Editorial

When H. L. Mencken was asked the secret of happiness in marriage, he answered with just one word, “courtesy.”

He was right. Why is it that we are sometimes snore courteous to total strangers than we are to the most important person in our life? Courtesy is love in action. Peter exhorted us to have compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:”

Good manners have been described as being like the zero in arithmetic. They may not be much in themselves but they are capable of adding a great deal to the value of “everything else.”

When we think of our marriage as being a type of Christ and his bride, can we imagine either Christ or his bride being rude and thoughtless to each other?

Paul tells us, “husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it . . . so ought men to love their wives as their own bodies.”

True love is courteous. True love is kind. True love is not easily provoked. True love is good manners. In marriage, like in everything else in life, as we sow, so shall we reap If we are kind, thoughtful, courteous, even when we don’t feel like it, we will reap blessings in our marriage. A beautiful garden reflects the tender loving care of its owner and a neglected garden tells us that its owner doesn’t care. So it is in marriage and in all other relationships we have with our families and our brethren and sisters in the Lord.

It requires effort to be courteous. It requires thinking in advance of the needs and wants of others. We need to think ahead in order to notice that their cup is almost empty or that they will need a clean shirt before they can go out. It requires thought to run ahead in order to open the door to assist someone in or out of the car or house.

Courtesy is love in little things. As the old saying goes, “Trifles make perfection, but perfection is no trifle.” By making a conscious effort to be kind and thoughtful, to be courteous in the little things of life, we find that many of the big things take care of themselves.

Please do not think that this is directed only to those who are married. Courtesy and good manners are important to all of us, young or old, married or single, male or female, rich or poor. We can all be courteous. Perhaps we have all been guilty of not being kind or thoughtful or courteous to those we love the most. How would we treat Jesus Christ? “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me,” said Jesus. Do we treat others as we would like to be treated?

We well remember hearing of the man leaving work after a hard day, saying to a fellow employee that he was going home, and it dinner was ready he was going to refuse to eat it, and if it wasn’t, he was going to create a scene. That poor wife couldn’t win. Can we picture that husband as being a type of the Lord Jesus Christ? What hope would we have if our heavenly bridegroom was to judge us this way? No wonder King David said, “let us fall now into the hand of the LORD; for his mercies are great: and let me not fall into the hand of man.”

Let us remember that courtesy is the secret to true happiness, not only in marriage, but in life and let us truly do unto others as we would have them do unto us. We all like to be treated courteously so let us follow the advice of Peter when he said, “Have compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous.”

Our grandchildren have been staving with us and we were amazed at the new kinds of toys that children play with today. A baby born today is not that much different from one born 100 years ago or 1000 years ago but the space age into which our children are being born soon has a profound effect upon their lives and their play.

The big toy today for little boys seems to be transformers. We thought that transformers had to do with electrical equipment but the transformers that the children play with today are peculiar looking little robots made out of metal or plastic and by a series of manipulations they turn into a lion or race car or something else totally removed from the original robot. Happy little boys spend hours twisting and turning legs and heads into wings and wheels.

Now the word “transform” is not a new word to us, it is just new in being applied to changing a toy into a car that was just a moment ago a robot.

The Greek word, “metamorphoo” which is translated “transformed” by Paul in Romans is connected with our English word, “metamorphosis” which means “a transformation, to be transformed or transfigured.”

Paul instructs us saying, “be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.”

What Paul is saying here is that we can be completely changed from what we were to what we should become by being “transformed”. This “transformation” or “change” takes place by the “renewing of our mind.” We really are “what we think about all day long” as Emerson said.

Now there is a battle going on within us. the world is trying to make us “conform.” Paul is telling us to fight back, to resist the pressure of the world and become completely changed by forcing cur minds to think godly instead of worldly. We like the Phillips translation of this verse, “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold, but let God re-mold your minds from within.”

When Paul wrote this warning, there were no daily newspapers, radios and TV’s to pipe the world right into our home all the time and even then it was important to resist the pressure of the world to tell us how to think.

Almost without us realizing it, we are programmed by advertising how to think, where to go and what to buy. We are all familiar with the slogans, “Don’t leave home without it,” “Fly the friendly skies” and “the good hands people.” We know what product each is advertising so that is proof that to some extent we are being pressed down into the world’s mold.

If we do not make a concerted effort to “let God re-mold our minds” we will never be transformed and when Jesus comes we will be just like everyone else. Paul tells us that when Jesus comes he will “change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body.” He did not say Jesus would change our vile mind be­cause that is something we are supposed to be doing right now. If we do not now begin to think like Jesus thought, then when he comes he will not give us a body like he has.

Paul told the Corinthians that “as incredible as it may sound, we who are spiritual have the very thoughts of Christ.” This is a real transformation from worldly thinking, as spectacular as a caterpillar turning into a butterfly or a toy robot turning into a lion or airplane.

Let us resolve to “fight back” against the pressures of the world that are trying to “squeeze us into its own mold^– and by faithful Bible reading “let God re-mold our minds from within, so that we may prove in practice that the Plan of God for us is good, meets all His demands and moves toward the goal of true maturity.”

There is the story about the disc jockey handed new copy just as he is about to announce the next number. He quickly reads it: “This next song is dedicated to John Jones who is 111 today.” He does a double take and exclaims, “My, but that is a great age!” After a second look he sees that he has made an error and rereads the copy saying, “This next song is dedicated to John Jones who is ill today.”

One hundred and eleven is a great age, but so is one hundred and one. Our father-in-law was born in 1884 in Birmingham, and as a boy he personally knew Bro. Robert Roberts. There are few, if any others, living today who could say that. He loves to talk about the past as most old folks do. Think of the things that have transpired since he was born. Most of the modern conveniences we take for granted today were unheard of when he was growing up. Turkey was in full control of Palestine, and there were few Jews there; Russia had no military might; and the “sun never set on the British Empire.”

What would Brother Roberts think if he could see the world conditions that we see? What do we think as we see them? Are we so blase and calloused that we are almost tempted to say, “Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation?”

Things have not really continued as they were from the beginning of the creation—it’s just that we have witnessed them come one at a time during our lifetime, and so we may not be as excited about them as we should.

As we see 1986 begin we wonder what will happen this year. It could very well be that 1986 will be the year of the return of our Lord, and that none of us will be here this time next year. We are living in a great age whether or not we are of a great age. Let us each live this year as if it were our last, whether we are 16, 60, or 101.

How can we do that? By realizing that there is really only one purpose for our individual existence. When Jesus comes to call us to his judgment seat, that moment is the end of our mortal life as we know it. At that point we will either become immortal and live forever, which will make 101 seem like a tiny speck of time, or we will be destroyed; and that will mean that our entire life of however many years will have been a total waste.

We are now determining which verdict will be ours. It is the Father’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom, so we know He wants us in it. What does 1986 hold in store for us that is more important than the kingdom? A new job, money, a sport, a new home? These things will seem unimportant when we face the Lord Jesus Christ and he asks us, “What have you done for me?”

How wise we are to decide to make 1986 our year for the Lord. It will be a great year if we do. It will be a disaster if we don’t, no matter what else we may achieve.

If we completely surrender ourselves to God this year, He will cause all things to “work together for our good’ for “the eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.”

Some of the things that would have upset us and many of the trials that would have caused us concern will no longer bother us, for we, in 1986, will have learned in whatsoever state we are in, therewith to be content.

Yes, 1986 can be the best year of oar life if we live it as if it were our last. Even if it isn’t, it will be better because we lived it wholly and totally for the Lord. Let us decide right now that this year we will surrender our lives to God. We join Paul in exclaiming, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”