if any other professions so involve the family in the work.  This isn’t just any job though.  It is work that all Christians are called to in one way or another.

I didn’t find what I was looking for, so I’ll offer my own opinion.  Someone wrote that preachers’ kids have a reputation for being really bad or really good.  I suppose I would concur, but I am not sure the reputation is deserved in either case.  More often we hear about the really bad.  I think that is because there is a higher expectation of a minister’s children.  When they don’t meet that expectation, it sticks out.  I remain unconvinced that preachers’ kids are any worse than others.  In fact, I suspect that in terms of behavior, morality, and responsibility, they beat the averages.  I didn’t say they were better or even good.  We may have had better training, but we all must confront the sinful nature that defines us until we are redeemed by His blood.  “There is none righteous, not even one.”  We, like everyone else, must make a choice whether we will serve Jesus or serve ourselves, thereby serving Satan and receiving Satan’s punishment.  “As for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh.”

I am thankful that I was raised by a preacher.  I thank God regularly for the strong foundation upon which I base my life today.  My father taught me to love Jesus, love people, and live with integrity.  He taught me to pray, to feed on God’s Word, and to do what God tells me.  I’m proud to be a preacher’s kid, and I wish everyone else had the same blessing.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • WhatsApp
  • Email
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

Better Off Dead

Accessible Success Posted on January 22, 2024 by LarryJanuary 22, 2024

I struggled with depression for much of my life. I would have argued with you if you tried to tell me that. Not many people knew me well enough to see it. I think my father did, but I wouldn’t even hear that from him. I was never clinically diagnosed or prescribed anything, but I think I would have been if I had sought help.

I was never suicidal, though there were times I wanted to die. My faith, weak as it was at times, sustained me. I’m not qualified to give advice on when someone should seek professional help, though I certainly urge you to reach out if you are considering taking your own life. All life is precious, and that is never a good answer.

Sadness is a God-given emotion. Grief is natural and healthy if one is able to move through it. Bad things do happen to us and to those we love. Personal tragedy will come for all of us at some point in our lives.

But prolonged depression is something else. I do believe that depression is a spiritual condition that may have physical consequences. In some cases, it may be appropriate to use medication to restore enough balance to enable clear thinking, but the cure is in our hearts and minds. It is effected by the one who made them.

I can’t say it never tries to make a comeback, but I know now how to beat it. I realize now that I am really better off dead.  I am better off dead to the sin that draws me away from the life that is found in my Lord Jesus and into a death from which there is no salvation.  That’s the symbolism of Christian baptism; the death of the old and the birth of the new.  I am better off dead to my own selfish desires, which will only lead me deeper into depression.  They can only do so because I am not the source of life.  Jesus is the source of life.  His Holy Spirit lives within me, but if I do not listen to Him, I will not have the benefit of the only true Counselor. 

I believe the best thing we can do to fight depression is to get the focus off of ourselves.  Some say we should consider those who are worse off, but I don’t think that helps much.  We’ve got to get in there and actually help.  That’s when things start to change because that’s when we’re doing what God made us to do.  We’re made in his image.  We’re not going to be healthy unless we’re doing what we’re made for.  So, are you depressed?  You really are better off dead! (See Romans 6, Colossians 3:1-17.)  Leave off worrying about all the problems you have, serious though they may be.  Focus instead on helping someone else solve theirs.  I’ll bet you that if your problems don’t get better, your perspective on them will.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • WhatsApp
  • Email
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

All Natural

Accessible Success Posted on January 18, 2024 by LarryJanuary 18, 2024

I am somewhat amused by our fascination with things that are “natural.”  In particular we apply this label to things we ingest, but it’s also seen on everything from soap to clothing.  I don’t think I’ve seen a natural car yet…Oh wait…I think we call those horses.  As I recall from my reading, they dirtied up a city like no car ever could.

Now don’t get me wrong.  There is nothing superior to God’s creation.  I have to believe that God gave us everything we need on this earth to solve any problem we may encounter.  Most of it probably grows “naturally.”  That is essentially what we mean by the term natural.  It required no transformation by the hand of man to make it what it is.

But how much of what we call natural can really fit that description?  Unless you went out into the jungle and pulled it out of the ground yourself, it has been through manmade processes.  Natural is a meaningless word.  Man has never really created anything.  We only take that which God created and arrange it in new ways to form something that would not come to be without our intervention.  There is nothing that is not natural since all of its components came from nature at some time.  The distinction of organic versus inorganic is more meaningful, but still human intervention brings the desired organic elements together.

The thing I find laughable is the assumption that just because it is natural or organic it is good for you.  There are all kinds of natural things that we all know are not good for us, yet we snatch up items on the supermarket shelf that say organic or natural with the idea that they are going to be better for us without questioning what makes them organic or natural.  Cases of e coli infection are higher with organic foods because they are grown using dung for fertilizer.  Want some potatoes?

I’m not saying we don’t corrupt or misuse what God has provided.  WE do, and we don’t need to look to chemical factories to find examples.  Last time I checked, Marijuana, the opium poppy, and coca all grew naturally.  We should be prudent in choosing what we consume, but we should not buy into the lie that anything man touches becomes bad.  Man used his God given ability to make life better.  Enjoy all of God’s creation, even the stuff we rearranged.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • WhatsApp
  • Email
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

Post navigation

<< 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >>

Get it here!

Accessible Success: A Book for the Rest of Us

Recent Posts

  • Read and Reread
  • Some Thanksgiving Fun
  • Vote for Jesus
  • The Power of Pruning Shears
  • Love Your Enemies?!

Recent Comments

No comments to show.
©2025 - Accessible Success - Weaver Xtreme Theme Privacy Policy
↑