Even when the world is going crazy around me,
Even when thing after thing keeps going wrong,
Even when problem after problem keeps popping up in front of me, I will not compromise my faith.
Even when my anger temps me to do the wrong thing,
Even when my frustration boils over,
Even when enemies try to get me to lower my standards, I will not compromise my faith.
Even when Satin comes at me with everything he has,
Even when the mountain in front of me seems impassable,
Even when the world seems black, I will not compromise my faith.
Hebrews 11:6 Without faith, then, no human being can glorify God. For a person is responsible for what is offered to God, that is an indication of faith and a proof that those who love Him, He repays.
Harry Cohen, 11/6/1993 - 8/29/2011 A Life Not Wasted. photo by Jon Upchurch
My previous blog post What is the Value of a Life hit home recently when a local high school senior died unexpectedly.
We lost a beautiful life on August 29, 2011: star athlete, high school senior, football team captain, quarterback, son, stepson, brother, cousin, friend, teammate, a young man loved by everyone. Harry Cohen: November 6, 1993 - August 29, 2011.
His untimely passing ripped open the hearts of his family, teammates, friends, and even those who never met him.
Harry was truly a special person. To watch him play football was to watch pure desire to win, pure joy in competition, and a love of life. Quiet, reserved, and humble in life, Harry exploded with energy and competitiveness when he stepped onto a football field.
When tragedy like this strikes, the question most asked is "why". It doesn't really matter the cause of death. His family and friends just want to know why... why him... why now... why was such a vibrant, promising young life taken so suddenly? We will never have answers that satisfy such a gaping wound. Faith in God provides the only comfort.
The cause of death was determined to be toxicity from pain medication: Harry took some of his grandmother's pain pills. He was sore from Friday night's football game and on Saturday night, unknown to his parents, took the pills before he went to bed. Harry was small, 150lbs, and had virtually no body fat. The pill bottle label read "take 2 pills every 4 hours as needed". The doctor said for his weight and lack of body fat that ½ to 1 pill could have killed him. What teenager would think that he could be hurt by something his grandmother takes? It was a simple, but fatal mistake.
God gives us freewill, and that means we can change things for the better or worse, for ourselves, and others. A smile can change a stranger's day and potentially their life... the reverse is true too: a mean or hateful act can ruin someone's day and potentially their life. There is also free will to just make mistakes in judgment as harry did.
People are quick to acknowledge or believe in God and Angels... but a good percentage of people disavow evil, Satan, and evil spirits. As great as God is, He has not yet eradicated evil. Evil is alive and well and is much more active in our lives than we realize. Evil does not have to be big like the holocaust or a child molester... it can be small things like a mean comment, a mistake, or sickness.
If we're lucky, we grow old and die of natural causes, something Harry will never get to do. Aging itself is a form evil: I don't believe aging and sickness are something God created, but rather a product of sin (evil). This is alluded to in Geneses when Adam and Eve are expelled from the Garden of Eden, and spoken to directly in Romans 5:12.
When a young person is taken from us, I believe that evil is involved. God would not inflict such pain on his people. God knows the pain involved with loosing a child - he sent his only Son to be tortured and brutally murdered for our sins. God treats us as sheep to a shepherd... and shepherds don't hurt their sheep.
When someone dies, especially a young person, there are always those who say things like "God needed Harry for (insert a variety of things here) and called him home". I don't think so. I don't think for one minute that God took Harry because he needed another star in the sky, or some of the other sugary sweet things I hear people say trying to console grieving parents. There's not a human being on earth that can say anything to make his parent's hearts stop hemorrhaging for Harry. Only God can provide that level of healing and comfort.
We're part of a huge plan, a picture so vast we cannot even begin to fathom its vastness, its hugeness, its greatness. Each of us is a pixel, a dot so small we're almost undetectable - we can't see or understand the picture from where we are. We must face the fact that we'll never know the "why".
Regardless of what took Harry from us, we can rest assured in the knowledge that God welcomed Harry into Heaven with open arms.
God will have the last word and show His Presence and Power in whatever rises from Harry's passing. God can take the most hopeless situation and create good from it... a lot of good... an amazing amount of good. Harry has touched lives and changed hearts in his life and in his passing: I pray the changes last. As one of the ministers said during his funeral, "this is a life NOT wasted".
Harry's last game, Friday August 26, 2011 was the game of his life. He rushed for 258 yards, he passed for 108 yards, he scored 1 touchdown, and he set a school record for total yards in a game of 366. I heard someone say he played like God was showing him off. Perhaps God was indeed showing him off. It was a fitting exit for Harry, whose heart was bigger than he was and whose smile lit up a room (or stadium).
Video Highlights and Photos from Harry's Last Game on 8/26/2011
Some may ask: if God knew what was going to happen how could he allow it to happen? Part of the answer lies in freewill - the choices that Harry and others made. I also think that part of the answer lies in time... time does not mean the same thing to God as it does to us. We're bound by time, like a fly frozen in an ice cube. God created everything, including time, and is therefore not bound by time. God sees everything at once (St. Augustine), we don't: we see one little slice at a time. Compared to God, we're blind, deaf, and dumb, just feeling our way around in the dark. As I mentioned above, we can't comprehend the big picture that God sees. We can't possibly grasp "seeing" the past, present, and future of the entire universe all at once. We only see our small little slice of time and reality. For us, only the passing of time will allow us to see the miracles that God will create with, and from, Harry's life.
