Who is the good man?

I actually began this post 10 years ago, but I've often thought about it and I think it's time to finish that thought.  I've been a huge fan of the reality TV show Survivor since the first group of castaways were "marooned" in Borneo way back in the spring of 2000.  I find the show a fascinating window into human behavior and I am entertained but also challenged by what it takes for one person to outwit, outplay, and outlast all the others.  The rules of Survivor are not the rules we live by outside of the game, but that in itself provides unique insights into how we make decisions, how we relate to others, and what our values are.  Twenty-five years of watching Survivor, watching the hundreds of players battle it out with only 46 people managing to win the game, I've come to notice a particular type of player.  A player who has lessons for those of us in the real world. I call this player the good man (or woman--but often it's a man):

Sometimes "good people" can cause the most damage.  In the Gospels, the one group that Jesus seemed to reserve the harshest criticism for were the so called "good people."  He had great patience with sinners, outcasts, misfits.  But it was the good people that got Him really worked up.

During the 30th season of Survivor, titled Worlds Apart, which aired in the spring of 2015 (when I first began this post), one of the contestants emotionally destroyed another competitor.  The aggressor was a guy who was known by all to be open-hearted and friendly, a nice guy.  A good person.  Indeed he and his wife grew to be internet celebrities through their viral videos that showcased good-natured people with a sense of humor and a zest for life.  And this was the persona that Will Sims brought to the show and maintained for much of the season. 

Will Sims II, Survivor: Worlds Apart (Season 30)

But another deeply unkind side of Will reared its head late in the show when he lashed out at another competitor, reducing her to tears.  His brutal dismissal of Sharin as a worthless individual who no-one loved, liked, or cared about came as a shock to the other competitors and was especially devastating to Sharin considering her lack of family and a history of abuse growing up.  It was as awful as anything I've seen on television and I found it uncomfortable to watch.   Several times Will had the opportunity to back off his harsh attack and make amends, and each time he chose to double down and stand by his statements.  Even at the after show, which aired months after the game had been taped, when presumably he would have had time to think, reflect, and perhaps soften his stance, he was still defiant in his attack on this woman. What was Sharin's crime?  She dared to question Will's integrity.  She challenged his "good person" persona, and suggested a generous act on his part was duplicitous and insincere. And his response proved her right

No one thinks of themselves as villains.  We are all the hero in our own story, and everyone views themselves as basically a good person.  Maybe not perfect, but you know, decent.  And yet it can't possibly be true. Some--if not most of us--are kidding ourselves.  The Bible would suggest that we all are. Every one of us is prone to selfishness, pride, unkindness and even cruelty given the right (or should I say wrong) circumstances.  And I wonder sometimes if, given this reality, maybe the least good people are the ones who proclaim their own goodness, the ones who drape themselves in the mantle of hero, who wear the badge of integrity, honesty, goodness boldly.

Besides Will, it seems like some of the more problematic players in Survivor history have been those who insist that they are above the regular riff-raff who play the game.  While others might muck around in lies, duplicity and backstabbing, they are playing a more noble game, operating at higher moral level than those around them.  Of course there are exceptions to this.  Russell Hantz is probably one of the worst people to ever play the game and he didn't pretend to be a hero. He relished his role as a villain. But Russell... you saw him for what he was.  It's the good guys--specifically the self-identified ones, the "honesty and integrity" players that stick in my craw.

Joe Hunter, Survivor 48

In the most recent Season, #48, we had Joe, a fireman who took the "honor & integrity" approach to a whole new level.  In many ways Joe was exactly who he claimed to be--a compassionate, caring person who put his whole game on the line to be a support to another player who needed it.  I admire that. But when it came to the game, Joe had a high standard of honor and integrity that in fact boiled down to something a little less admirable--a demand for absolute loyalty. I recall one scene in which he reprimanded one of his allies, Kyle, for making choices that that Joe felt did not meet his standard of integrity.  Kyle chose to protect himself in the game at a cost to Joe's advantage.  Joe's sanctimony dared to scold Kyle for acting in a way that helped himself, but more importantly cut across Joe's plans. Kyle went on win the entire game, while Joe came in third with just one vote. Joe is coming back for Season 50, so it will be interesting to see how he chooses to play this time around.

