Thursday, February 26, 2009

And the Greatest of These...



By all indications it appeared to be a typical Friday night Texas high school football game. The crowd had gathered on the field forming a victory line for the home team, Lions. At the opposite end fans had formed a double line stretching from the end zone to the forty yard line in support of the visiting team, as they burst through the banner sporting the encouraging words, “Go Tornados” in huge colorful letters.

The Tornados at 0 and 8 were facing a strong opponent in the mighty Lions with a record of 7 and 2. The game was hard fought, with hundreds of fans on both sides cheering with enthusiasm for their team to fight, score and win. Both teams cheerleaders were yelling their hearts out encouraging the fans to “get up and holler” as the boys trudged up and down the field. As the final seconds ticked down and the buzzer sounded that the game was over, the Tornados gave their coach a Gatorade bath; probably the first one in history for a coach who had just lost his 9th game of the season, 33-14.

With the game over the fans, bands and cheerleaders from both sides gathered around now 8 and 2 hometown Grapevine Faith Lions to head for home. On the visitor’s side 12 uniformed officers, handcuffs in hand, rounded up the 14 Tornado players for the return trip to the Gainesville State School maximum security correctional facility. As each player headed toward the bus he was handed a sack with a burger, fries, soda, candy, Bible and a letter from a Faith player. When the bus began its journey home the boys all moved to one side of the bus, hands pressed against the windows, staring at these people they’d never met before, watching their waves and smiles disappearing into the night.

But now the rest of the story…

Grapevine’s coach knew that every game Gainesville played was an away game with few or no fans.

So, before the game Grapevine’s coach had the idea “what if half of our fans for one night cheered for the other team sending them the message ‘you are just as valuable as any other person on planet Earth!’”

Some were naturally confused, but when questioned by one of his players Coach Kris Hogan said, “Imagine if you didn’t have a home life. Imagine if everybody had pretty much given up on you. Now imagine what it would mean for hundreds of people to suddenly believe in you.”

That’s why 14 young men stared in amazement at people who did not look at them as criminals as other teams had, but were instead cheering for them, chanting de-fense, de-fense and calling them by name; people whose own kids were on the other sideline.

Before the Tornados loaded onto the bus the two teams met in the middle of the field to pray. That’s when the Tornado quarterback, Isaiah, to the surprise of everyone, asked to lead the prayer.

“Lord, I don’t know how this happened, so I don’t know how to say thank You, but I never would’ve known there was so many people in the world that cared about us.”

Before he boarded the bus the Gainesville coach grabbed Coach Hogan firmly by the shoulders and said, “You’ll never know what your people did for these kids tonight. You’ll never, ever know.”

A group of boys, many of whom had been disowned by their families took the field with 7 year old shoulder pads and outdated helmets.

They left the field with the three greatest gifts the fans of the Grapevine Lions had to offer.

A renewed faith in people.

Hope for what tomorrow had to bring.

And the greatest gift of all on this cold November night…Love.

Adapted from a story by Rick Reilly, ESPN Magazine

Monday, February 23, 2009

Panel 14 W Line 088

You stand quietly and read name after name. Names of people you don't know. Names of people you've never met. Mostly kids. It's difficult to read the names without tears welling up in your eyes. You are standing before The Wall, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Each name represents a sacrifice of a young life in pursuit of freedom for people they didn't even know. In total there are over 58,000 honored names on the wall.

As you read them you'll come to Panel 14 West. On that panel in line 088 you'll see a name, Russell Albert Steindam. Russell was a few years ahead of me at Plano High School. I remember his face, but didn't know him that well. I wish I had. You see, Russell is part of an elite group. There were only 244 of them in all the Vietnam war. On The Wall you'll see the names of 153 of them. What's so special? These 153 were recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor.

Part of Russell's citation reads, "As he directed the return fire against the enemy from his exposed position, a fragmentation grenade was thrown into the site occupied by his command group. Instantly realizing the extreme gravity of the situation, 1LT Steindam shouted a warning to alert his fellow soldiers in the immediate vicinity. Then, unhesitatingly and with complete disregard for his safety, 1LT Steindam deliberately threw himself on the grenade, absorbing the full and fatal force of the explosion as it detonated. By his gallant action and self-sacrifice, he was able to save the lives of the nearby members of his command group. The extraordinary courage and selflessness displayed by 1LT Steindam were an inspiration to his comrades and are in the highest traditions of the U.S. Army."

