I am a biased person.

To say that out loud or to state that phrase on national television would immediately label me as intolerant and whatever type of “phobic” anyone could call me.

Webster has defined “bias” as a strong tendency toward an interest. It can be also a simple, consistent leaning toward something. 

Psychology Today magazine defines it as a tendency.

You have biases as well.

Mine are many.
I think vanilla ice cream is the best flavor of any.
I believe Italian food is the best.
Since I was about 12 years old and began playing basketball, I have loved and followed and pulled for The Los Angeles Lakers.
If you, in any way understand that, then you understand why I chose not to wear kelly green. I will not drink from a cup that is kelly green in color.

To me, Gods favorite color is sky blue.
French Toast is the best breakfast food, especially from DEMETRIS. However, I eat it not everyday because I do not desire to look like Jabba the Hut.

My favorite book in Gods Word is The Gospel of John.
I prefer the beach to any other form of vacation.
The Constitution is not an evolving, changing document.
We do not change the holiday celebrated on July 4 because it might be too hot.
Not to equate the two, but the Words inspired by God in His Document to us are good forever and, in fact, there is a warning not to change them or add to / subtract from them.
The Constitution was written by inspired men and it is to be interpreted from what THEY said… not to make up what their hidden meaning was or what modernity feels they meant to say, or what it should say today.

I prefer sunshine to rain.

Up until I met and then married a brown-haired Scottish girl … I thought dark-haired, dark eyed women were my preference.
No longer.
She surpasses every dark-haired female I have ever known.

A bias is a tendency….a preference.

Recent definitions subject to “political correctness”  have added that bias is a negative and that it is a judgement of intolerance toward another way of thinking. 

Sensitivity overload.

We were not created to all wear grey clothes and walk in lock step.

May God help us.

When we are born we are gifted with taste buds in particular areas of the tongue. The connection between those buds and our unique gift of a brain gives rise to what we foods and flavors we favor.

There are “filters” in our brain and talents and gifts placed within us at Conception which lead us to the biases we have. 

Some we grow into.

Some we have from “the jump”.

I hate no one.
I judge no one because they prefer chocolate over vanilla.
I like chocolate… but choose it seldom.
Why not eat the vanilla?

I judge no one because of my individual bias.

I may not agree.

But I will not discount that person or judge that person or be intolerant of that person choosing chocolate, or that they like the Celtics.

 

At the end of every conversation with Muslim, Hindu or Jewish cab drivers, I say the same thing.

I say that my prayer will be that both us will find Real Truth.

Some people demonize those unlike themselves or because the other person prefers blue and orange more than crimson.

That’s small mindedness.
That’s closed mindedness.

One need not judge others because of their preferences.

Because I enjoy the company of one person means not that I am judging or that I dislike, hate or am intolerant of another.

I love the Italian language.
Try to learn it.
Love to hear it spoken.

But I cannot be AS comfortable with the person who speaks only Italian as I can be with someone who speaks English with a tint of a Southern accent.
Because I cannot understand them

I do not hate Italy.
My favorite movie is MOONSTRUCK.
I would go visit Rome, Lake Cuomo or the Amalfi Coast tomorrow.

However, I prefer here.
I understand the language.

Be proud of the biases you possess.
Understand, they are preferences.

Never condemn one because they disagree with or condemn you. Or because they prefer something different than you.
It’s human nature to do that….yet, its in opposition to those Words given us by The Bibles Author.

Respect the biases of others.

Those are not judgements either.
As you consider them, one of their preferences might become one of yours.

Understand though that purple and gold are actually the colors in my family crest. For those without a positive sports bias…those are also the unifirm colors of my favorite team.

So…..

 

Terry Bethea
October 2017

 

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terrybethea.com

Are you in the “middle” of something uncomfortable right now?

Is there a behavior you are acting out which know is inconsistent with who you are?

Sometimes when we get involved in
certain things we get trapped in a past behavior or a level of self-defense and we fail to find the proper way out.

In these instances be careful to look for a doorway to exit…rather than burning the house down just to get out.

A dependable doorway is Galatians 5, which tells us about behaviors that get manifested when we walk outside of the leading of Gods Spirit.

It happens.

Aside from the obvious misbehaviors
like murder, adultery, witchcraft and heresies….
there are subtle ones that eat away at our lives and relationships.

Variance, wrath, strife and envy.
These are not immediately visible to the outside world…but an acid that will destroy your insides.

