for a guy who hates commercials, you sure watch TV alot

Now that I have finally mastered the DVR that came with our new cable setup, I can record any show I want without getting up too early or staying up too late to watch it.  Or let it interfere with my riding, I just set it and go.  And watch it later at my convenience.  Without commercials.  I can fast forward through them, and miss those irritating interruptions.  I love it.  No more warnings of how I can take a pill to be more of a man, or how I cannot live without the latest i-something or other.  No more desire to sue a manufacturer because the ads telling me to buy it don’t work.  And in 22 minutes I can watch a half hour show.  Which leaves more time for riding....finally a technology I can agree with.

Same with youtube or any web site that makes me sit through an ad first.  They go on my list of never to buy, they are are irritating and intrusive.  I don’t like video ads, yet as kids they were attractive.  Today I avoid them as much as possible, which is all the time.  Now you may wonder why a guy who hates commercials watches TV so much, it is the recorded old shows, even though an ad tells me the last CSI is on, which is a lie because it will go on forever in reruns, I have never watched one episode.  I watch old TV, and thanks to a few retro channels, I am lost in Mayberry, going where no man has gone before on the Enterprise, riding with Rockford in his Firebird, and in court with Perry Mason any time I want.  I watch Highway Patrol so much I know the cops by number.  And all without commercials.  So there.

But when it comes to magazines, I am a different animal.  I like the ads, especially in motorcycle magazines.  So while reading yesterday, I grabbed two copies I previously reread, and counted the ad content.  Both Motorcyclist, one from August of 1981, the other April 2015.  34 years ago the magazine had 92 pages counting the covers, and 25 full page ads, along with 18 half page ads, a total of 34 pages of ads.  Or 36% ads, and I didn’t mind.  Conveniently placed Honda ads after a Honda road test, I remember the ads making me lust for whatever was tested.  Almost the same today, 94 pages with covers, but with 37 full page ads, and only 4 half page.  For a 39/94 ratio ads to content, or 42% ads.  Weird, but I hate commercials, but enjoy the print ads.  Go figure.  And just how important is advertising? 

Advertising doesn’t sell subscriptions, but subscriptions sells ads.  Very little if any money is made from subs, but all the money made from advertising.  Which may explain why readership is so important, and my wife gets all these free mags in the mail, that she never subscribed to.  The more readership, the more they can charge for ads, and with some monthlies being read by 4-5 people for issue, the numbers are big, or mean big money for the magazine.  Which is why e-magazines are loaded with ads, and if you have a website you can have ads on it and get paid 5-10 cents every time someone accesses it.  Ad dollars are big money, for those who buy and those who sell.  So now you know why Super Bowl ads cost so much, and how irritating it is on that day to have them interrupted by the game.  But I still don’t like them, and the Super Bowl Is not worth recording, so I’ll suffer through it.  Just don’t tell the stations, I want Perry Mason and Dan Mathews to be available 24/7.  Recorded of course.

When Michael Jagger sung of how he can’t get no satisfaction, he talked of cigarettes, shirts, and about the external us.  About making an impression.  How many of us Christians care about the impression we make?  Take a moment to consider that one.  Maybe that is why we don’t get no satisfaction in our walk.  We care more about us than we do our audience.  And although many scenarios have been tried, dinner first than sermon, preaching on the street interrupting an outing, or wearing a t-shirt that tells what a good brother you are, the one fact remains, until they know how much you care, they don’t care about how much you know.  Some go out to win souls, and end up winning arguments.  So much love in the “well they’re still going to hell,” when they find someone who knows scripture better, even if they aren’t saved.  And for those who only invite sinners to church, but never sit and get to know them, they come up empty many times.  The one question we fail to ask ourselves is “if I’m a Christian, why would anyone want to be like me?”  If I am an ad for Jesus, what am I trying to sell?  What is my product?