And then there's Tom, arguably one of the most dominant players ever to play the game of Survivor.  Kai and I have been rewatching some old seasons of Survivor this summer as we prepare for Survivor's epic 50th season airing next spring.  We are rewatching (or in his case watching for the first time) old seasons so we can pick our favorites among the returning players.  Our eyes were on Stephanie LaGrossa Kendrick who will be competing in 50 but of course you couldn't miss the winner of Survivor Palau, Tom Westman. 

Tom Westman, Survivor: Palau (Season 10)

The guy was incredible--a challenge beast, a sharp strategist, a charismatic leader who earned the admiration of most his fellow players. In short he was a shoe-in to win, and he did. Tom didn't lean as heavily into the "integrity and honor" ethos. He did in fact mislead some of the other players. He did in fact woo in players without any serious plans to honor the commitments they believed he'd made to them. His catchphrase was "I'll do as much as I can," which meant I'll stick with you until it's no longer useful for me to do so.  He did however, have an internal code of ethics which every player--at least the effective ones--bring into the game and stick to so that they can sleep at night and be at peace with themselves.  Tom had a handful of people who he'd decided he would not betray.  They'd go all the way to the end and then "duke it out like men."  When Tom realized that one of his allies, Ian, maybe wasn't going to stick to that code his response was ruthless.  It wasn't Will Sims level ugly, but it was unpleasant. Whether he realized he was doing it or not, Tom leaned hard into emotional manipulation, guilting Ian for betraying the code, for failing to be a "man of honor."  Like Joe he punished Ian for failing to act against his own best interests for Tom's benefit. I don't see a lot of honor in a stance like that. And unlike Kyle, Ian--who was younger than Kyle and perhaps more in awe of Tom--folded.  He ended up offering to quit the final immunity challenge, giving up his shot at the million dollar prize and requesting Tom take Katie to the final two instead of him--all so he could "earn back Tom's respect."   And Tom, magnanimously agreed, saying that he would have always considered Ian a friend no matter what he did, but yes this gesture earned his respect as well.  Well, that response didn't earn my respect. 

To me the truly honorable thing to do would have been to say, "Ian, if you step down that's your choice. But I have to do the honorable thing.  That's my code.  And if I feel that you are the most worthy opponent [and Ian was by the way], then I will take you to the final two and we will duke it out as men just like I said we would." Instead, Tom happily accepted Ian's repentance and waltzed to the final with Katie where he handily defeated her in a 7-1 vote.

I'm sure Tom would disagree with my analysis of what happened.  Of course he would.  We all would.  Because we all like to think of ourselves as the good guy. 

But being a good person isn't about whether other people live by our code of honor.  It's always and only about whether we are ourselves are living up to it. In Survivor, I've noticed that "honor and integrity" players tend to have another quality that gets overlooked--strength.  "Honor and integrity" is the refuge of the physically dominant player--one who can also dupe others into feeling wrong if they move against them. It's hardly fair or honorable.  There's no integrity in it.  When we dub ourselves the good person, we tend to judge others weaknesses by our strengths.

So what, then?  Should we not aspire to be people of integrity and honesty?  Of course we should!  We just don't need to advertise it.

A good person doesn't need to proclaim their goodness.  They wouldn't think to--because they are aware of the ways they fall short.  I can name many good people, people I deeply admire and respect, and not one of them would thing to label themselves that way.  They don't claim to be good people. They just are.

"As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one....there is no one who does good,

    not even one." 

                          --Romans 3:11-12

"Therefore let him who thinks he stands, take heed lest he fall."

                          --1 Corinthians 10:12

       

What's Going On: Remember the Constitution?

 

The things is: if our country were to devolve into an authoritarian state, life for most of us would go on more or less the same.  Most of our citizens would not feel the impact of our loss of freedom in our daily lives even though every one of us would be effected.  We'd still go to work, relax on the weekends, hang out with friends and so on.  Many people in Russia, China, Iran, and even North Korea are basically living normal lives.  The only time living in an authoritarian state becomes a problem is when you cross the State.  When you do that. . .well, that's when you have trouble.  So the biggest change in an authoritarian state is that you're careful about what you say and who you say it to. You don't protest, you don't complain, you don't criticize.  And it's generally not too hard to do that, because the information that the government allows you access to is only what the government wants you to hear.  You're unlikely to be upset with the government.   As long as you don't belong to a group that the government has deemed undesirable or dangerous and you keep your mouth shut, you'll probably be fine.

