Change is gonna’ come

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Life is a journey and we all end up at the same earthly destination. What happens after that is a much-discussed topic. In the simple terms of my mind, you either believe in The God, a God, or that you are your own God. We all base our lives on something, not nothing; because nothing does not exist. Either our life here is all there is, or something awaits us in the afterlife. Can we really live anyway we want and the “Good God” takes care of us after death? Is there only nature and after death we just rot? Is life really “all about me”? Can I “find myself spiritually”? Good people go to heaven right? Only people I don’t know go to hell right? What can I find that can guide me on this journey? What is missing in my life…

I made a decision in the spring of 2007 that set me on a course of change and renewal. I wish I could pinpoint the exact moment in time that this decision was made. I think I know but I am not sure. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you the story anyway. A line that I decided to cross has influenced everything that has happened to me since that moment. I knew when I crossed the line; there was no turning back. No matter the costs, no matter the opinion of others, no matter the fears and uncertainty I faced, the door closed behind me.

That line I stood before was about truth. On one side stood thousands of years of human knowledge about what this world was all about. On the other side was the Bible of Christianity. I no longer wanted to have doubts about what it contained. I no longer wanted to have people telling me what it said. I was going to completely embrace it or accept it as just another well-intentioned book written by human beings.

My decision was not without reason. I read a book by R A Torrey written 100 years ago. I made a reasoned response to do what he recommended. I did not place my head in the sand and follow the path of following “a movement to find God”. I did not throw reason out the window and “make” myself believe a work of fiction.

I started to read the New Testament not as some novel or as a book to study. I started to search for meaning and truth within its’ pages. I followed R A Torrey’s advice – I wanted to be taught the truth by the words in Bible. The process exploded in my mind with an endless stream of paths, all leading toward a source that was beyond what I had ever experienced. I could suddenly “see” what I had not seen before. I stepped into a world that is not seen with human eyes. I started a journey that I now want to share with others. The mistakes, hurts, and pains are all part of the journey. The journey would have no meaning without them.

Early on in this journey I had a good friend ask me, “You don’t believe everything in the Bible do you”? I responded, “yes I do, it’s either all true or it’s a lie”. “Oh”, she replied, “You must be one of those Tennessee Christians. I’m a New Age Christian.”

In this blog I will document the pain, the suffering, the joy, the peace, and the broken relationships, but most of all the love I now have in my life. It was there all along but I did not “see” it. I thought love was all about feelings. How wrong I was…..

I will close the blog with two videos, one I edited and the other by the artist who performed the song. This is a good song to start my journey because it speaks not only about my life but also of so many others. This journey starts at age 58 but will shortly take me back to a far simpler time. I hope my journey encourages you to move to change.

The young men of Narrowgate changed my life one fall day in 2008. You cannot understand my journey without knowing about them. What I thought was a video shoot was something far more important. It was not about video. It had nothing to do with video. It was about my heart…

My Son

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Today is my son Robert Hartline’s birthday. I wish him the best birthday ever. Since joining us on April 10th several April’s ago, he has been a constant source of joy and inspiration.  Colleen and I called him “Bobby” but his adult name became “Robert”. I am not complaining because at the University of Southern Mississippi in 1967 I also grew up and became “Bob”.

Robert did not come from a business background but he is leaving his mark on the business community here in Nashville, Tennessee. From humble beginnings in his first year at Middle Tennessee State University selling cell phones out of the trunk of his car, he has grown Absolute Wireless into the largest Sprint Dealership in Tennessee. Last week he opened his newest store in the Opry Mills Shopping Mall here in Nashville. This morning the Nashville Chamber of Commerce helped with the ribbon cutting at his new Church Street location. This store had to relocate from West End Avenue when one of the new hotels starting to dot the Nashville landscape to meet the demands of the new Convention Center broke ground.

Robert has built his business the American way – hard work, an entrepreneur attitude, and the ability to keep a laser focus on a vision. He has surrounded himself with a great team of people who share a common focus to create a customer-centered environment.

Robert, I am honored to call you son. Your mother and I are a proud Mom and Dad. Happy Birthday – thank you for marrying Rachael Parrish and making the two greatest Grand boys ever – Trace and Cayman!

 

My Dad writes a letter from Luzon, Philippines 1945

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Thanks to my Aunt Ruth from Wheat Ridge, CO I have a copy of a letter my Dad wrote to his High School Principal sometime before the end of the war in the Pacific.

