Jack’s Winning Words 1/25/18
“You’re not rich until you have something money can’t buy.”  (LuxQuotes)  Perhaps you heard: 20-yr-old Shane Missler won the 450M Powerball Jackpot.  Shane hopes to use part of it “to do good for humanity.”  He also said, “I believe that those who maintain a positive mind-set will be rewarded.”  You may have picked losing numbers, but you can still be a winner if you have your health, peace of mind, and someone who loves you.  Count your blessings!    ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  amen amen amen====JACK:   I take it that you agree.

FROM CPA BOB:  Every day....====JACK:  There's a fat/xlim chance of winning the Lottery every day.  But, blessings (seen and unseen) are always there for you.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  So true!  I remember the words of Jim Carrey, (the   actor): "I think everybody should get rich and famous, and do everything they ever dreamed of doing, so they can see that it's not the answer."  I believe his significant other took her life, which has really impacted him to re-assess priorities.  Of course we've all probably seen relationships and marriages destroyed because of constant financial burdens, so there IS that opposite truth, you do need enough money to cover the basics...====JACK:  In a way, I feel sorry for the 20-year-old who won all that money.  As I look back, I'm grateful for the "lean" times which taught me the value of work, frugality and the value of being able to "lean" on others...especially my God.  Do you remember the song...
"Lean on me, when you're not strong  And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on  For it won't be long  'Til I'm gonna need  Somebody to lean on"
====OAKS:  I've heard it at some point, but don't really KNOW it. We all have our lean (as you and we did) and leaning times. I often couldn't purchase things for the house to redecorate, etc. and had to remember to "Want what you have, and  you'll always have what you want!" But as you say, we were still happy, and grateful for what we had, and were able to do!====JACK:  I've heard that people you can depend on and go to are sometimes called, "My leaning wall."...I can lean on them.  Listen...

Bill Withers - Lean On Me [with lyrics] - YouTube

====OAKS:  THANKS! I DO REMEMBER THAT SONG VAGUELY, BUT THIS WAS GREAT!
PLAYED IT TWICE...AM GOING TO  FIND A COPY FOR MY S.S. CLASS; WE'RE
ALL OLD, AN LEANING! HA!====JACK:  Here's another "leaning" song I like...
What a fellowship, what a joy divine,
Leaning on the everlasting arms;
What a blessedness, what a peace is mine,
Leaning on the everlasting arms.
Leaning, leaning,
Safe and secure from all alarms;
Leaning, leaning,
Leaning on the everlasting arms.
Oh, how sweet to walk in this pilgrim way,
Leaning on the everlasting arms;
Oh, how bright the path grows from day to day,
Leaning on the everlasting arms.
Leaning, leaning,
Safe and secure from all alarms;
Leaning, leaning,
Leaning on the everlasting arms.
What have I to dread, what have I to fear,
Leaning on the everlasting arms;
I have blessed peace with my Lord so near,
Leaning on the everlasting arms.
Leaning, leaning,
Safe and secure from all alarms;
Leaning, leaning,
Leaning on the everlasting arms.

FROM SA IN HELENA:  There's a placard made of barn wood on the kitchen wall with the words, 'House Rules - Count your blessings and love one another.' , painted on it. We are blessed! ====JACK:  Do you remember the song...

  This is the promise of love;  There shall be seasons refreshing,    Sent from the Savior above.

  Showers of blessing,    Showers of blessing we need;
Mercy-drops round us are falling,      But for the showers we plead.

FROM KZB:  That is a GREAT quote, and so good for my last week of work!!!====JACK:  Yes, it is...but, the day of your retirement is the first day of the rest of your life.  I wonder what God has in store for you.  As we used to sing around the campfire..."He's got his eye on you.  He's got his eye on you.  My Lord, sittin' in the kingdom , He's got his eye on Kathy!"

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  How very true!  My most important times in my life are those spent with Family and friends.  Nothing is more important to me than my relationship with my God and Savior!  Totally free and irreplaceable ====JACK:  Your blessings?  Name them...one by one. ====JUDY:  I really would spend the rest of my life and beyond counting them.  I bet you would have the same problem.

Jack’s Winning Words 1/24/18
“Old is when people compliment you on your alligator shoes, and you’re not wearing any.”  (Norm Crosby)  It’s said that comedian Norm was exactly as he appeared to be—a big slob, and he probably enjoyed being called that.  Crosby was a regular on the Borscht Belt.  Since he’s now in his 90s, many of his aging jokes can apply to him.  Most old people I know don’t mind jokes about aging.  Some of you may even forward one to me,,,if you can remember to do it.    ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  You r only as old as u feel====JACK:  I feel good1!  (Play the song!)

Blues Brothers, I Feel Good.MOV - YouTube

FROM RS IN TEXAS:  Three older gentlemen played golf together often.  But as time went by, their eyesight got so bad they couldn't see where the ball went.  One day they got paired up with another older man who said his eyesight was excellent and he would be happy to watch their ball and tell them where it went.  They all teed off the first tee, and the guys asked the new guy ..."OK, where did our ball go?"   The new guy replied..."I forgot."    Thought I better send you that one before I forgot. ====JACK:  Get a few more like that one and could have a 2nd career in stand-up comedy.

FROM IKE AT THE MIC:  In my seminars that I do on "The Bright Side Of Aging"
I've had good response from some of the following :
"Age is a matter of the mind.if you don't mind it doesn't matter"
"Aging is inevitable wisdom is optional"
"Everyone is too old for something ,no one  is too old for everything"
"Yesterday is history,tomorrow is a mystery,today is a gift that's why we call it the present"
"I'm getting to the that point in life that when I bend down,I try to  see what else I can pick up  while I'm down there"
====JACK:  People who want to listen to your radio program can Google "The Bright Side of Aging."  Ain't the internet great?

FROM TARMART REV:  I’ll try to remember to do , when the ‘punch line’ comes back me!?! ====JACK:  The Optimist Club has a Creed which reads in part... "to forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future."

FROM BB IN CHGO:  The forgetfulness jokes make me smile as I am, and have been forgetful for a long time.  I think the “Tile” system - and competing technologies – would not be making the $ they are if their sales were relegated to “old” people.====JACK:  Everyone ages, and the process of growing older becomes easier when we are able to laugh at some of the changes that go with it.

FROM OHIO:  Recently my doctor told me this: "the reason you suffer all these aches and pains has nothing to do with your auto accident the other day. It's due to cold weather, arthritis, and the fact you are old. No, you are not going to sue anybody." His smile was broad.====JACK:  Who dares to sue God for creating such a thing as aging?====OHIO:  God is older than we.====JACK:  Do you think that jokes will be told in heaven?====OHIO:  God gets the last joke and last laugh.

FROM AA IN FL:  would love to, but i'm not that old or can't remember====JACK:  You're not that old?  Take the year you were born, subtract it from 2018.  That's how OLD you are.

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  Norm was funny but to tell you the truth, I didn’t know he was still alive!  Glad to hear it.  And his joke was funny but true.  My grandma used to rub her thumb across the back of my hand.  One day I asked her why is rubbed my hand.  She said “Your skin is so smooth, one day you will understand.”  I find myself holding the grandkid’s hands and rubbing my thumb on the back of their hands.     I’ll look for a joke.  I know a lot but can’t remember them!====JACK:  My mother, in her 90s, said that the worst thing about growing old was losing her friends, one by one.
====JUDY:  I imagine that would be very hard.  My grandpa was 67 when he passed away from a brain tumor which caused a stroke.  He was 2 years older then my grandma.  My grandma was 67 when she passed away with a brain hemorrhage.  I’m 67 now and I think about how young they were.   Death is do dad but, we know we will be together again!!====JACK:
"God hath not promised skies always blue,  Flower-strewn pathways all our lives through;
God hath not promised sun without rain,  Joy without sorrow, peace without pain.
  But God hath promised strength for the day,  Rest for the labor, light for the way,
Grace for the trials, help from above,    Unfailing sympathy, undying love."
====JUDY:  That saying was on my grandma’s memorial card.  I have it memorized.  What a wonderful poem to recite to oneself.

FROM DL:  You can only burn the midnight oil until 9:00 o'clock.

Your knees buckle and your belt won't.

Your back goes out more than you do.

Everything hurts and what doesn't hurt, doesn't work.

You feel like the morning after and you didn't go anywhere the night before.

The twinkle in your eyes is the sun hitting your bifocals.

Is that enough?  Hope so, because I can't remember any more!====JACK:  I guess it takes one to know one.