But the writers of the Constitution, especially those who demanded a Bill of Rights were worried about exactly that group of people--those that ran afoul of the government.  It's kind of strange when you think about it, that the four of the ten amendments in the Bill of Rights deal directly with those that are accused of a crime.  Why were the founding fathers so worried about protecting "the bad guys"?  I mean who really cares what happens to criminals anyway?   Let 'em rot, I say!  And yet the fourth amendments provides clear restrictions on the governments ability to search and seize a citizen's property.  The fifth amendment provides multiple rights to those accused of crimes including the right not to testify against themselves, the right not to be tried twice for the same offense, and the right to due process before being deprived of life, liberty, or property.  The sixth amendment goes on to enumerate still more rights for the accused including a trial by jury, to confront witness against them and get witnesses to testify on their behalf, and the right to counsel.  And then the eighth amendment is even worse.  Let's say you are found guilty, even then this weepy, bleeding heart, leftist, liberal, criminal loving document we call the Constitution demands that we not saddle the criminal with excessive bail, excessive fines, or cruel and unusual punishment.

What in the world?  What were these white guys from the 1700s on about anyway?  So much love for the criminals.  Don't they care about the innocent at all?

Well, it turns out they do.  Very much. You see, the founders understood something that we seem to be losing sight of.  That a government that is able to declare you a criminal "because I said so", a government unrestrained by the limitations placed on it by the Bill of Rights, is a government that will almost certainly end up penalizing innocent people.  It is vital that the Constitution not specify that it's provisions apply only to the innocent.  It has to apply to anyone guilty or innocent.  Sure it's annoying to see some monster being defended by his attorney, demanding his rights and what have you.  It's odious.  But the founders knew that that aggravation was worth putting up with to avoid something far worse. They understood that if rights were only for the innocent, it's only a short step to the government being able to declare that individuals who hold certain opinions or viewpoints, certain groups of people that are undesirable, are guilty and thus not entitled to any rights.  Our rights apply to all or they apply to no one.  

The founders understood this because they had just escaped an oppressive government that penalized them for protest, that branded them criminals, and gave them little recourse.  They were terrified of a national government with too much power.  And, it's funny, up until January 20, 2025, many of the same people who now cheer on our slide towards authoritarianism were terrified too.  It appears that all along, it was never about the government having too much power--but which government had too much power.  As long, at it's our side holding the power, let 'er rip!

So when we argue about whether Kilmar Abrego Garcia is a gang member, or not.  When we dispute whether the college students protesting are anti-Semitic or not, we are kind of missing the point. It's not about whether we think these people are "bad dudes."  We have a system.  We have due process. We have the rights of the accused.  We have a judicial system that exists to prevent the executive branch of government from having untrammeled power.  We have the Constitution.  And what we should  all be worried about is that those things are being disregarded. 

What's Going On: The Chainsaw Massacre

 

There's three branches of government. . .and then this guy

Elon Musk occupies a strange and unique position in the Trump regime. One of my friends who is a strong Trump supporter recently posted a lengthy apologetic on Facebook defending the actions of the Trump/Musk team.  "How can all the Leftists be crying about Elon cutting waste, fraud, and abuse?" he asked. "This is a good thing!"  He's saving your money, my friend suggested.  And doing it for free!

I have a number of concerns about what's going on with Elon Musk and they fall under three categories:

The Man

To be clear, it's not that I object so much to Musk himself (thought I admit I'm not a fan) but simply that he is just one man. One man (and his team) acting without accountability. Every American should be concerned about an unelected individual having such sweeping power.  Sure there are whole departments within the executive branch--whole agencies--full of unelected officials.  But none of those civil servants have the kind of singular authority granted to Elon Musk.  They can't fire hundreds or even thousands of federal workers with a single command.  They can't make executive decisions about federal spending, or of their own accord enter the payment systems of the government and make unilateral decisions.  And each of these government departments typically have a head who has to be vetted and approved by the Senate.  Granted the current Senate is pretty much ready to rubber stamp just about anyone the president places before them.  But even they have standards--which is how Matt Gaetz ended up not making the cut.  But the point is that right now, even if they wanted to stop DOGE they cannot. 

