George P. Shultz, a combat marine in World War II, died last week at 100. He was a university professor of economics unless his country called on him. President Eisenhower asked him to be his economic advisor. President Nixon asked him to be Secretary of Labor, Budget Manager and Treasury Secretary. President Reagan called on him to be Secretary of State. This past summer I watched an interview of George Shultz, made in 2016, as part of a subsequent compilation from a gathering of all the living US secretaries of state. On December 11, 2020, Secretary Shultz wrote an article that was published in the Washington Post titled, The 10 Most Important Things I’ve Learned About Trust Over My 100 Years.  He begins the article this way:

Dec. 13 marks my turning 100 years young. I’ve learned much over that time, but looking back, I’m struck that there is one lesson I learned early and then relearned over and over: Trust is the coin of the realm. When trust was in the room, whatever room that was — the family room, the schoolroom, the locker room, the office room, the government room or the military room — good things happened. When trust was not in the room, good things did not happen. Everything else is details. 

His article consists of 10 examples of trust across his life beginning with learning trust at home, at war, at MIT, though labor negotiations, race and political relations, and foreign relations. He concludes with number 10 when he writes:

“In God we trust.” Yes, and when we are at our best, we also trust in each other. Trust is fundamental, reciprocal and, ideally, pervasive. If it is present, anything is possible. If it is absent, nothing is possible. The best leaders trust their followers with the truth, and you know what happens as a result? Their followers trust them back. With that bond, they can do big, hard things together, changing the world for the better.

Trustworthiness is vital. I counsel couples who want to marry that there are four foundational pillars on which to build a marriage, a home or a life—Christ, love, commitment, and trust. If any pillar is forsaken, the marriage, home or life is in grave jeopardy. 

Keep healthy. Pray mightily. Enjoy your life today. Be trustworthy. And let’s experience the love and power of God together while apart.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/12/11/10-most-important-things-ive-learned-about-trust-over-my-100-years/?arc404=true

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I was surprised to read that Robin Hood was in the news, but not as surprised as the good people of Sherwood Forest. It seems the merry men of the Robin Hood Society of Sherwood Forest suddenly had thousands of new followers on their website and on Twitter. They were so overwhelmed they thought it must be a prank or a hack. Turned out it was thousands of potential investors in the US stock market mistaking them for a day-trader app with the Robin Hood name. 

The Robin Hood stock market investors managed to manipulate undervalued stocks, like AMC Theaters and GameStop, into record highs. This caused millions of dollars in pain to professional hedge fund investors who thought they had the stock market game under their control. (I have just exhausted my understanding of this part of the story.)

Someone else who was surprised by the Robin Hood phenomenon was 10-year-old Jaydyn Carr of San Antonio, Texas. Jaydyn owned 10 shares of stock in GameStop, a company that sells computer games in the mall. His mother had bought the shares for Jaydyn two years ago as a Kwanzaa gift. To introduce him to financial investing, she paid $61.90 for stock in the store he loved to visit,. Last week Jaydyn cashed-in his investment for $3,200! As an investor, Jaydyn has decided to put $2,200 into his savings account, and is looking to invest the rest. He likes Xbox and Roblox games.

An article in the NY Times reported:  “Ms. Carr said she became committed to teaching her son about financial literacy after Jaydyn’s father, an Army combat medic, died in 2014 from combat-related complications. A certificate of deposit she opened with a death compensation payment provided an entry point to teach her son financial responsibility — lessons she said she didn’t learn until later in life. She has taught Jaydyn how to speak to bank tellers, how to save his money, how to use a debit card, when to recognize when something is an impulse purchase and, recently, the charming game of the stock market.” (January 30, 2021)

Jaydyn received a 5,000% financial return on his mother’s investment in him. In what or whom are you investing today? Investing in others brings the best returns. Investing with the Good News of Christ brings the highest returns. (See Matthew 6:19-21.)  

Keep healthy. Pray mightily. Enjoy your life today. Invest in things eternal. And let’s experience the love and power of God together while apart.  

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When we were courting, Dorothy and I rode a roller coaster at Six Flags Over Texas. I had never been anywhere like a Six Flags in my life. She kept mentioning that it was an unusual day because there were no lines for any of the rides. We saw some shows, wandered throughout the little shops, and rode just about any ride whenever we wanted. We stayed that day until the park closed. It was as if the time together at the park was tailored just for us. Later we learned most people stayed home because of the record-breaking July heat (107°).

Dorothy and I rode only one other roller coaster together after we were married. She quit riding after watching people ride the Zingo at Bell’s Amusement Park at the Tulsa Fairgrounds. Dorothy quietly said to me that I could ride as many coasters as I wanted, but she never wanted a newspaper headline to read, “Pastor’s Wife Dies on Roller-Coaster Ride.”

She has not wavered, even when our family, along with Dorothy’s parents, spent another day at that same Six Flags—the day her 80+-year-old father rode both a roller coaster and the parachute drop! My last roller-coaster ride was at Branson’s Silver Dollar City in December 2019. I strained my shoulder on that ride by holding on too tightly. I had forgotten the rule for riding all carnival rides. The secret to an enjoyable ride is to relax, lean forward and trust the operator of the ride. That is hard to do when your brain and all the voices around you are screaming, you are going to die!

2020 has been a current-event roller-coaster ride that just keeps on going, now into 2021.  In fact, there are multiple roller coasters going. Many of us keep trying to get off one ride only to find ourselves on a different ride. I am not alone in thinking I might be going a little frazzled because of it all. We are all on life’s roller coaster running full force for this season. This too shall change. Don’t let the ride scare you away from faith and hope and love. Let your headline read, “Faithful Through It All.”

Keep healthy. Pray mightily. Enjoy your life today. Lean forward and trust the Operator. And let’s experience the love and power of God together while apart. 

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