I was born at a very young age.

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

Words are important, I learned this at a young age. 

Here is a riddle for you, "How does an English teacher who is fluent in French and Latin marry a truck driver?"  

Answer, "They meet in the sixth grade, date all through Highschool, she goes off to college, he goes off to the Coast Guard, he comes home after and they get married.  

After a few years of marriage, and after they had my older sister, they decided to have me.

I was born at a very young age.

As I grew, they taught to walk and to talk; that took every bit of the first two years, after that they spent most of their time telling me to sit down and shut up.

I ended up spending a lot of time listening, mostly to my mother and my father. 

My mother would speak in high English using big words along with French and Latin. 

My father used other words to get his point across.

One day I was outside working with my dad, I must have been 3-4 years old, and I got mad. I used one of my dad's favorite words that he would use to get the point across that he was mad. 

Dad just looked at me and said, "I don't care if you say that word, everybody says that one. But, if I ever catch you saying pantyhose, garbage can, or pediatrician. I will turn your butt red!"

I had no idea that garbage can was a bad word and I didn't even know what pantyhose or pediatrician was, so I would walk around muttering under my breath, "Garbage can, pantyhose, pediatrician!"

My mother was a bit more creative, after all her vocabulary was a bit bigger. Dad would say, "Ok kids, it is time for us all to go outside. I don't know what your mother just said, but I can tell she is mad!"

Mom liked to make up words when she couldn't think of the name of something; such as calling corner shelving a "boomprasa" a word that came back to bite my little sister when she was old enough to buy her own furniture.

I was telling this to Frederick the Great the other day, and he said, "I have the perfect joke for you."

It is called, A 4 year old's first paycheck. It goes like this.

A young family moved into a house, next to a vacant lot. One day, a construction crew turned up to start building a house on the empty lot.

The young family's 4-year-old daughter naturally took an interest in all the activity going on next door and spent much of each day observing the workers.

Eventually, the construction crew, all of them "gems-in-the-rough," more or less adopted her as a kind of project mascot.

They chatted with her; let her sit with them, while they had coffee and lunch breaks and gave her 20 little jobs to do here and there to make her feel important. At the end of the first week, they even presented her with a pay envelope containing ten dollars.

The little girl took this home to her mother, who suggested that she take her 10 dollars "pay" she had received to the bank the next day to start a savings account. 

When the girl and her mom got to the bank, the teller was equally as impressed and asked the little girl how she had come by her very own paycheck at such a young age. The little girl proudly replied, "I worked last week with a real construction crew, building the new house next to us."

"Oh my goodness gracious," said the teller, "and will you be working on the house again this week, too?"

The little girl replied, " I will, if those Bleepity-bleeps at Home Depot ever deliver the Bleepity-bleep drywall!"

When Frederick told me that joke, and after I had finished running around the table with my scissors, 

 I said, "That reminds me of my neighbor Ralph (Not his real name but every story goes better with a name attached). In Kansas your nieghbor lived 1.5 miles away. 

Ralph was a wonderful man who not only talked to himself. but he answered himself too. He also used what my mother called "colorful" language. 

I used to go help Ralph on his farm a lot and I would come home talking as Ralph had modeled. My mother told me I couldn't work at Ralph's anymore. Later, when my grandfather came to live with us, he would help Ralph. Mom put the kabosh on him helping Ralph after he too came home mimicking Ralph. 

Words are important. 

When we speak, people listen. 

A wise person gets known for insight; gracious words add to one's reputation. (Psalm 16:21)

We must be present to ourselves as well as others and, as we like to say in the guild, "Know our audience." or in the words of Padme, "Age appropriate curriculum." Using the right words for the right thing will do many wonderous things; one of which is not getting beaten up in the lunch line for calling a bigger kid a pediatrician, just say-in.  

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

 

 

I got to hang out with Frederick the Great the other day.

Good Morning, 

I pray the day finds you well.

I got to hang out with Frederick the Great the other day. No, it wasn't because I sold the bus and bought a hamster. Although, he did tell me some of his jokes; I retaliated with a few of my own, we finally decided it would be in our best interest to stop telling jokes. 

We both had some free time and so we got together and told each other lies, I mean stories. He even gave me a book to read, which I was very excited about until I saw that it didn't have any pictures.

During our conversation, the aspect of relevancy came up; no, not moral relevancy and the philosophy around that, neither one of us have the I.Q. to discuss such a topic. We discussed the difficulty and importance of remaining relevant in the current culture, to not be so steadfast in what we have always done as to not be pliable to do what needs to be done today. This includes:

• Our language, has our language become "inside speak" not understood by others. Do we need to develop a new lexicon?
• How we view our organization, as compared to how it is viewed by others.  
• Do we convey our mission, vision, and purpose in a way that both inside and outside of our organization can be understood and articulated?

Frederick and I were talking about stuff like that. 

As we talked I was reminded of something Kurt Vonnegut said in his book Slaughterhouse-5. 

He said, "You know what I say to people when I hear they’re writing anti-war books?

No. What do you say, Harrison Starr? I say, Why don’t you write an anti-glacier book instead?

What he meant, of course, was that there would always be wars, that they were as easy to stop as glaciers."[1]

I mentioned that, back when Vonnegut wrote this, the very thought of not having glaciers, or having the ability to even stop their forward motion was unthinkable. Yet, here we are some 50+ years later, witnessing the very thing that he could never have thought of. Kurt will have to find another analogy to showcase his thought on the fact that war was inevitable and ongoing. 

His quote, that I like to use, has become irrelevant. 

Today's kids would say, "Glaciers are stoppable." 

And kids in another 50+ years will say, "Glaciers, What's a glacier?"

We began to talk about the YMCA and how we need a new lexicon so we stay relevant. 

How sad would it be if in 50+ years kids say, "Why should I go to the Y?"

And kids in another 50+ years say, "Y, what's a Y?"