Jesus pointed out, "Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." This is what Russell physically did on February 1, 1970. He was 23 years old.

Jesus is telling us if you truly love someone you'll do anything to help them. Today, few of us are called on to lay down our physical life. However, we are called to sacrifice for others. We are called to give of our time and money to help those in need. We are called to show people we care.

I've often thought, "Would I be willing to lay down my life for someone else?" I'd like to think I had that kind of love in my heart for others, but I may never know. However, the true answer lies in what I am willing to do for them not in death but while I live.

To quote the words of Paul, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." Philippians 1:21


http://www.virtualwall.org/ds/SteindamRA01a.htm

Friday, February 20, 2009

The Man with the Happy Shirt


There's an old Russian tale about a Czar who was getting up in age. He became depressed and was so ill that the call went out that he was going to die. Physicians were summoned from around the country to come up with a cure for the Czar's deadly illness. Everything the physicians tried failed. Finally, in a last attempt, all the wise men were called in to seek their advice as to what could be done for the Czar.

The wise men met and determined that it truly was the depression of the Czar that was killing him so they determined that the only cure was to get him out of the depression. This, they felt, required that the Czar acquire the shirt of a happy man.

An edict went out for all the soldiers of the country to travel through every town and village seeking the shirt of a happy man. The search went on for months with no success. People seemed happy but their lives showed otherwise. It seemed to be a futile effort. Then, one day the call to return home came out. The Czar was dying.

The soldiers sadly began their journey back home. One group of soldiers during their long walk home sat down next to a large stone wall along the dusty road to rest. As they sat in the shade of the trees along the fence line they heard a farmer on the other side of the wall. "This has been a good day. My fields are now plowed and planted. My children are healthy. I have a loving wife and good food on the table. I have been truly blessed. Today, I am a happy man."

When the soldiers heard this they leaped into action. They quickly scaled the wall and began to wrestle the man on the other side. He was surrounded by soldiers trying to pull him to the ground. The scene was pandemonium. Finally one of the soldiers yelled to the others, "Someone grab his shirt!" As they reached for his shirt they realized...he didn't have one on!

The moral is "where do we look for happiness?". People look for it in different places. If I were rich I'd be happy. If I were famous my life would be better. "If I...If I...If I...". And that's the problem. We think that happiness comes from what we have on the outside. We're caught in the trap that our happiness comes from fame and fortune when in reality it comes from within.

Happiness is a state of mind. That's why someone who has little can be just as happy or even more so than someone who has much. Happiness comes from contentment and that is controlled by how we view ourselves and life in general. If we're always negative, if we're always wanting more or if we're always dissatisfied with what we've been dealt in life then we'll never be happy.

Think about it. What are the things that really make you smile and feel good? A child opening up gifts from Santa on Christmas morning. The end of a movie when the good guy wins. Thanksgiving Day with the family all gathered around reminiscing. A summer vacation where you can forget work and struggles for a week. Birthday parties. Weddings. Fulfillment. Life is meant to be a joy from the heart and as the old saying goes "Life is what we make it."

Ecclesiastes 2:26 "To the man who pleases Him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness".

Monday, February 16, 2009

From Pearl Harbor to Calvary - Part 2


It was 3:00 a.m. Hawaii Time when Mitsuo Fuchida boarded his aircraft 230 miles off the coast of Oahu and led 360 planes on the attack of Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941. It was a devastating blow to the U.S. Naval forces in he Pacific. In Fuchida's own words "it was the most thrilling exploit of my career." Fuchida went on to be a highly decorated Japanese Naval officer.

When the war came to a close, Japan having lost, Fuchida went back into obscurity as a small farmer. His dislike for the Americans only grew as each day passed. Fuchida did not have to face war trials himself, but was called to testify against others in the Japanese forces, a task he did with great hesitation.

On one trip to Tokyo for the trials he stepped off the train and someone handed him a pamphlet entitled "I was a Prisoner of Japan". It was the story of a missionary, Jake DeShazer, who had spent 40 months in a prisoner of war camp and who after facing this terrible ordeal had come back to Japan to share the love of Christ with the people.

