Posted on Thursday, September 21, 2006                                      by Roger Spence

I typically choose to write stories from my personal life.  This time, however, I chose a hot topic from the headline news.  Never the less, it is a topic which affects you and me personally.  Pope Benedict’s comments about Muslims have sparked quite a stir in the Muslim community. 

Many Muslims have denounced the Pope’s speech, yet there has been a dearth of response from the Muslim community to denounce the heinous acts committed in America just over five years ago.  I have personally spoken to several people who believe that someone in power in a Muslim nation should publicly denounce such acts of terror and killing done by those who supposedly ascribe to the teachings of the Quran.  So how is it with us Christians?  Are we concerned that the non-Christian world has a clear representation of what the Bible really teaches?  Do we denounce heinous acts done in the name of Christ?  I don’t have all the answers, but let us at least consider what should be our response.  Below is a commentary from the Dayton Daily News which caused me to think. 

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   Posted on Thursday, June 1, 2006                                                   by Roger Spence

Lately I’ve been thinking about endurance.   I certainly can’t come as a learned one to preach and teach about the topic.  On the contrary, I often find myself tempted to give up.  I come as one encouraging myself to keep on keepin’ on.  Jesus is, of course, the ultimate example of endurance.  He, for the joy set before Him, endured the cross.  He encouraged us by saying that the one who endures to the end will be saved.  When is “the end” you ask?  You’re not there yet.

Paul of Tarsus is another great example of endurance.  Near the end of his life, he proclaimed, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”  Since I enjoy running, I can relate when he compares the Christian life to a competitive race.  Anyone who wants to win a competition has to be disciplined.  Some people seem to major in self-discipline.  I, on the other hand, am majoring in procrastination with a minor in love of ease.

So what was Paul’s secret to endurance, to finishing the race?  One key I believe was that he had a vision, a goal.  He focused on the goal of winning the prize (for which God had called him heavenward).  I also need a vision if I am going to make any progress in my Christian life.

I ran across a story (pardon the pun) about a middle-aged man who took up the sport of running for the sake of his quadriplegic son.  I found it to be very inspiring.  It shows how a vision for one’s life can drive us farther than we could ever imagine.  It all started when Rick Hoyt, paralyzed from birth with cerebral palsy, was 15 years old and his father Dick was 36.   Rick heard of a 5K race to benefit a local college athlete who was paralyzed in an accident; he asked his dad if they could run in the race.  Dick reluctantly agreed.  Dick ran all 3.1 miles while pushing 110 pound Rick in his wheelchair and didn’t finish last!

After the race, Rick said, “Dad, when I’m running it feels like I’m not handicapped.”  Dick was very sore and pissed blood for a week.  He said, “After the race I felt disabled . . . . Making Rick happy was the greatest feeling in the world.”  Dick was so interested in making his son happy, that he conditioned during the week and ran races with Rick on the weekend.  A now 65 year old Dick has competed with Rick to date in over 900 endurance events around the world, including 64 marathons, 25 Boston marathons, and 8 Iron man triathlons. 

People have begun asking when Dick will call it quits.  He is 65, after all, and it’s natural to assume his body could not handle to stress and strain of such running for much longer.  Dick and Rick both realize that they have become an inspiration to many.  Even some who are not handicapped have decided to taking running for their health after hearing Dick and Rick’s story.  And then there’s all the money that has been raised for Easter Seals in the name of Rick.  After all, if they can do it . . . . So what is Dick’s response to those who wonder when he’ll throw in the towel?  “. . . what keeps us going is seeing how much good we’re doing . . .”      

For the full story on Dick and Rick Hoyt, follow this link:

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,5033,s6-187-0-0-9583,00.html

   Posted on Thursday, January 19, 2006                                          by Roger Spence

One lump for me.  In my coffee, that is.  When I ask someone if they like coffee, they tend to either love it or hate it.  I guess I can understand why some hate it, but that is not my story at all.  It’s fun to reminisce where my love relationship with coffee began.

My first memory of coffee was when I was about 4 or 5 years old.  My mom didn’t work.  My dad felt that it was a mother’s duty to raise the children, and she could hardly do that well if not at home.  Today, such attitudes would be considered old-fashioned or even sexist.  I was thankful to have my mom around so much when I was a wee lad.  She spent a lot of time with me, and we had fun times playing school.  One day I got to play teacher while she was the student.  She made me call her Mrs. Spence (not Mom) when she was teacher, so I made her call me Mr. Spence.  She slipped up and called me Roger instead.  I had the pleasure of making her stand in the corner for a few minutes!  

Back to my first taste of coffee.  My mom would get up early and make breakfast for my dad.  Then she’d go back to bed.  Once I awoke, she would get up, too.  She had to have one cup of coffee in the morning – one cream, one sugar.  She would drink about ¾ of it and then let me have a sip.  I liked it!  I guess the way she made it was never too bitter for my little taste buds.  If I didn’t finish it, she’d pour the rest out for our dog to drink. 

I don’t remember drinking coffee again until I got to college.  Even though I would stay up often until 1 A.M. or so, it didn’t occur to me to drink coffee to stay awake.  Dr. Pepper was my staple.  This was until my sophomore year.  A friend in my dorm was really into coffee.  He and his roommate had their beds on a loft, leaving the entire floor space for couches.  Many times I would hang out at their pad for some lively discussions, usually about politics or religion.  My friend liked his coffee black, which seemed awfully bitter to me.  Yet, I was willing to drink a mug of it because there was something cool about reclining on the couch with a warm mug in my hands as I solved the world’s problems. 

Later, I would discover cream.  Sometimes if the coffee was too hot, I would add cream to it rather than waiting for it to cool.  And if cream, why not sugar?  And then Starbucks came along and made coffee drinks with lots of cream and sugar so very tasty.  How about a grande pumpkin spice latte or mocha frappuccino?

To all you non-coffee drinkers, go get some Starbucks’ coffee with some friends and discuss that thought-provoking movie you just saw.  See if it doesn’t just seem right to hold a warm mug of coffee and philosophize. 

To all you who love coffee and need a little ammo against your coffee-hating friends, read this interesting article.  It turns out coffee is good for your health.

 http://www.usnews.com/usnews/health/articles/051219/19coffee.htm

Until next time . . . . . . . .