The Random Thinker

Today I got a call from News13. They wanted me to sit on a panel of pastors and do a spot on what how we are leading our churches through the Governor Sanford controversy. What are we telling our congregants about it??

I refused. For a couple of reasons. First of all, I’ve done things like this before and had my comments taken way out of context. Was not happy about it at all. That was the last time I did anything with this particular group. But that was not what really compelled me to say “no.” The second reason did that!

The second reason is this: I am kind of sick of hearing about it, and I believe a lot of folks are, too! But, if you are curious … If you do not know how I feel about it … Here goes:

ALL HAVE SINNED and fall short of the glory of God

IF WE CONFESS our sins, (God) is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

LOVE GOD with all of your heart, mind, soul, body, and strength and LOVE EACH OTHER more than we love ourselves.

JUDGE NOT, lest YOU be JUDGED.

Yes, I am appalled at what the governor did. I hate the sin because of what it will do to the family. But I do not hate the sinner, and because he is such a high-profile person in our state, I know to pray for his children, for his wife, and yes, even for him.

Not that I am being cavalier in my attitude, but don’t you realize that TEMPTATION seeks to pull us ALL DOWN!! And any of us that think we are above temptation are IN THE MOST DANGER!! How do we overcome temptation? PUT ON THE WHOLE ARMOR OF GOD. HE is the only one that can pull us through. And if we ever let go of His hand in the heat of temptation, we are in trouble. Mark Sanford is NOT PERFECT, but NEITHER ARE WE!!!

Where does it go from here? Governor Sanford has a few more questions to answer. I hope we will let go of this at the right time, when all is investigated and understood from a legal aspect, and allow him to do the most important things he can now do: Confess this to God, and make this right with his wife and children. And I believe, and I pray, THIS will be his biggest priority for the rest of his life.

In the current days of WAY TOO MUCH SERIOUSNESS, here is a little something to laugh at. Posted TODAY by www.mikeysfunnies.com

Harry hosted a dinner party. One of his guests was a surgeon.

While deftly carving the roast, Harry kept up a running commentary: “How am I doing, Doc? How do you like that technique? I’d make a pretty good surgeon, don’t you think?”

When Harry had finished and the slices of meat lay neatly on the serving platter, the surgeon spoke up: “Anybody can take them apart, Harry. Now let’s see you put them back together again.”

Thought for the day:
If you think you are too small to make a difference, you’ve never had a mosquito in your bedroom.

Yes, we are stunned today in the great state of South Carolina. It was odd enough that our governor disappeared, and no one knew where he was (or would ADMIT where he was). This became a scandal that drew national attention. Then, the REAL scandal broke: Governor Mark Sanford admitted to an affair. He apologizes to his wife, his children, his pastor, his state. He resigns as the chair of the Republican Governors group. So now what??

Now, he will be judged. Ever so harshly. What he has done is horrible, that I will grant you. But I see it from a different perspective … I’ve sat with families as this type of temptation, this tremendous mistake, TEARS THEM APART. Shredding them as a cat of nine tails, one lash as a time. Words cannot describe the pain.

So I wonder: What will WE say about him?? Will we dismiss him? Will we hate him for what he has done to his family? Will we call for him to resign on moral grounds? Will we throw stones at him because he is of a different political persuasion than we?

What will we do?

I do not condone his sin. I hate it, because I know what it will do to his family. What it does to the Body of Christ. But I also know that he is human. He is not suddenly a THROW-AWAY person, regardless of what you think about his job as governor. Or regardless of how much you hate this sin.

And I also know what we SHOULD do: PRAY FOR HIM. PRAY FOR HIS WIFE AND CHILDREN.

And leave the judgment to GOD.

Never one to complain or be morbid, but … You know how they always say tragedies come in threes?? We’ve had two deaths this week to touch our church family. Both older adults, and both had been sick, but death is death: No matter how much we tell ourselves they are in a better place, its still hard to deal with death. That person that is no longer with us is still someone’s father, mother, brother, sister, spouse, friend, grandparent, etc. Loss is loss.

The only hope in any of this is Jesus Christ. Some throw Him by the wayside … Some refuse to believe because they don’t want to submit to anything or anyone … Each one will make his or her own decision. And they will live with it, and someday die with it.

And, death comes like a thief in the night. We never know when it will come. None of us is guaranteed a tomorrow.

Will you be ready?

This week one of my friends (Flossip) tweeted that if she wins the lottery, she will be movin to the mountains. I basically answered that, as a hillbilly myself, if I win the lottery (which would be an outright MIRACLE) I will be moving to the BEACH. I love those hills, but they do not compare to the beach!! I guess when you grow up looking at the Blue Ridge Mountains everyday, they just don’t hold the luster of the sand and surf of the Grand Strand. But that is just me …

Yesterday we went to the beach. No evening worship last night at EBC (in honor of Father’s Day) so the Wike clan loaded up and drove to Garden City. Yes, it was hot. But it was worth it!! The beach was packed, and I think a guy that works out at the Y was beside us in the beginning. We spent about 3 hours on the beach and packed up to go to Carrabbas to eat supper.

All in all, it was a great trip!! And that is one of the things I LOVE about living in Florence!! Being close enough to make a day trip like that, and yet far enough away to go on vacation down there and it really feel like a vacation!!!!

And after a brief conversation on Twitter, I am now praying for Flossip to hit the lottery: She promised the Wikes would be some beach time out of the deal if she wins!!!

1. no1 b4 me. srsly.

