Appreciation, Gratitude and Contentment

When I was in the Navy I was called to serve in Iraq. The country was virtually all desert except for some shabby orchards along the Euphrates River. The buildings were largely masonry construction with sheet metal roofs, if they had roofs at all. The cars were old and dusty and many families had none. The people were scraggly and worn, as were their clothes.

It was a war zone in which they lived. Our convys had to stay away from the sides of the roads and potholes because that's where the IEDs were. But there were so many potholes they were impossible to avoid. The roads were in such disrepair they would not pass for Farm to Market roads in my native Texas. County maintenance crews would be ashamed for those roads to be in their precincts. 

Buildings lay in ruins and no one was eager to rebuild them when life required so much energy just to survive. The smell of sewage was prevalent in some cities where infrastructure had been targeted or had long been in disrepair under the rule of a selfish despot. Heaps of smoking trash the size of 18-wheelers were a common site.

I travelled all over the huge airbase that I was assigned to maintain. It was built by Saddam and looked as those he had been given building plans from the USSR for they looked as I imagined a stark military base would have looked in the old Soviet Block. Each building was concrete, square, no ornamentation except that which the soldiers painted on the walls to break up the lack of joy. I drove for miles and miles around that perimeter road, observing the bombed out tanks and rusting hulks of aircraft scattered about the dessert. The base was some of the nicest construction anywhere around and even it was a spirit crusher.

 
Eupohoria of the Ordinary

I say all that to set you up for this. When I returned home from that bleak landscape it was a surreal experience. We flew into Shannon, Ireland at a pre-dawn hour for a short layover. It quite literally hurt my eyes to look out the plane's portholes to see the Emerald Isle - it was so green it was like looking into a bright light even without the sun being up. The stone walls neatly weaved across the countryside all in what seemed like perfect repair. The airport was modest by our standards; maybe like a municipal airport in a secondary market. But to us it was grand. It was the first polite civilization we had seen since leaving the desert. The duty-free shops sold trinkets and objects that seemed both opulent and unnecessary. 

Then we flew into New York. As we circled the City, looking down on the sprawling accomplishments of civilization with its bright glass towers and tasteful masonry work, its landmark bridges and its throng of vehicles, our chaplain had the flight crew play "They Come to America" over the PA system. That cheesy song and the sight of the Big Apple brought tears to my eyes. I wasn't yet home but still I was home. The size, grandness and wealth of the city struck me. The airport was well appointed compared to where I had been and the surly customs agents were as welcoming as a family hug.

By the time I made it back home to my wife I was almost in a state of euphoria. There would not be a puddle-jumper flight to my local airport until later in the afternoon but I had arrive in Houston midmorning. I could not wait so I spent the money on a rental car. It turned out to be a wonderful decision. I drove home through wooded areas and rolling hay pastures along Highway 6 in the Spring. The beauty of our country was enchanting. So green. So alive. Why had I not seen this before?

I pulled up to our one bedroom apartment in a 40-year-old, stucco-clad development that we had only just barely accepted because it was what we could afford for a young married couple going to college. It was magnificent. My sweet wife was standing on the porch ready to greet me. Her clothes and face were clean, bright and smooth. Her skin was not thick and weathered and she smelled sweet instead of bearing the stench of the cities in Iraq. What a remarkable contrast. I was in heaven.

For several weeks after I returned home I walked through life in a state of awe and wonder with a silly grin plastered on my face. My experience in a war zone had gifted me with an appreciation that almost certainly few other experiences could award. No longer did I have to be on guard every moment of day and night (which I had not realized I was until I no longer had to) but the wealth of our country which had previously gone unnoticed by me was not so glaringly obvious that I gazed at it in amazement. We went to a Mexican food restaurant to meet with some friends. I was so overwhelmed by all the colors, smells, soft textures, rich food, and smiling faces that I could hardly speak. Our friends could tell there was something strange about me and would inquire what was wrong. I could not put it into words then because in the midst of it I did not understand what was happening. I was truly appreciating everything we have in America.

