Archbishop Gregory Holley

Real Smiles by T.M. Jackson

I Just Read An Article in The Wall Street Journal about digital cameras. One of these cameras is equipped to replace a frown with a smile, a smile that already is stored in the camera's memory. How fantastic: You don't have to smile to be perceived as smiling!

I admit that smiles are not always automatic, and there are many situations that cause me to frown. I marvel when I communicate with friends and acquaintances who are always smiling. I have also noticed that while some smiles are forced, the real smiles are uplifting and contagious.

I then reflected on when and where have I experienced real smiles. I immediately thought of some of my favorite people and close friends who have the ability to lift my spirits with a genuine smile. I thought of many of you — meeting planners, suppliers, sales and service staff — who have many times set my mind at ease with a smile that seems to say, “It will be OK. We will make it work for you.” I think I usually discern if the promise is real if it comes with a heartfelt smile.

I have a history with photography that dates back to the old box cameras of the 1950s. Today, we do not always know if what we are seeing with modern media is the “real thing.” Therefore, I submit that there is no substitute for one-on-one communication that is enhanced by a smile that is more than an expression. Rather, it is an expression of something much deeper that includes:

• Sincere concern;

• Thoughtfulness;

• A desire to accommodate; and

• Willingness to solve the problem efficiently.

The list could go on, but you get the picture. I like the real pictures best!

Thanks for the smiles. Keep them coming.

(T.M. Jackson was a fantastic friend of my Father, E.L. Holley. This article was pubished in the current Religious Conference Manager magazine of which he is the President.)

www.gaylasmagazine.com www.rolemodelsofamerica.org

The Race of the Nobles

It seems that the political engines of the nobles of the nation continue to roar.  Just as athletes practicing for the big day they wander through the political processes seeking the approval of men for the positions of men. Elitist, they hover among the voting population and seek ratification for hastily gained values and goals with willingness to flutter about any discussion that seems to prove beneficial. Yet not one cries for the morality that under girds the fabric of an individual or a nation.

The interest is not upon the righteous acts of a nation.  The rebuilding of spiritual walls and gates within which to enter have not made it to the political architects drawing board. The slums of religious ideologies are seen as a brier patch where someone will get scratched and bloodied if entered into. The focus is steered clear of any issue that might taint the cause of getting elected to represent a nation built on foundations other than those which the nobles have built on.

Yet they trudge on.  City to city. Auditorium to Auditorium, filling the airwaves with sound bites, heralding the need to see it their way. No thought is given to contact the local preacher in the city and see what his needs might be in fulfilling the call of righteousness within the borders of his dominion area. No, the rush is on to garner the approval of the opinionated, to rescue what bread crumbs of political aspirations that might have fallen to the ground by a careless opponent.

Our struggle is not new.  The nobles have always sought the advantage of rulership. Nehemiah, caught in captivity, blessed and favored of the Almighty God, went to the King of his survivorship and asked to do a rebuilding of the gates of his home city, Jerusalem. The gates and many important places were in such ruin that Nehemiah found it impossible to maneuver his horse through the rubble.  He was concerned enough to plan, requests letters of credit with which to procure the materials and the transportation of such. Then it was time to survey and set to work in the goal of rebuilding the wall of protection around the city.

Upon arrival he said nothing to the local rulers of the King nor the church folks of his plans.  He surveyed at night.  Made steadfast plans and then sprang into action.  The walls must be rebuilt.

In Nehemiah chapters 1 -3 you  can read this amazing recounting of history.  The High Priests got behind the rebuilding. All the major groups of the church got behind him and rebuilt with zeal.  Yet we come to a part that is saddening although par for the course.  Nehemiah reports, " the nobles put not their necks to the work of their Lord."

So, it is not surprising in this day and age to see the nobles hard at every work except the work of the Lord!   Many of them profress religion and a "Lord" in their lives yet see it not as a singular focus of life. Most try to brush past their faith with casual referrals to Christianity.  Yet the masses require not that their nobles put their necks to the work of their Lord!

Sometimes in the south we have rough referrals to rednecks.  But the original term came from those who worked with necks bent to the sun.  Necks bent in labor in the fields of produce and livestock. Necks, burnt into a leathery tan by labor that was necessary to survive.

