Posted by: Don Linnen | 22 September 2012

Being Afraid

In a book written in 1983 about a man who died in 1965 who spoke of fear in 1916 – there is a thought that is simple, prescient, and amplified in the world of 2012. The book is The Last Lion by William Manchester. The man is Winston Churchill.

When Churchill was warned of the negative consequences of befriending someone who thought differently, he said: “I am afraid only of people who cannot think.”

Outside our borders today we have large groups with radical religious beliefs violently exercising a “heckler’s veto.” 

Inside our stable democracy we have large groups of well-meaning voters who will choose our next president based on thoughts gathered from talk radio or Comedy Central.

The common denominator seems to be selective hearing to reinforce existing beliefs.  Are any of these people willing or able to think?

Today, more than ever, there is reason to be afraid of people who cannot think.

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Posted by: Don Linnen | 31 August 2012

Totally Hopeless – Or Not

It is easy to be discouraged. There are people in places that I cannot imagine living. Somehow they get by. Maybe they just survive.

The really bad places in the United States are easily better than many places outside our borders. The Congo is one of those distant places.

The Congo, a former Belgian colony, renamed “Zaire” five years after it gained independence, then in 1997 renamed “The Democratic Republic of the Congo” (DRC) is a failed state.

FP Magazine annually rates the 60 worst countries in the world. Being number one is not a good thing.  In 2012, North Korea is number 22. Haiti is number 7; Afghanistan, number 6. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is number 2, surpassed only by Somalia.

The Congo is racked by poverty, disease, corruption, warfare, and pretty much every hopeless condition known or created by man. It’s the last place you expect beauty, peace, teamwork, and hope.

Earlier this year the CBS program, 60 Minutes, reported on a small group of people in Kinshasa, the capital of DRC.  They are members of the Kimbanguist Symphony Orchestra.  They create amazing music.

In a totally hopeless country, they are creating beauty, peace, teamwork, and hope.  Again I’m reminded of Romans 5: 3-4 – “suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”

Delve into the 60 Minutes story. Prepare to be inspired.  Watch for the smile. 

 

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Posted by: Don Linnen | 31 July 2012

The Charm Offensive

Or is it offensive charm?

We are rarely offended by charm. By someone telling us how smart we are; how good we look; how funny we are; how much they admire: our home, our car, our child, our company, our mission, our ________ – fill in the blank.

Len Sweet recently tweeted: “Reading Susan Cain’s “Quiet” detailing our move from a Culture of Character (discipline, truth) to Culture of Personality (entertain, charm).”

This is an accelerating cultural trend. People have always put a priority on entertainment, no matter how hard their lives are. In our ultra-connected, uber-hyped, over-sensationalized world, the fun stuff (entertainment and charm) easily distracts us from the tough stuff (discipline and truth).

We flock to the opening ceremonies of the summer olympics. We wait with bated breath for our team to announce the starting quarterback.

We choose our leaders based on who is the best debater – who thinks the best on her feet. Voting for the guy who is a dork but is honest and disciplined just isn’t cool. We all want a cool leader. We all want to be cool.

Can quiet people be cool? Can you be cool when one notices you?

Quiet people get lost in the shouting or in the smoothly presented arguments of the day that steadily shift our culture. There are growing numbers of no-compromise arguments over government spending, taxation, immigration, health care, social programs, theology…the list goes on.

Not everyone is right. Not even me. But everyone has an idea. Some are really good. They all need to be heard. Maybe Susan Cain can help the quiet ones be heard.

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Posted by: Don Linnen | 30 June 2012

Special or Not

June, the month of commencements. A month of speeches to teach or to remind – if you were listening.

Messages ranged from you are not special to you ARE special because you’re lucky. They were not contradicting.

David McCullough created a stir by not stroking graduates with gushing enthusiasm about how good they were or how great they can be.  He told it like it is. He said they were not special.

He urged them to risk failure at the cost of success. He reminded them that selfless giving for the good of others offered a far better reward than a meaningless trophy.

Michael Lewis bluntly gave an uncomfortable reminder about luck to his privileged graduates. He said they were special – because they were lucky.

Few successful people want to admit they had little to do with their good fortune. He’s right. I’ve watched good sales guys struggle and fair but lucky sales guys strut over “their” accomplishments. 

Is it just luck? Is it being in the right place at the right time? The older I get, the less I believe in coincidence. Whatever it is, the results are similar.

Giving is the common denominator between the two speeches. Lewis told the fortunate graduates of the elite Ivy League school they are obliged to share their good fortune.

He reminded them of noblesse oblige, two elegant French words for a concept Luke described in the teachings of Jesus. The French term is fairly modern. It implies there is a duty for nobility to share their good fortune.

The Christian concept, found in Luke 12:48, says the same thing, but not because we are noble or special. We are expected to do it. Everyone really is special.

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Posted by: Don Linnen | 28 May 2012

Who’s Listening?

End of May. End of school. Commencement addresses abound. Is anyone really listening?

Michael Lewis posed this question Sunday on Meet the Press. Lewis is the best-selling author of Moneyball, Liar’s Poker, The Big Short, and 11 other books. He’s a funny, smart, and insightful guy.

I listened to him.  I tried to recall. I cannot remember one salient word from any of my commencement or commissioning ceremonies. I do remember hearing my name.

Maybe the expressed wisdom is really not for the new graduates. Maybe it’s for the old folks (those over 30) in the audience – the ones who wished they had listened better a decade ago.

Maybe it’s for future commencement speakers. There must be a gold mine of great ideas in good speeches to inspire new writers.

