THE BEAUTY QUEEN

I remember many years ago when we had a "Miss Texas" visit our church to give her testimony. I had a problem with it about 40 years ago, and I still a question about what that "testimony" meant to our church and our community.

I've personally known some young ladies who have been involved in pageants, and I've known literally thousands who were not born with the looks needed to make it in the business. I don't question the fact that the participants work hard at the job, but I realize that they must have some great "God given" looks to become winners. The girls have to be a certain size with a certain look and have the desire to let everyone see it all.

I have, for many years, questioned Christian parents who press their daughters into participation in these events. I understand that "talent" is often discussed, but the major portion of the contest is based on the looks of the young lady. She must show doctor inserted cleavage, dress prevocatively, and be willing to act seductively.

The Bible admonition is that we are "in the world" but not "of the world." Everyone of us face this same delimma. We are to be salt and light; we are to stand apart from this world. We are to be "different" so the world can see that difference. We must make the decision to not act like the rest of this world.

I felt so sorry when I heard the story of Miss California in the recent Miss USA Contest. She has spent her entire life getting ready for this event; she has worshipped the whole beauty contestant idea.

Then she tried to be the Christian in an atmosphere that was anything but Christian. The gay judge who asked her the question and who then denigrated her for her answer is of this world. He didn't want a Christian answer. He didn't think of Miss California as a representative of Christ. When she gave a Christian answer, he acted just like a unbeliever is trained to answer. His only recourse was to attack.

Miss California has responded with a strong Christian testimony; she has not be vendictive. She has actually come across as the "victor" in this battle of cultures. We've seen more of her picture than of the actual winner. She is now the national spokesperson for the traditional family.


All of this aside . . the question is this. "Do the activities that are required of a participant in the contest do anything that glorifies Christ and brings glory to the Lord of the universe?" Or are the activities those of the carnal world? I think the later is true. Christian young ladies . . be careful. Miss California may be spokesperson for traditional Christian values, but she has gained that podium by sacrificing many of those values.

STUMP

I just returned from speaking at a Senior Adult Retreat for the folks at First Baptist Church of New Branfels, Texas. They have an absolutely wonderful leader in Billy Barnes and his wife Judy. They are two of the finest I have ever seen. This is my third retreat with them, and RL and I are willing to go again . . anytime.

The theme of the retreat was UNITY, and I began my four sessions with Stump as our role model. After all, at 10 years of age (that's 70 in adult years), we were all able to identify with Stump and his wonderful win at the Westminister Dog Show.

A television commentator said following the show that a good Sussex Spaniel should be LOW, LONG, and LEVEL. I don't know of any better description of a godly senior adult than those words. So I just used that as my outline for the first session, and we used scripture to talk about senior adults.

I had a lot of good responses from the folks. Some got the analagy right off. There were some who thought it was not spiritual enough. Others thought I was calling them a dog.

But we all learned some wonderful life lessons.

The 57 people at the retreat were mostly over 70 years of age, and there were none of them who felt a day over 35. They all thought they could win "Best of Show". That's why it's fun to hang out with senior adults.

INTERESTED IN TEXAS HISTORY?

I've become more and more a fan of Texas history over the past few years. We Texans have always had a reputation that is overly "Texan", and we often deserve the criticism that we receive because of that "Texan" thing. After all, Texas was an indepedent nation prior to becoming a state in the U.S., and we often want to talk about that aspect of our history.

We went down to Goliad this past weekend for their annual reenactment of that historical event. There had already been many Texian deaths in late 1835 and early 1836 at Refugio, Concepcion, and the Alamo, but the greatest number of deaths occured at Goliad on March 27, 1836. It is hard for us to really understand all of the political elements that were happening, but many Texians gave their lives for freedom from the cruel Mexican leadership under Santa Anna.

The reenactors did a wonderful job of telling the story, and there were several thousand people present to learn more about this important part of Texas history. I would encourage anyone to attend this annual event at Presidio La Bahia. The people of Goliad were welcoming and gracious to us. It was a wonderful weekend.

Someone asked me why I was so excited about the killiing and warfare that was represented. I had to stop and say that it wasn't the cannons and guns and killings. I was there to celebrate freedom. Gonzales and Goliad and the Alamo were just the starting points for most of the western United States. These people understood freedom, and many gave their lives for the very freedom that we enjoy today.

This is the time for you and me . . to stand for freedom.

SYDNEY PORTIS - WMU

One of my dear friends in Colorado, Sydney Portis, went home to be with the Lord yesterday.

Sydney and I attended Southwestern Seminary together back in the early 60s, and Sydney served as the Women's Missionary Union Director in Colorado from 1971 through 1998. She was the model of leadership among women. It was a joy for me to work alongside her for 9 years.

Sydney lived very close to Ruth Lynn and me in Centennial, Colorado, and we spent some wonderful time with her. She never married and has no surviving family . . that is except for the thousands of people in Colorado who loved her. She gave her life in ministry in that wonderful state.

Sydney was a "pack rat", and I say that with admiration. There was not a single book or poster or camp item or anything that she did not "keep". I spent many hours helping her to get our shared storage space organized and functioning. She wouldn't let me throw away anything, but I would often slip something out without her knowledge. She took up all of the space in what is now the library for Golden Gate Seminary.

Her declining health over the years forced her into a retirement home, but her sweet Christian spirit has permeated the place. Her dear young friend, Ty McCarty, has done more than could ever be expected. He has stood by her side and handled so many decisions. Thank you Ty for your faithfulness.

"O, may all who come behind us find us faithful."

Sydney Portis lived a life of faithfulness and service.