Remote Control

Remote Control

January 8, 2005

My four-year-old niece Maria twirls around the kitchen singing her favorite Bible song, “The fruits of the Spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, fidelity, tolerance, and remote control.”   

“Remote-control” I chuckle.  Wouldn’t that be great?

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if God would run our lives just by putting His finger on the button of His remote control?  How easy it would be. 

Zap! He would rewind my life and stop me from making that stupid error last week at work.

Zap! He could fast-forward me past temptations and paths leading me away from His purpose. 

And the best key of all: Mute. Just one little tap of that key and my whole life would be changed. No more repeating gossip. No more little slips of the tongue that hurt others or little white lies that lead to great big fibs in the future. 

Unfortunately, little Maria got that last fruit wrong. God doesn’t set us straight with His celestial remote control. He doesn’t control our actions with one push of a button. No, that last fruit is that old bugaboo -- self-control. God expects us to reap that fruit ourselves. 

We must control ourselves, and we all know how difficult that can be. Think of all those donuts we have almost passed up on our last diet or the many times we held our tongues when we got hold of some really juicy gossip. Self-control is tough.   

But God doesn’t leave us helpless. He is waiting for us to remember that, ultimately; He is in control of our lives. When we give Him full control, self-control becomes a lot easier. So, even without an omnipotent remote control running our lives, we can reap the fruit of the Spirit.  

And then, like Maria, we can dance.

Freedom to Worship

The Four Freedoms

Freedom of Worship

Second in a series

Almost every American would recognize Norman Rockwell’s painting “Freedom of Worship.” The painting depicts people of different races and different religions expressing their devotion to their respective deities. Eyes are closed in contemplation or raised in supplication or awe. Hands are folded. Each person worships in his/her own way while standing with a community of worshippers.

 Rockwell was inspired by Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “Four Freedoms” speech given in January 1941 when much of Europe was in turmoil and many in the United States feared being drawn into the war. FDR listed four freedoms. 

“The first is the freedom of speech and expression—everywhere in the world. The second is freedom for every person to worship God in his own way — everywhere in the world.” Roosevelt recognized that these freedoms, which were enjoyed by citizens of the United States, should be universal.

When FDR made his speech, the United States was maintaining an isolationist policy. Rockwell’s illustrations were published in The Saturday Evening Post after the U.S had entered WWII following the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December of 1941. Will Durant, historian and philosopher author of an 11-volume series, The Story of Civilization, wrote an essay which accompanied the painting for “Freedom of Worship." 

Durant wrote that, “Man differs from the animal in two things: He laughs and he prays.” Durant remembers watching workers in the village of his youth, coming in from the fields to a little church in the valley. These usually reticent men came to worship in their own fashion, “… because religion, like music, lives in a world beyond words, or thoughts, or things. They have felt the mystery of consciousness within themselves…” which they share with “the stars, and found in them a majestic order so harmoniously regular that our ears would hear its music were it not eternal.”

Durant says that this freedom to worship is “the first and final symbol of America.” The Pilgrims came to this nation “to win freedom for their souls, to think and speak and worship as they would.” The freedom to worship is a founding principal of the nation. 

Durant then poses a question: What is the finest thing about the worshippers he watches at the little chapel? “It is that they do not demand that others should worship as they do, or even that others should worship at all…. these worshippers understand that faith takes many forms and that men name with diverse words the hope that in their hearts is one.” 

Roosevelt recognized that the freedom to worship is an international human right. Durant wrote that, “the privilege of winning for all peoples the most precious gifts in the orbit of life — freedom of body and soul, of movement and enterprise, of thought and utterance, of faith and worship, of hope and charity, of humane fellowship with all men,” should be the guiding moral compass for our nation. 

A combined chorus of diverse worshippers, seeking the majestic and harmonious music of the stars, will guide our nation to a “humane fellowship” with all. 

(FDR’s full speech (voicesofdemocracy.umd.edu), Rockwell’s paintings, and Durant’s essay (www.saturdayeveningpost.com) are available online. I encourage you to find them.)

Clue Words

Clue Words

“Tony and Ann are playing in the gym. Their mother will pick them up in 30 minutes. They play basketball for 12 minutes. They play catch for 8 minutes. How much longer do they have in the gym?”

 Math word problems are tough. Words mixed with numbers often confuse young math students. Many give up. Tears can follow.

Overwhelmed students do not learn well, so teachers teach students strategies for decoding these problems. One strategy is to look for clue words to indicate which operation to use, such as: more, less, fewer, longer, altogether, sum, difference, etc.

“Tony scores 17 points. Ann scores 9. How many more points does Tony have? How many do they have altogether? How many more points does Ann need to score to beat Tony?” 

Clue words help students decide how to solve the problem. Having a strategy gives the students confidence to begin. 

Clue words in life are important too. Children are often overwhelmed by the stories which are their lives. We were a happy family but Dad is moving out. Our school is safe but we have to keep our classroom doors locked. She won’t be my friend anymore. Confused children look to their teachers and parents for help. 

“Help” is one of the clue words we can offer children. Mr. Rogers advised parents to teach their children to look for helpers in times of troubles. Children need to know that people care for them and will help them. Teachers and parents are on the front lines. Children must have confidence that help will come.

“Trust” is another clue word. Children need to know that they can trust and that they can be trusted. “Mom and Dad do what they say they will. I can count on the support of my teacher and friends.” Adults must be models of trust so that children will learn to be trustworthy. Adults must show trust in the children in their care.

“Kindness” is a big clue. Children who are treated kindly learn to be kind. Children who expect kindness learn to be polite, caring, and altruistic. “Golden rule” living makes life pleasant for all parties. Kindnesses offered echo back. 

There are many clue words which we teach our children: patience, joy, gentleness, dignity, responsibility, self-denial, generosity, compassion, empathy, self-discipline, sympathy, grace. Children find these clues in our actions and our words. Children get the confidence they need to solve life’s problems by learning to use these clues.

Tony and Ann are at the gym. Mom said she would pick them up at 5:30. At 5:25, they pack up. At 5:30, Mom greets them with a smile and thanks them for being on time. They chat about the day’s events on the way home. After dinner, the family cleans up together and Dad helps with their homework. They read together until bedtime. Kisses, hugs, prayers, and wishes for sweet dreams teach them another clue word: love. 

Tomorrow, and every day after, Tony and Ann will use the clue words they learn from their parents to live confident and fulfilled lives.