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jhadeestar21 · 5 years

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In nineteen hundred sixty-six I happened on a girl, And spent two years a-pondering The value of that pearl. She has a face and has a heart All full of love and filling, And so I sold my singleness All fifty years, God willing. And I have never once looked back For fear of what I missed. If ever God was good to me It was the wedding kiss. Four years and happy were the first Without a child to bless, And so we cultivated joy And fields of faithfulness. Then, like a mighty “Let there be!” From Genesis page one, Another soul was born on earth, And we beheld a son. But I had eyes for something more, To watch God make another: Out of a girl, my college pearl, I watched him make a mother. A kind of revelation this, Just as the ancients say: How much of Christ there is to see In her maternal way! Eight years and two more happy sons All priceless to the minute, Are like an unrolled, open scroll With God’s own message in it: “Charm is deceitful, beauty vain, Though all the world has gazed, But when a woman fears the Lord She will be truly praised.” An Acrostic of Praise The text for my message this morning is taken from Proverbs 31:30: “Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” First, let’s notice its unusual context. You all know what an acrostic is, don’t you? M — is for the million things she gave me, O — means only that she’s growing old, T — is for the tears ‘twere shed to save me, H — is for her heart as pure as gold, E — is for her eyes with love-light shining, R — means right and right she’ll always be. That’s an acrostic. Why do people write acrostics? Because there is something in us that loves to praise what we enjoy. We like to pile up the praiseworthy attributes of people we love. Well, that is what was happening in Proverbs 31:10–31 are an acrostic. Every verse begins with a different letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Aleph — is for woman full of virtue, Beth — refers to trust her husband shares, Gimmel — is for work she does to help you, Daleth — stands for how she seeks her wares. And so on through all 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. This is helpful to know because it tips us off that the author is not building an argument like Paul does in Romans. Instead, he is stringing pearls. He has set himself the task, as he says in Proverbs 31:30, to praise the woman who fears the Lord. To do this he tries to think of 22 praiseworthy things to say about her. Therefore, I think a sermon based on this passage of Scripture should aim to accomplish three things. First, it should aim to inspire women to fear the Lord and be like this woman in the way she fulfilled her role (and that is possible for all women, married or unmarried). Second, it should inspire others, especially husbands and children, to praise women who fear the Lord. Third, it should contain praise for the godly woman. That’s why I began with my ode to Noël, the woman I know best and a woman who fears the Lord. Now, to help accomplish those other two goals I want to try to answer three questions about the text: What does it mean to “fear the Lord”? Why is it so important that we praise a woman who fears the Lord? How can you tell if a woman fears the Lord? What does it look like in action? What Does It Mean to Fear the Lord? “Charm is deceitful, beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” What does it mean in daily experience to “fear the Lord”? Let’s go back to the beginning of Israel’s national life. In Exodus 20:18, after the giving of the ten commandments, it says: Now when all the people perceived the thunderings and the lightnings and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled; and they stood afar off, and said to Moses, “You speak to us and we will hear, but let not God speak to us, lest we die.” And Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to prove you, and that the fear of him may be before your eyes that you may not sin.” Oh, how we need to meditate on such perplexing texts. “Do not fear. You are being tested.” You pass the test only if you don’t fear. Yet God desires that the fear of him be always before your eyes. You pass the test by fearing the Lord. The text provides the distinctions necessary to make sense out of this. The fear that Moses was telling them to get rid of was the fear of coming close to God and hearing his voice. The fear that Moses wanted them to keep before their eyes was that God is fearfully powerful and opposed to sin. The fear of kindling God’s powerful wrath against sin ought not to drive us away from God but to God for mercy. “The fear of kindling God’s powerful wrath against sin ought not to drive us away from God but to God for mercy.” Tweet Share on Facebook Noël, the boys, and I went out to Dick and Irene Tiegen’s place last week. They have a big dog as