When my older brother and I were growing up together ...our Dad and Mom had much influence on us, as parents usually do.

Dad was quite serious about hunting ...and he did well for providing for his family.  

The venison he provided was a welcome addition to our freezer ...and helped feed us through the cold hard winter.  There were eight of us ...and as the show Eight is Enough made a catchy title for a program, Dad and Mom just wanted to make sure we had enough.  Enough to eat, that is.  But, there was enough love to go around too.

My older brother took a serious interest in hunting also ...yet it was not so much to assist with family provision, but for the sport of it.  And also he had a genuine interest that occupied much of his free time.

My brother would more than read ...he'd study this huge thick book, called The Shooters Bible.

One day, Dad and a younger brother of mine decided to take a walk.  Dad was getting older, and had gone through by-pass surgery.  Exercise became a daily routine. 

Dad had never had to concern himself with exercise, as hard work and maintenance of the home provided adequate exercise.  Back then, rest was the thing that was more neglected.

Today, it seems people get plenty of rest, and it is exercise that everyone has to be conscious of not neglecting.

Dad was always mindful to take his walk, and I decided to join him and younger brother on this day.

A conversation ensued, which brought no comment from me ...until I heard, "A person should never put church before family."

Knowing that many people have only church as their sole focus on God, I added, "I totally agree ...yet, let's not equate church to God.  I do believe God should come before family."

The grumbling began, in rejection of my statement, so I added, "In putting God first, it's not like we are putting family in a lesser position of importance ...we are actually elevating the status of family."

At that point, I am reminded of what Margret Thatcher said, "I always cheer up immensely if an attack is particularly wounding because I think, well, if they attack one personally, it means they have not a single political argument left."

Well, I have to admit ...I didn't exactly share that sentiment, of immense cheer.  What I was having was not a political argument.  We were discussing a life issue ...with eternal life, in the back of my mind, not critical to the semantics involved in the conversation, but concern over the possible implications attached to what was being said.

Verbal challenges are one thing ...but it becomes an immeasurable difference with what happened to a good friend of mine.

My friend Tom had a job working for the county ...repairing broken water lines.  As I am writing this, the temperature is in the 20's ...and a small blizzard outside.  During times like this, most people would advise that if at all possible to stay inside.  But, people need water, and the lines need to be repaired.

It is not a job I'd like to have ...but it is a job Tom did, and did well.

Tom's coworkers did not like him much.  When a job required a crew, they needed to work together ...and would take lunch breaks together.  They would cuss and swear and make crude comments.  Tom felt he had no part of this, yet he did not feel alone ...he had his Bible with him, and he'd read it.

I'd say this was a great part of the reason they didn't like Tom much.  But, there is something about not liking good men ...the dislike grows, and often goes further than one would imagine.

They told their boss that Tom was lazy, and that he didn't do his share of the work.  But, the timing of them going to the boss was not during a time when they were working together as a crew ...it was when they all had smaller jobs that one man could be sent out to do.  So, when the boss asked Tom into his office to answer the accusation that he hadn't been doing his work, Tom submitted all his work receipts of jobs completed.

The boss decided to inspect all the work receipts of all the men ...and he found that Tom had worked very hard, but it was his co-workers who were lazy.  Tom had no knowledge that his boss was doing this, nor of the fact that the other men were then called into the office to be confronted about their false accusations.

What Tom did know ...was that his co-workers seemed to have an increased dislike for him.  He tried not to let it bother him.  

But, one day soon, a group of them approached Tom.  They said they knew where Tom lived ...and that they were going to get even with him, mentioning his wife and two children whom he had never told them about.

Tom knew it was their own fault for getting into trouble ...that if they'd not tried to lie about him, they wouldn't have drawn attention to themselves.  But, as Tom talked to his boss to tell him that he was quitting, it did not matter who was at fault when danger to one's family is the concern.

Now, I ask, "Why were they mad?"   

Yes, "What started it all?"

Well, we have a society of people who are doing all sorts of wrongs ...and they want to name call, defame the character of good individuals, and viciously verbally attack anyone who challenges them.  

The defense of the wrong has risen to new levels ...and we can see on the surface that they are mad, but they are more than mad on the inside.  Their anger is like the tip of an iceberg. And too often they have also turned very sharp, jagged, and cold towards God ...and anything He represents.