PARKS BROWN

In musical notation, a caesura is a break in the music. In conversation, a caesura is a pause or an interruption that gives way for silence. If you want to hear and feel the power of a small dose of silence, listen to Phil Collins timeless hit, In the Air Tonight. Right before the infamous drum solo there is a pause that sets up the sound you will never forget. Science has shown that such intervals are what generate intense neural activity. The contrast of brief silence stirs our senses. It is in the silence where ALL of our senses are engaged and we become alive.

Silence is one of the most valuable assets we possess and everyone is after it. Proof lies in the technology we use for convenience and the data that is so invaluably associated with it. What we browse, how we communicate, when and where we are located. The data that reveals how we spend our time and what occupies our minds is all for the purpose of being able to fill the silence with a desired message. There is a battle for your silence but no one talks about it.

Why is silence so valuable? In the Bible, God is in the silence. God told Elijah to go out and stand on a mountain and be in His presence. “Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.” 1 Kings 19:11-12. Elijah heard the voice of God in the quiet, in the caesura, in the silence.

Many believe silence is a luxury. I believe silence is a gift from God designed to bridge the gap between heaven and earth. Silence prepares us and is the environment where we become fully engaged. “Engaged for what?” you may ask. That’s the great thing about silence. It’s unique and different for everyone because it is the space that allows us to hear from our Creator. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11. If silence allows us to hear those plans, we all need more of it.

If you are intrigued and attracted to silence, let me add a note of caution. Everything in and of this world will fight for your silence and against the truth that lies therein. There is no fake news in the solitude that comes with silence. There is noise that battles against the silence but not in the silence. God is in the silence. He reminds us in blunt terms. “He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.'” Psalm 46:10. In the book of Genesis and elsewhere in the Bible, the Holy Spirit is referred to as a wind and a breath. Sound is air in motion. The voice of God is sound itself, everything else is just noise.

In the book of Revelation there is a scroll that reveals what will occur before and during Christ’s second coming. This scroll has seven seals and the 7th seal represents both the wrath of the Lamb and the mercy of God. When the 7th and last seal is opened, guess what follows. “When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.” Revelation 8:1. Silence gets our attention, prepares and allows us to hear the voice of God.

Songs have been written about silence. Some say silence is golden. YOUR silence is measured, fought for, coveted, packaged for sale and is more valuable than gold. Everything points to the value of silence and that is why the war exists to take it away from you.

Make the effort to hear what’s in your silence. Listen to the sound of your silence.

Millennials and Gen X’ers find themselves trying to build a successful life and career in interesting times. Resumes are submitted to websites and not individuals. Meeting and dating someone doesn’t require personal contact but a text, Snapchat or Instagram account. This generation is building their body of work in life via different means, but I’m afraid with the same potential pitfalls as each generation before them. The pitfall is following the world’s system to prepare your tomorrow. Make sure that your actions today lead to the tomorrow you really want. If success occurs when preparation meets opportunity, what tomorrow are you preparing for today?

My earliest recollection of when it started was the 4th grade. I played Scrooge in the elementary school production and felt the rush of being front and center. A lead-off home run in the top of the first inning in 6th grade. President of the largest club in high school (shout out to Newton County FBLA’ers). President of the University Union at the University of Georgia. The list continued to grow after college graduation. The effect was success and recognition served to grow my resume and reputation. I was raised to believe this is how you build a career and a life. I believed this was the way to prepare for the success I wanted.

Bottom line is that each year the world presented opportunities for there to be more of me. This worked well, felt good and helped me to build a life for my wife and family. Whether serving an individual, a group or a company, I was taught to put others first and serve their needs. Along the way I learned it was a natural occurrence that when following a ‘servant’ protocol and mindset, I gained stature and recognition. Every time my accolades and success increased there was naturally more of me, not less. I was increasing every day and not decreasing. I was preparing for the success I had envisioned.

