Jack’s Winning Words 9/30/21

“You came here empty-handed, and you will leave here empty-handed.”  (Hindu Quote)  Last month my great-grand daughter came into this world empty-handed, just as each of us did.  The Hindu proverb says that as we came, so will we leave…empty-handed.  There’s a saying: “There are no pockets in a shroud.”  I like to concentrate on the beliefs my friends and I have in common, no matter what our religion might be.  Is there some person in your circle of friends who has a “religion” different from yours?  Is there something that you’ve learned because of that relationship?  ;-)  Jack

FROM WILLMAR REV:   I’ve got a number of friends I’ve learned from with religious differences in the same religious faith…some of my Catholic friends  will say when you Protestants can’t get ever get your doctrine straight you form another denomination?! 0:-)===JACK:  I learned from you that the Assembly of God really has a goal of helping people to know that there's a God who cares about them.===REV:  It's been a very welcomed journey sharing our pastoral finds, experiences and wisdom learned over these many years!! 0;-)===JACK:  Sometimes it takes many years to learn the simple lesson...We are on this journey...together! 

FROM ST PAUL IN ST PAUL:  i always like thoughts that help me understand the stewardship of life.   no pockets in a shroud.  we don't take it with us when we leave this world.  you never see a hearse pulling a U-Haul trailer:):):)===JACK: i always like thoughts that help me understand the stewardship of life.   no pockets in a shroud.  we don't take it with us when we leave this world.  you never see a hearse pulling a U-Haul trailer:):):)===JACK:  People can immediately visualize the U-Haul trailer.  A shroud with no pockets takes some thought, but it's not wrong to aske the congregation to think once in awhile.

FROM YOGA TEACHER:  It has been my privelege to work with many persons from India in my positions in IT.  Although a lot of those persons do not believe in a monotheastic God,  the level of piety and respect is hard to match in the western culture.  It is perplexing to a great degree!  The learning lesson is piety.===JACK:  I'm currently reading a book of Essays on Hindu Theology, and I'm learning the Hinduism in America is adapting more to the western style of "doing religion" that most people realize.

FROM MY LAWYER:  So many! And, so much!!!===JACK:  One of the advantages that goes with having a wide circle of friends is...to learn from each other.  I have learned much from you and others like you.  I attended my first Shiva at your house.  Before that, I never knew what a Shiva was.

FROM SR IN SJ:  My beautiful lawyer-friend and former student, Mike. . .who left the Catholic church momentarily because he expected acceptance of his gayness. . .but he has not left his faith and teaches me continually how to live with an open  heart!  Do pray for Mike, if you will!===JACK:  We learn from each other.  Also, prayer not only helps the one prayed fpr, but the pray--er, too.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  I like the comment:"There are no pockets in a shroud."!  My Muslim friend (she was actually Iman of the Springfield Congregation) , stressed loving and serving our "neighbors" and encouraged community service, just like we Christians do. When we'd occasionally meet for lunch, she had a good sense of humor, and was up to date on what was going on in the world. She has moved to CA, and I miss spending time with her!  When Sarah taught English in Japan, I spent 3 weeks there (during Cherry blossom time...GORGEOUS!) and her friends and co-teachers were very interested in her Christian Beliefs,  and very loving and loyal in their relationships. Some keep in touch to this day, and that was many years ago. Two have actually visited Chicago, and stayed with her! Japanese are slow to invite you to their homes, but one they trust you, and get to know you, they are very warm and as Sarah marveled, "just like us!"! :-)===JACK:  The concept of missionary work has changed drastically, since I was a child.  And...in those days I don't think I knew what a Muslim was, let alone, an Imam.  I don't think thst I'm comfortable today singing that old-time Gospel song:" "Give me that old-time religion."

FROM GUSTIE:  :Good one and congrats on the great-great grandchild.  I don’t even have a great grandchild yet!  Ha===JACK:  ...and I've been asked to conduct her baptism on Oct 17.  If you were there, you could sing: "Borning Cry."  I like that song. ===G:  I love that song.   

FROM BB IN CHGO:  Have I already recommended (or sent) the book “Holy Envy”?  The Episcopal? Methodist? author left her role as pastor in parish ministry to instead teach at the college level.  She’s given the section on World Religions and decides to teach from the inside out rather than outside in, i.e. let’s meet and learn from people who are actively practicing the faith, going to the house-of-worship and hear what it means to hem and how that observance enriches their lives.   She says that Christianity is “the home to which she will always return” but respects, even envies certain practices of other faiths.  I enjoyed the book, “Life of Pi” for the same reason; Pi practices Hinduism, Christianity and Islam and does not understand why people compel him to make a choice when each one has aspects he finds helpful and beautiful.  To my mind this fosters something very different than “tolerance” of the beliefs others hold dear. ===JACK:  If there is one God, then this god is God of all.  We are the ones who have segmented ourselves into groups.===BB:  One of my fave parts of Holy Envy was a requote where she says something like, “we are dipping our ladles into different sides of the river but the water springs from the same source”.

 

 

 Jack’s Winning Words 9/29/21

“What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of a difference you want to make.”  (Jane Goodall)   Believe it or not, I read recently that cows are being taught to use a toilet in order to cut down on ammonia gases released into the environment.  There was even a video.  I know of people who are fastidious composters.  I try to recycle plastic, but am sometimes confused by what those little numbers mean.  Jane Goodall says that you and I can make a difference.  Do you have any suggestions for the rest of us?  ;-)  Jack

FROM HONEST JOHN:  I participate wholeheartedly in the recycling effort….but hope I am doing it right.    At our age, I don’t think we are very well informed.===JACK:  I wonder if Jane has been able to tech the chimps how to use the toilet?  I remember meeting her once at Oakland University.  She's a great lady and a benefit to the world.

