THE KINGS MOUNTAIN HERALD
February 20, 1997
REFLECTIONS ON
RELIGION AND LIFE
Rev. Harold Schwantes
Pastor
Central United Methodist Church
KINGS MOUNTAIN , NC
Our friendships with God, others
grow through shared experiences
Dr. Bill Hinson, pastor of the largest United
Methodist Church in the world, tells a true story
about when he was the pastor of a little church in
Texas and was trying to bring a family of "cow-
boys" into his congregation.
The men of the family weren't at all interested
in church, but they loved to hunt. It just so hap-
pened that Rev. Hinson did, too. So he asked
these men if he could go duck hunting with them.
They went out early one morning and sat in
boats among the reeds of a local lake when a flock
of ducks flew overhead. Hinson said he stood up
in the boat and drew a bead on the ducks and
fired. The recoil from his shotgun knocked him
off balance in the wobbly boat and threw him into
the water, hunting suit and shotgun and all. It
took two hardy cowboys to pull the drenched
preacher out of the lake, and after his rescue, they
couldn't hold the laughter back anymore. But a
few months later, they were all lined up at the al-
tar of that little church confessing their newfound
faith and becoming members.
To this day, they still think of Dr. Hinson as a
dear friend, and they still kid him about that day
he went hunting with them.
Dr. Hinson spoke at a seminar | recently at-
tended and said, "A friend is not a friend until
you can say, 'Do you remember when?"
Shared experiences, whether they be positive
or negative, funny or sad, are the soils from
which friendships blossom and grow. Without
them, it is impossible to grow anything that could
be termed a friendship.
There is a danger in the church, as well as our
other social settings, that we belong but never
share experiences enough to be friends. We be-
come, at best, friendly strangers who worship or
work together, but we never experience the thrill
of hearts that rejoice together or weep together. It
is this thrill that makes life really blessed. It is
something that is worth all the sacrifices that it
takes to make it happen.
For many years, | co-directed a bicycle travel
camp with a fellow pastor. When we first started,
about all we had in common was that we were
both pastors, we both liked to ride a bike, and we
knew each other's name and phone number. Now
we have enough "Do you remember when" sto-
ries to write a book.
He can tell you about my bad jokes and my
corny campfire songs and how bad I smelled in a
two-man pup tent after riding a bike all day. And
I could tell you about his dancing to Willie
Nelson music or about the day he "volunteered"
me to help carry a large grand piano from one
building to the next.
Both of us would tell you about the day I rode
over a hill and found him lying on the pavement
with blood running out of his car after a nasty
spill and I wondered if he would survive the
night.
That same friend drove several hundred miles
out of his way on a vacation trip and stayed
overnight in a motel in Kings Mountain just so he
could hear me sing "The Chicken Song" one more
time and swap more tales about "Do you remem-
ber when?"
If I had my wish, | would that everyone in the
world had a friendship like that. I believe it is
what God intended for us to experience. In fact,
God desires that we would experience His grace
and love in life in such a way that we would say
the same about our relationship with God.
A lot of my work in ministry has been tedious
and stressful. But God and I have a friendship
that will last forever because we have had some
of those special moments that I can talk to God
about by saying, "Do you remember when?" And
sometimes God reminds me in the same way. Our
favorite shared experience is still the day when |
first realized that His Son had died for me, but |
can assure you there are many others.
I hope you have such a friendship with God
and many such human friendships as well. Here's
hoping you will develop a rich soil of memories
together in which to plant a very special friend-
ship.
Published every Thursday. ® Second Class postage at
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Let's all try to
I am currently serving on a committee formed
by the North Carolina High School Athletic
Association to address the matter of deteriorating
sportsmanship at high school athletic events. The
problems which are being studied by the commit-
tee relate to the increasingly poor behavior of
players and coaches. In recent years we have seen
an increase in the number of ejections from athlet-
ic contests which involve these two groups. The
worst culprits seem to be those participating in
men's soccer and football although no sports go
without their own problems.
The Board of Directors of the NCHSAA is very
concerned about the sportsmanship issue. 1t
seems that many athletes and some coaches be-
lieve that they should try to intimidate their op-
ponents and the officials. Reactions to calls made
in athletic contests are often protested with great
emotion. Given the role models which these par-
ticipants frequently sce in professional sports and
life in general, I suppose it is no great wonder
how we got to the situation we now face. The
greater issue is how we reverse the trend.
As I look at sportsmanship in our school sys-
tem'’s athletic program I sce evidence of positive
behavior. We have never been burdened with a
large amount of ejections, but we have had some.
No objections is the only figure with. which we
», should be satisfied, Records haye been keptisince
the 1993-94 school year. Since that time we have
had no coaches ejected. We had no player cjec-
tions in 1993-94, however we did have one ejec-
tion in 1994-95 and three in 1995-96. To this point
in the current school year we have had one cjec-
tion. Also, this year the NCHSAA received com-
plimentary comments from local football officials
about the conduct of our players.
Statewide figures to this point of the current
year show some improvement albeit not enough.
Football and soccer ejections for this year num-
bered 366 across the state down from a high of
508 in 1994-95.
Current NCHSAA rules require players and
coaches who are ejected to sit out the next athletic
contest. A second ejection results in a two game
suspension, and a third causes the party in ques-
tion to forfeit playing or coaching rights for one
year. Even with these penalties we are still
plagued by too many cjections. Among things be-
ing discussed by the committee are increased sus-
pension penalties and the possible forfeiture of
playoff privileges for teams with numerous cjec-
tions. I think there will be some stiffening of the
penalties for the guilty parties.