Gratitutde is A Virtue

The Christian model teaches for a man to be content with what he has while simultaneously working hard to care for his needs and those of his family. Balance is hardwired into this model but it is all too true that the simplicity of the mind of man causes him to focus on one or the other platforms of the scale while neglecting the other. For example, selfishness (which is also a default setting in man) may cause a Christian to focus on the hard work to the exclusion of charity, which is no religion at all.

To Train Your Children:

Remind your children who are discontented with their clothes, the electronics and their house that even the poorest in our nation are wealthy on the world stage. They must appreciate their position or stand to either be discontented with such a posh life or to lose it altogether out of national apathy. It strikes me by way of observation that the default setting in man is discontentment. No matter his status, riches, or poverty, he grows accustomed to his appointment. That means that his view of material contentment starts from the baseline of his rearing, then changes over time to his adolescent years and then into adulthood. No matter how wealthy, a child can be discontented with his possessions when he is not taught to be grateful either by his parents or by life. Appreciation is something that must be earned. For the average boy, it is his own personal hardship that will achieve appreciation. For the wise boy, it may only require the observation of hardship in the lives of others to achieve it.

Help your children to appreciate their status in life. Take them to the poor side of town - every town has one. Have them intently look upon the lives that are lived in this place and the neglect this position in life renders. This happened for me at the age of 12 when my family made a trip into Nuevo Laredo, Mexico.  Two lives were lived by the same people on each side of the Rio Grande.  Do not let this be a short excursion nor let your children look away. Tears of your child at this point are a precursor to gratefulness. Do not let them feel as though the poor in our nation are repressed. Explain the opportunity that is available to all of us through hard work and discipline. Explain also that it may take generations for a mindset of poverty to be overcome so that he habits of the inhabitants are toward personal industry rather than collective dejection. Explain also that poverty may be a cruel inevitability for the lame, the mentally stunted, and the uneducated. For God does not call mankind to be wealthy but to be content. Then explain the imperative of charity to aid the helpless, the necessity of education, and the virtues of industry. If your child does not immediately become contemplative look upon his own possessions with gratefulness, then either you have not spent enough time with your child in these places, you have not sufficiently explained the realities of life, or you have waited until you child is too old and calloused to be touched with the plight of his fellow man. Pray you are not too late. 

If you accomplish in guiding your child to appreciation, gratitude and humility you will have achieved one of the greatest feats attainable for a parent. For this is a sacred virtue.

The Wolf and the Hare

The wolf has said, "I have no taste for blood,"
"In fact, this has never been my way."
"By my solitude in the hill others thought I would kill,"

"I'd rather eat clover and hay."

But his fangs, they belie him and claws do protest

This notion we heard him just say.

His keen nose and ears easy attune to the fears

Of the small, the weak and the prey.

By moonlight the hare, he now freely prowls

In the woods and the hills with his pack.

He warns others "Beware! Be on watch for the hare!"

Bloodthirsty, he stalks his next snack.

But how dreadful a bunny, with soft, downy fur?

And a white fluffy tail at his back?

Buck teeth protrude, and by this is construed,

He is intended for carrots to attack.

The man was convinced his ways were too brutish.

More like a woman he should be.

Be sensitive and meeker, emotive and weaker.

"The world will be better, you see."

His traits are toward risk, to conquer and persevere,

To protect and provide for a family.

But courage and strength, no longer virtues he seeks,

Not well thought of to be manly.

The woman is then left to be the aggressor.

She is smarter, more cunning after all!

She can rear them and steer them and have a career then,

Never mind her equipment's grand call.

Let us be wise observers of ourselves and our roles,
Neither aggrandizing nor making one small.
Each station honor, our natures not squander,
Taking each post with resolve.

God, the Constitution and the Affordable Health Care Act

I was driving in to work today with the radio tuned to a local talk station.  I had awoke relatively late, ate breakfast in front of my computer at home and was now leisurely getting around to going to the office.  And then I heard the news that caused my heart to sink.  But let's back up a minute.

Today is June 28, 2012.  It's an historic day for several reasons:

• First of all, in 1914 Austria's Archduke Ferdinand was assassinated, leading to the Great War (World War I).  
• In 1894 Labor Day was enacted by Congress, setting it as the first Monday in September. 
• The first Corvette rolled of the production line in Flint, Michigan. 