Right now we are entirely dependent on Elon Musk's good will, the purity of his motives, and depth of his wisdom and knowledge. We just have to trust that he's a good man who knows what he's doing.  And many in the Trump camp do have extraordinary faith in this guy.  But to me it's not about whether he's a good guy or not--it's that history has shown time and time again that giving too much unbridled authority to one person, no matter how "good" is always a bad idea. You know the saying.  Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

The Method

The cutting of waste, fraud, and abuse is clumsy and poorly thought out and stems from a belief that the mere existence of a government agency or federal worker is itself fraud, waste, and abuse.  Musk's use of  the chain saw is apt, but not in the way he thinks.  He's using a chain saw to excise tumors in the body politic, when he should be using a scalpel.   There's no doubt that there is waste, fraud, and abuse, and streamlining the federal government is a serious task that's long overdue.  And of course any cuts are going to hurt some ordinary, hard-working civil servants.  Hard choices should be made, but that's not what happening right now.  Shutting down whole departments of the federal government in one fell swoop is not "making tough decisions."  It's quite easy in fact, if you're not terribly informed or interested in becoming informed about what's actually going on in the federal departments you want to wipe out.  This is a theme we are going to come back to by the way.  Pay attention and you'll notice that Trump consistently takes the easy way.  His tendency is to pick easy battles and weaker adversaries where he knows he can win.

The Results

Finally, the Trump/Musk campaign to tighten the budget is mostly performative.  While gutting USAID and other departments is devasting to those who work there and the people they serve, the savings are marginal.  The only real way to deal with the budget deficit is to tackle the massive and massively popular entitlement programs that suck up most of our budget.  We've always known this but politicians have been too afraid to do the difficult work of figuring out how to cut our spending in these areas.  Trump's team is no different.  And it's understandable. The American public would be outraged if there were significant cuts to social security or Medicare (those two, along with defense make up 50% of the federal budget).  If we got rid of all expenditures except for those big three and the 13% of the budget that goes to paying interest on our debt, we could erase the budget deficit and have some surplus.  That would mean zero spending on health unrelated to Medicare, income security, veterans benefits and services, education, training, employment, and social services, transportation, natural resources and environment, and everything else (USAID falls under "everything else." That last category altogether amounts to a measly 3% of the federal budget).   I'm not at all sure it's realistic to reduce the federal budget to two entitlements, defense and servicing interest.  And even then there's still the matter of 36 trillion dollars in debt the U.S. government owes.  

Chainsaws are not going to fix theses problems. The practical--and much more difficult--solution is the same as it always has been.  Make hard cuts to social security and Medicare and raise taxes.  It's the only way. The conservative passion for tax cuts (a passion I share every year around April 15) has always been the flaw in their supposed fiscal "responsibility".  Can you imagine sitting at the kitchen table trying to balance the family budget and suggesting that what we really need to do is cut back on our income. A true fiscally conservative position is tax and cut.  That's a hard conversation that no one wants to have, so instead we get a showy pretense of being responsible.  As is common with Trump, it gives the appearance that "things are getting done" when in fact very little of it has a meaningful impact on the stated goal.

When all is said in done, especially if this latest round of tax cuts (which I hear are really only going to to benefit the wealthy. I'm pretty annoyed about that. If you're going to be stupid at least let regular people like me benefit from the stupidity too!) makes it to Trump's desk, whole sections of the government will be hollowed out by Musk's chainsaw, millions will pay the price in lost services, and we'll still be running a federal deficit. What a mess.

What's Going On: In The Time of the King (Not Like Us)

 But the people refused to listen to Samuel's warning.  "Even so we still want a king," they said.  "We want to be like the nations around us.  Our king will judge us and lead us into battle."  So Samuel repeated to the Lord what the people had said, and the Lord replied, "Do as they say, and give them a king."

