Tag: be kind

Posted in Family, forgiveness, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, loving others, prayer, priorities, Scripture, spiritual battles, thankful, Trials

Show A Little Kindness

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.” Colossians 4:32

I needed to go…and she was right. I served as pastor at Cobden First Baptist Church for fourteen years.  For the first couple of years, we had someone to do the bulletin but that was about it.  After the church grew, we decided to hire a secretary and that was when Lydia came on scene.  When we hired her, she told us that she didn’t have a lot of experience but was willing to learn. Well, my twelve years in the Air Force as an Administrative Specialist made me a pretty good teacher. Before long, Lydia was up and running and she became one of the best secretaries I have ever had.

What Lydia initially lacked in practical experience she more than made up for it with her heart to help.  When someone came into the office and needed an encouraging word…Lydia was there.  When someone was struggling with life…she was there.  On any given day you could count on her to bring a little sunlight into the office. There was a time, and I don’t remember why, my wife Judy and I were the ones needing that encouragement.  It was a church thing, perhaps an unhappy member, who knows, but we needed that little ray of sunshine.

I can remember it to this day. Judy and I were sitting on the front porch watching the traffic go by. Whatever was on our hearts and mind wasn’t devastating but apparently it was difficult.  I learned a long time ago something doesn’t have to be the end of the world to feel like it.  Well, it felt like it.  It was about 4:30 or 5:00 pm…right before supper time…when a car pulled into our driveway.  It was Lydia.  She had ordered a pizza, made the trip to a nearby town, and was now delivering it…unannounced and unexpected.  Oh, and it wasn’t just any pizza…it was from our favorite place.  That’s just what she did.

One year for Boss’s Day, she called an Air Force veteran who attended our church.  She knew, of course, that I was an Air Force veteran, and she was looking for a pair of aviation sunglasses to give me as a gift. She was just checking to see if he knew where she might get a pair.  As it turned out, he had a pair, new in the box, stored away.  When it came Boss’s Day, she gave me the glasses.  When I opened them…I just couldn’t believe it!  First, it was the perfect gift.  Secondly, and she didn’t know this, nor did he, but stamped on the box was the date of manufacture which happened to be the month and year I joined the Air Force.  How about that.

There was one more thing that Lydia did that made her special.  She gracefully spoke the truth.  Occasionally I would come into the office and be just a hair grumpy.  I know that is hard to believe (smile) but trust me, it is true.  She knew I needed a little help. Her solution?  Almost without fail she would say, “Bro. Dewayne, you need to go to the nursing home.”  It wasn’t a statement about my age or future, she just knew that going to serve someone was a sure-fire fix.  And it always seemed to work.  I would go, I would come back and simply say, “Thank you.”

Judy and I are thankful for many things throughout the many years we served at Cobden.  But near the top of the list is a friend named Lydia.  She would be the first to tell you of her imperfections, but she loved people, and she loved Jesus and that was always like a fresh wind. Judy and I will never forget her kindness and the example that she set.  Paul, one of the guys who wrote a big chunk of the New Testament said, “Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”  Lydia got that right.

In today’s culture if you look around you will see signs telling us to be kind.  I think that is spot on and I also believe that Christians should be leading the way…just like a Jesus follower named Lydia.  Be kind when you can and guess what?  You always can.  Need a little help? Just ask God. He would be more than happy to point you in the right direction.  You might say, “He’s got this.” Bro. Dewayne

Posted in Family, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, loving others, prayer, Scripture, thankful, Trials

Can You Believe It?

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

Our lives last seventy years or, if we are strong, eighty years. Even the best of them are struggle and sorrow; indeed, they pass quickly, and we fly away.” Psalm 90:10

“Can you believe another month has come and gone?”  For the last twenty-four years on the first of every month that has been my tag line for the “Baptist Hour.” And now, that part of my ministry life is ending. I’m not sure what I will do now at 7:00 am on the first of every month!

So, some of you are asking, what is the Baptist Hour? Well, it is supposed to be the longest continuously running religious radio program in the world.  Our church sponsors that program on the first of every month. So, every first of the month that’s where you will find me at 7:00 am.  And it all began for me one summer morning.

I came as pastor for Dorrisville Baptist Church in July 2000.  We were one week out from Vacation Bible School.  I was moving in, getting settled and wondering what in the world I had gotten myself into.  I believe it was a Wednesday the week of Vacation Bible School and my new friend Ben Sisk found me somewhere in the Preschool Department.  Ben was the chairman of our deacons, old enough to know Noah personally and was just a great guy. He tapped me on the shoulder and said these words, “Has anyone told you that you are on the radio tomorrow morning at 7:00 am?”  That loud thud was the sound was my jaw hitting the floor.

“What?” I asked.  It wasn’t that we weren’t both speaking English it was just it caught me totally off-guard.  I had nothing prepared (obviously), I had never spoken on the radio, never talked to a microphone in an empty room and finally, I was drowning in the “new kid on the block” waters.  Well, all that didn’t matter because it was my deal.  So, another pastor agreed to accompany me for moral support and off I went.  I survived.

