Opinions

I haven’t gone camping in a tent in a long time. I grew up camping and, for much of that time, it was in a tent. My parents would take my sister and me to the Boundary Waters between Minnesota and Canada for about a week. We’d paddle our canoes from one lake to the next. We’d listen to the loons at night. We’d build a fire. We’d eat dried food -- which miraculously tasted better the farther we paddled from civilization. We’d drink water right out of the lake, before we needed expensive filters. We’d use the latrine deep in the woods. I still vividly remember the time I felt flies landing on my behind -- only to look down into the latrine and see a whiskered woodchuck looking up at me!

Watching politicians speak at rallies isakintopeprallieswherecheerleaders and the band cut loose in the friendliest of settings. You pretty much know what will be spoken and the results will be a charged-up base of supporters. Over the years, the Democratic and Republican conventions have drawn me like Blue Bell at a party full of Bubba’s. The rhetoric has gotten so nasty in recent years that what was feared most, finally transpired on July 13 in rural Pittsburgh. Donald Trump, the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party, took the stage in Butler, PA (pop. 13,176), just 41 miles north of Steel-town. Just minutes into his message, he took a bullet that grazed his right ear.

Stop for a moment and closely observe this trial you’ve been going through. When you are wounded and perplexed, it seems all you can think about is the pain, but within this raging battle ask yourself (and be honest) if you’re focusing more on the circumstance than on God who has all the answers. Ask and allow Him to heal your heart. This situation will not last forever and after a period of suffering the time will come to crawl back to your knees, stand up, dust yourself off, and try to glean wisdom from what has happened so that you will be stronger and wiser next time. Yes, there will be a next time because life is a constant classroom filled with learning opportunities. This is how God develops us to help others in their times of disappointment, and frustration.

It is always interesting to me to hear the stories of what inspired great songwriters to pen their works. When you learn more about the lives of the writers, it gives you a greater appreciation for their works. One song whose story is pretty remarkable to me is the old hymn, “There is a Fountain.”