Month: August 2020

Riding on grandpa’s shoulders was just the place to be.  Very quickly the wee little one learned how to steer her grandpa just like a horse anywhere she wanted to go.

How grand it would be to be so led by the Holy Spirit.  In our quest to grow more into the likeness of our heavenly Father we ask for guidance.  Jesus promised in John 16:13, “But when he, the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth.  He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.”

The Spirit does come and does guide but not quite so obviously as putting His hands on our heads and steering us.  Instead the Spirit moves on the inside.  He woos and influences.  He courts and plants thoughts and ideas.  Unlike a horse, we do have choice.

Written by Roger Bothwell on August 1, 2000

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

While at the mall today I overheard a conversation that went something like this.  “My six and a half foot tall son who goes to Harvard . . .” I didn’t catch the rest of what was said because they moved out of my ear range.  But I found myself smiling because I am quite sure my mother never said to anyone about me, “My five and a half foot tall son who goes to Andrews . . .”  What is it with being tall?  People speak of it as an accomplishment.  Hey, they grew, okay.  They didn’t have any more input on the subject than I, except maybe they selected parents from a taller gene pool.  I have compensated through the years.  In school my roommate was six five and even now one of my very best friends is about the same.  I mentally average our heights and we are both six feet tall – peers – twins.

Revelation 3:5 is a marvelous verse, “The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels.”  I can hear it now.  Jesus is standing in the courts of heaven and says to the Father, “Your five and a half foot tall overcoming son is my friend.”  I like the sound of that.  Or how about “Your five and a half foot tall growing son is becoming more like us every day?”  There is a terrific ring to that.

There are many ways to be a giant.  One can have tall parents or have an extraordinary capacity for spiritual growth.  Oh, this is going to be good.

Written by Roger Bothwell on August 7, 2012

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

 

Having to vacate one’s office after 18 years of accumulating grade books, old term papers, syllabi from courses long forgotten, old tests, cards filled with signatures of students you don’t remember and out of date textbooks can be a daunting task.  Today will be day number five of taking hundreds of pounds of paper to the college dumpster.  I am so thankful for a hand-truck.  The person who invented that marvelous two-wheeled transporter should be awarded a Nobel Prize. I feel a bit strange tossing away boxes of term papers.  If they were done correctly each one represents an enormous amount of work.  Truthfully, most of them were banged out as rapidly as the student could type.  Very little information that could change the world is being sent to the world of paper recycling. All that will remain from those hours in the classroom and sleepless nights cramming for an exam will be a single grade in the registrar’s office.

But wait.  It wasn’t really about assignments and grades.  It was about education.  It was about changing lives and preparing people for service.  The most important thing wasn’t a grade, it was ideas.  It was about understanding one’s self, others and how the world works.  It was finding Jesus and making Him the Lord of one’s life.  It was about eternity and class reunions and alumni meetings thousands of years from now.  It was about character building and helping high school graduates transition into adults who will raise families and become meaningful contributors to their local communities.  If all those lectures, all those hours grading boring papers (most of them really weren’t very interesting) can be translated into outstanding human beings then many trips to the college dumpster is worth it all.

Written by Roger Bothwell on August 5, 2011

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

 

I wish you could be sitting with me at my desk.  There is the most alluring, the most intoxicating, the most enthralling, and the most exhilarating fragrance drifting from the kitchen to my nose. I am struggling to stay in my chair.  I want so badly to invade the kitchen and pull open the oven door.  Whatever is in there is no longer a desire.  It has transformed itself into a need.  By sheer force of will and discipline I continue to write to you instead of pulling up a chair in front of the oven, turning on the oven light and just watching whatever it is.  I am waiting for the oven buzzer to sound out, “It is ready. Come and get it.”  If my wife wants to punish me for some errant behavior (of course, there never is such a thing) all she need do is say, “It’s not for now.  It is for the church potluck.”  I cannot bear the thought.

2 Corinthians 2:15 says, “We are a sweet perfume of Christ to God in those who are getting salvation . . .”  God is so very anxious to have us with Him.  He longs to have us pull up a chair and stay awhile. (Forever)  Often we speak of our longing for the second coming of Jesus that will end this pall of pain and restore things to the way it was supposed to be.  If we think we are waiting we need but realize we only wait a few decades.  He has waited now for 2000 years.  For 2000 years the sweet aroma of the redeemed has filled His nostrils and He wants us.

Written by Roger Bothwell on August 4, 2011

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

 

A watch battery is such a tiny little thing.  Yet it will power a timepiece with precision for two or three years.  In a two-year period it will push the second hand around and around 1,051,200 times.  If it lasts three years it will push it around 1,576,800 times.  How does that tiny battery contain all that power?