Those of us on the committee realize, however,
that what is more desirable to action against vio-
lations is the promotion of good sportsmanship. |
think the NCHSAA will also begin some type of
concentrated effort to encourage positive conduct
be 00d Sports
BOB McRAE
Superintendent
Kings Mountain Schools
Gary
Stewart
Editor
as an alternative to behavior which results in ejec-
tions and poor sportsmanship in general.
I appreciate the efforts our coaches give to ap-
propriate behavior on the part of themselves and
their players. 1 think coaches have the largest
measure of influence on this problem. | hope the
rest of the fans realize that we can support the
coaches in this effort by behaving appropriately
ourselves and by not condoning unruly behavior
by players.
Iam proud that we have had little problem
with ejections and that we are building a reputa-
tion for good sportsmanship. I write on this topic
in today's column to remind us that the kind of
behavior of players and coaches which we should
desire does not come by accident. Parents can
help by expecting good behavior from their chil-
dren. The school system can help by expecting
good behavior from its coaches and students.
Coaches can help by demanding good behavior
from themselves and their players. Cheerleaders
can help by leading positive cheers. Fans can help
by cheering enthusiastically but positively.
Get the idea? We're all in this together. Let's
commit to making certain that Kings Mountain
maintains its good reputation for sportsmanship
and, if anything else occurs, that it is that we en-
hance our good reputation even more. Go
Mounties!
KM HERALD LETTER POLICY
The Herald welcomes your letters to the editor
for publication in cach Thursday's paper. We ask
that you use the following guidelines:
Keep letters brief and to the point. Letters in ex-
cess of 600 words will not be published. Type and
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bly. Letters must be signed in ink and include the
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author.
The Herald reserves the right to edit letters for
spelling, good taste, libelous or slanderous state-
ments or any other reason; and the Herald re-
serves the right to reject letters for any reason.
Mail letters to the Editor, P.O. Box 769, Kings
Mountain, NC 28086; fax them to (704) 739-0611;
or bring them by the Herald office on East King
Street at Canterbury Road.
Sidewalk Survey
Giving up something for Lent
can be beneficial for a long time
At some point back in the carly days of the
church someone decided that Lent - the 40-day
period between Ash Wednesday and Easter -
should be a time for penitence and fasting.
Through the years we've tried, or we have
heard of someone, who has "given up” something
for Lent. Usually what's given up is something
that is noticeable on the outside such as food,
smoking or drinking.
I've never been one to smoke or drink but you
can tell by looking at me that [ haven't given up a
whole of food.
I admire anyone who has been successful at
giving up any of the above, but I also think that
during Lent, and at other times of the year, we
would accomplish much more good if we would
give up things that are harmful to other people.
A few thoughts and conversations I've had
since last Wednesday (Ash Wednesday) have
caused me to think about how much good could
be accomplished if some of the following were
given up:
BW Gossip - "Don't believe anything you hear
and half of what you sce," a wise person told me
when I was a lad. I wish [ had followed his ad-
vice. The tongue is one of our worst enemies. It
can spark a fire that spreads to destruction, be-
cause each time gossip is passed on it changes. If
you don't believe it, put 20 people in a circle and
whisper a story into one person's ear and have
him whisper to the next guy, and then to the next.
By the time it makes it around the circle the story
will be completely changed.
HM Criticism - Constructive criticism can be ben-
eficial, but negative criticism is as destructive as
gossip. We have often heard that politicians and
other people in the public eye are fair game, but
even they can be dealt with more positively, like
in the voting booth. We'd all be better off if we
would remember what our mothers told us when
we were young: "If you can't say something good
about someone, don't say anything at all.”
HM Showing our butts at sporting events - It
seems sometimes that we feel like the price of ad-
mission allows us to not only sce the game but to
holler, curse at, and criticize the players, coaches
and officials. Try to remember that they are hu-
man, like us, but they have to make decisions and
carry out their job assignments on the spur of the
moment. Umpires are going to lose track of the
strike zone every once in a while. Coaches are go-
ing to call the wrong play every once in a while.
And sometimes the second baseman is going to
boot the routine doubleplay ball. They know it
when it happens and they feel badly enough
without people in the stands reminding them.
Besides, most sporting arenas are big, there is a
lot of noise and the coaches, players and officials
have their minds on what's going on on the field.
Chances are they're not going to hear us chastis--
ing them. But everyone sitting around us will,
and they'll know how ignorant we are.
HM Television - I confess, | am a TV addict. The
moment I enter the door I reach for the button on
the boob tube. But more and more lately I've no-
ticed that there's not much on TV that's fit to
watch. Most TV talk shows are either about filth
or O.J. Simpson. The only difference between an
X-rated movie and a soap opera is that one shows
what the other suggests. Watch any newscast and
except for weather and sports, which are allotted
about two minutes each, 95 percent of it will be
bad news. Even some of the religious programs
are nothing more than fund-raising. About the
only good things I've scen on TV lately are
Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune, and Andy Griffith re-
runs. Turn that TV off once in a while and read a
good book, or The Good Book.
e By Lib Stewart
What do you like to read at East School?
ASHLYN HARBISON
Age10
KATIE DOWDA
Age 10
“Little Women.” I like it
because it’s old-fashioned
and also earns me 36
Accelerated Reading
points.”
“Island of the Blue
Dolphins” is interesting
and has nice stuff. It’s
about a girl on an island.”
CARLEIA OWENS
Age 10 Age 11
“Mystery of the Purple
Pool” is a mystery story and
I like to read mysteries.”
BRANDON HOWELL
“Ilike biographies of baseball
players because I like baseball. I
am reading “Shaquille O'Neill.”
JEREMY WRISTON
Age 13
“I like basketball, so I'm
reading Michael Jordan's
biography. I'm also a big
Tar Heel fan.”