Does any of this comfort his grieving parents, siblings, and teammates who are walking around lost in a fog? The only source of comfort is in knowing that this life is temporary and that we will see Harry again. We will see his big smile again.
A drop of time
A lifetime
A flash of light
A silence so loud it hurts
Screaming silence
A loud cord
A single note
A fading echo
An infinite abyss so near
Endless silence
Until next time,
Fred
P.S. A memorial fund for Harry Cohen has been setup to help cover medical and funeral expenses. Checks can be made payable to "Harry Cohen Memorial Fund" and dropped off at any MidCarolina Bank location. Or mailed to:
MidCarolina Bank
3101 South Church Street
Burlington, NC 27215.
To some it's not much. To others it's incalculable.
Most people value the life of a child more than the life of an older person. I think it's the promise of a life yet to be lived. For example if a disaster strikes and you literally can only save one, most everyone would save the child.
To a parent with a sick child, a terminally sick infant for example, there's nothing beyond what they would give to heal their child. To a child abuser who's thrown their child across the room and cracked his or her skull, the life of their child (to them) is next to worthless.
The first parent has a hard enough time understanding and dealing with their situation, when they read about the second parent, they explode with disgust and anger, and rightly so.
Why do these two extremes exist? How can one person have such little regard for an innocent life? How does the parent of the sick child deal with, and cope with, watching something they value more than their own life struggle to live and possibly slip away?
I don't have the answers to all the questions that surround both situations. I wish I did. I've never experienced either situation (thank God). But God does have answers and can provide healing...
God experienced both as we tortured his Son, nailed his Son to the cross, and killed him...
...turn to God for peace in situations where peace seems an impossibility.
The preacher had a good sermon today - I hate it when that happens, cuts in to my nap time! Actually, he did have a good sermon.
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I do believe that we're given at least one gift everyday, it's up to us to actually notice it... and no, I don't really think this includes seeing Jesus in your scrambled eggs or mold growing on your wall, I mean a real gift. But... like most things in life, one man's trash is another man's treasure: we may not see the gift because all we see is trash. A diamond in the rough does not shine and sparkle like the finished product. I think God sends diamonds in the rough - we have to cut and polish them.
Speaking of signs, this week I read a short article in our local paper about a guy who claims to see Jesus and a few other faces in an old painted sign on a brick wall where he works. I don't know, maybe he does. In life you see what you want to see. Some people see a child with downs syndrome as a curse, a burden to bear, and say "why me"... others see the same child as a gift, an opportunity to love unconditionally, and say "thank you". It's all about perspective. Is Jesus in that wall painting? No. Jesus is a living God, touching our lives with other lives, usually with something simple like an easy-to-overlook-and-pass-off-as-something-else action or event.
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Do you think demons and evil are real? Back in Biblical days Jesus and his disciples cast out a lot of demons to cure people of various sicknesses and problems. Do demons no longer cause these same afflictions? I'll bet they do, we're just too "smart" to for that now. I wish I could see them (note to self: be careful what you ask for!) and do something about them when I see them (note to self #2: if I do see them, I definitely will need the power to do something about them!). I look around and see a lot of evil - it's not just child-molesters or wife-beaters: evil is a child trapped in a world where their body is crippled or a mind trapped in a black hole no one can reach, it's leaders betraying their country and their people, it's leaders and laypeople alike claiming to fight to end race conflict yet constantly making it worse for their own twisted reasons, it's the constant race to the bottom of the morality barrel... there's no shortage of evil these days, so I reason there's no shortage of demons. It's time to cast some out don't you think?
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When the thing that you fear and worry about actually starts to happen it can be a relief... if that is, you realize that God is going to provide a path through the minefield.
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God will take care of us if we let him... we just tend to think we can do a better job... not too smart on our part.
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Back to the preacher's sermon... it was about the fact we don't really know how to pray. He's right - here are some of my thoughts: Too often we approach prayer like sitting on Santa's lap at Christmas, we need to focus less on our wants and needs and more on others. God knows what we want and need without us asking for it all the time. Prayer is a constant process, not something we turn on and off... I'm going to write more on this in the future, but I believe that if we "pray" for "x" (when we actually pray in a formal way by closing our eyes and actively praying) and the other 23 hours and 55 minutes of the day we're doing and thinking the opposite of "x", then we're not really praying for "x", we're praying for the opposite of "x" and the opposite of "x" is what we'll experience.
A Burlington, NC Christian acting group, Act On Ministries is the first to create and produce a screenplay for "The Last SIN Eater".
Like a piece of unhemmed fabric in the wind, lies will eventually unravel. Sometimes the lies are so tightly woven into the fabric we know as our reality, we're completely unprepared for the exposed truths as lives are changed and sometimes violent upheavals occur. All it takes is for one person to start asking a few questions... and not give up.