The first step in these subtle subversions is variance.

You at variance with anyone?

With God…?
With a co-worker…?
With your spouse…?

Variance manifested becomes strife.
Wrath can either precede or follow it.

Variance happens because of doubt, fear and lack of communication. Communication is more than you talking or spouting off….
communication requires more than one individual talking …
AND LISTENING.

If you are at variance with another person…there is doubt, fear and maybe misbehavior that causes it.

It could be the problem is not the other person…. that doubt, fear or misbehavior could lie within you.

Most variance issues arise out of SOMEONE  not abiding in the presence of God.

Being there brings those attributes against which there is no law…mentioned in verses 22 and 23 of Galatians 5.

Not being there brings the ones referred to in verses 19-20-21.

Be honest and without an agenda and look in the mirror …..and without accusation or defensiveness allow your self and your Spirit to tell you if you are operating from the presence that brings Peace, Goodness, Temperance, Joy.

Variance with wrong….is Right.

Variance outside of that is not.

Terry
June 2016

Walking down the street in Baltimore one day,
the air was pierced with the sudden, loud and alarming sound of an ambulance siren.

It was soon followed by another, and the comment was made,
” Something bad must have happened.”

When an ambulance rides with its lights pulsating and siren blaring,

It has every right of way it requires.

As a driver you are always instructed to move out of the way and give the emergency vehicle access to the road.

The thought is that the ambulance has someone inside, or a person they are going to rescue,  who requires immediate and emergency attentive care.

It may be a matter of life and death.

The thought came to me as I heard the sirens and watched the vehicles fly down the busy city street I was on….
those vehicles and the people in them were maybe going toward someone in a life/death situation.

Immediately, the thought moved to the Spiritual.

Do you know anyone at this moment whose life or marriage or spiritual condition is in need of an “ambulance” to blast it’s siren, get there quickly and rescue them???

There are 911 calls that go out…
In need of an ambulance …

if you are paying attention.

Read that again

The call may be coming from your teenager, from an adult child hurting quietly because their marriage is struggling,

it may be from a friend doubting their commitment to a marriage and making plans to leave.

The siren may be sounding for you….

to go after your Spouse who has insecurities suffers silently and is dying slowly inside.

It maybe from a friend or associate who you know is falling apart and away from their connections to Christ or at Church.

You may not be the “physician” who renders the help…

you may only need to be the “Andrew” in the situation.

You may simply need to get them TO the one who gives the help.

Andrew did not change anyone…

he simply brought them to Jesus.

Andrew “drove an ambulance”  that took his brother, Peter, to Christ.

Then, the change in Peter began after Jesus did the work.

I know of a marriage that was falling apart. Several people close to the couple paid attention, inserted themselves into the situation without worrying about hurting any feelings, and quietly but with determination, confronted the Spouse looking to leave.

These ambulance drivers saw the emergency, got to and into the situation and after a period of committed involvement….

the couple is on a road to recovering
their marriage.

That’s being an ambulance driver…..seeing an accident happening or getting a call,
sounding a siren to get involved…
going around several obstacles,
and giving life-saving assistance.

There are spiritual conditions which need to be gone after the same way.

There are young lives and marriages and friends who need to be gone after with the immediacy and urgency of an ambulance sirening its way through a crowded city street.

Someone you know has a 911 call going out.

Maybe that it’s YOU who needs to 911
a close friend ….
and get them to ambulance their way to rescue you.

It may not be dialed or spoken aloud.

Pay attention.

You have the capacity and most likely the opportunity to be the “driver of an ambulance” to go rescue someone.

If the driver of an ambulance worried about causing the people on the road ahead of them to be delayed….
he would not sound the siren that his ride had potentially life-saving implications.

When someone you know is in a similar spiritual, marital or physical condition….

let nothing keep you from getting to them.

Or from getting them to the help they need.

Drivers move out of the way of an ambulance because of a matter of precedence.

The emergency takes precedence over all else on the road.

There is an emergency SOMEWHERE

or with SOMEONE…

that you need to siren your way to.

Terry
June 2016

After jumping to catch the pass from Robert Miller, he spun left away from the defenders he felt close by.

Tucking the football under his right arm, he took off down the sidelines toward the goal line.

He saw two defensive backs taking an angle on him.

