Today on John F. Kennedy’s birthday, I reflect back on my visit to The Sixth Floor Museum, the life of JFK, and my own faith.
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy
Today is the birth date of former U.S. President John F. Kennedy (May 29,1917- November 22, 1963). That has me reminiscing about my visit to The Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas, a museum about JFK’s life and death.
As you’ve probably noticed, we often talk about finding God in both the mundane and extraordinary, as we strive to seek him daily. So why not find Him while exploring museums and ponder what those experiences teach us?
The Sixth Floor Museum chronicles Kennedy’s political life and assassination. I studied the displayed criminal evidence, and read opposing views about whether or not Lee Harvey Oswald was the only assassin involved in John F. Kennedy’s murder: all from the very building from which the shots were fired.
Morbid? Yes. Yet it helped me understand things about life in the 1960′s that I’d never grasped from childhood history lessons. As a curious adult, I like to fill in the gaps. Now I better understand the Cuban Missile Crisis, and how that affected people. It also was odd walking in the museum and re-living what it was like when I was a child in the 60′s and had to “duck and cover” in my elementary school hallways. (See this now-humorous video, embedded below! Also, if history interests you, you can see another video on YouTube about The Sixth Floor Museum and the Kennedy assassination.)
You or I are unlikely to ever have a museum erected for us. But when John F. Kennedy died and stood before God, all that mattered–as it will for you–was Kennedy’s direct relationship with Him:
Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. Hebrews 9:27-28 (NIV Bible)
Are you unsure about whether or not you are ready to stand before him? You can learn more about how to find God at GodTest.com. Then when you stand before God, you won’t want to ‘duck and cover’. You will run to Him with joy!
This video is a bit humorous in light of what we know now about nuclear attacks. It does show how throughout the ages we all worry about the safety of our kids and do the best we can to try to protect them.
Duck and Cover
Laurie Winslow Sargent (lauriewinslowsargent.com) is a contributor to and editor for Finding God Daily, a multi-book author, and writer for national magazines. She’d love to hear from you on Twitter via @LaurieSargent.