Sorry I lost some of you now, but welcome back.  God’s product is love, available through forgiveness.  Try that one.  And we don’t win souls, Jesus does.  And only when guided by the spirit do we make a difference.  The world looks at drinking and smoking as sin, even calls the taxes on them sin taxes, so why try to share Jesus over a beer?  While taking a drag on a cigarette?  For one thing have compassion for your audience, the other try to appear blameless.  Make your video match your audio.  Years ago I started to give up habits that would not condemn me to hell, but might others.  “Well he does it, and he’s a Christian.”  Care more about the person than yourself.  Just like Jesus said.  And don’t just hide that bad habit at home either, God is watching, and we are a witness of him!  But where the spirit guides we find life, we don’t try to win arguments, or even souls.  We let the spirit do his job, and point them to Jesus.  We are told to love, usually the last thing we do.  And I find a way to do it is by listening.  By shutting up and listening.  Then answering.  Without preaching, as I don’t like to be preached at.  But I sure do love to be listened to and loved.  And I get more results, better results when spirit driven.  Funny how I win more fights because I choose my battles better. 

Some days I am just a seed thrower, some days I water, but like Paul admonishes us, it is the spirit that gives life.  Feeling dead...can’t get no satisfaction, you need the spirit, the holy spirit.  The one commandment Jesus left us with we don’t do.  Or we make them try to like us.  When we need to love them without trying to win an argument.  Or prove a point.  Maybe we underestimate the power of a hug, of listening, of caring.  The world is looking for love in all the wrong places, don’t be one of them.  And if you are worried about what to say, listen, then respond, the spirit again promises to give you the words you need.  And both of you can be ministered to at once.  We are called to be a witness, not go out witnessing.

Don’t become an ad that when people see you coming fast forward away from.  Make your ad time, your witness of who Jesus is in your life count.  Like ads you can be irritating to others, so don’t be.  Just imagine if the Bible, the all time best seller came with ads.  Right in the middle of John 3:16, there was an ad for buying something holy.  Or to invite you to a revival. Or potluck.  You would lose the flow of the spirit.  Now if it can interrupt on TV, or in print, be glad God doesn’t advertise.  You want truth, not a spin on it.  And the truth will set you free from ads, and the temptation to buy something you don’t want, or need.  Reading the Bible should be a joy if for nothing else it has no ads!

So consider that you may be the only Bible some will ever read.  What does your ad say about Jesus?  Why would I want to be a Christian after seeing you?  Which is why God changes us to be like Jesus, and he doesn’t change people to be like us.  Jesus kicked the money changers out of the temple, now they line the sidewalks.  Salvation is free, why pay more than that?  Love and joy are included, with free shipping.  And he will double your order, or 10 times it, what ever is necessary.  All from the safety of wherever you are.  Because he never leaves you nor forsakes you.  A kind word to remember next time a commercial comes on, and you cannot find the remote.  A life in Christ commercial free, and I don’t need a DVR to watch.  Satisfied?

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot

it always seems faster from the passenger seat

There is an intersection by my house that leads to the freeway.  The road being in a neighborhood is posted 25, but people zip along at 50-60, thanks Escondido PD.  But when they leave the intersection to go to the freeway, you can hear them accelerate, I just cannot see them.  And some sound really fast, some just noisy, and some you can hear obeying the speed limit posted.  But the sound heard can be misleading, as many wind out first gear, bang second, then back out of the throttle, giving a false sense of speed.  A ZX-10 can hit 102 mph in first gear, while a Harley may manage 40, both may be loud, but only one is fast.  But both give the illusion of speed, at least from where I am sitting out of sight 200 feet away.   But some sound really fast, you can tell how long it takes to wind out the gears, and I can tell over the years how fast they are, or appear to be by the listening distance when they upshift.  Then back out before having to crest the hill.   So fast and quick being relative words, really do mean something.  There was fast for a BMW-until the S1000RR took over the streets, fast for a Harley until 100 hp bikes became available, and fast for any size you ride.  But quick and fast is only relative to whatever the other guy is riding, or driving, and often times how fast it sounds or feels.  Of course none of this is scientific, or based on true readings, or timing slips, but still it is fun feeling faster than the other guy, even if you aren’t. 