I don’t remember too much about it all, I just remember getting through it.  “Whew…glad that is over.” I said under my breath. And do you know what happened? In 31 extremely short days it was time to do it again.  It was like the movie “Ground Hog Day” except in that movie it was every 24 hours life started over. So, I got to the station, got behind the microphone again and said, “Can you believe another month has come and gone?” And the rest is history.  It’s all old hat now.  I enjoy the opportunity to share, and I love saying, “Can you believe another month has come and gone?”

The first is coming again in just a week and a half but I won’t be going to the station.  I will be at a pastor’s conference which means someone will be speaking in my place. But wait, since my “next chapter” begins June 1st, I guess I am done with my first of the month date with the Baptist Hour.  But whether I am at the station or not, I’m sure I will still be befuddled that another month has come and gone.  It will be May which means we are starting month number five this year.  It means that we are seven months away from Christmas and it means that time is going by very quickly.  And, before we know it, this season, and this year will be gone.  When you are treading water like so many of us are, it is easy to zone out and just try and make it.  God has a better idea.

In Psalm 90:10, Moses writes to us and says, “Our lives last seventy years or, if we are strong, eighty years. Even the best of them are struggle and sorrow; indeed, they pass quickly, and we fly away.” I woke up earlier this year and realized that I was 70 years old.  Where did the time go?  They are indeed passing quickly and one day, each of us will, “fly away.”  But until the day we launch into eternity Moses has one more piece of advice.  He says in verse 12, “Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts.” In other words, we must make each day matter—each day count.

I know in my life, and I can imagine in yours, we are both wishing time away.  We are saying, “I’ll be glad when all this is over.”  It’s akin to saying on Monday, “I’ll be glad when Friday comes.”  Wait a second before you press the “do not disturb” button or go into standby mode.  There is too much to do—too many opportunities to grab, too many blessings to live and too many adventures to launch into.  Paul tells us in Ephesians 5:15-16 “Pay careful attention, then, to how you live—not as unwise people but as wise—making the most of the time because the days are evil.”  Making the most of the time—even suffering time, even corona virus time, even this time.

One of my favorite verses to use out of context is when Jesus was speaking to Judas.  In John 13:27 He says, “What you’re doing, do quickly.” So, whatever you need to do, are wanting to do—do quickly—don’t put it off.  Today is the day and now is the time to do life right.  Love someone, encourage someone, be kind to someone—give your spouse and kids a hug.  Laugh.  Smile. Oh, and take some time to rest in Him.  And most of all? Remember, He’s got this.  Bro. Dewayne

Posted in Family, forgiveness, friends, Grace, gratitude, Integrity, life, loving others, pride, Scripture, thankful

Drop the Rocks

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

When they kept on questioning Him, He straightened up and said to them, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 8:7

It kinda made me mad.  I know there are a multitude of things in the world that make us mad and there are also degrees of madness—boy is that a play on words. There is a little mad, some mad, half mad and downright mad.  Well, anyway, I was just a little mad.  When the weather is bad in January—like all the time—I will use the treadmill to walk.  It isn’t as good as the outdoors but you sure can work up a sweat.  So, whenever I decide to be healthy, I have my date with “the mill.”  I have a television mounted right in front of me to keep my mind busy while I walk. With all the new streaming services there is a lot to watch.

One of my favorite things is something called “Aerial America.”  They take a particular state and with a drone and/or helicopter they fly all over the state and shoot video.  It is very interesting and stunning but there was a problem. Because it was filmed from the air, I had a hard time staying on the treadmill.  They would go up and down, left, and right and I was all over the place with them.  It was then I decided to find something else to watch.  I decided it would be a great opportunity to get some good Bible teaching, so I started watching services from some of the guys I like.  It has been very profitable.

Different guys have different styles and I always try and pick speakers that stay close to the Bible and there are a couple that have large ministries and by and large do a great job teaching.  Now, I never agree with everything that every speaker says.  In fact, I teach every Sunday and guess what? I don’t always agree with me. It’s just a fact of life so if you teach publicly get ready for someone to say something.  I get that.  But then there was this morning.

As I was looking for something to watch from one of the guys I follow, I saw something that just about made me mad.  Some no-name guy, a pastor, teacher posted a video calling this nationally known speaker a “false teacher.”  Well, I didn’t watch his video because it wasn’t worth my time.  But I wondered exactly what caused him to say that this guy wasn’t the real deal.  Now again, I don’t always agree with everything this teacher says nor how he says it but “false teacher?”  I don’t think so.  He leads one of the largest evangelical churches in America.  He teaches the Bible and at the end of every service he has a time for people to act on what they heard and specially, to act on an invitation to accept Jesus’ invitation to follow Him.  He gives an old-fashioned altar call.

Oh, and one of the amazing things.  Everything this church produces, sermons, curriculum, music, you name it—they give it all away for free.  His church could make a zillion dollars but instead with incredible generosity they just give it away.  I find that amazing.  So, what’s up with the dude who made himself judge and jury?  If I were to take a guess it would probably be jealousy.  When someone is successful some people just assume that they are fake or false.  It seems the more successful a ministry is the more people cast stones.  Cast stones…hmmm.  It seems like Jesus had something to say about there.  Remember?

