Of what are you a FAN?

The term “fan” is something I have been thinking about lately. Since I am from the southwestern part of Ohio I am a fan of the Cincinnati Reds, and the Cincinnati Bengals.
If you are a sports fan, no matter where you live in this great country you have probably heard of the struggles the fans are going through with our professional teams. Losing seasons seem to breed losing seasons.

Since I am an interested party only and do not go the games, my opinion is just that, another opinion about baseball and football in Cincinnati, Ohio. On the other hand I am a fan in good standing of the Church of Jesus Christ here in Beavercreek, Ohio. I go to the services and invest my money and time in it.

The other day I ran into a friend at the bank. He is a minister of a small church in another town. Since we had not seen each other for some time, I asked if he was still at the same church, He was, and expanding into a larger area of the same building. I was glad to hear that things were going well for the church. Then he asked me the question that brought up this thought process. Are you still at the Vineyard in Beavercreek? My answer jumped out of my mouth and surprised me, of course the answer was yes I am still there, “and I love it”.

Is it right to think of my relationship to my local church as being a fan? Were the disciples' fans of Jesus? Were Abraham, Issac, and Jacob, fans of God?

It seems to me that, as Christians we are told not to get excited, stay even-keel in your actions, don’t be flashy in any expression of your faith. In my mind those stipulations would ensure that Christians would not be called fans. Maybe I am speaking a little strong with the words “told not to get excited”, could it be that we just catch that idea in our Christian life and assume that is the way to live? Or do we easily live a life quietly, under the radar, so we don’t make waves in our worldly relationships?

The apostle Paul says to try to the best of your ability to get along with everyone. That statement seems to make the case that there will be some people that you cannot get along with. As a Christian, I choose to worship my God by telling people about Him, by showing people what He has done in my life, and if need be wear the scares of being a Christian. That doesn’t sound much different than fans of sports teams.

To keep this short and answer my own question, I will be a fan of Jesus because He chose to pay the ultimate sacrifice for me. Also, important is that I will always be a fan of the Church He died for.

Today I am a fan of the local Church here in Beavercreek, Ohio. Like a sports team fan, this fan will gather together and enjoy the company of others, stick together thru the good and the bad, wear the colors, and on occasion tailgate.

Jim

Life and times at turkeyfoot landing

I may not have lived life to the fullest but I have enjoyed most of it. Some of my earliest memories are of summer vacations at Indian Lake. Thats where I learned to love fishing. When I was tall enough to hold a small cane pole my dad let me walk along the shore and fish between the boats to catch little bluegills. Needless to say I was hooked at that young age.

As I became older and bolder with my cane pole, my dad became wiser and started grinding the barbs off of the small hooks I was using. It seems to me there were many times he had to cut the hook out of my finger.

One reason I bring this up for my first blog post is that I was at Indian Lake a couple of weeks ago and took a walk through the old boat landing there at Turkeyfoot . Of course it's changed a
lot over fifty years but I remember it like yesterday. The best thing was, a dad walking along the shore with two little boys with cane poles, fishing between the boats.

I walked by them and smiled, and said to the dad, trust me on this one, they will never forget.