This unraveling of reality is the story of "The Last SIN Eater" by Francine Rivers. This is an intense story.
Act On Ministries, a local Christian acting group, created the first screenplay for "The Last SIN Eater". This 1998 novel by Francine Rivers was previously produced as a movie directed by Michael Landon, Jr., and released from Believe Pictures in 2007. Hannah Fox of Act On Ministries took on this task, with permission from Believe Pictures and Francine Rivers and adapted the novel to a screenplay; she also directed the production and played one of parts.
I sat in the audience not knowing what to expect. I've not read the book nor seen the movie. All I knew about the story was what I'd read about the production in the paper the week before. As the house lights dimmed and the spotlights pierced the darkness, the audience was transported to a 1850s Smoky Mountain village of Welsh Americans as a story of horrible hidden truths, murders, misplaced guilt, and iron-fisted control of others is meticulously woven before us.
The basic story line is that Cadi Forbes blames herself for her little sister's death. She feels her mother blames her too and no longer feels close to her. The only person she felt close to was her grandmother and now she's dead too. The play opens as the "Sin Eater" comes to the village to take on her grandmother's sins. The Sin Eater is a member of the community selected by lottery to live shunned, alone, and away from the village. He only comes into the village when someone dies, for the sole purpose of taking on their sins.
Looking at, or have any contact with, the Sin Eater, will result in being tarnished by their accumulated sin.
Cadi is so tormented and troubled by the guilt she feels over her sister's death that she looks at the Sin Eater when he's taking the sin from her grandmother. She doesn't fear him. Afterwards, she tries to find him so that he can take away her sin now, not later when she's dead. Thus begins her long journey for the truth. There are a lot of twists and turns along the way as she learns bits and pieces about the past, about Jesus (the real last sin eater), as well as the lies covering up so much of the way of life the whole village accepts as the truth, as their reality.
This was an impressive production and adaptation, with excellent acting all around. The audience was truly engaged. I laughed a lot, and had tears welling up at least twice, from Rebekah Davidson's portrayal of Cadi Forbes, and Mia Lundgren's portrayal of Cadi's mother Fia Forbes.
This is a very relevant story, both on the surface as well as beneath. Only a few people in the village knew the truth, any others who knew were long dead. The villagers took their way of life as exactly that, their way of life, they didn't ask why or question anything. They didn't know any different. What is it that we're being lied to about? What are we missing? Who are we allowing to control us? How many will not allow themselves to be forgiven for sins that have long since been paid?
Now that the screenplay has been written, perhaps other groups around the country will put on this production. In the meantime, you can purchase the book or the DVD!
It's for the Glory of God... It's Not About You...
We're nothing, God is everything... We have no power, no talent, no skills, nothing, other than what God give us... it's up to us to hone (sharpen for those of you who have never sharpened anything) those abilities and gifts to their fullest...
However, very, very few realize or even begin to understand that we're a conduit, a conductor if you will, for God's greatness. If we use our abilities to glorify God, and believe, we can actually conduct more of God's "current"... we can increase the amount of God that shows and flows through us. But only if we're doing it for God's greatness - the minute we start to believe that we actually own or have power, skills, or abilities, we start to move away from God and away from the ability to do great things on his behalf. The minute we say "look at me" instead of "look at God" we're doomed.
Let's say for example, that you're a talented athlete (or musician, or artist, or...), perfect in every aspect for your chosen sport... God has given you everything you need to excel and dominate in your sport, except one thing. In every area except one, you're a perfect specimen, envied by others. God has not opened every door for you either; he's left some closed and opened others. Why? God needs you to show others what His power can do.
Maybe you've been overlooked and passed by... so what... try all the doors until the ones that will open are revealed to you. Then pray for wisdom and guidance for which door to go through. Then open your heart, soul, and body to what God will do with you.
Sports are dominated by egos, self-worship and poor roll models. The few Christian "stars" who do rise to the top are often criticized and are rarely first-page news. If you had all the gifts God could give you, what would it prove, what greatness would it show other than your own? No, God has a plan, and that plan is to reveal His power and greatness through a chosen few. God works through those that pray before each game, those who thank God for each point, and those who say "I didn't cross this finish line first except for the Grace of God".
Step on to that field, court, track, or into that arena wearing God's armor and shield. He will give you what you need when you need it. With more power, grace, and ability than you can imagine. Your one shortcoming will become your strength that makes you rise above others... but remember, it's for the Glory of God, not you... it's not about you.
Psalm 18:32-34 the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless. He made my feet like the feet of a deer and set me secure on the heights. He trains my hands for war, so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
1 Peter 4:11 If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
Same verse from the Aramaic Bible: Whoever speaks, let them speak like the Manifestation of God speaks, and whoever ministers, let them minister according to the power given by God, so as whatever you accomplish, God is glorified through Jesus Christ. To Whom belongs the glory and the honor to the end of the universe, of all the universes, amen. Notice the Aramaic Bible directly translates the phrase "power given by God" vs. the "strength God provides" from the New Revised Standard version above.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10 But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. " Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Psalm 20: 7-8 Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm.
What's the Value of a Life?
