That "Green Thing"

The Following comes from Pastor Tim of Cybersalt.com. He did not credit the author, and therefore I am unable to credit as well. Enjoy this thought provoking observation. Indeed, nothing is new under the sun.

In the line at the store today, the cashier told an older woman ahead of me that plastic bags weren't good for the environment. The woman apologized to her and explained, "We didn't have the green thing back in my day."

That's right, they didn't have the green thing in her day. Back then, they returned their milk bottles, Coke bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, using the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled. But they didn't have the green thing back in her day.

In her day, they walked up stairs, because they didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. They walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time they had to go two blocks. But she's right. They didn't have the green thing in her day.

Back then, they washed the baby's diapers because they didn't have the throw-away kind. They dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts.... "wind and solar power" really did dry the clothes. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that old lady is right, they didn't have the green thing back in her day.

Back then, they had one TV, or radio, in the house not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a pizza dish, not a screen the size of the state of Montana . In the kitchen, they blended and stirred by hand because they didn't have electric machines to do everything for you. When they packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, they used wadded up newspaper to cushion it, not styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.

Back then, they didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. They used a push mower that ran on human power. They exercised by working so they didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. But she's right, they didn't have the green thing back then.

They drank from a fountain when they were thirsty, instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time they had a drink of water. They refilled pens with ink, instead of buying a new pen, and they replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But they didn't have the green thing back then.

Back then, people took the streetcar and kids rode their bikes to school or rode the school bus, instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. They had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And they didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint. But that old lady is right. They didn't have the green thing back in her day.

We complain about the cross we bear but don't realize it is preparing us for the dip in the road that God can see and we can't.

Whatever your cross, whatever your pain,
there will always be sunshine, after the rain....

Perhaps you may stumble, perhaps even fall;
But God's always ready, to answer your call.....

He knows every heartache, sees every tear,
a word from His lips, can calm every fear...

Your sorrows may linger, throughout the night,
But suddenly vanish, in dawn's early light...

The Savior is waiting, somewhere above,
to give you His grace, and send you His love....

God promises a safe landing, not a calm passage.


....and you question God - 'why me?'...
always look at the bigger picture......
A day without the Lord- is a day wasted.

Changes

Two things have happened yesterday. Well perhaps on Tuesday with another yesterday. To start, Tuesday I woke to a phone call from the Lima, IL church. And then I started a new habit, holding office hours. Why is the latter noteworthy?

Office hours are the time that a minister is accessible to those who need to talk to him. It is place that is warm and inviting. It is also a time that allows for him to have a place that is quiet so that he can focus on his study, prayer and preparation.

Since I’ve stopped serving a church back in July, I have had no place to go. I would spend time at home. I passed my brother in short order on a game he had been playing online for a while before talking me into joining him. And though my creative juices were flowing again, they were still stymied even sitting at the huge desk in the middle of my living room. I needed to get out of the house, away from reminders of stressors that are ever present. AND NO! I am not referring to my family, but things like electricity, internet, etc.

(And to be honest here… The only sermon I have finished is the sermon I preached to the church in Minnesota. I really need to finish a bit more sermon outlines, at least. But I do have 7 series planned for the next 2 years.)

Now the question is where to hold my office hours. If you are a friend/connected to me on facebook, then you already know that the Winslow Public Library is my new office home. It makes sense. Libraries are usually quiet, and are designed for conducive study and even prayer, especially since the Library here was once home to the local Methodist church before they moved near the hospital.

Being at the Library and making it public, however, are two totally different items. Being that it’s a function of the City of Winslow, letting a minister to make it his base of operation can create unique problems. I was going to keep it on the down low. Then the fine folks there told me I could share that I am there. (I guess if people are coming to see me, then they are coming into the Library which means more patrons, which means more people of the community are served. It’s a win-win.) But the bottom line is that this was an answered prayer.

Now the Lima church is interesting. They called me to let me know that I am one of three finalists, and that on Saturday, they want to call all of us, one at a time, of course. I know that I am not the top of this list because of an answer I gave them to an unfair question. They wanted to know what I expected for a salary. I’m not going to answer here other than to say it’s unfair because Cost of Living varies significantly within the state, much less between regions of the country. My answer was based on Winslow AZ COL.

