Jack’s Winning Words 4/11/16
“If the mountain were smooth you couldn’t climb it.”  (Quoted by Wintley Phipps)  Many of us were fascinated in 2015 when TV showed two people climbing the sheer face of El Capitan, using only hands, feet and a rope.  They were able to succeed because small fissures in the rock allowed them to get finger and toe holds.  There are some life problems that seem impossible to solve.  Usually there’s a way.  Keep searching, climbing…And keep hanging in there!    ;-)  Jack  

FROM TARMART REV:  "Hanging in there, Jack, I am!"====JACK:  What kinds of people do you suppose Jesus hung out with when he was a teen?  Did you hang out with him when you were a kid?

FROM FACEBBOK LIZ: Thumbs up!(emoi)====JACK:  This old saying also fits…Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

FROM DM IN LIV:  Perfect!  Thank you!====JACK:  From the Sound of Music... (sing it)
Climb every mountain,  Search high and low,  Follow every byway,  Every path you know.
Climb every mountain,  Ford every stream,  Follow every rainbow,  'Till you find your dream.
A dream that will need All the love you can give,  Every day of your life  For as long as you live.
Climb every mountain,  Ford every stream, Follow every rainbow,  Till you find your dream

FROM TARMART REV:  just seeing those two on the face of that mountain gave me the willies...  ====JACK:  I take it, then, that climbing El Capitan isn't on your Bucket List?  BTW, another expression for the willies is the collywobbles.

FROM RI IN BOSTON:  What is so important about climbing the mountain?  Challenging oneself against nature...flirting with suicide...to savor the view...inherent masochism...to feel closer to God?  Most of life's problems are there because we created them.====JACK:  Where's your sense of adventure?  George Mallory was asked why he wanted to climb Mt. Everest.  He answered, "Because it's there."  Why go to the moon.  Why explore the ocean?  Why search for God?  You're right about life's problems.  Adam shouldn't have listened to Eve.

FROM ST PAUL IN ST PAUL:  just seeing those two on the face of that mountain gave me the willies...JACK:  I take it, then, that climbing El Capitan isn't on your Bucket List?  BTW, another expression for the willies is the collywobbles.====SP:  i never heard that word before...====JACK:  You've probably never heard of the heebie jeebies, either.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  Tenacity! Wins the day; Winston Churchill pointed that out more than once...I like a quote by Tina Fey (of all people!) "Whatever the problem, be a part of the solution: Don't just sit around  raising questions, and pointing out obstacles."  Sometimes a "day off" from confronting all problems and worries, just separating yourself from it all for a day, can be productive!  Problems are part of the dues you pay for living a full life...====JACK:  I had a church member who said, "Every church needs a hole in the roof."

FROM PEPPERMINT MARY:  You watched the video.  Such an inspirational statement.====JACK:  When it's a live telecast, you never know....  Life is a live show, too.

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  The world is full of people who try and fail but keep trying difficult actions.  It's amazing to watch those finger-climbing folks, those who ride bikes down those steep mountains sides, those who drive their rigged cars up the sides of mountains and those who choose to push the boundaries with unbelievable feats!  God bless those who sit and watch them in awe!  There a need for all types of us in this crazy world!====JACK:  "God so loved the world..."  The world includes the crazies, too.

FROM RI IN BOSTON:  What is so important about climbing the mountain?  Challenging oneself against nature...flirting with suicide...to savor the view...inherent masochism...to feel closer to God?  Most of life's problems are there because we created them.====JACK:  Where's your sense of adventure?  George Mallory was asked why he wanted to climb Mt. Everest.  He answered, "Because it's there."  Why go to the moon.  Why explore the ocean?  Why search for God?  You're right about life's problems.  Adam shouldn't have listened to Eve.====RI:  Most of my adventures are realized right here on terra firma.  I can endorse going to the moon, and exploring the oceans, because they are undertaken to search for scientific data or resources that will benefit mankind exponentially.  One doesn't have to go searching for God, evidence abounds all around us.  We only need to strengthen our faith.====JACK:  In a way, my job of going into a strange community to start a church was adventuresome...but not like climbing Mt. Everest.