Redeemable

"To treat people well is to honor their souls; to love your neighbor." ~ St. Thomas Moore

In 1919, Lewis Lawes moved his wife and 3 small children into the warden's mansion at Sing Sing prison.  They shared the yard with over 1,000 of the most dangerous men in the world - murderers, rapists, and thieves who the Lawes alone believed capable of redemption.

At the time, Sing Sing had the reputation of being unmanageable.  Nine wardens had served in the previous eight years.  One lasted only 16 days.  "The easiest way to get out of Sing Sing," Lewis once joked, "is to go in as warden."

Physical conditions at the facility were atrocious; questionable business practices had decimated the budget; corruption was rampant; and inmates seemed to run the penitentiary.

In his 21 year tenure, Lewis instituted numerous creative reforms.  By his own admission however, much of his success was due to his wife Catherine.

She believed passionately that prisoners were human beings, worthy of attention and respect.  She regularly visited with prisoners in the depths of despair and recognized that even the most troubled convicts could be inspired by demonstrating trust in their ability to handle responsibilities.  For example, she allowed a hardened kidnapper to care for her children.

Catherine saw them less as prisoners and more as individuals.  She taught them, encouraged them, and even ran errands for them.  Mostly she cared for them as her own.

As a result, the ‘boys’ cared deeply about her too.  Many said that Catherine was the body of Jesus that came alive again at Sing Sing in 1919.

The prisoners became alarmed when Lewis didn’t report to work in the fall of 1937.  Rumors spread quickly that Catherine had been killed in a car accident.  The following day her body laid in repose for public viewing, 3/4 of a mile from the prison.

As the acting warden took his early morning walk, he noticed a large gathering at the main gate. Nearly every prisoner pressed against the fence, eyes awash with tears, faces solemn; no one spoke or moved.  They’d come to stand as close as they could to the woman who’d loved them.

The warden made a remarkable decision.  "All right, men, you can go.  Just be sure to check in tonight."

Sing Sing’s south gate slowly swung open.  Hundreds of men, convicted of every crime imaginable, slowly emerged from the prison without escort to pay their final respects.

Every single inmate returned that night.

No one tried to escape out of respect for Catherine - the woman who walked daily into Hell to show them a piece of Heaven.  Her gentle spirit transformed many hardened souls in that prison, demonstrating that tenderness is powerful, strong, vigorous, dynamic, and life changing.

Merciful Lord, come to the aid of all those in prison and grant them Your peace in the midst of this difficult time in their lives.  Grant that this trial may bring them closer to You, our rock and our refuge, our comfort and our hope.  Amen

Lion Lore

“God's not dead … He's living on the inside, roaring like a lion!" ~ Newsboys

He hesitated at the edge of the shade and roared - nothing like human speech or bird song, but sound that came from deep within his body and projected with such force that it could be heard for miles.  His Majesty, the 'King’ was calling his pride.

The lion has always seemed like the most confident animal in the zoo, standing there all regal-looking, smugly bearing his royal crown.  He eats when he wants, sleeps as much as he wants, and paces where he wants.

Strategically located just inside the main gate, he has it all; the undisputed King.  But lions are neither the most rapid and agile, or even the smartest.  Nor are they the strongest or the fastest.

So where does his confidence come from?  Or does he just appear confident?  Does he have those days when he wishes he could be sleek like the cheetah?  Or maybe taller like the giraffes?  Or more entertaining like the monkeys?

I’m certainly no lion!

There are days when it seems like getting all the pieces to fit seems overwhelming; so draining that I’m brought to my knees in desperation.

There are days when I feel fairly competent as a parent.  Then we’ll have one of “thOse” days when the bickering and whining are incessant; days filled with too much yelling and plenty of doubt.

There are days when I feel like I’m relatively fit, exercising daily and watching what I eat.  But then there are “th0se” days when I see photos of celebrities with rock-hard abs.  What was left of my confidence deflates like a popped balloon.

There are days when I feel like I am making progress professionally.  And then there are “thOse” days when a client complains about progress on a project, or chooses to follow another path entirely.  How do others do it?

Consider the lion - he doesn't even have to roar - there’s power in silence and persistence.  It’s like he doesn’t have to prove that he’s a threat – everyone already knows what he’s capable of.

