Turnabout is Fair Play??

     Over the weekend, I was given the privilege of providing the devotion to the athletes at a local Upward youth basketball league. The verse and topic for the league this week was centered on a well-known Bible verse found in Luke 6:31 “Do unto others as you would have them do to you”, a pretty fitting verse for athletes to champion as in victory or defeat the concept of good sportsmanship should be one of the main subjects “coached” and expected. As I was studying the scripture and preparing my thoughts I began to realize that not only would this be a sound devotion for the young boys and girls participating in a Saturday youth basketball game, but the whole concept of “doing unto others” would make for a fitting topic in this week’s Flat Tire Ministries Thought for the Week.
For the most part we as adults are familiar with this admonition of Jesus as he spoke to and taught His disciples. What many of us may not be as familiar with is that the lesson Jesus was teaching about was to love your enemies. In the same context, you can find the concept of “turning the other cheek”, and “if someone asks for your cloak give him your coat as well”. You see it’s easy for us to teach our children that they should treat others the way that they would want to be treated, but it gets a little more complicated when the “others” we are treating in the way we would want to be treated are not treating us so good in the first place. This is where it takes more than just a good-natured gesture on our part to carry out the true meaning of the lesson our Shepard was teaching to the gathered group. Too often we teach our children, students, and athletes to do unto others as you would want them to do to you with a little additional snippet, “as long as they are treating you the right way first!” Well that makes it easy to do! It’s pretty easy to treat those that are “playing nice” the way we would want to be treated, but what about when you can definitely say the other person isn’t playing “fair”?
     How do you react and respond at work when someone is hateful and negative about everything you say or any project you complete? What about that person driving down the road that cuts you off when it was obvious you were in the “next” position of traffic? How about at school when someone smarts off and makes fun of you or your clothes? What about when someone shows their prejudice or racist attitudes in your face? The list goes on and on, you name it and that is where the concept of “do unto others” applies. You see it’s easy to do good to those that do good to us first as Jesus pointed out in the verses that follow the directive to treat others the way we would want to be treated.
³² “If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ³³ And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. ³⁴ And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. Luke 6:32-34
     The true lesson is how do we act and respond when we are in those not so friendly situations? Let’s stay with the group I was speaking to over the weekend. What do we as parents or coaches tell our children when someone obviously gets too rough and they throw an elbow in our player’s ribcage? Well as most of you know I’ve coached for around thirty years and whether you want to admit it or not, I have more frequently heard parents and many times coachess instructing their child that “if he/she does that again, you do it back to them!” During my 25 years of teaching and administrating so many times I have heard students and parents say that the reason they shoved, pulled, pushed, or hit the other student is because that other student did it to them first.
The whole concept of “turnabout is fair play” is exactly what we are talking about here. The notion that if someone does something to you then it is acceptable to do something just as bad to them in return. If we believe the Bible is true then based on the scriptures and the words of the Great Teacher, “turnabout” is NOT fair play! When someone hurts us, when someone uses us, or cheats to gain an advantage, we have not gained a license to retaliate.
     Today’s message is simple, yet complex to accept and live out. As the verses above remind us it’s easy to be good to those that are good to us, the lesson Jesus taught was to be good to our enemies and those that have hurt us in the past. For us to break a trust is to break that bond that can never be mended. How fortunate we are that God doesn’t carry out that same form of “turnabout” when it is our forgiveness that we desire. We go about our lives without giving credit where credit is due, we take credit where credit is not ours to take, we turn our backs on our faith and attempt to live our lives the way we want to live them, and in some cases, we even deny that there is a God that is there for us in good times and the not so good times of life. What if our Redeemer treated us in a “you get what you deserve” fashion? What if we could not receive forgiveness for our past failures and our hurtful actions in life?
     Fortunately, we have a Father that forgives us even though we probably don’t deserve forgiveness. The comfort of knowing that regardless of how bad we turn our backs or how out of line we live our lives, there is a God who is faithful to forgive us our sins and loves us beyond anything we deserve. In return for the love God shows us and the forgiveness He gives us all we are asked to do in return is to “do unto others as we would want them to do to us”. Verse 36 of chapter 6 in Luke explains it best, “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful”. He showed us first how to treat others so that we would never have to wonder how we are to react and respond in life’s situations. Then He forgave us even when we didn’t deserve it. Teach it to your children, coach it on your teams, and most importantly live it in your own life!
Coach Carter

Tribute to a Strong Foundation

 “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”  

Matthew 7:24-27

     My Uncle Charlie, Reverend Charles William Whetsel, passed away on February 11, 2018. When I sat back and thought about his life, one personal quality kept surfacing again and again. The God given strength of this gentle man caused me to realize that Uncle Charlie may be one of the strongest men I have ever met or had the fortune of being influenced by in my own life. 

