I don't know about you, but with each passing day, I find my life bombarded with more and more new opportunities. Social media "informs" us, new technologies "educate" us, and the "apps of the day" make life more "convenient" for us. One would think that all of these recent happenings would make our world a better place. While this can be true, in some circumstances, these contingencies have the capability of complicating things. I suppose the choice ultimately is ours to decide which will be which. Our attitude and acceptance regarding this brave new world are dependent on our thought processes, belief systems, and how the culture in which we are enveloped has made us who we are. 
That doesn't eliminate the fact that we live in a world of constant change. How we navigate the nuances of our lives shows the world exactly who we are for the good or bad. I think most of us are hoping that we can strike a balance between the good and bad and make sure that how others perceive us is mostly in the positive column of checks and balances.
Being a positive person, much less a positive influence in an ever-changing world presents its series of challenges to partner with the ones with which we've visited above. But with perseverance, getting in with the right bunch of fellows (placing ourselves in a position to be mentored by those younger than us as well as older), and some other good influences, we might find ourselves in a situation that at least seems like we love to work at nothing all day, that my friend is when we be takin' care of business...
I confess an affinity to any band that has a "Randy" in its midst! Search and you will find that there are many musically inclined "Randy's" who have populated the rosters of bands that make up our musical heritage. One of the most famous is Randy Bachman, the Canadian guitarist, singer/songwriter who founded the band Bachman Turner Overdrive with his brothers Robbie and Tim, and bassist Fred Turner.
As a band, BTO realized 5 top 40 albums and 6 top 40 singles. While this doesn't seem like a lot in comparison to some rock and roll bands, you must take into consideration what the singles were to get a good appreciation for the band's longevity. "Let It Ride", "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet", "Roll On Down The Highway", "Hey You", "Take It Like A Man", and today's featured song, "Takin' Care Of Business" continue to receive heavy airplay at classic radio and are featured countless times in movies, TV, and commercials.
"Takin' Care Of Business" peaked at #12 on Billboard's Hot 100. It spent 20 weeks on the chart, making it the longest charting single by BTO.
It was a song that Randy Bachman developed while he was a member of The Guess Who. Originally titled, "White Collar Worker", the first draft of the song was panned by The Guess Who's Burton Cummings because of its similarities to The Beatles' (Tuesday's Musical Notes - The Beatles blogs) song "Paperback Writer". One evening at a concert, and due to Fred Turner's voice playing out, Randy Bachman took the mic for the final song. You guessed it, he sang "White Collar Man", but when the time for the chorus came, inspired by local DJ Darryl B's catchphrase, he changed the lyric to "Takin' Care Of Business". The reception from the crowd was so positive that BTO amped up the tempo and played the song again for another ten minutes.
To add to the legend of "Takin' Care Of Business" on May 7, 1994, Randy Bachman organized 1300 guitarists to set a Guinness Book of World Records..." most guitarists ever gathered that played for over an hour." and "Takin' Care Of Business" was the song they used.
The success of "Takin' Care of Business" just goes to show how when you go about doing the things you are supposed to be doing, everything seems to work out in the end...something perhaps to ponder...or maybe treasure in your heart...
For quite some time now, we have been making our way through the great stories of the Bible. We have come to the stories about Jesus called The Gospel as recorded by Matthew, a tax collector, Mark, an evangelist and disciple of Peter, Luke, a physician, and John, a fisherman. These accounts tell us about the life of Jesus from the time of John the Baptist's preaching about Him to His ascension into heaven.
We don't know much about the life of Jesus from Joseph and Mary moving the family back to Nazareth as we saw last week (Tuesday's Musical Notes - "New Morning" (Bob Dylan)) until today's focal passage where Jesus is 12.
Many make much about the fact that Jesus was a preteen at this time. While the events we read about are miraculous, we must also remember the context of the times in which Jesus lived. He would have probably by this time been at the very least an apprentice of Joseph's in the family carpentry business and would have had other familial responsibilities.
As devout Jews, Mary and Joseph observed Passover annually in Jerusalem. This allowed them some familiarity with the city during this busy time. When the time came for them to make the journey back to Nazareth, Jesus stayed behind...unbeknownst to Mary or Joseph. Safety was an issue when traveling any distance in the land at this time so Mary and Joseph attached themselves to a caravan of folks. They thought that Jesus was with another part of the caravan. After having a day of travel under their belt, the reality that Jesus was not with them came in full force. After double-checking with their relatives and the other sojourners, Mary and Joseph began the trip back to Jerusalem. They spent three days trying to discover Jesus' whereabouts. I can only imagine the panic that those three days held for the couple. I panic if one of my grandkids gets out of my sight for a second...in my backyard! When they found Jesus, they discovered Him conversing with those who were considered leaders...in...the...temple! Others of the populace had gathered (remember we are only 4 days removed from Passover, the biggest day of the year in Jerusalem) as this 12-year-old listened to and asked questions of the teachers. The growing gathering was amazed at the knowledge and maturity of the boy Jesus.
I love the reaction of Mary and Joseph in this instance. Depending on the translation they were "bewildered, overwhelmed, amazed, and astonished". I would imagine relief was a part of that emotional mix as well. Then, the parent side came out in Mary..." Dude, your dad and I have been stressed out the last three days trying to find you! Why would you do us this way?" (That is a Randy paraphrase by the way).
Jesus replied, "Didn't you know I that I would be in my Father's house, takin' care of business?" (again...paraphrase). It is no surprise that anyone who heard Jesus' statement became somewhat confused. "His Father's business? Isn't His father a carpenter? Does the temple need a repairman?" (...you get the idea!)
The confusion was Mary and Joseph's as well. In light of all that they had experienced with Jesus' birth and His life to this point, it is easy for us to be critical of Mary and Joseph. He was Jesus after all. The angels had told them that this would happen. However, we must look at this circumstance through Mary and Joseph's eyes. After the panic subsided and relief began to take hold, their 12-year-old was asking theologically astute questions of the teachers in the temple. "What have you been teaching Him at that carpentry shop?" Mary and Joseph had not quite gotten the fulfillment of Jesus' ultimate mission on this earth. Chances are Joseph would never get that opportunity, as we rarely hear about Him in the remaining timeline of Jesus' life.
The Bible then explains that Jesus respectfully followed His folks home. He was God, but He humbled Himself as a YOUNG man and submitted Himself to Mary and Joseph's authority. We aren't given any indication that Mary and Joseph meted out discipline to Jesus, the Bible simply says that "Mary treasured all of these things in her heart". This is the second time in this chapter that Dr. Luke details Mary's reaction to her situation in this way (see v. 19). One would wonder if these "treasured" moments were recalled as should she stood at the foot of a cross some twenty or so years later as her Son became her Savior.
The final verse of Luke 2 shows that Mary probably had many more things to treasure in her heart. Jesus' increased in wisdom, not just knowledge, and stature. In other words, Jesus grew up. The final verse also says that his formative years were spent gaining favor with God and people. Jesus' experience at the temple was the beginning of a lifestyle of righteousness, holiness, and ultimately fulfilling His mission on earth as our Savior...it short, Jesus spent the rest of His life, in the same manner, that He spent His time with the teachers at the temple...takin' care of business, every day, takin' care of business, every way...
'Til Tuesday,
Loving HIM by Loving You,
randy
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