Of course, all of these are events that changed history and affect our lives, some more significantly than others.  Another significant event is the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, otherwise known as "Obamacare."  The vast majority of the legislation was upheld today. This battle has been waging since 2010 and will continue on into this next election season and quite possibly beyond. 

The arguments have been all over the board.  From the far left emotional pleas of "poor people need healthcare and rich Republicans just want to keep them down" to the far right retorts that "God is not happy with this law... it kills babies and old people."  What it really boils down to is much more humanly fundamental than the grandiose ballyhoos.  The U.S. Constitution was set up to ensure our safety and prosperity and to protect our freedoms (those would be unalienable rights in the Declaration).  It seems that this is a good point to get THIS off my chest:  regardless of how noble the goal of universal healthcare may or may not be, any service provided to you by someone else it is not a RIGHT.  Just like you don't have a "right" to have a car provided for you but you do have a right to own personal property, including a car.  Words have profound meaning, folks.  Now that's out of the way. 

The Real Motivations Behind the Healthcare Act

Hunger, shelter, sex, warmth, acceptance, gratification, security, power, stimulation.  These are some of many human motivations and some are more basic than others.  What we are dealing with in the Healthcare Act are very basic. 

• Greed and security.  First, on the part of the people who want to be given something that someone else has.  Either poor, ignorant or ideological people who want the government to better them at the expense of others.  Basically, this is greed by proxy.  In other words, letting the government do your dirty work.  Let me take this time to say that there are legitimately poor people who really need help taking care of life's necessities and dealing with the huge expenses of medical catastrophes.  We cannot pretend these facts do not exist but we must also admit that our government may or may not have the best solution, if one is to be had at all.
• Greed and selfishness.  Let us also be honest enough to admit that there are those with wealth (and even those without) who are in a position to help other but chose not to out of greed.  Maybe this cohort comprises the majority of the American population at this point.  Most Americans claim to be religious and Christian at that.  What happened to "faith, hope and charity but the greatest of these is charity?"
• Power and security.  Second, on the part of those who wanted to pass the Act in order to garner favor with the voting populace in order to get re-elected and stay in power.  This is exceptionally common and the primary motivation of the career politician. This is my primary reason for supporting term limits.  Go to Washington, do good for your country, go home an get back to work. 
• Fear and security.  The third subset is the group that oppose the legislation because it is a perceived threat to the real income of every American.  Some realize that their total costs will increase and their disposable income will decline as a result of this new "tax," not to mention the fact that insurance companies are forced to raise rates to offset new mandates in the legislation.  Additionally, there is a greater fear that is still fundamental to mankind, and that fear is that things will be changing.  The uncertainty of the extent of the economic impact is a legitimate fear, but the fear of the unknown is often exaggerated in the human psyche.  However, basic economic principles tell us that when people have less disposable income they spend less, and when business have higher expenses (like health insurance) they hire less.  That is a pretty basic (and much ignored) impact from this legislation and others like it.  So the fear of a sinking economy burdened by the Act is not unfounded.  

There are other motivations, such as hatred, jealousy, or vindication, but these are the basics.  It's that simple. 

Chasing A Darwinian Rabbit

The last point begs the question, if most of us are worse off and less profitable in the end, how will we continue to pay for rising healthcare costs in an increasing population?  To chase a rabbit trail, if we look at this from a purely humanistic standpoint (which is the far left mindset) isn't it better that most of us are better off with a few who suffer from a lack of affordable healthcare (assuming this is actually true) than making most of us worse off (which is also an assumption but supportable) while improving the lives of the proportionate few?  If the humanistic leftist is intellectually honest, why not let the law of the survival of the fittest take its course by not providing healthcare to those who cannot provide it for themselves?  Of course, this is a cold and harsh view of the world and not one that most humanists freely espouse, but I think consistent.  From an economics standpoint, the Act violates the concept of Pareto Optimality whereby some can be made better off while simultaneously making no one else worse off. 