I am haunted by the life and story of John the Baptist. The whole “He must become greater; I must become less” thing has taken on a new dimension the older I get. My success in life made me greater and is the opposite of what made John the Baptist so great. How great was John the Baptist? Jesus said, “I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the Kingdom of God is greater than he.” Luke 7:28. John’s life centered on serving the Kingdom of God and not himself or his culture. John spent his life preparing the way for Christ and that defined his success. What kind of success are you preparing for? Do you want greatness?

This is where you can argue that serving the Kingdom doesn’t have to be exclusive of caring for your self and your family….and that sounds good. In hindsight, somewhere along the way, success in life brings more attention to YOU and that is a slippery slope and will make YOU greater. Logically, if YOU become greater, HE doesn’t. When preparing for the future, I believe it is imperative for Christ followers to consciously plan and prepare to BE less with each passing day. When planning for your future, I encourage you to prepare for when and where your future is, not just what it will look like. Prepare for a future not limited to this world.

The earthly path of upward mobility might lead to a bigger house and a second home, but focus on preparing for eternity and not the next 30 years. “Jesus said to them,…’And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.'” Matthew 19:29. When preparing for that wedding or a career, remember it’s not today’s pictures or today’s job that matter the most. Less today can mean more tomorrow if you are following the leading of the Holy Spirit. Christ promised the return would be a hundred times whatever you give up here, for Him.

The ways of this world are not the ways of God. With Him there is no fear or anxiety. As a Millenial or Gen X’er looking ahead and seeing your needs and wants in the future you are planning, remember the words in red. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33. The One who gives and the One who rewards doesn’t advise the traditional worldly preparation for success. As a believer, prepare to seek Him more every day, give HIM more control and become less in the process. If you do otherwise, YOU might become greater but HE will become less. Is that what you want? Is that the future you are preparing for yourself?

The world will provide opportunities to build a life and a future for yourself. God will provide opportunities for a life that will serve Him and build an eternity for yourself. Prepare accordingly. Prepare for the right kind of success and what it brings.

Everything tells us we should be reflective and exercise planning as we enter a New Year. To do this, we need clarity in hindsight and foresight. In 1 Corinthians Paul talks about how special and powerful love is. In chapter 13 verse 8, he takes it to the conclusion that love never ends or fails but everything else passes away and changes. As he wraps up the most beautiful expose’ ever written on what is lasting and pertinent, he comments about our ability to see and understand this as fact. He puts it this way, “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” 1 Cor. 13:12. Therefore, MY reflection and planning are restricted since I can only see and know in part.

Each year we persevere through success and failure. Our lives are a voyage that hopefully gives us wisdom and experience with which to understand what has happened, is happening and what lies ahead. “Let perseverance finish it’s work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1:4. January has hit the frozen ground at top speed in my life and I want to reflect before the current sweeps me away. I want to reflect on what the Holy Spirit impresses upon me and not just MY highlights of 2017. I want to prepare for what 2018 will bring and not just focus on my to-do list or be distracted by the noise in the world. I want to capture what matters and not just what grabs my attention. To do this, I must ask the Holy Spirit to reveal this to me and not rely on my own understanding. “But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to hear anything from the Lord. Such a person is double minded and unstable in all they do. ” James 1:6-8. I do ask, but I can doubt. I am going to doubt less in 2018.

It’s easier just to go headlong into 2018 and pick up where I left off in December, but is that the right thing to do? I have learned that Paul and James spoke wise words. Without the Holy Spirit I am only able to see and understand partially. Even when I ask God to show me the truth, I am hampered by my own pride, doubt, insecurities and stubbornness. Jesus spoke truth, hard truths. When He talked about the Holy Spirit, he left no room for doubt. “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.” John 16:13. If we want the truth and knowledge about what will come, the Holy Spirit is the only place to turn. I want to hear the Spirit more clearly in 2018.

As I reflect on the past year and gaze into the next, I don’t trust anything that is not divinely inspired to me by the Holy Spirit. Most of you will think I’ve carried this a little too far or I’m trying to be uber spiritual. Let me ask you. Did you see everything that has come your way the past 5 years…10 years….6 months? Bottom line is our planning is nothing short of boasting in arrogant schemes (James 4:16). “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” James 4:14. Scripture is truth. I want to trust the Holy Spirit more in 2018.