There was a woman in the Bible taken in the very act of adultery.  The Pharisees (we won’t go there) dragged her out in public in front of Jesus and declared, “Moses said we should stone this woman.  What do you say?”  First, and always, don’t mess with Jesus.  You will lose.  But Jesus stooped down and wrote something in the sand, we don’t know what, and then said, “Okay.”  Well, that wasn’t all He said.  The rest rattled their bones.  He said, “Okay, but the person without sin needs to cast the first stone.”  You could hear a pin drop, but you would have heard something else—the sound of rocks falling to the ground.  And, beginning from the oldest to the youngest, they left—all of them.  Jesus looked at the woman and said, “Where are your accusers?”  They had skedaddled. And here’s the best part.  The One who was left, Jesus, the One who could condemn her—didn’t.  Amazing.

I know it is our natural tendency to be rock chucker’s, but don’t you think maybe it is time to let the rocks fall.  If you are a Jesus follower or not, chucking rocks is a dangerous game.  Those rocks can act like boomerangs—and that will leave a mark.  Should we practice a discerning spirit?  Absolutely.  But rock chucking has nothing to do with a discerning—it has to do with a judgmental spirit.  Those rocks can be hard to drop sometimes but I know someone who is good at dislodging them from sticky hands.  His name is Jesus, and you can take it to the bank, He’s got that too.  Bro. Dewayne

Posted in Family, fear, forgiveness, Grace, life, loving others, Scripture, Southern born, thankful, Trials

Time to Stop

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8

I’m not sure when it started but I do know when it ended.  It was probably just part of growing up boy and part of growing up country, but the bottom line is looking back I wish it wasn’t part of my boyhood.  Somewhere along my growing journey, probably when I was six or seven, I had access to a BB gun.  Then, just a little later I had my own.  I’m sure I would pluck cans and shoot at paper targets.  While my Daddy wasn’t a big hunter, we did shoot our share of squirrels and rabbits and that might have been where it started.

One day, and I don’t remember the day, I grew tired of plucking cans and decided to go “bird hunting.”  Our yard had three large oak trees and several large cedar trees so there were plenty of birds around.  It’s funny but I never thought about shooting something as innocent as a bird but one day I did. I don’t remember the first time, but I do remember the many times.  I would walk quietly around my yard, listening for the chirp of a bird, look through the leaves and branches and find my target.  I would aim, I would pull the trigger and too often the bird would fall.

I can still remember going over and picking up the now lifeless bird and walking across the road to dispose of the body by tossing it into the woods that stood there.  I want you to know as I write this it still causes me grief…not because I shot a bird but because I senselessly took the life of a living thing. Sometimes I would feel a bit of remorse, but it only lasted until the next time I felt the need to stalk and hunt again. And it wasn’t just birds.  We had a healthy herd of toads around our house too and occasionally they too would fall victim to my deadly aim.  But it wasn’t so much the toads…it was the birds.

This went on for quite a while.  The boredom, the stalking and the shooting followed by temporary remorse…until the next time.  Then it happened and I can remember it to this day. We had a cedar tree on one of the corners of our house.  It was large and went all the way to the ground.  As I approached the tree and peered into and under the tree there on the ground, happily hunting bugs, was a brown thrasher.  It was larger than a sparrow, so the thrill of the hunt was intensified. I saw him but he never saw me.  I took aim and in a moment of time he was on his side in the dirt. But this time…it was different.

The BB had not instantly killed him…rather he lay on the ground…mortally wounded and still breathing.  It was only for about thirty seconds, but it was almost like we locked eyes and I watched as he died and…that was it.  As far as I know I never shot another bird.  As I watched his life ebb away, I saw this little hobby as what it was…senseless fun at the expense of another’s life. Yes, I can still see that brown thrasher and it still causes me grief.

What was different that day was that I saw the grim reality of my actions…a reality so harsh it caused me to stop.  It.Caused.Me.To.Stop. The truth is in our everyday walk about lives we are confronted with difficult and often painful situations.  No, they don’t involve a bird, they don’t involve a BB gun, but they can be just as painful and cause just as much harm.  Sometimes it is a senseless action and sometimes it is a senseless word, but the result is a wounded heart followed by a lifelong scar. And unlike my hunt ending experience with a brown thrasher, for some reason these encounters often go on and on.

Like what happened when I stared death in the face…we need to see what our words and actions can do to the innocents, or maybe not so innocents, in our lives.  We need to pause and think before we speak or act…before we leave another scar.  I usually write from a Jesus perspective, and I guess I am now, but really, this goes beyond that to this—be kind and love one another.  Kindness and love are not always easy, but they are always right—and especially for us who follow Jesus.  Wherever and whenever…we, of all people, should set the example of the One we follow.  Tall order? Need help? Don’t fret…your Father is waiting to help. He’s got this. Bro. Dewayne