When the World Says, "If you'd raised him right, he wouldn't be this way!"

Proverbs 22:6 (King James Version)

 ⁶Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

When someone goes through a trauma, one of the things he may do is separate himself from everything he used to be.  He abandons his family, walks away from  his job, changes his appearance, even eats different foods.  Everything that comforted him, supported him, loved him before the trauma only serves to remind him that he is changed. His innocence is lost, and so he puts away everything which reminds him of that life.

As a spouse, parent, or child of a person with PTSD, you have to make a choice - let him walk away (in the belief that one day, he'll come back) or fight him 'tooth and nail' to keep him in a role to which he no longer feels worthy of living.

If you keep him close after he has changed, understand why he has changed and do not force him or expect him to be who he used to be.

If you choose to go separate ways because he is too different from the man he used to be, never stop praying for him.

The always-answered prayer is "Let God's will be done in his life."  Pray it.  When the person you love most in the world becomes a stranger, pray this prayer.

I do, every night.

When the World Says, "If you'd raised him right, he wouldn't be this way!"

God says, "You raised him right.  He'll remember and and return to it one day."

Dear Lord,

Not my will but yours, God.  Not my wishes but your Wisdom, God.  Let your will be done in his life.   Amen.

We Fall Down

We Fall Down

Pepper Choplin (Arranger), Chris Tomlin (Composer)
SATB, Piano

Lorenz Music

I do not receive any compensation for posting these anthems here; I just think they are terrific. Evelyn

on Leadership - by Jesse Jackson

Leadership has a harder job to do than just choosing sides, it must bring sides together.

Jesse Jackson

A Tribute

A Tribute

Rev. Ichter (Composer)
SATB

Lorenz home site

I do not receive any compensation for posting these anthems here; I just think they are terrific. Evelyn

on Leadership - by Bill Gates

As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.

Bill Gates

When the World says, "It's not fair!"

Luke 22:19 (New International Version, ©2010)

 ¹⁹ And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

There are a lot of responses to the declaration, "It's not fair!"

-- You're right, it's not.

-- No one said it would be.

-- Suck it up, stop your whining.

-- Sure it's fair -- for me!

Leaders often rally support with promises of a fairer, brighter future.

Leaders often are deposed when these promises prove empty.

It's not fair.

Of every incident that led you here, how many were fair?  How many were equitable?  How many of them were based on where you were told to go?  How about on where you wanted to go?

Jesus' parents weren't married when he was born - that wasn't fair.  There wasn't room at the inn, so he had to be born in a grotto - and that wasn't fair. He had a whole bunch of half- and step-siblings and sometimes they weren't fair.  He worked hard all his life but never made a million dollars -- and that's not fair.  he was a brilliant speaker, but no one in his hometown appreciated him -- and that's not fair.  Thousands of people followed him around, constantly expectin him to teach and heal and feed them -- and that wasn't fair.  His best friend betrayed him to the authorities -- and that wasn't fair.  He was arrested, convicted, and put to death for a rumor that he might be King of the Jews.  That wasn't fair.

In all of his journey on Earth, he taught us to go beyond unfairness.  Look beyond your body.  Look beyond your blood.  Look beyond all the things that break and are broken.  Look to eternity.

That's where we will find fairness.

When the World says, "It's not fair!"

God says, "This is my body, broken for you."

Fairest Lord Jesus,

Things do break and fall apart.  Things just aren't fair.  But you know that, don't you, Lord?  Help me see beyond the wrong.  Help me see through the brokenness and hurt and inequities of life.  I know there will be justice in heaven.  Amen.

Fairest Lord Jesus

Fairest Lord Jesus

Mary McDonald (Composer)
SATB, Piano

Lorenz home site

I do not receive any compensation for posting these anthems here; I just think they are terrific. Evelyn

on Leadership - by Harvey S. Firestone

The growth and development of people is the highest calling of leadership.

Harvey S. Firestone

When the World says, "Child abuse is a never-ending cycle."

Luke 17: 2-3

It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin.  So watch yourselves.

When the World says, "Child abuse is a never-ending cycle passed from parent to child every generation,"
God says, "Watch yourselves."

Jesus, you have made me a new creature.  I'm not the beaten child anymore.  I'm not the raging adult anymore.  Let me be to the people I love as You have been to me: a counselor, a comforter, a friend.  Amen.

A Prayer for the Children

A Prayer for the Children

Brad Printz (Composer)
SATB, Piano

Lorenz home site

I do not receive any compensation for posting these anthems here; I just think they are terrific. Evelyn

on Leadership - by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Make yourself necessary to someone.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

When the World says, "Homeless Veterans"

John 14:1-3

Jesus Comforts His Disciples

 ¹ “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. ² My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.

Home.

What a magical word.

It engenders feelings, smells, sounds, visions, and emotions that make you feel good and safe.

For so many veterans, home is just a memory.  The number of homeless vets is staggering.  There are shelters for both male and female homeless vets.  But a shelter is not the same thing as a home.

Home is also a state of mind -- loyalty, camaraderie, rest and peace.  Some vets are homeless in this sense, too.

When you think of heaven, you think of home.  That's what Jesus promised -- a home for you.  A home that smells like Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings.  A home that feels like the softest sheets and snuggliest bed.  A home that looks clean and pleasing and fills you with pride.  A home filled with kind words, singing, and laughter.

Don't rush going home.  Rest in the assurance that home is waiting for you and will be everything you remembered and everything you hope for.

When the World says, "One out of four homeless Americans is a  veteran,"

God says, "In my house are many mansions.  There's a place for you."

Sweet heavenly Father,

Thank you.

Amen.