FROM NORM'S BLOG:  Very many of us tend not to notice or acknowledge other people that we pass during the day or even try overtly to avoid making eye contact or saying anything. Some may even try to avoid specific people, because they just don’t want to spend the time talking to them. Maybe you know someone who is always down or complaining and you just don’t feel like sharing time with them because you don’t want to let them bring you down, too. This is probably the type of person for whom the term "Gloomy Gus" was invented.  If you are like that, you have made a conscious decision not to make a positive difference in the lives of the other people. I know a lady, who is a life coach, who uses the motto, “Making a positive difference in other people’s lives”. Most of us probably don’t start each day with that motto in mind; however, if we start each day without a thought like that in mind we have defaulted to indifference and have created an indifferent world for ourselves. We do not make a difference and that is just sad.===JACK:  You, Norm, have truly made a difference in the world around you...and I applaud you for that.  Thanks be to God for who you are and what you do.

 

Jack’s Winning Words 9/28/21

“One sometimes finds what one is not looking for.”  (Alexander Fleming) On this date in 1928, scientist Fleming woke up to see a strange mold on an uncovered petri dish.  He came to name the mold, penicillin.  Was it a miracle, or a coincidence?  A friend of mine calls events like that: Godincidences, times when God enters life to cause “accidental miracles.”  As you look back over your life, have you seen God at work in some quiet way?  I certainly have.  Is it any wonder that some medical people call penicillin, “the miracle drug?”  ;-)  Jack 

FROM DAZ IN CO:  Definitely can see God's hand in the many miracles in my life. Wonderful solutions  to problems I couldn't  solve ====JACK:  At the time, do you recall "seeing" God's hand in the success of the lunar landing...or, were you all just consumed by a sigh of relief?

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  tt really is a miracle drug~ Before penicillin, I had Diptheria, which was a life and death disease without that drug. I can still hazily remember   the Dr.  telling  my parents (I had been delireous for several days), "She has turned the corner, she's going to recover, but it will be slow" and my mother sobbing, and saying "We'll do whatever it takes to get her well!!"  (Which meant my father carrying me up and down the stairs for several months, to go to bed, as my heart was weakened, for one thing!)  Now they have shots  for diptheria and if it is contracted the miracle drug takes care of it! WOW!! ===JACK:  Some people today don't realize how fortunate they are to have vaccines.  Now, some are advocating doing away with all shots...even the ones to prevent polio, measles, smallpox.  Crazy...crazy...crazy.

FROM SR IN SJ:  Something to think about!  "Miraculous incidences",  "God-incidences"    or "accidental happenings", "surprises". . .All thought-provoking, hmn?===JACK:  God is alive!  Why should we be surprised if He sometimes makes His presence known in some unusual way?===SJ:  Is it a God incidence, a natural incidence, a surprise that, at this moment, I feel a need take a walk, to tell a hard truth???===JACK:  As humans, God has given us free-will.  If we were to see "everything" as God in action, free-will might be the less...or, so I think!

 

 Jack’s Winning Words 9/27/21

“Put some lipstick on!  You’ll feel better.”  (Mom’s Sympathy)  Recently my sister and I were reminiscing about our growing-up years.  Our mom was busy with a job and taking care of the house.  If Nancy complained about things, she remembers getting the “lipstick” quote…and, she said to me, “I didn’t even wear lipstick.”  We laughed…as we recalled.  Mom really was caring, just in a different way.  Being “sympathetic” means being sensitive to how the other person feels.  If the world had more of that today, maybe some of the “isms” would vanish.  ;-)  Jack  

FROM ST PAUL IN ST PAUL:  good one, Jack.  i also think that lip balm works well too for the guys...===JACK:  "Just pull up your shorts and be a BIG boy!" ===SP:  just when you outgrow Pampers you start to need Depends!===JACK:  Just you wait...you will depend on Depends someday soooon.

FROM THE SCIENTIST:  My mom will buy me lipstick. I’ll occasionally wear it, though pretty rarely. But to me the notion is about making a statement of being ready to face the dsy or task. Lipstick is an extravagance and finishing touch to going out. So adding it might be a “you got this” kind of statement. For me it’s earrings. For some folks during the quarantine it was getting dressed in “real” clothes. What is your “lipstick?”===JACK:  Did you ever get your ears pierced?  I remember when my grandson did and had diamond studs in them.  In "my day" that would never happen.  Pierced ears were "girlie things."  My "lipstick is the song..."One day at a time, sweet Jesus, that's all I'm asking of you."===S:  I was 17 when I got my ears pierced. It was just enough weeks before prom that I could take the starters out.===JACK:  Growing-up memories are fun...sometimes.

FROM SALON SUZY:  Just about everyday I wear lipstick💋===JACK:  It seems to go with your business.  I've never liked the appearance of a heavy red lipstick, but, what do I know?  I've never used it...nor Chap[stick, either.

FROM PEE WEE:  I love the thought process here! ===JACK:  I like it better than...Suck it up!   