FROM NAME WITHHELD:  A funny cartoon in "The Geezer Planet" (not for the blog!): A nurse says to an elderly couple, "The Dr. would like a stool sample, a urine sample, and a sperm sample." The man says to his wife, "Eh? What did she say?"  The wife replies, "They want your underwear". ...Probably funnier to women than to men. :-)

Jack’s Winning Words 1/23/18
“I guess a good education is the next best thing to a pushy mother.”  (Peanuts cartoon)  I saw a cartoon of a baby in a buggy, playing a trombone.  The mother says, “I believe in starting them young.”  That wasn’t my mom.  She had to have a job, as well as to “keep house.”  She was too busy to “hover.”  What I learned...was from her example.  Robert Fulghum wrote: “Don’t worry that children never listen to you; worry that they’re always watching you.”    ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  Your mother was not a helicopter parent ====JACK:  In those days airplanes were a novelty, and helicopters were a dream.====SHIRL:  Weren't we lucky to have had all of that freedom?====JACK:  I can't remember pushy mothers in those days, altho I'm sure there were some.  It's said that Shirley Temple and Judy Garland had moms who pushed to enhance the movie careers of their child. ====SHIRL:  Childhood was for fun in the old days climbing trees building forts playing basketball ====JACK:  "Look both ways when you cross the street...Keep your nose clean...Come home when the street lights go on."====SHIRL:  We were lucky

FROM EDUCATOR PAUL:  For a large portion of time between parent and child…It’s not what you say it’s what you do. There is no hiding, They are always watching.====JACK:  It's not often mentioned, but sometimes parents are influenced by watching their children.

FROM HONEST JOHN:  Somehow, as a parent, you have to walk a balance beam....balance between encouraging and aiding on one side...and being pushy, on the other side.   I tried to do that.   I am sure I fell off the beam plenty...and made both errors....either encouraged too much or not enough....Tough act....need a lot of forgiveness====JACK:  There are time (hopefully, just a few) when "push comes to shove."  It's time!  (to get going on your homework...to begin looking for a job...to decide on a major).

FROM PZ:  I'm going to share this with my daughter!====JACK:  That's better than her sending it to you.

FROM INDY GENIE:  We were also aided by a mom who didn’t hover. I’ve strived to be like her with my own children, grandchildren and children in my “work life.”  I’m curious...what was your mom’s job other than her “keeping house.”====JACK:  Yours was a fun mom.  In my eyes, she never stopped being a kid.  My mother was the office manager for a Montgomery Ward store.  She was discovered that the store manager was embezzling money.  She reported it, and he was arrested.
It was fun to stop by and visit her at work====.GENIE:  I never tire of you telling me about my mom through your eyes:)  Still curious..:Did your mom come home from work and then cook dinner or did you all share in that?  Fun to think about you as a boy visiting your mom at work:)====JACK:  We had no car, so she'd walk everywhere (no taking the bus).  She'd stop at the store on the way home to get groceries, carry them home and cook the meal from scratch.  Depending on where we lived, her walk could be at least a mile each way...bad weather, or good.====GENIE:  I’m not surprised to hear that she lived to be 102....all that walking and fresh air and love.

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  My grandma always said “Little ears and big eyes are on you,” to my grandpa.  He never said a bad or unkind word as long as I can remember.  Neither did my grandma.  But my other grandma, my dad's mom was something else!  She would whistle and when the gophers stuck their heads out of their holes, she’d shoot them.  The holes were real dangers in her field.  ====JACK:  Your dad's mom reminds me of Mammy Yokum.  Have you ever heard of her?  And, BTW, do you remember singing this song:

(VS 1) Oh, be careful little ears, what you hear (repeat)
For the Father Up above,
Is looking down in love,
So be careful little ears
what you hear.

(VS 2) Oh, be careful little eyes, what you see, (repeat)
For the Father up above,
is looking down in love,
So be careful little eyes
What you hear.

(VS 3) Oh, be careful little mouth, what you say, (repeat),
For the Father up above,
Is looking down in love,
So be careful little
mouth what you say.

(VS 4) Oh, be careful little hands, what you do (repeat),
For the Father up above,
Is looking down in love,
So be careful little hands
What you do

(VS 5) Oh, be careful little feet where you go (repeat)
For the Father up above,
Is looking down in love,
So be careful little feet,
Where you go.

(VS 6) Oh, be careful little mind what you think (repeat)
For the Father up above,
Is looking down in love,
So be careful little mind,
What you think.

(VS 7) Oh, be careful little heart what you love (repeat)
For the Father up above,
Is looking down in love,
So be careful little heart,
What you love.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  A good education is certainly a bonus, and how fortunate we are if we were among the few to receive one!  My mom had to give up her teaching job when she married, as during and right after the great depression, wives couldn't work if husbands had a job! But tho she was supportive of our many endeavors, she didn't push or shove...she taught Jan and I and our friends how to play bridge (which most of us enjoyed all our adult lives) and saw that we had singing lessons when we began performing (modestly priced in those days!) and she and dad honed our  tennis and swimming skills, so we made the teams, and became life guards for summer jobs. We never had alcohol in the house, which I didn't notice until I started spending overnights with friends! So never took up drinking, and neither parent smoked, so we didn't do that either.  I enjoyed the Rob't. Fulghum books and essays when I was parenting.  For sure our kids watch and assimilate our values, mannerisms and morals; Hopefully, that is a good things, even tho we aren't always excellent icons!
Power on, Parents!====JACK:  Didn't you ever sneak a smoke?  My dad "rolled his own."  That wasn't for me.  Examples can work both ways.  "I'm going to be like that," or "I'm never going to be like that."  ...and remember...that "the Father up above is looking down in love."

FROM TARMART REV:  A very good thought to ponder and reflect upon this morning. ====JACK:  Did you have a pushy mom...or even a pushy Church Council?=====REV:  One “pushy” church Board . . . Mother loving and gracious to put up with outgoing personality of a son . . . Dad on the road selling for many years and home on the weekends.

Jack’s Winning Words 1/22/18
“Nine-tenths of wisdom is being wise at the right time.”  (Theodore Roosevelt)  How often have you heard (or said): Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda?  An article in Psychology Today asks, What is the worst emotion you can imagine?  Sadness, or maybe, fear, anger, frustration?  The P.T. writer claims that it’s, regret.  How often have you said, “If only..?”  Missed chances are a bane.  However, the upside is: “At least I tried!”  Next time…”I think I can, I know I can.”    ;-)  Jack

FROM TARMART REV:  Must be referring to the Minnesota Viking fans this morning, Jack?!?! ====JACK:  In Minnesota today, it's probably a combination...sadness, anger, frustration AND regret ...  over what coulda and shoulda been.

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  Reminds me of the little engine that could which was my favorite 📚 years and which I have become reacquainted with my 👍 grandchildren ====JACK:  We have a book of Grimm's Fairy Tales.  After a re-reading, some of those tales are pretty grim.====SHIRL:  Some were downright scary especially the big bad wolf====JACK:  ...and even Hansel and Gretel.  A bloodthirsty witch wants to capture them, cook them and eat them.  A children's story?

FROM RS IN TEXAS:  Hindsight always seems to be 20/20.  Someone once asked me if I regretted not staying in the military.  I had given it serious thought.  But then I would have never met my first wife, had my daughter, or met my current wife.  Wouldn't trade that for anything.  Sometimes I think God has a grand plan, and that the saying "things happen for a reason" is part of that.  Can be confusing.........grand plan, free will,....?????====JACK:  I have problems with life being according to God's plan.  It takes away personal responsibility (free-will).  You may have no regrets, as do I.  But, I know of others who live in remorse..."If only...."RS:  I have plenty of regrets........it's just that some decisions, if different, would have placed me on a totally different path in life.  When I look at the regrets I hope it's so I can make better choices in the future.

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  Ah regret!  Most people have things they regret...I know I do.  Regret would be my worst emotion because you can get over fear, sadness, anger but regret stays with you. ====JACK:  Whatever the feeling...there's a time to let go and to move on.  Sometimes, easier said than done.====JUDY:  It is, especially when you lose a beloved one.  Also keeping you in my thoughts and prayers.

FROM JB:  I the worst emotion is sadness when it is paired with loss of hope. It quietly eats away at who you are and/or who you can become. Anger, frustration and sometimes fear will frequently move a person to do something (many times the wrong thing), but a sad and hopeless person can disappear from view and because they are not seen - no one helps.====JACK:  Psychologists have their opinions, usually based on professional studies, but our feelings are our feelings, regardless of how others might feel.  If it's sadness, it's sadness.  If it's regret, it's regret. 

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  I don't know that this ties in with WW today (tho I think they are probably true) but the words of Alexander Solzhenitsyn defines  the line that deals with regrets: "The line separating Good and Evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties, either---but right through every human heart---and through ALL human hearts."  We all seem have intrinsic knowledge of good and evil, but  sometimes justify the latter, for whatever reason.  Wisdom, which is the wise use of knowledge, surely does come with age, for most of us! ====JACK:  A case can be made to see emotions as a good thing.  Feelings are important.  The problem comes when we become obsessed those feelings.  "Let it go!"