That is not to say that the religious right is correct in it's cry that charity is the sole resolution to the ills of poverty and personal catastrophe.  To be quite honest, this view ignores the fact that most Americans are not willing to go out and look for people who need financial help and then cut them a check.  Partially this is out of greed.  Partially because there is a general understanding that frauds abound who don't really need the money and even if they do the money is spent on beer and cigarettes instead of the rent.  The later problem is just exacerbated when the government gives handouts where the results cannot be policed.  The greater problem is that Americans are increasingly void of integrity, which means fewer people are charitable and fewer people put the money to good use.  Maybe the answer is that there is not a feasible or sustainable solution to the healthcare "problem."  Maybe we just need to admit that suffering is part of the human experience and that we each are subject to it.

God, Country and Peace

I say all of that to say this.  "Let not your hearts be troubled.  Trust in God; trust also in [Jesus]."  A phrase hijacked... uh, used by Sean Hannity, is so very true in the face of something that could make quite a few people depressed.  First, let's be honest: this is really a symptom of a rich country.  We are so rich that many have come to believe healthcare is a "right" in the same way life is characterized as a right by our founding fathers.  So we are exceptionally BLESSED.  You will start off on the wrong foot in thinking about all of this if you do not first recognize and internalize this.  You will also come to peace with the whole thing much faster when you internalize that while you have a say in our representative democracy, ultimately God is in control.  Trust in Him. 

And that brings me to my last point.  I sent a text to a friend this morning who keeps up with sports more than current events.  His reply to my announcement on the ruling of the Supreme Court was something to the effect that maybe someone will do something about this "with God's help."  And then the text argument began. 

But in all seriousness, if you one thing today, let it be this:  God cares for each and every soul on this earth but whether or not every person in the USA has healthcare coverage is not on His priority list.  His ways are higher than our ways.  God desires that we obey Him.  Our job is to live our lives in respect and love for God.  I just don't see where health insurance factors into God's plan for our lives.  If God has allowed horrible and tyrannical governments to persist throughout the ages, what difference does a healthcare act matter to Him?  It is not that He does not care because we know He does.  He also calls us to cast our cares upon Him and then go on living our lives.  God uses government to accomplish His will and His will is that we obey Him, not that we do or do not have healthcare. 

Let us continue to strive to better our lives, while at the same time making God our first priority.  Then we can be at peace. 

Prayer: How and For What?

The Bible talks about prayer frequently.  Occurs in about 152 verses in the New Testament and about 245 times in the Old Testament.  The frequency of a word does not inherently make it important but it is when it is so often commanded, utilized by faithful people and looked upon with favor by God.  So it must be integral to pleasing God.  Some people find prayer to be mysterious or difficult.  After all, how is it that Jesus could pray all night?

Let’s take a look at several examples of prayer to see what they consist of.  First, a prayer of David after God told him that his family will be blessed and his throne would be established forever in II Samuel 7.

2Sam 7:18-29  Then King David went in and sat before Jehovah. And he said, Who am I, O Lord Jehovah? And what is my house, that You have brought me here?  (19)  And this was yet a small thing in Your sight, O Lord God. But You have spoken also of Your servant's house for a great while to come. And is this the manner of men, O Lord God?  (20)  And what can David say more to You? For You, O Lord Jehovah, know Your servant.  (21)  For Your Word's sake, and according to Your own heart, You have done all these great things to make Your servant know.  (22)  Therefore You are great, O Jehovah God. For there is none like You, neither is there any God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears.  (23)  And what one nation in the earth is like Your people, like Israel, whom God went to redeem for a people to Himself, and to make Him a name, and to do for You great things and terrible, for Your land, before Your people, whom You redeemed to You from Egypt, from the nations and their gods?  (24)  For You have confirmed to Yourself Your people Israel to be a people to You forever. And You, Jehovah, have become their God.  (25)  And now, O Jehovah God, the word that You have spoken concerning Your servant, and concerning his house: establish it forever, and do as You have said.  (26)  And let Your name be magnified forever, saying, The Jehovah of Hosts is the God over Israel. And let the house of Your servant David be established before You.  (27)  For You, O Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel, have revealed to Your servant, saying, I will build you a house. Therefore Your servant has found in his heart to pray this prayer to You.  (28)  And now, O Lord Jehovah, You are that God, and Your Words are true, and You have promised this goodness to Your servant.  (29)  Therefore, now, let it please You to bless the house of Your servant, to be forever before You. For You, O Lord Jehovah, have spoken. And with Your blessing let the house of Your servant be blessed forever.