When we hold our Bibles what enormous power is in our hands!  Real power!  We hold the power to change human lives.  Our Bibles contain the ideas of God.  Nothing is more powerful than an idea.  Nothing is more powerful than idea from God. Ideas change the world.  God’s ideas change the universe.  And when we hold our Bibles, we hold those ideas in our hands.

The ideas of God render the ideas of man to kindergarten.  The ideas of God are the wisdom of the ages.  The ideas of God answer the great philosophical questions of mankind.  The ideas of God—not Plato or Nietzche–tell us who we are, why we are here and where we are going.

God’s ideas are the power unto salvation.

Written by Roger Bothwell on August 4, 2000

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

After 130 history filled years our little college, Atlantic Union College, will not open this fall.  If all goes as planned we will become the north campus of Washington Adventist University and open for classes next summer.   We were planning on beginning classes this fall but the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has yet to grant WAU the right to do business in Mass.  My wife and I will have a fairly relaxed winter.  We will not worry about getting to school on blizzard mornings.

Because all of us were pink-slipped at the end of July we were instructed to vacate our offices.  What a task that has become – lots and lots of trips to the college dumpster.  Our local public library allows us to check out paintings and I have had a spectacular picture of a flower garden in my office.  Last Friday I returned it.  Hopefully I can check it out again next year.  When I entered the public library I was very warmly received by the staff.  I was hugged (I don’t know these people.) and wished well as they consoled me regarding our school.  I must be one of the very few people who have ever checked out hugs from the library.  I must admit it was better than most of the other things I have checked out through the years.

What impressed me was the genuine care and expressions of kindness.  Our world is such a nurturing place when we express care and concern for each other.  While I am not advocating going about hugging strangers, I think we can make someone’s day by expressing or sending verbal or virtual hugs their way.  It really does feel good.

Written by Roger Bothwell on August 3, 2011

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

 

Recently someone dear to us wrote, “I wish life was like a video game, where you can click a restore button and go back and start over at a favorite time.”    That’s a pretty good idea but considering that would involve each life of the billions who live on earth, God has come up with a variation of that wish.

While we can’t turn back the clock we can continue as long as we need to click a restore button.  In His mind we start fresh.   I wish it could be that way with the people around us.  Some of them have very long memories and seem to relish in reminding us of our flawed past.  God is so very much better than people.  And yet, what amazes me, so many of those remembering people think they are Christians.  Jesus was so very clear about this in the Lord’s Prayer.  If we expect forgiveness we have to give forgiveness.

One of the advantages to God’s restore system is while we get to start over we can retain the lessons learned.  We don’t have to start today or tomorrow minus the wisdom obtained from past mistakes.  We get a fresh start with the advantage of knowing what not to do.  It gives us a head-start on future success.  When similar situations arise we can remind ourselves not to go there.  “Been down that road.  Not going again.”   Sometimes we are foolish and think just because it didn’t turn out good the last time, maybe this time it will be different.  Well how dumb can that be?  That borders on insanity or at least stupidity.  Should we be so retarded – guess what?  You guessed it.   God has a reset button ready to go.   Hooray for our Heavenly Father.   Boo for us.

Written by Roger Bothwell on August 2, 2011

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org

 

While shopping this evening I reached for an item and discovered some kind soul had been there before me and had tucked in place a two dollar coupon.   It hadn’t been put there by the store.  It had been torn out from a newspaper.  It was a super nice thing to do for a stranger.  It was one of those random acts of kindness.  I was very happy to use it at the checkout counter.

Doing nice things for others really does bring joy into our lives.  Maybe the person was watching from down the aisle to see who got it.  If so, I hope he or she wasn’t disappointed some old guy got it.  It probably would have been even more appreciated by a young couple with small children.

I enjoy the paraphrase in the Message of Romans 12:13, “be inventive in hospitality.”  What a difference we can generate in our environment if each day we did some really unique deed of kindness.   We could cut coupons and take them to the store next time we go shopping.  As a teacher I could fill my syllabus with lots of assignments and then surprise my students by telling them they only had to do half of them.  But that is kind of contrived.   That is akin to robbing someone and then giving them back their credit cards. Did I just associate my class assignments with robbing someone?   That was stupid.  Well designed assignments contribute to the wealth of knowledge a student receives by taking the course.  If I did not give assignments I would be robbing my students of their tuition.

Let’s be kind today and not worry about what we get but be concerned with what we can give.

Written by Roger Bothwell on August 1, 2011

Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574

Rogerbothwell.org