An urban legend when I was in high school was the guy, sometimes even the girl who had the fastest accelerating car.  Usually an SS396 Chevelle where I lived, 1969 version, they would place a $100 bill sticking out of the glove box, and if you could grab it when they started off, you could keep it.  These cars accelerated so quick no one was ever able to grab one, or so the legend went.  Por Favor had one, and I could grab fives and tens, but learned to cheat a little, which in racing is only cheating if you got caught.  Never met the illusive $100 bill challenge.  But these cars, and many like them were fast, rather quick off the line.  And many 0-60 times were won or lost based on what second gear would do.  If only 55, you lost time shifting to third, if over 60, you gained time.  How many cars were blown up trying to get that extra 2-3 mph out of second is not recorded, you can lose while winning too.  But one constant from back then, that still exists today is the ride from the passenger seat.  Whether buddy seat sitting, or sitting next to the driver in a car, it always seems faster from the passenger seat.  Not sure why, one of those things in life that just is, but switching seats somehow lessens the effect.  I have ridden in fast cars, only to be disappointed when put behind the wheel.  Some of the thrill is gone, they just don’t seem as fast.  I’m sure some psycho babbler somewhere will come up with the answer, for me I’ll refer to it as the passenger seat speed illusion, or PSSI.  PSSI will impress your friends, cause your wife to complain, and impress little kids.  But like my observation of speed from my office window, has nothing to do with anything other than opinion.  Sight and sound can leave to an illusion, so can sitting in the passenger seat.  And somewhere out there cruising the back streets of my memory is a green, 1969 Chevelle SS396, just looking to embarrass me by trying to grab a $100 bill.  From the passenger seat, of course.

When Jesus tells us “the meek shall inherit the earth,” we think of a group of white shirted geeks, with pocket protectors, and glasses taking over.  Maybe they have, as the nerds in high school seem to be the geeks of technology today.  Where as many of the jocks from my high school are working for their father’s pushing lawn mowers.  But meekness to Jesus means power under control.  Like not spinning your tires losing speed to a drag racer, the burnout looks cool, you aren’t going anywhere, just burning rubber.  But it is the power under control, getting the power to the ground that makes speed.  When I rode the 220 hp Rocket 3 last week, that’s 220 hp on the dyno, not an ad, second gear under full throttle just wasted the rear tire.  And scared the crap out of me.  Only in third could it begin to hook up, still scaring the crap out of me, but accelerating at a rapid pace.  It not only sounded fast, it was fast.  But God refers to his power under control, and we are to be meek like him.  We don’t have to race everyone that comes along.  We don’t have to be the best or fastest, we only need to be us,  which is the hardest challenge you may face today.  Being who you are in Christ.  And only when it is his power in control,will you get all that you can.  Off road racers refer to it as going less slow, getting the most out of a section.  If a 60 mph section, getting 62-65.  If a 25 mph section, getting 27-29, but never trying to get 60.  DNF’s don’t count in the points standings.  So power in control that works in racing, works in life also.  And most importantly in a walk with God.

To God meekness is the characteristic of human nature and behavior.  It is shown in long suffering, righteousness, patient,and forgiving.  All characteristics of God, listed as fruit of the spirit.  It is power under control, and differs from humility, as humility is a reflection of us, while meekness is a reflection of Christ.  Humility is an attitude towards ourselves, meekness is an attitude towards others.  And only two people in scripture were called meek, Moses and Jesus.  Both exercised God’s power under control, yet only one can save.  Moses represents power under control of by the law, Jesus represents power under control by the spirit.  Which are reflected in how we react to others, do we show love or revenge?  Do we try to win at all costs, or be happy knowing we did our best, in Christ?  Who do we credit in our wins and losses will tell more than we want some to see.

So power under control works at the traffic light as well as in the Christian’s life.  Living in the spirit, we have the choice to follow or neglect.  In the spirit it reflects being able to do all things in Christ, in his love.  His spirit.  Where we are more concerned for our neighbor than ourselves in the outcome.  True love doesn’t demand of itself, it gives.  Does your love give, or does it demand?  The best seat, the fanciest Bible cover, knowing scripture, or by living it?  Many fall back on education, memorization, or studying to find themselves approved.  The spirit gives life, it is the education based on application.  Loving your neighbor as yourself, praying for your enemy, and loving the unlovable.  Knowing God will give you the words you need when you need them, rather than falling back on memorization.  It is the old saying that to finish first, first you must finish.  Finishing the race more important, more important than winning it all but giving up your soul.  Only in meekness do we see all the Jesus we can be in others, when he gets the glory we get the blessings.  We reap what we sew, so sew meekness.  His power under your control.  Self control, the last one listed in the fruit section.  Power under control of the choices you make.  And it all starts with choosing Jesus first. 

