David N. Walker's Blog, page 13

Criminal Justice

A few days ago, there was an article in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram about a young woman whose dead body had been found. I know—we’re all used to seeing such news reports, but we should still be appalled each and every time.

The article went on to discuss the background of the perpetrator. He had been convicted of the rape-murder of a teenage girl, as I recall, back in the early 90’s. He had been convicted of several other crimes along the way, including at least one instance of parole violation. It listed the terms of all his convictions, and if you added up the years of the separate sentences, he should have been in prison until maybe 2025 or so.

Our criminal justice system has become a joke—a horribly sick joke, but a joke nonetheless. We assess a criminal a sentence, and then we let him or her out after serving only a fraction of the time assessed. If he or she is found guilty of two or more crimes at the same time and assessed sentences on each, more often than not they are applied concurrently, resulting in the second crime’s being a freebie—no punishment at all.

If the man who killed this young woman (I don’t remember whether or not he raped her first, but I think he did) had been made to serve the time assessed to him, he would not have been available to commit this crime. Her family would be enjoying her life instead of mourning her death.

This story is far too familiar. We all hear all the time about crimes committed by people who would have been incarcerated but were let out before their full sentences were up. How long are we going to tolerate this?

When I was growing up back in the 1950’s, murder and rape almost automatically carried either life in prison or death as their consequences. How have we gotten so far away from this? Nowadays, it’s not unusual to hear of a five-year sentence for murder. Really? Is that all a life is worth?

When’s the last time you heard about someone actually serving the full sentence assessed for a crime? Why do we sentence criminals if we don’t mean the sentences? Are we just kidding? Isn’t it time to get serious about criminals? We need to go back to the choice between life and death for rape and murder. We need to remove the term parole from our justice system.

If a criminal knew he or she was going to be put to death or incarcerated for the rest of his or her life, our murder and rape rates might go down. If a criminal knew ten years meant ten full years and twenty meant twenty, all sorts of crime might decrease in frequency. Criminals thumb their noses at our whole system, and it’s time for this to stop. Let’s take all this leeway out of the hands of judges and pass criminal laws with teeth in them.

What do you think of a system that lets criminals out long before their terms are up, allowing them to return to their lives of crime? What do you think of sentences of four or five years for murder?

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We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.

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For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Advice, Authorship, Caring, Criminal Justice System, Criminals, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Fancy Series, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, friends, Heaven Sent, Life, Life experience, Life lessons, Life truths, Life values, Murder, People, Personal development, Rape, Self-help

Does a God Need Protection?

Some years ago there was a great furor among Christians over a cross placed in a bottle of urine and designated by the National Endowment for the Arts as art. I was livid when I read about it.

I realize that people who are not born again don’t understand the cross and the sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf, but I got over it. I felt no need to avenge my Savior by going out and shooting the “artist” who created this abomination.

My God is omnipotent. He can and will deal with that person in His own time and according to His will. He doesn’t need me to be His avenger.

When I read about things like the attack on the cartoonists in Paris, I always wonder why Allah needs others to fight his battles for him. The Muslims claim that he is all-powerful—just like God—yet they think he is so weak and powerless that they must go out and kill people who don’t believe in him.

So someone disrespected Mohammed. Do they not believe their own religion? Can their Allah not deal with those who disrespect him? How can they seriously believe him to be god if he can’t take care of his own business?

No pastor or rabbi I know of sends terrorists over to the Middle East to slaughter Muslims. We let God take care of the rewards and destinies of people. Why do they find it necessary to send terrorists out to slaughter Christians and Jews? They obviously don’t believe in the power of their own god.

Do you think a true, omnipotent God needs his followers to protect Him from those who are not believers?