tall as Benjamin, which greeted us with barks and growls from where he was chained. But after we were there and in the house with the dog, he was friendly. Then we went outside again and Irene gave the warning: Don’t run from him. But as Karsten was heading out to the car, the dog came trotting up behind, and instead of slowing down and petting the dog, Karsten started to run, and immediately the dog barked and growled. What a lesson in the fear of God. Irene was Moses and she says to us Israelites, the Piper family, “Do not fear to draw near, but keep the fear of the dog [the fear of the Lord] before your eyes, lest you try to run away [lest you start to fall into sin].” God is a joy to be near and a terror to those who flee. The comparison breaks down, however. Irene put the dog in the basement, but nobody puts God in the basement. If you are running from God because you are afraid of him, then you are not yet as afraid as you ought to be. In fact, your very flight is a mockery of God, presuming to think that you could outrun this German shepherd. If you really fear him and love your own life, stop running, turn around, and hug his neck for dear life, and he will lick your face. The fear of the Lord is fear of fleeing out of his fellowship into the way of sin. Therefore, the fear of the Lord is full of peace and security and hope. It keeps us near to the merciful heart of God, our fortress, our refuge, our sanctuary, our shield, our sun. Isaiah 8:13 says, “The Lord of Hosts . . . let him be your fear, and let him be your dread, and he will become a sanctuary.” A proper fear of the Lord keeps us under the shadow of his wings where we need not be afraid. Therefore the fear of the Lord is accompanied by tremendous blessing. Listen to the psalms. Psalm 25:14: “The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him; he makes known to them his covenant.” Psalm 31:19: “How abundant is thy goodness which thou hast laid up for those who fear thee, and wrought for those who take refuge in thee.” (Notice that fearing God and taking refuge in him are parallel. Those who keep the fear of God before their eyes will not run from him but take refuge in him.) Psalm 34:7: “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him and delivers them.” Psalm 103:11: “As the heavens are high above the earth so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him.” Psalm 103:13, “As a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear him.” (Hug his neck and he will lick your face.) Psalm 145:19: “He fulfills the desire of all who fear him.” The promises God makes to those who fear him are so staggering that the summons to fear God and the summons to hope in God are inseparable. And so the psalmist puts them together, for example, in Psalm 33:18: “The eye of the Lord is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his mercy.” Psalm 147:11: “The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his mercy.” A woman who fears the Lord will not run away from God to satisfy her longings and relieve her anxieties. She will wait for the Lord. She will hope in God. She will stay close to the heart of God and trust in his promises. The prospect of departing into the way of sin will be too fearful to pursue; and the benefits of abiding in the shadow of the Almighty too glorious to forsake. Why Should We Praise Such a Woman? “Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” Why? That is our second question: Why is this praise so important? I suggest three reasons for praising a woman who fears the Lord: It feels good to do it. It honors God. It strengthens her hand in the Lord. To Praise a God-Fearing Woman Is to Have Joy First, it feels good. David says in Psalm 37:4, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” By implication, this must mean, “Delight yourself in everything that delights the Lord,” and therefore, delight yourself in the woman who fears the Lord. Now what is praise? C.S. Lewis points out beautifully in his little book on the Psalms that praise is not merely the expression of joy, but the consummation of joy. A joy isn’t fully enjoyed until it comes to expression in praise. The joy I have in my wife mounts to its highest when I express it as well as I can in a poem and then praise her in the great congregation. Therefore, a strong and good incentive for praising a woman who fears the Lord is that it feels so good. It expresses and completes the joy that such a woman brings. “Praising a woman who fears the Lord feels so good. It expresses and completes the joy that such a woman brings.” Tweet Share on Facebook It might be helpful in passing just to mention the ugly alternative to praise so as to increase our desire to avoid it. Lewis said, “Praise is inner health made audible.” I have seen that verified over and over. It is the cranks, the misfits, the scrooges of the world who seldom praise. They have an inner sickness of soul that yields