For those naysayers out there that say, "That could never happen." Don't forget Glaciers have been around a lot longer than the YMCA, all we need to do is look at them and realize if we don't take care of things, they eventually go away.

Then Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor came in and before we could tell him that jokes have become off-limits, He said, "Two southern boys go to enlist in the army. The recruiting officer said, 'What can you bring to the Army?' and the first boy said, 'I'm a pilot!' The recruiting officer got really excited and said come on in, you're exactly what we needed.' The the officer turned his attention to the second boy and asked him what he would bring to the army, and the second boy said, 'I'm a wood cutter.' In utter dismay the recruiting officer said, 'I'm sorry son, but there is no place for you in the Army.' Rejected the second boy said, 'But you took my brother.' To that the officer said, 'Of course we did, he is a pilot.' The second boy responded, 'That is right, I cut the wood, and he piles it."

At that Frederick and I both grabbed some scissors that were laying on the table and started to run around hoping to trip and fall on them. Obviously, we didn't as I am still here to tell you the story.

As I ponder the words I use, and how I view the world around me, I wonder if I have become stratified in my thought and words. I will work harder to continue to speak in a way that is easily understood; to put the cookies on the bottom shelf, so everyone can grab one, so to speak. 

Do you ever contemplate this stuff?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

---

[1]Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-5. (New York: Dell Publishing, 1969),8. 

I was driving to the YMCA this morning, as I was driving I was listening to the radio, which is never a good thing

 Good morning, 

I pray that the day is finding you well. 

I was driving to the YMCA this morning, as I was driving I was listening to the radio. Yesterday I was talking with a friend who had recently bought a car, he is an avid motorcyclist and didn’t even have a car for years. I asked him, “How do you like the car?” He said, “It’s warm!” 

So I am driving along listening to some station that was on the radio when I got in the car this morning. They were talking about sandwiches, more aptly peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. 

They talked about crunchy or smooth, debating the pros and cons of each. They talked about jelly verses jam, debating the pros and cons of each. The topic of preserves came up and threw everyone for a loop for a while. I am driving along thinking my own thoughts with half an ear tuned to the radio. After about twenty minutes I came out of my thought and started listening to the radio fully. This is when I realized that I was listening to utter nonsense. That in my unintentional state of being I had been listening to a group of people who had nothing better to talk about than the differences between chunky and smooth peanut butter. When they went off on a debate over miracle whip and mayonnaise, with arose after someone said that they like to put mayonnaise on their peanut butter sandwich, I turned off the radio. 

I like being intentional. 

I like being a chaplain.

I like being a conduit that Jesus can use to have conversations with people who for whatever reason never or at least seldom walk through the doors of a church. 

I like working with people, getting them to see their God given potential. 

I like being a chaplain in the YMCA. I like seeing people learn to be great. 

My sadness comes when someone says, “I’m good to go. I don’t need the YMCA, church or Jesus.” 

Jim Collins in his book, Good to Great, makes the following observation. 

"Good is the enemy of great." 

If someone never takes that hard look at themselves they may never go from good to great. 

John Ortberg laments the following in his book, If you want to walk on water you’ve got to GET OUT OF THE BOAT. To sinful patterns of behavior that never get confronted and changed, Abilities and gifts that never get cultivated and deployed – Until weeks become months And months turn to years, And one day you’re looking back on a life of Deep intimate gut-wrenching honest conversations you never had; Great bold prayers you never prayed, Exhilarating risks you never took, Sacrificial gifts you never offered Lives you never touched, And you’re sitting in a recliner with a shriveled soul, And forgotten dreams, And you realize there was a world of desperate need, And a great God calling you to be part of something bigger than yourself – You see the person you could have become but did not; You never followed your calling. You never got out of the boat. [1]John Ortberg, If you want to walk on water, you’ve got to GET OUT OF THE BOAT, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2001), 34. 

My prayer today is that we spend less time talking about peanut butter sandwiches and more time talking about things that truly matter. That we spend less time thinking about things that at the end of the day are really trivial and more time thinking about the things that are truly important. That our hearts are turned toward love and unity and away from anger and dissent; that we have the courage to get out of the boat. 

Something to ponder

When I asked my friend what he liked about his car I am glad he didn't say the radio. 

Blessings, 

Roger

Peter, you've turned into a pirate

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

I was was having a wonderful conversation with a friend the other day. Actually, I was having a wonderful listen. 

My friend was going on and on about all the bad things Christians, or at least those that call themselves Christian do in the name of Jesus, more aptly they say Christ. how they are judgmental, hypocritical, mean spirited...As my friend pontificated (I do like the word pontificate, it is just fun to say) I listened patiently, waiting for him to take a breath, I always find it amazing how long a person, who is in the midst of a rather lengthy discourse, can go without breathing. If you ask them to simply hold their breath they find it hard to last 30-seconds before needing to breath. But in the midst of a wonderful pontification they can go 20-minutes. Just thinking about it gets me to pondering the 7-wonders of the world. I think there should be eight. 

1. The Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt
2. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
3. The Statue of Zeus at Olympia
4. The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
5. The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus
6. The Colossus of Rhodes
7. The lighthouse of Alexandria
8. The fact that my friend can pontificate for 20-minutes straight without taking a breath

After my friend finished his pontification and drew a deep breath I just looked at him and said, "Do you remember the movie Hook?"

He said, "Yes, I love that movie."

I replied, "Me too, I thought it was brilliant to cast Robin Williams as Peter Pan, that was pure genius."

My friend said, "Can you imagine how hard it would have been to act with Robin? I doubt if he even had a script!" 

I said, "I know, right?"

I mentioned that Peter's wife (played by Caroline Goodall) had a line in the movie that literally impacted me as a father. Peter was busy being a businessman and concentrating on making sure a deal got closed. Peter's wife Moria said, "Peter, your children are growing up right in front of you and you aren't being careful and are missing it!" 

The movie came out in 1991 and my kids were very young at that point and I vowed that I would not be Peter!

