Jack’s Winning Words 8/31/15
“I have perceived that man with courage and will-power can overcome anything.”  (Scharnhorst)  Determination?  Persistence?  Tenacity?  Guts?  The Finns have a word for it: SISU!  Sisu is even in the Bible.  “I can do all things…through Christ who strengthens me.”  Paul wrote this while facing difficult situations in his life.  God will give me the strength to get through the tough times.  I’ll be able to cope, because Christ gives me SISU.”    ;-)  Jack

FROM FACEBOOK LIZ:  learned a new thing... SISU. i have it!  (thanks for teaching me new stuff.) ====JACK:  Every day there stuff that we can learn...if we keep our eyes, ears and mind open.  As Robert Louis Stevenson wrote: "The world is so full of a number of things, I ’m sure we should all be as happy as kings.”

FROM HAWKEYE GEORGE:  Romans 5: 2-3.====JACK:  It's a hard lesson...that suffering is good for us.  It sort of reminds me of Mother Theresa's words: “I know God won't give me anything I can't handle. I just wish he didn't trust me so much.”

FROM BS IN ENGLAND:  Thank you for today's WW,  I  am feeling rather low.  Angela lost  the one to one funding as it has been determined  that she is not a threat  to herself  or others as she no longer stands, walks or talks.  Therefore  she does not receive individual  care by the same person.
With God's help I  will get through these tough times.====JACK:  We pray:  " Yea, though I walk through the valley///thou art with me."

FROM JB IN OLV:  Amen!  Praise the Lord who is gracious in All things!====JACK:  Do Methodists ever shout out, "Praise the Lord!" during the pastor's sermon?====JB:  No, unfortunately we are a very quiet bunch,,,except me,,,much to my family's chagrin I do yell AMEN on occasion:) ====JACK:  I remember the first time that I preached in a church in Detroit.  At first, the AMENs from congregation distracted me, but then it became an encouragement.

FROM MV AT ML:  I repeat this verse every night and during trying times.====JACK:  If we think that today's world is a "trying time," in the early days of our country, Founding Father Thomas Paine wrote: "These are the times that try men's souls."  ...and St. Paul has it even worse.

FROM DMF IN MINNESOTA:  Margie gets a lot of her ski equipment from this store:  finnSISU. ====JACK:   "No guts, No glory!"  That saying is traced to Maj Gen F.C. Blesse who wrote a book for fighter pilots with that title

FROM COPPER COUNTRY BOB:  Had community prayer this a.m.  The opening hymn was stand up for Jesus.... stand in his strength alone the arm of flesh will fail you, stand in his strength alone.
In view of yesterday’s NBC article that we can never eliminate lone wolf terrorists we have the choice of mentally living in terror or living in His strength.   I choose the later!====JACK:  Many times we stew and fret as if there is no God.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  Always good to learn a new word, and SISU is new to me today! Just read the book by Courtney Westlake, "A DIFFERENT BEAUTIFUL". She wrote of her experiences (so far) in discovering God's inner beauty, after her daughter was born with the rare skin condition called Ichthyosis, which has no cure, and requires rigorous and constant care. What an amazing story and faith, in that family! Courage, tenacity, wisdom, and celebrating God's beauty in unexpected places! A lesson for all of us!  They live in the Springfield area.====JACK:  You probably have  people in your own circle of acquaintances who aren't Finns, but have plenty of Sisu.

FROM HAWEYE GEORGE:  Jack, you just make today's CBS. Thanx.====JACK:  If your Champions Bible Study (CBS) group  would serve food, you could call it, Breakfast of Champions.  Do you know whose slogan that is (without looking it up)?

FROM STARRY KNIGHT:  This is the best message for me in a while! They're all usually really good, but this Is the best :) Going through major bologna in the music business :) If you even wan to call it that *** Horrible====JACK:  Here's one of my favorite stories about Pres Harry Truman.

OOMPAH! Truman liked to tell of campaigning on an Indian Reservation. After each promise of what he’d do for Indians if elected, the crowd shouted, “Oompah! Oompah!” The louder the chorus grew, the more inspired Truman’s speech became. As he left, the president has to cross a corral which had been filled with horses. “Careful,” his Indian escort told him. “Don’t step in the oompah.”  There's a lot of OOMPAH in the music business.  Watch your step and stay true to your values.