“Dad gave me his Gibson for my birthday” He said.
I was standing in Books-A-Million with my older brother Jeff. And I momentarily lost my breath…
The 1965 Gibson acoustic guitar that he mentioned was a Christmas present my mother gave my father that year…It moved over a dozen times in Michigan; from Highland Park, to Reed City, to Rose City, to 5 homes in Mio, two homes in Grayling, then back to Mio, on to Westland and recently Raeford North Carolina. It has lasted through two marriages, one divorce, three children, more parties than you could count, dozens of campfires, a few family reunions, multiple Mardi Gras’ and one canoe trip. It has also been played at one 4-H Christmas Party (it was background music though and never did THAT again), opened for Tom T. Hall at Graceland Ballroom (home of the infamous Purple Gang), and a dozens of other lesser known watering holes. Dad had heavy strings on it and the action is high, so it’s always been hard to play and now it’s unplayable. The Gibson has had a hard road, and it’s well worn life has warped it a bit—not unlike my father.
…I choked out an ‘oh?’
Jealousy is a funny thing. It hits you out of the blue sometimes. I certainly wasn’t expecting to feel jealous… It’s not like I don’t have a guitar of my own, I actually own 3 of them. One beat up electric Epiphone ‘knock off’ that I bought for my son, a sweet Fender Resonator guitar, and my favorite acoustic/electric on the planet, the Wechter Pathmaker that was a birthday gift from my wife in 1998. She bought it at RIT Music in Grand Rapids, Michigan and this amazingly beautiful guitar plays like a dream. When Shelli and I went guitar shopping back then, my brother’s advice was ‘buy something that makes you WANT to play it, or you never will’. When I walked into the acoustic room at RIT, the Wechter was hanging in the center of a short wall under a bright spot light, (I may have heard an organ playing ‘ta-daaa’)…it just jumped into my hands and whispered ‘take me home’.
The Bible says that jealousy is as “Unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, Like a mighty flame.”
It was the Gibson guitar that helped influence my love of acoustic music, and was the guitar that I learned my first song on (a simple 12 bar blues run). It also reminds me of all the times I played music with my father, which were the times that we communicate the best. Talk about a mighty flame!
I went to breakfast with my dad the next day and he seemed a bit anxious when he told me he gave the guitar to Jeff. Both of us knew it was the right choice and that the Gibson was in good hands. Jeff has some unique abilities with wood and strings, and will do a great job getting it playable again. Also, he’s the oldest son and he’s openly coveted it for years.
You know, it was the band at the church my wife and I used to attend in Michigan that kept me coming back, Sunday after Sunday, and I believe that God used my love for music to start my relationship with Jesus… So, a bit of prayer and a little time have helped me get over the initial pangs of jealousy. In fact, now that it’s in Tennessee (and will live about 1 mile away) I’ll have an opportunity to witness the new adventures of an old Gibson in the ‘good hands’ of my brother.
Love,
Jason
Black Bear Boogie–A story by Jason Elkins
February 27, 2008 — Jason
In May of 1989 I was 17, and holding on to the last ounce of my relatively non-complicated life. My summer consisted of working at Glenn’s Market, and hanging out with friends. I had a handful of great buddies like Brian LaRosa who worked nights stocking shelves. He would call me once in awhile on a Friday and say, “I have tonight off, but I work third shift tomorrow. Do you want to hang out while I try to stay up all night?” We would go for a drive, rent movies, chill with our friends, listen to albums (the flat black and circular kind) and play euchre, poker or Atari (yes Atari) until I couldn’t keep my eyes open. You make your own fun when you live in Mio, Michigan. The closest large city is 2 hours away however we never lacked for things to do!My best friend Tennis lived with his family and they had a barn on their remote property, where we spent lots of time.And saw Tennis standing 15 yards behind me laughing, hysterically and his father Hank standing next to him… in a full, black bear suit…The head piece was removed and tucked neatly under Hank’s arm. Tennis was now doubled over with laughter and his father Hank had a look of joyful bewilderment on his face.
Apparently they had run this prank on all of Tennis’s friends. One of them had peed himself and ran into the woods. I am SURE that the only way they were able to keep it a secret was that the prank-ee wanted to hear what the NEXT guy did when confronted with the same circumstance. Hank told me later that his original idea was to grab me, and he was running as fast as he could…but could NOT catch me!