Jesus was the complete lion ... who was, is and always will be.  He moved with intention, with purpose, with clarity, to save us - and the world.

And now, He’s passed the baton to each of us.  But I’m not perfect.  Maybe we’re all just trying to be the best that we can be.  His Word is filled with promises of strength and courage when we place our confidence in Him.  It’s in those moments of surrender that we see just how faithful our God is and we feel His overwhelming love and strength fill our souls.

God Almighty, help me seek and hear You with the brute force of a lion.  Show me how to care for others uncondi-tionally by wearing Your example on my sleeve.  And give me the confidence to shout what I believe like lyrics at a rock concert.  Amen

When Left Became Right

"Never give up, for your work will be rewarded.” ~ 2 Chronicles 15:7

Chances are you’ve never heard of Károly Takács.  But he’s a national hero in Hungary; everybody knows his name and his incredible story.

At age 28, Károly was the top pistol shooter in his country.  Having won the major national and international championships, he seemed destined to capture the 1940 Tokyo Olympics’ gold metal.

Just months before the Games, while training with his army squad, a hand grenade exploded in Takács’ shooting hand.  Both his right hand and his Olympic dreams vaporized in milliseconds.

Most people would have quit.  But not Takács.  He was a winner.  Winners recover QUICKLY; simply bouncing back is not enough.  When they experience a setback, they recover immediately so as not lose drive and momentum.

He focused on what he still had – mental toughness and a healthy left hand.  While he couldn’t write a legible sentence with his left hand, he decided to make it the world's best shooting hand.

For months Takács practiced secretly by himself.  Maybe he didn’t want to face those who might have discouraged him from his rekindled goal.  Perhaps he didn’t want the sympathy.

But he had no fear of failure.

A year later Károly resurfaced at a Nat’l Shooting Championship in Hungary.  His colleagues were delighted to see him and appreciated his attending to cheer them on.

He surprised them by announcing that he was there to compete against them – their best shooting hand against his ONLY hand.   He won!

Károly’s Olympic dream would not be fulfilled for 8 years as two consecutive Olympic Games were cancelled due to World War II.  When they resumed in London, Károly represented Hungary in the pistol shooting event.  Imagine being a gold medal favorite, losing your shooting hand in an accident, yet picking yourself up from a shattered mess, and training your left hand to shoot as well (or better).

He WON the 1948 Olympic gold medal and set a new world record in pistol shooting.  Egged on perhaps by his rival, Károly won a 2^nd gold medal in the same event at the 1952 Helsinki Games.

When a boxer gets knocked down, they have 10 seconds to get back up.  If (s)he gets up in 11 seconds, they lose.  Remember that next time you get knocked down.

Takács definitely had a right to feel sorry for himself; to stay depressed and ask himself “Why me?”  He had the right to act like a beaten man.

But Takács made the DECISION to find a solution; to pick himself up and to learn to shoot all over again.  Winners always search for a solution.  Losers search for escapes.

Next time you get knocked down, decide to act like a winner.  Get up quickly, take action, and shock the world!

Lord, my energy is sagging, and my motivation is lagging.  I need Your strength and fresh touch to get back on track.  I need your joy to replace all the bone-tired parts of my mind, body, and soul.  Amen

Paw Prints

"Each rising sun brings new hope because of God’s tender mercy." ~ Luke 1:78

During the night a blanket of snow fell across the midwestern plains, as Dori snoozed beneath woolen covers.  She stumbled to life as a warm, wet nose caressed her check, meaning of course, that Rebel need to relieve himself.

Racing to the door, she barely managing to get the puppy out.  As he tip-toed through the frosty landscape with urgent matters, Dori gazed into the white abyss laying silently across her yard.

Under a dove grey sky, the backyard resembled an unfinished painting; much of the canvas still flawlessly white.  Its purity elevated her spirit; a world made fresh as a book of new stories.

Rebel enjoyed everything about this day: the satisfaction of being the first to make an impression in a blanket of freshly lain snow, the subtle crunch underfoot as he frolicked among shafts of sunlight illuminating the winter scene before him.

