February.

We always have a chuckle when I welcome new neighbors into our condo community. Many of them are relocating to the sunny south from the snow covered environs of northern America. It's been repeated in this space on many occasions, what I usually tell them about weather in the Lowcountry. That is, we have two seasons down here---summer and February. And, yes, it is February. My walk this morning was wet and cold. It made me hustle through my first 5,000 steps for a dry, warm space on the sofa. February indeed.

Our seasons are an interesting theme in Scripture. The creation account in Genesis 1 gives us brief mention of them.

And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate day from

night. And let them be for signs and season, and for days and years, and let them be

lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth. And, it was so.

Genesis 1: 14-15, ESV

So, there is the created earth and the seasons that mark our time here. We know them as spring, summer, fall, and winter. Here in the Lowcountry we are better acquainted with summer and February. You know, sunshine and heat, time on the beach, and warm days on the sofa.

The seasons are also used in a metaphorical sense in Scripture. In many instances they represent the nature of our time in this broken world, the phases of life. Wise Solomon wrote, "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven" (Ecclesiastes 3: 1, ESV). Truly our circumstances carry us through some difficult hours, those more trying seasons, and moments of great blessing, the seasons when we more fruitful reality defines us. No doubt we all experience what we would call pleasing times, and just as assuredly those hours that try and challenge us. And, they are mystifying and perplexing, not as predictable as the four earthly seasons. Jesus reminded his disciples after the resurrection, "It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority" (Acts 1: 7, ESV). We just can't always fathom how or when these life seasons will come. They do surprise us at times.

Timothy is thought to have been a younger ministry partner of the Apostle Paul. He had evidently experienced some criticism because of his age and message. As a pastor for the past forty years I can certainly identify with the frustration he may have felt., the heavy downpours of harsh words in actions. Then, the Apostle Paul wrote to a timely word to him---"Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season..." (2 Timothy 4: 2, ESV). That certainly strikes a note for me, the instruction to be prepared all the time. And, it rings my bell on this February morning. My take? There are great moments in life, and some difficult ones as well. Being prepared for each is my daily challenge.

Even on a cold, wet February morning. Be blessed. And, prepared.

The platform.

Their

Today many Americans are mourning or remembering two contemporary voices who touched and influenced our lives and died within hours of each other. Surely we all know the influence of Rush Limbaugh and Carman (really Carmelo Domenic Licclardello) as they spoke and sang truth across the fruited plain for the past generation. In my very limited opinion each of them reached heights of popularity in the public arena because they occupied unique platforms that represented the thoughts and opinions of so many Americans. Meaning, that their popularity was in part the result of how they spoke or sang what the American people thought and desired.

So what is this platform thing? It is the ability to speak or perhaps sing what is in the heart and mind of the American public. Truly, few of us have the stage to express our genuine beliefs to the broad spectrum of American thought. Yes, as a local Protestant Evangelical pastor, my personal platform was the pulpit of my local church. A number of years ago a friend and mentor challenged me to broaden that platform, that is, to find new venues to express my views about faith, life, politics, and other issues under the sun. Under that advice I developed a web site, blog, and wrote a book, new platforms for expression of my personal Christian views, which he thought worth sharing.

It is my belief that Rush Limbaugh and Carman both spoke and sang what a great number of Americans were sensing but were unable to express beyond their mostly limited venues. As our nation was under the political and religious systems of liberalism and secularism, they were able to speak, write, and sing what was in the hearts and minds of the silent majority. Their thoughts resonated with the American people. Few in government, the newspapers, or even in the musical field found such platforming for their ideals. Limbaugh and Carman touched the soul of American with their plain speaking truth and spiritual clarity. Today, working America, the people who vote, attend church every Sunday, and cling to our heritage as a nation under God remember their influence and mourn their loss. They occupied their platforms well.

Scripture teaches and advises that every believer understand the importance of having platforms to extend our influence on our broken world. Jesus said---

You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be

restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under

people's feet. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor

do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to

all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may

see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Matthew 5: 13-16, ESV

Their deaths this week challenge us to follow their lead and discover platforms for the messages entrusted to us. We can most likely not have such extensive stages of our messages. But, we can find new platforms for expressing the truth that shapes our lives. And, we must. Salt and light.

When this too won't pass.

They're supposed to be words of comfort, that is, when someone whispers that this too will pass. Whether it is a streak of bad weather, financial crisis, marital upheaval, some debilitating ailment, or being out of sync with the folks in the next pew, our cultural orientation is to offer a good word, provide a positive lift of some kind, or reference the transitory nature of life in general. That the dark cloud hovering over us at any moment will slip past is a truth that can steady us to suck it up for still another little while. Lost in the positive attitude whims is the opportunity to be schooled in endurance, a discipline in short order these days.

The pandemic is one clear example. When this thing landed on us it was one of the unknowns, a new twist on our shrinking world. The wordsmiths and social media gurus gave it momentary sway over our nation and we were comforted by the medical communities assurances that it too would pass. Now, months later, with new strains being predicted and increases in infections we're wondering if in fact this is some kind of new virus that will keep morphing in ever-widening circles. Today we're learning that the transitory nature of the human situation may have some longer lasting effects. Waiting for it to pass may actually be an immature means of standing by while it invades the nation and some people in our inner circle.

Genuine endurance is certainly more than standing tough during difficult times. It is, of course, a strong biblical discipline that positions us to mature and grow while dealing with difficult circumstances. To endure is to know with certainty the hope that will guide us through even the most trying life trials. Underneath the ability to endure are disciplines greater than simply waiting. To endure is to persevere as a result of God's generous and gracious provision. Enduring is reliance on God's direction as our path beyond circumstances. Note two texts about enduring---

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he

will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

James 1: 12, ESV

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay

aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the

race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who

for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is

seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners

such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

Hebrews 12: 1-3, ESV

And, there are dozens more. The two selections, however, remind us that endurance promises God's blessings and is the result of God's provision. The example of Jesus is our beginning and ending point in enduring. We ask, will this Covid pandemic pass? Who knows. Or any other life trial for that matter. But God has equipped his people to endure and receive the blessings which only he can provide. Enduring is standing strong when this too won't pass.