There is an old Pete Rose story of having a ball called a strike by an umpire.  When he argued it was out of the strike zone, the umpire responded “but it sounded like a strike.”  Are we humbling ourselves in Christ to be the example, or becoming meek to show him as the example?  One of the three great things that are, is you cannot brag about how humble you are.  But your life can brag on Jesus by how meek you are.  How much power of his you are under control of.  How you walk in the spirit.  Racers know when the friction zone is, when the power under control turns to smoke.  It may make a good show, burnouts do.  And we all do them, just don’t become one.  Lean on Jesus, knowing that being in the spirit brings life and liberty.  PSSI may impress your friends, and even yourself, but never the cops.  Another example of the law bringing death, while the spirit gives life.  It may be only a license, but it gives freedom to ride.  Remember the most cautious driver out there is one who left his wallet at home with his license in it.  Humbled rather than humiliated.  While the meek go by casting their cares on Jesus.  Power under control, whether by wrist or right foot, it is always better to be meek than than busted.  PSSI in your walk with Jesus is an illusion others see and you don’t.  Maybe there is some truth that you cannot ride faster than your angels can fly.  And they are probably quick enough to grab your $100 bill.  Keep your meekness, and your money.  Walk in Christ forgiven.  In the spirit.  There is power, and then there is real power...

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

Planet cub reporter dead at age 87

METROPOLIS-Jack Larson, best known as James Olson, aka Jimmy, died this week at age 87.  Lost to the public for many years, Larson was stuck in the mold of the foolish young Jimmy, and decided to work behind the camera rather than in front of it.  Of The Daily Planet staff only Noel Neill, former pin up favorite who played Miss Lois Lane survives, today at age 94.  He was preceded in death by John Hamilton aka Perry White, Robert Shayne aka Inspector Henderson, and George Reeves, aka Clark Kent, aka Superman.  Services will be private, donations can be made to the Jimmy Olson Fund for Cub Reporters courtesy of The Daily Planet.

And so it goes, another touch with a generation is gone forever.  But as Jimmy Olson will live on forever on reruns, Jack Larson is dead.  No reruns for him anymore.  His fate is sealed.  Along with Perry, Clark, and Lois, Inspector Henderson will live as long as there are reruns available, and watching then on Me TV this Saturday will be bittersweet.  But just as sad was the death of Larry Berra, aka Yogi at age 90.  Remembered best for his Yogi-isms, his masterful ability to mangle the English language, one of the most quoted came true this week, “it ain’t over til it’s over.”  Sadly very few will remember him as one of the best catchers who ever lived, a man who played in more World Series games than anyone else, who caught the only Perfect Game in one, and whose number 8 is retired at Yankee Stadium.  He lived in an era before TV, before video tapes, and a whole generation who can associate with him is almost gone.  How will they be remembered?  How will you be remembered in this age of video from phones and cameras?  What are you leaving behind to the next generation to know you by?  What is your legacy?  Will it be words or actions, or even remembered at all?  Will anyone care when you are gone?

I often wonder when will Superman die?  He obviously will age, will his super powers keep him going longer than most mortal men?  What is the average age on Krypton?  Did the climate here on earth age him quicker?  A hot topic for global warming advocates.  See even Superman succumbed to global warming.  As he got older could he still leap tall buildings at a single bound?  Could he still fly?  Was he as fast as a speeding Metroliner?  Did his skin age and with it the ability for bullets to bounce off?  How will he have fared fighting for truth, justice, and the American way?  Will he have kids to pass his skills onto?  Or with Jimmy now gone, Lois retired, who will write his obituary?  Who will have known him any better than them?  Certainly no one born just a few years ago.  Who will mourn for Mr. Kent, and will his true identity finally be revealed?