What did David do in his prayer? 

1.      He gratefully acknowledged God’s kindness and blessings
2.      He humbled himself before God
3.      He reverently acknowledge God as Lord and omniscient
4.      Although he was king, David called himself God’s servant
5.      He praised God and exclaimed the wonders of what God had done and His power
6.      He was genuinely grateful toward God for taking care of His people
7.      He openly submitted to God’s will and asked that it be done
8.      He spoke of the nature of God
9.      He asked for the blessing of God

This is an excellent model to look at in our own prayer life.  There are many other examples of prayer throughout scripture, but let’s take a look at the most famous model of prayer that Jesus used to instruct with.

The model prayer 

Mat 6:9-13  "Therefore pray in this way: Our Father, who is in Heaven, Hallowed be Your name.  (10)  Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.  (11)  Give us this day our daily bread;  (12)  and forgive us our debts as we also forgive our debtors.  (13)  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil. For Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen."  Jesus' model was very simple and efficient.

1.      Glorify God
2.      Accept and acknowledge God’s will
3.      Ask for necessities
4.      Forgiveness
5.      Strength
6.      Honor God

The Bible also offers much more instruction on how to pray than we might realize.  Not necessarily in direct commands, but also through the examples of Godly people who’s prayers were found pleasing to God.  

How to Pray:
1.      Alone, shut the door, quiet place (Matt 6:5-6)
2.      Not with empty words (Matt 6:7)
3.      Reverently, kneeling or face down (Matt 26:39)
4.      Constantly (I Thess 5:17)
5.      Without wrath or doubting (I Tim 2:8)

6.      With thanksgiving (Col 4:2)
7.      With mind and spirit (1 Cor 14:15)
8.      Sometimes with fasting (I Cor 7:5)
9.      Fervently (Hebrews 5:7)
10.    God hears the righteous (3 John 1:2)

What to Pray For
We have a legitimate concern to avoid “vain repetition” in our prayer as Jesus commanded in Matthew 6.  Even so, after looking at the subject matter of prayer in the Bible and examples of prayer we see that fervent, honest prayer is received by God and even recorded as Scripture that repeats the same themes.  The consistent subject matter of prayer in the Old Testament that was looked upon favorably was:

1.      Forgiveness
2.      Strength
3.      End Hardship
4.      Praise God
5.      Repentance and Salvation
6.      Safety
7.      Healing

That sounds  lot like the content of our public prayers in worship today.  The same themes found int the Old Testament are consistently repeated in the New Testament.   And we find even more diverse themes in the New Testament that include:

1.      For enemies (Luke 6:28)
2.      For all people (I Tim 2:1)
3.      For Salvation for self and others (2 Thes 1:11)
4.      To do good (2 Cor 13:7)
5.      For children (Matt 19:13)
6.      For strength in temptation (Mark 14:38)
7.      For authorities and for peaceable lives (I Tim 2:2)
8.      For the Strength to preach (Eph 6:9)
9.      For love toward others (Phil 1:9)
10.    To do no evil (2 Cor 13:7)
11.    To give thanks (Eph 1:16)
12.    For opportunities to preach (Col 4:3)

13.    For health and prosperity (3 John 1:2)
    
There is no mystery to prayer.  It’s pretty basic.  The Bible bears out in its examples and commands that there is not much to it.  Prayer is about our most fundamental needs as humans and as spirits and is about praise toward God.  Through it we express not only needs, but joy, thankfulness, worship and selflessness.  We can know all these things about prayer, what to pray for and how to pray just by searching God’s Word.  For by His Word, God communicates with us and through prayer we communicate with God.  And we have help in all this, “For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” Romans 8:26

Good Bull - Aggie Marines in Vietnam

This account of a real event that occurred in Vietnam relates part of why I am so proud be an Aggie and why the Aggie Spirit burn so bright.  In the email chain that brought this story to me, the man who was saved in this story referred to a fellow Aggie as "Sir" and talked about the A&M memorabilia he will be passing down to his grand children.  This story came to me through members of the Corps of Cadets, including a yell leader.  Those bonds remain strong.  These are men of character, honor and respect.  This should help any outsider understand why we say "Farmers Fight!"