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If you abide in Me and My word abides in you, then you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

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For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Christian Thoughts Tagged: Allah, Bible, Blue Mountain, Christian, Christian Fellowship, Christianity, Christmas, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Faith, Fancy Series, Forgiveness, God is in control, Godly Wisdom, Grace, Heaven Sent, inspiration, Jesus, Jew, Mohammed, Muslim, New Year, Sins, Works

Unintended Internet Consequences

How come every time you agree to an update of some website or service you’re using, it screws up thirteen other things? Or is it just me?

I use IOBIT’s Advance SystemCare as a tool to keep my computer clean of spyware and junk files and so forth. Several months ago I began having trouble with all sorts of memories being wiped out.

In both my Word and Excel programs, the feature that retains recent documents I’ve opened would be wiped clean every day or two. I’d go into Options and click the number I wanted it to retain, and it would work for the rest of that day and maybe the next day, but then it would be wiped clean again.

My email accounts and Facebook, Twitter, and HootSuite would all suddenly require me to sign in each time, even though I checked the box to remain signed in. After much frustration, I went to my tech guy, and we sat down together to try to figure out what was wrong. Through much trial and error, we discovered that checking the feature in Advanced SystemCare called “Privacy Sweep” caused all these erasures.

As soon as I unchecked that feature, the “recent document” feature in Word and Excel began working properly once more. The sign in procedures didn’t respond quite so immediately, but I kept checking “Keep me signed in” and FB, etc., eventually got the message and remembered me.

Everything went fine for several months. Then a week or so ago, Advanced SystemCare asked me if I’d like to upgrade from version 7 to version 8. I said yes, and downloaded the upgrade. Unfortunately, I didn’t stop to think that the updated version might automatically have “Privacy Sweep” checked. Sure enough, the next time I pulled up Word, the recent documents were erased. Same with Excel. Both my email accounts along with Facebook, Twitter, and HootSuite suddenly required full sign-ins each time.

It took me a day or so to realize what had happened, and I unchecked the “Privacy Sweep” immediately. Word and Excel responded as soon as I unchecked it, but I’m in my third or fourth day—or maybe more for all I know—of having to sign in to my various accounts. *sigh*

What internet things have you done that produce unintended consequences? Or am I the only one who does these things?

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We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.

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For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Advanced SystemCare, Advice, Authorship, Caring, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Facebook, Fancy Series, friends, Heaven Sent, HootSuite, Internet, IOBIT, Life, Life experience, Life lessons, Life truths, Life values, People, Personal development, Self-help, Twitter

My Thought for the New Year

A group of Pharisees and Sadducees asked Jesus what the greatest commandment in the Bible was, and He answered them, starting in Matthew 22:37 and running through verse 40:

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second like unto it is this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments the whole law hangeth, and the prophets.

I thought it might be fitting to begin the new year by exploring this commandment. Of course, loving God with all my heart and soul and mind is the starting point. If I don’t love the God who created me and who provides for all my needs, then nothing else really matters. That’s foundational.

Fortunately, it’s very easy for me to love God. When I reflect on my life before I accepted Jesus as my Savior and try to think what my life today would be without Him, I know that I know that I know that I need Him. And if I need Him and He meets my need, then loving Him is easy.

God loves me unconditionally and has since the foundation of the earth. He loved me before I was conceived and has every day of my life. He loved me before I accepted Him and the gift of His Son.

My love for Him is not of the same quality as His for me. As a child and a teenager and a young adult, I didn’t love Him. I didn’t hate Him—I just didn’t think about it all that much. My love for Him is reactionary. He loved me, and only when I became aware of that and of what it meant did I love Him. But my salvation was such a deep and radical thing that my only reaction was a deep and abiding love for Him. A love with all my heart and soul and mind.

Jesus said the second commandment was like the first—to love my neighbor as myself. What does that mean?

First of all, it implies that I must love myself. August McLaughlin talks a lot about the need to love one’s self. She doesn’t approach it by quoting scriptures, but she has a firm understanding of the principle. She tells us to love ourselves as we are, which is exactly what Jesus is talking about here. I must come to terms with myself and come to love myself as I am. Only then can I face the world around me.

