God’s truth is unbreakable, complete, everlasting, and perfect.
Deuteronomy 32:4:
He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.
As a boy, I loved to listen to my parent’s old radio/phonograph player. It was set in a beautiful wooden cabinet, and I was often fascinated by the glowing tubes that warmed up to receive radio signals or the stack of records that dropped one at a time so the arm could gently place the needle on that record.
One of my favorite songs of the day was called “I’m My Own Grandpa.” It was a humorous ballad about a man who, through a variety of marriages and family relations, became his own grandfather.
Whenever my brothers and sisters needed to settle an argument, we would say “Dad said so,” or “Mom said so.” Their authority was good enough to see things happen. Perhaps you’ve seen the same at work. If your supervisor gave permission, then you could freely go where you needed to and get the job done. How about your personal checks? Are they any good without the authority of your signature? The name is the key.
In elementary school, we had some classic “come back” lines in certain situations. If someone said they “loved” something, we would respond: “Then why don’t you marry it!” Another comeback when someone made a remark about us was, “Prove it!”
As the manager of “Wooly World” at the Toorak Hotel shopping plaza in Melbourne, Australia, I met a lot of men and women looking for high-end sheepskin garments. The most shocking experience of my sales life happened there in 1982.
Have you ever seen a newborn puppy or kitten, though blind, find their mother and begin to nurse? God built these “basics” (like feeding ourselves) into life. The basics are simple and easy to find and understand. When things get complicated, they can lose their value. Russian writer Leo Tolstoy said, “Give thanks to God who made necessary things simple, and complicated things unnecessary.”
I learned about my Dad by reading old newspapers about his Navy and Army service in World War II. I also heard stories about him from my Mom and other relatives. But the way I knew him best was by living with him, hearing what he had to say, and seeing his love for me in daily actions—like playing “catch” or praying together.
Both the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the outpouring of holy spirit on Pentecost were spiritually pivotal moments in world history. To this very day, we are still enjoying the life-giving benefits of what our heavenly Father had prepared for us in Christ at that time.
Lessons from Scouting Days
I have many fond memories of being a boy scout. There were 10-mile hikes through beautiful forests that ended in a refreshing swim in a cool spring, nights of camping under clear, star-filled skies, the fun of learning to swim and rescue others at summer camp.
I recently looked through my old scout handbook and found this:
“A boy who doesn’t know first aid is of little use when someone is hurt. A boy who can’t swim has little chance to rescue a drowning person. As a Scout you will know what to do–and do it. ”
The devil thought he’d won it when they laid Christ in the tomb,
His plot to kill Messiah and to spread hate, death, and gloom.
But God Almighty had a plan, and to our foe’s surprise,
Our lord got up in glory, out of the grave to rise!