A little later in the movie Peters first girlfriend, Wendy, who was very old at this point and Moria's grandmother stood in disbelief as Peter pontificated on how important he was and how he had to make money. The image of her standing extra tall and looking deeply into Peter's eyes and she said, "Peter, you've become a pirate."

Brilliant, simply brilliant. 

What Wendy was saying to Peter was, "You have become the very thing that you always railed against and fought not to be!"

I looked at my friend, I stood extra tall and looked deep into his eyes and said, "You've become a Pirate." 

Instead of throwing the baby out with the bathwater, why don't we be the light in the world that we wished others would be? 

Let us shine the love of Christ on the people we meet and let God be the keeper of Heaven and Hell. 

Let us show people a different kind of Christian.

To spend our life giving people a different perspective. 

My friend liked that idea. 

As usual this caused me to think, ruminate and ponder. How have I become a pirate? 

I asked God to show me if I have any robber of ships at sea tendencies, to give me eyes to see them, and the courage to confront and leave them behind. 

I am wondering do you identify as part of the Lost Boys or a Pirate?  

My friend thinks I identify as Tootles because he thinks I lost my marbles.

Something to Ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

• 
  

 

When we leave the room do people smell roses or Fishbombs?

 Good morning,

I pray that the day is finding you well.

Memory is a funny thing.

I will go a long time without thinking of something, or someone, and then when I do it is as if my memory is doing a data dump on my consciousness.

I haven’t thought about Fishmonger for years, but ever since the other night she has been “on my brain.”

Fishmonger (My Mother named her, yes this is the same person that told us corner shelving was called a boomprosa, "It is French", she said). but that is a story for another time.

Fish lived to be almost twenty years old and so she was around from the time I was six until after I had left the house for good, which anyone that has children in college would understand this statement, I boomeranged for a while. Just when my parents thought I was grown and out of the house I would come running through the front door usually with an armload of laundry. Sometimes I would tie a ribbon around it and try to pass it off as a gift for my mom.

It never worked.

All this to say that Fish grew up and grew old.

As Fish aged her hobbies changed. Where once she could not get enough of “mousing.” She didn’t seem that excited about the whole thing later in life. In fact on one of my boomerang trips I sat with Fish on the floor in the basement of my parent’s house watching “Nightline with Ted Koppel.” As we sat there watching Ted espouse his journalistic wisdom a mouse ran by, well not exactly ran, more like jogged (if mice can jog) right in front of both of us.

Fish didn’t move.

I thought she must be asleep. I looked down at her, she looked up at me as if to say, “What, I’m retired.” It was left to me to get up, catch the mouse, put the mouse back outside, which I am sure the mouse spent little time coming back in from where it was deposited.

So Fish found new hobbies.

Her new favorite hobby was to come and visit people as they came into the house and sit in the living room. She would say hello, and then leave the room only to sneak back into the room behind the couch and leave what affectionately became known as a “Fishbomb.” These were rancid, slow moving smell fronts that always seemed to stall out in the middle of the room. Usually the only relief that one could find was to go outside until it dissipated, mom would retaliate with sufficient, and often copious amounts of Lysol.

I grew up with three sisters. With sisters comes the inevitable boyfriend. Boyfriends have the annoying habit of hanging out at their girlfriend’s house.

As you might guess these boyfriends always had a “first time” at their girlfriends house.

The first time was always the same.

Fish would come into the living room and say hello.

Fish would then leave the room.

Fish would then sneak back into the room behind the couch.

Fish would leave a “bomb.”

Fish would then leave the room.

My sister's new boyfriend would look at her, knowing he didn't do it, leaving my sister to try and explain the "invisible dog" that farted. It was always quite amusing to me.

By now I am sure you are wondering why I wasn't at my girlfriend's house. The simple answer is I didn't have one. I used to brag that I dated a different girl every week! The reason was I could never get a second date. Which meant that I spent my evenings watching Fish create havoc with my sister's boyfriends. 

They would inevitably leave the house and mom would run in with her endless supply of Lysol. 

You are probably wondering where all this is going?

As I thought about Fish and the “Fishbomb.”

I thought about how we sometimes leave a wake of smell, pain behind us, when we are focused on ourselves and not on others.

I thought about how when we focus on others and their needs above our own we leave roses and smiles.

The question is how do we want to leave others as we leave the room, smelling roses or Fishbombs?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

George Carlin thoughts redux 2013 (I thought it needed to be said again)

Good morning,
I pray the day finds you well.

Every so often I read something that is so poignant and beautiful that I just need to share.

The following was written by George Carlin, comedian and observer. I hope you find it as thought provoking as I did.

An observation by George Carlin:

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider Freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years. We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better things.

We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less. We've learned to rush, but not to wait. We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom. A time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete.

Remember, to spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.

Remember, to say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.

Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.

Remember, to say, 'I love you' to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.

Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.

Give time to love, give time to speak! And give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.

And always remember, life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by those moments that take our breath away.

Take a moment, let his words sink in. Let tomorrow be different than today.

Lord, give me the strength to be the change You want me to be in the world. Give me the endurance to finish well. Give me the courage to be Your hands and feet.

Blessings,

Roger

I was walking through the YMCA this morning and and I ran into Archibald, he said, "Ouch."

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

I was walking through the YMCA this morning and and I ran into Archibald, he said, "Ouch." Archibald can be dramatic. He reminded me that we had a meeting with Open House Ministries about giving their kids free swim lessons. 

Open House Ministries is an organization that works with homeless families. Open House Ministries also has a chaplain for their staff and families. A few years ago their chaplain died suddenly and I gave support while they mourned their loss, and eventually started the process of looking for and hiring a new chaplain. I was humbled and honored to be of service for them. A really cool thing that I wasn't expecting was the programs and partnerships that came out of it. 

Padme started running summer camps out of their facility. Camps that integrated houseless kids with those that had some affluence; knocking down barriers and stereotypes that become inhibitors to true relationship. 