Okay, if I must love myself as I am, and I’m supposed to love my neighbor as myself, doesn’t this mean I must accept my neighbor as he or she is? It’s not my place to say I’d love so-and-so if he would quit being this way or if she would just be that way. If my neighbor needs to change his or her ways, that’s between him or her and God. He will make that need known, and He will provide that person with the power to change. My job is to love that person as is.

Okay, I’m to love my neighbor as is, but who is my neighbor? According to Vine’s Expository Dictionary, the Greek word Jesus used for neighbor, plesion, has a much wider meaning than we normally accord to the English word neighbor.

Jesus wasn’t talking about the person whose house is next door to mine or across the street from mine. He was talking about everyone whose life touches mine or whose life mine touches—friends, relatives, waitresses, store clerks, or anyone else who is a part of my world.

If you’re reading this blog post, you’re my neighbor. If you’re my friend on Facebook or follow me on Twitter, you’re my neighbor. As of Monday morning, Twitter says that I had 7,635 followers. Facebook says I have 1,534 friends. My blog subscribers are probably all in one or both of those categories, so I won’t count them separately, but that’s 9,169 people whose lives I touch and/or who touch my life through cyberspace.

I have personal relationships or have at least met some of these people face-to-face, but most I have not met. But our lives still touch, which makes us neighbors. And I have no trouble at all saying that I love each and every one of you. Not because I’m such a great, loving person, but because God has planted such a deep and abiding love in my heart that it’s easy for me to love you, whether I ever meet you personally or not.

Whether or not I ever meet you, my life is a little bit richer because you have touched it. I hope I’ve made yours a little bit richer also. That’s my desire for you as we enter this new year: that something I have done or said would make your life a little bit richer.

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If you abide in Me and My word abides in you, then you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

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For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Christian Thoughts Tagged: Bible, Blue Mountain, Christian, Christian Fellowship, Christianity, Christmas, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Faith, Fancy Series, Forgiveness, God is in control, Godly Wisdom, Grace, Heaven Sent, inspiration, Jesus, Love, Neighbor, New Year, Pharisees, Sadducees, Sins, Works

Appreciating My Wife

As I anticipated the onset of the new year, I thought of things I could write about in this first post of the year. One thought was to acknowledge various writers who have become important to me—those I’ve met personally and those I know only as cyber friends. But whether I mentioned five people or fifty, I might somehow overlook you and the contributions you have made. I wouldn’t want to do that, so I tossed that idea out the window.

Another idea was to recap all my blogs for last year. But those are already there. Those who were interested probably already read them, and those who didn’t read them the first time probably wouldn’t be interested now—so I decided not to do that either.

A puff piece about my kids and grandkids wouldn’t be of great interest outside the circle of my own family, so that probably wouldn’t be a great idea, either. About that time I thought of something that should be of general interest.

Most writers and blog readers are have a spouse or some significant other in their lives. Maybe a post about the new appreciation of my wife I’ve been gaining since she had hip replacement surgery and needs me to step up and be her caregiver would strike a chord. It might even prompt some to give thought to all the little things that spouse or significant other does to make life easier.

Sharon and I have been married for 21 1/2 half years, and we dated for three years before that, so we know each other pretty well after that length of time. I know that I love her more than I did ten years ago, or twenty years ago. That’s not too difficult to recognize, but there’s a danger in all that familiarity.

We tend to become accustomed to whatever and whoever is familiar to us. And whatever or whomever we become accustomed to, we have a tendency to take for granted. I may be the only person who does this, but I don’t think so. I think this is part of human nature. Over the years, I’ve come to take for granted a lot of little things my wife does—little things I don’t even think about doing, because she always does them.

One of Sharon’s areas of obsession (actually, one of many) is trash. She doesn’t allow trash in any receptacle except the kitchen trash can, and she empties it into the trash cart in the carport several numerous times each day. We also have a separate recycling bin in the kitchen, and she empties it outside each time she takes trash out.

