kenlassblog

There are many well known heroes in the Bible. Abraham, Moses, David, Mary just to mention a few. But there are many more unsung contributors. For example, the last of the Old Testament biblical prophets is Malachi. We know almost nothing about him. In fact, some think Malachi is not even the name of a person, but rather a title for an unidentified priest or teacher. Yet the works of this unknown man have endured for thousands of years.

God uses people like that. Folks who just want to be obedient and don’t care if they get acknowledged. He’d like to use you like that.

Would that be okay with you?

It’s funny all the ways people can misplace their faith. Some ancient cultures believed that the benevolent spirits resided in trees. To rouse them to come to your assistance, it was helpful to pound on the tree trunks. This is actually how the expression “knock on wood” originated.

You may not have a tree handy to take your troubles to. Fortunately, a simple prayer will do just fine. God can hear you. He’s right there. He left the trees to the squirrels.

If you are going through hard times in your life, take to heart the old adage: “This too shall pass.”

The line was made famous in a speech back in 1859 by a politician who, in his own words, considered his career “a failure, a flat failure”. He was addressing a crowd of farmers and agricultural folks at a state fair during a time of economic hardship. His exact words were “And this, too, shall pass away. How consoling in the depths of affliction”.

The economy did get better. And one year later, that politician was elected President of the United States. Abraham Lincoln would later deal with more adversity, in the form of a civil war. But he knew if he remained strong in his beliefs, the country would get through its troubles.

You will too.

Do other people think you are a nice person? Can you pass the nice test?

Find someone you see every day. Could be a spouse, a child, a friend, a co-worker. This time when you see them, make it a point to compliment them about something. Anything. Maybe her hair looks nice today. Maybe he’s wearing a handsome sweater. Just make it positive.

Take note of their reaction. If they act surprised, it means they’re not used to compliments from you. You failed the nice test. However, if they just smile and say “thank you”, it indicates they are accustomed to your thoughtfulness. You passed.

I still love the old westerns on TV. It’s always easy to tell the good guys from the bad guys. And the good guys always win in the end. Sheriff Matt Dillon always prevailed, to the delight of Miss Kitty on Gunsmoke. Hoss and Little Joe always got the upper hand when defending the Ponderosa on Bonanza. Chuck Connors couldn’t miss with that sawed off weapon on The Rifleman.

These days the messages being sent by many of the new TV shows are mixed and confusing. Not only do the good guys not always win, but often it’s difficult to tell which ones they are. But no matter how much our world is changing, right is still right and wrong is still wrong. Roy Rogers, Gene Autry and the Lone Ranger always understood that.

And we should too.

Have you ever looked up at the night sky and located the North Star? You can find it extending from the outer edge of the bowl of the Big Dipper. But when you see it, you are looking at the distant past. It has taken the light from Polaris (the North Star) 433 years to reach your eyes.

One day, Polaris will burn out and disappear, but when it’s gone it will still leave a 433 year legacy of light for the people of earth to enjoy. What kind of legacy will you leave behind? And how long will it last? Will your children, grandchildren and generations to come benefit from your example?

Be a North Star. You won’t be here forever, but your influence can shine long after you depart.

Only one out of ten people is left-handed. Lefties are much different from the more common righties. They need different scissors, different notebooks, different golf clubs, different guitars, different baseball gloves and different computer keyboards, just to mention a few issues. Even shaking hands with a lefty is awkward.

Yet lefties and righties have no trouble living together in peace and harmony. Somehow we manage to put this considerable difference aside and get along. We’ve decided it’s just not that big of a deal, and certainly not worth hating over. Lefties and righties need each other and are much more effective together.

So why is it harder when it comes to race, politics and income level?

We went to one of those off Broadway plays downtown. It was a wonderful performance by the entire cast. At the end, the individual actors took turns taking a bow. All were cheered loudly, except the man who played the bad guy. His applause was muted, and there were even some boos from the audience. He flashed a big smile at the reaction.

He had done his job so well, he actually convinced some of the crowd he was a bad person. Must have been a weird feeling, knowing you did good, but not getting the credit for it. Still, the other actors and the director knew he was excellent, and that’s all that mattered.

Kind of like our relationship with God.

I have a friend who can lick her elbow. That’s very rare. Only a few people can do it. You have to have short upper arms and a longer than average tongue to pull it off. My friend calls it “her special talent.”

When I try to do it, the only thing I accomplish is straining the muscles in the back of my neck. Clearly, I don’t have this special talent. I can do something else, though. I can pop my shoulder to make a clicking noise. I guess that’s my special talent, but I would like to think I also have some sort of ability to do something that is a little more beneficial to humanity.

We all have that special something. You have been blessed with something unique that you can use to enhance the life of others. You already know what it is. It’s time to use it.

Just don’t pull any muscles in the process.

The richest person in the United States is Elon Musk. According to reports, he is believed to be worth $474 billion dollars. To put that into perspective, if he liquidated all of his assets, he could spend one million dollars every day for 1,298 years, and still have money left over.

The problem is, he won’t live 1,298 years. No matter how much money he spends, he will still have a normal life span, likely somewhere between 80 and 100 years. And when his time has come, he will answer to the same God as you and me, and will be judged by the same standard.

The amount of your money and possessions are irrelevant to your eternal future. How you used them will be what matters.