Not Connected / Accepted In Your Home Town?

I teach a class through Fresno Pacific University called ET 735-Creating on the Web. This is one of the weekly devotional thoughts for that class.

Week 4: Not accepted in your home town (or at your school site)

Luke 4:22-28, NLT

Everyone spoke well of him and was amazed by the gracious words that came from his lips. “How can this be?” they asked. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” Then he said, “You will undoubtedly quote me this proverb: ‘Physician, heal yourself’—meaning, ‘Do miracles here in your hometown like those you did in Capernaum.’ But I tell you the truth, no prophet is accepted in his own hometown. “Certainly there were many needy widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the heavens were closed for three and a half years, and a severe famine devastated the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them. He was sent instead to a foreigner—a widow of Zarephath in the land of Sidon. And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, but the only one healed was Naaman, a Syrian.” When they heard this, the people in the synagogue were furious.

There was lots of need in Israel, but God led Elijah to meet the needs of those OUTSIDE of Israel.

You may or may not be respected for your new-found expertise…others on other campuses, districts, states, countries may accept it far easier. Embrace this affirmation and acceptance. thrive within it. You are NOT disrespectful to your school-site colleagues if you do so.

This resonates with page 68 from Whittaker, et al:

She had just finished “wowing” the crowd with a powerful message which demonstrated her expertise and knowledge, providing relevant examples for audience members to learn from and take back to their respective schools. What was interesting was that no one back in her home school had ever seen her present or asked her to share her expertise with educators in her own district, yet here she was on a national stage engaging, inspiring, and empowering a roomful of educators from across the nation who did not know her personally. Here stood this teacher with a tremendously high skill set, valued, respected, and admired by her PLN and non PLN educators, yet ignored and sometimes even knocked down by her own co-workers. Connected educators lean on their PLN during these difficult times to persevere and push through. Making the decision to reach beyond the walls of your own workplace or school community to learn and grow—somewhat ironically, we think—may create feelings of resentment within some of your colleagues.

Have you ever felt this way? Leave a comment below! 

Proverbs 10:19, 21

“Too much talk leads to sin. 

Be sensible and keep your mouth shut.

The words of the godly encourage many, 

but fools are destroyed by their lack of common sense.”

Proverbs 10:19, 21 NLT

Proverbs 10:7

“We have happy memories of the godly, 

but the name of a wicked person rots away.”

Proverbs 10:7 NLT

Certain people's names won't disappear from world history, or personal memory.

However, the emotional impact might be different. The memory of the godly will continue to bless and encourage, while the memory of the wicked will fade in its intensity.

Certain Proverbs are tricky to process and interpret correctly, and this is one of them. But this interpretation is where I suppose I "land"... It's not an absolute, sweeping promise, but a general statement of how things tend to be.

Proverbs 10:4-5

“Lazy people are soon poor; 

hard workers get rich. 

A wise youth harvests in the summer, 

but one who sleeps during harvest is a disgrace.”

Proverbs 10:4-5 NLT

Proverbs 10:12

“Hatred stirs up quarrels, 

but love makes up for all offenses.”

Proverbs 10:12 NLT

Paul would agree...without love, I am a clanging gong or a crashing symbol (1 Cor 13).

Proverbs 10:9

“People with integrity walk safely, 

but those who follow crooked paths will be exposed.”

Proverbs 10:9 NLT

This relates to the concept (is it a proverb itself?) of telling the truth, then not having to remember what the truth really is, as opposed to having to remember lots of lies and who was told what.

Proverbs 10:5

“A wise youth harvests in the summer, 

but one who sleeps during harvest is a disgrace.”

Proverbs 10:5 NLT

It is sometimes difficult to balance this with the need for legitimate, appropriate rest.

Proverbs 9:10-12

“Fear of the LORD is the foundation of wisdom. 

Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment. 

Wisdom will multiply your days and add years to your life. 

If you become wise, you will be the one to benefit. 

If you scorn wisdom, you will be the one to suffer.”

Proverbs 9:10-12 NLT

I initially decided to not include proverbs verses that I would merely flag "wisdom", because that would wind up including nearly every verse in Proverbs, many of which aren't nearly as impactful as the rest.

However, these two verses are much more significant than most about wisdom, so I had to note them.

Proverbs 6:30-35

“Excuses might be found for a thief who steals because he is starving. 

But if he is caught, he must pay back seven times what he stole, even if he has to sell everything in his house. 

But the man who commits adultery is an utter fool, for he destroys himself. 

He will be wounded and disgraced. His shame will never be erased. 

For the woman’s jealous husband will be furious, and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge. 

He will accept no compensation, nor be satisfied with a payoff of any size.”

Proverbs 6:30-35 NLT

http://bible.com/116/pro.6.30-35.nlt

Proverbs 6:24-29

“It will keep you from the immoral woman, from the smooth tongue of a promiscuous woman. 

Don’t lust for her beauty. Don’t let her coy glances seduce you. For a prostitute will bring you to poverty, but sleeping with another man’s wife will cost you your life. 

Can a man scoop a flame into his lap and not have his clothes catch on fire? Can he walk on hot coals and not blister his feet? 

So it is with the man who sleeps with another man’s wife. He who embraces her will not go unpunished.”

Proverbs 6:24-29 NLT

http://bible.com/116/pro.6.24-29.nlt

Proverbs 6:6-11

“Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise! 