I certainly hope Cpt. Beggs doesn't mind me sharing this story with whoever may stumble across it.  It's worth sharing and recounting.

 

My Friend Charlie

Charlie Rodenberg was raised in Old Ocean, Texas, by a mother and father who had both been in the Marines in World War II. Charlie was the type of kid who would play in the garbage dump with you, if that’s what you wanted to do, help you hunt birds with BB guns, and trade already been chewed gum with you if you liked his brand better. In short, he was all you could ask for as a friend.

I first met Charlie when we were both students at Texas A&M. Charlie and I were cadets in the same unit in the A&M cadet corps, which was made up primarily of Air Force ROTC cadets. Charlie and I were the only two Marines in the unit. After finishing college and getting our commissions, Charlie became a pilot and I became an infantry officer, so although we were in the Marines together, we rarely saw each other due to being in different “communities”---his was aviation, and mine was infantry. However, Charlie and I did have one momentous meeting that occurred in Vietnam; one that I wasn’t even aware of until almost forty years after it occurred.

It was on a warm day in January---in Vietnam, the month of January can be quite warm---when Charlie and I had that momentous meeting. Just two days prior to my meeting with Charlie, I had just returned from a 5 day “R and R”, or as the military referred to it , “rest and recreation”, in Hawaii, with my wife. Wars continue after R&Rs are finished, so two days after kissing my wife goodbye in Hawaii, I was back in Vietnam, leading a combat operation against enemy forces. It was during that operation that Charlie and I were to meet again.

Our operation had been uneventful up until we started taking some sniper fire from a small hill. I deployed my Marines and started doing all the things Marines are supposed to do in such situations, when one of my Marines found himself isolated in a potential minefield. I tried to “talk” my guy out of where he was by getting him to retrace his steps, but he was too scared to move. So, I ran up the hill to get him myself, and that’s when I stepped on it.

“It” was a landmine. When it exploded, I was not only filled full of holes, but also had a leg almost torn off and was blown into the air. When I came back down to earth, I landed on my head, which apparently ended up pinching some nerves in my spine. So here I was, with the memory of my wife’s last kiss fresh in my mind, lying in the red dirt of a hill in Vietnam, rapidly losing blood. In addition, I was blinded and paralyzed from the waist down, temporarily as it turned out, thank God. But all I knew then and there was that I was badly hurt, and that I might never see my wife and children again.

One of my sergeants immediately called for an emergency medical evacuation, or medevac, flight for me. I couldn’t move my legs or see, but I could hear all of what was going on around me. I heard the radio operator acknowledge the medevac helicopter pilot’s “inbound” call by saying “Roger, Peachbush 1-7 inbound 5 mikes.” That meant that in 5 minutes, I would be on a helicopter being flown to the nearest medical facility, where I’d be patched up.

There was a problem, though. The area where I lay wounded was in a tree line, and there was no place nearby that was suitable for a helicopter to land. There was a piece of equipment called the “jungle penetrator” that had been designed just for situations such as this, but its use had recently been banned due to safety reasons. There were 3 things that could happen if a jungle penetrator was used, and two of them were bad: the jungle penetrator could snag on a tree as it was being brought back up into the helicopter, thereby tethering the helicopter to the ground, or it could break and the wounded Marine attached to the other end of it could fall to his death. Because of these liabilities, an order went out to all aircrews that use of the jungle penetrator was prohibited.

As I lay there listening to the radio operator talk with the helicopter pilot, it became obvious to me that the only way off that hill for my bleeding body was for the pilot to use the jungle penetrator to get me out. It was either that, or bleed to death before I could be moved to a place where a helicopter could land to pick me up. Then I heard the magic words spoken by my radio operator: “Roger, standing by for the jungle penetrator.” The helicopter was hovering directly overhead, and over the noise of the blades, I heard the JP come down through the trees. The sniper shifted his fire to the hovering helicopter, but the pilot held station so that he could try to save the life of a wounded Marine. My Marines tied me to the JP, and I was winched up into the helicopter without incident, although I don’t remember much of it. I lost consciousness as I was being pulled up into that beautiful, ugly CH-46 helicopter. Had the pilot of that helicopter,whose callsign was Peachbush 1-7, not taken the risk of deploying the jungle penetrator, I would surely have lost my life that January day. That pilot, through his courage and willingness to take a risk in trying to save another Marine’s life, did just that---he saved my life. It would take me almost forty years to find out who that pilot was.

