Tuesday, July 4, 2017

Another Thing To Take Care Of

I just love my sons. And not just because I am supposed to love them. They are great people. Handsome, smart, interesting, funny and just a joy to be around. I could probably write a book about any one of them, but today I want to tell you a bit about David.

Like all my sons, biological or not, he is a very handsome man. When he was a kid, many people described him as beautiful. At a family gathering a few years ago, I overheard a couple of his sisters-in-law talking about him. They were going on and on about how handsome he is. Finally, one of their husbands said, “You know I can hear you, don’t you?”

David was born with a sweet heart and a fun look at life. He was a toddler when we dedicated him at church. I was holding him in one arm and reading out of the dedication book; holding the book in my other hand. That freed him up to place a hand on each side of my face, force my face to center with his and preceded to kiss me right on the mouth. It was the sweetest dedication service I have ever been a part of.

One never knows what will come out of David’s mouth. What he says is rarely mean but often true, clear and funny. My favorite, oft told David story took place when he as around four or five years old. We lived in Stanford, Illinois, in a huge old house the church provided. With its twelve foot ceilings and the huge oak trees surrounding it, the house could be cooled in the summer by just opening the windows. One perfect summer day I was working in my office with the window open. Through that open window I heard a conversation David and his best friend Brian were having out in the yard just under that window.

David and Brian were best friends but they looked like brothers… almost twins. They both often were described as pretty. They had slight builds with light blond hair, beautiful blue eyes, nice complexions that tanned easily, were soft spoken and a joy to be around. They truly looked like brothers from different mothers.

A few years earlier, I had earned a Doctor of Ministry degree in Pastoral Counseling and, I must admit, for a while I was pretty full of myself. In a new pastorate, some people in the community were in the habit of calling me Dr. McConnell. (No one who knew me well.) That fact motivated the conversation I overheard. It went something like this. Brian (in an awed voice) said, “David, I just heard your daddy is a doctor.” To which David replied, “Yeah, but he’s not the kind that can help you.” I laughed till I thought I was going to wet myself. You just gotta love a kid that tells it like it is.

And he still has a great take on life and tells it like it is. For example, we were chatting on the phone earlier this week when he mentioned that he and his girlfriend had broken up. David also shared that she had ended it because he wasn’t spending enough time with her. I asked him how he was feeling about it. He said, in typical David fashion, “I am sad to see it end. But I am also relieved.” When I questioned him about being relieved, he replied, “She was a great person, but my life is full, with work and spending time with my children. (Let me say, at this point, David is the father I wish I had been.) So she ended up being just another thing I had to take care of.”

That may sound harsh to you. But it was David. He is sweet, kind, thoughtful and honest. Unfortunately, in our basically dishonest culture, honesty often sounds harsh when it is just being real and true. We are so used to being inundated with BS that, as was so famously said by Jack Nicholson in the movie, “A Few Good Men”, we can’t handle the truth.

Jesus said, “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” Unfortunately, we reject the truth, cling to the lies and remain in bondage. How sad.

Copyright © 2017, William T. McConnell, All Rights Reserved

Bill McConnell is the Interim Minister at Norwood Christian Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, and is a Church Transformation consultant and a Christian Leadership Coach. He is a frequent speaker at Church Transformation events. His latest book on church transformation is DEVELOPING A SIGNIFICANT CHURCH and is available at Westbow Press.

He can be contacted @ bill45053@gmail.com. Connect with him on Facebook @ William T. McConnell or on Twitter @billmc45053 or visit his Amazon Author Page @ Amazon

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