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Clout…

By November 9, 2017August 30th, 2022Lost in Translation

We celebrated our grandson Cooper’s birthday Tuesday evening (Happy Birthday, Cooper!) and were having a wonderful time when the topic of “clout” came up. Apparently, our oldest grandson, Connor, was researching the topic in advance of discussing it on his weekly radio show at Carmel High School, where he is a sophomore. Connor has a real interest in being on the air and takes his weekly show very seriously.

Interspersed with the songs and current hits he plays, there is dialogue on a variety of topics that mid-teens are interested in. I have started listening to him on the radio and am getting quite an education on the topics of interest to his generation. For starters, some of the clothing choices are beyond my understanding, such as fanny packs with someone else’s name on them, but I am sure that my generation did some crazy stuff when I was his age as well.

Anyway, one of the newest trends for this younger generation is the necessity of having a pair of “clout goggles.” In reality, these are white sunglasses with large frames. They are not overly expensive, but it seems that anyone who is anyone has a pair. So we were learning more about goggles and the other items that seem to indicate a high degree of “clout.” The conversation turned to the definition of clout – the topic that Connor and his co-host had chosen to discuss on the air for their Wednesday afternoon show. We went on to define clout – the idea of having influence – and we got into a rather good discussion.

The next day on the radio, the broadcasters entered into a conversation about who has clout in the world. Kanye West came up as someone who seems to have clout in the opinion of the high school crowd. Of course, this is beyond my wildest comprehension and I could almost get sick at the thought of this being someone that our younger generation idolizes. So, I texted Connor several times while he was on the air to communicate my thoughts on the way they were steering the conversation.

In one of my texts, I reminded him that Jesus had (and has) more clout than anyone in the history of the world. I really didn’t expect him to mention that on the air – although he did give me a shout-out for my help the previous evening. But just think about it – nobody ever has had the kind of influence that Jesus has had. Not only has He been there since the beginning but the Bible has been the best selling book in history. Twelve apostles carried the story of Jesus to the ends of the earth and billions of people throughout the ages have chosen to follow Him and make Jesus Lord and Savior of their lives.

The verse for this evening is is the verse that highlights the depth and breadth of the power and “clout” of Jesus. The apostle John opens his Gospel with an overarching statement setting the foundation for our understanding of God and His son. John tells us, in John 1:1-3, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” Think about that. When John uses the descriptor “Word”, he is speaking about Jesus.

Jesus was there with God in the beginning – the “ex nihilo” beginning, when something was created from nothing. John tells us that through Jesus ALL things were made; and that nothing was made without Him. Isn’t that remarkable? In other words, Jesus was the Creator of everything with God the Father. I think that qualifies as having more clout than anybody else in the history of the world.

My encouragement this evening is that Jesus and His Father want us to use our clout to draw people closer to them. My prayer is that you will never lose your passion for following the Lord and that you recognize Jesus as Lord and Savior, even if you think Kanye has clout… Have a great day in the Lord, grace and peace…

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