What Will Their Future Be?

There are six of them, the oldest 4 and the youngest 4 months. Three girls. Three boys. All of them my grandchildren.

They were all together for Easter, at our house in Columbus, Ohio. And I, grandpa, took their pictures all dressed up for Easter services at Maranatha Baptist Church. And when I looked at the picture later when they had all returned to their respective homes, I began to think about them, and specifically about their futures.

What kind of world will they live in? What will they have to pay for a gallon of gas, or a loaf of bread, or a house to live in? What will it cost them to go to college? What will each of them do with the life that has been given to them?

But these are not the real issues that concern me. The world changes, that is a certainty. But I am more interested in what faith they will have. I wonder about their relationships with God and their faith in Jesus Christ.

They are all being raised in Christian homes by parents who have personally trusted Jesus Christ and are actively ministering to their children in the Christian faith. All six of them are in church regularly, four of them at Maranatha where my wife and I are members, and two of them at a Baptist church in Michigan. They all have strong Christian influences in their lives.

But I wonder if any of them will stray when they get older. I wonder if any of them will meet someone who does not share their faith in Christ and be adversely influenced by that person. I wonder if the world they grow up in will cause them to doubt the goodness of God. I wonder if any of them will simply not have faith in Christ when they reach adulthood.

I am convinced my daughters and their husbands are all working hard to influence my grandchildren for the Lord Jesus. But each of my grandchildren have little minds of their own, which they often express in opposition to a parental command. "Eat your vegetables" is sometimes followed by a stubborn "No" even now. What will they say "No" to when they are no longer under their parents' influence?

I can only do for my grandchildren what I did for my children. I can be an example of the believer to them. And I can pray for them.

Praise the Lord, and with His help, I am doing both.

What is True and What is Faith

There is a popular understanding of the Christian faith in today's culture which goes something like this: God is a kind old gentleman who never bothers anyone and who accepts everyone warts and all, just as they are, and does not expect them to change. Jesus said we should not judge one another, and since all of us are God's children, we should be tolerant of one another's different lifestyles. If you think this is what Christianity is all about, if you think this is what Jesus taught, then please read on. I want to share something important with you.

What I described in the first paragraph is not Christianity. It is not what Jesus taught.

The theology described above does have a name. It is a religion and it has been around for a long time. It is called humanism.

Humanism teaches that humans are the focal point of the universe. Humanism puts people in the place of God. People determine their own truth, their own moral system, their own lifestyle, their own destiny. Even God is subject to human control, since humanism says God is a creation of man. Humanism is universal in its acceptance of people as they are; it makes no demands on them to change unless, of course, they are evangelical Christians who put God first instead of mankind. Then change is demanded, and those who cling to their faith are held up to ridicule and abuse.

Christianity is as different from humanism as day is from night. Christianity is God-centered, not man-centered. Christianity says God created man, not the other way around. Christianity says God determines fate, destiny, morals and truth. And Christianity not only presents a God Who demands change, but Who also provides everything that is needed for change to occur.

Here is what is true and what is faith according to Biblical Christianity. God created everything, the universe, the sun and stars, the earth, and man and woman. He gave them a perfect world to live in. And He imposed His will on them when He gave them a simple command and warned them that disobedience would bring destruction. Of course, they chose to test God to see if He meant business. He did.

The world God created was placed under a curse by God because of the disobedience of the man and the woman. Sickness, sorrow and death entered the otherwise perfect world of God. Just surviving became a major struggle and source of disappointment and discouragement. Nothing was easy anymore. And death was the common end of every human life.

But God was not content just to punish human beings. His righteousness demanded payment for sin, and He certainly has the power and the right to inflict the ultimate punishment of Hell on every human being who sinned, which would be all human beings. He is, after all, a God of wrath because He is a God of righteousness and must judge disobedience. But He is also a God of love. He truly loved these humans He created with the freedom of choice, and He wanted them to choose Him of their own free will.

So, in His love, He decided He would suffer, too, along with His beloved but erring humans. He would suffer for them and take the curse of their sin upon Himself.

He was born of a virgin in the obscure town of Bethlehem, in a cave where animals were kept. On the night of His birth, God became a human being. His purpose was to live a perfect life in obedience to God, something the first man, Adam, failed to do. And then He would suffer and die.

And that is what He did. His arch enemies, the Pharisees, constantly tried to find fault in Him but were unable to do so because there was no fault in Him. But they were able to convince the officials of the Roman Empire that He was guilty and as a result He was sentenced to die in the most cruel of Roman executions.

Body twisted with pain. Sweat poring profusely. Every breath a struggle. Muscles shaking with pain and exhaustion. Iron nails driven through the wrists and the feet and into the wood of the cross. Perhaps the most excruciating characteristic about crucifixion was the slowness with which death came.

They crucified Jesus, the Son of God, the only perfect human being Who ever lived. They thought they had defeated God. They thought they had put human beings in charge once again.

They were wrong.