Maybe it’s for the tiny percentage of graduates who really do listen to their elders.

Imagine what could be done “if only I knew then what I know now.” If everyone listened to every bit of good advice then every hard, yucky problem in the world might get solved in the next decade.

My wise friend Mark commented on the ubiquitous commencement advice to “find a job you enjoy.”

He surmised that if everyone did that, not much would be accomplished. No one would stress or push or work late doing the tough stuff. No one would do the hard, yucky things that matter.

Maybe it’s good that most graduates don’t listen. Someone has to tackle the hard jobs.

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Posted by: Don Linnen | 29 April 2012

Future Prospects

Just when you think it’s safe to lift your head, another dirt clod misses it by inches. Sometimes it feels like that even after decades since the last backyard battle with your brother.

Life keeps throwing things your way. Pick any of a hundred problems facing the world, our nation, or your family. Those issues exist on the spectrum from unpleasant to life threatening.

My wife “sailed” through breast cancer last year. Sailing is relative. It was not a trivial effort. The final surgery occurs next month.

2012 has mostly been a celebration tour of the successful medical marathon of 2011. It occurs to me how easy it is to thank your prayer warriors and give God the glory when things go well.

How well do you do that when a dirt clod is headed for your nose? Last week, examination of a new hip pain began. Is it muscle related or cancer related? Uncertainty crept back in. 

Along with uncertainty came fear. We and our doctors can do all we can do, but nothing more. We wait until June to get the answer about the pain. Fear lingered until we again called on our faith.

Last Sunday Doug Birdsall introduced us to the amazing feats of Adoniram Judson. Judson was an American missionary to Burma from 1812 to 1849. His story is one of adventure, heartbreak, resilience, perseverance, hope, and inspiration.

His challenges were daunting and long lasting – typical for any leader. But when asked what he thought of the future, he said that his future prospects “were as bright as the promises of God.”

What a great reminder. I’m back to giving God the glory – no matter what.

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Posted by: Don Linnen | 1 April 2012

Holding Hands

Last week I held the hand of another dying man. The second man in four weeks. It was a long month.

An old poster in my closet tells me that “success is a journey, not a destination.” Life is a journey. We’re encouraged to enjoy the trip. Many really don’t fear death. They just dread the last part of the trip.

Some say death is the destination. Others say it’s not a period, just a comma at the beginning of a very long sentence.

Billy Graham said that he’s talked to doctors and nurses who have held the hands of dying people. They say there is as much difference between the death of a Christian and a non-Christian as there is between heaven and hell.

I’m still learning. It’s an interesting education the week before Easter.

Note to self: when near the end, use plenty of hand lotion. It makes for easier hand holding.

 

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Posted by: Don Linnen | 29 February 2012

“Blessed Are the Flexible…

…for they shall not get bent out of shape.”

That was the motto of Betsy Shirley while she raised 23 foster children – all boys. She is featured in a terrific documentary about one of those boys, Buck Brannaman.  

Be flexible – what a great reminder for us – whether we deal with animals on four legs or two.

Thursday night my son told me of the challenges of dealing with a strong-willed two-year old – someone learning her independence. Friday afternoon I’m being ordered around by a 95-year-old man – someone struggling with loosing his independence.

The baby girl and the old man are doing what’s natural. Both are frustrated. Both are demanding. Both are grumpy. Our only response is to flex and to love.

That’s not entirely different from what Jesus calls us to do. Maybe that’s why it’s so hard sometimes.

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Posted by: Don Linnen | 30 January 2012

On Trial

The year began with the suffering of people I know. Failing health, loss of job, constant physical pain, growing tension at work, increasing financial stress – some or all of the trials many face.

Late this month I was reminded of the advantages of trials. Jim Denison recalled three wise men in his post of The Courage of Gabrielle Giffords:

Walt Disney noted that some men make difficulties, while difficulties make some men. You never really know what you can do until you must. Pain reveals the truth about our character.  

C.S. Lewis was right: “Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point.”  

Winston Churchill added, “Success is not final, failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts.”

Within a day of reading Denison’s post, Sarah Young prompted me to look back on my own struggles. She said that “spiritual blessings come wrapped trials.”

It’s true. When we struggle to overcome, we are mining gold in our souls.

It is so, so hard to see that when you are hurting, exhausted, and discouraged. It’s hard to remember your objective was to drain the swamp when you’re up to your ass in alligators.

This is not to say “cheer up, things will get better.” Those testing points, as bad as they may be, are vital to our well being – to our character.

I say continue with courage through adversity. 

Winston Churchill said, “Never, never, never, never give up.”

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Posted by: Don Linnen | 31 December 2011

Endings and Beginnings

Life has few clean edges. We tend to create our own chapters based on time or events. An old year ends. A new one begins.

When I posted Look to the Future a year ago, I had no idea how prescient that was for our family. Maybe I was just “whistling in the dark.” I have two reflective choices.

2011 was an awful year – starting with fear; ending with infection. In between were multiple surgeries, poisoning with drugs, total hair loss, intense radiation, a painful virus, buckets of tears, and plenty of doubt. 

2011 was a splendid year – starting with gentle love; ending with celebration. In between were generous doses of believing doctors, out-of -the-blue acts of encouragement, uplifting smiles from toddlers Maggie and Sabine, supernatural strength, and sure evidence of God’s grace.

Warm memories smoothed the bumps. The rough road created strength and resilience.

A tough year ends. It was a blessing.

The new year begins. Hope is unsurpassed.

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