FROM ST PAUL IN MESA:  there is a joke Jack about a fellow who was dying and he called the Viking head office to ask if 6 Vikings could be at his funeral.  when asked why he wanted 6 Vikings to come to  his funeral, he said,  "all my life the Vikings have let me down so it is only fitting that they let me down one last time!".  i think this pretty much says it all.   but it was a good run, as they say.  just not enuff "juice" to get them to the finish line====JACK:  It's only a game.  There's always next year.

Jack’s Winning Words 1/19/18
“Only the mediocre are always at their best.”  (Jean Giraudoux)  I like the sound of, mediocre, but I don’t like what it stands for…less than the best.  In school, under the pressure of time (and laziness), I was mediocre.  I’ll always be thankful for the teacher who looked at my test grade and said, “Jack, you can do better than this.”  Now, even as I write the Winning Words, I often use “delete” in order to write them better.  Life deserves the same attention from us.    ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  Who is to say what mediocre is?====JACK:  The teacher's grade mark describes mediocre.  Grades never seemed to challenge me.

FROM FACEBOOK LIZ:  you were mediocre? seriously? kids! school is wasted on them... ====JACK:  Your father never remembered me for getting good grades...but he never forgot my mischievousness.====LIZ:  i’d have thought you were an A student... but you were one of the fun kids! me, too.   i got As if i were so inclined, but somehow i always aced tests... that’s what got me thru!  well, you & i are plenty smart, & i dare say we are excellent writers w/perfect grammar... so there!====JACK:  From my own life, I've learned that what you see does not tell the whole story.

FROM HONEST JOHN:  My mother helped me to learn that it was wise to double check things....it was a great learning....I found her report card from seventh grade and her average in math for the year was 100....which essentially means she didn't make a mistake during the course of the entire year....double checking pays off! ====JACK:  I've kept many of my report cards, but they're not for others to see.  In the Moline Schools grading system, a score of 100 would be labeled, "E," for EXCELLENT!====JOHN:  My mother went to grade school in Sandwich, I'll.    She graduated from Moline High School and Augustana...a good Swede!

FROM RS IN TEXAS:  Yes, not just in "achievements" but being the best we can be in our interactions with others.  I find that to be a tough challenge with all of the self-centered and selfish things we can buy in to, and our unwillingness to listen to other points of view and try to understand them.====JACK:  Brainpower is a great asset, but, to me, the ability to interact positively with others is of greater value.  The wrong word at the wrong time can create all kinds of havoc.====RS:  Amen -  think before speaking.====JACK:  I thought that "Hoof and Mouth Disease" was a horse ailment, but it's a human disease.  More common than that virus is one called, "Foot in Mouth Disease."  I've had it a few times.====RS:  Me too - fortunately is not lethal - yet.

FROM JR IN PALM SPRINGS:  my brilliant friend....never in your life time have you ever been "mediocre"====JACK:  Sometimes others have seen me better than I've seen myself, and sometimes I've seen myself better than others have seen me.  As, Pontius Pilate asked Jesus: "What is truth?"

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  It’s hard to believe you were ever mediocre!  We all could do better, I know I could.====JACK:  Before WW 2, a German immigrant family joined our church.  The children were very bright and had many successes.  One Sunday, the father stood up and said, "I blame the Church for how our children have turned  out."  Of course, he was giving credit to the Church.  I blame God for helping me to escape mediocrity and live a better life. ====JUDY:  What a wonderful way to give a compliment!  I blame God for helping us get through the trials of this life.  Without him, I would never had made it!  God is good all the times!  Thank you for the memory!

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  Our child with the highest IQ was not the best student; and was the only one who didn't finish college, (the other 3 went on for Masters) but when he had to "grow up" and support a family, he always held positions that required a college degree, and the last one usually a Masters, so he surpassed Mediocre! He had people skills, and that is so often a requirement for success in the business World.  Mediocre would not be most people's goal in life, but sometimes people get beaten down, and accept it.====JACK:  I know of people who were very discouraged, becaus an A- kept them from getting straight As.  "What did I do wrong?"   I got an A in Phys Ed.  Grades didn't necessarily mean that I was a bad (or even mediocre) student.

Jack’s Winning Words 1/18/18
“Sometimes good people make bad choices.  It doesn’t necessarily mean they’re bad.  It means they’re human.  That’s why God created forgiveness.”  (Unknown)  What’s the use of trying to be good?  Isaiah (64:6) writes: “All our righteous deeds are like filthy rags.”  I grew up in a time when it was thought that good deeds pleased God.  In a sense, they do, but later in life I learned that “heaven” depends on the grace of God, not on being good boys and girls.    ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  To err is human to forgive is div====JACK:  You seem to know a lot of those adages.  Did you write one on the chalkboard weekly or daily when you were a teacher?  The quote is by the English writer, Alexander Pope, from his poem, An Essay on Criticism.====SHIRL:  It was so much easier for us to grow up rather than being inundated with the crass culture we have these days====JACK:  Maybe it was "easier" in those days, because we were taught to obey and believe without questioning.  Today may be harder, but I choose progress.

FROM FACEBOOK LIZ:  all we can do is try. we were created to make choices, and learn from mistakes.====JACK:  When I was in school, back in the days when we used a pencil and paper, the eraser would wear out before the rest of the pencil.  I looked it up...Hymen Lipman got the first patent for attaching an eraser to a pencil on March 30, 1858.

FROM HAWKEYE GEORGE:  When you sent our this email, I was in the midst of completing this week's Champions Bible Study. Its a small world.  Do you get a good night's sleep?====JACK:  I've been doing this so long, it's become a habit.  I wake up in the middle of the night, go to the computer for a half hour, stagger back to bed and "think about stuff" for another half hour.  Then I tell God, "It's up to you," and he puts me to sleep.  ...and speaking of mistakes, How about the defensive back who missed the tackle on the final play of the Vikings/Saints football game?  I read that he cried afterward in the locker room.  I'm sure that some Saints gathered around to comfort him.

FROM TARMART REV: . . . being a good boy did give me less spankings though, when growing up!! ====JACK:  Spankings were part of my growing up years...until I was able to run faster than my dad.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  Grace is a hard concept, since all of our culture points to "good or hard work is rewarded": Our Educational system, Business world, the Military, etc. You EARN your promotions and rewards, but in our Faith
system, you don't earn "Heaven" by your hard work or good deed....you do loving service to others in response to God's forgiveness,. unconditional love, and salvation by Grace!  Our "job" is to share the love of God to ALL me meet...Which, being human, we do not always fulfill...! Therefore the wisdom of today's WW!====JACK:  Recently, I was thinking of "The Rich Man and Lazarus" story from the Bible and applying it to Donald Trump and his "s-hole" remark.  Then it occurred to me -- I'm acting like the Pharisee when he prayed, "I'm not like this (Re) publican."  It is sooo hard to be a Christian, but the reward is sooo great!

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  How true these words are!  Our family has suffered so much because of one members bad choice.  But, we also know they are not bad at all but did something bad.  Thank our good and merciful Father for forgiveness.====JACK:  Have you ever come across this poem written by Marguerite Ogden Bigelow Wilkinson?
“I never cut my neighbor's throat;  My neighbor's gold I never stole;
I never spoiled his house and land;  But God have mercy on my soul!
For I am haunted night and day  By all the deeds I have not done;
O unattempted loveliness!  O costly valor never won!”
====JUDY:  No but I love it!!  And oh how true!

J.K. ROWLING:   "It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all -- in which case, you fail by default."

FROM JE: This is so true. So many weird things happening as we start this year.  I hope our society is not getting numb to these wrongs. I pray our country, state and local communities can stay committed to value and morals that respect life, uplifting actions that display dignity and pass legislation that demonstrates care for all people and human life.  Thanks Jack for your WW and optimism.====JACK:  Legislation is one step, but example is a more important step, starting with POTUS and going on down to all who are referred to as, leaders.  But it goes even further than that, to those who are looked up as, Godly.  I am not dismayed, because I believe that, ultimately, "this is my Father's world."====JE:  Absolutely – it is “our Father’s world.” He will have the last word. FAITH.

