The Four-Way Test

Perhaps you have visited the Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC. Were I the rule maker, I would strongly urge every American to go to England at some time during his or her lifetime; also, every Christian and Jew should try to visit Israel (The Holy Land) at some time in his or her lifetime.

There is simply no way that I can summarize the impact that Niagara Falls had on me when I saw it for the first time; my life was permanently and effectively changed by visiting India on three occasions; how can you evaluate or share the impact of being raised on a farm, walking two miles to a one-room country school in the Ozarks, having a life-threatening burn at age 2, driving cross-country in 1962 to see the western half of the United States for the first time (Seattle World's Fair, the Redwoods, Disneyland, the Grand Canyon, San Francisco, the Oregon Coast) - all in ten days and 6200 miles?

One place that was especially touching for me was the Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC. As you enter, there is a quotation from Martin Niemoeller that should humble, inspire, and challenge us all:

In Germany, they came first for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me, and by that time no one was left to speak up

We have an obligation to "speak up:" to share our beliefs, to study, and to learn: our supervisors, our spouses, our kids, our friends, and even God wants us to be the best we can be! We are what we learn and apply: each experience makes an impact and every action has consequences.