As time went by, I regained my sight and the use of my legs, and ultimately became as near physically normal as is possible for someone who had suffered such an injury. Many years went by, and all of us boys from the Class of 1968 became the old men of the Class of 1968, but we stayed connected through phone calls and emails. During one of those email exchanges, our classmate Dan Wimberly sent out an email that marked the passing away of an Army helicopter pilot, Ed Freeman, who had braved enemy fire countless times during the Battle of Ia Drang to rescue wounded soldiers. I replied to Dan’s email by recounting the incident where a courageous Marine helicopter pilot had risked his own life, the lives of his crew, and his career by choosing to do what was needed rather than what was permissible. I ended my reply by writing “I do not know who the pilot of Peachbush 1-7 was, but I will be eternally grateful to that unknown helicopter pilot who saved my life.” That email was sent out to my circle of A&M classmates, among whom, of course, was Charlie Rodenberg. And Charlie answered that email simply with the following words: “Mike, Peachbush 1-7 was yours truly.” Imagine my surprise. I had seen my old friend Charlie several times over the years, but did not know that he was the man to whom I owed my life. If he had not been courageous enough to disobey standard orders, I would not be here today talking about him.

All of you know that Charlie was a man of deep convictions, courage, and love. He loved his God, his country, his family, and his friends. And we all loved him, and we will miss him. Thank you, old friend; thank you for my life. I wish I could have done something to save yours. May your homeward flight be as beautiful as your life. Peachbush 1-7 has checked off the net, but not out of our hearts.
 

Michael R. Beggs
Captain, USMC (Retired)
4 Feb 2011

Spiritual Growth is My Responsibility

Paul said physical fitness is good and profitable.  He also uses sports or racing analogies several times.  Whose responsibility is it that you get fit or stay physically fit?  Who sees to it that you get off the couch and exercise?  Of course, the answer it you.  In our wildest dreams, we can’t hope for someone else to make us exercise for our own betterment.  Even if you hire a personal trainer or go on the show “The Biggest Loser” to “make” you work out, you still have to make the effort to show up.  You have to be motivated on some level to exercise.  

I read and article called 5 Ways to Stay Motivated to Exercise Regularly http://life.gaiam.com/article/5-ways-stay-motivated-exercise-regularly

Personal trainers interviewed for this article recommended these steps to stay motivated to exercise regularly.  Do you know what the number one step was?

1. Change your perspective
Shift your thinking from the spectator that watches and expects other people to do it and start thinking as the athlete that gets it done.  Committing to a fitness routine begins in your head.
2. Set a goal
There’s nothing more motivating than bold letters on the calendar. Make sure it’s realistic and that you actually adapt your life around meeting the goal.
3. Schedule a regular workout time
4. Think fun and variety
5. Reach out to others for support

That’s great advice.  Not just for exercising but for anything that we try to stick with in our lives, like changing your diet or growing spiritually.  No matter what it is, the task is your individual responsibility and no one elses.  So how about Spiritual Fitness?

Spiritual fitness is mandatory. “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” – (2 Pet. 3:8)  It doesn’t say, “if you feel like it” or, “if the church supports you” or, “if someone motivates me.”  It just says - you - grow.

1. Change Your Perspective

• Matthew 5:6 – The Christian is pronounced “blessed” or happy by Jesus when he hungers and thirsts for righteousness and his longing is satisfied by God.  It’s my job to get hungry, to change the way I think, to fight in my mind and in my spirit for that spiritual growth.  “I buffet my body daily.”  Grit your teeth and face the challenge.

• Look at it as the athlete, not the spectator.  You are the racer that is persevering to the end.  Philippians 3:12 – 12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.  Notice that Paul takes that responsibility on himself and states “I press on” and “I lay hold.”  He is not expecting anyone else to do it for him.