In a matter of minutes, Dori’s snow (yes, HER snow), was quickly re-decorated; dotted and dimpled with paw prints and yellowed reminders of mother nature’s calls.  Dozens of circles zigzagged across the former glittery wonderland, its radiant beauty now vanished.  Her dreamscape gone forever.

Dori sighed.

But then, something occurred as memories sharpened into focus.  Perhaps those paw prints had meaning she hadn’t recognized.

Each of those ‘blemishes’ might represent mistakes from her own past.  Perhaps an unreturned phone call, maybe an un-mailed birthday card.  A forgotten lunch date, or a promise swept aside.

Bit by bit as she sipped a marsh-mellowed cup of cocoa, the fabric of her life unraveled.  She dug deeper into the past, pushing snow into the far corners of her mind, until she exposed the cold bare earth.  It was a frightening place.

She had to make things right - to become a better person; more positive, less judgmental.  “I must always be there for my friends,” she thought, “and family, neighbors … even strangers.”

The next morning, Dori bravely opened the front door to let her four-legged companion out, bracing herself for another cold blast.  Instead, a picture-perfect sight nearly stole her breath.

Once again, a fresh blanket of snow had fallen.  The tracks were gone, embellished with a new layer of glittering wonder.  The sunlight danced amongst the snowflakes, sending prisms of color shooting into the morning sky.

It was a new day.  A day to start fresh, along with that perfect layer of sparkling snow.  A new chance to be a better person.

We all have blemishes from our past, their yellowed pages long forgotten in our mind’s eye.  But like paw prints littering snow, we can learn from them, and our future will be better, and brighter, like the resplendent beauty that awaits us with each new sunrise.

Today Lord, I wish to lay down the burden of my shortcomings, and seek the courage to begin anew.  Help me understand that I’m not trapped in the past, but freed by Christ to live and grow today.  With gratitude, Amen

Flying Blind

“We live by faith, not by sight or feelings." ~ 2 Corinthians 5:7

Capt. Virgil Anderson was arrogant.  If he could do half the stuff he thought he could - maybe "confidence" would have been a better word.  It wasn't!

In his mind’s eye, he was superior to other pilots by virtue of his talent.  Twenty-two years of experience had taught him to rely mainly on the feel of the plane and his visual reference, rather than to trust the guidance of his instruments.

On the day he commanded United’s 737, the jetliner had been flying along normally when suddenly it began to experience all sorts of chaos.  It gyrated across the sky, plummeting thousands of feet at a time and turning violently to one side.  Two of the four engines stalled and failed, leaving the plane without the power it needed to maintain level flight.

Anderson responded instinctually, doing his best to right the course of the tumbling aircraft, while hundreds of passengers waited in abject terror, not knowing if they’d live or die.

At the time of the crash, the aircraft was flying about 1,000 feet above sea level in whiteout conditions – where the cloud-filtered sun reflected light from the snow, making it impossible to distinguish ground from air.  Without a visual point of reference, Anderson was easily fooled into thinking the plane was doing the opposite.

It flew into an icy mountainside, killing all aboard.

Investigators later determined that this tragedy had ultimately been the fault of the pilots.  They should have responded according to their flight training and according to the plane’s manual.  Instead, they relied on one fatal flaw - instinct.

Capt. Anderson, an experienced, well-trained pilot, had refused to trust his instruments, relying instead on his flawed assessment of the situation.  Even though he thought he saw the situation clearly, Anderson was in fact flying blind, refusing to heed the information conveyed by his instruments.

It cost him his life and the lives of hundreds of others.

The story offers a spiritual parallel.  When faced with the raging storm of uncertainty, we have a choice: trust our clouded perceptions or trust God’s Word.  We can trust our own feelings, or we can place our faith in the promises He made on Calvary, devotional prayer/Bible studies, and the wise counsel of Christian pastors and mentors.

It’s hard, and sometimes frightening.  But in the fog of life, our feelings will mock our faith and suggest that God has left us.  But His instruments will always reassure us that He’s still there, right beside us.

If you or a loved one is flying in a storm of desperation, remember our own perceptions, as real as they feel, are not reliable.  Fly instead, by the instruments God’s provided us.

Almighty Father, help me to trust my spiritual instruments - to follow Your will for my life and not let my feelings dictate what I do.  Help me set my mind to be a blessing to others and make right choices that honor You.  Amen