                                                                                                       1 Samuel 8:11-22

As you read this post you may think that I'm engaging in hyperbole.  But keep in mind that this image wasn't disseminated by the president's detractors, but by Trump himself.

This is the third time that I've witnessed an event never before seen in my lifetime.  The first was the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.  The second was the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020.  And now, we have the reign of Trump. No matter where you stand when it comes to Trumpism, I think we can all agree that his actions are without precedent in the history of our country.  In terms of impact, I really do believe that history will judge Donald Trump as America's most consequential president, with really only Lincoln providing any real competition.  In an occasional series of posts, I'd like to document this remarkable moment, just as I did for the pandemic (Dispatches from Coronaville) and the Black Lives Matter movement in the wake of George Floyd's murder (Angry).  My posts will fall under the title, "What's Going On."  And my goal will be to cut through the noise--and there is a lot of noise--and get to the essence of what is actually going on in this country.  

One thing is clear.  The United States of America is undergoing rapid and far-reaching change.  What does it all mean?  And what lies ahead?  Some say a new American Golden Age. Others worry that a second American Civil War looms on the horizon. And still others suggest we are witnessing the rise of a Fourth Reich, an American one.  I'm highly skeptical of the first.  I have my doubts about the second--in a sense, I think that maybe that Civil War is already over, without a shot being fired.  I probably lean more closely towards the third possibility, though there are some key elements lacking in Trumpism that were present in the rise of the Nazi party in Germany.  I'm also reminded of the end of the Roman Republic (though, again, without the civil wars).   Just as the Roman senate continued to exist as ancient Rome shifted from republic to empire, I believe our three branches of government will continue to exist.  However, all meaningful power will be in hands of the executive branch going forward.  President Trump is our Julius Caesar, seizing the reigns of government solely for himself.  What I'm really curious about is who will be our Augustus, the second Roman emperor who solidified and made permanent what Julius had begun. 

What Trump's election, and the continued support of his faithful, reveal is the myth of American exceptionalism.  We've allowed ourselves to believe the flattery of our politicians over the years--that somehow, we, the American people are just different from the rest of the world. We believed that they're not like us, to borrow a phrase.   We were told we were a freedom-loving people that fought to overthrow a tyrannical king and would never stand for another one.  I believe The United States of America was exceptional, yes, in its form of government--in its novel pursuit of a government of the people, for the people, and by the people.  It was the American idea, the American experiment, as flawed and as hypocritical as it often was, that was truly unique. It was an experiment got out of the lab if you will, and expanded in its reach much further than the founders could ever have imagined.  It's an experiment that has come to an end.

Because in the end, the American people are just like people all over the world, throughout history. We wanted a king, just like people always have.  Something in human nature wants to worship.  We want a charismatic, powerful leader we can bow before.  We want a King David, a Caesar, a William the Conqueror, Peter the Great, a Queen Elizabeth I, a Lenin, a Hitler, a Putin, a Bukele, a Trump. We want a strong man who will judge us and lead us into a battle.  We want someone who will "fix it" for us.  We want someone who with one sweep of his sword or stroke of his pen, will wipe out our enemies within and without and lead our country to greatness.

Now granted, there are many of us who don't like this particular king.  But I wonder if even those in the anti-Trump camp are as true to the principles of democratic republic as we would like to believe or if it's mainly the man and the policies we dislike.  What's happened to our siblings on the other side of the political aisle should serve as a cautionary tale.  The American Right has always been more worried about the rise of the tyranny than the Left.  They were ready, with their second amendment rights to fight for freedom and democracy.  But the fact that tyranny came from the Right instead of the Left has caught all of us flat-footed, revealing a hard truth.  That a principled stand for the democratic self-government is only of concern to us if it is our own freedom, our own beliefs, our own way of life that is under threat. The Right (except for a few lone voices crying in the wilderness) finds itself unable to stand up to a tyranny that champions an ascendant and muscular conservativism.  And the Left had no plan for this at all, and is left stymied.

In my view, there is one ray of hope glimmering among the darkening clouds of authoritarian rule in America, and that is our first amendment rights, especially the free press.  For now at least, there is nothing preventing dissenting voices from speaking out.  Whether  via old media or the various tech platforms, including little blogs like like this, the government is not preventing us from protesting vigorously what is going on right now.  When that changes, well, then we are well and truly enveloped in darkness.