FROM ST PAUL IN ST PAUL:  good words, Jack.   i just had breakfast the other day with a friend who is very unclear about God's grace-filled ways.  i just forwarded you WW to him.  he is Canadian so that may explain some things about him:):):)====JACK:  We have a hard time letting go of works-righteousness.  Listen to the typical eulogy at a funeral.  Even harder is....to accept grace.  Do you remember Toplady's hymn?
Not the labor of my hands  Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,  Could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone;  Thou must save, and Thou alone.
Nothing in my hand I bring,  Simply to Thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress;  Helpless, look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;  Wash me, Savior, or I die.
====PAUL:  i have a talk i give on M. Luther and the Reformation and i quote this hymn often.  it kind of says it all, no?   NOTHING in my hands i bring...  Grace Alone, Faith Alone,  Word Alone.   the Law we readily get as it is written on our hearts.  its the Gospel we struggle with because the news seems too good to be true!! ====JACK:  We’ve heard the Luther Story so often, it tends to become the old, old story that we know so well.  But imagine the impact of the story on the people of his day who had never heard it before.  WOW!====PAUL:  sooo true.  many of our confirmands at sotv got M. Luther and Martin Luther King, Jr. ALL mixed up.  both great men but with rather different messages and ministries.  yes,  today you never want to take anything for granted when teaching.   even at the seminary,  Jack,  they have a VERY basic class in the Bible because some of the incoming students know sooo little of the biblical narrative.   i was watching Jeopardy on TV one day a few years back and the question was to identify Judas from the Bible story.  not one of the contestants knew who he was!!!  another time they quoted a portion of the Lord's Prayer and the contestant said, "that was Shakespeare"   uffda,  we have work to do as a church!!  blessings and go Vikings today

2. 
   

Jack’s Winning Words 1/17/18
“The young man knows the rules, but the old man knows the exceptions.”  (Oliver Wendell Holmes)  Marketers are very interested in studying the behavior of various generations.  Today’s focus is mainly on “What makes the Millennials tick?”  Surprisingly, these 3, Boomers, Xers and Ms have more in common, than expected.  They all like blog articles, e-books and dislike white papers.  Give them short-stuff.  It even shows in a preference for shorter sermons.    ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  I like all of them variety is the spice of life.====JACK:  As a member of "The Greatest Generation," your opinion is very much respected...However, as the number of GGers continues to shrink, their statistical influence continues to shrink, as well.====SHIRL:  Our young polish priest is always short and right on point and always includes some humor and historical fact new he is from Chicago ====JACK:  And you like him, don't you?  Which makes my point.  "You don't put new wine in old wineskins," said Jesus.Yes he certainly understands what life holds for everyone ⛪️⛪️⛪️====JACK:  Some criticize priests and their comments on marriage, because they've never been married.  But most of them have grown up in a family and have observed and made judgment on what works and what doesn't work.  Good sense or non-sense is not the possession of any age group or any religion.

FROM TARMART REV:  Very true . . . with shorter responses.====JACK:  Even letter-writing seems to be a lost art, being replaced by brief e-mails, or even shorter texts.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  "It doesn't matter how old you are, or where you're from, manners, kindness, compassion and respect will always be the sign of a decent human being." .I jotted this down from some source and posted it on my PC!  The GG's influence is fading, or at  least in
question by the current gov't leaders. Discouraging to say the least, but I'm still convinced that the majority of us strive to be decent human beings!====JACK:  It's been my observation that many GGers see things in black or white, right or wrong.  They tend not to mess with Mister In-between.  Is that just me?  Millennials seem to be more accepting of "different" people.

FROM BB IN CHGO:  Oh boy…does this mean we’re headed for the shallows rather than the depths?  I hope not!====JACK:  Shallow or deep thinking doesn't depend on the number of words used, but on the choice of the words.

FROM KANSAN DON:  "20 minute Tilly" was which generation?====JACK:  My son and I were just talking about 20-Minute Tillberg today.  Now, he'd probably be known as 10-Minute Tillberg.  When I retired I was doing 12-Minute sermons.

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  Shorter sermons?  What a surprise.  Our pastor, who has passed away, was always hassled by one fellow is our congregation.  He would hold up his watch when the pastor got to 15 minutes.  I always thought that pastor was very tolerant!====JACK:  A pastor friend of mine had a problem.  The head usher would flash the church ceiling lights on and off when he thought the sermon was getting too long.  The usher was the local funeral director and the church's biggest giver.

Jack’s Winning Words 1/16/18

“Have faith, hope, and charity; that’s the way to live successfully.”  (Dale Evans)  Dale and her husband (Roy Rogers) were both very religious people.  Her quote is from a song she wrote, called, “The Bible Told Me So,” based on 1 Corinthians 13:13.  Colin Powell, describing what makes a successful life, says: “Have a plan and be structured…Focus on commitment…Get rid of distractions and negativity…Associate with positive people.”  Maybe it’s a blend.    ;-)  Jack

FROM HAPPY TRAILS IN NOVA SCOTIA:  For years, especially the couple where I chaired the 150th anniversary of the Nova Scotia Pony Express, I signed correspondence with "Happy Trails".
One night I woke up dreaming about Dale Evans--hadn't thought about her since I listened to the Roy Rogers Show on radio when I was a kid. When I heard the news that morning, Roy Rogers had died.
That's the whole story.====JACK:  Here's an interesting sidelight..."Janis Joplin left a taped recording of Happy Trails as a birthday greeting for John Lennon on October 1, 1970, three days before her death. Lennon, whose birthday was October 9, later told Dick Cavett that her taped greeting arrived at his home after her death."
Some trails are happy ones, Others are blue.
It's the way you ride the trail that counts,
Here's a happy one for you.
Happy trails to you, Until we meet again.
Happy trails to you, Keep smiling until then.
Who cares about the clouds when we're together?
Just sing a song, and bring the sunny weather.
Happy trails to you, Until we meet again.

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:   ...and eliminate the negative.====JACK:  Always focus on the positive.

FROM TARMART REV:  Well stated, Jack! ====JACK:  St Paul said it first and said it best.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  How true: You can't surround yourself, or hang out with negative people, and expect to live a positive life!! I have a pillow that says, CHOOSE HAPPY. Often it IS a choice,
and becomes a habit, or way of life!  Even our mourning of lost loved ones can be positive, thankful for the years we had together, rather than bemoaning our loss!  Interesting facts about the Happy Trails song on your blog! I'd forgotten the verse part of that song. So today we'll ride the frigid wintry trail with a positive attitude of gratitude!====JACK:  One of my all-time favorites is Johnny Mercer's, "You Gotta Accent the Positive, Eliminate the Negative."   (You can probably sing it) ====OAKS:  YES! My Sis and I used to sing the chorus of that song in our programs.
Good advice for any time and occasion!

Gather 'round me, everybody  Gather 'round me while I'm preachin'
Feel a sermon comin' on me  The topic will be sin and that's what I'm ag'in'
If you wanna hear my story  The settle back and just sit tight
While I start reviewin'  The attitude of doin' right

You've got to accentuate the positive  Eliminate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative  Don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've got to spread joy up to the maximum  Bring gloom down to the minimum
Have faith or pandemonium's  Liable to walk upon the scene

To illustrate my last remark  Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do just when everything looked so dark?

(Man, they said "We'd better accentuate the positive")  ("Eliminate the negative")
("And latch on to the affirmative")  Don't mess with Mister In-Between (No!)
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

You got to ac (yes, yes) -cent-tchu-ate the positive  Eliminate (yes, yes) the negative
And latch (yes, yes) on to the affirmative  Don't mess with Mister In-Between
No, don't mess with Mister In-Between

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  Roy and Dale were very special people.  We loved their program and it was one we were always allowed to watch.  Colin Powell lives the life he talks about and in politics that’s rare.  We all need a blend!====JACK:  "Blend-ship, just a perfect friend-ship."

FROM ST PAUL IN ST PAUL:  that being said, i bet Powell was more than happy to get out of that GW Bush White House!====JACK:  I wonder if the General still identifies with the GOP.

FROM PH:  Interesting. My father (a professional magician) knew both of them. He also was friends with Milky the Clown. Fond memories.====JACK:  Yes, I do remember that your father was a magician...and that you were his assistant.  Do you ever watch The Carbonaro Effect on Tru TV?  He is good, and the show is funny at times.  BTW, are you still collecting for Toastie Toes?

Jack’s Winning Words 1/15/18
“We relish our heroes, forgetting that we are extraordinary to someone/”  (Helen Hayes)  Just as “beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” so are our heroes.  Lincoln was admired by many, but not by all..  MLK Jr is considered to be an America hero, but not all would agree.  Even Jesus couldn’t reach 100% in terms of admiration.  What do you consider to be the attributes of a hero?  Helen Hayes points out that each of us, in some way, can be heroic to someone.    ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  Helen lived in nyack on the Hudson and had a book club which met there (I am sure they discussed many heroes) my bridesmaid was a member of the club and an English teacher ====JACK:  Sometimes we forget that "stars" are just ordinary people who read books, who have friends, who discuss topics, who tell jokes and laugh.  It's interesting that you and H.H. had a mutual friend like that.====SHIRL:  Helen Hayes would come to Ann Arbor and read to cappaert's daughter in the iron lung.  lael wrote a book about it "And God said no" Andi died at 28 London while disembarking from a plan she got polio at 2 years in Michigan

FROM RS IN TEXAS:  Attributes of a hero?  How about....puts others before themselves, humble, a giver, an example you would want your children to emulate....to name a few.====JACK:  Something to ponder today....Who has been a hero in my life?

