July 2, 2007

Good morning, almost good afternoon. I am on vacation today and as you will notice from the time this is sent, doing a bit of goofing off! I see a man working in the neighbor's backyard from my window. He is large in the trunk and arms, but smaller in the legs. From his sun-browned skin and muscular upper body, I am not going too far out on a limb by guessing that he does not sit at a desk for work during most days. Actually, I can see they are pouring a patio for the neighbor. Doing cement work on a daily basis will make a person muscular over time. Often we can tell something of what a person does for a living by their appearance, though perhaps not as much as in former days. When my parents and grandparents grew up, office workers dressed well, even in a suit and tie for men and dresses or skirts for women. These days an office worker may not look that much different from a dock worker, with the exception of some sweat and dirt. Many offices, including ours, do not expect and in fact discourage the employees from wearing suits or dresses to work in the office. It may no longer be obvious what a person does each day. Deduction and elimination may help. I don't think anyone would look at me and say, "aerobics instructor", at least not with a straight face. ;-) Does our relationship with Christ show?

Does a relationship with Jesus show on our faces, or in what we do and say? A lack of profane language is not in itself an indication. In spite of what we see in movies, most people do not habitually use foul language. Drinking alcoholic beverages? Again, some people drink too much, some do not, and there is no commandment that says you cannot have a beer. Does it show? I think that it does, but perhaps not to the world that is stuck in unbelief. There are people who show up for work with a bright and bubbly manner each day. They may go home and collapse on their couch in tears, but that part we do not see. It isn't an always cheerful demeanor that sets us apart; Christians are not always happy, we have sorrow in our lives. All of us, at one time or many, have felt the sting of sorrow and in Christ we do not leap for joy during those times; emotionally or physically, or perhaps both, those times hurt us very much.

One day all of our tears and sorrows will be washed away.

Bucky

P.S. I feel this kind of rambles today, not sure yet where it will end up. We'll see what tomorrow brings.