I appreciate a great gag, and this certainly ranked high in my book. Strangely though, after telling the story to my mother, she didn’t seem to see the humor!!!
There have been many times in my life since, that I’ve been ‘chased by the black bear of fear’. The fear was real, and I was sure I would meet my ‘doom’. Sometimes it’s a financial situation, or maybe an upset friend. Sometimes it’s a looming deadline or a close call in traffic…sometimes health situations or job loss. In the book of John, Jesus tells us “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” John 14:27 (NIV)
What is your black bear? What’s chasing you? Is it time to see your fear with the mask off?
Love you,
Jason
Jason@TransparentYou.com
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4 Responses to “Black Bear Boogie–A story by Jason Elkins”
Messy House Misery or Ministry??–A Story by Jason Elkins
February 10, 2008 — Jason |
My house is a mess. (I’m being transparent!). As I sit here and write this, the living room floor needs vacuuming, there’s a load of clean dishes in the dishwasher, a load of dirty dishes in the sink, 3 loads of clothes that are clean and need folding (on the floor of the laundry room) and my bedroom should have police tape over the door. You may be thinking “why is he not cleaning it all up right now?” The fact is that I have. I usually go on a cleaning blitz once ever 10 days or so, when the mess just totally overwhelms me. You see, I never really HAD to keep the house clean. My wife took care of most of that…And before you start thinking I’m a sexist Christian traditionalist, I should mention that I changed LOTS of diapers, never complain about hanging out with our children, and I also cook breakfast and help with the morning routine! My wife Shelli is a “domestic engineer” or a “stay at home mom” (however she doesn’t stay at home much). And up until the last year or so, she pretty much kept on top of the household. Her back started really hurting about a year and a half ago, and after a half dozen epidural shots, more drugs then she cares to discuss, 1 failed surgery and 2 additional surgeries in December of last year, we’re hopeful that she’ll be making a pseudo-full recovery. Her doctor said that you never “fully” recover from back surgery, but we are both praying for a future with less pain.Currently, she is on some pretty significant restrictions.Don’t lift over 5 pounds…a skillet of food is more than that…
Don’t bend over…try doing laundry without bending…
Don’t reach too far…can’t pull a ceiling fan chain or sweep much, or scrub anything…
So, I’m the default cleaner.
My kids have learned to start pitching in more, and have actually been a big help in this area. Our house is small and we don’t quite have a place for everything, so it’s been difficult to stay on top of it all. I have learned to focus on what is REALLY important, and make sure my 1o year old daughter, and 8 year old son get the attention they need. I pray for us a ton, try to help Shelli’s mood stay high with encouragement and try to make sure we do fun things together. I also work on the magazine ministry (which has been an amazing outlet and blessing to me) and sometimes the dishes build up, the laundry multiplies, and the clutter starts to close in on me.
There are two situations where this really bothers me. One is that I can’t find what I need in a short period of time. The kids and I play a game where we pretend to switch rolls with each other. We all enjoy this fun exercise, and it’s a great way for the kids to hear what they sound like to mom and dad, and us parents get to understand what we sound like to the kids. When the kids are playing dad, they say things like “Where are my keys!!?? Has anyone seen my phone???”
The other time I’m bothered is when someone stops by, and the house is destroyed. I feel like a failure, I feel frustrated, judged, and find myself trying to 
explain the situation to everyone. This is a big contradiction, because we love having friends over.
When I get really down about the house, I try to remind myself of a place that I used to visit in college…I had a friend that dropped out of school, and moved off campus. He was living with a co-worker’s family that was kind enough to take him in. The family that lived there had 4 kids ranging in age from 5 to 15, two girls and two boys. The mom and dad kind of adopted me, and they would make us elaborate home-cooked meals (beat the heck out of college cafeteria food) and would let me get a moment of peace at their off-the-beaten-path home.
Talk about a MESSY HOUSE. There was one winding pathway through the living room with stacks of newspapers, magazines, clothes, jackets, shoes, this and thats, and kids toys lining the floor and walls. The bedrooms had clothes and toys everywhere, and mom and dad’s room was off limits…partly because you had to turn sideways to fit through the doorway.
They were a CLOSE family. These people LOVED each other. They played board games, cards and did outdoor activities as an entire family, ALL the time! I loved being around them, and it was where I recharged my batteries when I was in college.
Maybe I had that experience back then, to be able to appreciate/tolerate this experience now. Funny how God works things out like that.