FROM SR IN SJ:  I surely agree with you, Jack!!  4:01 is a pretty early hour for anyone's brain to be functioning as yours does!!!  Thanks!===JACK:  I used to get up at 4 and send out WWs.  But, now I have Mailchimp do it for me.  BTW, do nuns ever wear lipstick, rouge or other make-up?  Or, did Benedict have a rule that prohibited that?===SR:  I am not aware of anyone who uses lipstick or rouge although some "spook" others who may sit by them in the Oratory into criticizing the perfumed ones!!😉😣  I am not aware of Benedict's having prohibited that;  it seems Benedict had more to say about simplicity , fitting in with one another,   respecting,  being the first to be in the Oratory but always doing it with decorum!!😀===JACK:  Was Benedict considered to be ahead of his time when he established his rules?  BTW, maybe the offensive perfume was...Marc Jacobs Decadence.  Sometimes people forget that nuns are human beings...and that pastors are, too.

FROM SHALOM JAN:  I loved reading this, Jack.  We are also fortunate to have a sibling we can reminisce with!===JACK:  My sister and I laugh alot when we're together, because we alone have memories that no one else has...or can truly understand.

FROM HOMELESS:  My first thought is that this was your mom's way of saying that it's impossible to be grumpy when your wearing a smile. Turn that frown upside down. There's a cute commercial for Oreos where two boys have been fighting.  They are having a stare down, and one starts to laugh. Then they both end up laughing together eating Oreos. An endearing, memorable commercial. Oreo hit their mark with that one! ===JACK:  Today's WWs was meant to bring a message and a smile.  At least it did for my sister and me, as we actually remembered hearing her say that...even the audio was in our memory bank. 

 Jack’s Winning Words 9/23/21

“Design is not just what it looks like and feels like.  Design is how it works.” (Steve Jobs)  Have you ever held a miracle?  Look at an IPhone.  I’m truly amazed at the information that can come from that device.  It looks good, feels good, and it works.  I have yet to hold my recently born great grand-daughter, but, when I do, I’ll be holding a “true” miracle.  God knew what He was doing when He thought up pro-creation.  Psalm 92:5 reads: “O God, how marvelous are your works.  What’s your idea of a truly marvelous work of God?  ;-)  Jack

FRO RS IN TEXAS:  All forms of life and how they all interact with each other to create a living planet.===JACK:  In The Sound of Music, Maria sings: "The world is so full of marvelous things."  I've read that there more undiscovered things in the oceans than have yet been discovered on the face of Earth.  Unbelievable and marvelous!

FROM SR IN SJ:  Oh, what a joy to read your two miracles, Jack!   There are so many miracles that we can't understand, only wonder about, as the word "miracle" etymologically tries to communicate, hmn? God,  creation, differences, similarities, you, even the cake I just baked for a birthday party this afternoon!! ===JACK:  Poet Ogden Nash wrote:  "God made the fly, But forgot to tell us, why."  Even the fly is a miracle.

 

 Jack’s Winning Words 9/24/21

“It is how people respond to stress that determines whether they will profit from misfortune or be miserable.”  (Mihaly CsikszentmihalyiIn)  Cardiologists use stress tests to warn people if they need to “slow down” before the heart reaches “the breaking point.”  Many things, besides a treadmill, can put the heart under stress.  Maybe it’s the job, listening to the news…or it can be from a relationship that’s not going well.  Whatever…stress can cause misery, but it can also make us stronger.  Mihaly says that our response is the important thing.  How are you dealing with stress?  I hope that it’s working.  ;-)  Jack

FROM NORM'S BLOG:  Whether it is a real emergency situation or just pressure that you put on yourself. Too many people let stress get to them in ways that can ruin their health by giving them high blood pressure or other stress-related health problems. My dad had ulcers primarily because of stress. His reaction to stress was heartburn and he probably kept Tums and Rolaids in business. I occasionally suffer sleepless nights due to stressing about something – usually something that is beyond my control anyway.How do you handle stress?  As I’ve grown older, I have developed more ways to deal with stress without panicking or letting it keep me awake at night. A piece of advice from a friend during a time when I was stressing after the fact over something that I could have done better helps me now. He listened to me beating myself up for a few mistakes and said, “Nobody died.” That stopped me cold, as I realized that I was making something that was really trivial in the grand scheme of things into something stressful. He was right. Whatever small mistakes I had made had not caused anything serious – nobody died – and it really didn'T.===JACK:  I don't know who said it, but I like it....A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF FLEAS MIS GOOD FOR ANY DOG.

FROM EMT SINGS IN TCM:  Thank you! You don't know how many times you hit the nail on the head with your Winning Words as I have been navigating through this awful time of grieving Rick's death and the unexpected problems with his family! I hope it is making me stronger, I am in counseling.   ===JACK:  You've been through some tough times before!  Robert Schuller wrote a book: "Tough Times Never Last.  Tough People Do."

FROM THE VIKING:  Jack before I let stress even enter the picture I take a deep breathe and remember the magnet on my refrigerator door It reads: Rule #1-Don’t sweat the small stuff  Rule#2- It’ all small stuff===JACK:  Life sometimes has a way of bringing on "the sweats."  An accumulation of small stuff has a way of becoming BIG stuff.  I like the Bible verse: "I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me."   

FROM ST PAUL IN ST PAUL:   can you spell his last name from memory?   it reminds me of supracalifragilisticexpialadosis??????      ===JACK:  Actually, I misspelled the last name.  It’s: CSIKSZENTMIHALYI.  He was/is a Professor of Psychology at the University of Chicago.  His name is pronounced:  ME-HIGH   CHICK-SENT-ME-HIGH.  Probably more than you wanted to know. ===SP:  i think i will stick with Me High:):):)===JACK:  Knowing you, I though you might use: Chicks send me 

high.  