All these years I’ve sat smugly watching her obsess over this, sometimes even making snide remarks about it. But the fact is that trash and recycling do need to be taken out. Maybe not twenty times a day, but still . . . and I’ve almost never had to take it out in all these years, because she did it.

Right now, she can walk only with a walker, which means she can’t carry much of anything. If the trash goes out, I take it. Not a big deal, but something I’ve always taken for granted she would do. In fact, I’ve become so used to her doing it, I’ve hardly given it a thought. Until now.

She always launders our clothes every Friday and our linens every Saturday. I may help hang the clothes when they come out of the dryer or help make up the bed when she washes the linens, but she basically does it. My part takes five minutes when I do pitch in. Again, something I’ve just taken for granted until now.

These are but two examples of things she has always done—and I’ve always just assumed would be done—that I’m doing now while she is not able. There are many others, and I’m just now coming to appreciate how great a burden they all add up to—a burden she has always spared me from.

As I said earlier in this piece, I’ve loved her for over 24 years, and that love grows with the passage of time, but I haven’t properly appreciated her and all the little things she does that I take for granted. Dealing with her recovery has awakened me to see all these things and to appreciate her and what she does more than ever.

What things does your spouse or significant other do that you take for granted? How often do you express appreciation for these things?

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We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.

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For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Advice, Authorship, Caregiver, Caring, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Fancy Series, friends, Heaven Sent, Hip Replacement, Life, Life experience, Life lessons, Life truths, Life values, People, Personal development, Self-help

Merry Christmas

At this time of year, most people are scurrying around trying to finish last-minute shopping to buy Christmas presents for their friends and families. When I was a child, all the presents were a huge deal, but now, with even our grandchildren grown, our shopping has devolved into a matter of sending money and/or gift cards to our kids and grandkids and Blue Mountain e-cards to other relatives and friends.

That de-emphasis on gifting, however, doesn’t mean the season means any less to me. After all, the point of the season is remembering the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I’ll be going to my mother’s assisted living home Christmas morning to read the story of His birth from Luke 2, and I’ll be giving a lot of thought to Him. I hope, along with your Christmas shopping and family dinner and gift-unwrapping, you’ll pause now and then to reflect on the true reason for this season.

As you may or may not know, my wife had a hip replaced last week, and I’m using that, along with the demands of the season, as an excuse to take a bit of time off. I won’t be posting this Friday or next Tuesday. See you back here Friday, January 2. In the meantime, have a

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

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If you abide in Me and My word abides in you, then you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

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For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Christian Thoughts Tagged: Bible, Blue Mountain, Christian, Christian Fellowship, Christianity, Christmas, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Faith, Fancy Series, Forgiveness, God is in control, Godly Wisdom, Grace, Heaven Sent, inspiration, Jesus, New Year, Sins, Works

Hurry Up and Wait

Wednesday, I spent seven hours sitting at a hospital waiting for my wife to emerge from a hip replacement that we were told would take an hour and a half or so. Of course, you have to add 45 minutes for anesthesia and another 45 minutes for recovery, so maybe three hours.

Oh, and for their convenience, you arrive two and a half hours ahead of time, so now we’re up to five and a half hours. A late start for the surgery and general slowness on the part of everyone involved turned this in seven hours before she got to her room.

We saw them wheel her toward her room on a gurney, and the young man pushing her said he needed a few minutes to get her situated. A nurse at the station adjacent to the little waiting room where one of Sharon’s girlfriends waited with me told me she would let us know when we could go see her.

After waiting another twenty minutes, I went back to the nurses’ station and asked how much longer it would be before we could go to her room. “Oh, you can go back. No problem.” No apology for not letting us know. No explanation. Nothing.

Of course, the important thing is that she had a proficient surgeon. Getting the replacement parts imbedded into her body so she could be pain-free after the recovery period was priceless. I want her to be healthy and feel good. That was job number one.