As he ran and knew the defender to his left would not catch him, he caught a glimpse of his Father across the field on the far sideline.

His father was hopping down that far sideline waving his right arm in a circular motion as a third base coach would do waving a runner home.

The boy looked back at the last defender, sped past him and had another thought.

He glimpsed one more time at his father across the field and said to himself, “when I cross the goal line I am tossing this ball into the air”.

As he crossed the goal,
he took the ball and with both hands tossed it up into the air in celebration.

The  “he”  was me.

This took place in Miami Springs on a Saturday….almost 53 years ago.

The picture is still crystal clear in my mind.

That momentary glimpse across the field, in the middle of the physical exertion of running, over 50 years ago …..
is frozen in my memory.

Call it parental encouragement,
call it living through his son,
call it whatever you prefer….

I remember my father jumping out of the spectator
and into the Coach.
He was not a coach on my team.

But at that moment he was the encouragement that might have sped me up a bit… and he for sure was the impetus to my wanting to toss the ball into the air.

At that moment, he was more into me and my performance than he was into his appearance.

And his action has stuck in my mind since 1963.

This is similar to what Christ did in staying on Earth for the 40 days after His Resurrection.
He encouraged His followers.
He gave them renewed hope and established their lifelong conviction and validated His Message.

That is the definition of having an effect.

The actions we have on people can last over 50 years.

This knowledge should lead us to be conscious to act with positive and
productive actions toward the people around us… especially those we have brought into the world.

I tossed the ball into the air that day in Miami over 50 years ago because I scored….. but more so because in that glimpse of my father across the field… I knew I had something to do with his running and waving at me.

He was FOR me.

And I had pleased him.

Duel celebrations.
Christ’s 40 day walk of Triumphant Encouragement with His followers.

Cheer.
Encourage.
Wave them toward the goal.

Terry
May 2016

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Is there anything in your life you need to memorialize?

An event of monumental weight should be worth memorializing.

You do it now with birthdays and anniversaries.

Our nation does it with dates such as
September 11…November 22….
July 4…..the last Monday in May.

What about the day you came to know Christ?

Maybe the day your child accepted Christ?

A few years ago my wife and I decided to memorialize the return of her son from Iraq.
Twelve stones from our Creek still stand as a memorial together outside our house. One stone for each month he was in that battle.
One stone for each month The One we prayed to protected our young solider.

Be encouraged to consider thanking The One you pray to with a Memorial.

It is a monument of Thanksgiving…
or a monument to answered prayer.

It can be a reminder to be in constant thanksgiving. It might be a help to recall the forthcoming of a victory in yours or a loved ones life.

If you spend effort seeking something……
extend effort in saying “thank you”.

If it’s a big enough occurrence..
build a memorial.

As a nation we have memorialized men such as Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln. We have made monuments to victories and remembrances of war and great struggle. There are holidays in memory of effectual events and great, influential people.

Recall and remember those things in your own life. Lead your children to recall and remember events of great importance in your life…in the lives of your family members.

Build memorials.

Be in constant remembrance of victories, of mercy shown and grace given, of answered prayer, of healing, of great events.

Create memorials in the lives of your children by thinking of the days they took great steps in life…and telling them the story….
such as the day they came to know Christ as Savior. It’s as important as their birthday… for it is the beginning date of an existence far more important and lasting than their time with you or on this earth.

Tell them of struggles and overcomings in your life. Recite for them some of the family history. Develop family traditions which bind your children to you and each other family member.

Memorials help you to have and will create in them and sense of gratitude….of belonging and connection. Our shared national history makes us fellow countrymen. Our shared family history creates a culture, builds appreciation and a type of emotional and spiritual unity.

Memorials call to mind great and lasting events.
Events that form memory,
Events which help build the character of a nation and it’s people.                      Events which build the history of a family and its faith.

What are your “memorials” ????

Build them.

Remember them.

Tell of them.

Terry
May 2016

My Father was a runner.

When he left the business world to pursue The Calling placed on his life, he would take my two brothers and I to the track at Rosemont Junior High School.

He ran, my younger brother ran behind him, my youngest brother chased them and I shot basketball and ran  once in awhile.

From the court I learned a bit about running.

I saw my Father sprint only toward the conclusion of his runs.

The beginning and middle of his runs were at a moderate pace. At first he was slowly warming up, then he would get into a normal stride which he would remain in for most of his run. Only toward the finish he had determined for that day, would he pick it up into a sprint and run with every ounce of effort through the finish.