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  Heroic, definitely in the eye of the beholder! Over the years, Bill became a "hero" in the eyes of the family, and often to his church "family", but he would say, "I wish I was half the guy they think I am!"  We all know we have feet of clay...I don't know that I thought of them as "heroes", but I certainly had people I looked up to, and wanted to emulate, as I grew up.  I'm sure Helen Hayes had a good point: We may not consider ourselves heroic, but we surely are in the eyes of at least a few! That's a bit scary! :-)====JACK:  I certainly remember Bill as a hero at Augustana  College when we were classmates there.  (Reading from the college website) "If a poll were taken to determine Augustana’s all-time greatest athlete, it is almost a certainty that every ballot would at least mention the name of Bill Oaks. During his athletic career at Augustana, Oaks earned 11 varsity letters and was a four year regular in both football and baseball and a three year starter in basketball.  Oaks wasted little time displaying his caliber after arriving at Augustana. As a freshman on the Vikings’ football squad, he was singled out as one of the team’s hardest hitting linemen, despite the fact that he hadn’t even been issued shoulder pad yet because of an equipment shortage! Oaks went on to compile a brilliant football career, which included numerous all-conference and all-state awards. He was named to two Little All-America teams and was signed to play professional football with the Chicago Bears. After breaking into the Bears starting lineup at pulling guard, Oaks’ career was ended by a knee injury.  The talented gridder also held the distinction of being the only three year team captain in Augustana history.  He didn’t limit his talents to the gridiron, however. He stepped into the starting lineup on the Augustana baseball team as a freshman and stayed there for four years, playing every position except shortstop and centerfield. He was a consistent .300 hitter and attracted the attention of several professional teams as a catcher.  Oaks left his mark on the hardcourt as well, where he displayed the same rugged aggressive style of play that exemplified his football career. He was a defensive specialist who readily admitted that there were several times when his points scored in a single game were less than his fouls committed.  Oaks, a 1950 Augustana graduate, went into the ministry after graduation and eventually served as the president of the American Baptist Churches of the Great Rivers Region. He also served on an advisory committee of equal opportunity in education for the state superintendent of instruction."  ...and, he was a great and humble, person, too.  Heroic!  ====OAKS:  WHOO-HOO! That is awesome! I haven't seen that for years and years. Can't remember if that is in his Augie Hall of Fame write up, but I doubt it.  Thanks, Jack!  Bill deserves to be our Hero!

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  Helen Hayes played Emily Dickenson at the Fox Theatre.  Loved her and the play.    A hero has to be someone willing to sacrifice by action or word, for something or someone.  There are so many people who have changed this world for good or bad who have left a tremendous mark on us all.====JACK:  I think that the greatest heroes of all are the ones who have personally impacted our lives, often in an unsung way.

FROM SHALOM JAN:  Amen! for Helen's insight!====JACK:  The most effective pastors are not necessarily those appearing on TV or those serving the large congregations.  "When the roll is called up yonder," don't be surprised when people come up to you and thank you for your influence upon them.

FROM EDUCATOR PAUL:  Is it just the sign of the times or is it something that has always been  so...The hero for some is the despite of others.  I think about this more often than I’d like.  ====JACK:   Please clarify.  Is it despite, or despise? \====PAUL:  Despite  Using it as a noun. ====JACK:  I checked up,,,because it's use in that way seemed questionable.  So...You are tight, but "despite" as a noun is rarely used anymore.  Despise as a noun is also unusual.  I always enjoyed the study of English.

FROM ROBERT:  Sharing for today... "To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing."  (Martin Luther King, Jr)====JACK:  When I would ask Confirmation student who Martin Luther was, almost always they would describe MLK Jr.  It would give me an opportunity to talk about both men and their impact on the Church and the world. 

FROM HONEST JOHN:  I have many heroes....one of them would be Abe Zlincoln....independent thinker...great athlete....stood up for the fight....married the belle of the ball....tougher things out when he had to....loved to read....incredible human being.....enormous contrast to our present Prez. ====JACK:  Is that a typo?  Or, is there are a real Abe Zlincoln? ====JOHN:  My iPad does that on a regular basis...corrects my when I type in a capital letter...I usually try to change it....must have missed that one

Jack’s Winning Words 1/12/18
“While I relish the warm months, winter forms our character and brings out our best.”  (Tom Allen)  What’s your favorite season of the year? – Spring: the smells, colorful gardens, going for walks, trees in bud – Summer: turning on the grill, baseball, going to the beach, the ice cream truck – Autumn: fall colors, football games, bonfires with s’mores, cider and donuts, Halloween – Winter: building snowmen, singing carols, nostalgia, outdoor sports.    ;-)  Jack

FROM HAWKEYE GEORGE:  Autumn. From when I was in school:  it was NEW BEGINNINGS: New school year, out with classmates (Jr. High, MHS, college), making new friends, new things to do and see, etc.====JACK:  I thought the season was called, Fall, because leaves fall during that time, but I was surprised to learn that "fall" comes from the Old English word feallan which means “to fall or to die.”

FROM SNOWBIRD SANDI:  Nah. 😎 ====JACK:  What was the holiday like in Florida?  I went to Minnesota for Christmas.====SANDI:  It was lovely. So blessed to have this choice! We really love our winters here! Hope you are well and ‘forming your character’ in the Michigan winter! 😎 ====JACK:  To be able to choose...What a great opportunity.  Sometimes we take it for granted.

FROM FACEBOOK LIZ:  it’s all good!====JACK:  It all depends on the view you want to take.  I could have focused on negatives in each of the seasons, because there are negatives all around, if you want to look for them.====LIZ:  spring negatives that are really positives in disguise:
thunderstorms!  too short/fleeting... makes us appreciate spring’s beauty  any other negatives for spring?====JACK:  I hate the "false starts"--nice  one day--then snow--then melting--then rain--then  tornado sirens.

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  all year in Florida with air conditioning when necessary otherwise fall would. E second choice====JACK:  Isn't it great that people choose to live in various places in the world.  It would be pretty crowded if everybody tried to live in Tampa.  You'd probably want to move.====SHIRL:  4 million people in 1963 now 20 million and counting====JACK:  That's another good thing about living in the Detroit area.  Comfortable growth.

FROM TARMART REV:  From you posts, it looks like they all are very appealing!!====JACK:  There are times when the unappealing turns out to be appealing...given time and circumstances.

FROM DM IN LIV:  I love them all! 😊====JACK:  I purposely left out the negatives.  "Into each life some rain must fall."  A meaningful life is being able to adjust to change.====DM:  Well, it worked.  As someone who loves summer, I realized how all four season have wonderful offerings thanks to your message.  I do believe that our difficulties and challenges in life help us to appreciate and enjoy the good moments all the more.====JACK:  Griping is an onomatopoeia word.====DM:  LOL, I had to look up onomateopoeia and I agree!  Thank you for your WINNING WORDS! 😊

FROM KF:  all of the above - that's why we love Michigan : )====JACK:  When I lived in Illinois, our community on the Mississippi was called, "The armpit of the nation."

FROM PEPPERMINT MARY:  i love all seasons...everyday bringing it's surprises and gifts.  i am approaching a new life season.  yesterday i announced my retirement.  bittersweet but excited to see who else "ms.mary" can be.😏====JACK:  I think that with the change of season, you are going to miss how each new class of youngsters will relate to them.  How long have the Lillstroms been related to that school?====MARY:  i think it was spring 1964 when my mom walked in with sarah and asked if she could volunteer help so sarah could have playmates.  the rest of us were in "big school" so we were making new friends.  the rest is "herstory"...our story.  i will miss the marvel of the children in each new day.  i'll have to find a way to keep it alive in me.====JACK:  You know that old saying..."When the door closes, God opens a window."

FROM LP IN SP:  Mine is Fall   I do love the change though – only not today when it is -10 below ====JACK:  College Football in the Fall.  I love it...even more than the pros.====LP:  Me too!  BUT Go Vikings this weekend!  Purple City around here this weekend ====JACK:  Can you imagine what it would be like if the Vikings were to play in the Super Bowl in their own stadium?