FROM MD IN BSFL:  I'm thinking that Biden is stressed out. Blaming border agents for his failures is clearly a sign. We can't let him get away with this. ===JACK:  The migrant issue is more than Presidential decisions.  It's a moral problem that is a world problem.  Who among the poor and destitue wouldn't want to live in the United States?  Europe faced that problem, too.  There is no easy solution.  Open borders is not the solution.  Maybe sharing vaccines would help poorer coulntries, and at the same time, help us.  There is such a thing as humanitarianism.===MD:   I agree. But why is Joe putting the heat on border agents  instead of addressing  his inability to handle the situation. Please don't defend his incompetence on this. We can only do what we can do. If the US exhausts it's resources , then what?===JACK:  The reraction. I think, is to the "horse pictures".  That stirs up the people, and that's what "news" is all about.  The problem is more than one man (or administration) to solve.  A complex world problem has no simplistic answer...so, the prolem will not be solved in a way that pleases everybody...or anybody.

   

FROM SR VIN SJ:  i TRY TO WORK IT OUT IN MY JOURNALING. . .THOUGH I LOSE AT TIMES. BUT "TALKING IT THROUGH" HELPS ME. . . HOW ABOUT YOU, JACK? ===JACK:  I get a workout trying to answer some of the questions raised by Winning Words.  Trying the answer the unanswerable in a way that is helpful and not judgmental is not an easy task.

 

 

Jack’s Winning Words 9/22/21

“Here is the world.  Beautiful and terrible things will happen.  Don’t be afraid.”  (Frederick Buechner)  Yes, the world is truly beautiful from outer space, but from where most of us are, scary things are happening.  You name them!  They are many.  Negative environmental change seems to be the most dangerous to me, because “that change” can be irreversible.  That’s a terrible thought.  But I’m not afraid.  God has promised good coming out of bad for those who trust Him and seek to do His will.  What is it that comforts you most when you are frightened?  ;-)  Jack

FROM SR IN SJ:  I love your  strong faith and the peace that flows from it, Jack!  I want to imitate you in that, too!===JACK:  As St Paul wrote to the Galatians:  "It is not me, but Christ who lives in me./"

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  It  seems that the human race has always been creative in adapting to change, so although we think the future looks a bit bleak, our grandchildren, and beyond will find answers and survive.  I would think overpopulation on our tiny planet will be a concern, but trust God has a plan... ===JACK:  That thought expressed by you has ALWAYS sustained me...GOD HAS A PLAN!  There's a hymn that I remember: "Our times are in Thy hand...O Lord, we wish them there." 

FROM SHARIN' SHARON:  Inspirational WW. I think Frederick Buechner is a theologian but will have to google him.  Your statement about God comforts me too.  Also, somewhere in the scriptures, i think it might be from John where it says what is of God will prevail and what is only of human origin will fall down.  This especially comforts me when I get afraid of what evil seems able to accomplish, inside me and in other people.  God is good all the time, all the time God is good.  Trying not to be afraid but constantly need to center myself in belief in God and His Faithfulness and Love and Mercy.===JACK:  As a pastor, church members such as you (and your faith) sustain me.  We prop each other up during those tiomes when we feel weak.  Thank you for being who you are! 

FROM DR J:   “Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10 Brings me great comfort… I am a worrier… so this helps me greatly!===JACK: A good verse for female, male, LBGTQ.

FROM HOMELESS: My family, friends and my relationship with God are what currently bring me comfort. A. is my rock, but everyone brings something uniquely supportive to the table...even you.===JACK:  It's a good thing to know ... who can I call at 2:30 AM, and they will answer my call and willingly try to help?

 

Jack’s Winning Words 9/21/21

“And into each heart some tears gotta fall.  And I know that someday that sun is bound to shine.”  (Ella Fitzgerald)  I like this jazz classic and its message of hope.  Who among us have never had a “bad” day?  Music helps me deal with those days…music, like: Let a Smile Be Your Umbrella on a Rainy, Rainy Day.  Some upbeat words from a friend, help, too.  But what helps the most is the promise of God, “I will never leave you nor forsake you!”  What umbrella do you use on those rainy days?  A good idea is worth sharing.  ;-)  Jack

FROM DAIRYLAND DONNA:   How about "Smile" with Nat King Cole. ❤👍 Have a great day of smiling Jack!===JACK:  I smile when I think of you singing as part of a USO tour group.  I'm glad that you told us about it at an Optimist meeting.  I remember what Lou Grant told Mary Tyler Moore..."You've got spunk!"  You've still got the spunk, Donna!  Keep smiliNg! 

FROM MV:   My Dad sang both of those songs to us-He said Into each Life Some Rain Must Fall. The other one was Let a Smile be Your Umbrella… I miss his optimism.===JACK: Both of those songs are favorites of mine. (Maybe it's an "age" thing.  You seem to be doing a pretty good job of following in your father's footsteps, as far as opim,ism is concerned.

FROM THE FISH IN NOVA SCOTIA:  There is a Blues song I think epitomizes the darkness but eventually strength and hope of that genre:  “Ain’t got no money, Cain’t buy no grub, Navel and backbone  Doin’ that belly-rub.  “But after all my hard travellin’, Lord, Things about comin’ my way.”===JACK:  Great lyrics!  