From the court where I would shoot, I saw this many times.

It’s really the opposite of how many lives are spent.

Most people sprint through the beginning, get tired, slow down and coast into the end.

If you look at the life of Jesus, His Sprint was after thirty years of moderately gaining momentum. Even during his Three Year Ministry, He began slowly by choosing His People, training them, showing them glimpses of His Power.

His real Sprint began by raising Lazarus, going to the Temple and kicking the “money-changers” out before coming into Jerusalem the few days before His Crucifixion.

Run with Patience the Race set before You…..

prepare for all of the Race, and be strong enough for The Sprint.

Jesus did. 

He knew His Task when He taught in the Synagogue, at 12.  Knowing His Eventuality, He remained as a young boy, grew into His Father’s business in two ways…as a carpenter fashioning wood and then as a carpenter building men and a Kingdom.

Knowing His Reason for being here, He ran with patience. He knew the Course set before Him.

You only run a sprint when the finish line is in plain sight. A 100 yard dash is called just that because the finish line is such a short distance away.

Longer races require endurance, pacing, having a gait and pace which is sustainable for the distance….then, as all trained distance runners do, when the end line is in sight…the Sprint begins.

Let us not be slouching and out of energy as we run toward the end line in the race of life.

Being that my Father walked into his Calling at 37 ….and went to Heaven at 55…

his pace picked up and was purposed those last 18 years…and he sprinted toward the finish.

I want to sprint through that end line.

Now, I am in that sustainable gaited, everyday pace.

But I know the race I am in.

There is more distance to cover.

However…I know I am closer to the finish than the beginning.

My goal is to sprint at, toward,

and through the finish.

Train yourself for the race you are in. 

Be prepared for the distance you have left to cover.

Run this race properly.

Get prepared to sprint through the end ….

wherever that may be.

Like my Father was when he took us with him to run those many years ago in Ft. Worth….

The Author and Finisher of The Real Race can and will  be your model, coach, mentor and cheerleader.

Run….and prepare to SPRINT.

Terry                                                                             May 2016

Since Easter
it’s been about 40 days.

If it’s 4o ….
then today should be a day of Celebration…
for on that day 2000+ years ago
Jesus ascended into Heaven.

There was great celebration in Heaven as The One Who exited 33 years before as The Son returned with Triumph as The Savior.

He assumed His Place at
The Right Hand.

He sat in that Place because His
enemy had been invaded and defeated.

And…
His followers entered a short period of waiting …to be filled …..
filled with The Gift which Jesus told them would be given only after He ascended.

Like us…
they most likely wanted The Gift to be given after about one day of waiting, if that long.

It was ten days.

Remember how expectant, hopeful
and anxious you used to be in the days leading up to Christmas ??

You may still be that way.

Your young children are.

Let us be that way about what is coming.

Think about this…
If Jesus ascended on or about this many days since Easter……

We are now in the ten or so days
that the disciples were in…
leading up to The Entrance.

The Entrance ….
of The Holy Ghost
into this world
and into
and upon them.

So….
we are in the ten days between the Ascension of Our Lord and

Entrance of the third person of
The Trinity who allows us to fulfill
The Commission given us by Jesus.

Be expectant…
of what that Spirit might do in you.

Be hopeful…
that He might grant you new
Sufficiency for every situation….as He did the disciples.

Before The Entrance the twelve were like the Stooges, twelve Barney Fife’s following Jesus, but gaining no real ground always having to be led and corrected.

The Entrance changed that.

For them…during these days we are in, they were not yet filled.

For us….The Entrance has occurred.

Has it yet occurred in and upon you?

If so….be in celebration for and about that.

If not…..then seek it as the disciples did during this ten day period.

What a great event if you gained The Entrance this Pentecost season.

Seek it.

Be Expectant….

as you have been about getting gifts in late December when His Birth is celebrated.

These are days to remember and celebrate as followers of the One Who Ascended and as those who have been transformed by The Entrance.

 

Terry

May 2016

Marked Up

A guy walked by me this morning,
looked at my Bible on the table and said, “that’s a marked up Bible.”

More than any other thing, I hope that the “marked up Bible” is a positive witness.

I can state that as my hand held the pen, many times the Book has been marked with my heart as I have sought answers and guidance from The Father.

