October 1 | Moments Almanac | After

Welcome to Moments Almanac for October 1st. And on this day in 1924, James Earl Carter Jr. was born in the little town of Plains, Georgia. He would grow up to become governor of Georgia and President of the United States and one of the most recognizable people in the world. But today, I don't really want to talk about Jimmy Carter, the politician. This isn't a political endorsement and it isn't an attempt to revisit his presidency. It's simply the celebration of one life, and particularly what a man chose to do when the most powerful title he would ever carry was already behind him. Because Jimmy Carter may have done some of the most interesting work after he left the White House. In 1982, Jimmy and Rosalind Carter established the Carter Center, an organization devoted to alleviating human suffering through efforts involving disaster prevention, conflict resolution, human rights, and public health. But Carter didn't limit himself to boardrooms and conferences. Beginning in the 1980s, he and Rosalind became deeply involved in Habitat for Humanity. And so there was this remarkable image of former president of the United States wearing a hard hat, holding a hammer, helping build somebody a house. For decades, Jimmy and Rosalind Carter spent time working alongside ordinary volunteers, and Habitat would eventually describe him as its most famous volunteer. And then there was Sunday morning. Back home in Plains, Georgia, Jimmy Carter continued doing something he had been doing in one form or another for most of his adult life. He taught the Bible. At Marinatha Baptist Church, visitors would sometimes travel enormous distances just to sit in a Sunday school classroom while a former president opened the scriptures and taught a lesson. Carter once said that he had begun teaching Bible lessons while still a young Navy midshipman. Think about that. Presidents come and go. Elections are won and lost. Crowds disappear. Titles eventually belong to somebody else, but a Bible can still be opened, a hammer can still be swung, a neighbor can still be served. Jesus told his disciples in Mark 10, Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant. Jimmy Carter died in 2024 at the age of 100, and whatever anyone thinks about his politics, and people certainly have different opinions about those, there is something worth noting about the decades that came afterward. He kept serving. And perhaps that's worth thinking about on October 1st, because eventually the title comes off the door. Someone else gets the office. Someone else gets the applause. And then comes a much more important question. Who are you when nobody needs to call you important anymore? Maybe greatness isn't found in holding on to a title. Maybe it's found in picking up the hammer, opening the Bible, and finding somebody who still needs to be served. And that's Moments Almanac for October 1st. I hope you'll join me tomorrow. Until then, take heart. Notice the scattered moments and share the grace.