criticism, complaining, murmuring, grumbling, sarcasm, suspicion, and a general joylessness. I just want to take such people (and sometimes myself) and shake them and say, “Hey, wake up! Sure there is rottenness in the world, but Jesus Christ died and rose again precisely that the commands, ‘Rejoice always,’ and ‘For everything give thanks,’ would not be naïve, but profoundly realistic. Now open your eyes; there are natural and moral beauties to praise in this world because God made it and is at work in it. Break the habit of grumbling. Get yourself hooked on praise. It feels ten times better.” To Praise a God-Fearing Woman Is to Honor God Not only does praising the woman who fears the Lord feel good; it also honors God, which is most important of all. We must not think here that in praising the woman we are giving to her what belongs to God. There is a sense in which all praise, just like all boasting (1 Corinthians 1:31), should be in the Lord. But since the Lord has made the world and is at work in us fallen creatures, it is possible to praise him indirectly by praising something he made or praising something that exalts him. If you praise the table manners of my sons, Noël and I feel honored. So also God is honored through praises that come to his people for graces, which he has imparted and which by their very nature exalt him. Therefore, when we praise a woman who fears the Lord, we praise God. To Praise a God-Fearing Woman Is to Strengthen Her A third reason to praise these women who fear the Lord is to strengthen their hand in the Lord. Suppose when the dog started to growl at Karsten, he stopped running, stepped toward the dog, and put his arm around his neck, and then went slowly on toward the car. And suppose I called out, “Way to go, Karsten. Beautiful. That’s just the way to do it. I love it!” What would be the effect on Karsten? It would strengthen his hand and heart to keep on going and not give up. So it is with those who fear the Lord and hope in him. There are always temptations to allure us away from the fear of God: temptations to fear financial insecurity more than we fear God (see Proverbs 23:17), to fear rejection by our peers more than we fear God, to fear the loss of time spent in good deeds more than we fear God. We are tempted again and again to let go of our great German Shepherd and run after some silly poodle. Again and again, we must have our hand strengthened in God. We need to hear a saintly person say, “Well done. I love the way you fear the Lord.” And now listen husbands and children — a word especially for you: Proverbs 31:28: “Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her.” Children, young people, think seriously a minute. Suppose your mom was killed in a car wreck tomorrow and you had to go to her funeral on Thursday. What would you wish on Thursday you had told her today? Tell her. “Her children rise up and call her blessed.” Tell her, and you will strengthen her hand in God. And what about husbands? You know what I would say if I lost my wife this week? “Why did I get upset at her over such stupid little things? Why did I make an issue of such non-essentials? Why did I let criticism and nit-picking dry up my expressions of gratitude and praise?” Oh, how we need to live in the light of our dying. Like Glenn Ogren said to me Wednesday, “Death puts everything in perspective.” Her husband also, and he praises her. Praise her, praise her, praise her while you have her. And you will strengthen her heart in God, honor the Lord, and add great joy to your own life. What Does a Woman Who Fears the Lord Look Like? And now, finally, we ask: How can you identify a woman who fears the Lord? What does she look like in action? I think that is what the acrostic of Proverbs 31:10–31 intends to give us. What is a woman like who fears the Lord? What sorts of things can we praise her for? I’ll just mention four things that the wise man has chosen to celebrate about the woman who fears the Lord (and which I want to celebrate in my wife!). She Doesn’t Fear Tomorrow’s Troubles First of all, a woman who fears the Lord is not anxious about the future. Look at Proverbs 31:25. I love this line, and I praise all you women who are like this: “Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come.” Satan dangles in front of her the specter of tomorrow’s troubles, but she glances up at the almighty God at her right hand (her magnificent German Shepherd!) and laughs at Satan’s folly. She fulfills in her own life Proverbs 14:26: “In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge.” “When a woman fears the Lord, she will not be anxious about tomorrow, she will do what God has appointed for her to do.” Tweet Share on Facebook Her fear of the Lord makes her fearless of man. But it doesn’t make her naïve. She knows that the Lord has appointed some means for our safety. For example, Proverbs 31:21, “She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet.” Winter is a