Other times as the ink was used to underline for emphasis and memory, my mind has searched for understanding and wisdom.

Marking the Bible means the reader
found words of inspiration or instruction.
It can mean a passage is meant for future reference.

I sometimes make the statement that some book is good or important enough to read with a pen in your hand.

The weight of words on ones life leads those words to be held in high esteem.

They have prominence.

They get underlined.

A “marked-up Bible” is an outward witness of an inner and constant need.

A ” marked-up Bible” is a visual representation of a soul in search of gainful knowledge.

Learning of and growing to love our “marked-up” and scarred Savior
leads us to a future with Him ….
leads to an understanding of Him.

It leads to a life reflective of Him.

Keep a pen close by.

Terry
April 2016

Not a Singular Revelation

 

I feel a bit validated by a devotional I read yesterday.

Comments have come from my heart and mouth which have said for some time that the way we most likely serve God the best is through the gifts, talents and abilities and leanings He has placed within us.

It was not a singular revelation.
It makes sense….it should to all of us.

The things we are naturally good at…
How did that occur?

God placed that natural ability in us to serve Him in a manner which would also brings us Joy and Fulfillment.

He has good work for us to do…
because He gives us a natural bent to do those very things.

If you think you are or being used by God…or that you are not fulfilling your purpose… Look to the leanings, talents and things you like to do.

It’s not drudgery.

These abilities were given to you to serve God with Joy.

He is not out to trick us.

Serving Him is simple.

If you recognize the gifts and talents within you…then you know how to serve God in the way He intended.

Give back to Him the enjoyable abilities He has given you.

Terry
April 2016

I heard him before I knew him.

Several years ago the style of music in the worship services at my Church were progressing toward a more contemporary, “younger” style.

I liked it.

During particular songs which were of a fast beat I heard a guitar sound similar to that of The Edge, U2s lead guitar.

It was not out of place…it gave those songs the same “anthem” sound and feel of a U2 song….if you know U2 then you know their spiritual component…and contributed to the lifted up worship which Hillsong and other contemporary Christian churches were putting out at the time.

The rift was coming from Chris Griffin’s guitar.

I made it a point to go meet him….because of what I was hearing.

Little did I know…..
I was meeting one of the best people I would ever come to know.

And, I still feel that way years later.

I came to know a great musician.

I came to know a better person.

Chris was and is a husband, father, musician, band leader, music teacher, marketer and with all the attention which comes from playing on stage in front of adoring people….one of the most humble people I have known in my many years.

As I had heard him before I saw him….
I came to understand this was a great example of who he was…and is.

While he is in front of so many people when performing…
Chris is not one to ask that the spotlight be directed at him.
I can name several young musicians he has trained, encouraged and mentored…and seeks that they step into that spotlight.

While he fits the role of any performer that may have lights shining on them, Chris has given up seeking that to a great extent and has taught children to play musical instruments.
In spending time with him I hear him talk about them and their abilities and potential, their futures….and hardly at all about his own career.

He has spent years teaching others when most musicians of his looks and talent would have left their life to go seek fame in Nashville, Los, Angeles or whichever road they could find away from where they were to what they thought they wanted.

He stayed at home with his wife, raised his children, invested himself in the lives of others and today is a leading creative voice of influence at what may be the fastest growing Church in America.

He still plays.

The band he has been part of for many years is in demand locally.
That band has also been chosen several times by our State Department to globally travel the World to play and teach about American music.

He has had positive influence around the world because of his gifts and talents.

What greater thing could be said of any person?

If you know Chris you cannot help but love him.
In the years I have known him I have never heard one negative comment about him.

Again….what better comment about a man?

There are people in our lives who amaze us because of what we see them do. Chris Griffin amazes crowds with what he does.

I write this comment about Chris Griffin this morning because he has always and still does….amaze me with simply who he is.

While he could be chasing a stage where notoriety would be fast and furious ….he has given up that chase for lasting and eternal things which do not fade quickly.

My days have been blest with his gifts, his friendship, his time.

I heard him before I saw him.

While his sound was out front, he was a bit behind the scenes.
When he has been out front, I have seen him force the gift he has been given to get the attention more than he, himself.

He possesses a character I seek to grow into even though I outnumber him in years.

As I have heard his gifts and seen the full use of his abilities…
my highest compliment would be to say that those things have blest me with a great friend…. and have drawn me closer to my Lord.

Terry
April, 2016