So, if you come over, just understand that I would prefer that my house was as clean as yours. You might trip over a random croc, lose your keys (they’re probably right next to mine) but you will also receive a shot of love, a slice of peace and a pinch of happiness that you can take with you when you leave. Thank God for Mr. and Mrs. Cook, and the great lesson all those years ago.
Love ya,
Jason
Jason@TransparentYou.com
Transparent Christian Magazine
5 Responses to “Messy House Misery or Ministry??–A Story by Jason Elkins”
Callie Dowlen Says:
February 11, 2008 at 8:45 pm eDon’t worry about your house. At the end of the day it’s not what’s important. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard about Mom’s with an empty nest who all say they wish they had cleaned less and spent more time doing more important things. So just know you’re doing the more important things
God Bless!!
Callie
sheila Says:
February 12, 2008 at 8:36 am eJason, your keys are up on that shelf, next to the picture, you know, the one where you have hair…lol I’ve never thought of your house as “messy”, cluttered, yes… cluttered with love and life. I know, that my boys and I can come to your house, help ourselves to a cup of coffee or a cookie or soda or “hopefully” something sweet from Joan’s kitchen.. sit in the living room with our feet propped up… play a board game or the WII …and if we forgot to take our shoes off at the door, we wont get screamed at for it… it’s all part of being with the family… I have never come to your house to visit your house… I’ve always come because I needed to feel normal, I needed to feel the love that you and Shellie radiate out to everyone that crosses your path. There is no mess in your Godly home… just comfort, love and peace for all those who dare to enter.
Burt Says:
February 12, 2008 at 4:41 pm eDude….you never need to worry about your house being spotless. You know me, I just throw everything off the couch and onto the floor so I have a place to sit. It shows you are laid back and not putting on a front by freaking out to make sure you have a clean house when others come to visit.But the times I have seen your counter being spotless, etc I know that is a genuine cleaning and you put your heart and soul into it. Remember, our life is a mess but Jesus is always decluttering the mess from our life. Awesome (and you know the rest :—-}}}} )
gospelmusicroundup Says:
February 13, 2008 at 11:34 pm eMatthew 12:43 “When a defiling evil spirit is expelled from someone, it drifts along through the desert looking for an oasis, some unsuspecting soul it can bedevil. When it doesn’t find anyone, 44 it says, ‘I’ll go back to my old haunt.’ On return it finds the person spotlessly clean, but vacant.45 It then runs out and rounds up seven other spirits more evil than itself and they all move in, whooping it up. That person ends up far worse off than if he’d never gotten cleaned up in the first place. “That’s what this generation is like: You may think you have cleaned out the junk from your lives and gotten ready for God, but you weren’t hospitable to my kingdom message, and now all the devils are moving back in.” Obedience Is Thicker than Blood.Such a wonderful message…Don’t clean your house in preparation for God… how much less friends? Instead be concerned with filling your house with God, love,…..and friends.Love yaTom
Jason Says:
February 14, 2008 at 8:23 am eGreat points folks, and a good reminder for me. Tom and Callie, focusing on the more important things is probably the big change in my life over the last few years. Burt, feel free to dig yourself a spot and come and hang! Sheila, that may have been the nicest thing anyone has ever said to my family.Love y’all!
Jason
Because I Asked You To.–A Story by Jason Elkins
It was the most humbling and positive comment a parent can hear. “We think you do a great job with your kids. As a matter of fact, we were talking the other day about how well behaved they are, and that out of all of our friends, you seem to consistently do things right…you and your wife are not afraid to parent your children.”They made the comment after I had asked my kids to go into another room at our church because some folks were cleaning up and closing the main room. My 10 year old daughter threw me a quick and loud “why daddy?” and I responded calmly “honey, because I asked you to”. Her and her 7 year old brother walked, at a medium pace, to the other room. My daughter has learned that sometimes I’ll answer with an explanation immediately, and sometimes I’ll explain later, but I almost always explain my decisions to her. She also knows that I typically don’t get upset with questions. I’m a curious person by nature, and I think it is a sign of her intelligence that she wants to know ‘why’ instead of just blindly following—even when it’s her father trying to lead.I was staring at my two friends…I blinked a few times, and soaked in those comments…I was speechless. (If you know me, THAT’s a mini-miracle.) I choked back a tear and choked up a “Thanks…” and told the two 20-somethings that being a parent is extremely hard, and that the rewards are incomprehensible, and I loved it.And I’ve had my not-so-stellar moments. Like one night 3 years ago, when I was giving my (at 
the time) 4 year old son an earful about not listening and he stopped me cold with his reply…”I’M NOT DAMMIT!!!” Oh, trust me, my wife gave ME an earful for THAT one, and I deserved it…no good reason to swear at a 4 year old! If you haven’t figured it out already, he had apparently heard “Dammit Logan!” one too many times and he was reminding me exactly what his name was (just in case I forgot.)
