GRANDMA'S BARBER SHOP

For more than forty years I've cut hair. Untrained, unlicensed, unpaid, with the warning, “Results guaranteed or your hair back in a bag.” Definitely not a career. Maybe this photo of my “shop” (the kitchen stool in front of the kitchen sink) will confirm my truly amateur status. But it was good enough for my husband, who realized my minimal skills were adequate for his minimal (buzz) hair cut. With the money I saved, we could even eat out for dinner (well, maybe drive-through take-out). And home-brew haircuts worked out great for my son and grandsons, whose busy lives meant trips to the barber were not only expensive but hard to slice into their family's packed lives. A cheap cape and a clipper set kept my clientele coming every few months.

The scenario, of course, wasn't perfect. A couple grandsons are not the perfect haircut models. One hates to have his head handled. A money bribe usually helps. But then his little brother thinks he needs a bribe, too. After all, there's a Lego (c) set he's saving toward. My insistence that they should be paying Grandma seems to float over the top of their financial figuring.

Somehow we get through the quick cuts with their eyebrows reappearing, necks cleaned up and ears still intact. They're fascinated by the amount of hair collected from three little boys and a dad. I offer to bag it up so they can put it out for the birds to build nests. How true that is, I'm not sure, but it is something of consolation for the “I-hate-haircuts” kid who needs an altruistic goal for his trimming.

Just a caution: I do only kitchen-stool family haircuts. No “chemical services” around here. And I see a real hairdresser for myself—an every-two-months cut-only pampering. My hairdresser is great, skilled at the basics and even with the exotic. Last year or so she told me about a call from an out-of-towner who wanted a Cruella DeVill hair dye. If the name doesn't ring a bell, that's the wicked lady in the cartoon “101 Dalmatians” who sported a “do” that was bleached white on one side, and black on the other. Imagine being the hairdresser who achieved that! (My hairdresser did meet the challenge.)

My family “cuts” are pretty simple (besides being free). Easily scheduled, too—often after having a dinner at Grandma's house.

Oh dear, can I pull out a spiritual lesson of all this? Maybe the example of Jesus, who came not to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom (Matthew 20:28). Sometimes God calls us to ordinary tasks—like helping someone with yard work, mending clothes, taking a meal, or sitting down to listen. Or giving a busy family “kitchen stool” haircuts when “not perfect” is okay...and helpful.

O MASTER, LET ME WALK WITH THEE

Walking with Jesus may mean worn-out sandals...

 A monthly series on hymns of the faith.

Our faith, believed newspaperman-turned-clergyman Washington Gladden, should impact social justice issues. And this was more than a hundred years ago, after the American Civil War, when the country was in the throes of the industrial revolution. The opening line of his hymn said, “O Master, let me walk with Thee/In lowly paths of service free.” And he lived it out in his ministry and more.

Born in 1836 in Pennsylvania, and named for the first president, he was ordained to ministry in the Congregational Church after graduation from college. In his first eleven years in ministry, he fought corrupt political groups like the Tweed Ring, infamous for buying votes, encouraging judicial corruption, and extracting millions of dollars from New York City contracts. After that he was called to the pastorate of First Congregational Church in Columbus, Ohio, where he'd serve for the next thirty-two years. From its pulpit he continued to advocate for social, political and economic reforms. He also gained prominence for his negotiator skills with strikes by telegraph workers and coal miners.

His bias against big business brought criticism from his denomination, especially after he attacked John D. Rockefeller Sr. for gifting $100,000 to the church's foreign missions board. He considered the money “tainted” because of monopolistic practices of Rockefeller's Standard Oil Company.

Not surprisingly, Gladden had his critics within the church. One serious disagreement was Gladden's view of the Bible as just a book of religion, not necessarily divinely inspired. He embraced evolution and opposed the outreach efforts of evangelists like Billy Sunday. An earlier version of this hymn had two verses that criticized his critics!

First published just as a poem in 1879, it was noticed by Dr. Charles Richards, a publisher of hymns. Matched to a tune by an Anglican minister, it was included in Richards' hymnal “Christian Praise,” which more than a century later is still being reprinted and sold.

TRUST AND PEACE

The four stanzas that remain in many hymnals have none of Gladden's controversial ideas. Instead, they emphasize a prayerful walk of trust and peace with God that also incorporates “lowly paths of service free” and “trust that triumphs over wrong.” Most people would agree that knowing and serving Jesus must extend to meeting the human needs around us. With its quiet, meditative lyrics—a contrast to the fiery political issues that stirred Gladden's sense of justice—it rightly reminds us that the only real peace comes from walking with Jesus.

As Ephesians 5:1-2 says, “Be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.” And Matthew 20:28 reminds us that Jesus gave us an example of serving our world: “The Son of man did not come to be served, but to serve” (Matthew 20:26-28).

Gladden would die in 1918 in his 82^nd year. His political involvements are noted in a few history books. But this hymn continues to remind us of what it means to walk with Jesus “in lowly paths of service free”:

*Helping the “slow of heart” and “wayward.”

*Learning patience.

*Finding hope and peace in Jesus alone--”with Thee, O Master, let me live.”

This video site has a traditional organ/choir performance:

Gradual Hymn: O Master Let Me Walk With Thee - Bing video