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY: Yes!  All of the seasons are my favorite!  Everyone is special and I love something of them all!

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  It's hard to choose, as I would definitely miss the 4 distinct seasons, if I lived where it was always warm and sunny, or cold and dark, but I think Spring and Fall have the edge if I really needed to make a choice!  So blessed to be able to enjoy life in any season!! Our play "Couplings" opens tonight for 3 performances over the weekend at the Playhouse on the Square. I portray an older lady dealing with advancing Alzheimers...(But my "husband" still thinks I'm as beautiful as the day we met! HA!) Thankful to be "clothed and in my right mind!"====JACK:  The gift of "mind" is beyond comprehension.  Why this?  Why that?  Why anything?

Jack’s Winning Words 1/11/18
“If you try the best you can, the best you can is good enough.”  (Radiohead)  Who would guess a “morality” quote would come from a rock band, like Radiohead.  Two of their hits were Creep and Hail to the Thief.  But think about it…If you are doing your best at anything, what more can be expected.  My mother-in-law would tell her children, “Just do your best.”  That’s good advice for any leader to his followers…or, should the goal be to reach 110%?    ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  Just do your best God will do the rest====JACK: Sometime, during my lifespan, I seem  to remember praying before a test.  I don't recall that it improved the test score.

FROM HONEST JOHN:  To define one's best is the problem....maybe we are settling for less than our best but consoling ourselves with the thought that we have really tried our best....JACK:  I can see that "good" and "better" can have qualifying definitions ( good and better that...what?)  But, to me, best is best (finest, greatest, top, foremost, leading, preeminent, premier, prime, first, chief, principal, supreme, of the highest quality, superlative, par excellence, unrivaled, second to none, without equal, nonpareil, unsurpassed, peerless, matchless, unparalleled, unbeaten, unbeatable, optimum, optimal, ultimate, incomparable, ideal, perfect).====JOHN:  The problem is that we don't always know what our own best is.    It is not the word best that needs to be defined but what we need to know is what our best is.   Holcomb really pushed me in debate and I think I did my best there.   I think I did my best in parish ministry.   In some pursuits I think I settled for a best that really wasn't.  ====JACK:  The problem, then, is not with the word, but with the self.  Generally, that's the case with many problems...even with commitment to our God.  It's hard to hear that "our righteousness (best) is as filthy rags."

FROM JLF:  Do your best. I always remember mom saying that.====JACK:  Yes!  I can hear it now...and..."I am who I am."...and another..."Tired!  What's that>  Everybody's tired."

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  I remember cutting out and saving a column years ago by either Dear Abby, or Ann Landers entitled "Good enough is not good enough". It was very well said, and was a pitch to NOT settle for "Good Enough"...which many do all too often. I'm sure we've all also heard the old adage, "If something is worth doing, It's worth doing well!"  Why spend time in a mediocre effort? But as Quaker once said to me, "Sometimes if God cannot find a hammer to tap the nail into the wall, he'll use the heel of an old shoe."  In other words, God will get his work done, with those who are willing to say yes to the task! I never forgot that!====JACK:  Thanks to Google...          Dear Ann Landers: Our school district believes our schools are pretty good. Students score just barely above the national average on standardized tests, which gives administrators and teachers bragging rights.  To me, the national average is a disgrace, and scoring 0.1 percentage points above that is nothing to be proud of.  Several years ago, you printed a poem by Charles Osgood about a "pretty good student" in a "pretty good school." Please print it again. I hope our school board, teachers and administration see it and take heed.  John in Grand Junction, Colo.

Dear John: Here it is. Thanks for asking. And I hope every student who considers himself or herself "pretty good" will pay attention.

There once was a pretty good student,

Who sat in a pretty good class

And was taught by a pretty good teacher,

Who always let pretty good pass.

He wasn't terrific at reading,

He wasn't a whiz-bang at math.

But for him, education was leading

Straight down a pretty good path.

He didn't find school too exciting,

But he wanted to do pretty well,

And he did have some trouble with writing,

And nobody had taught him to spell.

When doing arithmetic problems,

Pretty good was regarded as fine.

Five plus 5 needn't always add up to be 10,

A pretty good answer was 9.

The pretty good class that he sat in

Was part of a pretty good school.

And the student was not an exception,

On the contrary, he was the rule.

The pretty good school that he went to

Was there in a pretty good town.

And nobody there seemed to notice

He could not tell a verb from a noun.

The pretty good student in fact was

Part of a pretty good mob.

And the first time he knew what he lacked was

When he looked for a pretty good job.

It was then, when he sought a position,

He discovered that life could be tough.

And he soon had a sneaky suspicion

Pretty good might not be good enough.

The pretty good town in our story

Was part of a pretty good state,

Which had pretty good aspirations,

And prayed for a pretty good fate.

There once was a pretty good nation,

Pretty proud of the greatness it had,

Which learned much too late,

If you want to be great,

Pretty good is, in fact, pretty bad.

--"The Osgood File," copyright 1986, CBS Inc.

FROM HUNGRY HOWIE:  Our advice to our daughters was “do the right thing even if no one is looking”====JACK:  "When no one's looking?"  We used to sing this song as Summer Camp:
"He's got his eye on you; He's got his eye on you.
My Lord, sittin' in the kingdom, He's got his eye on you."

FROM RS IN TEXAS:  If you aren't satisfied with what your best is, then one may want to consider exploring how to make your best better.  Been trying to do that with my golf game for awhile. ====JACK:  Our BEST can be a movable target, changing from day to day and circumstance to circumstance.

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  “Always strive to be your best”...something I was told growing up.  Great words!====JACK:  Part of the reason for Winning Words is an attempt bu me to reheat some of those adages that have grown cold with time.

FROM SHALOM JAN:  A retired pastor who served the congregation where I grew up in the shortage of pastors after WW II, driving down from Baltimore, MD to Arlington, VA each Sunday, would stand on the chancel step and talk to the children (no hoards of us running up to the steps).  He said, often enough that it became my mantra, "Do your best; angels can do no better."  That has served me well my whole life.  Jimmy Buffett is planning a concert to benefit one of the Caribbean islands, I forget which, in the hurricane aftermath.  Sometimes rock stars are more charitable than we think, most likely among the "spiritual but not religious" (SPNRs).====JACK:  "It's amazing what miracles and little angels and pure love around you can bring out."   (Tionne Watkins)  All the angels are not necessarily found in church-related places.====JAN:  As my best friend would say, "You got that right!"====JACK:  As a child, did you ever sing this song???..."All night, all day, Angels watching over me, my Lord.  All night, all day, Angels watching over me."

   

Jack’s Winning Words 1/10/18
“There’s no geist like the Zeitgeist.”  (Robert Hughes)  Try using the word, Zeitgeist (Zight guyst) in conversation today and see where it leads.  It’s a German word and means, the mood of a period of history, its ideas and beliefs.  What do you think was the Zeitgeist of the time you were growing up?  As I reflect, the early 50s were a comfort-calm in my life.  However, it was a false calm, hiding what was to come in the mid-to-late 60s.  ..and the geist of today?   ;-)  Jack

FROM FACEBOOK LIZ:  “unrest” is today’s zeitgeist. manufactured unrest, for political gain. ====JACK:  Times seem to change rapidly.  While your reference to the LGBT issue is relevant, even those initials are changing to LGBTQIA, and my reading sees that being replaced by "Me Too!"  Bob Dylan's 60s album, "The Times They Are A-Changing," again seems relevant.  Maybe today's geist is "rapid change."====LIZ:  the pendulum swings, & always returns to center...====JACK:  Pendulums are for the here and now, but are useless in the hereafter.

FROM DR JUDY:  Hmmmm.  Never thought about it that way Jack, the 50s were the calm before the 60s storm. Well we are certainly in a major storm right now. So I would hope that what is to come is the rainbow ====JACK:  Even the "rainbow" at the end of Noah's flood has been usurped by the LGBT movement.  Kermit, in The Rainbow Connection, asks: Why are there so many rainbow songs?  My favorite is "Somewhere, Over the Rainbow."

FROM ANONYMOUS:  Your writing about the comfort-calm of the 50's and then the upheavals of the 60's, putting things in a perspective that sometimes the current zeitgeist is more superficial than we are aware of, Pastor Freed, leads me to express that I see our current Zeitgeist as one wherein practically every institution is distrusted, government, media, school system, insurance systems, the benefit of regulations, the criminal system, even now the Supreme Court, and people being trained to lead them, sometimes studying years and years and being mentored and so forth to play their roles in administering institutions are now looked upon as likely to not lead well so that all sorts of people are evidently easily "moving over from one professional path to a totally different one". The qualities and training needed are sort of "being flattened out" and "becoming inter-changeable" from one profession to another, especially in what has been happening in the current administration of our President. It all makes me wonder what Zeitgeist is going to follow this one? Will more trust come about or will things blow up in a sort of chaotic way like they did in the 60's? Or maybe what we are experiencing is a Zeitgeist which has already blown up but I'm still trying to see it somehow as more calm and more effective than it is.====JACK:  Sometimes we become so obsessed with the "present" that we cannot see clearly into the future.  What calms me is the statement, "There is a God."

