Friday, February 28, 2014

A Couple of Guys Named Earl

"And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch.  And it came about that for an entire year they met with the church, and taught considerable numbers; and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch" (Acts 11:26)

I had originally intended to write this post quite some time ago, beloved.  In fact, the idea has been simmering on one of the back burners of my mind for a while.  It was recently brought forward when my sister changed her Face Book photo and replaced it with one of my mother and father taken around the time of their wedding in the early 1940's.  Just seeing their beautiful faces reminded me that I needed to get back to this blog idea and "git 'er done."

You may have already figured out that the two guys named Earl are my dad and me.  My grandparents gave him the name Earl as a surname (don't even ask what the "T" stands for in his middle name!).  Then Mom and Dad gave me the name Earl as my middle name and it is one that I have worn gladly and proudly throughout my life.  Wearing the name Earl for me is a true badge of honor.  My father in his life was an honorable man, a man of dignity and integrity who loved his country and served it well.  The photo that I have already mentioned shows him in his military uniform during WWII.  On every bomber mission while on active duty he would crawl through that narrow tunnel in the belly of his B-17, strap himself into the tail gunner's turret and, with his fellow crew members, put his life on the line to defend liberty against horrible and perverted aggression.  I guess you can tell from that bit of nostalgic rambling that I am honored myself to be a guy named Earl.

Although many of you no doubt have similar stories you could tell, the point that I really started out to make is that we all as followers of Jesus Christ have a koinonia, a "sharing in common," that is far more than just a couple of guys named Earl.  You see, we each have the honor and the privilege of being known as a person named Christian.  And with that privilege comes the most awesome responsibility that it is possible for any one individual to bear.  We have the task of bearing that glorious name before the eyes of a watching world, most of whom do not have that privilege yet.  They are watching you and me to see if they can figure out why it is so important for them as well to become a guy named Christian.  And the decision that they will each ultimately make, though their own to make and their own consequences to bear, will still in great measure be affected by what they see in you and me.

So I am just a guy named Earl and you already know why it is such an honor for me to bear that name.  But more than that I am a guy named Christian and it is my joy and my responsibility to bear that name as Jesus did.  The reality for me personally is that I fall and I get back up.  I fall again and I get back up again...but I never lose sight of the name that I bear and of the cost that Jesus paid to give me the privilege to bear it.

Say, how is that name fairing in your daily care?

Ron