Fruit of a Poisonous Tree

For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? (Matthew, 16:26)

Jesus plus nothing equals everything. The mind of a man is an idle factory, we think that our identity depends upon our idols. AND, idols are not just man made carvings, figures which people worship and then throw away the scraps of their carving work. AND, idols are not just stock portfolios, real estate holdings, university degrees, athletic prowess (hitting, throwing, manipulating a ball of any sort), God given talent (playing an instrument, intrangency in voice manipulation, spoken or singing), just the all consuming self indulgent, profusion of looks and appearance. There are those who spend their entire life in the all consuming mental factory of beauty and anything else it takes to look superior to everyone else... usually females, often males. Each year, $426 billion is spent on looking good (Huffington Post, 2013). Of course, we ALL like to see attractive people, good smelling people (My greatest adjustment as a doctor was learning to tolerate the body odor of patients).

The longer I live, the more frustrated I become with human beings who live such "manicured" lives, just going through the motions... no depth feeling, no passion or purpose. Often when speaking from a pulpit, I would use a vase filled with dead vines-limbs-branches from once live bushes. These dead things produce nothing. Jesus taught us that He is the sustenance of life, the root, from which comes the tree, from which comes the branches with its flowers and fruit. The greatest lessons of Christianity are found in sowing and reaping. You reap from live producing plants. It is such a tragedy that all children are not raised and educated on a farm, where they can see the results of seeds planted in the soil, God's goodness in providing water and sunlight. It is tragic that every boy could not have a father who showed him how evil roots would choke the roots of producing plants. It is tragic that every child cannot see the love of mother animals for their young (hens for chicks, sows for piglets, cows for calves, cats for kittens, mother dogs for puppies, etc). It is only a human being-mother who aborts her young, refuses to fight, even die for her young. The human being is the only animal that can blush, now we know why.

Mankind has created God's, idols. To most people, their own God, individuality is all that matters. We live in a world of meism. We become totally fascinated by a soldier who saves the lives of his fellow soldiers, someone who saves another from drowning or from a fire. The miracle of the ages, how God must love those who adopt children... how God must love those around the world who care for the orphan. It is a scientific fact that children who are not loved or touched, die. There are two things the atheist cannot explain, that man is born with an innate ability to know good from evil, and that God is the caretaker of the planets. There is a third, which I have never been able to fully comprehend; how some chosen-blessed people are so willing to share their faith, both by living it in public and telling others about it. Why should we be embarrassed to share with others, even many times members of our own family, our conviction that Jesus Christ is the only way of life and our only salvation at death.

In this writer's DNA, you will find the dirt of the family farm where my farming ancestors learned about survival, faith both in dry times and in wet times. You will find in my DNA the hardness gained from sitting on the pews of a country church. The seeking of education from a country school where just one light bulb hung down from the ceiling. This writer did not idolize the addictions of drugs, including alcohol, pretentions of evolution. We had a faith to live with, to die by.

I was so disappointed yesterday, a time of bad weather here in eastern North Carolina, when I had one of the organized telephone messages, from that country church several hours away, where me, my parents, my grandparents, my great-grandparents worshipped. Over the years, I have been very generous with that church and I am on their telephone list. The secretary announced that their would be no prayer service because there was some ice on the steps and on the sidewalks. At this time of paved roads, wonderful heating system in the building, nice cars to get there, there would be no prayer service because of a little ice. Several years ago, a bad summer drought, the THEN pastor announced that there would be no prayer service because of a large rain filling the ditches. My ancestors would have been at the church rejoicing about the rain for the crops. The ice that is killing the insects.

All of our lives have someone's fingerprints on them. The life of the Islamist, evidently, has the fingerprint of Mohammad (Did you know that the Islamist mother is assured of heaven if she names her male child Mohammad? Now you understand why there are so many Mohammad's). Frustrating, exhausting, the very idea that the Muslim suicide bomber is promised seventeen virgins in heaven. Religions have always had a quality of attracting someone, someway, some good and some evil. The Klan burned the Christian cross at their gatherings, even claimed to be Christian as they spread their hate. Thank God, there are people in the world who did not eat from a poisonous tree.

It was many years ago, this writer was "NC Young Man of the Year", like my high school Valedictory address, which I still remember, I remember the speech after the award presentation. I spoke of my parents, teachers and other people in my life who had influenced my life for the good. I told young men and women in the military service, I have said it to graduating classes, "At your peril, you drink from the poison well... you seek sustenance from the poison tree." We are blessed with life and in spite of its troubles, trials, tribulations, no man, except the mentally sick, wants to die. At death, you look like an old beat up beer can lying by the side of the highway and have about as much usefulness. Every day is a challenge, every day is a gift from God.

Rhonda Bryne in her famous book, The Secret, tells us that every man is his own God. Perhaps some unfortunates have found some man to worship.