FROM MY LAWYER:  But, it was your calm.====JACK:  Part of the value of friendship and interaction is that we can help calm one another.

FROM RS IN TEXAS:  The geist of today seems to be one of uneasiness and anxiety - N. Korea, politics, etc.   A good reason to turn to God for reassurance and comfort.====JACK:  One of my favorite biblical stories is about Jesus and the disciples in a boat on the Sea of Galilee.  A sudden storm arises.  Jesus is asleep.  The disciples call out to him, "Wake up!  Don't you care about this situation?"  He awakens and says, "Peace, be still," and the storm subsides.  The story is being relived today.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  It will certainly be interesting to see how history records the Zeitgeist of  this era, that we "see" as chaotic and uncertain, with an inept leader at the guiding wheel of gov't.  My  sister and I used to laugh at the quirks of some of our children, saying, "After all, he/she was raised in the 60's!" I, too, remember the late 40's and fifties as a time of serene peace and prosperity, after WW2.  To me they were happy times for most. But we still had the racial issues!!====JACK:  Is not the present geist of our own creation?  Trumpism, continuing racial unrest, LBGT, etc, didn't happen in a vacuum.  Perhaps that's what democracy foments...along with the good.

FROM CS:  I agree.  My brother used to say the 50’s were the best .  I said “Certainly not for everyone!”====JACK:  I don't care what era it is, there always seems to be someone at the bottom.  I always saw Jesus and his followers reaching out to help those people.  I always like it, when at the end of the worship service, the pastor says: "Go in peace.  Remember the poor."

Jack’s Winning Words 1/9/18
“The sweetest of all sounds is praise.”  (Xenophon)  Without “Googling”, who knows what band played “the sweetest music this side of heaven?”  No. it wasn’t Spike Jones.  We usually think of sugar when we think of something sweet.  But, how about people…like Sweet Sue?  Or, how about situations?  I remember how teens would like something and say, “Sweet!”  Were you one of those?  And we all like to hear what Xenophon described…”Sweet words!”    ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  Interesting that Xenophon should come up that is the name of my father in law right now several relatives are doing ancestry.com which is indeed fascinating ====JACK:  The choice of names for newborns is an interesting process.  In the "Top 50 most popular in 2017" Sophia is #1 among girls and Jackson for the boys.  John comes in at #46 and Shirley didn't make the list.  Sophia means, wisdom, and was a common name in the Middle Ages.

FROM RI IN BOSTON:  Anyone around back in the 50's knows "the sweetest music..." was from Guy Lombardo.====JACK:  A friend of mine used to call him, Gus Lumbago.  BTW, have you ever heard of lumbago?====RI:  Years ago there was a lot of talk about lumbago...like today you hear about fibromyalgia.  I think lumbago was about pain in the leg muscles.====JACK:  My father often complained about his lumbago.  I think that it was related to pain in the lower back.  I just looked it up...the lumbar is the lower part of the spine.

ROM HONEST JOHN:  Was it Glenn Miller?====JACK:  Your incorrect answer indicates that you're a whippersnapper.

FFROM TARMART REV:  "It gets sweeter as the day goes by!" (Sweeter As The Days Go By - by Hezekiah Walker) ====JACK:  I thought that you might have referred to the hymn, "In the sweet by and by."

FROM CB UPNORTH:  Guy Lombardo -- I think of him every New Year's Eve. Oh-oh, showing my age!====JACK:  For almost 50 years. each New Year's Eve,, from the Waldorf Astoria, the Royal Canadians would begin the play "For Auld Lang Syne" at the stroke of midnight.  My granddaughter had never heard of him.

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY: You’ve got me on that song, o have no idea who sang it.  But the praise given out can make so much happiness!  Just thinking of our little ones and how happy they are to bring a page they colored or a picture they drew to us.  Especially because they know I save them in a special file after they have been on the refrigerator!  Or praise when someone makes something:  cookies, welding art, or whatever the gift is.  It can change lives which is what it’s all about!      Praise for the special “Winning Words” each day!====JACK:  A song that I learned in Sunday School went this way..."Jesus is the sweetest name I know,  And He’s just the same as His lovely name,  And that’s the reason why I love Him so;  Oh, Jesus is the sweetest name I know." ====JUDY:   How pretty and comforting.  I’ve never heard it but I will see if my organist friends can find it and play it for me.  !

 FROM BLAZING OAKS:    Nothing perks up a child's hearing like praise!  Something we should all do more of!  When given words of praise or appreciation, you are spurred on to continue and do even better!  I remember Guy Lombardo, but did not remember that  was his "slogan" .  I remember for awhile teens were saying "that was Bad!. .Meaning sweet or good!! Go figure!  Your WW are a sweet treat to readers! !====JACK:  Do you remember growing up with this slang?  Cheesey, Fuddy Duddy, In Cahoots, Flip Your Wig, A Gas.====OAKS:  Among many others, yes! Somethings were Rad! Some folks were Goofey; etc. It's all kind of a blur by now!

Jack’s Winning Words 1/8/18
“The first step toward getting somewhere is to decide you’re not going to stay where you are.”  (John Pierpoint Morgan)  “Pierpoint”, as he wished to be called, was one of the great bankers of the early 20th century and was famous for taking over troubled businesses and turning them into successes.  He followed his own advice, as expressed in today’s quote.  If it worked for him, it can work for us, too.  “Nothing ventured; nothing gained.”  Dare to change!!!   ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL: How boring life would be without change!!!====JACK:  I seem to remember a time...when I was the teacher (or the student) and the class joined in groaning... B-O-R-I-N-G!  It must have been when I was among the students.

FROM HONEST JOHN:  I stayed at an Inn n Upstate NY owned by JP Morgan, a descendant of the original....beautiful place.====JACK:  I wonder if that inn would have had a place for people, like Mary and Joseph?====JOHN:  Probably could not have afforded it....might have stayed at Motel Six!====JACK:  Was "the star" shining that night, or had Motel 6 left the light on?====JOHN:  It was a beautiful place....we were on our way to the Berkshire Hills....lovely trip....probably did have stars out that night....The present JP cooked a gourmet dinner for us....I love it out East....spent a summer there St Harvard's Institute of World Affairs....another summer as an intern in Middletown, Conn...with Art Larson...did you know him?....he was really a good guy to work with....

FROM BLAZING OAJS:  Kind of interesting that he used the unusual name "Pierpoint" rather than John, isn't it? More memorable forgood words for the new year too... sure!  ("John" seems more approachable!)  As homespun Dolly Parton once said, "If you don't like the road you're walking, start paving another one!"  It might take a bit of doing, but it will pay off in contentment and satisfaction...usually!====JACK:  How do most of your friends refer to you?  Marilyn? (probably not)  Mar? (probably, yes...), but is it Mar, as in the candy bar, or Mar, as in the "old gray...)?  BTW, Dolly's real name is, Dolly.  It seems more fitting for her than her middle name, Rebecca.  Did you ever use your middle name?====OAKS:  Our twin names were Marilyn Jean and Janet Eileen, but in Jr.High I tried going by Jean, so we'd be Janet and Jean (an at that time Marilyn was pretty common) but it was too late, my friends and fellow students had known me as Marilyn for too long...:-)  I suppose If I had persevered, it would have worked in a year's time, but I just reverted back to Marilyn! My good (old) friends call me Mar,  but everyone else calls me Marilyn...====JACK:  Pronounced, Mare, I suppose.====OAKS:  Mare, it is, but the old blonde, not grey, mare! :-)

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  “Baby steps baby steps” as long as your moving forward!  It’s s good year to start!====JACK:  Isn't it fun to see a baby take its first steps?  It's also fun (sometimes) to watch a young person the first steps as an adult.====JUDY:  I was thinking of What About Bob.

FROM ST PAUL IN MESA:     good words for the new year too...====JACK:  Yep====PAUL:  is that an acronym for You're Extra Peppy?   or You're Eating Pretzels?   or You're Especially Prompt?   just curious...====JACK:  Tell me...You're kidding!  In the b & w cowboy movies, the hero's sidekich would often say, "YEP. instead of. YES.

