Crisis Management
George Orwell and Aldous Huxley are well-quoted these days for their prescient writings predicting a world and a worldview unlike our comfortable all-American lifestyle.
Interestingly enough, the first glimmers of “Big Brother” and “Animal Farm thinking” startled us. We vehemently protested the loss of privacy, freedoms, and personal liberties. We challenged those who espoused central control. That lasted for a while.
Slowly the older ones have moved out of leadership – and even moved on to their eternal resting place, taking with them their resistance to the new thinking. The younger generations are acclimated to a changing economic, moral, and political environment accepting the changes and consequences with much greater poise.
The other day I thought “we have moved from Orwell to Oh-well.” Acceptance of monitoring, limiting, and determining is more common. The recognition that privacy is an outdated, outmoded concept results in a shrug and sigh when one of us “older ones” argues for the rights of personal thoughts, property, and activities.
Central to this shift is the masterful use of crises. We eagerly give up our freedoms when faced with life threatening situations. Normally, we deal with stressful events by allowing them to resolve. Those who want control must constantly create fear in order to lubricate the process of liberty removal. The shelf life (or media cycle) of a normal event isn’t enough to throw us totally off guard. Instead, as one begins to wane another must take its place, keeping us off balance and even more willing to accept the unacceptable.
In times of disequilibrium Christians can pause to assess, evaluate, and remember “in times like these we have a Savior.” And in these very troubled times we have an “anchor which grips the solid rock” (Jesus Christ).
Prayer Network
by Brenda A. Smith, BWFLI.com, BreakfastWithFred.com
“Today our commitment to Christ-centered leadership and education is more strongly defended than ever before.”
Raising up a generation of men and women whose lives represent the full integration of faith is indeed a challenge, but one our friends in Christian higher education gladly accept. Their devotion to the development of curricula, campus life, and even on-line programs speaks of their belief in the fact of faith as the foundation for all living.
This month as many faculty members experience further academic and personal development, let’s pray for their refreshment. As students engage in summer jobs, let’s pray for their witness in the workplace. And as administrators make serious decisions about the upcoming semesters, let’s pray they have clear insight and wisdom.
We are called to stand with those who lift the banner of Jesus Christ. No place is a more definite target from an alien culture who seeks to dismantle and destroy than our schools. Join in fervent prayer and thanksgiving. And financial support is greatly appreciated, as well.
A Lesson from Joseph on Sexual Purity
by Bob Deffinbaugh, Bible.org, BWFLI.com
“I have sprinkled my bed with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon. 18 “Come, let us drink our fill of love until morning; Let us delight ourselves with caresses. 19 “For my husband is not at home, He has gone on a long journey; 20 He has taken a bag of money with him. At the full moon he will come home” (Proverbs 7:17-20, emphasis mine).
7 It came about after these events that his master’s wife looked with desire at Joseph, and she said, “Lie with me.” 8 But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in the house, and he has put all that he owns in my charge. 9 “There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:7-9).
Madam Folly is introduced to us in Proverbs chapter 7. Part of her seductive technique is to convince her victim that her husband is far away. Somehow, physical distance can give one the false impression that it is a more convenient time to let down the moral barriers and indulge in immoral conduct. Joseph was far from home, yet even so he maintained his moral values when Mrs. Potiphar attempted to seduce him.
Many of our college and university students are far from home, perhaps for the first time, and perhaps not able to return home. Let us pray for them that their distance from home and parental oversight will not lead to conduct which, according to Proverbs (7:21-23), leads to disaster.
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Lifestyle Mentoring
Weekly Thought – July 27, 2021
Fred saw himself as an “inveterate note taker. “Rarely do I hear, read, or even think anything that I feel deserves retention that I don’t commit to paper. I’ve been doing this for sixty years.” This became a common practice with those he mentored, as well. In his last days dear friend Bill Glass appeared in the ICU waiting room with a notebook and pen. “I still have questions for Fred and I want to make sure I get the answers right.”
Lifestyle Mentoring
One form of mentoring defines the principles of living. Recently, I hear a young man say, “My grandfather was everything to me. He loved me, and he taught me how to live.” How fortunate to have an older person in one’s life about whom you can say that.
As we look to scripture for examples of lifestyle mentoring we automatically think of Paul and Timothy. Paul let Timothy observe him at work. He didn’t try to teach Timothy mechanics of missionary work. He was a father in the faith… a type of parent without the parental responsibilities.
For years Zig Ziglar and I have regularly met to talk. When we sit down he gets out his paper and pen even though his memory for material is greater than mine. In discussing mentoring he said, “Be sure to tell the person being mentored to make notes. No one should trust his memory with anything important.”
A good mentor never ridicules a question. He may choose not to answer, but he respects the process because questions are the pump that makes the answers flow.
I have sought over my lifetime (which is approaching 90) to distill life into principles. Some are eternal, and therefore always current. I form a mental filing cabinet for all information that passes through my experience. Some items interest me – others do not. So, there are some empty file folders in my cabinet for topics of no interest to me. I was blessed with excellent recall, but I work on it consistently.
Lifestyle mentoring is “coming alongside” in the day by day, developing by observing, asking, absorbing, and putting information into a helpful form.
This week carefully consider: 1) Who is my lifestyle mentor? 2) How effective am I at note taking? 3) What am I learning that will be valuable to younger ones?
Words of Wisdom: “Rarely do I hear, read, or even think anything that I feel deserves retention that I don’t commit to paper. I’ve been doing this for sixty years.”
Wisdom from the Word: “To Timothy, my genuine child in the faith.” (1 Timothy 1:2 NET Bible)