Recorded on February 24, 2025… The verses are from Joel 2:28-32 and Acts 2:15-21…
Ringo sang at the ‘Grand ‘Ole’ Opry last Saturday night!
If you don’t see any significance to that statement then, odds are, you have not lived the 71-years that I have!! And if that be the case, you might… or might Not… appreciate what I have to say here!
Some months (Years?) ago I started occasionally watching what they call ‘reaction’ videos on ‘YouTube’. These are ‘clips’ of various people watching music videos of people/bands/songs that they have never heard before. Their ages seem to range from maybe 40 to 20-something, some have different musical backgrounds, such as theater, opera, or rap, and some are from different countries around the world… so I can understand, with some regret, how they might not have been aware of the songs and artists that made such an impact on My life, and even my way of thinking, in the 1960’s and ‘70’s. But what disturbs me the Most is how, for the most part, as they listen and comment, they never seem to grasp the true ‘significance’, ‘meaning’, or ‘impact’ of a piece! For example, one ‘rapper’ listens to ‘America’ doing ‘A Horse With No Name’ and hears it as a ‘drug-induced hallucination’… and while All who listened to ‘Gordon Lightfoot’ doing the ‘Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald’ are ‘saddened’ by the deaths of the 29 sailors, they have no idea where, or even What, the ‘Great Lakes’ are!!
But it is Not always a case of a difference in age or location, but often a difference in culture! My own wife is 3-years younger than I am, but grew-up in a Totally different family with a Totally different social outlook and values than I did… and so, She has never heard many of the songs, read the books, or seen the movies that were a part of what shaped me into being who-and-what I am! True, she joined the Army and ‘saw-the-world’ for eight years before having to ‘retire’ due to health issues, but still Her ‘views’ and ‘takes’ on people and the world are Bound to be different than my farming, mechanic, and truck-driving life… even if Much of my life included writing Religious-based articles and songs, teaching an adult Bible class, mentoring a church youth group and even pastoring at one small church and speaking at many others!
So, what does all of this have to do with Ringo singing at the ‘Grand ‘Ole’ Opry’? Starting in the 1960’s and through much of the ‘70’s the ‘Beatles’ had, arguably, one of the most influenceable effect on ‘young people’, music, and even our culture of any such group! Two of the members were even ‘Knighted’ by Queen Elizabeth! And One of those two was ‘Sir Ringo Starr’! But last night this ‘icon’ of ‘rock’ music, one who was not only there at its birth but played a significant part in it, sang at the ‘Grand ‘Ole Opry’, the ‘Mother ‘Church’ of country music!
And yet Many of the ‘reaction’ videos I watch are of people watching/hearing the ‘Beatles for the ‘very-first-time’!! Oh, they ‘know’ the name and that they were a part of musical history… but had never really heard, or at least Listened to, any of their songs. And while this, in-and-of-itself, is sad enough, it is nothing new! In 1976 I was the ‘Transportation Superintendent’ (Which meant I kept all of the busses running and hauled kids around every day!) of a small school district in central Illinois, and vividly remember overhearing one high school girl telling another, “Did you know Paul McCartney was a member of a group before ‘Wings?”. (Again, for those not of my age or background, ‘Paul McCartney’ [He was not a ‘Sir’ yet…] was one of the lead singer/songwriters of the ‘Beatles’, but by ‘76’ had started another Very successful ‘group’ called ‘Wings’!!)
How fleeting are the wings of time… and the memory of ‘man’!
The 2nd chapter of the Book of Acts starts by describing how the Holy Spirit descended on, depending on the Commentary you read, about 3000 of those gathered for the Pentecost feast and how these 3000 started speaking ‘in tongues’… That is, they were speaking in different languages that those present from other countries could understand, but that the speaker had never been taught but now understood and could communicate in! Those present who were Not a part of what was going on… those who, most likely were who Jesus was referring to in Matthew 11:15 when He said, “Whoever has ears, let him hear.”… which, adversely, also means that those without ears, or are unwilling to listen, will Not hear… claimed that the noise, or ‘gibberish’, that They heard was due to the speakers being drunk! Peter denies this, pointing out that it was only 9 in the morning. Peter knew, as one commentary put it, that “The claim they are drunk is an ad hominem attack: a specious criticism against the character of the speakers instead of a logical response to their argument.”
WHY does that statement put me in mind of so much of what I see and hear on ‘social media’ and from our ‘news sources’ today?!? People have Always disagreed about Many things, but today, it seems, those disagreements have become so Passionate that we refuse to Listen to any argument… or Facts… that go against what we want… or have Learned… to believe!
