Midweek Musing- April 30, 2025

One of my favorite movies is Good Morning Vietnam, starring the late Robin Williams as a humorous and brazen Vietnam War military radio DJ who wasn’t afraid to push boundaries—and even break a few rules. In my opinion, it’s one of his finest performances.

In the film there is a poignant scene which is both beautiful and horrific. This scene’s haunting juxtaposition of beauty and brutality stayed with me. It also sparked my first exposure to Louis Armstrong, the gravelly-voiced genius behind 'What a Wonderful World.'

That 3 minutes in the movie which I watched in my youth has stayed with me for decades now. Its powerful images demonstrate how quickly we humans can turn beauty into misery.

The musical backdrop was my first exposure to Louis Armstrong. And over the years, I discovered not just his music, but his wisdom.

One of the things that I wrote down in my journal of quotes which I am trying to slowly digitize is the following which as I rediscovered served as inspiration of this musing.

In an interview Armstrong once shared: "Some of you young folks have been saying to me, ‘Eh, Pops, what do you mean, what a wonderful world? How about all those wars all over the place? You call them wonderful? And how about hunger and pollution? That ain’t so wonderful either.’

How about listening to old Pops for a minute? Seems to me it ain’t the world that’s so bad but what we’re doing to it. And all I’m saying is see what a wonderful world it would be if we only gave it a chance. Love, baby, love — that’s the secret. Yeeeaaahhh. If lots more of us loved each other, we’d solve lots more problems. And then this world would be a gasser."

I believe that deep inside of us, most folks want to believe what Louis Armstrong believed — that this world, for all its pain, still holds beauty, wonder, and promise.

That the brokenness we see — the wars, the hunger, the pollution, the division, the prejudice, and hate — are not because creation itself is broken beyond repair. "They are the results of human choices and systems distorted by sin, not because creation itself is broken beyond redemption. God's original blessing still echoes beneath the damage — waiting to be revealed through love." Pops had it right. “Love, baby, love — that’s the secret.”

Scripture agrees:

"Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony."

— Colossians 3:14

When we look around at the violence, the suffering, the selfishness, it’s easy to throw up our hands and say, "This world is hopeless."

But Louis Armstrong — and the Apostle Paul — offers us a different perspective. Which is the world is still full of wonder, but it needs people who are willing to love boldly, radically, consistently, and selflessly.

Jesus reminds us of the same truth in his teachings. “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

— John 13:34–35

Friends, this kind of love is not just a feeling. It’s a decision, a movement, a call to act for the good of others. It's feeding the hungry. It's caring for creation. It's forgiving when it would be easier to retaliate. It's standing with the marginalized, even when it costs us.

Louis Armstrong’s gravelly, joy-filled voice reminds us: the world can still be a “gasser” — still be filled with amazement, connection, beauty, and peace — but only if we give love a chance.

This week, maybe we can take Pops’ advice. Maybe we can be a little kinder, a little gentler, a little more patient. Maybe we can stop lamenting how broken the world is and start mending it — stitch by loving stitch.

Because who knows?

Maybe the world is already more wonderful than we realize.

Maybe it’s just waiting for us to see it through the eyes of love.

So, like Pops, and like Paul, and like our Savior himself, may we risk loving enough to see wonder again. May we help others see it too.

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Alleluia Amen.

Blessing, Clay

Here is a link to the scene I mentioned

https://youtu.be/FzFIDTs3WtI?si=VoZJ0g0q_LVT0dRK