fearful thing in Minnesota, and God has appointed that we do more than pray that our feet not freeze. Clothing must be made or bought. When a woman fears the Lord, she will not be anxious about tomorrow, she will do what God has appointed for her to do and trust him in everything to show her mercy. She Has Practical Wisdom Second, the woman who fears the Lord has practical wisdom. Proverb 31:26, “She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.” We’ve been taught from grade school that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10) so it’s no surprise that the woman who fears the Lord “opens her mouth with wisdom.” And isn’t there a very close connection between a practical, gracious wisdom and freedom from anxiety about the future? The wisest people I know are the people who hope in the Lord and have quieted their soul like a child at its mother’s breast. But the people who are most anxious, most tense and fretful about tomorrow, are those whose counsel I bank on the least. Women, there is a wisdom that your family and friends and associates need that will only come from a heart that can laugh at the future because it fears the Lord. She Is Strong Third, the woman who fears the Lord is strong. Proverbs 31:25:“Strength and dignity are her clothing.” Verse 17, “She girds her loins with strength and makes her arms strong.” She will be morally strong. Proverbs 23:17 says, “Let not your heart envy sinners, but continue in the fear of the Lord all the day.” The woman who continues in the fear of the Lord will have power to resist all the allurements to envy, to desire what she shouldn’t have. The fear of the Lord will also increase her intellectual strength. The fear of the Lord is the impulse to wisdom, and rouses the mind to search for knowledge as for hidden treasure. And the fear of the Lord will even increase her physical strength. One of the reasons we let our bodies languish and get weak and out of tone is because we are bored and feel no excitement or hope about the future. But the woman who fears the Lord is confident and hopeful and eager to enter the future with God at her side. This kind of hope always gives us pep and vigor and increases the strength of the weakest among us. She Will Live for Others Fourth, a woman who fears the Lord will live not for herself alone, but for others, especially her husband, if she is married. Proverbs 31:11–12: “The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not harm all the days of her life.” A woman who fears the Lord will not squander the family’s livelihood on frivolous purchases, but will have the complete trust of her husband because she is for him and not against him. Wherever possible, she supplements his earnings rather than wastes it. But wives, far more important than this financial support is the moral support of your husband. Verse 23 seems out of place in a song of praise to women. It says, “Her husband is known in the gates, when he sits among the elders of the land.” “A wife who fears the Lord increases the esteem of her husband.” Tweet Share on Facebook How is that a word of praise to the wife who fears the Lord? Proverbs 12:4 gives the answer: “A good wife is the crown of her husband, but she who brings shame is the rottenness of his bones.” A wife who fears the Lord increases the esteem of her husband at the gates of the city. In twelve and a half years of marriage, my wife has never done or said anything in public that would have caused me to be ashamed. She has my absolute trust as a representative of what our family stands for. There is no place I might go where I would be ashamed to take Noël. She is a crown to my head and a signet ring on my right hand. She is for me 100 percent because she is a woman who fears the Lord. And I pray that every wife here will, under God, give that kind of support to your husband. She Cares for the Needy Now one last mark of the woman who fears the Lord: whether married or not, she lives for the good of the needy. Proverbs 31:20: “She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy.” God has drawn near and secured her future in his care. Now she draws near to those who need most help. This woman in Proverbs 31 is well-to-do and esteemed, but she does not allow her station to hinder her association with the lowly. A Woman Who Fears the Lord Is to Be Praised “Charm is deceitful, beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” She keeps before her eyes the fearfulness of running away from God into sin and so stays close to God and his mercy. She should be praised by us all because that will strengthen her hand in God, honor the Lord, and make our own lives happier. And she can be recognized because she is confident and not anxious about the future, gracious wisdom is on her lips, she girds herself with strength, she brings her husband honor by her support, and she reaches out her hands to the needy. “A woman who fears the Lord is to be praised!”