So, as I try to reflect on 2017 and prepare for 2018, I come to only one conclusion. This side of the dirt the best I can do is exercise greater faith in God who sees and understands. In 2018, I will exercise greater faith in the Holy Spirit who knows what is yet to come. Christ followers know these are the tenants of their beliefs. Most will pass this off as low hanging fruit or confirm with an ‘amen’. Let me put it with the emphasis James did. “If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” James 4:17. Not tough luck that you didn’t listen: it is sin. I will exercise greater faith in 2018 because to do otherwise is sinful.

Ok, these are my resolutions for 2018. Be more attentive to the Spirit. Doubt less. Trust and exercise greater faith. And for those who prefer secular language…listen to the voice inside me, trust and act on that voice. If you are a Christ follower, I invite you to join me. If you are not, go back and listen to the words of Jesus before deciding where to put your faith.

2017 was a year of challenge and controversy. 2018 will present challenges and controversies we can’t predict but we can plan for. Be resolute in who you listen to and where you stand on issues. Be resolute in your faith.

Problems are easy to see and become clearer in hindsight. Solutions require forethought and are much more difficult. The headlines, news shows, Facebook and Twitter highlight the abundance of problems in the world and people’s lives. But, life is a journey to be made not a problem to be fixed. Life is an adventure to be shared and relationships are critical in that adventure. I believe this but I don’t always live it. I am prone to withdraw into solitude and silence where I block out the noise of the world, it’s problems and at times the people in it. Christmas is my reminder that God provided a solution to ALL problems through the birth of Jesus and my relationship with Him is the key to my journey and adventure in life.

One of my relationships ended on Christmas Eve when I lost a good friend to a massive heart attack. Most people have felt the sting of losing someone they care about. I knew Glenn for 25 years but some people knew him for a lifetime. Relationships that last a long time are priceless and provide greater depth and clarity to understanding a person AND yourself. My relationship with Glenn brought me closer to him, myself and God. What a testimony. My relationship with Jesus works the same way.

My relationship with Christ has taught me so much about myself through His Word. “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” Philippians 2:3-4. I’ve spent too much of my life putting myself before others. Glenn was a man just like the rest of us, but my relationship with him was characterized by his love for and efforts made on behalf of others and not himself. This was because Glenn had a relationship with Jesus. Great reminder that when we let Christ in our hearts, He will use each of us and our relationships to bring glory to the name of Jesus.

Long relationships and the fruit they provide are more possible only when we make the effort to establish new relationships. Try to remember that in 2018. Try to remember the richness and value of friends you have and have lost when presented with the opportunity to give of yourself to a new relationship this next year. Facebook is an outpouring of emotions as people look back and recollect what their lost friends have meant to them. I am reminded to look ahead and not miss the opportunities of new friendships in the coming days and months. God, give us a discerning spirit to never stop pouring out and into others as we continue the journey of life.

Glenn’s death served to remind me that life is fleeting and each day needs to be lived with a greater sense of urgency, purpose and conviction. “The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” 1st Peter 4:7-8. Peter was a disciple who had learned that life presents problems but through our relationship with Christ we are given a promise that all those issues have been and can be solved with the love that comes from God.

The New Year brings resolutions to be a better version of ourselves in the coming days. Skip the better and go for the new. Christmas solved the problem of needing better solutions by making a new relationship with God possible through his Son, Jesus. Glenn could not have been a better friend to me in 2018. Glenn was a good friend only because he had a relationship with Christ. I knew Glenn well and I’m still getting to know Jesus. In 2018, I resolve to be a good husband, father and friend…not better.

My problems, yours, the world’s problems are solved if we choose to have a relationship with Jesus. If we have that relationship then we need to make every day an opportunity for new relationships with people of all colors, creeds and beliefs. If we limit those relationships to similarities we share, political beliefs or religious practices we will miss the Glenn Grahams of the world…we will miss the adventures that give us memories and experiences that make our lives rich.

