Don't Hate The Innkeeper

            Luke 2:1-7 (NASB) says, "Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. ²This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³ And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city. ⁴ Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, ⁵ in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. ⁶ While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. ⁷ And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn."

            "No room for them in the inn." Most of us have heard the Christmas story many times throughout our lives. We have read stories, watched movies and even Christmas cartoons depicting Joseph and Mary arriving at the inn, only to be told there was no room. What is our reaction to the innkeeper when we read and see these stories? Often it is resentment, and sometimes even disgust, because the "mean" innkeeper is turning away the soon-to-be-born Son of God.

            Do we even know what was going on in the innkeeper's mind? No. The Bible only tells us there was no room in the inn. Because of the census every room in town was taken by those who got there first. As human beings though, we tend to turn our anger and frustration to the bearer of bad news. There is an old saying, attributed to Shakespeare, "Don't shoot the messenger." What if this had been Joseph's attitude at hearing that there was no room for them in the inn?

            What about the "innkeepers" in your life? When you are waiting in line for what seems like an eternity, only to be told when you get to the front of the line that they are out of what you were waiting for, what is your reaction to the person who gave you the news? When you are driving too fast and receive a ticket, how do you feel about the officer who gave you the ticket? When the doctor says, "I'm sorry, there's nothing more we can do," what is your first impulse?

            It is human nature to lash out when we get bad news. The problem is, often when we lash out, someone gets hurt, and many times it is not the fault of the person we lash out at. We need to remember that the person who is delivering the bad news is just doing a job. Sometimes the person we should be mad at is ourselves, but it is easier to lash out at someone else.

            Especially at this time of year, when everyone seems to be in a hurry, we need to slow down and ask ourselves, "How would God have me respond?" The Bible actually makes it pretty clear. "Treat others the same way you want them to treat you." Luke 6:31.

            A year or so ago some friends invited me out to lunch with them. We went to a Chinese restaurant and had a nice lunch. When the server went to clear some of our dishes away she accidentally dropped a full cup of sticky, bright red sweet-and-sour sauce in my lap. One of my friends (also a Christian) later told me that he was amazed at how calmly I reacted. My only reaction when it happened was to quietly assure the horror-stricken girl that it was okay, that it was just an accident. I'm not tooting my own horn here -- God gave me the peace to know that it was not a big deal. My reaction to the incident demonstrated forgiveness, something the server may not have had much experience with.

            We will deal with many "innkeepers" throughout our lives. Bearers of bad news and various people who bring trouble of some kind to us will always be around. Don't shoot the messenger. Don't hate the innkeeper. Just remember the simple truth, "Treat others the same way you want them to treat you." Luke 6:31.

A Sweet Puppy

Someone posted a picture of a puppy on Facebook this afternoon. It reminded me so much of a puppy we used to have (mostly the position it was in, and where it was lying) that when I saw it, I was hit with a flood of memories. Our puppy's name was Woof, and he was such a good puppy. I'm sure he would have been a great dog as well, but he never had the chance to be more than a puppy.

I was almost nine years old, my sister was seven. We lived in a small apartment in Kansas City, Missouri with our mom and dad. Diana and I shared a bed. One morning we woke up to quite a surprise -- the cutest puppy ever -- right in our bed! We learned later that my dad had gotten him from some college students who thought it was funny to give the puppy beer and watch him stumble around. When Daddy got Woof he could hardly stand up, he was so drunk. By the time we met him the next morning in our bed, Woof was just a happy, sweet puppy who won our hearts instantly.

Shortly after we got Woof we moved to a tiny house in Independence, Missouri. Woof loved having a yard to run around in. We loved having Woof to play with. Then winter came.

One winter day, while my sister and I were in school, my mom let Woof out to go potty. She had hardly looked away for a second when some guys on motorcycles rode by, and one of them grabbed Woof. I don't  think she saw it happen. I think a neighbor told her. We were all distraught. My dad put a lost and found ad in the paper, with a picture of Woof up on my shoulder.

It wasn't too long before a woman called and said someone had dropped a puppy in her yard. She was sure it was our puppy, and she was right. Arrangements were made for my dad to go pick him up the next day. This is where we have the happy ending, right? No. The woman who found Woof in her yard had a dog, and she was worried that it would hurt our puppy. She could have put Woof in a closed room in her house, but instead she chose to leave him outside. By the time Daddy got over there to pick him up, Woof had frozen to death in the snow.

I wasn't sure why I decided to tell Woof's short life-story until I wrote that last line. I have harbored anger and resentment against that woman all these years. I know that I have to forgive her, and now I do.

Woof was a good puppy. He didn't have a long life, but the short life he had with us was a happy one for him and us.

Reruns

Can you believe that I have been so busy that I haven't written anything in my blog in ten months?! Neither can I. Of course that is because I haven't been too busy. Oh I've been busy, but what I have been busy with is doing nothing. This has actually been a pretty eventful ten months, with our oldest grandson starting high school, our granddaughter starting middle school, our church getting a new pastor (a great one!), and my medical tests turning around from abnormal to normal. James and I started a new way of eating and we are doing pretty well on it. We started "The Sugar Blockers Diet" by Dr. Rob Thompson. Basically we have cut out most starches. Anyway, more on all that later. Today I was checking a friend's new blog, and I found an old blog I started in 2008. I had totally forgotten about it. I don't need two blogs running at the same time (especially when I am so bad about writing), so I am sticking with this one. However, I thought I would copy and paste a couple of my entries from that one here.  :)  So, without further ado, here they are:

From January 30, 2008

In a Serious Mood Tonight

I have been a Christian for many years, since I was a teenager.  The last few years, though, I have really slipped in one area (others too, but big-time here), and that is reading my Bible.  I would look verses up all the time, but I wasn't devoting time to really studying the Word.  It really upset me that I could find time for so many other things, but I did not take the time to read the Bible.  Almost seven months ago I decided that I need to make that effort.  Am I going about it the right way?  Not according to some, and they may be right.  But I am doing it in a way that makes sense to me.  While I am still reading the New Testament (in a casual way, and looking up verses to help with situations), I decided that I didn't know enough background information.  How can I understand some of what Jesus was talking about if I don’t know more of the Old Testament?