This appeared as an article in the ‘Brighton Warp and Weft’ a newspaper in the mill town of Shannon, Georgia. I looked up the meaning of “Warp and Weft” in Wikipedia.

“In weaving cloth, the warp is the set of lengthwise yarns that are held in tension on a frame or loom. The yarn that is inserted over-and-under the warp threads is called the weft, woof, or filler. Each individual warp thread in a fabric is called a warp end or end.”

Hartline Writes From Luzon

A former student at Model, PFC George A. Hartline is now with the infantry boys (those “foot soldiers” whom Ernie Pyle made so famous). He’s on Luzon in the Philippines and doing a big job over there, but took time out to write a letter to Mr. Minor, who was his prof and principal back in those good old days when he had no more than a little ‘readin, ‘ritin, and ‘rithmetic to worry about. And here’s his letter, which, incidentally, was written before peace came.

 Dear Mr. Minor:

      This night might possibly be called one of those beautiful, romantic tropical nights, which men wrote about a few years ago when the world was at peace.
     I imagine this was a beautiful country then, when all the buildings were still standing and there was no want or fear.
    Now it is devastated by war. There’s hardly any place one can go without seeing some signs of what war has done. Bridges blown up and hastily rebuilt schools and churches once beautiful and modern now lie in wrecked and burned ruins. Even the tall coconut palms bear the scars of bombardment, and their long branches, broken and torn, droop toward the ground as if they too shared the hardships and suffering.
     No this isn’t like home by any means. There is peace and quiet, of course, in areas cleared of enemy troops, but it will be several years before normal activity will return. No doubt this generation will remember always the three long years of sorrow and hardships, and signs of this almost total destruction will remain for years to come.

Sincerely,
Alfred Hartline

My Dad

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My Dad would have been 85 years old today. In 1967 two weeks before I graduated from Model High School in Shannon, Georgia he lost his battle with cancer. George Alfred Hartline, my father, was one of 5 children born to Robert and Bonnie Hartline and the first child they lost. It would take me another 40 years to realize how much his death impacted my life but more about that in a later post.

My Dad treated me special – I never knew why but it was clear to everyone I was his favorite. The biggest regret of my life was I never had the opportunity to have an adult relationship with my Dad. All the questions that only he could answer are left for my mind to ponder. But he gave me the greatest gift a Dad could ever give anyone. He loved me and taught me the kind of love that has no bounds.

Over the last few years my Aunts and Uncles have filled me in on how World War II impacted his life. His generation grew up quickly. He graduated at 17 and celebrated his 18th birthday in a foxhole somewhere in the Pacific. Two months later he landed at Saipan. I found this account online: “There were 4 miles of beaches attacked by the 2nd and 4th Marine Divisions. This assault was well planned. It had to be since they faced 22,702 Japanese Army troops and 6,690 naval forces. Our men on the beach at ‘D’ Day were clearly outnumbered, but we had the best leadership, weapons, guts, and determination. On ‘D+l’ the soldiers of the 27th Army Division were committed to the front line, when there was elbowroom to fight. They too had their Medal of Honor winners, and they too had country boys who fought.” My Dad was one of those “country boys” from the 27th Army Division in the battle. The article continues, “Death seemed to have been everywhere. And there was that sweet, unusual smell of the dead. On the beach beside the road, a bulldozer dug a large trench into which these bodies were thrown.” I remember my Dad telling his brothers about this “trench of death” one Sunday afternoon under the shade tree at my Grandfather’s house. It was one of the only times he ever talked about “The War”. When the battle ended after one month, “there were 2,949 Americans killed and 10,364 wounded. Of course, the Japanese fared much worse with some 24,000 dead from burial count, 3,612 missing, and 1,780 prisoners.”

In the days ahead I plan to write more about my Dad. I loved him and I still miss him.

 

But the greatest of these is love

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1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV)
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

I believe love is a missed calling for so many people. What does this word mean? Is it just an emotion, a feeling we sometimes have but often fades away? Do we really “fall in” and “out of love” with the shifting seasons of our live? Do we allow “Pop Culture” to define what the meaning of love is in our lives? Are love and sex interchangeable? If that were so, we could “unsex” someone just like we “unlove” them. Where does love come from? Are we born with it? So many questions – where does one go for answers?