I like the Blues (as far as music is concerned).

FROM ME IN NEWPORT BEACH:  John Fogerty’s Centerfield…put me in Coach…I am ready to play.  Chuck Berry’s Nadine… Honey…is that you? ===JACK:  I like, "Put me i, coach."  My son has also introduced me to John Prine.  I like his stuff.

FROM SR IN SJ:  . . .silent prayer is my choice, Jack!===JACK:  My best prayers are not usually the public ones that my calling requires.  Next week I've been asked to give an invocation for a relatively small group of people.  I'm looking forward to it, because I "know" what's needed, and I'm intending to use a style that I heard last Sunday in church.  

FROM DAZ IN CO:  Ella's was a classic. Loved her number in The Blues Brothers. ===JACK:  Is it racist to say that so many people of color are able to put feeling into music that is "different' and moves me?

FROM OPTY ALANA:  THINKING OF UMBRELLAS AND GREAT MUSIC  RAINBOWS BY KACEY MUSGRAVES    LET ME KNOW, THE REST'S GOT TO BE A LINE YOU CAN USE FOR ONE OF YOUR JACK'S WORDS===JACK:  Kacey writes::  "'Rainbow' is something that I can dedicate to that community, but also to anyone who has any kind of a weight on their shoulders. It was written as a message to my own self, but anyone who is feeling like they need that is welcome to run with it,"  Here's a line from the song that I might be able to us: ""Well, darlin', I'm just tryin' to tell ya  That there's  always been a rainbow Hangin' over your head"

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  Sing Hallelluljah, Hallelujah, Gets you  through the darkest day; When cares pursue ya, HALLELUJAH! iT   will drive the cares away; Satan lies awaitin' and creatin'  skies of gray, but HALLELUJAH, HALLELUJAH!  iT WILL DRIVE THE CLOUDS AWAY!!! HA! YEAH!! ===JACK:  Is that from the Leonard Cohen version?  I like how he sings/says, Hallelujah!===OAKS:  I don't know...I've sung it since High school! :-) ===JACk:  The Leonard Cohen version is recent.  Google it!  I'd like to read your response.

 

Jack’s Winning Words 9/20/21

“If speaking kindly to plants helps them to grow, imagine what speaking kindly to humans can do.”  (Unknown)  BBC News recently reported that a study is in progress to learn if plants can “really” talk.  So far, plants make clicking sounds when being talked to…and stop when someone new appears.  The clicking gets louder and more rapid when nice words are said to them.  If nice words get a positive response from plants, maybe nice words spoken to humans  would work, too.  Maybe we should give it a try today!  ;-)  Jack

FROM ST PAUL IN ST PAUL:  would it work on poison ivy??===JACK:  I've hear people say, "Don't touch me!" I suppose poison ivy might be saying the same...if we'd only pay attention.  

FROM SHALOM JAN:  Good idea!  It certainly won't hurt to try kindness ... everywhere!===JACK:  There are certain religions (notably, the Jains) who count all living things as sacred.  Not me.  I keep a fly swatter handy and also have weed killer applied to the lawn.  "Forgive me, for I have sinned."

FROM MY LAWYER:  It works on my fish in the pond.===JACK:  Have you thought that might be Barney Fife in disguise?   

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  Communication with plants and trees is rather a new thing in science, and fascinating!  Nice words spoken leave no regrets;  "Always be kinder than necessary, for everyone is fighting his/her own challenges we know nothing about!" is a saying my daughter has on  the bottom of her emails and letters! Good to remember!!===JACK:  Is it hard to believe that the Almighty God can communicate with all of His creation?  ....which means that the possibility of communication with plants is not so far fetched.

FROM BB IN CHGO:  I love this one and am forwarding to Angelique as she has her father’s green thumb.===JACK:  ...and probably some of her mother's mysticism, too.

FROM DR J:  For sure!===JACK:  You talk to animals, don't you?  Why not plants, as well?===DJ:    I do talk to my plants… I give them a gentle touch and tell them to “grow big and strong”   Why not!?!===JACK:  If it works, you're going to have some nice pumpkins for Halloween.

FROM SR IN SJ:  Oh, YES! YES! YES! I do agree wholeheartedly, my good friends! I love your WINNING WORDS! You've have won me, Jack! ===JACK:  Just as an experiment...talk to a growing plant today...see if there's a hint of response.  Perhaps silence is a response.  Sometimes God talks with us in silence, too.

FROM IKE AT THE MIC: This theory definitely works,because many of my  of my life long friends that I've talked talked nice to over the years are now overweight..mmm.. ===JACK:  MMM..I'm at the same weight I was when I first met you, years ago.  What does that say?

 Jack’s Winning Words 9/17/21

“Those are my principles, and if you don’t like them…well, I have others,”  (Groucho Marx)  People expect Groucho to have jokes, but who would expect him to have principles (rules of behavior)?  Zany?  Yes!  Conventional, No!  We each have our principles, things we stand for.  I feel more comfortable living among folks who know the difference between good and evil.     

Someone once told me that he lived where Groucho was one of his neighbors.  “He was really a nice guy.  Strange, maybe, but also nice.”  Do you have any neighbors like that?  ;-)  Jack

FROM THE VIKING:  Groucho must have been paying a trick on me today.  I thought that I'd sent out WWs on time.  B etter late than never.  In school, was that a good excuse for being tardy?===V:  When I was growing up we were nice neighbors and then my little sister Betty, at the age of four or five, started going around the neighborhood trying to sell potatoes for dollar a piece. When some kind neighbor told my parents she had doing it for a number of days the whole family felt zany. She did make three dollars!===JACK:  I would have bought her total supply and praised her for her hutzpah!