2. dnt wrshp pix/idols

3. no omg’s

4. no wrk on w/end (sat 4 now; sun l8r)

5. pos ok – ur m&d r cool

6. dnt kill ppl

7. :-X only w/ m8

8. dnt steal

9. dnt lie re: bf

10. dnt ogle ur bf’s m8. or ox. or dnkey. myob.

M, pls rite on tabs & giv 2 ppl.

ttyl, JHWH.

ps. wwjd?

(Today’s entry from http://www.mikeysfunnies.com/)

I am impressed!! Florence is a great city. A growing city. In spite of some opinions, it is not Mayberry or some small Southern town where the sheriff sits behind a sign with a button to change the color of the traffic light on unsuspecting tourists to pull them over and write them HUGE traffic tickets just to generate income. No, Florence reminds me of the Greenville I grew up in before BMW moved in and created a monster.

I am continually impressed with our sheriff’s office and the lengths they are willing to go to fight crime. This incident I’ve blogged about and tweeted about tells the story of how they REALLY ARE fighting crime in the 21st Century. I read an article and a public comment on scnow.com about a man who was “missing” in Florence and was found safe. The comment read “Well, another man is missing. I think I will go out on I-95 and pull drugs off the interstate. That will help!” It was a slap at Kenney Boone and the great work those folks are doing out there. This person failed to read the ENTIRE article before making his political statement: It turned out that the “missing” male, in his mid-20s, had merely gone to North Carolina to visit friends without telling anyone. SCNOW.COM should do a better job of moderating comments, because that person made himself look like an idiot!

True, I know a bunch of folks in our sheriff’s office. I count Kenney Boone, Jason Dore, Wayne Howard, Tony Hannah, and several others down there as my friends. So I guess you could say I am biased.

But you cannot read about what happened over here in Chadwick and deny that these guys and ladies are working hard to protect Florence County. Because I have seen them do the SAME THINGS, many times, for many others they did not know. WHY?? Because that is their job, and THEY DO IT WELL.

Something unsettling happened at my front door today. Around noon a young man with a book in his hand and some type of id around his neck came to knock on my door. Krissy happened to be running back out to her car and opened the door, looked up, and there he was. He told her he was with the homeowners assocation and he needed to know when her parents would be home. She was startled, answered his question, and he left.

Diana and I were both in route to the house to eat lunch. Unlucky for him, Diana beat me home. Found him a few doors down. Asked him exactly why the homeowners assocation sent him to our door. He quickly denied that he said that, and was selling some sort of book. Door to door. In the middle of the day. When very few people are home.

Now, WHAT is wrong with that picture??

I called a friend, code named “Secret Agent Man” and asked if I needed to call the Florence County Sheriffs Office. I know those guys work hard and don’t want to bother them with everything that happens. But, thanks for Facebook, I never got a chance to call!

One of my Facebook friends (and church members) is married to an investigator with the FCSO. She read my status, which told everyone to beware because this is happening, and she called her hubby. He called me and wanted all of the details.

And I really appreciate that. I would never want to crush someone’s chance to earn a living, but I am sorry, it is just sketchy to be selling door-to-door in a subdivision mostly inhabited by families who are at work during the day. Could they be finding out who is NOT at home?? Could they be scoping out cars?

I don’t know. I will leave that to my friends at the FCSO. They WILL figure it out!

So, the Lakers win and the city of Los Angeles falls into destruction . .. Hmmmph. That is a logical repsonse.

WHY does this happen in cities like LA and Detroit?? Team wins, so people feel the need to loot and vandalize THEIR OWN CITY?!?!?!?! Sure, it was just around the Staples Center. Just a few police cars, a gas station, a news van, and some other cars. But what gives?? Why do people do things like this?

In all seriousness, I think it is a sign of the times. The general public has less and less self-respect, and therefore less respect for the property of others and for public safety. The need to outdo the last group that did this will just push it farther and farther. In 30 years, I might read this and think “Wow!! I wish this world were STILL like this!” And that is a frightening thought!

No, this is not a blog about VBS. What I saw last night HAPPENED at VBS, but it really had nothing to do with the Crocodile Dock (which was ROCKIN last night again).

I really cannot go into great detail, but I WATCHED the New Testament church hard at work. I saw a brother with a great need . . . In fact, it would seem to be an impossible mountain that HE HAD TO CLIMB last night or else a life-changing door would’ve been closed. It really looked like a dead-end.

And then a man stepped up. No names here . . . God knows who. And that man worked hard last night. And slowly, step by step, that man helped his brother climb that mountain. And they got to the top. And God’s kingdom will benefit from that climb.

It kind of reminded me about something I watched years ago during one of our mission trips to Parris Island. If you haven’t read about or watched the documentary on the Crucible, you need to!! The Crucible combines every element of a Marine Recruit’s training into a grueling 54-hour exercise. IF YOU MAKE IT BACK, YOU GRADUATE BOOT CAMP!!!

One Thursday, a few of us were allowed to go to the parade deck and watch these men and women return from the Crucible. I don’t know if I was prepared to see what I saw. Strong recruits marching in with great pride. And with even greater pride, there were some recruits CARRYING INJURED BROTHERS ANDS SISTERS in arms. The rules only say you have to make it back!!! How powerful it was to see two recruits carrying their brother, who could not walk due to an injury on this exercise. And, in the end, all three graduated. All three earned the title “Marine.”

I watched one of my Ebenezer brothers carry another across that line last night. And it changed me.