#praise #god #woman #fears #charm

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the-record-columns · 6 years

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June 13, 2018: Columns

A K-33 Rocker is not a guitar!

By KEN WELBORN

Record Publisher

Nearly twenty years ago, when Jerry Lankford and me were making plans to convert our Thursday Magazine TV guide into The Record, one of the first things we had to do was to find where to purchase the vending equipment we would need for "rack sales."

This question, and a host of others were answered by two great friends, Dick Mitchell, publisher of the News-Topic in Lenoir, and his Circulation Manager, Mike Lambert. On many of our questions, there was much conversation, but when the subject of newspaper sales boxes came up, they both quickly said there was no discussion needed there--all I needed to know was Clayton Hall. Upon meeting Clayton Hall of Expert Newsrack Services in Thomasville, it was obvious I had gotten good advice from my friends Dick and Mike, and that Clayton's business was named quite appropriately--"Expert."

From day one Clayton and his staff were a tremendous help to us, delivering on time and with high quality equipment, much of which is still in good operating condition lo these twenty-odd years later. I do buy my locks from Harvey Barlow at Wilkes Lock Service, but everything else I can think of in circulation supplies, we did, and still do, buy from Expert Newsrack Services, and our friend Clayton Hall. When The Record offices burned in 2004, one of the first calls I received offering help was from Clayton. At that time he had a fairly large refurbishing job in progress for us at his shop, and, when he delivered the boxes several weeks later, he would render no bill. He said simply, "You've been through enough lately, I'll take care of this."

Such is the nature of Clayton Hall.

On my very first visit to the physical plant of Expert Newsrack Services in Thomasville, I was fascinated by the showroom there featuring all kinds of newspaper memorabilia, especially circulation items. There were several "antique" newspaper boxes, one of which caught my eye on that first visit. It was a red box, set up for 10 cents Daily, and 20 cents on Sunday. Of course I tried to buy it and he told me it wasn't for sale, just display. I wasn't surprised, but did ask a few more times when I would visit. One day he said, "It still isn't for sale, but if I ever do decide to let it go, I'll give you the first call." I didn't figure I could ask for much more than that.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago. Clayton is now semi-retired, but stays busy taking care of his friends newspaper rack needs. I called about needing some "race-track repairs" on a few boxes, and, as we were picking out which day he was go come by, he offhandedly asked, "Are you still interested in that little red newspaper box from my showroom?" "Would five pounds of flour make a big biscuit,?" I replied.

In the next breath, he said, "I'll have it with me."

I know I stammered as I said "Thank you" over and over. I couldn't wait until the appointed day arrived. Clayton had it wrapped up for shipping and when we got it inside, we uncovered it. It was prettier and cooler than I had even remembered. Clayton Hall does everything by the book--he even had a Bill of Lading for me to sign that I had received the box. It was in a section labeled, "OTHER:." The text read, "Old K-33 Rocker Mech Rack for Museum. (Gift)"

Sometimes "Thank you" is simply not enough and this is one of those times. This old rack is from the 40's or early 50's when daily papers were a nickel each. It has been updated to reflect the 10 cents daily and 20 cents Sunday price increase sometime in the mid 60's,and it still looks brand new.

This past weekend, I sorted through a gazillion old newspapers stored in boxes until I sneezed my head off and found one that was perfect for my new/old red box. It is a 10 cent edition of The Miami Herald dated Monday, July 21, 1969. It reads--well, just look at the accompanying photo.

Yes, I am absolutely thrilled with this amazing new piece of history for our poor man's museum here at the offices of The Record--but I am by far most pleased for being thought of, and remembered.

Thank you, Clayton Hall, for making an old man's day.

Double Duty

By LAURA WELBORN

I received a card from my youngest child “Happy Father’s Day to you, MOM! And to all the others out there pulling double duty.”

Sometimes we are an only parent through some kind of loss- death or separation on some level. This week in the news two famous people intentionally ended their lives by hanging. Just like my husband, Steve, Gentry almost 18 years ago. A brutal intentional way to end your life. A lot of our feelings of suicide come bubbling up like “suicide is the most selfish act” “did depression lead to it?” and “how could they?”.

