I hadn’t seen her smile as much…ever. Of course, I wasn’t around for the first 10 years of her life. I wasn’t present to witness her holding each of her four children for the first time either. We haven’t lived in the same town since the 90s, so I don’t know everything about what’s brought her happiness. But I do know that I hadn’t seen her smile as much…ever.

This past weekend I was blessed to officiate my oldest sister’s wedding and I learned about the power of a smile. Friday evening (rehearsal/dinner) and Saturday morning (the day of the wedding) were filled with smiles. Powerful smiles. My sister’s happiness was contagious. Virtually everyone I spoke with had something to say about it. It spread like wildfire.

She deserves it. I am so happy for her and Harvey. They are bringing people together in wonderful ways. I shall never forget August 1, 2009. I learned the power of the smile.

Have fun y0u two! Love you both!

It was all he could do, but it was beautiful to my ears.

Last Friday morning, I lead singing at a  local nursing home devotional service conducted by members of 16th & Pile. To my right was a man who lay the entire time reclined in chair. I never once saw him open his eyes. Upon my initial recognition of him, I presumed he was asleep. As we sang, though, I noted a distinct sound coming from his direction. His eyes remained closed and his mouth stayed shut, but the sound clearly came from him. He was humming the tune, never missing a beat. He continued the trend for all six songs I lead.

There’s something about worship in song that stimulates us when nothing else can. It brings us to life. It energizes us from lethargy and awakens us from slumber. It generates a response from us when nothing else might. That’s the amazing power of song!

After we were done, the  man continue to lay there with his eyes closed. He never responded to anything else anyone around him was doing. But when united in song, he apparently did all he could do and it was beautiful to my ears.

In my last post, I wrote of the inherent risk involved in having an internet presence. If you read the ensuing comments of that post, there was good discussion that followed. One comment, in particular, as one poster put it, may very well have proved the point of the post.

There is another element to this discussion deserving of treatment. Often those who post the most critical of comments, for whatever reason, will do so anonymously.  It’s an approach that strikes me as interesting.  If one has something to say, but is concerned about revealing his/her identity, maybe its better left unsaid? I know, there may be a legitimate reason to post something anonymously, but “hit and run” hecklers “in the name of Jesus” use the technique quite often. Personally, I think it reflects poorly on the one who uses it.

But there’s even a more sinister technique used by hecklers “in the name of Jesus.” Some, with a penchant for deception and lying, post comments under pseudonyms. Just supply the field with a false name and a phony email address and post away. What might that say about a person?

This happens more often than you’d imagine. I think it’s happened here very recently. That I’ve enquired of a person’s identity and the invalidity of the email address that was supplied with his comment, but have gotten no response as yet, is telling. You see, this is not the first time that I’ve gotten a comment from this person, but it is the first one that I’ve allowed through. WordPress.org supplies the IP address with the comment that is posted. IP addresses are specific to a person’s computer/network. A simple search allowed me to discover from what city the post/posts originated. This coupled with the fact that I know of no one by the poster’s name and the email address supplied isn’t a valid email address, has forced me to believe that the poster was using a pseudonym. Too, for another reason, I have a sneaking suspicion that I know who the poster is. The question is…will the person own up to it? I doubt it. Pride keeps us from doing a lot of things we know we should.

There is a possibility that I might be wrong, but I don’t think so. If I am, I will own up to it. What I am certain of, though, is that this kind of thing goes on regularly. I know of others who have experienced similar situations. How honorable is it to use deception as a cloak for cowardice?

Having a personal website, a blog , or even a Facebook page comes with a price. A person is putting himself or herself out there for the world to see, and often those who stop by have an agenda. Thankfully, blog softwares generally all have comment moderating capabilities. Sites like Facebook have the means of blocking users from personal profiles. This is good but it’s also unfortunate.

I love reading blogs, especially the ones by those who are dealing with substantive life issues. They are providing us a service, opening our eyes to the dark realities of ministry work. I read blogs to understand people, not to get what I believe. I definitely don’t read blogs so that I can dig up dirt on other people. But some do.

I know this because some are proud enough to admit it. I know this because word gets around quickly. I know this because people like to chase rabbits. Don’t join the wrong Facebook group or befriend the wrong person; we all know what that means!

The sad reality is that good people are leaving local ministry because of the beatings they take. Good writers are shutting down blogs because they are sick of hecklers “in the name of Jesus.” They are sick of having to apologize to friends and family for hecklers “in the name of Jesus.” It’s unfortunate, but its reality. What a shame!