On the third day, they found His tomb empty. They thought His followers had stolen the body. But they had not. The truth was that Jesus had conquered sin and death and had risen from the death of that tomb and was alive, really and fully alive.

Christianity teaches that God then offered forgiveness and restoration to each human being who would bow in faith to His Son, Jesus Christ. The eternal curse would be lifted for such, and when they were finally through with life on this earth, they would go to live with Jesus in a place not unlike the original garden in which the first man and woman failed. But there would never be sin, nor sickness, nor sorrow, nor death again. Ever.

Because Christianity teaches that God is a God of Righteousness and of Love, I, a sinner condemned by my own stubborn rebellion and sin, can be pure now and live forever in Heaven.

That certainly beats what humanism has to offer me, which is a life of struggle followed by death and nothingness. I am so glad I know what is true and what is faith because God chose to tell me about it in His Word, the Bible.

These Ads May Not Be For Everyone

After watching one hour of television just now, thirty minutes each of local and national news, I was reminded once again that the only industries that can afford to advertise on TV any more are the auto makers, hospitals, and drug companies.

During my hour of news I saw incessantly pervasive ads for surgery to bind the entrance to my stomach so I can loose weight (no, thanks, I think I'll just eat less and exercise more), for drugs that will take care of just about any medical problem I might have from high cholesterol to urinary incontinence. And expose me to some possible side effects like increased risk for heart attack and stroke, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and even death. Thanks, but I think I'll take my chances with the condition since the drug only seems to compound the problem.

And I saw a few commercials for automobiles that were out of my budget range, and with gas prices what they are, perhaps these auto ads should carry a disclaimer like, "This automobile may not be for everyone. If you have trouble paying your mortgage, cannot afford to put food on the table, or are getting frequent calls from credit card companies about your overdue payments, this car may not be right for you."

My concern and the focus of this article are the hospital and drug commercials. They really are annoying. Worse than that, they are misleading. They suggest that whatever problems we mere mortals may encounter in this journey of life can be solved by taking a pill or going under the knife. This just is not true.

As one who favors free speech, I cannot bring myself to say that laws should be passed prohibiting medical institutions and drug companies from advertising on television, but part of me thinks that might not be a bad idea. However, rather than laws being passed which would simply further restrict free speech (we already have enough restrictions on that!), I would like to appeal to the general public to help put an end to these annoying ads. How?

Simply make it a point never to ask your doctor if this drug or this surgery is right for you. Would you run the risk of not benefiting from some drug or surgery that really could help you? Of course not. I am simply suggesting you let your doctor recommend medications and procedures. Let your doctor mention these things first. Then ask for the details, and remember, you always have the right to make the final choice on what medications you take and what surgery you might risk for your own benefit. But leave it to your doctor to recommend these choices. That is, after all, what you pay him to do.

These ads are really wasted on the general public, after all. We cannot go out and buy the products being advertised; they are only available by prescription. We cannot walk into a hospital and say "I'd like one of them stomach surgeries I saw in your ad!" We have to have a doctor recommend the surgery.

So, what is the point of spending thousands of dollars on advertising products we, the general public, cannot purchase on our own? Why are these advertisers not targeting the only people who can prescribe drugs and recommend surgery? What do they hope to gain from telling us about these things that we cannot buy on our own?

It seems to me drug companies could save all that money wasted on TV ads to the general public and really help people by using the money saved to lower the expensive price tags on their drugs. The monthly payments on the Lexus I saw advertised tonight was no doubt cheaper than what some people have to pay for prescriptions each month.

Now lowering the prices, that's something that would be for everyone. And there are no unpleasant or fatal side effects either.

Longevity

Since I am now about three years and three months away from the biblical threescore and ten, longevity is a subject I have more interest in now than I did ten or twenty years ago. Also, I have been doing genealogical research on the ancestors of my wife and myself, and have been pleased to note that many of them lived long lives.

The picture that appears with this article is of Joseph and Georgianna McGregor, who were my father's maternal grandparents. He lived 73 years and she lived only 62 years because she died of accidental poisoning. They are not necessarily typical of my ancestors, however. I just happen to have a photograph of them.

As I have studied my ancestors, I have found that longevity decreases as I go back generations. Ancestors who lived in the 19th and 20th centuries lived longer than ancestors before that time. This may lead some to conclude that modern medical science has created conditions that have improved longevity. I am not certain that is the whole story, however.

One of the common reasons for short lives before the 20th century was childbirth. I have numerous ancestral families which experienced the loss of a wife and mother in childbirth. Certainly modern birthing techniques and equipment have lowered the incidence of women dying giving birth.

A common cause of early death in men was farm accidents. Farming was, and probably still is, a business fraught with dangers. Working with equipment that is designed to plow and till the earth and thrash grain can be dangerous, as can working with large animals such as horses and cattle. Accidents were a common cause of the reduction longevity in my ancestors.

But I don't think medicine alone can take the credit for increased longevity in my more recent ancestors over my more distant ones. Safety devices, changes in the way people live, and knowledge play a role, too. The important thing to remember is that our life expectancy today is normal; 200 years ago it was abnormal.