This summer Archibald and Sophia will be giving free swim lessons to the Open House Kiddos. 

After the meeting was over Archibald reminded me that they have the lifeguard Olympics this weekend and wanted to know if I would be on their team?  I was honored that he would ask. I started asking what events I would be part of.

I asked, "Am I swimming the 100 free?

Archibald said, "No."

I asked, "What about the deep water rescue?"

Archibald said, "No."

I said, "What about the backboard spinal challenge, am I doing that?"

Archibald replied, "No, I have you slated to be the deep water victim for the Sherwood Team."

I said, "The Sherwood team, why?"

Archibald explained, "Well, the way I see it, it will take them forever to drag you out of the water and we will win!"

I said, "I think I have a violin lesson that day. What day was it again, it doesn't matter, I have a violin lesson."

Sophia, said, "Oh Roger don't worry, you can be on my team. You can be my assistant coach."

I said, "Ok, I will cancel my violin appointment."

Actually, the YMCA lifeguard Olympics will be a fun day of team building among the lifeguards from across the association; a time when we can all see we are on the same team no matter where we are housed. I think it is pretty cool.

After all, as Joseph Myers once said, "What organizations measure becomes important.  Likewise, individuals measure what they find important in their lives."[1]

If we become more adept at measuring how impactful we can be as an association wide team and not measure just individual units with-in the association, just imagine what we could get done.

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

---

[1]Joseph Myers, The Search to Belong, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2003), 79. 

 

I was talking to my friend Eka the other day.

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

I was talking to my friend Eka the other day. We were talking about a lot of things, one of which was prayer. 

I can't tell you how many times when I have talked with people that they would say, "I don't know how to pray." As if prayer is some magic incantation that if you do it right, say the right words, use the right cadence, God will grant your wish, and if you don't well, nothing happens. I have listened to more than my share of prayers over my life and have witnessed this myself. 

I don't know, but if you struggle with prayer... relax, prayer is nothing more than a conversation with God. God knows your heart, so you don't have to have the right words, just the right heart. All He wants to do is have a conversation with you.

Eka and I were having a conversation around prayer, Eka mentioned that she wrote a prayer the other day and asked if I wanted to here it. 

I said, "yes." 

It was such a wonderful prayer that I thought I would share it with you.

This is what she wrote:

"So why are some prayers answered as a Yes, others No (not good for you) and yet some wait!

I love the yes answers like in the case of how fast He’s healing Hope even though recovery might be longer. The wait always seems like a No to me until they come to pass. But the most difficult is the outright “No not good for you” when I might sometimes not know  that’s what he’s saying. Then there are those prayers that he requires our participation like in the case of ‘heal my marriage’ when he wants me to act and the feeling will catch up later. Lord am I making any sense at all?

Prayer then has to be stripped of all I have made it to be - an entitlement plea. I need to see it as a vehicle for connecting with a father I cannot physically see yet is ever present with me and talking to him about everything is my way of connecting and relating.

Father forgive me for throwing a spiritual tantrum when I don’t get an immediate yes from you. Teach me to use prayer not only when I need something from you but especially when I just wanna talk.

So how are you doing Lord?"

Talk with God, place your burdens on Him, you just might feel better for doing so.

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger 

I sold the Y bus and bought a hamster!

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

The Summer Lunch Program, Summer Camps, Safety Around Water and Swim Lessons along with the Youth Unity Project are beginning; with Summer Camps and the Summer Lunch Program started today. Needless to say (I always think it is funny when I say "needless to say" and then say it anyway) we are all in "get it done mode" up in the North. There was a T.V. show that always said, "Winter is coming", Here in the North we say, "Summer is coming." In the show they eventually said, "Winter is here" and everything went very bad. Here in the North we say," Summer is here." and everything is very exciting and very good. In the show people died. Here in the North this is the time of year where we kick "We save lives" into high gear!

• Feeding thousands of kids that would go hungry.
• Teaching kids how to swim and save themselves in water by the hundreds.
• Running a variety of Summer camps all across our service area that teach kids to look at life through a better lens along with giving them a skillset to succeed.

So yes, we are in get it done mode.

One of the things that I had to get done was fix the bus. You might ask what is wrong with the bus and why didn't I fix the bus during the winter; I have noticed that you didn't ask, "Do you need any help with that or can I donate to defray the cost?" Anyway, to answer the question of "What is wrong with the bus" I will tell you that the catalytic convertor and all the gas was stolen. 

You might ask, "Why don't you just buy a locking cap?"

My reply is, "They would just tear it off and I would have to fix that too!"

As much we appreciate and take pride in the fact that we are doing our part to keep the catalytic convertor theft industry and the Steal the gas from others industry up and running, doing our part during covid, We didn't have funds to store the bus in a safe space once we fixed it, and couldn't afford to replace the catalytic convertor or buy gas every morning, so we just left it broken until funds became available to not only fix the bus but store the bus in a safe place that is close enough to us so we could use it.

The funds became available, and we went to work!

Sabastian contacted a muffler shop and secured a date for the repair. We then secured a storage space so that when the bus was fixed we could immediately take it to the storage facility before we partnered with the catalytic convertor and gas theft industry again. 

A number of months ago (I don't know what happened, nor do I care (another chaplain trait that I am particularly adept at) Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor sent out a wonderful email, beautifully written, and masterfully crafted, that basically said, that he was the only person allowed to sign any contracts or agreements and if anyone else did He would make them spend the day with Frederick the Great and subject them to his jokes!

Well we were on a very tight schedule and if we waited for Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor to sign the storage agreement summer would be over, just say-in, so Darryl and I made the decision to sign the agreement for a month to month rental lease. 

I then texted Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor and asked him to give me a call so I could beg forgiveness.

Within a minute the phone rang, it was Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor. I was all set to pack my bags and spend the day with Frederick.

I said, "Hello"

Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor said, "What did you do?"