If you have not been able to follow my search journey from the beginning, this is not the first time I have made the trinity of candidates for a church. I have been in this trinity of candidates with Booker, Texas and perhaps even Forrest Lake, Minnesota. This is my transition to what happened yesterday.

I took the advice of a friend and called Booker yesterday. You see, the church called me nearly two weeks ago come Sunday. I was in the trinity. The elder revealed that the Board had just met and that I was the first to be called to check to see if I was still available. The plan was to get with the Board to see when they can all get together to meet so they can have final interview calls with us, all on one night, again. Then they would invite one of us for a visit and a yes/no vote. The elder assured me that it would be Tuesday or Wednesday when he would call and firm up the appointment time, anywhere between Thursday and Election Day. He then assured me that the Board believed that God has already led them to the right man of God with the trinity of candidates.

Well the day after the election and I have not heard from the church. Let me back up. When I was given the information, I began praying and asking several of you to pray with me that the other two candidates would have been blessed with more fruitful searches than I have. If I was the sole candidate, then surely they would continue with the final interview, and then invite us up for that visit and vote.

So I called. The prayers were indeed answered. Both gentlemen were already in their new congregations. I was sole. So the board decided to wait I believe to their next meeting this coming Sunday to discuss their options.

What are those options? They may consider me along with #4 & 5 on their list of recommendation. Or they may just consider me. So now my prayer is that of the top 10 gentlemen on their list, 9 of them have been blessed with new ministries already.

Now in this, I can see their point of view. They wanted to perhaps discuss the strengths of each candidate, perhaps not too different from when the Apostles selected Matthias to replace Judas. (Of course, I am only conjecturing as to how that process played out.) Yet instead of having such an opportunity, God had narrowed the field for them in a way they were not looking for, and therefore not expecting.

When God taps you on the shoulder when you least expect, asking you to do something you never imagined, sure that can be chaotic to the mind to comprehend. It is what I have been going through lately. I feel for these leaders of the church. I certainly don’t envy them having to prayerfully decide which pastor would serve them best.

I suspect the play is something like this: “God, we are going to lay these 3 men before you. Guide us to the one You have selected to serve us.” Then Brother Bob is tasked with checking if we are all still looking. Bob now has to tell the rest, “Brothers, we don’t have 3 men to lay before the Lord. We have one. What shall we do? Add the next two on the list?”

One of my friends asked me if I shared my prayer with the elder. I didn’t feel that it was the time. Perhaps they will need to see God’s hand apart from my pointing it out to them. As for me, what I am sensing is that God is telling me to wait, and to watch. From the prayers answered in the movements I have seen this last couple of weeks, it is nothing compared to what is coming. God is preparing both the church and me so that together, His name will be honored and we will be drawn even closer to each other.

So I am praying for God to shower them clarity and with His peace. And now I am asking the Father to have also blessed the rest of the list. I am also asking all of you to pray with me on this account. Pray that the Elders receive the clarity of God having already answered their prayer. Pray that all of other top candidates have had successful searches for their ministries. And pray for us to feel His peace.

To God be the glory, may His love flow through you, and thanks for sharing with me.

From the trail ==smh

A Saturday Night Spent

I bet you didn't know that I like to spend my Saturday nights perusing YouTube videos for an inspirational video. Since I am currently driving to church, I am trying to break that habit. To help I have compiled a list of videos that I want to use so that in 3 minutes or less, I can post the new video and have my late evening dedicated for something else, such as getting ready for church the next morning, since its a bit of a drive. (Out here in Rural Arizona, seems everything is a bit of a drive.)


So how is that going? Are you reading this? Sure I have the videos lined up for the next month. So instead of doing what I need to get ready for the day ahead, I am instead writing to you about what I had planned to be doing. (OK, I'm lost at the moment. Can you tell me what I just meant? Thanks. If not, don't worry. Apparently you are in great company.)

Oh yes, now I remember where I was going with this.

What has inspired this posting? Currently, as you all are aware, I am in the process of finding a new church. I have lines out there, much like a modern fisherman fishes from his boat, oar ready to knock the poles from sight should the Arizona Game & Fish Warden come along. (Apparently each fisherman is allowed the use of only one pole, something about an Arizona statute.) Some of the lines have had bites. Some have had nibbles. And some of the lines have had no bites at all, leaving me to wonder if I baited the hook, attached the resume to the email?


OK I'm talking about fishing which is something I supposedly do not like to do, that is fish. Not the point at all, but there you have it. What is the point?