As one who believes that the Bible is God's Word, I trust its statements. In Psalm 90, which is ascribed to Moses, he writes, "All our days pass away under your wrath; we finish our years with a moan. Our days may come to seventy years, or eighty, if our strength endures; yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away."

I do not believe Moses was being pessimistic when he wrote these words; he was being honest. Even though he was 120 years old at the time, he knew from observation and from revelation from God that the normal life span is 70 to 80 years. Although it had been much higher in the antediluvean era (Methuselah lived 969 years), after the flood longevity decreased over several generations to what is recorded here.

Although some periods of history have caused a great reduction in longevity, down to 40 some years at some points, no generation has managed to exceed the threescore and ten that Moses wrote about.

Sometimes we hear statements from some in the field of medical research that someday modern science will be able to break the 100 year mark in longevity. Will it happen? I don't know. I tend to doubt it, but I do not know the future.

But I do know this. My own longevity is not a matter of my health, or the health care that is available to me, or even the genes I inherited from my long-living ancestors. It is entirely in the hands of God. I have lived to the age of 66 so far because God enabled me to do so. If I reach threescore and ten, or threescore and twenty, it will be by God's grace and God's grace alone. As a child of God I am invincible until God calls me home.

This does not mean I can live recklessly or ignore my body's needs. I should take care of my body, but that is not the most important thing in my life. The most important thing is pleasing God and living for Him and trusting Him that He knows best when my time on earth has quickly passed and it is time for me to fly away.

Global Warming?

As I work in my study here in central Ohio just after the Blizzard of '08 finished dumping 20" of snow (according to the Columbus International Airport) on us, it is hard to think about global warming, except that we sure could use some if it here tonight!

But I have been reading Unstoppable Global Warming - Every 1500 Years by S. Fred Singer and Dennis T. Avery, published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book argues that the current trend to higher temperatures worldwide is not the result of human activity, but rather of increased radiation from the sun. The authors claim this increase in radiation occurs approximately every 1500 years. Since the industrial revolution has only been around about 150 years, it would not be likely that it could cause the warming trend we now experience.

The authors make the point that warming and cooling cycles have prevailed on the earth all through its history as evidenced by ice core samples that have been studied. They claim the earth had a warming period during which the Roman Empire flourished, and that this was followed by a cooling period during which the Empire declined because of limitations on food production caused by lower temperatures and shorter growing seasons.

According to the authors, the most recent cooling period ended in the middle nineteenth century, before the industrial revolution began, and that this warming period continues today. But it is due to increased radiation from the sun, not, as some have speculated, perhaps for political purposes, from CO2 produced by human activity.

I do not have a scientist's mind, so much of the detail escapes me. But this I know. Not all scientists are sold on the idea that global warming is harmful and unnatural, or that it is the negative result of industrialization. In fact, this book points out that nations have tended to flourish during the warming periods because of longer growing seasons and the increase of suitable growing areas.

I do not know who is right, but looking out my window today, I find it difficult to see the effects of global warming in my neighborhood. Check back with me in a month or two when it is warmer here!

61 Years Ago Today

He would be 82 years old, an old man with a full life behind him, a husband, a father, a grandfather, and perhaps a great grandfather, and a survivor of World War II. But he was not given the opportunity to do any of those things except the last one.

He was my brother, Ron, 16 years my senior, and a veteran of combat in the U. S. Navy in the South Pacific. During his two years on board the U.S.S.Dunlap, he faced a relentless enemy every day without that enemy inflicting any harm on him. He was discharged in April of 1946, having done his part to fight and to bring to an end the terrible war.

Less than a year later he was dead. Looking forward to married life with his fiancee, and a good job and a bright future, he died at the age of 21.

The survivor of World War II who spent three years thousands of miles from his home in combat situations daily, died as the result of injuries sustained in a car accident just 25 miles from his home. His fiancee was devastated. His mother, my mother, never fully recovered from the shock. His father, my father, carried the burden of loss to the day of his own death 31 years later. I was only six years old. I did not know my brother very well. He was only home that one year between his discharge and his death.

Years later, when I was an adult with grown children, my family discovered hundreds of letters Ron wrote home from the war. It was through those letters I got to know my brother. He was a gentle and optimistic man who did a terrible job in an incredibly difficult time of history. But that was behind him, and before him stretched the promise of a good life, a good life he would never know.

March 7, 1947, Ronald Albert Parsons left this earth for the experiences of eternity. I remember him, and continue to tell his story, a story which covers a significant portion of my book Windsor's Child.

Now I'm a Blogger!

You must understand. Writing is a compulsion to me. I have to do it. I don't care if anyone reads what I write or not. Well, actually, I do like to have readers. But even if I didn't, I would still write.

I write on my website. I write on other people's websites. And now I am writing here. Please check back often if you like, to read what I have written.

But if you choose not to, that's okay. I will still be writing here.