I told him the story about the bus and said in a trembling voice, "I signed a rental agreement with a storage facility" and closed my eyes waiting for his response.

Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvo replied, "Oh is that all? I don't care about that. I thought you sold the bus and bought a hamster!!"

I let out a deep sigh and said, "No, I didn't by a hamster, that will be in the fall."

I can't wait to talk with you about all the wonderful things I am going to see and do this summer. 

I like helping people, but that is just the way I am wired. I like to fill peoples tanks.

Are you looking forward to summer? 

How are going to spend it, filling peoples tanks or draining them?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

How many pickles does it take to make chicken soup?

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

I was at the doctor the other day, it seems like ever since 2019 going to the doctor has become a regular part of my life; actually, it doesn't just seem like it, it has. So, when I go to the doctor's office the receptionist always has a joke or a riddle for me. 

This last visit was a riddle, and it went like this, "What has one eye but cannot see?" 

I responded, "A black eyed pea."

She said, "Nope"

I said, "A black eyed pea can't see and it only has one eye."

She said, "But that isn't the right answer."

I said, "Why not?"

She responded, "It isn't the answer I am looking for."

I said, "Words are important, it is true that a black eyed pea has one eye but cannot see, it just isn't the answer you are looking for."

She agreed, so I continued to guess.

I said, "A blind Cyclops"

"Nope" was the reply.

"A needle", I said. 

She got all excited and said, "Yes, a needle!"

I then said, "Well don't try and put a camel through it."

She just looked at me. I didn't explain.  

I had my appointment and as usual the doctor said, "Your not dead yet, go back to work."

On my way out I stopped at the receptionist desk. I gave her a riddle.

I quipped, "How many pickles does it take to make chicken soup?"

She said, "I don't know."

I replied, "Think about it, I will be back on Thursday."

It will be fun to hear her answer. 

While it was fun to talk about a one eyed thing that cannot see, it isn't so funny when we talk about two eyed people that refuse to see. S0o often in our society today we don't see individuals; oh don't get me wrong, we can see just fine. It is that we see groups instead, and then when we see an individual we assign them to whatever group we think they should be in, all without ever learning anything about the individual first. We then judge them accordingly based on the group we assigned them to. 

The really sad part of this is it is bigotry, racism... and all those other things that everyone says, "I don't do that, or it isn't me."

We make assumptions of individuals based solely on the color of their skin, their gender, their sexual orientation, their political leaning, their worldview... and it typically isn't based in a positive way.

Another way of looking at it is calling it profiling. 

The YMCA was founded using John 17:21 which starts "That all of them may be one." 

As I go through life pondering, and ruminating, and pondering again. I wonder how I have fallen into the trap of profiling, of looking at an individual and placing a group on them. I ask for forgiveness because I am sure that I have done this at times in my life. 

Have you ever fallen into the trap laid by the enemy and grouped someone without getting to know them first, placing a label on them without ever having a conversation, or is this something individual with me?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

Burnt toast

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

I got a message from Frederick. Yes, Frederick the Great, and he said he was getting breads out of order. I have no clue as to why this is happening, I will call it spiritual warfare, I guess the enemy wants us to go gluten free. Anyway, when Frederick mentioned this fact, and I told him that I didn't know why, his response was to say, "Don't leave the bread in the oven too long." I said, "There is nothing worse than burnt bread." He replied, "Yes there is, burnt popcorn!" 

He was right and I was wrong. Don't ever be wrong around Frederick, he will require you to say, "You were right, and I was wrong." in front of people, it's a thing with him.

Fresh breads are good, old bread while they may be fun, aren't as good, and burnt bread is just nasty. 

But burnt popcorn is really nasty; say, I should get product placement for this, just say-in. 

When I look at these images I am reminded of unsolicited advice or commentary. 

"What?", you say, "I can't make the correlation." 

Maybe I should be more clear. 

We like to say that constructive criticism is good, a growth opportunity. But, what usually happens is it isn't constructive, it is just criticism, or another way of putting it is being critical, which is, in its basic form, just being mean. And, being mean is just nasty, it tastes nasty, it smells nasty, and for the most part is unpalatable. 

Being critical does no-one any good. 

In the "Y" we have a saying, "Storm the problem, not the person." Looking for a better way is always a good thing, whatever that "way" is. A better way to:

• Do something
• Say something
• Think 
• Act
• Be

But being critical of a person is just making them feel less than, sad, unappreciated... and is not helpful.

As I go through my day, I ask myself, "How am I being burnt toast today?" And if I have found that somewhere in my day I came across as "Burnt" to someone, I go and ask for forgiveness. It hurts me to think I may have hurt someone. 

Do you ever think about this stuff?  

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

If someone needs help, you help them; talk less work more.

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

We had a great day yesterday.

We spent the day out at Camp Collins; Camp Collins is our YMCA resident camp, and it is located on the Sandy River in Oregon. When people ask me about Camp Collins I like to say, "Camp Collins is where the magic happens and friends last forever." 

We closed down the entire association and spent the day giving and receiving trainings, spending quality time together, empowering and encouraging one another; it was a long day but a good one.

We had a training on Sunday and then Y-Day on Monday.

The Sunday training was on program development, we had a bunch of staff at that training. After the training was over they stayed to help setup for Y-Day, not getting done until around 10pm. 

As I am sure you already know, I am a country kid. Country folk don't get too excited too quickly about things to quickly. We tend to take things in stride. 

When I was a kid we didn't have digital cameras, but we did have instamatic cameras. They were cameras that had film in cartridges and you just put a cartridge into the camera spun the knobby thing on the top of the "instamatic camera" and Wa-La you could take a picture; then you just dropped off the film at one of those 1-hour processing sheds and in 1-hour you had your pictures back ready to look at. the only problem was, living in a part of the country that only had 3-people per square mile, we didn't have one of those 1-hour processing sheds; well that isn't exactly true, we did have one, it was only 185-miles away. So our film processing was a little longer than 1-hour, it was more like 168-hour processing. When your instamatic takes 167-hours longer to process than it should, you can just imagine what something that wasn't instamatic took to get. 