Yet the noble spirit creeps in among those whom God has delivered from the fields of sin's slavery.  Prospered, fed and clothed we carry on our lives without surveying the walls of our cities to see what needs to be repaired to secure that the breach of the enemy is not successful.  The prosperity of the noble life has bent our necks to the sun of success until it is beneath us to  bend our necks to the work of our Lord.

So many go to church, watch the walls being built by someone else and return to our noble surroundings without bending our neck to the labor involved. Yes, we have followed our noble politicians of our nationalities into the fields of pleasure without taking notice that the walls are broken. We have made 'our work', 'his work' without consulting Him, our King.

And the race continues.  The race of the nobles.  The race of those who "did not bend their neck to the work of their Lord."

It seems that the political engines of the nobles of the nation continue to roar.  Just as athletes practicing for the big day they wander through the political processes seeking the approval of men for the positions of men. Elitist, they hover among the voting population and seek ratification for hastily gained values and goals with willingness to flutter about any discussion that seems to prove beneficial. Yet not one cries for the morality that under girds the fabric of an individual or a nation.

The interest is not upon the righteous acts of a nation.  The rebuilding of spiritual walls and gates within which to enter have not made it to the political architects drawing board. The slums of religious ideologies are seen as a brier patch where someone will get scratched and bloodied if entered into. The focus is steered clear of any issue that might taint the cause of getting elected to represent a nation built on foundations other than those which the nobles have built on.

Yet they trudge on.  City to city. Auditorium to Auditorium, filling the airwaves with sound bites, heralding the need to see it their way. No thought is given to contact the local preacher in the city and see what his needs might be in fulfilling the call of righteousness within the borders of his dominion area. No, the rush is on to garner the approval of the opinionated, to rescue what bread crumbs of political aspirations that might have fallen to the ground by a careless opponent.

Our struggle is not new.  The nobles have always sought the advantage of rulership. Nehemiah, caught in captivity, blessed and favored of the Almighty God, went to the King of his survivorship and asked to do a rebuilding of the gates of his home city, Jerusalem. The gates and many important places were in such ruin that Nehemiah found it impossible to maneuver his horse through the rubble.  He was concerned enough to plan, requests letters of credit with which to procure the materials and the transportation of such. Then it was time to survey and set to work in the goal of rebuilding the wall of protection around the city.

Upon arrival he said nothing to the local rulers of the King nor the church folks of his plans.  He surveyed at night.  Made steadfast plans and then sprang into action.  The walls must be rebuilt.

In Nehemiah chapters 1 -3 you  can read this amazing recounting of history.  The High Priests got behind the rebuilding. All the major groups of the church got behind him and rebuilt with zeal.  Yet we come to a part that is saddening although par for the course.  Nehemiah reports, " the nobles put not their necks to the work of their Lord."

So, it is not surprising in this day and age to see the nobles hard at every work except the work of the Lord!   Many of them profress religion and a "Lord" in their lives yet see it not as a singular focus of life. Most try to brush past their faith with casual referrals to Christianity.  Yet the masses require not that their nobles put their necks to the work of their Lord!

Sometimes in the south we have rough referrals to rednecks.  But the original term came from those who worked with necks bent to the sun.  Necks bent in labor in the fields of produce and livestock. Necks, burnt into a leathery tan by labor that was necessary to survive.

Yet the noble spirit creeps in among those whom God has delivered from the fields of sin's slavery.  Prospered, fed and clothed we carry on our lives without surveying the walls of our cities to see what needs to be repaired to secure that the breach of the enemy is not successful.  The prosperity of the noble life has bent our necks to the sun of success until it is beneath us to  bend our necks to the work of our Lord.

So many go to church, watch the walls being built by someone else and return to our noble surroundings without bending our neck to the labor involved. Yes, we have followed our noble politicians of our nationalities into the fields of pleasure without taking notice that the walls are broken. We have made 'our work', 'his work' without consulting Him, our King.

And the race continues.  The race of the nobles.  The race of those who "did not bend their neck to the work of their Lord."