Here we go!!!
It seems every day we are bombarded with a cacophony of sounds by talking heads who are having conversations regarding the latest trending topic. Sometimes it is congenial, other times...not so much. Why is that? We are all a part of 1 race, the human race. (Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Black and White") Yes, we come from different cultural backgrounds and different geographical areas but do our discussions have to predominantly be filled with criticism, vitriol, and disagreement? I think that there is a reason behind all of this. It boils down to one thing really. Since the Garden of Eden incident, we as a race of human beings have been caught in a trap...
The song was originally written and recorded by Mark James whose single was a commercial failure. It was then handed to Elvis Presley by producer Chip Moman who was attempting to get Elvis to record at American Sound Studio in Memphis. The ploy was successful as Elvis recorded his From Elvis in Memphis album at the studio in January and February of 1969.
Released in August of 1969, "Suspicious Minds" would be Elvis Presley's 18th and last #1 song on US charts. Elvis' release also would be named #91 on Rolling Stone Magazine's Greatest Songs of All Times. It would come at a time of reentry for Presley as he had stopped touring for seven years to devote time to his movie roles. The song would come on the heels of NBC's December 1968's Singer Presents...ELVIS (later referred to as the '68 Comeback Special) and cement Presley with a rebirth in the music business.
Subsequently, Elvis Presley was back in folks' minds with new music and a new tour as he set attendance records in Las Vegas for 4 weeks performing 2 times a day (except Monday). For his Vegas show's Colonel Parker (Elvis' manager) put together a group that would later become known as the TCB band. This band would feature some incredible players and backup singers which included The Imperials (later a top-selling Christian Contemporary group) and on bass guitar Jerry Scheff, father of Jason Scheff (bassist and vocalist for the band Chicago from 1985-2016...you had to know if there was a Chicago connection, I'd work it in...)
"Suspicious Minds," tells the story of a couple who can't seem to get over mistrust in their relationship. Past associations keep getting in the way of complete assurance in their current relations causing suspicion. This makes for a disingenuous atmosphere any time they are attempting to be closer. It escalates to the point that she doesn't believe a word he's sayin'.
This relationship seems very sad in a myriad of ways. Sad that because 2018 minds don't seem to be any different than 1969 minds which don't seem to be any different than minds in like...ever!!!
Suspicion and cynicism run rampant through relationships daily. This is exacerbated by a media that misses the mark almost as much as they report accurately. Just about the time we think we have a reliable source for information, we have to slam on the brakes and cry out "Whoa Nelly!!!" and then analyze every jot and tittle of the information for the slightest ounce of impropriety. The most notable of late is what we see almost daily in "news" outlets, "informational" conduits, and programming. It has gotten to the point that if we haven't seen information with our own eyes or heard it with our own ears, we call it into question. I suspect that we have finally seen the anarchy that is the natural result of asking the question "what is truth?"
The melee in which we find ourselves is nothing new. As stated, suspicious minds started in the Garden of Eden, when Adam and Eve betrayed each other and the rest of the perfect world in which they were the guardians. Never again, could a human trust another human to be fully dependable in their actions.
One would expect believers in the perfect Jesus to be exempt from this uncertainty. But a scanning of the scriptures in the New Testament shows just how quickly even the redeemed can have suspicious minds.
Welcome back to the stage our friend Paul!
We find Paul in the town of Ephesus (yep, he writes a letter to the church in this town as well, you guessed it...Ephesians). According to bible.org, he was ministering the Word to the folks in Ephesus when he got the news that there were suspicious minds in Corinth. He pens a letter of rebuke and encouragement to this group of believers telling them... STOP!!!
Paul says it much better: The Apostle Paul's First letter to the Corinthian church, chapter 1, verses 10-31 New International Version of the Bible/The Message Paraphrase of the Bible/English Standard Version of the Bible parallel
You see, friend, we shouldn't be surprised when folks who haven't yet believed in Jesus fight among themselves in disrespectful and unkind ways. Paul, however, was surprised to hear of believers acting in this manner. While believers will never be perfect this side of heaven, they should be striving for unity among all people, especially those who claim Jesus as The Way, The Truth, and The Life. Paul calls this "cultivating a life in common" (The Message paraphrase, v. 10) The motivation for cultivating a life in common is realizing that " Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ" (The Message, v. 30)
So how, as a believer, do we navigate conversations with folks who have a predisposition to having a suspicious mind? How do we "cultivate a life in common" with those in which we have nothing in common? How can we be conduits of truthful information in a manner that is pleasing to God and is peculiar for our society? Paul has some more encouragement as he writes to the Ephesian church: Paul's Letter to the Ephesian Church, chapter 4, verses 30-32 NIV/The Message/ESV
The Apostle Peter also has some advice: 1 Peter: 2 NIV/The Message/ESV
And in the event you encounter someone (believer or not) who wishes to engage you in an "excitable" debate, here's some counsel based on the experience of Job (In the Old Testament found usually after the story of Esther and before the Psalms):
Disagreement is one of the results of disobedience in the Garden. There is a colloquialism that suggests that we should choose to "agree to disagree". I'm not sure I'm down with that. We should always find ourselves on the side of unity. We've discussed this before. Tuesday's Musical Notes - "We Just Disagree"
The key is how we go about this disagreement and how we go about resolving conflict in a manner that provides for unification. This can be done through mutual respect, kindness, and civility. This shows the world WHOSE we are. This shows the world HOW life can be. This shows the world what UNITY truly means.
In our conversations and discussions, we must put on the mind of Jesus, we must have an air of civility and love, and we must strive for unity and fight for relationships because... we can't go on together with suspicious minds and we can't build our dreams on suspicious minds...
Thank ya...thank ya very much!!!
'Til Tuesday,
Serving HIM by serving You,
randy
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