We learned very early on not to get too excited about things too quickly.

When people ask me why I talk to myself I say, "Because growing up I didn't have anybody else to talk to. You might say, "what about your sister Katie, why didn't you just talk to her?"

To that I respond, "Because she was too busy talking to Dilbert, usually telling each other secrets where they had to stand really close together to tell them, like lips touching close. I never knew anyone could ever have that many secrets or take that long to tell them; I thought they were weird that way.

We used to have a saying out there in nowhere-ville, "Nobody got hurt, nobody died, it is all good." 

We had another saying out there in nowhere-ville, "Never leave a person stranded." If you saw someone on the side of the road broken down you stopped and helped them. It was really important to do this, since it might be 3-days before the next car came along. It could end up being a matter of life and death. 

If someone needs help, you help them. 

GI-Joe (This is the camp name our North team gave him, not his real name but his camp name, everyone has a camp name. It may not be the one you would give yourself, but you get one just the same.) was tasked with setting up and tearing down all the things that need to be setup and torn down for a big event, why the "Y" didn't have an organized setup and teardown team I don't know; as I like to say, "It is an opportunity to improve." 

Anyway, the North team saw Gi-Joe needed help and jumped right in. They didn't quit until it was all done, like 10pm all done. They went to a training from 8am-5pm then worked until 10pm that night. they got up the next morning, helped get everyone from around the association situated, went to Y-Day from 8am-4pm and then helped teardown!

Quick note, I was not there Sunday and only showed up Monday. I had a good nights sleep, so it was easy for me to be in a good mood. the "North staff" had little sleep, but as Esmerelda likes to say, "We brought sunshine and rainbows to a rainy day and loved on everyone.

When Darryl and I got to camp we saw GI-Joe was a bit overwhelmed and we said, "Don't worry, we got you. What do you need?" and we went to work. 

If someone needs help, you help them.

One of North's Mantra's is, "Teaching a community to truly love its neighbor." The YMCA association is our community too. How do you teach a community to truly love its neighbor? You talk less and work more. 

I am so humbled and honored to be part of such an amazing group of people. 

I ruminate on this group that I like to call family a lot. 

Do you ever ruminate on the group you associate with? 

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

I should have listened to the little voice in my head.

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

I turned on the news as I ate my breakfast this morning, the little voice in my head said, "Not a good idea." but I did it anyway. 

I should have listened to the little voice in my head. 

The news had more of the same:

• More shootings
• More people running over people
• More aggressive driving 
• More people breaking windows
• More people painting on other peoples stuff
• More people yelling at each other

And this was just the local news. 

I turned off the T.V.

As I finished getting dressed and ready for work I pondered what I had heard and seen.

As I drove into the "Y" I pondered what I had heard and seen.

I am still ponder as I write this of what I had heard and seen.

I am a context guy. I like to look into the past to see how things might go in the future. I think I get it from my dad. he always told me, "Learn from the mistakes of others, so you don't have to make the same mistake yourself." My context has come in handy more than once at the "Y". I have people that are futurists and say things like, "We should do this, or We should try that." and I am the person in the room that says, "I may be an old bat balding chaplain, but..." This is when they look at me and say, "You're not balding."

It seems to me that we are experiencing a breakdown of our social norms and ethics. 

People speeding down the roads and highways, not just a little bit, but a lot. Treating traffic like pylons and working on their Nascar techniques. 

People cutting in line, demanding to be helped first.

People treating one another with disrespect and no regard. 

One of my jobs at the YMCA is to teach our Christian Principles at New Employee Orientation (NEO). At this training I use the following analogy, "You are waking down the hall of the YMCA. On the floor is a gum wrapper. It isn't very big, small actually, there is no-one else around. You could walk right by it and no-one would ever be the wiser. Or, you could stop, bend over and pick it up. No-one would ever know that you picked it up, there would be no thank you or recognition from it, you do it anyway; this is called integrity/responsibility."

When I say something like, "We are experiencing a breakdown of our social norms and ethics." I am talking about a society that lacks integrity and responsibility. The mantra of, "If I don't get caught, then it must be ok." is so prevalent today that people ae starting to ask the question, "Are we as a country going to make it?"

I am a context guy, I like to look into the past to get a pulse of what the future might bring.

When I contemplate these kinds of things I cannot help but think of Henri Nouwen and The Genesee Diary. A book that has truly shaped me. In his book Henri makes the following observation about actions, thoughts, and feelings. 

He says, "In the contemplative life every conflict, inner or outer, small or large, can be seen as the tip of an iceberg, the expressive part of something deeper and larger.  It is worthwhile, even necessary, to explore that which is underneath the surface of our daily actions, thoughts, and feelings."[1]

Back in 1844, in London England, there was a time there that people lacked integrity/responsibility. A guy named George Williams asked the question, "What can be done?" How can we change their daily actions, thoughts, and feelings. The answer God gave him was to start the YMCA. 

While the YMCA has changed in many ways; one of the ways it has remained the same, is that we work one the whole body, Spirit, Mind, Body. We work with individuals, families and communities to see things differently, to see things with an eye towards integrity/responsibility. 

At our "Y" we like to say, "We are teaching a community to truly love its neighbor." 

There is work to be done in our country and communities. The question I am asking is, "Are you part of the solution or are you the problem?" It is a question I ask myself. 

Something to Ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

---

[1]Henri Nouwen, The Genesee Diary, (New York: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, 1989), 81. 

I was talking with Padme the other day, and I realized that I have thanatophia

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

I was talking with Padme the other day, and I realized that I have thanatophia. I didn't know that I had it and never really thought about it in those terms, but once we had our conversation and I pondered it, I came to the conclusion that yes, I am a thantophobe. I am not a complete thanatophobe however, only a partial thanatophobe. I had been giving Padma a hard time, I learned many years ago that all I have to say is, "That is women's work", and she just goes off the rails. I must admit it is fun to watch, although a bit on the dangerous side. 