I'd like to close this first entry of the What's Going On series by shifting from the political to the spiritual.  What does it mean for us as Christ-followers to live in the time of the king?  What are we to do?  How should we live?  The answer, I think, is simple--and it's the same answer it has always been.  To do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with our God. The counsel is the same whether we rejoice at our heroic new king, or mourn the passing of our former republic.  His Kingdom is not of this world and our first allegiance is to that Kingdom.  We are called to do the right thing.  To love everyone and to be a blessing to everyone, even our enemies.  We are to be humble, fearless, and deeply focused on walking with Jesus. 

It will not be easy--it never has been.  Most people when faced with a severe cost to following these simple instructions-to do justly, to love mercy, and to keep walking with God--have chosen to take the broader, easier path.  We all like to think that we would have worked on the Underground Railroad, that we would have hidden the Jews in our homes, that we would have marched with Dr. King.  But the truth is is those are the people that are truly not like most of us.  To be like them in the days ahead will take extraordinary courage, deep conviction, and, for those of us who love Jesus, a total commitment to walking in lockstep with our One True King.

The 18th Annual Inspirations List: 2024

I begin my hunt for heroes on the first day of the new year.  Tomorrow, I'll create new draft of a blog post. It will contain the title, and nothing else.  Then over the course of the year, as I'm inspired by the people around me, I'll open up the draft and add their names to a growing list.  By the end of the year, I'll have a nice little list of heroes--men and women who have inspired me over the past year.  That's how the names on this years list got here.  Some, I knew within a week or so of the new year, would be on the list. Others were added right at years end.  It's been interesting to look back on those names now, and feel satisfied that, yes, these people really have made a lasting impact on my life.

To take a page from one of my heroes, these people exemplify excellence.  They leave me feeling empowered to live my own life better.  And through their lives, intentionally or not, they are evangelists for their Creator, sharing His love and care through their lives.  They are eight women and three men.  Some I work alongside every day. Others I've never met.  One hero needed only about fifteen minutes on a workday morning to inspire me. Another's entire life was short, but her impact is eternal. Two of the heroes are back for a second time. You can click on their names to link through to their first nominations. For every one of them, my life is better because they've been in it.

Here they are: My heroes and inspirations for 2024!

Jasmine Best

Evelyn Goodman

Jeremy & Brooke Wong

JJ Wong

Tracy Chapman & Bebo Norman

Tanya at McDonalds

Ebisa Roba

Josephine Serwaah

Cindi Moore

 Jasmine Best

I'm inspired by her cheerful helpfulness

There are lots of people who get the job done.  Fewer that get it done right.  And fewer still who do it with joy. Jasmine is among those elite few.  If I ever need anything from the Allegheny West Regional Conference (which is my official employer), I know that Jasmine will handle it--whether it's in her job description or not.   Jasmine returns phone calls and emails. She gets back to you. She takes care of it.  And she's always, genuinely, happy to help.  If I didn't know better, I'd say that Chik Fil A brought her in to help the company develop their culture because that spirit of pleasant competence has Jasmine's name all over it! She always says it's her pleasure to help, but that cheerfulness is infectious, and I feel better, not just because my problem is solved but because of who solved it.  I want to be more like Jasmine in my own workplace, someone who takes joy in serving others and brings joy into their lives in the process.

Evelyn Goodman

I'm inspired by her focused leadership

She helped us find ourselves. For my principal, Evelyn Goodman, vision and mission are more than buzzwords.  They are the engine that drives her school forward. I've never worked with anyone who has so successfully focused the organization she leads.  Under her guidance, we know who we are as a school--a school that educates children through and for Christ-centered evangelism, empowerment and excellence. Ask any kid in our school what our mission is--and they'll most likely know.  But more important than that, every decision we make as a school is undergirded by these core values.  They inform everything we do and that is entirely due to Mrs. Goodman's vision.  That she has managed to bring this focus, while also creating an environment where every one feels respected, valued and cared for is an incredible bonus.  