2000 years ago the real Superman lived.  He came to earth with powers far beyond those of mortal men.  He could change the course of mighty rivers, even walk on them.  He spoke to mountains and they moved.  He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, fed the hungry, and changed the world.  His name was Jesus, and he rose again after death, promising his believers the same thing.  How sad his disciples were upon his death, but he came back and revealed himself to them, giving them the Holy Spirit to guide them until his final return.  His obituary, the New Testament, turning into the Bible, Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth for all to have.  And their choice to follow.  He left a legacy for generations to come, no children, but brothers and sisters in Christ, who become children of his Father in heaven when they are born again.  He never denied who he was, always giving credit to his father for all the miracles he performed.  He died penniless, to the point of even being buried in a borrowed tomb, leaving noting but the promise of eternal life for those who believe.  And in lieu of any service, we pledge to be servants of him today.  All he asks is you believe on him and live as he did.  Showing love to all without prejudice.  He was and is and always will be the first and only true Superman. 

And while TV offers reruns of Superman, we can see and hear him daily if we follow his spirit, that he left to guide us.  To comfort us, to protect. To meet all of our needs in him.  Yet some deny him, or even his existence, going there own way until like Superman they find out what he can do.  They are rebelious against all that is good, and choose evil instead.  Choosing death instead of life.  Seeking fame and fortune that will flee instead of eternal life.  All based on him.  In some religions heaven is based on good works, sorry Jimmy, Perry, Lois, Inpsector, and even Clark.  Maybe Superman might make it for all the good he did, but how would you measure up?  What if you needed a 90 to gain heaven and only got an 89?  What kind of a loving God is that?  So he made salvation a gift so all could afford it.  Simple through one man, Jesus Christ.  Great Caesar’s ghost or the holy ghost?

So this week Yogi and Jimmy join their generation is death.  You still have the chance to join Jesus’ generation in life.  All have sinned and fall short of his glory, who you believe will designate where you spend eternity.  Superman was a good guy, even a good role model.  But only Jesus can save your soul.  That makes him truly super in my book.  No other like him ever.  Trust him today and see.

Which leaves one question unanswered?  If bullets bounce off Superman, why does he duck when a crook throws his gun at him?

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

what good is fun if you don't enjoy it?

I love my old truck.  Old being 2003, bought new, a Ford Ranger Edge.  I wanted a simple, basic truck and that is what I got.  The only concession to luxury an automatic, due to prolonged driving in freeway traffic taxing my left leg.  But it has rubber floor mats, crank windows, and to adjust the outside mirrors, I have to roll the windows  down.  All things that have broken on other trucks I have owned....I just like simple.  Maybe that is why I like my Bonneville also, simple.  Two cylinders, one front disc, and no bags, computers, or extras.  Everything I need, and nothing I don’t.  So I can enjoy the ride more.  Same with my 1978 Suzuki, simple.  I like things I don’t have to worry about, things that don’t challenge me, and things I can enjoy.  Life is so complex today, I still seek a radio that only has on/off and volume.  A TV with only the old shows I watch, and my old LP’s.  It seems technology is a good thing, but for me it has just gone on too long.  And entering into a conversation the other night with three friends I was reminded of how complex life has become.  My grandfather born in 1905, pre Model T, grew up without radio, TV, computers, cell phones, only the rich had phones, he walked everywhere, and read by electric light, if he happened to live in a city.  He might have to hand pump his water, grow his own veggies, and his mother bake her own bread.  Wash by hand....I think you get the point.  And he turned out OK, today’s generation has never had a TV without a remote, a computer, cell phone.  Washers, like refrigerators are run by mother boards, telling them when to change cycles, or when it gets too warm.  Put a dial phone in front of them, they cannot operate it, and wouldn’t know to dial the operator like we did for help.  911 another thing they have never lived without.  But another thing was being discussed as I entered, the topic was scriptures, and arguing over meaning.  Maybe not an argument, but a heated discussion.  And then I was brought into it...

They were tripping over words, and not getting the context of the scripture.  And areas that didn’t have anything to do with Jesus.  It had become religious, and I pointed that out.  These three men knew the Bible but were each quoting it for their own edification.  Or to win an argument.  And when I pointed it out, they agreed.  You see, I like my religion simple.  And religion seems to add many unnecessary items to scripture.  Or discount important ones.  If you have three ways to salvation, and I have four, my religion is better...an emphatic no!  Christianity is simple so I can get it, and free so I can afford it.  Jesus is the way.  Period.  One way.  The truth.  Not many truths to satisfy your argument.  And the life.  He is life, without him you are spiritually dead.  Yet so many religious types today expound even more, and we also discussed how you can take anything in the Bible out of context to satisfy your sin.  And many do, in fact we all do at one time or another.  And with help from the pulpit, denominational differences, and religious prejudices, somewhere Jesus gets lost in the translation.  Leave it to man and his pride, his ego to make something like the gospel difficult, when Jesus makes it so easy.