      Those who knew Uncle Charlie would most certainly have talked about his calm demeanor and his quiet presence. What I now realize is that calm, quiet presence was a strength that surpasses all of the noise and clamor of this world's image of strength. In today's world strength and might are many times characterized by displaying how big you are, how much you have, or how tough you can prove yourself to be. The strength that my Uncle Charlie displayed was founded in his faith. With over 40 years of faithful service to our Lord and Savior, Charles Whetsel built his life's foundation on the model that Jesus provided us. For me the image is clear. Strength is not found in the loud, boasting image of what we see on the outside, but instead true strength is found on the inside, in the core, the foundation of our body and soul. 

     Much like the parable that Jesus shared with His disciples from Matthew 7:24-27, many people work hard at building their persona, yet their foundation is weak because they choose sand over rock. Regardless of how strong your house may look on the surface where others see it on a daily basis, if the foundation of your home is not sturdily founded on rock it will surely fall when the storms of life come. Think about many of today's boisterous performers, stars, politicians, and star athletes. Their success is built on telling us how big they are, how much they are worth, and how important they are to the world. They may appear to have it all, you may actually look at them and think "Wow, I wish I had it made like they they do", but in reality if at the base of their life their foundation is dependent on the things that the eye can visibly see, then they have more than likely built their whole life on sand.

     The problem with building on sand is that in life there will be storms and storms bring destructive winds, torrential rains, hurricanes, monsoons, and tornadoes literal and figurative storms of life. That poses a devastating problem for homes that have their foundation on sand. Our scripture today describes it best, when the storms come "it will collapse with a mighty crash". On the other hand, the house that is constructed on the rock will withstand the storms of life because it is built on the Rock. That Rock is where my Uncle Charlie built his life. 

     I never saw Uncle Charlie get upset, show anger, fear, or even frustration. His patient, kind, servant spirit served as a model to the congregations where he ministered. Charles Whetsel modeled the attributes that Paul shared in I Corinthians 13. Love is kind, love is patient, love doesn't proudly boast. Love is not self-seeking and it is not easily angered. Love places it's trust in hope. That is where Uncle Charlie's foundation was built. In the hope that is founded in faith. That foundation provided a model for his children and to all of us that were blessed to have him in our lives. 

      Strength is not based on a visual representation of what you are or what you have. It is not represented by how loud you can be or how flamboyant you can display yourself. Strength is not evidenced by "winning" at all costs. True strength is found in your core, the foundation that allows you to withstand the storms of life. Where is your foundation built? Will your life be able to endure the adversities and afflictions of life? Will those you love be able to stand strong even after you are gone because you built a foundation for them to build their own life upon that Rock? If not you are fortunate because you have the opportunity to reinforce your life's foundation. We have a contractor that is readily available and eager to pour concrete into your life's foundation. Seek Him and seek to build a foundation that will withstand the storms of life.

     I along with my entire family were blessed to have the Reverend Charles William Whetsel during some part of his 84 year life. His life has laid a foundation for each of us to live our own lives and share with the lives of our children. Thank you Uncle Charlie for living out the life you did and for giving us the example of faithful, quiet strength you demonstrated. Your life made a difference and will continue to make a difference in the lives of us all! 

Love, 

Chuck  

Love Your Life, Live Your Life, Now!

     I was born May 29, 1963. From that day forward my biological clock has been ticking towards the day that it is set to stop ticking. Fact of the matter there is not one of us "gaining" time, or extending the ticks on our clock. Somber thought? Yes, but if we know this, and we should, then why aren't more of us living the life that we have to live right now! I mean really living it. Taking each moment as a gift instead of a drudgery that we "have" to get up, go to work, go to school, do this, or do that! You have a life to live so you better be living it before it slips away and all you can do is say "I wish I would've, should've, or maybe I could've.
     You were born with a purpose mapped out for your life, your experiences, good or bad, prepare you for for that purpose. Your purpose will impact someone, or a multitude of someones, but yet you have to make it happen, you have to live your life to the fullest to experience that purpose. Too many  people are not "living" there life, they're just living. Think "rock". A rock's purpose is to hold something down, to suppress something, to stay in one place. On the other hand, we as humans, were given arms, legs, brains, hearts, and lungs so that we would not be rocks. Don't live your life like a rock!
    There is another group of people who aren't just sitting around, no this group of individuals has given up on life and the life they were originally created to live and the purpose they were destined to fulfill. In Viktor Frankl's book "Man's Search for Meaning", Frankl who was a Holocaust survivor turned author, psychiatrist, and neurologist speaks about that chapter of his life and how he came to a place of understanding about our "purpose" in this life we have to live. In one particular section of memoir,  Frankl shares that you could tell when a prisoner had given up on life. It was like they would go into a catatonic state of being, lifeless, hopeless, with the only real evidence of life being the inhaling and exhaling their bodies forced them to enact.  At that point what had been a dire situation at best, became a situation with no hope and they could no longer see that their life had meaning, or purpose. Yet for Frankl, a survivor, that strand of hope, the belief that if he gave up and died his purpose in life, the very purpose that he was created to achieve, a purpose that would impact the lives of so many others would never be accomplished. Because of Viktor Frankl's resiliency and will to live his book "Man's Search for Meaning" has been read by millions including myself and it has made a difference in the world.
     How about you? Are you living life like it has meaning? Extreme situations find some people giving up and they are just taking in oxygen and exhaling carbon monoxide literally and figuratively. Some may be like the rock, they haven't given up, but they are stuck sitting in one place. Think of a rut in the road, the wheels are moving going somewhere, yet stuck in a routine pattern of just living life, doing what has to be done to make it to Friday, the end of the school year, until vacation, or retirement. Sad. Living only to see the ticks on the clock pass.
     Not me, Nope, No sir, No ma'am, Nada, No way, Not gonna live my life like that! You have been given your life just the way it is because there is a reason, a purpose behind every little thing that happens in your life. Your destiny in life is not determined by those events, but instead by what you do with those experiences. Both good ones and the not so good ones, even the terrible ones have life changing lessons attached to them if we can only see them through the eyes of a little different perspective.
     I choose to live my life with the understanding that my life is not about me. My life is about how many lives I can impact in a positive manner before my "ticks" and "tocks" stop! I've decided to live the dash between May 29, 1963 - ?? with the idea that I've been given one more day, what can I do today to make an impact on one more person's life. Proverbs 16:3 encourages and strengthens me with this directive, "Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans." As long as I seek His will for this life He has given me I can't go wrong. Choose to make the minutes, hours, days, months, and years of your biological clock count. Touch lives, enjoy your life, and make someone's life better each day because you were in it! If life were a cup for coffee, I'd fill it to the brim and drink it up!
Coach Carter