Jack’s Winning Words 1/5/18

“If you’re around 50, you’re called: Generation Grumpy.”  (KingNews)  I recently watched “Grumpy Old Men” with my granddaughter.  She’d never seen it before, and we laughed together (probably at different things).  There’s a generation gap.  Grumpy can be funny at times, and also irritating.  We all have to share the same world, and it’s been my experience that living becomes more enjoyable when I try to learn from generations different from mine.    ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  Yes it is an amazing world on which we live with all of the electronic changes ====JACK:  My new TV wasn't working properly.  A "younger generation" person stopped by, called a friend on her iPhone, and after a brief conversation and the push of a couple of buttons on the clicker it was working perfectly.  I still use a flip phone.====SHIRL:  I got my first iPhone in 2007 for 99 cents and am now on my third one====JACK:  ...and I thought that you were a Florida Fogie.

FROM TRIHARDER:  I'm enjoying being a curmudgeon.====JACK:  I've passed that stage.  Now, I'm just a sweet old grandpa.  "Here, let me help you with that.  We don't want you yo hurt yourself!" ====TH:  When a young person stops to open a door open for me, I say, "get your ass in there or I'll kick it."====JACK:  You remind me of that old guy in the Jimmy John's TV commercial..."What took you so long?"====TH:  OK, I gotta draw a line ... 

FROM TARMART REV: God advice, Jack, as always!!====JACK:   Have you reached the point of doing more teaching than learning?====REV:  Still a student, really . . . stronger as "foot soldier" out in the field receiving commands and putting the teaching to good use, hopefully.====JACK:  Do you ever stop being nice?  I'll have to ask your wife. ====REV:  Now, you are getting tooooo personal?!?!====JACK:  It takes one to know one. 

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY: I’d move the age back a little... to 80 maybe.  But it did make me laugh.  We haven’t seen the movie but I guess we should!  Any movies that make me laugh are the kinds I want to see...none of those grumpy old movies!!!====JACK:  Beneath the "grumpy" exterior of some people lies a heart of gold.  I even know some pastors like that.

FROM KANSAN DON:  Very good!! and Amen!   Sometimes I’m slow to learn.====JACK:  I paid attention when my TV was being fixed.  I used that "knowledge" this afternoon.  Hooray!

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  "Grumpy Old Men" with those seasoned two actors was a riot' My kids thought it was funny; don't know about gkids, tho!  I'm living with 4 generations in my family, and indeed our worlds are very different, but the Love transcends that!  Reminds me of the story of the grandma getting help on the computer from a bright 11 year old and him (after fixing the problem)
called it an Idtent problem. Told her to write it out;, when she questions what that was, and she'd understand, so she  did: Id10T.   She did feel like an idiot!!====JACK:  Mary would not allow our children to refer to anyone as an idiot.  She might have allowed Idtent.

FROM AW IN ILLINOIS:  The older I get, the more I feel privileged to feel that way.====JACK:  What makes you grumpy?  Trumpy?

Jack’s Winning Words 1/4/18
“You can’t Google for knowledge.”  (Elaine Ostrach Chaika)  Elaine goes on to say that trivia doesn’t comprise knowledge.  Analyzing, hypothesizing, concluding from data and sharing insights are the signs of “knowing your onions.”  I learned that from Google when I researched quotes for today. Jan 4, celebrated as Trivia Day.  Today’s trivia: Bill Belichick was coach of the NY Jets for 1 day, Jan 4, in 2000.  Do you have any trivia to share?    ;-)  Jack

FROM HONEST JOHN:  John Siefken started at left tackle against Moline in Ninth Grade...decided that tennis and debate were safer endeavors.====JACK:  Who knows?  You could have gone on to play left tackle for the Chicago Bears.  Have you ever played (in your mind), "What if...?"  You could have been the ICE BOX before there was the REFRIGERATOR.====JOHN:  Thinking like that could have gotten me killed!====JACK:  Andy Roddick once served a tennis ball at 155 mph.  Being hit by that might not kill you, but it would probably "smart" a bit.

FROM TARMART REV:  As with everyday, if truly believed and carried out-- "The is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it", yesterday, today and forever!!====JACK:  Did your "Secret Santa" give you money to distribute again this year?

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  Nope.====JACK:  You've always been modest.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  380 Million years ago, life on this planet evolved on land! Wrap your mind around that!  Having the wisdom to use "knowing your onions" is another challenge! Jan. 4th is
Trivia Day. Who knew? Another new bit of "knowledge"! 

FROM RS IN TEXAS:  The only state capitol without a McDonald's is Montpelier, VT.====JACK:  I had to follow up on that..."Montpelier is dedicated to keeping things local and has kept McDonald's out for the time being. In fact, until 1996 the superstore, Wal-Mart, was kept out of our state as well. Incidentally, Montpelier, VT is also without an airport."

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  Michigan Trivia... Michigan is known for its strange language.  We say:
“Ope” as in hope without the h, when we bump into someone, We call it cran instead of crayon, cloze instead of clothes, ki-nuh instead of kind of, lieberry instead of library, melk instead of milk and you say “Yep” instead of yes!

Jack’s Winning Words 1/3/18
“Nothing is permanent in this world, not even our troubles.”  (Charlie Chaplin)  Chaplin’s first movie, The Kid, was probably his best among many.  It typically showed how “trouble’ is eventually overcome by the good.  I know that “trouble” in this world can seem insurmountable, but I encourage you to take the long view.  Good Friday eventually leads to Easter Sunday.  Be assured by God’s promise: “I will never leave you, nor forsake you.”  ;-)  Jack

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  How true!!!====JACK:  What is truth?  What makes something true?

FROM HONEST JOHN:  Sounds like Heraclitus.   Plato would respectfully disagree...so would Aristotle.     So would Isaiah.     A formidable array lined up against Charlie Chaplin....====JACK:  I know it's futile to disagree with you, but just suppose, in the end, that Charlie turned out to be the Great Philosopher, just as he was once the Great Dictator?  I'm only saying, "Just suppose...." ====JOHN:  When he was the Great Dictator, he was acting....====JACK:  Perhaps it is as your "friend" Shakespeare wrote:  "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages."

FROM PEPPERMINT MARY: Hang in there. Life goes on until the next one. All I know is life is good and future life is abundant with promise and possibilities.====JACK:  Keep on thinking those optimistic thoughts.===MARY:   It’s how I make it through each day,especially the troubled ones ❤️

Jack’s Winning Words 1/2/18
“And now let us welcome the new year, full of things that never were.”  (Rainer Maria Rilke)  I always like to see unopened packages under the Christmas tree, wondering what’s inside each.  One person in our family always tries to guess…and often is right.  But, who can guess correctly what each day in the new year will bring when it comes?  Only God knows, and he’s not telling, except as we read,  “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.”    ;-)  Jack

FROM SS:  Thanks, that is my favorite way to start the day!====JACK:  This song suggest still another way..."Roll out of bed in the morning  With a great big smile and a good, good morning  Wake up with a grin  There's a new day a-tumbling in  Wake with the sun and the rooster  Cock-a-doodle-do like the rooster, useta  You'll find it worth while  If you roll out of bed with a smile."

FROM BB:  Thanks for the warm inspiration.  I liked to guess gifts too; most of us were wrong on that score.  Great Rilke quote…====JACK: There's always a "rest of the story" behind the quote, and that is in the life of the author...and that's true with Rainer Maria, too.

FROM TARMART REV:  Her we go!!====JACK:  There used to be a radio program, The Original Anateur Hour.  At the beginning, Major Bowes would spin a wheel.  The numbers shown would determine the order of appearance by contestants.  As sound of the wheel could be heard, Bowes would say, "Round and round she goes, and where she stops nobody knows."  So  it is with this world of ours in 2018.

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  I for one am glad we can’t see the future.  Let’s wait to see what each day brings!====JACK:  As the old saying goes..."I know not what the future holds, but I know who holds the future."

FROM BLAZING OAKS:   YES! A year full of things that never were...I love that thought by Rilke! I also love the short meditation by Howard Thurman at the New Year:       "When the song of the Angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the Kings and Princes are back home, When Shepherds are back with their flocks, The work of Christmas begins:  To find  the lost, to heal the broken, To feed the hungry, free the prisoners, To rebuild nations, to bring peace among brothers, To make music in the heart!"   I use it every year with my S.S. class and women's circle!====JACK:  If I were still in the business of preaching on Sundays, I could use Thurman's words as an illustrative idea starter.  "What happens after....?"  (the wedding?  the funeral?  the graduation?  the election?)  On and on on ans on.

FROM CAROLA:  Thank you for continuing your words of encouragement into this new 2018 year.
I always look forward to reading your comments.  Have a wonderful, Happy New Year.====JACK:  Over 500 people are on the Winning Words list, and many of these people forward the words on to others.  The internet is amazing.