Post Birthday Blues (a.k.a. "People Will Be People")

Thankfully, the birthday hype is over! All in all, Monday, July 27, 2009 passed with little fanfare. The baseball game we attended was fun and the Minnesota Twins won! Life goes on and the next truly siginificant birthday event will not occur for another 25 years. In the meantime, I return to everyday life. That is the subject of this blog posting.

I begin by posing the question, "Do we set ourselves up for disappointment if we expect someone to make an honest effort to modify their behavior?" This question is solely based on my experiences as a father, brother, pastor, apartment manager, corporate IT manager, co-worker and significant other. It seems as though I have the accumulation of a half-century of experiences upon which to formulate my question.

In many of those areas of experience or expertise, if you will, the underlying force is complete lack of respect. Lack of respect comes in many forms and wears many faces. There is, of course, lack of respect for those in authority - parents, supervisors, managers, police and government. Usually such a lack of respect is founded upon a lack of respect for oneself. "Because I have absolutely no self-respect for myself, I will not respect you or anything that you consider important."

Another area of concern which I have encountered repeatedly is "absence of the truth". Unfortunately, this occurs in all types of relationships from business to family to personal relationships. Based on fear, all sorts of wild stories and excuses are presented as reasoning behind the failure to be open and honest. Mostly, these types of events are based on fear. For example, individuals fear retribution at work so they overlook employee misconduct or make up excuses for their own performance failures. In family relationships, there is a fear of rejection or anger by another family member. I will be so bold as to say that much of corporate America is built and continues to operate based on lies and deception.

Here I am reminded of the admonition and promise presented in the New Testament Gospel according to John. "Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." [John 3:20-21 NIV] I find comfort and confidence in the words written in the first chapter of this same book. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it." [John 1:1-4 NIV]

In conclusion then, "the world is the world" and "people will be people". The prophet Malachi offers comfort and reassurance by reminding me that " 'I the LORD do not change'.... says the LORD Almighty." [Malachi 3:6a; 7c NIV] No matter what we face in this world, there is one constant. In the words of the great reformer, Martin Luther, "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God"!

~ DB Turnmire

R*E*S*P*E*C*T! (Blog #7)

Otis Redding wrote and recorded a song entitled "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" before Aretha Franklin recorded the song and turned it into a big hit. Some dictionary definitions of the word respect include: "to feel or show deferential regard for, esteem; to avoid violation or interference with; willingness to show consideration or appreciation". [The Free Dictionary By FARLEX]

In the Ten Commandments, God spoke saying, "Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you." [Exodus 20:12 NIV] We generally would expect to learn respect from our parents. All of the Ten Commandments are based on love and respect, first of God, then our parents and fellow human beings. We are taught to respect human life, property, reputation, honor and dignity. In the same way as children are to respect their parents and those in authority, the same is true in reverse. Writing to the Christians at Colossae, the apostle Paul wrote "Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord." He also wrote "Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged." [Colossians 3:20-21 NIV]

Of course, aside from the parent - child relationship, there are many situations and occasions that call for respect. As stewards of the earth, you and I are expected to respect nature and to make every effort to preserve and protect its valuable resources and natural beauty. If we are stewards of an apartment, a house or any other type of property, we are expected to care for it whether it belongs to us or not. Abuse of property or failure to exercise good stewardship is not only disrespectful to the property and the owner of the property but also to the Creator who sets the standards for respect.

To this point, we have focused primarily on respect of the earth itself and property entrusted to our care. It should be no surprise that respect takes on many forms and shapes. We are also called to respect others in our speech and actions. It is clearly disrespectful to lead someone to believe that you have respect for their values and standards, only to let them down by choosing to do the opposite of what is requested and expected. When we knowingly violate another person's standards or property, you and I are in reality showing contempt for that person.

So if the question of respect or disrespect is one that challenges you, think about the alternatives and the impact your actions will have on someone or something.

~ DB Turnmire