Jeremy & Brooke Wong

I'm inspired by their faith

The tsunami wave of tragedy crashed into their family, flattening them with unimaginable grief.  But as the wave receded, something remarkable happened.  Brooke and Jeremy Wong, though battered and in pain, rose to their feet, their faith still intact. Just over a year ago they lost their precious seven year old daughter to a vicious cancer.  Already, stunned by the diagnosis only a few weeks earlier, they were preparing to support their daughter as she did battle with this ugly foe.  And then, almost before it began, the battle was over and JJ was gone.  I know they wept.  I'm sure they raged at God, asked why, struggled with the pressing darkness of grief, and like Job cried that it wasn't fair--that they didn't deserve this. But like Job, somehow their faith though shaken remained unbroken, and they bore witness that "the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away.  Blessed be the name of the Lord." Watching them continue to honor God in their journey of grieving, continually seeking to minister to and bless others, as they always have, I'm inspired that a faith such as theirs can be mine too.

JJ Wong

I'm inspired by her life

If the fullness of one's life is measured by impact, then JJ Wong packed more into her seven years than many ten times her age.  There's no question that there is so much this little girl missed out on when her time on this earth was cruelly cut short by cancer.  But with the time she had, what a difference she made!  I knew her parents much better than I knew her, but when I attended her funeral, I was deeply moved by the joy, faith, and love and that filled her years and touched so many around her. I found myself inspired to live as JJ did and aspiring to leave an impact and legacy the way she has. And even though she's gone her influence is still felt whether through her wise-beyond-her years assessment that "the first death is really not a big deal" to the scholarship established in her name.  We mourn what might have been for JJ and look forward to her life continuing in eternity and all that amazing potential being fully realized.  But we also rejoice in what was--a life on this planet, truly well-lived.

Tracy Chapman & Bebo Norman

I'm inspired by their perspective & priorities

Some might call it brave. I call it wise.  Instead of choosing to chase this ephemeral thing called fame, to allow themselves to become addicted the roar of the crowd, these two talented artists, Tracy Chapman and Bebo Norman chose to focus on other things. At least in my view, these were not artists forced into obscurity as their talents waned or the interest of world wandered.  Tracy Chapman who shot to stardom in 1988 on the back of her song "Fast Car" and Bebo Norman, who became a staple in the Christian music world in the 2000s (here's one of my favorite Bebo tunes) were both well-respected and loved in their genres.  But both artists seem to have made a deliberate decision to decline the stage because they understood that the bright lights of fame and attention are not what life is all about. 

Tracy Chapman first came back across my radar when country singer Luke Combs released a fantastic cover of  "Fast Car."  Tracy stepped back into the limelight briefly earlier this year to perform the song with Combs at the Grammys.  I was just so impressed with the easy grace and humble confidence Chapman carried herself with.  As for Bebo Norman, one day I did a "whatever happened to" Google search and was stunned to find he was now working as a physician's assistant, living a quiet and to all appearances satisfying life far from the stage where he'd made his name (this article was written when Norman made the deliberate decision to retire from music and articulates why he chose to step away).  So many long to have what they achieved, and among the few who have achieved the same heights even fewer have found the perspective these two have. I may never be as famous as Tracy and Bebo have been, but there's nothing stopping me from ordering my priorities in the way they have.  Edit: Now that I've gone back and listened to tunes by both these artists, it comes as no surprise that their music is similar too:  real, unadorned, honest.

Tanya at McDonalds

I'm inspired by her excellence

You don't need an audience to produce excellence. The best of the best simply do what they do, and sometimes you get lucky enough to see it. I was so fortunate last May when I rolled into the McDonalds on South Kirkman Road in Orlando, not too far from Universal Studios.  With me were close to thirty students and chaperones on their 8th grade class trip and hungry for breakfast before a day at the theme park.  Tanya, the general manager was on the clock, and didn't bat an eye when we came crowding in to her restaurant that morning.  I watched in awe as she moved with efficiency and speed, tracking all our orders and making sure her crew got it all done right. And she was cheerful and professional to boot.  We tend to view jobs in the service industry, like McDonald's, as low-end and undesirable.  And many, whether customers or employees, behave accordingly. But Tanya was someone I could point my students to and say: "That's what you want to be in life."  