FROM WILLMAR REV:  I don't . . . but you might want to ask that question to my neighbors!?!? 0;-)))===JACK:  I once was playing horseshoes by myself in my backyard.  A neighbor walked over and asked if he could jopin in the game.  He was awful, with shoes bouncing all over the place.  Then he asked if I wanted to play for money.  I said, "No, I just want to play for fun."  Then, he began making ringer after ringer.  I sometimes have trouble with Jesus saying, "Love thy neighbor."===REV:  

FROM MD IN BSFL:  Sent from my Gala.   Groucho seemed like a very nice man. Often advanced self depreciated humor. One line that I remember is "I would not want to join any club that would accept me as a member."  It's difficult nowadays to define good and evil. I have had situations that I saw good but others saw as evil. I guess that the good neighbors are those who. know when to be quiet as you mentioned earlier this week in WW.   But the good friends are those who challenge in a civilized manner.===JACK:  People who read our e-mail responses might think that we are at odds with each other.  To the contrary,...We do see eye to eye, but express in a different way..

FROM NORM'S BLOG:  Just this morning I again placed on my front lawn a sign with a quote from Martin Luther King - “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”

Interestingly when I looked that quote up there is some controversy about whether he actually ever said those exact words. It is credited as coming from his I Have A Dream speech, but it actually a paraphrasing of a sermon in Selma, Alabama, on 8 March 1965, the day after “Bloody Sunday,” on which civil rights protesters were attacked and beaten by police on the Edmund Pettus Bridge:  A man dies when he refuses to stand up for that which is right. A man dies when he refuses to stand up for justice. A man dies when he refuses to take a stand for that which is true.  King was talking about principles and what we stand for. He was saying that it is not OK to look away when we see injustice or to accept unacceptable behavior towards others. One cannot selectively choose which principles we will apply that day or in that instance. We cannot say, as Groucho said, if you don’t like my principles, I have others. If you do not stand on your principles, you step onto a slippery slope and fall. There is no half-way with principles. It’s like what Bob Dylan said about religion, “You either got it or you ain’t.” So, you either got principles or you ain’t.===JACK:  King wasn't perfect, nor did he claim to be...but he had "principles' and he stood by them.  It would be a better world if there were more people like that.

FROM GREAT LAKER JH:  I am very blessed and particularly with having you to call as a Pastor to me and my friend. I read Jack's Winning Words every time they come out and they mean so much to me. Thank you for all you do for so many in serving God. Peace,===JACK:  The pleasure is a shared one.  I write.  You read.  We both think.

 

Jack’s Winning Words 9/16/21

“I’m in Heaven!”  (Jose Lopez)    CBS News told of a homeless man who was reunited with his two daughters after 25 years of separation.  In an interview after the reunion, he said: “I feel like I’m in Heaven.”  Having read that story, I began to think…” What’s Heaven like?  Is it a place, a reunion with loved ones, an existential experience?  The house where I grew up is now a parking lot, but in my mind I still can go home.  What are your thoughts about being in Heaven?  ;-)  Jack

FROM WILLMAR REV:  "WON’T IT BE WONDERFUL THERE?  Having no burdens to bear?  NJoyously singing with heart‑bells all ringing,  O won’t it be wonderful there?" 0;-)===JACK:  There are so many songs that anticipate for us that life after death can be beautiful.  "When we all get to Heaven what a day of rejoicing that will be.

FROM BB IN CHGO:  I love your analogy that your former house is now a parking lot but the site remains a kind of “home”.

The 1990’s book, “Walking the Bible” where a non-observant Jew traces the trek of his people in the promised land winds up conveying an interesting point.  He argues that it is the intersection of the “chosen people”, their G-d and the land…that make for the unique covenant with the most high.  A place to call home, the land (even though they were nomads?) was very important in feeling protected and in right relationship with God.===JACK:  At the breakfast counter this morning we came to the conclusion that "home" is an existential experience, but what do we know?  Home is what you make it!

FROM THE VIKING:  There won’t be any “us” and “them” it will be we. ===JACK:  ...and Viking fans will link arms with Packer fans and God will be wearing a Honolulu Blue and Silver robe.===V:  Mike assumes the Chicago Bears will be with the devil.===JACK:  As I was growing up, the Bears were my favorite team and Halas was my favorite coach.  The husband of one of the WW readers was drafted by the Bears, but chose to become a pastor instead.

 

FROM SR IN SJ:  I experience the closeness of heaven in the words. . .and experience. . . of St. John Chrysostom: whenever we lose someone we love, that person is no longer where s(he) was but now is wherever YOU are!  At this time, I experience reunion with six members of my immediate family and a number of my beloved monastic sisters who are waiting for me.===JACK:  There's a saying, "Wherever I am, God is."  That's a comforting thought.  The idea of loved ones waiting to greet us in Heaven is a comforting thought, although there are "logisitcal" problems with that.  That's my problem, not God's.  There's another saying: "It's in the hands of God."  I'm satisfied with that.  A seminary professor taught...YOU CAN'T FIND GOD AT THE END OF A LOGICAL SYLLOGISM..., 'WOU CAN'T UNSCREW THE INSCRUTABLE.===SR: AMEN", spoken and written, ===JACK:  Do sisters ever call out, AMEN, when they agree with something?===SR:  metimes, when we have blacks, Bahamians or those who are prone to do that wonderful AMEN in the assembly, we' ll get to say AMEN.  Normally, we would clap.. .but it doesn't happen often! especially in a principally German community , as ours happens to be!😒 ===JACK:  I once was preaching in an inner-city Detroit.  I was taken aback by the shouts of "AMEN" from the congregation.  After awhile it spurred me on to be more relaxed in what I was saying.

