Three days ago, the small tan clump in the foreground looked like the abundant and green tower of pampas grass in the background. Then two days ago, it got shaved to a significantly smaller “stump.” But by yesterday, it had begun to grow again. Look carefully, six inch pale green shoots demonstrate the relentlessness of life. I hope the generous application of Round Up will kill the roots, but several doses might be required. Why? Life persistently holds on and typically doesn’t give up easily. I suspect God intentionally ...
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image by gpcchurch.co.uk
No Fear?
The year? 1974. The era? The Watergate frenzy peaked as people wondered if the Nixon presidency could survive the flood of revelations about the break in. Earlier in the day, I finagled a private tour of the Rhode Island State Capitol to see its charter—the first American colony to have full religious liberty, signed by the King of England himself.
As I looked at the charter in a back room, the nearby telex chattered—Nixon scheduled a major address that evening, called Vice President Gerald Ford back to DC, and reportedly would resign. In early evening I rode the Honda into Groton CN not long before the speech, and spotted “The Grotto,” a long, low bar. One that had a TV. Free. A wall separated the dark bar from the entry, so I turned right and peered inside. Kind of a redneck crowd, where a long-haired hippie biker might not be welcome.
So...
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Transitions
That barren pic above is my classroom, after the final group of students has gone, with most of the decorations removed. My room for six years; my school for eight. Just last week while writing an in class essay, one student saw me taking out the guts of the notebooks for the classes I’ve taught and said, “Mr. Riter, that’s so sad. Your life’s work going in the trash.”
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Counter Cultural--At Last
The role of faith in American culture is changing. Swiftly and strongly. A recent Pew poll revealed that in 2007, 78.4% of Americans identified themselves as Christian. For 2015, that number dropped to 70.6%, or about 1% each year. Court rulings have powered gay marriage being viewed positively by a majority of Americans, mostly in just the last five years. In a Facebook discussion, a friend from high school days stated that I, a minister who provides Christian weddings, should be required to marry gay couples who ask for my services.
Where are we heading?
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Praise--A Path to Closeness
That knife above isn’t much to look at. A bone handle yellowed from age and contact with a fisherman’s hand. A small blade, with much of its essence sacrificed from sharpening. But each time I open the tackle box and see dad’s old knife, I think of him. How he transmitted a love of stream fishing. How he showed me the courage a man should have. How he demonstrated sacrificing for others. How he gave me that knife when emphysema robbed him of the ability to journey to his beloved Sierra Nevada Mountains. Each look keeps those memories fresh, makes me appreciate him more, and restores...
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image by chrishefner.com
Coexist?
Quite a popular bumper sticker lately, particularly in our relativistic age which encompasses many paths to God. Some take it to mean coexist peacefully, disagree without killing one another. I can support that. But if it means, as one image proclaims, “God is too big to fit into one place,” equating all belief systems, then I take issue.
Easter is the reason.
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Setting Your Spirit
The church building required refurbishing. Multiple decades had aged it, and minimal remodeling spoke of bygone eras. Even worse, the entrance was on the opposite side of the parking lot, well hidden to first time visitors. Many people drove in, saw no entrance, and drove right out. So we embarked on a major project to cut into a retaining wall to install steps, remove vegetation, craft a new entrance by the parking, and paint the entire interior. One of our leaders, an Air Force officer, led the painting crew, and I struggled ...
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Mark Twain cabin by Wikimedia.com
Last Legs
Mick and I left the rest of the riders in Sisters OR and headed home. Mt. Shasta provided a motel room, then we rode together the next morning until he split off to Susanville, to return the bike he borrowed from his son-in-law. I headed to Placerville as the starting point to cruise along Hwy 49, through the Gold Rush towns scattered along the Sierra foothills. Windy roads, finding Mark Twain’s cabin (above in the pic), and exploring the funky towns made it a long day until I found ...
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