We can go to the words of authors and poets. They can certainly put us in a frame of mind where we recall the first loves of our lives. That totally falling for someone without regard for anything except – I MUST HAVE THEM IN MY LIFE; nothing else matters and we love everything about them – they have no faults. Sadly, this most often fails. Why? Because it existed only as an emotion in our mind. We want so much to find it again but life is cruel. We search, and search, and give, and give but often only feel pain and rejection…

Maybe the problem is we use the word for some many things. I love my car. I love my life. I love my house. I love my tv. I love me because I am the bomb….. I love you as long as you love me????

The Bible tells us that God is love -”Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” 1 John 4:8. Jesus commanded us to love; “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” John 13:34

What conditions did He put on “Godly” love? None….. The love of Jesus is far deeper than any human can understand. Without his help, it is impossible for us to love like he does! It is truly a dream we can constantly remake in our minds to please ourselves. But it is a roller coaster ride; coming and going with “our feelings”. “Love” your poets and authors but don’t expect to find an answer to why the person you loved now says they don’t love you.

Jesus is the way. He can take over and be your guide in a life devoted to Love. God is Love and Love never fails: “Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5 does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, 6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails;” 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.

Jesus doesn’t ask you to leave your brain at the door. He asks you to believe in the Love of the Father. He came to show us the Way. I let Jesus have his way with me and he changed my heart and he allowed me to change my mind with his help. It’s Grace. I didn’t earn it and I don’t deserve it. This is how I want to treat other people – not in my strength but in His love.

How do I know what He wants me to do? Does he appear in my dreams and constantly advise me on how to show His love to others? Do I tell people “God told me” to love you?

None of the above. I read the Bible and he speaks through scripture. How do I know I “hear” him? Because I can’t understand my changed heart. I pray for guidance and discernment and the answers come. Something gets changed inside – in my spirit. My faith is increased, my hope is renewed, and the love of Christ grows in me. I love better and people love me better. Why, because God loves me through other people. His love is an overcoming love – not bound by time and space – not controlled by the thoughts and actions of others. If an offense comes (and they do everyday) I turn it over to His love and Grace. He has already paid the price for that offense. He loves the person who launched the offense. His love is my shield. It is not necessary for me to defend him but it is necessary that I obey him in love. It is necessary that I acknowledge him as the Lord of my life.

How do I love the unlovable? How do I love the rude person in line at Publix’s? How do I love the person that lies about me? Only through Christ who’s Spirit lives in me. It is real. It is supernatural. It is free. It is a gift. It is His grace. May you find the love of Jesus Christ in your life.

It’s an election year

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This is probably the most important election year in my life. My goal is not to help anyone get elected but to do what I can to get Obama unelected. I cannot understand why any knowledgeable person who can remember what he said during the 2008 campaign would vote for him again. He made great speeches. His leadership has been terrible. He has helped create the most divided nation in my lifetime. True, the Republican Party shares in the blame but after being told to take a hike during the first two years, who can blame them? After all he never had to sit in the “back of the bus”! He campaigned that his administration would be “different”. Yeah, right. Chicago politics at it’s best!

Does he deserve to be reelected? Do we have a better country today than in 2008? The always Mr. Cool Obama can shoot hoops in the hood, raise massive amounts of money, pal with the “Stars”, repeat the same old “Change You Can Believe”, but he can not “unite” the country. You don’t lead with speeches; you lead with principles – speaking the truth. He forced a bad healthcare plan through Congress – one that the American people did not want. He has become the definition of tyranny – “arbitrary or unrestrained exercise of power; despotic abuse of authority.” He doesn’t enforce laws he doesn’t like. I thought he swore an oath to enforce the laws of the United States of America?

No he is not a Muslim. No he is not a Socialist. No he is not a leader. He is a man of principle -the worst kind. He does not make me proud to be an American. If he had done what he promised to do in 2007-08 I would say he spoke the truth. He would be known as an American Statesman. There are no success stories for him to use in his campaign. His only hope is marketing, social networking, and speeches filled with half-truths and lies. Hey, it worked before…….

I thought George Bush was the worst President in my lifetime. President Obama proved me wrong…… Please don’t put labels on me. I am not a Republican – I am not a Democrat – I am an American. I stand for truth and I believe in objective truth. I believe in reason. On some issues I am right of center, on some issues I am left of center. Let us debate the issues not the personalities…