What language do you speak?

In the last few years much has been said about the importance of the "Navajo Code Talkers" whose ability to speak a language no one else in the world could understand was so profitable to the allied effort during WWII. They created a code that the Germans and Japanese were never able to break. There contribution to the war was invaluable. By the same token, very little has been said about the role that Louisiana French speakers played in the French Resistance during that time. It is said that the Germans could quickly identify a Canadian French accent and by that many spies were caught. The Louisiana French that we commonly call Cajun today is very close to the common language of Northern France. With a few lessons  Cajun French speakers were able to pass themselves off as French peasants when in fact they were spies. There effort to the war can not be overstated.

Bernie LeJeune was sent to Camp Shelby, Mississppi in 1941 to prepare for service overseas. In the initial interview he was asked if he spoke a second language. He replied that he spoke French. The interviewer looked at his paperwork, saw that he was from Louisiana, and brushed it aside. Your dialect of French, he was told, will not be of any use to the military. LeJeune was stationed in Casablanca. There the French and American bureaucracy  had locked horns. One night LaJeune overhead some officers from the French army in a heated discussion. He walked up and asked what the problem was. They replied that the absence of a capable interpreter was causing all the problems. LaJeune had a new job and the problem was solved. So much for his French being of no use to the U.S. military.

Is there someone in our lives whose importance we have underestimated? Perhaps they are not just like us. They may seem to be causing problems on the job, in church, or in our circle of friends. It could be that we just have not yet discovered what that person is good at. We are all guilty of being a little impatient with others at times. Perhaps we need to spend a little more time getting to know that person before we write him off. It may be that he is the answer to a problem we have been praying about for a long time.

All of us are created in the image of God and so all of us have worth. May God help us to see each individual he places in our lives as a gift from him.

Thoughtfully Yours,

Sullivan Jones

The Way of the Cross

Hebrews 12:2 - Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

The word "despise" in this instance means something like "to not pay attention to." The scripture is telling us that Jesus did not let the shame of the cross keep him from doing the will of his father. He came to this earth with a purpose - to restore sinful humanity to a right relationship with God. There was never a thought in his mind about turning back. That decision was made long before he was born. He was conceived in the mind and plan of God before the foundation of the world. The human part of him, no doubt, had reservations. But the God inside of Him gave him strength to endure the agony of the cross for our sakes.

In the same way, there are times when all of us have to face a cross. It is not a literal Roman cross that I speak of. But it is still a place of crucifixion or dying out to our fleshly desires. We must all come to a place of decision; will I choose my own path or will I follow the one God has chosen for me?

The world we live in is making it increasingly harder to identify oneself as a Christian. There was a time when to identify oneself with Christianity was to identify with all that is Holy, noble, respected and pure. The concept of many in our world today is that Christians are bigots, intolerant, and hard to get along with. The pressure is on to conform.

There are those who try to make us ashamed of our "old-fashioned" ideas about what is proper and what isn't. In such times Christians have a choice to make. It is not a new choice. Jesus' disciples made it, Christians in the dark ages made it, and we must make it now. We must follow Jesus at any cost. Christians should be a peace loving people. We should treat everyone we meet with respect. But we should not allow the world to dictate our morals or lifestyles. The way of the cross might be a shameful one but it leads to Jesus. I say we should choose the cross. How about you?

In Christian Service,

Sullivan Jones

Imagination - A terrible thing to waste!

Philippians 4:8 - Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

The imagination is a powerful thing. If necessity is the mother of invention then imagination is the fuel that fires the engines of our mind. Thomas Edison used his imagination to invent the Phonograph. George Washington Carver used his imagination to bring us more than 300 uses for the peanut. The list goes on .....

The imagination can also be used for evil. The examples in our world are so numerous that they don't need naming.  The imagination itself is neither evil nor good. A good person will conceive of ways to help people. An evil person  will think up mischief or crime.

The imagination can also cause us to believe things are a certain way when they aren't. I'm sure we've all been scared by a ghost story or horror movie. Our logic tells us one thing but our imagination convinces us otherwise. There are people who have been scared into having heart attacks because their imaginations were working overtime. What we put into our minds is fuel for the imagination.

The best way to ensure that our imaginations and motives are pure is to be careful what we feed on. We should be careful about what we read, watch, and listen to. These things enter our minds and become food for the imagination. Ultimately they will guide our thoughts and help to shape our destinies. We've all heard the term "food for thought." Truthfully everything that enters our minds is "food for our thoughts." I want my thoughts and imaginations to be true, honest, just, pure, lovely and so forth. (Philippians 4:8) After all, the imagination is a terrible thing to waste.