Pickle Heaven Press-James R. Johnson

something to help you laugh and think about life with Christ

Tag: John 14:1

the 12th man — April 2, 2025

the 12th man

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I visited the home of what some consider a quirky crew – the campus of Texas A&M University.   It began as an agriculture school.  Some students still bring their own horses to college with them. I wonder if they get a free ride.  I attended Ohio State, also an Ag school.  They told me to hold my horses.

I was there at Kyle field to watch the Aggies play some football.  The stands were packed with ordinary students with some odd traditions.  They held out their fists with an upraised thumb and urged their team to “gig” their rivals.

Students would whoop it up when they were excited.  But they are not permitted to whoop until they become upperclassmen.  Is whooping class 301 a requirement?

When the team scored, the ecstatic students turned and kissed their dates.  If you didn’t have a date, you might get kissed anyway.  

And then there was the tradition of the 12th man.  It began in 1922 with an alum named E. King Gill.  He was a former member of the A&M football team and was in the stands to watch them play top-ranked Centre College.   It was a brutal game with nearly every Aggie sustaining an injury. 

The desperate coach summoned Gill down from the bleachers and told him to suit up.  Gill became the 12th man on the team, standing on the sideline waiting to be sent in.  The Aggies, however, prevailed.  So, Gill was not sent in, but he was ready. 

Soon after, the tradition took root.  Today the students stand the entirety of every football game.  They symbolically assume the role of the 12th man, ready for the coach to send them in for the win.

This brings to mind the 4th man tradition.  This one goes back a little farther than 1922, 540 BC to be exact.  Three brave young men were commanded to fall down and worship the image of an egotistical king.  If they defied him, they would be thrown into a blazing furnace. 

These men have always stood out to me as the most heroic of heros in the Bible.  Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego told the king, “We do not need to give you a reply concerning this. If our God whom we are serving exists, he is able to rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he will rescue us, O king, from your power as well. But if he does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we don’t serve your gods, and we will not pay homage to the golden statue that you have erected” – Daniel 3:16-18. – NETBible®

What courage!   They knew that their mighty God could deliver them if He so chose, but even if He should not, they would not bow down and worship the king’s image. 

The king was fit to be tied, so the men were tied up and the furnace was heated to 7 times its usual temperature.  It was so intense it fried the men who tossed them in. 

And yet the King was astounded to look into the oven and see the three walking about, unscathed by the flames – even more shocked to find that there was a fourth man present with them – one the king fearfully compared to a “son of the gods.” 

Who was that person?  That 4th man was more than a man.  He was in fact – a – rather THE – one and only Son of God. 

He was suited up and ready get into the fray to rescue His faithful ones.  But, in this case, the Father gave the order and sent Him into the game, and He used His miraculous powers to preserve our three heroes and help them to prevail.

The Son of God once said to us, “Let not your heart be troubled: believe in God, believe also in me” – John 14:1 (KJV) Jesus is still standing, waiting to be called in when needed.  So call!

A PRAYER: Lord, this is a tradition that I treasure – thank you

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

loose vowels — June 30, 2021

loose vowels

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My little grandson wanted me to know about his health.  He said, “Mom gave me an enema to loosen up my vowels.”   “Vowels?”  Hmm I guess she must be a speech pathologist or maybe a proctologist. 

Life sometimes feels to me like a bowel loosening event.  You see – I tend to worry.  I think I’ve got enough worry to wrap around the world twice.   So, I worry – and it worries me that I worry.

Because – I am certain that the Lord wants me to be free of it. He said, “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Today has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:34) In John 14:1 He said, “Let not your heart be troubled.”

I think it’s good to be concerned about the things over which I have control and for which I have responsibility – such as in providing for my family (1 Corinthians 5:8); or being a good husband (Ephesians 5:25) 

But, for that which is beyond the realm of my responsibility or control, there is no point in worrying.  And yet I do.

My son recently preached an excellent message at church and he referenced a verse that got me to thinking. At the time, Moses was tired and troubled. He had led the children of Israel along a desolate path through the wilderness. And the people had done things that stretched the meaning of dumb.

Moses was frantic, fearing that God was ready to abandon them.  That’s when the Lord said to him, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”  (Exodus 33:14)

Moses and his followers all desperately needed rest.  They would eventually find it in the promised land, but it was also a rest that was available to them immediately because God would go with them.

It triggered a memory for me.  My dad took the family on a road trip when I was young.  He loaded mom and the five of us kids into a ‘56 Chevy wagon. 

We were cruising along through Florida farmland when the engine failed.  This was a problem. We were marooned beside a pasture full of cows and it was a far piece back to town. 

Dad, however, was a skilled mechanic.  He flipped up the hood and did some analysis, then walked to town.  He was gone for hours.

The rest of the family stayed.  The Florida sun beat down and the humidity was stifling.   My brother and I pelted each other with cow pies to pass the time.

I can remember thinking one thing, “How long is this going to take?”

I also remember what I did not think.  I didn’t worry that the engine was a goner.  I didn’t fret that we had lost so much time.  I didn’t despair over the cost of repair.  I didn’t worry that we would be stuck there forever.  I didn’t wonder if dad would come back.

Those worries never crossed my mind– because my dad was on the job.  I knew that he would take care of the problem – and he did. 

So, why can’t I carry that kind of faith into my adult life?  My Father in heaven is infinitely more knowledgeable and powerful than my earthly dad.  And He has never given me reason to question His love and commitment to me.   So why should I fret?   His presence is with me.  Why not rest in that?

I need to find a way to disrupt the sneaky undercurrent of worry that slithers through my mind. 

This is what I’ll do.  Whenever I find myself going down the secretive alley of worry, I will meet that fret by saying out loud, “No – my Father has this!”

Vocalizing it will serve as a cold shower.  It will disrupt the repetitive loop of worry in my mind.  The affirmation of my faith in Him will set me on the right path and invite Him to help me with my unbelief.

I am going to give it a try.  Will you join me?

A PRAYER: Lord, teach us to trust you with the simplicity of a child that we might win the war over worry.    

Scripture references are from the NET Bible ®