I had been poking the bear with her and she said, "I am going to kill you!"

I said, "That doesn't scare me, I am not afraid of dying; well maybe just the transition process." 

She said, "You're a thanaphobe!?!"

I replied indignantly, "No I'm not, I'm a theologian."

Padme just shook her head and said, "No you idiot, a thanaphobe is someone who is afraid of dying, or the dying process." 

Padme is full of large words like thanaphobia, lexicon, perseverate, pedagogy, sesquipedalian and any word that is written in 32 font. 

Cookies on the bottom shelf.

I learned many years ago that if I want to speak with the intention of being understood and not merely heard, I must use words that people can understand and relate to. I also have to give people the ability to respond and ask questions; to not take things personally and not get my identity from what I know, but rather from a stance of curiosity.

I remember something Laurie said years ago. After listening to a pastor give his sermon one Sunday, a sermon filled with big words and fancy speech, Laurie looked at me and said, "I know I learned something, I just don't know what it was." 

In all actuality Padme is one of the best teachers I have ever worked with. She gets kids and kids get her. She is a master of "Cookies on the bottom shelf." I think she just likes to use big words with me because it will cause me to ponder, and when I walk and ponder I usually end up walking into a wall. she thinks that is pretty funny. I fail to see the humor in it however. 

Our "Y" is uniquely situated in one of the poorest communities in the Portland Metro area. It gets zero coverage from any news outlet for two main reasons:

1. It is on the wrong side of the river for the Portland news outlets to care about.
2. It is almost 200 miles from Seattle, making it to far away for the Seattle news outlets to care about. 

We seem to be on our own. I am reminded of something Brennan Manning once said, "To live among the poorest and most abandoned of peoples as a manual laborer without clerical garb, to pass days and weeks in the desert in the gratuitous praise of God, to communicate through friendship values that cannot be communicated through preaching, satisfies not a desire for novelty but a compulsion of love.  Some may call it foolish. I call it true wisdom from the God of Love."

Padme embodies what Manning stated. 

I will continue to work on my "Cookies on the bottom shelf" teaching method. 

Have you ever thought about whether you are being understood or just merely heard? 

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

---

[1]Brennan Manning, The Importance of Being Foolish: how to think like Jesus. (New York: HarperCollins, 2005), x. 

I often wonder what the world would look like if we were more outward focused?

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

I had a great meeting yesterday!

We were talking about summer kid programs and how chaplaincy can help. 

We are doing a Youth Unity Project; this project brings members of varying ethnic backgrounds together. From youth that have just immigrated to our community, to first generation youth along with youth that have been here for a while. This is a 10-week cohort that will culminate with a project that positively impacts our community.

We have our Summer Lunch Program that feeds kids at risk of hunger during the summer months when the "Hot Lunch Programs" in the schools are not running. Every year we serve thousands of meals. A few years ago we took this program on the road with one of our buses. Instead of asking kids to cross a food desert to come to an oasis, we decided to take the oasis across the food desert to them! 

We are providing food to the kids in our summer camps. Our community has a large population that is in the lower socio-economic scale. We provide more than basic access, we do our best to fill their needs as well as teach them life skills. 

At the end of every summer we have a Backpack Giveaway Event; this event provides backpacks and school supplies for those in our community that have a hard time providing these essentials for their children. Not only do we supply backpacks and school supplies, we feed them too! 

When I talk with people and they say something silly like, "Isn't the YMCA a swim and gym?"

I respond with, "While we have the best lap pool in all of SW Washington. A weight room filled with the top equipment. Some of the best studios for group exercise, a walking track and awesome gymnasium, we also:

• Provide free swim lessons for kids that come from severe abuse and need.
• Serve thousands of meals to hungry kids.  
• Work with the homeless and their families.
• Provide counseling for those going through grief and loss, low self esteem...

Did I mention we also have a pool?"

I like to tell people that we Matthew 25 people.

For I was hungry and gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.(Matthew 25-35-36)

We had a great meeting yesterday!

People think that chaplains just walk around talking to people. I like to tell my chaplains, "Talk less, do more. Just remember it's not about us."

I often wonder what the world would look like if we were more outward focused?

Do you ever think about that?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

• 
  

Today is a good day!

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

Today is a good day!

At the time of this writing I had just gotten off the phone with Frederick the Great! We talked of many things, none of which were memorial enough to remember at the moment. 

Frederick reminded me of "big tour" next Tuesday where the YMCA of Columbia-Willamette Board of Managers will be touring the many locations with-in our association. 

I said, "Oh, that is right we have the Board tour next Tuesday." 

Frederick replied, "Oh, I don't think it will be boring." We don't call him Frederick the Great for nothing!

I asked, "What is this going to entail?"

He said, "Well we will tour the association, and then convene at the University club afterwards. You are invited." 

Frederick went on to tell me that at the club there is a balcony on the second floor where Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor will give a big speech and hopefully do a rousing rendition from some obscure Shakespearian play!

I said, "Maybe Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor will give out autographs again?" 

Frederick agreed and suggested we make a pulley system with a basket so that Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor could sign the autograph, place it in the basket and lower it to us minions. 

I asked, "Do you think we will have to genuflect?"

Frederick responded, "I don't think so, he is protestant."  Lord help me!

The real reason for the call was to schedule a time for him to bring his 93-year-old cousin to come visit the "Y". I think I mentioned this to you before that her community center had closed and she needs community. I told him about our "Coffee Time" which would be perfect for her.

We scheduled a date.

I am always amazed how God works. He created the YMCA for this purpose, community. A place to belong. A place where people can find respite from the worries and problems of their daily life. They can sit back and breath. They can find friendship and common unity.

I hope that Penelope, Fredericks cousin, will enjoy her time here as much as we will enjoy having her. 

I am surrounded by amazing people.