“…The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” 1 John 3:8. This Christmas season, remember the solution God provided years ago. Let your relationship with Him be the solution for the world we live in. Let Him be the center of all your relationships. As you live and when you die, let your life be the proof of that relationship. Let your relationships reflect the solution Christmas represents. Glenn did and I’m better because of that fact.

When my son got married a few months ago, his bride asked if I would read a scripture and say a prayer during the ceremony. Anyone who has been to a wedding (OR watched the movie ‘Wedding Crashers’), knows it’s not a wedding without a reading from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. In chapter 13, Paul stated what love is and what love is not. He wrote that love endured forever and was the greatest of all human qualities. Love is an attribute of God Himself and is the action that binds together all of creation. The root problem with all of the sexual harassment charges in America today is a lack of love for anyone other than themselves.

Most everyone professes to believe the Golden Rule is at least a good idea. Christians know it stems from a command. “Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'” Matthew 22:37-38. The world wants to disconnect faith and everyday actions and activities including how we treat and love each other. You can’t practice the Golden Rule for long if you don’t have love in your heart. Morality and civil behavior derive from a heart and faith issue that dictate how you treat others. Americans have allowed themselves and their leaders to successfully separate the two.

Today’s sexual harassment headlines reveal the result is a disease that has spread far and wide. The disease is sin and it effects everyone on the planet. Politicians, musicians, artists, journalists, your boss and co-workers. A lack of love manifests in pedophilia, harassment and rape. The headlines will not get better without an everyday practice of your faith. The Word of God identifies how to solve the problem and spot the symptoms.

The core issue is love of self above love for others. Men and women are living for themselves, for today and not tomorrow. In Christianese, people put the desires of the flesh ahead of the Spirit and those desires manifest in the actions of today’s headlines. In Galatians, Paul reminded us that actions reveal desires. “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies and the like…” Galatians 5:19-21. Does that description fit anyone you know or have read about lately? It’s easy to see the issue is a deeper spiritual and faith based problem.

The headlines can make us quick to judge based on our thoughts and feelings because it is difficult to obtain the facts. Jesus warned about judging others and pointed out why it can be so precarious. “Do not judge or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged…Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” Matthew 7:1-5. Christ wasn’t prone to exaggeration but He made the case that when we see people’s failures, we need to look in our own hearts first.

The lack of love we see today is like a wildfire out of control. When you look at the fires in Bel-Air and Los Angeles, it resembles a Hollywood movie about the end of the world. I’ll use love as my barometer for what the end of the world looks like. “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God-having a form of godliness but denying it’s power. Have nothing to do with them.” 2 Timothy 3:1-5. We need to re-establish our capacity and ability for loving others and there is only one place to start.

Christ followers have a purpose and a responsibility that effects all creation AND today’s headlines. Jesus didn’t leave any wiggle room for interpretation. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35. Some days you wonder where are the disciples of Jesus? You can find them by the the way we think, feel and talk about the most egregious violators in the news.

“This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another.” 1st John 3:11. Democrats and Republicans, first time AND repeat offenders. That’s how the world will know where your heart and mind reside. Besides, it comes with a promise. “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” 1st Peter 4:8. “Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers all wrongs.” Proverbs 10:12. We can all use a little more coverage for our wrongs.

So, where do you go when tomorrow’s headlines stir up apathy, disdain or hatred for the accused person or party? Some common sense goes a long way. “…Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” James 1:19. But, even if I keep my mouth shut, ignore what’s going on and don’t get ticked off “…but have not love, I gain nothing.” 1st Corinthians 13:3. Our world needs to stop losing ground and start gaining some yardage back.

As the old R&B hit by Maze says, ‘love is the key.’ Rediscovering GOD’S love is the key to changing the world. Christians must lead the Way by returning to their ‘first love’ and living out their professed faith.