Editor: Richard (Dick) Innes
Published by: ACTS International
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Vol. 11 – No. 4009 October 03, 2009
Thought for the week: "If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else." – Booker T. Washington
Did you know that dolphins are so intelligent that within only a few weeks of captivity, they can train humans to stand at the very edge of the pool and throw them fish?
Somewhere between my childhood and now, what was considered proper in responding to others has changed. We were taught that it was respectful to return phone calls, letters [remember those?] and messages. Above all you kept your word. It was considered an insult if you didn't get back to someone or didn't live up to your promises. Your reputation and your character were at stake.
Today, instead of a response, we often receive—nothing. That non-response has become—a response. I realize we are all very busy and that's one less email or phone call to make.
Personally, I think I'll stay with the old-fashioned communication standard and answer. Even if I have to tell someone what they don't want to hear. At least it's honest and respectful.
There are stars whose radiance is visible on Earth though they have long been extinct. There are people whose brilliance continues to light the world even though they are no longer among the living. These lights are particularly bright when the night is dark. They light the way for humankind.
"Every decision you make—every decision—is not a decision about what to do. It's a decision about Who You Are. When you see this, when you understand it, everything changes. You begin to see life in a new way. All events, occurrences, and situations turn into opportunities to do what you came here to do."
While teachers can have a lifelong effect on the way students think, psychologist Haim Ginott has focused on a more immediate aspect of impact: the creation of a positive or negative physical and emotional environment that can determine the quality of a child's life.
"I've come to a frightening conclusion," he said. "I am the decisive element in the classroom. My personal approach creates the climate. My daily mood makes the weather. As a teacher, I possess a tremendous power to make a child's life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration. I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. It is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated and a child humanized or dehumanized."
As profound as this observation is for professional educators, it's even more so for parents. A parent's power to create the daily climate and lasting environment in which a child grows is so awesome that it must be used consciously and responsibly.
Since our daily moods make the weather, we should try to shield our children from the thunder and lightning of our frustrations and anger. Instead of the dark clouds of cynicism, fear, and depression, we should discipline our own emotions and give them the light and warmth of love, hope, and good cheer.
Conscious efforts to be positive, enthusiastic, and supportive can have a huge impact, not only on the emotional well-being of our children but on their ability to experience the joys and pains of childhood in healthy and constructive ways.
This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.
"When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the [adulterous] woman, He said to her, 'Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?' She said, 'No one, Lord.' And Jesus said to her, 'Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more."1
To me there is no more beautiful picture of God's unconditional, non-judgmental, non-shame-based, yet non-condoning love than in the example where the religious people brought the woman caught in the act of adultery to Jesus (as seen in today's Scripture passage).
In those days the penalty for adultery was death by stoning—a terrifying situation for this woman to be in. But for the life of me I can't even begin to imagine how a woman could be caught alone in the act of adultery! This was because this occasion was a setup to trap Jesus—and the "accusation stones" hidden in the accusers' pockets were to throw at Jesus rather than at the adulterous woman!
"The Law of Moses says," these jealous religious guilt-throwing-shame-based-hypocrites said to Jesus, "that this woman must be stoned to death. What do you say?" No matter what he answered, they believed they had him trapped and would find him guilty. If he said she should be stoned to death, they could accuse him of having no mercy. If he said she should not be stoned to death, they could accuse him of breaking the Law of Moses.
Jesus' answer was brilliant, "Yes," he said, "the Law of Moses says she should be stoned to death. So go head and kill her!" But before they had a chance to move a finger, Jesus added, "And let the man who has never sinned be the first one to cast a stone!"
Thud! The silence was deafening as one by one those religious bigots, like frightened, guilt-ridden puppy dogs, tucked their religious tails between their legs and slinked away as quickly as they could.
Jesus then asked the woman, "Where are your accusers now?" To which she replied, "They've all gone, Lord" Then Jesus made a profound statement, "Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more."
Not always of course, but some people commit adultery (and/or fornication) because they are looking for love in all the wrong places. Chances are that this woman was loved and accepted by a man (Jesus) for the first time in her life—loved for whom she was and not for what she had to offer lustful men. Jesus' acceptance of her and his giving her total unconditional love would free her from a life of sin. This is why Jesus could say to her, "Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more, or go and leave your life of sin." Notice, he did not condone her sinful behavior, but neither did he condemn her. Again, it was Jesus' unconditional love that would set her free from her sinful behavior.
God is never about condemning us, making us feel guilty, or making us feel ashamed. It's people who do that to us—including some religious people. God wants to forgive us and set us free from a life of sin. So we, too, need to come to Jesus and receive his unconditional, non-judgmental, and non-condoning love. It's there for "Whosever will may come."
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, thank you for your unconditional love for me and that you have provided a way of escape from the consequences of my sin by giving your Son, Jesus, to die in my place to pay the just penalty for my sins. Please help me to love and accept myself and others the same way that you love and accept me. Deliver me from any sinful ways and help me to live always to glorify you. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."
Note: For further help, if you have never confessed your sins/sinfulness to God and accepted his unconditional love, read, "How to Be Sure You're a Real Christian" at: http://tinyurl.com/real-christian
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