 FROM BLAZING OAKS:  I don't think it is a place, as much as a condition, and it seems there is some reunion involved, and becoming part of Jesus /God connection!  I'm sure if our mortal minds could envision the eternal, Jesus would have been more specific with details.  But eye has not seen, neither has entered into the mind of man, the things prepared for those who love Him!"  So we "guess"!===JACK:  That's pretty good theology, I'd say.

FROM FLYIN' CHUCK:  If there is Heaven on Earth Jack, I have lived it! Blessed! Hope this finds you Happy and well. Love you.===JACK:  Too few people reralize that Heaven is an experience.  The old MTM tv show had an opening song: "Love is all around.   

 

 

Jack’s Winning Words 9/15/21

“It is dismal coming home, when there is nobody to welcome one!  (Ann Radcliffe)  Bobby Vinton’s hit song, Mr Lonely, was written  by Bobby in the 50s when he was a soldier, away from home.    No letters, no phone calls.  He was so lonely that there was actual sobbing on the recording.  Have you ever been lonely like that?   Maybe summer camp OR at college for the first time OR maybe after the death of a loved one OR going through a divorce?  I find comfort in the Word of God, “I will never leave you nor forsake you…I am with you…ALWAYS.”  ;-)  Jack

FRFOM HOMELESS:  Are there ever days when you wish for peace and quiet? ===JACK:  I'm thankful for every day.  I feel blessed beyond deserving.  I believe in the reality of God in my life.  If that relieves stress, so be it.  This song keeps going through my mind today:  "Thank you, Lord, for hearing me.  Thank you, Lord, for seeing who I am.  Thank you, Lord, for hearing me.  It's so easy to get lost these days in the shuffle and the noise."===H:   Only you can say if your belief in God in your life relieves stress. I would imagine that it does...Interesting that was the start of the WW. Neat way to bring things back around. I searched the quote, and I saw that Andy Rooney (one of the best!) quoted a version of what you wrote. His is the quote I will use, I think. ===JACK:  Only you can say if your belief in God in your life relieves stress. I would imagine that it does.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  It was an adjustment to have my twin move far away after we were married, but I had Bill and my friends, & parents, and brother & wife, so not really lonelly,just missing having her close.  I guess I really haven't been lonely,  even living alone after my beloved huibby passed on....not to the point of sobbing  at least!  I usually have a lot going on, or a good book to read, etc!!  I know many elderly folk are lonely, which is sad!!===JACK:  I never intended  another marriage after Mary's death, but things happen and life has been anything but lonely.

 

Jack’s Winning Words 9/14/21 “Lord, keep your arm around my shoulder and your hand over my mouth.”  (Unknown)  There were times in my growing-up years that I was a “Sassy Kid.”  Uncle John would say to me in Swedish, “Tyst med du!” which meant, “Be quiet!”  At times I wish that a voice from Heaven would echo those words.  Today’s quote is for that to happen…and for God to keep loving  us in spite of out failures…and our BIG mouth (as Jackie Gleason used to say).  There’s a right way and a wrong way to communicate.  “Keep your words soft and sweet.  You may have to eat them some day.”  ;-)  Jack FROM FACEBOOK LIZ:  i was a quiet kid, unless i saw injustice... which, by the way, can be directed toward anyone, not just those who historically are seen as oppressed. men and white people come to mind.  "tyst med du, facebook liz!"===JACK:  i was a quiet kid, unless i saw injustice... which, by the way, can be directed toward anyone, not just those who historically are seen as oppressed. men and white people come to mind.  "tyst med du, facebook liz===LIZ:  i simply respond, respectfully is my intent, to your political posts.     rich people are not more sinful than others. many give money and time to important causes. they have become the scapegoat... why, if only the rich paid more taxes, it would all be ok.===JACK:  I think that the rich are quite capable of taking care of themselves.   FROM THE VIKING:  This this quote was written for me but oh do I love to talk!===JACK:  ...but, thank goodness, He has His arm around your shoulder. FROM BLAZING OAKS:  We all need that reminder!! I think I've improved as I've aged!  I  used to interrupt Bill when he might be telling a story or experience,  (I thought improving it...) until he finally would just stop when I interjected something, and say after a pause, , "Go ahead, you tell it...."  (! ) and that broke me of that habit in a hurry!! :-(  I was much more talkative than he usually!  But when he said something, he had something to say, AND people listened. ===JACK:  I think that the minds of some people work faster than others...not better, but faster.  I, too, have the habit that was yours. FROM HOMELESS:  I like the last quote best! I am going to use that one on Monday. Soft and sweet words are sentiments many people I know need to not only listen to but hear. 😉===JACK:  When I was growing up, each Sunday our pastor would include a "Sentence Sermon" in each Sunday's bulletin.  I'd cut them out and save them in a cigar box.  They became the genesis of Winning Words.  The quote you refer to is one of those Sentence Sermons from way back when.