Ebisa Roba

I'm inspired by his gratitude

Most of us only realize our blessings in hindsight. I've thanked a few teachers in my life--but that was typically years after I'd been in their classroom.  Ebisa is grateful after every lesson. I'm truly amazed and inspired by this young man who always seemed to recognize and appreciate the effort my colleagues and I put into teaching him.  When he was in my 8th grade class, it was commonplace for Ebisa to finish an assignment and sign off on his submission with a "thank you for the lesson" or "Thank you for teaching me. I learned a lot."  Those words of gratitude brightened my day so many times.  Of course, it's no surprise that Ebisa always earned top grades.  The quality and effort he put into his work mirrored his gratitude for receiving it.  Ebisa has inspired me to be grateful for every opportunity I have to teach--and to learn.

Josephine Serwaah

I'm inspired by her passion

There are those who enjoy their work and there are those who have a passion for their work. Josephine belongs squarely in the second category.  Last year as we were conducting interviews for the first member of of our high school faculty, I was looking for--longing for--someone who would be passionate about the incoming members of our fledging freshman class. I prayed for someone who would invest in making the experience of our 9th graders special, someone who would ensure the students felt cared for and seen. I know what I try to do for my 8th graders:  I wanted someone like that.  Josephine Serwaah was the answer to those prayers.  On top of being an excellent teacher, with high standards and expectations, she is a teacher who passionately cares for her students.  Whether it's ordering them all class of 2028 sweatshirts or planning special parties or outings she's always looking for ways to make  their experience as the first high school students at Columbus Adventist Academy feel special and meaningful. Now, this year, as we look to hire our next round of staff for our growing school, I'm looking for someone like Josephine!

Cindi Moore

I'm inspired by her generous care

Imagine bringing 9 dogs into your home.  Now imagine 8 of those dogs are two-week old puppies. If that sounds like only a superhero could handle that, you'd be right.  Lucky for us, we found one such wonder woman in Cindi Moore.  When we discovered, to our shock and dismay, that our new dog was pregnant, Rico (the rescue organization that led us to our dogs) put us in touch with Cindi, a seasoned puppy whisperer with lots of experiencing caring for puppies and their mamas until the puppies are old enough to be placed in homes of their own.  I don't know what we we have done without Cindi.  Even before she took the dogs out to her farm she was so generous with her time and expertise.  She drove across town several times to help us out as we were waiting for the pups to be born,  she was there on the day of their birth.  And since Luna, the mother, and her litter moved out to Cindi's farm she's welcomed us for weekly visits with our dogs. To me she's gone above and beyond anything we could have asked for or expected, and we are so grateful! Everybody loves puppies, but the love Cindi has for our canine friends is extraordinary. (Pictured: Cindi weighing Amora on the day of her birth, October 29, 2024)

The Puppies at 8 Weeks

 These puppies just keep on growing.  And as they grow, one of our past times is trying to figure out their heritage.  Big Brody, the largest of the litter is now over ten pounds but he has short legs and a chunky, long body--almost reminiscent of a dachshund or a basset hound.  We are truly mystified!

But we love visiting them and their mama each week.  Soon they'll be old enough to be adopted, and I've been told that the word will be out officially, perhaps next week.  They're not ready leave their mom yet but we want to start generating interest now.

We've been bringing Nova with us now for our visits and it is so beautiful to see the sisters reunited.  The foster, Cindi has a lovely farm with huge fenced in areas.  We let both dogs off the leash and they run as hard as they can together.  The unbridled joy Luna and Nova have in each other's presence gets me a little misty eyed every time I see them racing across the grass together.

The latest pics from this past Sunday, December 22, 2024:

Amora

Tidalwave

Brody

Snowpaw

Danica

Darling

Song

Phoenix

The Puppies at 5 Weeks

 It's been  about three and a half weeks since Luna and the pups moved out to the farm and we got to visit them for the first time last Sunday.  It was so nice.  Luna barked at us at first but she remembered us and quickly warmed up.  The puppies have grown so much!  Their eyes are open, their little teeth have starting coming in, and they are full of cuddly, cute energy. Here's their latest photos!

Amora

Tidalwave

Brody

Snowpaw

Danica

Darling

Song

Phoenix