Of the lines that have had bites or nibbles,(no, really, I am transitioning off of fishing in about 10 words.) Of those, the question of music style in worship comes up frequently. (So it was 12 words. I was close.)


My answer is a pat answer. I give it to everyone who asks: "I love a broad range of music. That said there are modern worship songs that I enjoy and there are some I would gladly discard. There are plenty of old Gospel songs that I could as easily discard, but plenty of hymns I do like. The question is not what style of music is needed to help a meeting, but what attitude is brought to the meeting that makes, or breaks the music." I do stand by that answer.


So as I am sitting here looking over list of songs that come to mind, and then seeking videos out for them, seeing which I like, making notes for future usage, I began to think. (Insert joke here. This opening was left with you in mind.)

I realized that though I do appreciate music across the spectrum (however screaming and noise does not music make), most of my Sunday inspirational videos will be of the "Old Time Gospel" genre, or perhaps older Christian pop music, with some exceptions, such as couple of months ago when I posted "The Revelation Song" by Philips, Craig and Dean.

There is just something that appeals to me with the old hymnals. Perhaps it is keeping with my embraced simple style and approach to preaching the Word. It seems to fit me.

Now what is the lesson here? Nothing, really. I just wanted you to know a little about the way I decide videos and what appeals to me. I will also be focusing on a more traditional worship style church to serve. (I love the preaching at Christ's Church of Flagstaff. The Music aspect leaves me wanting.)

Though I am not opposed to the more modern music such as Third Day, Newsboys or the W's, I will leave those posts for my lovely bride to make. Thanks for sharing with me from the trail. --smh

Diclose Act HR 5175

An Email from yesterday I thought I would pass along...


June 24, 2010


Dear Friend of Liberty,

Earlier today, the House of Representatives shredded the First Amendment by voting 219-206 to pass H.R. 5175, the DISCLOSE Act.

View the roll call here.

As hard as it is to believe, they made the bill (which should really be called the Establishment Protection Act) even worse in the hours leading up to the vote by including more provisions to benefit their Big Labor pals and to obtain further details on those opposed to their powergrabs.

Thanks to the actions of Campaign for Liberty members and other freedom-minded activists across the country, the vote on H.R. 5175 came down to the wire and was much closer than expected. Your pressure reminded them that we are serious about holding our elected officials accountable for their actions.

Matter of fact, your calls made such an impact that Campaign for Liberty was even mentioned on the House floor during the debate!

This vote is by no means the end of the fight, and the battle to protect Americans’ right to free speech and to keep the federal government from gathering even more information about us now moves on to the Senate, where the bill faces many challenges.

There are several steps you can take to ensure the Establishment Protection Act is decisively defeated in the Senate.

First, contact your senators right away and make sure they know we have not given up on this critical issue. Click here to find their contact information and urge them to oppose H.R. 5175 and all other attempts to curb free speech.

Next, call the NRA headquarters at 1-800-672-3888 and their Legislative Action group at 1-800-392-8683 and tell them to drop their compromise and actively oppose H.R. 5175.

Without their special deal with House leaders, DISCLOSE may have been stopped in its tracks before ever reaching the House floor in the first place.

Finally, please forward this email to your family, friends, neighbors, and coworkers so we can spread the message about the threat posed by the Establishment Protection Act.

Campaign for Liberty has enjoyed more success than the statists ever imagined possible, and they would love nothing more than to shut us down by going after our donors.

Let’s show them that the Freedom movement will never back down.


In Liberty,



John Tate

President

El Torito and Chili Peppers

For my Yuman friends, you know that last October, I did a first. Almost 40 years old, I finally step foot inside a store that has been quite within walking distance of the high school, back in the days that students were allowed to leave for lunch, or stay for lunch. I walked into Chili Peppers. I had my standard bean and cheese burrito. It was half the size of the burrito that I am used to eating at El Charo over on 8th Street. It was 1/3 the price, so that made it really good.