Fuchida read the pamphlet and was intrigued with the lessons it presented. He had never read the Bible, but decided to check it out. As he read it the Story touched his heart. April 14, 1950, he said was the second "day to remember". It was on that day that he decided to dedicate his life to Christ. The headlines proclaimed "Pearl Harbor Hero Converts to Christianity". His war buddies, family and friends could not understand , but he had made up his mind, his heart had been changed. He would spend the rest of his life sharing Jesus with the Japanese people.

Fuchida wrote: "Though my country has the highest literacy rate in the world, education has not brought salvation. Peace and freedom - both national and personal - come only through an encounter with Jesus Christ. I would give anything to retract my actions of twenty-nine years ago at Pearl Harbor, but it is impossible. Instead, I now work at striking the death blow to the basic hatred that infests the human heart and causes such tragedies. And that hatred cannot be uprooted without assistance of Jesus Christ."

Jake DeShazzer a man with hatred for a people he did not know found forgiveness in a dark cell surrounded by his enemies. Mitsuo Fuchida a lost hero found forgiveness in the words of a man who once hated him. Both men found forgiveness because of allowing Jesus to be a part of their lives. When we allow Jesus to make His home in our hearts we find that there is no room for hatred of our fellow man. To learn to forgive means we are allowing Jesus to take us over instead of our own personal pride.

Isn't it ironic that one of the first men to attack the U.S. and one of the first men to attack Japan would one day work together to heal two nations through forgiveness.

Mitsuo Fuchida's story is found in his pamphlet "From Pearl Harbor to Calvary".
Jake DeShazer's story is found in his pamphlet "I was a Prisoner of Japan".

Both can be read at the following site:

http://www.faithofourfathers.org/heritage/pearl.html

Saturday, February 14, 2009

From Pearl Harbor to Calvary - Part I


December 7, 1941 is a date that has been embedded in the minds of my father's and my generation, the day Pearl Harbor was attacked. However, there's another date that most have forgotten, but what happened on that day changed lives in a more dramatic way than history books will ever tell. The date was March 18, 1942, the day that as Ted Lawson's story depicts, the U.S. spent "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo", a retaliation for the December surprise attack.

On March 18th 16 planes carrying 80 men set out to bomb several targets in Japan. Of the 16 planes only one would land safely. All but 11 of the crew were rescued. The last plane to take off from the deck of the USS Enterprise whose mission was to bomb Nagoya was one of the two ill-fated flights. Two of it's crew would be executed and the other three would become prisoners of war for the next three and a half years. The bombardier on this particular plane was one of only 3 non-officers in the attack, Cpl. Jacob D. DeShazer.

Jake would spend the next 40 months of his life experiencing the horrors of the Japanese prisoner of war camp. He would listen to his comrades being tortured and face the cruelty of the guards himself. His hatred for the Japanese only increased as each day passed. Just 3 months prior when he had heard of the bombing at Pearl Harbor his reaction was a deep desire to seek revenge. Now he was in the midst of his enemies.

Then in 1944 one of the prisoners requested a Bible. The Japanese easing a little because of the way the war was proceeding gave them one Bible to share. Since Jake was not an officer he'd be the last to have a chance to read it. Then for three weeks he was able to read from it over and over. It was at that time that he kept reading about forgiveness and your enemies. As he read it he came to the conclusion that it was wrong for him to carry around the hate he had for his captors. He made up his mind right then that he was going to do two things. First, he begin treating his captors with more respect and rid his life from the hatred that grew inside. Second, when the war was over and he returned home he'd go to seminary and return to Japan to teach the people about what he had learned of Jesus Christ.

He kept his word. He began to treat the guards differently and in return they began to treat him with more respect. He even began to share stories of their families. When he returned home after the war he kept his promise, went to seminary and returned to Japan to share the Gospel.

I recently heard someone make the statement "How much do you have to hate someone before you won't help them?" Hate often stands in the way of our doing good for others. Until we learn to forgive our hearts will never be right with God. Until we learn to forgive we can never heal our wounds. Jesus wrote in Matthew 6:15 that if we don't forgive others their sins the God will not forgive us of ours.

Hate for man and the love of Jesus cannot dwell in the same heart. It's impossible. It is only through the power of forgiveness that men can be drawn together.