 I have been pretty good about reading every morning.  I’ll admit I don’t usually read on the weekends, but I need to change that.  I've gotten off track, so to get back to how I am choosing to read, I decided to start at the beginning and read straight through.  I have started to do that before, many years ago, and I didn't make it very far.  I didn't have the same focus then though.  Back then I was just reading to get through it, but now I am really paying attention to what I am reading.  Because I am focused and am reading with a purpose, I am really enjoying reading the Old Testament.  I’m not going to lie, there are some parts that are as boring as all get out, but the history is amazing.  I have read enough and heard enough in the past to know a lot of some parts and at least the bare bones of the rest, but I had never delved so deeply into it.  I’m so glad I chose to do it this way. 

I used to read pretty fast, and I don’t anymore.  That doesn't bother me.  I’m not trying to get through the Bible in one year.  My goal is to really get into the Word and to gain a deeper understanding of God’s plan for me.  I have always been a daydreamer, and I have a hard time keeping my mind on some things for very long.  I am doing two things to help with that problem.  The first thing is, I always pray for understanding and focus before I start reading each day.  Sometimes I have to stop, take a breath, and say a quick “refresher” prayer if I find my mind wandering.  The other thing I am doing is reading out loud.  I read years ago that if you see it and hear it at the same time, what you read will stay with you longer.  I know that is the only way I was able to get through some of my college textbooks! 

 I am about halfway through Nehemiah right now.  I just finished a long stretch of name after name after name sections, and it is good to be on to more interesting things now. 

What I took away from my reading today: It is all too often easier to value other peoples’ opinions above God’s opinion.  We (yeah, I am definitely a big part of that we) are sometimes so concerned about looking stupid, undignified, silly, “whatever,” to other people that we forget that their opinions about us don’t matter at all in the scheme of things.  So it is my prayer that I will always trust in God above all others.  I know that if  trust in Him, things will work out for the best.

From January 31, 2008

Frustrated by Stupidity/Being Judgmental

There is an argument going on at a site I belong to.  I’m not going to get into what the argument is about, but it is about something a teen did wrong at school and was punished for.  The parent wanted to know if the other members thought the punishment fit the wrongdoing. 

 It started out okay, with people offering their opinions about the punishment.  Several posts later, however, things went nuts.  They started focusing on the wrongdoing itself (okay, it was swearing), and tempers started to flair, since some saw nothing wrong with swearing at all, some saw nothing wrong with swearing but thought kids shouldn't do it around their teachers and some adults, and some were very opposed to swearing. 

 It was all kind of silly in my opinion, but the part that really drove me nuts, the part that leaves me frustrated with people, is when people started saying things like, “It’s not the worst thing she could have done,” and “There are a lot of things worse than swearing.”  Why am I frustrated?  Because it doesn't matter that there are worse things than swearing.  Yes, there are worse things.  There are things that aren't as bad.  That was not the point of the whole question to begin with. 

 Where am I going with this, you might be wondering.  I’m thinking about the way people think about sin, in general.  People love to feel good about themselves, even when they are sinning, by comparing their sin to that of others.  We think that because all we did was tell a “little white lie” or cheat on our taxes and such, it is okay because there are worse sins.  We love to look to people like Charles Manson when thinking about our sins because that makes us feel better about what we did.  But we are comparing ourselves and our sins to the wrong example.  We are only supposed to compare ourselves and our sins to Jesus.  And we don’t compare at all. 

There are so many directions I could go with this right now.  It started out with frustration about a particular situation, but it is something that really affects our lives more than we know.  Because when we compare our sins to those of others, we are being judgmental.  And it is not our job to judge.  We don’t have to like or condone the sins of others, but it is not our job to judge them for their sins.  God can do a pretty good job of it all by Himself.  I kind of like having the burden of judging others off of me.  It leaves me free to worry about my own sins and asking forgiveness for them.  

Happy New Year -- 2012!

Sheesh, I can't believe how long it has been since I have written. I probably won't write much now, but I just felt that I needed to say something.

I am glad 2011 is over and we have moved on to a new year. I don't know what this year will bring, but it has to be better than last year.  The year 2011 was the year that my dad was diagnosed with a bad cancerous brain tumor, a Glioblastoma Multiforme to be exact, and it is the year he died from said tumor. A lot of bad stuff, and a couple bad people, came along with the tumor, but that is all in the past and I won't go into it here.

There were some good things about last year as well.  I got to spend more time with Nancy, Steve, Andrew, Hannah, and Thomas. I also got to spend more time with my sister Diana, and I saw my nephew Justin for the first time in a few years and was able to spend a little time with him. We all got to spend some time with Daddy as his illness progressed.  We got to say a lot of things that needed to be said, and we came closer, in some ways, as a family.

Daddy died peacefully in his sleep at about 7:10 p.m. on November 12, 2011.  With the exception of James (unfortunately we couldn't afford a ticket for him to come) we were all there with Daddy when he left us.  We miss him, but he is in Heaven now with Mama and with Jesus, and that is a good thing.

I am looking forward to 2012.  I hope to come closer and closer to God.  I don't want to be a Christian in name only--I want to live a life that cannot be mistaken for anything other than a Christian life.  I want to delve deeper into God's Word, and I want to cultivate a richer prayer life.  I have a long way to go.