There are plenty more stumbles, trips, falls, and ‘growing pains’ and I don’t get it right many times as an individual or a parent…But I’m trying.I read this scripture tonight…2 Peter 1:5-9 (The Message) So don’t lose a minute in building on what you’ve been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others.
This is a GREAT verse for a parent. It takes all of the above to raise kids.
Peter goes on to say…With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Master Jesus. Without these qualities you can’t see what’s right before you, oblivious that your old sinful life has been wiped off the books.
Later that day (and since) I praised my kids for their behavior and told them what the women had said, and told them how proud I was of them.
I believe that God receives a very similar sense of pride when we do things that honor him…When we do things that obey his directing.
Feel free to question though, it is a sign of our intelligence. We don’t want to just blindly follow—even when it’s our father trying to lead.
“So How’s Shelli Doin?” An update by Jason Elkins
December 1, 2007 — Jason |
“So how’s Shelli doing??” If I had a dime…I have heard that so many times over the last year, I couldn’t even begin to count. I know it was asked in sincerity and I am NOT being smarmy or rude about it. I appreciated EVERY request. Even the ones from well meaning people that had no idea what she was going through….what the whole family has been through really.
Shelli had a pinched nerve that was made worse by some degenerating discs and an anomaly in her spine that produced 2 nerve roots in an area that only one should be. She said the pain that she felt was worse than childbirth and had been at THAT level for about a year. She had some flare-ups that we now know were mis-diagnosed as kidney stones last summer, that lead up to the “I can’t take this anymore” pain of November 2006. Because the pain was so strong we had some therapy, epidural shots, (series of 3) and then finally surgery. The surgeon removed some bone to open up some space at the nerve root and after about 3 months of healing from the surgery, she realized that she was in the same amount of pain as before…and getting worse.
We had tried some heavy duty pain meds all along, and Shelli got more and more used to them, and their effect was less and less…We now understand the physiology of an addict, because of this cycle of more drugs for less effect.
So…after prayer, consultations and second opinions, she now has a nuro-stimulator implanted in her body that blocks the pain sensors from her spinal chord. This device has been a true God-Send and she is feeling VERY little nerve pain. Shelli has the recovery aspect of major surgery (they did THIS one in 2 phases, 4 days apart) but she feels very good overall and feels that we made the right decision.
When people say “God uses all things for HIS glory” I laugh now. During the last month, Shelli managed to get a job lined up for January, figure out how we could buy a car, and encouraged me to get a new job that was closer to home.
My strong marriage is now stronger than ever, and the kids and I are SO close now. Back pain has a way of keeping you in the house quite a bit, and this process taught me the importance of serving my family, more than myself or others. My kids have chipped in more too, doing animal chores and helping around the house more.
I was thinking the other day that I started writing (blogging) in March of this year when Shelli FIRST went into the hospital. That writing produced a dozen or so short stories, (some now published), and sparked a love for writing that I never knew I had. The interest in getting the message out lead to Transparent Christian Magazine and ultimately the words you are reading now. So when I think of some weird ways that God works, I wonder if He used Shelli’s pain to get me to focus on a positive outlet for my stress…Ultimately getting HIS message out to a wider audience!? Could He? Would He use this situation to bring my family closer together, and at the same time forcing us to build a stronger trust in him and foundation…Ultimately using this foundation in a way in which we can reach more people?? I guess you would have to be the judge of that, I have to go pray and then help Shelli with something!
Love you,
Jason
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February 25, 2008 at 2:11 pm eyour best writing ever!!!!!
February 28, 2008 at 3:52 pm eGreat stuff!!
February 28, 2008 at 10:04 pm eLove it!! I’m still laughing and it’s a wonderful lesson too!
God Bless!
February 29, 2008 at 4:36 am eJASON RUNNING FROM THE BLACK BEAR….. oooh I CAN SEE IT NOW.GREAT STORY