Then I sat down at my seat. Carol was watching me to see what my reaction would be. Any and every time that we go out and try a Mexican food place, I was in direct comparison to El Charo. This was true even for the summer I spent in the heart of Mexico. (No, I didn’t think the food of El Charo was better than the food I was eating at the roadside taco stand. It was different. I easily downed a dozen tacos in a single sitting. They were tiny, but delicious.) So I took a taste. The burrito tasted identical to that of El Charo. I was jazzed. I was perplexed. I wondered why I hadn’t tried it sooner. Tricia, Sandra, Tracey, and Robert all chided me, and welcomed me to the new addiction. Sorry you 4, we are taking a turn up ahead. Keep reading. I would leave from that Yuma trip with 2 dozen burritos. I was hooked.

When I was talking about going there prior to my epiphany, dad was telling me that yeah, Chili Peppers, Mr. G’s and El Charo were all the same family. He keeps their books. Why wasn’t I told this sooner? I never missed an opportunity to collect Chili Peppers when I can. But more than the burritos I am an even larger fan of my staple by which I judge a Mexican eatery. I love the TAMALE! This is a perfect handy food, unless you like it swimming in the red tamale sauce, which I can go either way.

I have been in some “authentic” Mexican eateries across Southern New Mexico, and I have ordered the tamales. 99% of the time they were either Hormel’s or some other company who would think wrapping the tamale in paper is as good as wrapping them in corn husks. (Here’s a hint, I bought many cans of tamales to get me through Sunday’s lack of food service at the college. I can spot canned tamales.)

Now since Mexican food is probably my favorite, I am always looking for the best I can find. And here is where my upbringing comes into conflict. If you look at a map of Mexico, you will see that the state below Arizona is Sonora. The state below El Paso and New Mexico is Chihuahua. Does this make a difference? You better believe it does. It’s like comparing the deep fried food of Kentucky with that of the Creole food of Louisiana. It’s a world of difference, yet both are American foods.

Unfortunately, Winslow has had Chihuahuan food. I wanted Sonoran food. Then one did open up near a truck stop. The food was decent, except the beans and rice. Beans tasted canned. Rice was soupy. Then someone in passing told me that the old El Torito was open under new management. (Now last time I went, the windows were grimy brown, almost opaque. And it had been 4 years.) So being under new management, I told Carol and she agreed, we needed to try it.

OK, you 4, here is where you are not going to like what I have to say: I BROKE MY CHILI PEPPER/EL CHARO ADDICTION!!! I love El Torito. And as always, I am going to ask about a change in venue, a change in menu to the Ministerial Association as well. Just once, really.

Now the important part: Where is El Torito? El Torito is on Central in Coopertown. Yes this is one of the burbs just south of the tracks in Winslow. As you are entering into Coopertown, you will see a small lot to the right side of the road, just before the church on the leftside, not more than a dozen cars can park here. Beyond that, across the little road is the building of El Torito. It looks like it used to be a house. But the important part is that it’s clean, and the food is great. Veronica is a local gal who used to manage Days Inn. Now she is using her gift of cooking to bless others.

Check this place out. If you are a true fan of Sonoran style food, El Torito is the best. If you want to know what Sonoran food is, then El Torito is the best place to learn. If you like home-made tamales, El Torito is the place for you to eat. You like bean and cheese burritos, or red or green enchiladas with chicken, shredded beef or even ground beef, the El Torito is the place. And of all the Mexican eateries in Navajo county, El Torito has the best food, including the beans and rice.

Eat El Torito. Became a fan of El Torito’s page.

And thanks for sharing with me from the trail. -- smh

A Marine Funny

One sunny day in late January 2013 an old man approached the White House from across Pennsylvania Avenue, where he'd been sitting on a park bench. He spoke to the U.S. Marine standing guard and said, "I would like to go in and meet with President Obama."

The Marine looked at the man and said, "Sir, Mr. Obama is no longer president and no longer resides here."

The old man said, "Okay," and walked away.

The following day, the same man approached the White House and said to the same Marine, "I would like to go in and meet with President Obama."

The Marine again told the man, "Sir, as I said yesterday, Mr. Obama is no longer president and no longer resides here."

The man thanked him and, again, just walked away.

The third day, the same man once again approached the White House and spoke to the same U.S. Marine, saying, "I would like to go in and meet with President Obama."

The Marine, understandably agitated at this point, looked at the man and said, "Sir, this is the third day in a row you have come here asking to speak to Mr. Obama. I've told you already that Mr. Obama is no longer the president and no longer resides here. Don't you understand?"

The old man looked at the Marine and said, "Oh, I understand. I just love hearing it."

The Marine snapped to attention, saluted, and said, "See you tomorrow, sir."