A Presidential Visit

President Bush was in our town yesterday. He actually visited the very part of the city where I sat and drank coffee with a Pastor friend of mine. The President and First Lady were here to support one of the Faith Base initiatives on Pittsburgh’s North Side.

I did not get to see him, but I wish I had.

Let me put that into perspective. Last evening on the local news (which I seldom watch because I usually get ticked off) a lady was interviewed who said something to this effect, “I will not go see the President. He is not someone I like, so I would not bother.”

I felt sad for her. I have great respect for the office of the President of the United States, and if given the chance I would go to see any President. I would do the same with Presidents I disagreed with as well as those with whom I agreed. I would offer respect for the position he or she held. But maybe that is just me.

There has never been a president since I passed into adulthood (legally that was in 1972 – some say that pragmatically I am not there yet) where I agreed with everything they have done. Shoot, I do not agree with myself after the fact quite often. That being the case, I do not understand why anyone would pass up a chance to meet a President. For me, it is a matter of respect.

Let me pose a question: Whom do you respect? What man or woman is there that comes to your mind when you are asked to name someone you have deep respect for. Actually, I could name quite a few. Some are famous. Others are infamous. But let me go back a few years and tell you about one.

The man’s name was Clarence Fain. I always called him Mr. Fain. Actually everyone did. Mr. Fain was one of those men who, as far as I knew, had always been old. He had an affect upon me that will last to my grave.

Mr. Fain was / is the wisest man I have ever known. Bar none. There was not even a close second until about six years ago. I have had many friends and acquaintances who have earned doctorates. They all paled to him in wisdom. Yet, Mr. Fain dropped out of school in the sixth grade to help support his family in my hometown of Kannapolis, N.C.

He impacted my father as a young man and did the same thing to me as a young man. He influenced my call into ministry. He fueled my passion for the Bible. He modeled what a true teacher was like. He showed me the example of “Job like patience.” He more than any single person is the reason I am not an alcoholic or worse today. And he never saw the full fruit of his effort. In a future blog sometime, I will share that account, but for today, please just accept that it is true.

I want to close the blog today with two areas of questioning. The first repeated is whom do you respect? Why? What did they do to earn your respect? You do know that respect is something you earn, not something you demand, don’t you?

The second question is this, who respects you? Whose respect have you earned? What man or woman, boy or girl looks at you with respect? If not for the position, for the person you are.

Chew on that for a while. I intend to do the same.