But why did we have to be there at 11:00 for a surgery that was scheduled for 1:30? Why did it actually begin at 2:00? Why did she finally get to recovery at 4:40 if the procedure lasted an hour and a half? Why did she finally get up to her room at 6:00 if she was supposed to spend 45 minutes in recovery? And why did I not get to see her until 6:20?

I guess I’m just impatient, but I can find more enjoyable things to do than sit around a hospital all day long. Why couldn’t they tell me at 1:30 that I wouldn’t be seeing her until 6:00 or later and that I might as well go home or run errands or something? I realize my time isn’t as important as a $ million a year surgeon’s or maybe even a $90K to 100K a year nurse’s, but it is worth something. Would it kill them to accord a little dignity to spouses of their surgery patients?

What nightmares experiences have you had dealing with surgery being performed on a loved one?

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We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.

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For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Advice, Authorship, Caring, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Fancy Series, friends, Heaven Sent, Hip Replacement, Life, Life experience, Life lessons, Life truths, Life values, People, Personal development, Self-help, Surgery

The Real Story of Christmas

On Christmas morning, I’ll be reading the Christmas story to the residents and staff of my mother’s assisted living home. They’ll be expecting me to read the first 20 verses of Luke 2, and that’s what I’ll do. It’s the story of Joseph and Mary’s return to Bethlehem, finding no room in the inn, and placing Jesus in the manger—and of the angel’s appearance to the shepherds.

But, to me, that’s not the real story—at least not all of it. The story behind the story is recorded in the first chapter of the book of John:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him; and without him was not anything made that hath been made.

This tells us who Jesus was and has been throughout eternity up until his birth. He was Jehovah—the person of the Godhead who created everything that was created. Nothing was made except through Him. He held all power within Himself. He didn’t need to pray to anyone or seek power from anyone.

Then verse 14 says:

And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father), full of grace and truth.

Jehovah, the Creator of everything, became one of his own creatures by taking on flesh. He gave up His creative powers to become a man. Yes, He was still God, but He was also man. He became God/man. As such, His position and powers were totally changed. Moving on to chapter five, we find these words in verse 19:

Jesus therefore answered and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father doing: for what things soever he doeth, these the Son also doeth in like manner.

Prior to His incarnation, He held all power resident within Himself. Now, He says He can doing nothing of Himself. He can do only what He sees the Father doing. Quite a change in both position and power. No one could have taken His powers from Him. He gave them up voluntarily because of His love for you and me.

This was not a temporary change. He didn’t bop down here to spend 33 years and then return to heaven to resume His power and position as Jehovah. He’s still Jesus. When we meet Him, He will still have the scars where the nails were driven. He sits next to the Father ever making intercession for the saints—that’s you and me. As Jehovah, He didn’t have to make intercession to anyone, but as Jesus, that’s what He does.

For a further exercise underscoring the permanence of this sacrifice, get your Concordance and look up “Jehovah.” You’ll find in the Old Testament, but not once in the New Testament. Now look up “Jesus.” You’ll find that name all over the New Testament but not once in the Old Testament. Jehovah of the Old Testament became Jesus of the New Testament.

The magnitude of this sacrifice Jesus made in His incarnation is so great most of us have trouble seeing it. It took me a while when I was first exposed to the concept, but now I stand in awe of it. It’s a much greater sacrifice than I would make if I could make myself into a dog, or even a cockroach. The Creator of everything ever made became one of His own creatures. This is why I say the real Christmas story comes from the book of John.

What do you think of what Jesus did for us at His incarnation?

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If you abide in Me and My word abides in you, then you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

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For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Christian Thoughts Tagged: Bible, Christian, Christian Fellowship, Christianity, Creator, Creature, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Faith, Fancy Series, Forgiveness, God is in control, Godly Wisdom, Grace, Heaven Sent, incarnation, inspiration, Jesus, Sins, Works

Thanksgiving Trip

The word is out. The evidence in unquestionable. Westerners are just better drivers than easterners. Well, the Pacific coast may be an exception, but . . .