2.  Set a Goal.  We have bookmarks in the foyer that list scriptures to read the Bible through in a year.  Maybe your goal is to read a book a month, a psalm a day, pray constantly, meditate on the Word, or reach out to someone in need.   

• Php 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.  Paul set a goal and pushed for the prize.  Ultimately, our goal and prize is heaven.  

3. Schedule a regular time for growth

• 1 Tim 4:13 “Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.  To give attention to reading means to make it a continual practice. It is not just an occasional reading, but a daily practice. If done habitually it yields constant results.
• “rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, and continue steadfastly in prayer” (Rom. 12:12)  Continue steadfastly means to maintain the regular habit.

4. Think fun and variety.   We do need variety to stay motivated.  Hey, Jesus rose early in the morning to pray in the garden.  How many of us mix it up like that?
5. Reach out to others for support

• As iron sharpens iron so one man sharpens another

Galatians 6:1-5 Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; (It says those who are spiritual.  We have to focus on our spiritual well being first.)  each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another. 5 For each one will bear his own load.

It is my responsibility and it is yours.

The Key to Joy in Simplicity

The older I get, the more I can appreciate simplicity.  One would think that I would learn to carve down a blog entry to cut to the chase and simplify things for the reader... but that's work!  I am getting there, however.  

Simplicity in Writing

I write for a living: technical writing.  Part of my job is writing appraisal reports - lots of them.  Much of what I compose for work has the potential to be litigated, ripped apart and laid bare before at least county commissioners, if not a jury.  I've learned that summarizing and being brief is more valuable than being verbose with lengthy explanations.  You give the other side more to scrutinize and more opportunities to twist your words.  In other words, keep it simple.  I'm learning that applies to so many more areas of life. 

Simplicity in Diet

I have been experimenting with elements of something called the GAPS Diet.  A coworker turned me on to this and we have both been dabbing in its principles of healing the digestive tract in order to relieve intestinal distress and clear mental faculties.  The premise is that at least part of human psychology begins in the gut.  

So what does that have to do with simplicity?  Simple foods.  Whole foods.  Meat with the bone in.  Bone stock.  Chicken stock.  Soup with five ingredients.  Nothing processed, no sugars, no white flour.  Just healing, nourishing soup and stock like our grandmothers used to make from scratch.  The irony is that it is no simple task to find some of the simple ingredients for the simple diet.  Your average supermarket fare is so highly processed and not grown organically.  It has been a journey to find the places the supply the type of wholesome, simple food I'm looking for.  For example, have you ever tried to find raw milk?  Outside of milking a cow yourself, it's close to impossible.  

But over time you adjust, you find sources and things become routine.  You achieve a new normal and life becomes simpler again.  Only now, I'm eating fewer foods made from ingredients I think I can trust.  That is simplicity.

I watched a documentary last night about several gentlemen who were on a juice fast for sixty days.  Nothing but fruit and vegetable juice.  That's a simple diet, even though it can make life more involved until you figure out your new normal.  The benefits of lost weight, more energy and less medication is certainly a joy of simplicity.

My Simple Lunch

A simple joy I found today was over lunch with my coworker who introduced me to GAPS.  He had made some great northern beans and lima beans with a ham hock.  I'm not a big fan of these varieties but with the ham bone, it was pretty decent.  I had made some home made sauerkraut with just cabbage, sea salt and starter.  Together, the kraut and the beans were a surprisingly good combination.  We used good quality ingredients and simple recipes.  

Some of my favorite meals are simple: pasta with sauce, prosciutto and bread, grilled cheese with tomato soup.  Have you noticed that if you use poor quality ingredients that the results aren't so good, not as satisfying, and not as pleasant?  That's the key: good quality inputs.  Ever had ham and white bread?  It just doesn't compare to prosciutto and artisan bread, does it?

The Key

Just as with recipes, the quality of your inputs determine the quality of the outcomes.  The better the effort, the more dense the nutrients, the more concise the writing, the more joy will be derived from the product. It's a lack of fillers.  Keep it simple.   To really appreciate simplicity and take joy where you find it means you have to get your priorities straight and be emotionally grounded, at least to some degree.  But the key is still the same: quality.