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There is a story of a mother who sought an audience with Napoleon beseeching him for mercy because her son was soon to be executed for desertion. After looking at the evidence set before Napoleon he replied to the woman saying, "madam you son does’nt deserve mercy!" The woman replied, "Lord if he deserved mercy it would’nt be mercy!"
We should also note that single mothers are quite often in that position by no choice of their own, due to death, divorce or desertion. Some single mothers do a wonderful job of raising children to know and to serve the Lord. For example, “John M. Webb was born to Dr. Alfred Pellar Webb and Ida Stewart Webb on October 21, 1919 in Atmore, Alabama. He grew up in Atmore where his father was a local physician. From his earliest recollection John attended the First Baptist Church of Atmore. Receiving Christ as his Savior as a young lad, he was baptized and became a member of the First Baptist Church of Atmore. When John was twelve his father died leaving the responsibility of his upbringing to his mother, Ida and his grandmother, Elizabeth. His ‘Little Mama,’ Ida and ‘Big Mama,’ Elizabeth, taught him to love the Bible. John received a Bible with the following inscription: ‘To John Webb, Christmas 1930, Mama’.”
The contemporary Christian band "Casting Crowns" has a song called "Praise You in this Storm." In the song the artists talk about how, even in the midst of the storm, they are able to praise God within the storm.
Storms of life happen...whether they be physical, like Hurrican Katrina, or emotional, like the death of a loved one, illness, or desertion. The really interesting thing about things like Katrina is those in the storm’s path were able to sit and watch it come in for over two days. I remember watching it on weather radar...praying for the safety of those in its path. The even more amazing thing is that some of those who could have left didn’t...they didn’t prepare for the storm by evacuating...they just waited for it to come in...and then began to worry about being rescued from its grips.
Isn’t that like us today? We don’t prepare for the storm before it hits...we don’t develop the relationships with other human beings we need until the storm is here...and often it is to late. We can only ride out the storm and hope to be rescued. Isn’t it better to just prepare for the storm in advance...anticipating its inevitable arrival?
MORE ACCUSTOMED TO ACTION THAN TALK
All great enterprises begin at a critical moment--a moment when a decision is made and someone launches himself into a never-to-be-forgotten enterprise.
PIZARRO, the noted Spanish explorer, faced such a moment. He languished with his men on a small island awaiting new supplies before moving on to Peru. When the supply ships arrived, they brought a message that he should abandon his expedition--considered by the governor to be foolhardy--and return to Panama.
Pizarro assembled his men on the beach. He drew his sword and made a line from east to west in the sand, then turning to the south he said, "Friends and comrades! On that side are toil, hunger, nakedness, the drenching storm, desertion, and death; on this side, ease and pleasure. But there lies Peru with its riches; here, Panama and its poverty. Choose, each man, what best becomes a brave Castellan. For my part, I go to the south."
So saying, ...
MY GOD, MY GOD
Jesus' lonely cry of, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me!" is a desperate cry of loneliness. I believe this was the worst and the most horrible part of the crucifixion for Jesus. I believe it was worst than the beatings, the betrayal of Judas, the desertion of the disciples, the humiliation of the crucifixion, the being spit upon, the crown of thorns, the nails in His hands, the mocking, the emotional torment, and even the mental torment. None of these compared to what He is facing at this moment on the cross. This was the worst moment of the crucifixion. Jesus is all alone at this moment in His life. Not even the Father is with Him. This one cry reveals the horror of the moment for Him.
PIZARRO'S CRITICAL MOMENT
All great undertakings begin with a critical moment--a moment when a decision is made and someone launches himself into a never-to-be forgotten enterprise.
FRANCISCO PIZARRO, the noted Spanish explorer, faced such a moment. He languished with his men on a small island awaiting new supplies before moving on to Peru. When the supply ships arrived, they brought a message that he should abandon his expedition-considered by the governor to be foolhardy-and return to Panama.
Pizarro assembled his men on the beach. He drew his sword and made an east to west line in the sand, then turning to the south he said, "Friends and comrades! On that side are toil, hunger, nakedness, the drenching storm, desertion, and death; on this side, ease and pleasure. There lies Peru with its riches; here, Panama and its poverty. Choose, each man, what best becomes a brave Castilian. For my part, I go to the south." Then he stepped across the line.
The pilot Ruiz was first to respond, then twelve other men stepped across to join the leader and the pilot.
Of Pizarro, the famous historian Prescott says he was "...a man more accustomed to act than to talk."
Do you want to become wise? Then come with me and we will go on this study of Proverbs and become wise in God's eyes. These sayings will help us think keenly, they will sharpen the edges of our minds. They will quicken our thoughts and enable us to understand more of life's riddles. As that occurs the daily grind caused by the human viewpoint will slowly be replaced by the wisdom of the divine perspective.
One of my favorite books is called This I Believe: The Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women. It is a compilation of eighty essays based on the National Public Radio series of the same name. The essays are from the famous and the unknown. One of the essays that I found most moving is entitled “The God Who Embraced Me” by John W. Fountain. He writes:
I believe in God. Not that cosmic, intangible spirit-in-the-sky that Mama told me as a little boy “always was and always will be.” But the God who embraced me when Daddy disappeared from our lives—from my life at age four—the night police led him away from our front door, down the stairs in handcuffs.
The God who warmed me when we could see our breath inside our freezing apartment, where the gas was disconnected in the dead of another wind-whipped Chicago winter, and there was no food, little hope, and no hot water.
The God who held my hand when I witnessed boys in my ’hood swallowed by the elements, by death, and by hopelessness; who claimed me when I felt like “no-man’s son,” amid the absence of any man to wrap his arms around me and tell me, “everything’s going to be okay,” to speak proudly of me, to call me son.
I believe in God, God the Father, embodied in his son Jesus Christ. The God who allowed me to feel His presence—whether by the warmth that filled my belly like a hot chocolate ...
DEAD FATHERS BETTER THAN ABSENT FATHERS
According to the New Jersey Index of Leading Cultural Indicators, in 1960 the total number of births to teenagers was 11,636. In 2000, the number of births to teenagers was 8,219. At first glance, we would say we are doing something right, yet a little more scrutiny reveals a trend that is frightening.
In 1960 8.8% or 2,003 of those births were to unmarried teens, with 9,633 births to teens that were married, compared with 89.4% or 7,350 births to unmarried teens in 2000, and only 869 births -- a mere 10.6% to teens married. During this same time period, the divorce rate has gone from 115 per thousand marriages in 1960 to 508 per thousand marriages in 2000. A fatherless home today is three times more likely to be a home in poverty.
Education is not the answer -- according to a recent article in the Burlington County Times, New Jersey ranks 2nd in the nation, just behind New York, spending an average of over $ 10,000 per child per year, yet domestic violence offenses have gone from just under 51,000 in 1990 to just under 78,000 in 2000, and cases of child abuse cases totaled 39,276 in 1999.
In his book "Life Without Father", David Pepenoe, Professor of Sociology at Rutgers University, says:
"The decline of fatherhood is one of the most unexpected and extraordinary social trends of our time. Nearly 50% of American children go to sleep each evening without being able to say goodnight to their dads.
"There was a time in the past when fatherlessness was more common than it is today, but death was to blame - not divorce, desertion or out-of-wedlock births. Most of today’s fatherless children have fathers who are perfectly capable of shouldering the responsibilities of fatherhood. Who would have ever thought ...