God emphasizes to me the application rather than the education of scripture.  Today we have so many over educated Bible reading authorities, who have no idea how it should be applied to life.  Men and women who study relentlessly, but don’t know the author of the Bible personally.  Who wear out the seat of their pants before they do the soles of their shoes.  They are locked into church, and are prisoners, they just don’t know it.  They study to find themselves approved, just not by God.  They live the theory of Christianity, they just don’t have the application to show for it.  They are missing the holy spirit in their lives.  Religion has taken over, it can in any denomination, or at any spiritual level, and they think knowledge is God.  Maybe a scripture for any situation, as long as it is controlled.  But when out of their peer group, they are lost and scared.  Useless to show Jesus, as he is strictly an intellectual exercise, rather than a personal one.  They may understand the widow giving two mites from an intellectual basis, but never have seen her in action in their lives.  They tithe, give when under guilt, and avoid the spirit all they can.  For the spirit brings liberty, and they are safe and secure in their intellectual prison.  So close, yet so far.

And so they argue rather than minister. They know scripture, they may even be saved, they just don’t know Jesus.  All about him, yet when Jesus talks about the least of them, and if you minister to them you are doing it onto him, they never have.  Avoiding all interaction they are dead spiritually, while those who live in the spirit enjoy the blessings.  We see Jesus in the hard times, the sick times, the times of unemployment.  Of being on the street, outside the church.  They grasp the fact Jesus taught in the temple, they just fail to recognize he ministered on the street.  His friends were hookers, junkies, bikers, and low lifes. Yet in their Pharisee way they don’t get it, and they don’t get him.  Study to find yourself approved, but not to be saved.  Only Jesus saves, which is only revealed by the Holy Spirit, and then backed up in scripture. 

So just like my roll up windows, and rubber floor, I like my religion simple.  It allows Jesus to take me deeper, rather than spread thin.  Knowledge may take you more places, but at a depth only a few inches deep.  So keep it simple, ask God what is his will, instead of arguing for your viewpoint.  When we see things through his eyes we see things how Jesus does.  Uncomplicated, simple, and to the point.  So don’t let your religion become like your stereo or car-over complicated.  Maybe that old time religion was good enough for my grandparents, so it should be good enough for me.  There are no new revelations, Jesus is still the way.  He still forgives, he still loves, and he still offers life.  No amount of knowledge can pass for God’s grace.  Whenever you get religious you are drifting away from Jesus, the world has become complex, don’t let your relationship with Jesus become the same.  Jesus is the main thing,so keep him the main thing.  Joy and peace are simple concepts, don’t make them difficult.  And if you want to show God’s love, apply what the Word says rather than studying it.  And you will find something else I do when riding my Bonneville, it is fun.  And what good is fun if you don’t enjoy it?  And as Christians we should all have more fun than the world, we are going to heaven! 

So rather than argue scripture, pray with your intellectual adversary.  Let God show how simple the gospel is, and how love covers all.  Let the spirit guide.  Nobody wins an argument, to lose all you have to do is become involved.  Jesus never argued, how about that?  He showed love, simply.  By meeting needs he showed who he was.  Master, teacher, Lord, and savior.  Life is tough, don’t let it enter into being a Christian.  Answer like the man who was given his eyesight, “all I know is I was blind and now I see.”  Only the spirit can remove the scales from your eyes.  Jesus saw the problem, and was the solution.  No eye exams, no studying to make sure his words were correct.  No doctorate of religion.  No seminary or cemetery.  He just healed and saved the man.  For all to see.  What do people see in you, the sin or the savior?  Education or application?  Jesus or ? 

Only in the spirit will you ever be set free.  Ask him today...his simple answer may surprise you.  And he writes it on your heart, not your i-pod.  Simple so I can get, free so I can afford it.  Any questions?

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com