BUT WAIT! The story is not over. In a few days "From Pearl Harbor to Calvary - Part II"

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Is Right Wrong or Wrong Right?


From somewhere in junior high until my junior year in high school I quit "going to church". Then one day I discovered that a girl I liked went to church where I used to. What better reason to start back then being able to see a girl, right?
So the next opportunity I could find I dressed up and headed to Sunday night worship. I slipped in to the next to back row and look around. Well, guess what? She wasn't there. Now I was in a dilemma. It wouldn't be right to leave, that would make things worse in case I wanted to come back, so I had no alternative but to listen to the lesson.

I can't tell you what the lesson was about. I don't remember a word, but I do remember that something said really hit home to me. I listened carefully and when we stood to sing the invitation song I told myself, "If they sing the third verse of this four verse song, I'm going forward to rededicate my life."

Guess what! They went right into the third verse. It had been so long I forgot they usually sing all the verses of an invitation song. However, keeping my promise to myself , I stepped out and from that point on my life was changed. I have no idea what would have happened if they had skipped the verse that night.

A few weeks later I looked over and there was the girl. Oh, not the one from the first night. One whom I had never met. She was two years younger than me with dark hair and beautiful eyes. This year we will be married 41 years.

Toward the end of the movie "National Velvet", Velvet's mother and father are having a discussion over monetary offers that had come in because Velvet had won a horse competition. Mr. Brown wanted to take them all. Mrs. Brown was skeptical so they left it up to Velvet. Velvet thought and with tears in her eyes refused, because she felt it wouldn't be right to put the horse through all the fanfare.

Mr. Brown was frustrated until Mrs. Brown posed the thought. The age old question she said is "Is it okay to do the right thing for the wrong reason or the wrong thing for the right reason?"

We are posed with this question every day we live. I think back and know that I did the right thing by going to church, but for the wrong reason. On the other hand sometimes we make decisions to do things that are wrong, but we do them because we feel it's the right thing to do. The thing about it is that God can take whatever we do and turn it into good as long as we're doing the right thing or doing it for the right reason. We'll all face things that we start off doing for the wrong reason and feel great when it all turns out the way it was meant to be. Then there will be the times that we get in trouble because we do something wrong, but not feel guilty, because we know the reason we did it was justified and that God will understand.

Proverbs 2:7-9 gives us Solomon's view of what is right. "He holds victory in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones. Then you will understand what is right and just and fair - every good path."(NIV)

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

I Have Two Sons


I have two sons.

My youngest son lives in the Dallas area. He has become successful in business and is turning into the young man his mother and I always desired for him to become. He is kind, loving and generous. He calls or emails us and shares what's happening in his life. He's what his mom and I dreamed of when we planned to have children. He is married to a loving wife and we now have a beautiful grand daughter.

My oldest son lives at home. He will soon be thirty-six and has Cerebral Palsy. Because he is handicapped he needs us to take care of his every need. He cannot talk, walk, sit up and is less than a year old developmentally. He'll never get married, have a family or children of his own. He cannot hug us or tell us he loves us like his brother. He'll be dependent on us for the rest of his life.

I have two sons. One is growing into a fine independent young man. The other is totally dependent on us to survive. But I love them both just the same.

Jesus is the same way. He looks down on the earth and sees all kinds of people. Some are independent and becoming what he expects, while others never quite seem to grow up and so he has to spend more time with them. Nevertheless, he loves everyone just the same.

In Exodus 30:15 God tells the rich and poor to bring the same amount to offer, no more - no less. He's saying that to God no man, woman or child is worth more or less than the person next to them, no matter what their situation may be.

I have two sons. One can love back, the other can't, but I still love them the same. Jesus has many sons and daughters, some love back, some don't, but he still loves us all ... just the same.





To Boldly Go

Those who remember the T.V. series Star Trek remember Captain Kirk's words "to boldly go where no man has gone before". Today I have entered into the world of blogging. For all I know I may be the only one who reads my blog. That's not true! My mother will.

This blog is not intended to give you the history my life, although you will get a glimpse now and then. The intent is to share stories. Stories some of which are a part of my family's life and some which I have heard or read about.

In any case they will all have a lesson to share. I hope they make you think. I hope you enjoy them. But most of all I hope it helps you in your daily walk with our Lord.

Danny