Though they have no prince or governor or ruler to make them work, they labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter. 

But you, lazybones, how long will you sleep? When will you wake up? 

A little extra sleep, a little more slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest— then poverty will pounce on you like a bandit; scarcity will attack you like an armed robber.”

Proverbs 6:6-11 NLT

http://bible.com/116/pro.6.6-11.nlt

Proverbs 6:1-5

“My child, if you have put up security for a friend’s debt or agreed to guarantee the debt of a stranger— if you have trapped yourself by your agreement and are caught by what you said— follow my advice and save yourself, for you have placed yourself at your friend’s mercy. 

Now swallow your pride; go and beg to have your name erased. Don’t put it off; do it now! Don’t rest until you do. 

Save yourself like a gazelle escaping from a hunter, like a bird fleeing from a net.”

Proverbs 6:1-5 NLT

http://bible.com/116/pro.6.1-5.nlt

Proverbs 5:15-23

“Drink water from your own well— share your love only with your wife. Why spill the water of your springs in the streets, having sex with just anyone? 

You should reserve it for yourselves. Never share it with strangers. 

Let your wife be a fountain of blessing for you. Rejoice in the wife of your youth. She is a loving deer, a graceful doe. 

Let her breasts satisfy you always. May you always be captivated by her love. 

Why be captivated, my son, by an immoral woman, or fondle the breasts of a promiscuous woman? For the LORD sees clearly what a man does, examining every path he takes. 

An evil man is held captive by his own sins; they are ropes that catch and hold him. He will die for lack of self-control; he will be lost because of his great foolishness.”

Proverbs 5:15-23 NLT

http://bible.com/116/pro.5.15-23.nlt

Proverbs 4:23

“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.”

Proverbs 4:23 NLT

http://bible.com/116/pro.4.23.nlt

Proverbs 3:27-28

“Do not withhold good from those who deserve it when it’s in your power to help them. If you can help your neighbor now, don’t say, “Come back tomorrow, and then I’ll help you.””

Proverbs 3:27-28 NLT

http://bible.com/116/pro.3.27-28.nlt

Proverbs 3:7-8

“Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the LORD and turn away from evil. Then you will have healing for your body and strength for your bones.”

Proverbs 3:7-8 NLT

http://bible.com/116/pro.3.7-8.nlt

Proverbs 3:5-6

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.”

Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT

http://bible.com/116/pro.3.5-6.nlt

Proverbs 3:3-4

“Never let loyalty and kindness leave you! Tie them around your neck as a reminder. Write them deep within your heart. Then you will find favor with both God and people, and you will earn a good reputation.”

Proverbs 3:3-4 NLT

http://bible.com/116/pro.3.3-4.nlt

Who Are You...Really?

I teach a class through Fresno Pacific University called ET 735-Creating on the Web. This is one of the weekly devotional thoughts for that class.

Week 6: Who Are You... Really?

We have been talking about how we present ourselves to our profession. We should certainly work hard at that. We’ve been talking about all the reasons to do that
However, on the other hand, we should not take that idea so far so that we believe that we truly ARE what we present to others. God sees our heart, and we shouldn't live in a way that is putting on a mask all the time.

Samuel was tasked with choosing the next king of Israel.

The idea that physical appearance mattered a great deal must have been overwhelming.

“But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭16:7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Our time and culture certainly values physical appearance, but we also work very hard to put our best face forward online. Facebook pages are a person’s highlight reel. We don’t share our blooper clips nearly as readily!

God led Samuel to choose David, who was not physically impressive.

His Facebook page, and his online platform, would not have been very impressive, either, were he to live in our century.

“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”

Jeremiah‬ ‭17:9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

This means that you don’t understand my heart, meaning motivations, what drives me, etc.

It also means you don’t totally understand your own heart!

We should live in such a way that we don’t have masks with each other.

More importantly, we shouldn’t pretend that we can successfully hide who we really are from God.

Never Tire of Giving to your PLN

I teach a class through Fresno Pacific University called ET 735-Creating on the Web. This is one of the weekly devotional thoughts for that class.

Week 5: Never tire of giving to your PLN

It was uncanny how the chapters in Whittaker’s (et al) book this week resonated with what we read in Scripture. The authors advise us to not be selfish...to give, give, give... and we will see the results when we need to “take” something from our PLN. Here are a few Scripture references that especially seem to fit:

Luke‬ ‭6:30-31, 34-35, 38‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“Give to anyone who asks; and when things are taken away from you, don’t try to get them back. Do to others as you would like them to do to you.
And if you lend money only to those who can repay you, why should you get credit? Even sinners will lend to other sinners for a full return. “Love your enemies! Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to be repaid. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked.
Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back. ””
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2 Corinthians‬ ‭9:6-11, 13‬ ‭NLT‬‬
“Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.” And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. As the Scriptures say, “They share freely and give generously to the poor. Their good deeds will be remembered forever.” For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you. Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous. And when we take your gifts to those who need them, they will thank God.

As a result of your ministry, they will give glory to God. For your generosity to them and to all believers will prove that you are obedient to the Good News of Christ.”
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Galatians‬ ‭6:9-10‬ ‭NLT‬‬
“So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.”
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To the original hearers and readers, these verses obviously refer to physical, material possessions. Sharing with the materially poor and needy, etc… However, in 2015, when the information age, the attention economy, and intellectual property dominate the way our culture functions, I believe that this applies to being generous with things we can share via our PLN.