In Texas, as in most western states, people realize the purpose of driving a car is to get from point A to point B as expeditiously as possible. To help with that, most western states have posted speed limits of 70 to 75 on interstates and rural highways. In Texas, recognizing that our drivers are even more skillful than most, the typical limit is 75, and some of our roads have 80 mph speed limits. One tollway is actually 85.

With the exception of I-35, where constant construction and bumper-to-bumper traffic usually won’t allow anyone to get up to the speed limit, Texans zip from one place to another rapidly. This is what we’re used to, and it’s what we expect.

Imagine my shock on a recent trip east, when we crossed the Sabine River into the swamp they call Louisiana and the speed limit dropped from 75 to 70. As we drove through Louisiana and Mississippi and into Alabama, 70 was the best we found. In many places it was 60 or even less. I can only conclude that the legislatures of those states realize their residents are not skilled drivers. Our destination of Peachtree City, Georgia, is well off the interstates, and we found speed limits of 30 and 40 getting across to there.

Despite the driving conditions getting there—and I didn’t even mention the traffic we incurred along the way—we had a good time. My cousin Jan had invited us, along with some other cousins, for Thanksgiving. I think there were about 20 of us gathered for the Thanksgiving meal, including five of us who are first cousins and a number of other relatives and friends.

Jan, on my left, was our hostess. June and Jane, on the ends, are twins, believe it or not. Don’t know why Jan’s brother Randy wasn’t in the picture. If it looks like I’m older than my cousins, that’s not true. It’s just that they were all born later than I was.

What did you do for Thanksgiving? What kind of speed limits did you incur trying to get there?

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We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.

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For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Advice, Authorship, Caring, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Fancy Series, friends, Heaven Sent, Life, Life experience, Life lessons, Life truths, Life values, People, Personal development, Self-help, Thanksgiving

Thomas Ken

Probably every Christian is familiar with the name Charles Wesley. It seems like half the hymns in a typical hymnal have his name on them. He’s by far the best-known hymn writer in English history if not in the entire world, but before him there was a man named Thomas Ken, who has been called England’s first hymnist.

Ken was an ordained minister who served as chaplain at Winchester College, his alma mater. In 1674, while at Winchester, he wrote what has become the most widely-sung verse in the world.

In order to encourage devotional habits among the boys, he wrote the first three hymns to appear in England. Up until that time, only Psalms were sung in public.

The first of these hymns was to be sung upon waking in the mornings, the second at bedtime, and the third at midnight if sleep didn’t come. All three of these hymns ended with a common stanza:

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow;

Praise Him all creatures here below;

Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Many churches sing the Doxology at the beginning or end of every service. The church I grew up in was one of these. Those who don’t sing it with every service probably all sing it at least occasionally.

As a measure of the man’s character, when he was appointed chaplain to King Charles II, the king asked him to lodge one of his many mistresses in the chaplain’s residence, and he refused. He rebuked the king, saying, “Not for the King’s Kingdom.”

The next king, James II, sentenced him to the Tower of London for his Protestant beliefs. After he died on March 11, 1711, he was buried at sunrise, and the Doxology was sung at his funeral.

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If you abide in Me and My word abides in you, then you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

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For more information about David N. Walker, click the “About” tab above.

For more information about his books, click on “Books” above.

Contact him at dnwalkertx (at) gmail (dot) com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.

Filed under: Christian Thoughts Tagged: Bible, Charles Wesley, Christian, Christian Fellowship, Christianity, David N. Walker Christian Author, David N. Walker Historical Fiction Author, Doxology, Faith, Fancy Series, Forgiveness, God is in control, Godly Wisdom, Grace, Heaven Sent, inspiration, Jesus, King Charles II, King James II, Sins, Thomas Ken, Works