Phony Toni

Toni Braxton has won six Grammies and is probably best known for her mega-hit song, hit "Un-break My Heart" and her appearances on ABC's "Dancing With the Stars." Well just imagine that you paid over $50 for a ticket to hear the popular singer in concert. Part way through the concert you realize that the Toni Braxton performing before you is not really Toni Braxton at all, but the Braxton celebrity impersonator Trina Johnson-Finn. Think you'd be a bit upset? The concert goers who actually experienced this were. They pelted Johnson-Finn with trash and booed her off the stage. Then authorities arrested her and she spent three months in jail awaiting her hearing which finally arrived this week. The judge acquitted her and she has returned to her Las Vegas home (By the way, all this happened in Suriname which is the smallest country in South America. It is located on the northern coast of the continent, just to the north of Brazil.).

Now as to whether this celeb impersonator was really in on the scam or was just used by the concert promoters - I do not know. But I do know this - impersonators are all around us. An impersonator is simply someone who pretends to be another. All of us from time to time pretend to be someone we are not. We pretend to be the guy who as it all together. We pretend to be the woman who is really spiritual. And why do we do so? Unlike the impersonator in the above story, we don't do it to entertain. But we do it in order that others would think better of us. When we do this we forget one important truth. We might be able to fool those around us - but we can never fool God. So let's stop pretending and get real!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

A Lesson from Early Morning T-Storms

Yesterday morning I was awakened by a crack of thunder which was shortly followed by another. Noting that it was pitch dark outside, I took a look at the digital time display on my cell phone which I keep on my nightstand while I sleep. Through half-opened eyes I noted the time: 3:34. Yea! I should be sleeping right now, not listening to thunder resounding through the heavens!

But thunderstorms do not get our permission as to when they will arrive overhead. They just show up! And, as was my experience yesterday (and if you live in my vicinity probably yours too)- storms often come at very inopportune times! Now what is true of thunderstorms is also true of "lifestorms." You know, the turbulent times in our lives caused by unexpected and unwelcome trials and difficulties. But when these tough times come, we must keep them in perspective ... God's perspective, that is! So ... the next time an unanticipated "storm" arises in your life, remember this mandate from the Word of God: "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything" (James 1:2-4).

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Often You See What You Are Conditioned to See!

Take a quick look at the candy bar pictured here. What do you see? A Hershey Bar. Right? Well, yes and no. Look again. It looks like a Hershey Bar. Same coloring package and same lettering style as a Hershey Bar. Even starts with the letter "H." But if you look closely you will see that the letters spell out the words, "HERETHEYARE." This is actually a photo I took of the wedding favor that was given to all the guests at a wedding I officiated this past weekend up at the Hershey Rose Gardens. The favor was a cute way to go along with the Hershey theme (the wedding toast was done with chocolate milk in champagne classes!). I must admit when I first glanced at the favor, I thought it was a regular Hershey Bar (which it really was once you took off the special wrapper). Several of the other guests at my table also confessed to the same mistake. We all took a look and saw what we were conditioned to see - a Hershey Chocolate bar.

There is a lesson here for those of us who claim to follow Jesus. We must condition ourselves to see Jesus Christ in all of life. Not just our church experience. Not just those times when we are listening to praise music on our ipod as we work out at the gym or on a car CD player as we drive to work. We must intentionally work at seeing Jesus and His Father and the Spirit in every arena of life. He's there. Always! As He states in Hebrews 13:5b, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." So no matter what you might be doing .... where you might find yourself ... condition yourself to see God. And as you do, it will transform your life!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Have You Thanked a Cop Lately?

I have had the privilege of serving my community as a police chaplain for close to 9 years now. As each year passes, my respect for law enforcement personnel continues to grow. The job police do is a tough and thankless job. Yet think about about the chaos that would exist in our society if it were not for the police! (just the thought makes me shudder!) A police officer I know sent me a link to the following Paul Harvey commentary about police. I would encourage you to take the 3 minutes required to watch this you-tube "video." Then make a commitment to pray for our police officers and if you see one, take a moment to thank him or her for serving us!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Am I Perfect? Hardly!

If you were to look at Brittani McCalister, she would look like an average teenager. But she is anything but average. Since starting her education in kindergarten, Brittani has attended 2,340 consecutive days of school - and in that stretch of perfect attendance, she was never late - not even once! In my book, that's almost unbelievable!! During her high school commencement, she was recognized for her outstanding accomplishment! And she should have been! That kind of perfect attendance is rarely seen today!

Perfection. This is something that we all lack. In fact, we are far ... very far ... from perfection. As a result, our relationships with others are marred by hurts (most unintended), miscommunication and misunderstandings. This is why it is vital that we learn to practice what the Apostle Paul calls us all to practice in Colossians 3:13 when he writes, "Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you." Bearing with one another and forgiving one another will go a long way toward helping us to experience and enjoy the relationships that God desires for us.

So ... the next time someone irritates you, remember that they are not perfect - but neither are you!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

When Winning Just Might Be Losing!

Last week as I was reading the newspaper, a story about a small rural town in South Dakota grabbed my attention. In this town of 3,000 residents, someone bought a winning ticket in the Powerball lottery worth .... are you ready? .... $232.1 million! And the name of the town? Winner, SD! At first I chuckled to myself as I read this and saw the irony in it. But the more I thought about it, the more I wondered, "Does winning the lottery really make one a 'winner?'"

According to a number of Internet sites, a sizeable portion of million dollar plus lottery winners eventually file bankruptcy (the % cited ranges from 25 % to 80%). My point is not to determine an actual percentage of just how many big lottery winners go broke - but to simply point out a truth that all of us need to realize. MONEY DOES NOT GUARANTEE HAPPINESS! In fact, the Bible clearly teaches that "the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil" (1 Timothy 6:10).

Those of us who claim allegiance to Jesus Christ must grasp the truth spelled out by Paul just prior to the verse I just quoted. Listen (and APPLY!) what he writes to Timothy (and by extension to all of US!):

"But godliness with contentment is great gain. ⁷For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. ⁸But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that" (1 Timothy 6:6-8).

This is not all that easy to apply in our materialistic world -- but by God's grace and for HIS glory - let's strive to do so!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

To Be Known By God!

"We love because he first loved us."
(1 John 4:19)

This verse (along with many others throughout the Bible) teach us that knowing God is a matter of grace. In other words, our relationship with God is one in which HE takes the initiative. And this is how it must be. God in His infinite (read "unlimited and unlimitable") holiness is far above us. And we have forfeited any claim on Him and His favor through our rebellion and sin. So bottom line, we do not make friends with God - HE makes friends with us. Please take a moment and read this excerpt from J.I. Packer's wonderful classic, Knowing God:

This is a momentous knowledge. There is unspeakable comfort - the sort of comfort that energizes - in knowing that God is constantly taking knowledge of me in love and watching over me for my good. There is tremendous relief in knowing that His love to me is utterly realistic, based at every point on prior knowledge of the worst about me, so that no discovery now can disillusion him about me, in the way I am so often disillusioned about myself, and quench His determination to bless me. There is, certainly, great cause for humility in the thought that He sees all the twisted things about me that my fellow-men do not see (and I am glad!), and that He sees more corruption in me than that which I see in myself (which, in all conscience, is enough). There is, however, equally great incentive to worship and love God in the thought that, for some unfathomable reason, He wants me as His friend, and desires to be my friend, and has given His Son to die for me in order to realize this purpose. We cannot work these thoughts out here, but merely to mention them is enough to show how much it means to know, not merely that we know God, BUT THAT HE KNOWS US!" (Knowing God, p. 37 - emphasis mine).

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj