Is Your Tag Showing?

12 Jun

I get a kick out of the Burlington Coat Factory ads, encouraging customers with their “brag about it” advertising of their great prices.

In each commercial, a woman compares what she bought at Burlington vs. what others pay in major department stores.

I felt like I was running my own ad after I returned home from eating out last night.

My husband and I went out to eat at Outback Steakhouse, using a gift card from a relative. We enjoyed the meal and went home.

Then, to my chagrin, I realized the price tag from my new sweater, purchased at Burlington, was still attached to the back of my sweater! Only I wasn’t thinking, “Great! Everyone will know that I got a great deal … I’m bragging about Burlington.”

No, I was thinking, “Oh great. Everyone will know I had another senior moment!”

But it got me thinking about tags. We all wear them, you know.

Some tags we choose – Wife, mother, writer, executive, teacher, etc. Others are given to us – godly, fun, a worrier, stubborn, kind, a friend, wise ….

We wear our tags (labels) every day. They identify and describe us. Sometimes they open doors; sometimes they limit us. We’re proud of some tags, but ashamed of others.

I’m always amazed how many tags we wear that we can choose, if we desire and plan to do so.

The tag I always want to display is the one that says “Christian.” Though some may misunderstand the tag or even redefine it in our culture, I keep going back to the biblical tag.

“… the disciples were first called Christians at Antioch” (Acts 11:26). An important city in the Roman Empire – adorned with public baths, aqueducts, theaters, temples and lots of pagans – Antioch eventually became an important city in the spread of the Gospel. The first believers fled to this city after Stephen’s Tag_Christianmartyrdom, and Barnabas and Paul preached there.

“Christian” is a word the Antiochians gave Christ-followers; it was a descriptive term. These early New Testament believers were Jews who became disciples of “the Christ,” the Messiah, and they were glad to wear His name. They lived for Jesus and walked in His ways, glorifying God in His name (1 Peter 4:16).

Many believe the term “Christian” was actually a derogatory term – a term of denigration and abuse. But the disciples who loved Jesus embraced the name with joy, willing to suffer for His name. But the point is, they were “called” this name, given this name. People around them saw them becoming “little Christs” and acknowledged the similarities. Their tag was showing.

Which makes me wonder.

Do people see my Christian tag? If not, what is in the way?

By the way, our tag doesn’t have to be that particular word for people to know we belong to Christ. Our tag might read: “believer,” “disciple,” “brother/sister in the Lord,” “servant/bondservant,” “the faithful/the elect,” or “saint.”

But the meaning will be clear. We are not of this world (John 15:19; 1 John 2:15); we are not to conform to it (Romans 12:2). If we are living in the power of Christ, the world will know we are from a different kingdom, living for a different Lord.

Is your tag showing?

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‘Techno-Blonde’ and Other Defeating Names

5 Jun
Photo by Grey Eagle Ray

Photo by Grey Eagle Ray

George, a new farmer in town, had so many children he ran out of names for them. So he started calling his kids after common things around his farm.

On the first day of school, the teacher asked each child in the class to say his or her name. When the teacher got to one of farmer George’s sons, the boy replied, “My name is Wagon Wheel.”

The teacher laughed and said, “Now come on now – I need your real name.”

“It’s Wagon Wheel, Sir,” the boy said. “That’s the honest truth.”

The teacher, rather annoyed, replied, “All right, then, young man. You take yourself right down to the Principal’s office this minute. I’ll deal with you later.”

At that, young Wagon Wheel pushed himself out of his chair, punched his sister on the arm and said, “C’mon, Chicken Feed. He ain’t gonna believe you, either!”

LOL!

The names we call ourselves mean something. Maybe your mama got yours from another family member. Maybe there’s a story behind your name.

My name – as my mom tells the story – came from TV personality Art Linkletter’s daughter, Dawn. And then again, Mom and Dad lived above an Italian lady at the time I was born. Grandma said Mom was thinking “Donna Maria,” but that didn’t go well with my German-sounding maiden name. It ended up being Dawn Marie.

Have you noticed – we call ourselves names all our lives: “Smartie,” “Stupid,” “Fatso,” “Twiggy,” “Party Girl, “Wall Flower.”

Since the explosion of the Internet, blogs, Twitter and Facebook, my go-to name for myself has been “Techno-Blonde.” I’ve used the name to draw laughter when I speak, poking fun at my ineptness with technologies of all sorts.

And then a friend drew me up short one day.

“Why do you say that?” she asked, and she explained how defeating the term sounds.

The more I thought about it, the clearer I saw her point. As long as I called myself “techno-blonde,” I had no motivation to change, no incentive to learn the very skills I need in the computer age.

So I stopped using the term. (OK, I slipped a couple of times at first.) Instead, I thought of myself as “in training.”

And you know what? I started learning how to do the very things I thought I could never do. I recently even surprised myself by figuring out how to make a video for YouTube. (Yes, most of you have likely done that for years, but I celebrated when I clicked the video publish button!)

The point is … when we stop calling ourselves names, we give ourselves permission to change.

The scripture the Lord used to encourage me in this transformation was Ephesians 4:32 – “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” I had applied that verse to loving and encouraging others; why not myself?

I gave myself the same grace to make mistakes, learn and change that I gave others. I stopped beating myself up and breathed a sigh of relief. It was OK to be human. I didn’t have to know how to do everything, just because my friends did. I didn’t have to impress people with my “know how.” I realized that God, my audience of One, is also my sufficiency. He will help me learn whatever is necessary for effective ministry.

How about you? What names are you calling yourself – stunting the growth and transformation God desires for you?

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An Old Lady’s 5 Life Principles

30 May

The older I get, the more I enjoy jokes about aging. Sometimes they hurt a bit, but they’re still funny. Such as:

  • “My memory’s not as sharp as it used to be. Also, my memory’s not as sharp as it used to be.”
  • An elderly woman was driving down the road with her friend. When she went through a red light, her friend didn’t say anything, but after she sailed through the second light, the friend exclaimed, “Hilda! Don’t you realize you just went through two red lights?”

“Oh,” Hilda said, “was I driving?”

I’m a little fascinated with old people. I hope to be one someday.

Misao Okawa

Misao Okawa

According to Wikipedia, in its article, “Oldest People,” the oldest male supercentenarian is Japan’s Jiroemon Kimura (still alive at 116 years in April, 2013).  Misao Okawa, at 115 years, is currently the oldest living female, also living in Japan. On a chart of old people, Misao is followed by five 113-year-olds living in the United States, and three more 113-year-olds in Japan, Italy, and the United Kingdom.

The oldest person mentioned in the Bible is Methuseleh, at the age of 969 years, seven days before the beginning of the Great Flood. While there is much controversy surrounding his age, biblical literalists believe these were actual 969 solar years. His and other biblical characters’ longevity was possible, they say, because of the vapor-canopy protecting the earth and because sin’s influence became greater with subsequent generations, shortening the “eternal life” that man was created to enjoy “in the beginning.”

One modern supercentenarian, a lady named Besse Cooper, caught my eye.

BesseCooper_at118When Besse died in a Georgia nursing home last December (12-4-12) at 116 years old, she left behind a legacy of strength.

Jim Daly of Focus on the Family interviewed Besse’s son, Sidney Cooper, and discovered five possible reasons for her longevity, as conveyed by her son. I think she was a pretty wise woman!

1. Cultivate a Sense of Wonder. Besse thought of everything in life as a “wonderful gift,” Sidney said.

I recently stopped to notice a tiny flower pushing up through a crack in cement. I stared at it in wonder, and took a moment to cheer that flower on! How much better life would be if we took time to notice the beauties of creation, the goodness of God, the lesson in a difficulty.

2. Take in Stride What Comes Your Way. Sidney said his mom refused to worry, saying, “What good will it do you?”

Right! Worry does us no good. Neither does a critical, judgmental spirit. Or complaining. Recognizing the sovereignty of God has helped me take many more things in stride as I’ve grown older. Like Besse, I’m finding that foolish attitudes are counterproductive.

3. Read Your Bible. Ah Besse. That is a powerful one.

Sidney reported that up until Besse’s eyesight failed, three years before her passing, she read her Bible every day – especially the Psalms. No wonder she could take much of life “in stride.” She grew in wisdom. She likely learned to trust the Author. She knew what mattered.

4. Don’t Eat Junk Food. LOL! In the middle of so many serious thoughts, why this one? Because she was serious about her body’s health, not just having a healthy mind, healthy attitudes, and a healthy spirit! She advocated eating in moderation.

We all could be healthier with a balanced, nutritious diet. If our health fails, ministry may be more difficult, so this is important.

5. Mind Your Own Business. Another LOL moment for me. Getting into other people’s business just wasn’t Besse’s style, Sidney said, and she was better able to focus on managing the challenges in her own life.

My own Grandma used to say, “If people spent half as much time working on their own problems as they do on other people’s problems, they’d have a lot less problems!”

Do these ring true for you? Do you have another life principle that has guided your life?

[Photo of Misao Okawa, AFP; Photo of Besse Cooper from Focus on the Family's community forum, 10-24-12]

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