For example… my Dad Always had a Ford… so I grew-up with an unquestioning belief in Ford products! And for Many years, other than my larger trucks, all I owned was a Ford! It didn’t matter that I maybe liked the styling of some other cars… or that other makes might get better milage… or even that I Did seem to spend a fair amount of time working on them (Though as to That, I Have to say My trucks Always did Everything I Ever asked of them and More!!) But as time went by, I became less ‘brainwashed’ about it… until, at one point I had an opportunity to get a Dodge Caravan at the right price (FREE) and It became my ‘main’ vehicle! And since it was So economical to operate, I wound up selling my last Ford truck around 2008… Today I have a Chrysler Town and Country as my ‘utility’ vehicle and a Buick Regal as my personal little hot-rod!
My point is that, no matter How Strong some of our beliefs are, we sometimes need to open-our-ears and our minds and consider just Where such-and-such a belief came from and Why we seem so set upon believing it, even when faced with strong evidence against it!
We all grew up in different ‘worlds’ and in different ways. We might be from different towns, states or countries. But even if we grew up in the same town in the same state, we might have grown up on different sides of the track, to coin a phrase, or even just different neighborhoods! We all learned things and attitudes from our parents, our teachers, our friends, and even our churches. Where and How do we find common ground?
Peter is quoting from Joel when he says,
“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.
And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come.
And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call.””
As an ‘old man’, I can state unequivocally that I Certainly have dreams… and Some of them are very Strange, indeed! Does that mean that the ‘end times’ are near? According to these verses, it Could… but Jesus told us that No man might know the end-of-time… So the best thing that I can do is try to live my life as if it Might be the end-of-time! And the best way I can do That is to allow all of my thoughts and decisions… and, Yes, emotions… be dictated by the Words that God has given us in what we call the Holy Bible!!
Now, don’t misunderstand me… I am WRONG a Lot!! There are things that I Want to believe… but I Know God doesn’t! There are things that I have learned from people that I’ve trusted, loved, and even admired and respected… that are just flat Wrong according to the Word of God! Listening to the songs and ‘vibes’ of growing up in the ‘60’s and ‘70’s there are a LOT of nice-sounding ideas and ideals shoved about… I mean, what’s wrong with a world filled with love, flowers, and peace? Nothing! But it Has to be done on God’s terms… not Satan’s!
Now, pay attention… YES, Jesus teaches us to love one another… But Each Time He mentions ‘love’ it is followed by an admonition to OBEY! But how do we ‘obey’ if we don’t Know what God is saying to us?
I believe that Every difference… every problem… every argument… every strife… no matter if caused by ‘mother nature’… such as the current floods, fires, and hurricanes… political differences… such as those pulling our country apart right now… deaths, sicknesses, loneliness, heartbreak, or any of the countless stresses-and-strains than we humans encounter everyday… Can ALL be addressed by a Thorough reading, understanding, and acceptance of God’s Word!!
How, do you ask?
Let me answer that, and close, with a very short story. Some years ago, I was in a ‘discussion’ with a very ‘liberal’ lady pastor about allowing illegal immigrants into this country and then taking care of them.
Me: “The government does Not belong in the Welfare Business! That was started during the Depression in the ‘30’s, and even Then, the men were expected to Work for what they got each week! We have allowed and used it to control whole segments of society since then”
Her: “Then Who is going to take care of all of these people?”
Me: “That is the responsibility of the churches…”
Her: “But what if we can’t do it?”
Me: “Then We, as Christians, have failed!!”
Have we, as Christians, failed? I know I do, to some extent, everyday! Too many times, I want to remember and accept the ‘teachings and philosophies’’ that I learned from the songs and cultures of my youth!
I’m sure everyone of us wants to do what’s right. But too often, our ‘ideas’ of what is right-or-wrong have been influenced by our surroundings and culture! Some of us want to ‘Love The One Your With’ (Crosby, Stills, and Nash), share some of what Jeremia always had (Three Dog Night), or get embarrassed by how Lady Madonna fed her baby (Beatles), or any of the Millions of other notions and ideas put into our heads, whether 2 years ago or 60, by all of the various medias we have available.
But Surely, if we ALL read God’s Word… today… if we ALL Learn and accept it’s meanings, instructions, and directions… we can STILL make this world… This Country… what God wants it… and Us… to be! We CAN be the successful Christians that God made Each One of us to be!!
scluebbert 