Honey, I'm doing the best that I can

By DR. KNOX HERNDON
Pastor

I was serving as the 2nd brigade chaplain of the 82nd Airborne Division in 1982 at Fort Bragg, N.C. when we met our new division chaplain, Jerry Autry.

Jerry was a high type "A" personality with a lot of energy and I liked him very much. Jerry would say of himself, "I know I'm a 'flake' but I'm a good flake" and in my opinion, he was. He would say things like "When you receive the military mail, throw it all away; if it's important enough, it will surface again."

Now his deputy was a squared-away, "dot all the I's and cross all the T's" kind of guy, and Jerry was obviously driving him crazy. His deputy would try to beat him to the mail room to be sure he got the mail answered. There is no doubt that his deputy kept him out of deep trouble. They were a good team.

Jerry's wife was a really sharp woman who was everything that Jerry was not, and vise versa. With these two very strong personalities, you can imagine that they must have had some interesting interchanges, as many of us encounter when two strong personalities inhabit the same dwelling.

I will never forget one time when Jerry was telling me something he had done and his wife was livid. She was on him (probably rightfully so) like "white on rice." They got into it and Jerry turned to her and said, "Honey, I'm doing the best that I can." I laughed and laughed. I can remember when I also, like Jerry, had done something and landed in the dog house.

Now, guys, help is on the way! I discovered that our friendly neighborhood Kroger in Banks Crossing has, for just 99 cents each, the most beautiful carnations you have ever seen. Now if you are really in trouble, they have roses. There is also a neat little card rack where you can pick out a free card to go with your carnations or roses.

There is one in particular that I always pick and that is the one that depicts a man on his knees wearing a shirt and tie, crawling out of a dog house. God bless Kroger. Someone has come to our rescue for just 99 cents.

Whenever I do a marriage ceremony, I usually read from I Corinthians 13, which has been called the love chapter. I like verse four, which in some translations says "love keeps no record of wrong." It's my favorite verse because throughout the years of marriage and rearing children, this verse comes into play daily.

If you think of the opposite of this, it would be, "I will remember and bring to your attention everything you have ever done wrong and make sure you don't forget it." Sound familiar?

Forgiveness is a Godly, freeing exercise, especially in marriage and rearing children. I often hear of how parents never forgave a child for something they did and the child can carry that hurt to the grave. I am often mindful of the tons of sins we have all committed that our Heavenly Father has forgiven us for through his Son Jesus.

Whenever I hear of a conflict situation between a parent and a child, I will often hear the child say, "My parents were too strict with me and would never let me do this or that." I always say to them, "Your parents were probably doing the best that they could." I know that this is not always true, but I like to believe that people are doing the best that they can.

We can all thank Almighty God that through His blood we are cleansed. Praise The Lord!

The Rev. Dr. Knox Herndon is the pastor of His House Community Church (SBC) and a substitute school teacher in the Fayette County School System, and a former Army chaplain. The church is currently meeting in the American Legion Log Cabin across from the fountain on the Square in Fayetteville, and will move to a new location near Senoia in September. Prayer line 770-719-2365; e-mail KHERN2365@aol.com.

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