 

Jack’s Winning Words 9/13/21

“If the ends don’t justify the means, then what does?”  (Bob Moses) Bob Moses was a young man who was ridiculed, beaten, jailed in the 1960s for trying to get voting rights for the disenfranchised.  Can it still be happening?  The late congressman, John Lewis, echoed the words of Moses.  Somehow, someway, sometime, there’s an end justifying a means.  We may not like it; we may be out of our comfort zone; it may disturb the peace…but right is right.  It still might make me uneasy, but I’d feel much worse if the shoe was on my foot.  In the 60s I was living 1000 miles from Montgomery, Alabama.  In a sense, there are still those who still live that far away.  ;-) Jack 

FROM HOMELESS:  "The difficulty of the task is irrelevant when compared to the consequences of not doing it."===JACK: You didn't write who said this, but the words are "right on" when applied to today's Winning Words.  Thanks 

FROM FACEBOOK LIZ:  making people perpetual victims is what disenfranchises them. treating all equally empowers them. that means equal responsibility... for educating one's children, feeding them, housing them.  it is racist to look at a black person and think "poor victim." try seeing the person instead.  btw, people have IDs... are you kidding? how insulting to suggest some people can't manage the basics of life.===JACK:  Most of us "white privileged people" don't know the meaning of the word, victim.  IDs in the south don't mean the same as in Iowa/Illinois.  Racism is racism and it still exists today, maybe in a more sinister way.  ===LIZ:  i know tons of white people who are not privileged... you need to get out more, maybe?===JACK:  Of course there are some poor white people, but, as a group, white people have greater access to "the good life" than do people of color.  I'm sure that you know what racism is.===LIZ:  no, they don't... white people go to jail, have crummy jobs bc they lack education, suffer from addictions and extreme poverty.  conversely, there are many successful black people.  this very perspective perpetuates racism... at what point will we begin to see black people as true equals, not helpless victims to be pitied?===JACK:  Of course generalization is wrong.  I'm simply saying that it's obvious that people of color at a disadvantage in a society dominated by white people.  

 

FROM SUNSHINE:  RIGHT ON===JACK:  We're on the same page, and I respect your opinion.

FROM WILLMAR REV:  A lot of unrest, misinformation and manipulation being battered around in the enormous number of social media's positive and negative posts. The new definition of "misinformation": my opponent's viewpoint. 0;-) ===JACK:  There's a reason that God created us with brains and gave us Free Will.  I think that I know manipulation when I see it.  I choose to follow the words of Jesus to "love God and to love my neighbor as myself."  Loving my neighbor means caring about needy people.===REV:  Would agree wholeheartedly…you and I have and should have that Christlike value to bless those less fortunate. 0;-) ===JACK:  Need is need wherever you find it.  I like your title: "Community Pastor."  You walk the talk!

FROM LAW-MAN:  So well written and true!===JACK:  I wish that more people would think so.  Maybe having to walk in "different moccasins" would create more empathy.

FROM EDUCATOR PAUL:  Wise and contemplative words today. What came into my mind? The book “ A Tale of Two Cities.”===JACK: Wow!  A Tale of Two Cities was written over 150 years ago.  How times have changed (check that) how times have not changed.===P:  Right!!’ The essence of the philosophical endless query as to when do the ends justify the means?===JASCK:  A never-ending questr.

FROM M D IN BSFL:  It's great knowing that everyone who wants to vote can vote.===JACK:  In a dream world.  Boadblocks are continually being devised to make it difficult/impossible for "certain" people to vote.  It was like that in the 60s.  It's like that today.===MD:  = Sounds like a cause without a rebel. Who that is legal can't t vote and why? ===JACK::  When a determination is made to have voting sites located "far" from the voter, and the voter has no means of transportation.  ...or, not instructing people with limited education on how to correctly fill out a ballot.  There many ways to obstruct.===MD:  I believe that anyone who is legal that wants to vote will vote. BTW did you know that the revised voting laws in GA.  Tx., and Fl are less restrictive than De. JOE'S  home state? NYT, WAPO, OR CNN will not tell you that.   Bottom line for me is let's not make it easy to vote illegally.===JACK:  It has been, and always will be, that the financially poor and educationally poor are accused of being "pawns".  Many roadblocks are put in their way.===MD:   Yeah. Particularly Peopple like Johhn Lewis, Elijah Cummings, John Conyers Maxine Watters, etc. who want to hand out  not hand up. I'm sure that we view events from a different perspective.  What I have witnessed is their intent to keep their own people suppressed to keep them beholding to the government.  I find this dishonest and distasteful.  MLK sent messages of hope seems to have been lost.===JACK:  I see nothing wrong in helping people register to vote...and even taking them to the polls.  I see no difference in either political party helping those who have worked to put them in power.===MD: Hmmm... Democrats run cities are a mess. Rep run cities are a success Ever wonder why?   It's  a wonderful thing to help disadvantaged people vote.  I am all for that.===JACK:  Of course, you're entitled to that opinion, but it's a generalization and would not be accepted in a debate.  But as long as you want generalizations...Republicans favor the rich and Democrats are looking out for the poor.

FROM SR IN SJ:  YES! Right is right!~In our society today, for so many, that is not what is! Right?===JACK:  Not everyone agrees, as you can tell by reading today's blog.  I believe that Jesus was a special friend of the poor.  But, He gave up His life, because of His love.  We are ALL saved by grace.

FROM HOMELESS:  "The difficulty of the task is irrelevant when compared to the consequences of not doing it."===JACK: You didn't write who said this, but the words are "right on" when applied to today's Winning Words.  Thanks