My personal journey began with anger and my friend, Margo, who was a grief counselor said she had never seen anyone go straight to anger and stay there for as long as I did (2 years of intense anger). I was so angry at him for giving up, leaving his children (5 in total) to deal with this, anger that my children did not have a father. But years and years later I now think he had faith in me as a parent that I could pull double duty, faith in family that they would step up and help, faith in our community.. He would not have been disappointed. My boys were 15 and 11 years old at the time, and yet 18 years later they are healthy happy adults who love life and have conquered whatever desperate thoughts they have had. Fathers Day used to be really tough until they started to recognize the men in their life who had stepped up and filled that void in so many ways. I think of the teachers they have had men and women who reached out to them so they would have healthy happy lives. The coaches, the church members, the friends parents who worked to make sure they would be ok. So this Father's Day I salute those who pull double duty, those that reach out to children they may not have birthed but whose lives they touched so that suicidal desperation was not a choice.

This past month has been a celebration of the lives that ended at the Pulse Night Club by starting a movement of 49 Acts of Love to combat the desperation one must feel to do an act of violence to others or to themselves. These are simple acts of loving kindness to others to help us feel better and reach out to those in isolation. Isolation is at the root of suicidal idealization. The question becomes how do we know when someone has desperate thoughts? So many times we do not know, but the signs are almost always there- if you look. And look past the “I’m fine” response to “how are you?”. It takes courage to tell someone you are not fine, and to talk out those feelings. And sometimes that does not work, but we must try. “Shame lives in silence and once you speak it, it can’t live. (Brene Brown)”

Several parents, of the 49 taken, were asked to share how they would like to see love and kindness shown on June 12th and maybe everyday after. I challenge you to read about the 49 Acts of Love and do one each day in honor of those who have gone before us. 49 ACTS OF KINDNESS:

1. Visit an elder and ask them to tell you about the world when they were growing up or when they first got married or at their first job.

2. Get school supplies for needy children

3. Help prepare school backpacks for kids in need

4. Offer to serve a meal at a homeless shelter

5. Introduce yourself to a neighbor you don’t know

6. Volunteer with Meals on Wheels or similar and take food and company to a housebound senior

7. Volunteer at an animal shelter and give a stray some TLC

8. Offer to babysit a small child so parents can have some quiet time

9. Prepare a meal for someone undergoing debilitating medical treatment

10. Smile at least 49 times today

11. Hold a door for someone

12. Let someone cut in front of you during rush hour traffic

13. Teach a senior how to text, Skype, Facebook or Whatsapp so they can stay connected

14. Look at someone you normally disapprove of – and try to look at the world from their eyes.

15. If you see someone who is very different from you – look at all the ways you are the same.

16. Try to love and respect someone for who they are NOT what they look like.

17. Have a simple meal at home instead of going out and donate the savings to a food kitchen

18. Compliment someone you don’t know – you will make their day.

19. Offer to help an elderly neighbor with their yard work

20. Read a child a story

21. Be patient with someone who doesn’t speak English

22. Pick up something someone dropped

23. At the airport help someone with their luggage

24. In the plane help someone put in or take out their bags from the overhead compartment.

25. Say something nice to someone you don’t like at work

26. Strike up a conversation with someone you would never normally talk to

27. Offer to go with an elder to a doctor’s appointment

28. Offer to pick up a prescription for an ill or elder person

29. Offer to sit with an elder so that their caregiver can have some respite

30. Stay with a young child so that mother can go to the grocery store in peace for a change

31. Pick up a neighbors mail while they are out of town

32. Tell a police officer or a firefighter that you appreciate what they do to keep us safer

33. Tell a teacher they are heroes

34. Donate food to a homeless shelter

35. Mentor a child – especially a child with extra challenges

36. Volunteer at organizations that help homeless teens

37. Help a non-English speaker as they learn our language by offering to help them read a book or understand a TV show

38. Try a food from a country you didn’t know and learn something about it.

39. Pray for peace and tolerance

40. Learn the proper way to store a gun and how to keep it away from children

41. Become active in a cause that is important to you

42. Hug someone you haven’t hugged in a long time

43. Adopt a pet

44. Considering being a foster parent

45. Share your talents by performing for free in a public place.

46. Teach someone to make music

47. Teach someone how to paint

48. Teach someone to read

49. Try to love more every day

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