They Can Hear Your Smile Through the Phone

     In my former life as a business owner, I used to share with our employees that when you answer the phone the person on the other end should be able to hear your smile. That first impression sets the stage for the whole conversation. I wanted the person on the other end of the line to understand that first, our business was thankful that a customer was contacting us, and second that we were glad to have the opportunity to help them in whatever their need was. That first impression whether it was over the phone or when customers entered our store had a great deal to do with over thirty years of success for our family business.
     I carried that same philosophy with me into education as I shared it with our "first impression" team in our office. At times, not often, we would receive calls from parents that were upset or disgruntled about something that had happened at school involving their child. Inevitably, as they should, the parent would call to "discuss" the matter. I explained to both Sandy and Paula that they were the ones that would set the stage for the outcome of the ensuing discussion. It is so much easier to delve into a conversation after a welcoming, positive first touch has been made, versus the person on the other end putting them off or cutting them short with a negative, curt comment. That smile on the other end really does matter.
      In my current position I am welcomed each day by Ms. Debbie Parker. I'm certain that she was hired due to a plethora of positive attributes, yet I would fathom that one that ranked high on the charts was her ability to make you feel welcome and important in receiving incoming calls or even more so with her greetings as people enter our office building each day. That first impression is so critical to success and in setting the stage for a positive experience. I mean take a minute to think about a recent encounter at your favorite restaurant or shop. Whether you consciously realize it or not a big factor in your experience and likelihood of returning to that business was probably impacted by that first thirty second encounter. My thought for you to ponder on this week is this. We have first encounters in our life each and every day. Whether it is in a business, work, or personal relationship, you encounter people, many times the same people, for a big part of your week. What is the first impression you are making? Can they hear your smile through the phone and in your greeting?
     If a simple effort to let our voices send out a welcoming, positive message through a 10 second phone interaction can have a huge impact on the next 2-5 minute conversation, how much more so do we convey with our own body language, words and actions each day? Are you the person that everyone dreads seeing coming down the hallway? Is it possible that you are the one that can turn a half full glass into a desert of despair? Even more important what is your perspective during adversity or conflict? Are you the voice of perseverance in your home and at work, or are you the Eeyore of hopelessness for your family, co-workers, and those you interact on a daily basis?
      Encouraging the church of Corinth, Paul wrote to them in II Corinthians 3:3 "You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts." Paul wanted the Christians in Corinth to understand that they were the "first line" of representation for Christ. Their life would be the testament to why others should choose to follow Christ. In Psalm 40:3 the psalmist goes even further with this proclamation, "He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord." If we are going to make a difference in this world, if we are going to offer hope to the hopeless it will start each day with our first impression, that first 10 seconds of hope that you have an opportunity to share.
    You may or you may not have realized what a tremendous impact you have on those you come in contact with each day. Your voice, your demeanor, and your outlook on life are contagious to those you encounter. It is almost like a chain reaction, you smile and make a positive comment to one person and without even realizing it you have set off endorphins in their brain that create a positive experience. That positive experience results in that person unwittingly passing it along to the next person they come in contact with and so on and so on! Call it a domino effect, the Butterfly effect, whatever you like, but at the end of the day it makes a difference. The next time you answer your phone be sure to let your voice sing out your good news, and along the pathways of life as you journey let your first encounter with those you meet be one that leaves a positive impression, a caring tone, and a message of sincere hope! You may be the only hope that person receives that day. Spread it and smile!
Coach Carter