What kind of people surround you, and why?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger 

 

I want to live a Manna Life

 Good morning,

I pray day finds you well.

Laurie and I went camping last week...

We had a wonderful time and we were able to decompress and relax. We walked and talked. We paddled our canoe and looked into the deep blue. We danced under the stars, thank God there were no other cars. 

We ate great food, with plenty of leftovers. It was a conversation about leftovers that became the topic of this bread.

During the conversation God reminded me that there was a time when leftovers were not a thing. They had been a thing, but then they weren't. Did this cause a problem, oh yes, this became a problem. 

God reminded me of the Exodus, you know when Moses had a big stick and parted the sea. Moses and his merry band of Hebrews had escaped the Egyptians only to find themselves in a desert. Do you know what grows in a desert? Not much, sand mostly.  

The merry band of Hebrews weren't so merry anymore. In fact, they were pretty darn miserable, so miserable that they wanted to go back to those mean Egyptians! They had sand in their hair and nothing in their bellies. They did have grumbly words for Moses though. 

Moses talked to God. God told Moses, "Don't worry I've got this." 

The next morning Manna started falling from the sky! Why do we call it Manna you ask? That is a wonderful question. We call it Manna because it means "What's this?"

God had provided camp food for the Hebrews. They hadn't gone camping in like 400 years, after all they had been, up to a few days ago, slaves. They were good at making bricks and pyramids and sphinx's and stuff like that, but they hadn't gone camping in a long, long time. So they didn't know what camp food was. But it tasted good!

The problem with Manna was that it only lasted one day. If you tried to eat it the next day you found out pretty fast that it had rotted. Anybody that had ever eaten camp food that had gone bad knows that it isn't good and things just get worse from there. Nobody wants to hang out with you when you've eaten camp food that has gone bad. So the Hebrews were forced to only take what they needed for the day, and then get up the next morning and collect more Manna. 

They grumbled about this and even started to think about how good leftovers were. They had forgotten that they had complained about leftovers when they had forgotten about camping. Suddenly, wanting leftovers were the new rage! 

Well eventually, the Hebrews crossed a river and entered into the land of milk and honey. It only took 40-years.

I have it on good authority that after 39-years and 9-months Moses finally listened to his wife and asked for directions. 

As Laurie and I conversed over our leftovers, I got to thinking, and of course that leads to pondering. 

How cool would life be to live a Manna life. 

• To not collect stuff, which seems to lead to hoarding, just in case I might need it tomorrow. 
• To be new and renewed everyday.
• To take what God gives me and not want more.
• To live at peace and realize that prosperity is not equal to collecting and hoarding wealth.
• To be one with God.

I have been pondering this stuff.

Do you ever ponder this stuff?

Just wondering.

Blessings,

Roger

  

I want to stand as close to the edge as I can without going over.

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

I was talking to a friend the other day and he mentioned that there was this guy on YouTube sayin disparaging things about him and the seminary where he worked. Of course, this peeked my interest and I went home and watched the video. Sure enough there was this guy who had gone to a lot of work and was laying out a case, much like a T.V. lawyer would, or maybe he fancied himself as another Lee Strobel (A lawyer who came to Christ and wrote a book about it called, A case for Christ). He was going to a lot of gyrations to prove his point. 

In every class that I teach, or when I am mentoring a manager I tell them, "If we are having a normal conversation, or informal talk, your opinion is as good as mine. But, if we are having an academic discussion, debate, or business meeting discussion. You better be able to cite your sources; otherwise, it is just opinion and nothing more. We do not make decisions, or make truth statements based on opinion.

In a land far, far away, and long, long ago, I graduated from the seminary in question. But, as I said it was a long time ago and I have not been back. I have no information as to whether it has backslid, or degraded to the point that this young pastor stated that he experienced. 

I will make this observation from his Matlock impersonation. His expert witnesses that he sourced, well not witnesses but advisors, were his own elder board. 

A little church administration stuff for you, just in case you didn't know. We have two distinctions of church, I will just give you the high points:

• High church
• Low church

High church simply means there is oversight and a formal organization that the pastor works for. He/she is hired by the organization and placed in a church and follows the organizations rules. Examples of a High church:

• Lutheran
• Presbyterian
• Methodist
• Episcopalian
• Catholic

Low church is more independent and while there may be an overarching organization that watches the church, it is more loosely held and less interfering, some don't have any oversight at all. The congregation hires the pastor or the pastor births his own church. Examples of a low church:

• Non-denominational
• Quaker
• Baptist
• Pentecostal

Matlock (I will use this for his name, not his real name but the story goes better with a name) was obviously in the low church model. How do I know you ask? Well he was already a lead/senior pastor when he entered seminary and only the high church model requires the senior/lead pastor to hold a Master of Divinity Degree prior to becoming a senior/lead pastor. 

So Matlock cited his expert advisors from his own elders board. People that had not been part of the rigor of his seminary experience, only told by Matlock what he experienced. Not academically appropriate, nor does it pass legal muster.  

Another point that Matlock made was the fact that other worldviews were taught and talked about, and how inappropriate, causing students to change their worldview, and unprofessional it was. That giving students access to other ways of thinking was too liberal for what was supposed to be a conservative seminary. A couple of points I would like to bring forward:

1. The seminary in question was never a bastion of conservativism, it was evangelical.
2. No matter how conservative, or liberal your theology is, there is always someone more conservative or liberal than you.
3. The seminary in question is in the business of educating, not indoctrinating their students. Part of being educated is looking at worldviews, philosophers and philosophies that are more divergent than your own. I had some fellow students that went to seminary just to affirm what they already knew, they didn't make it, just like Matlock didn't make it. 

I am reminded of something Kurt Vonnegut once said, "I want to stand as close to the edge as I can without going over. Out on the edge you see all the kinds of things you can't see from the center."

A true seminary experience allows one to stand on the edge, so students can look at all the things that they would never see from the safety of the middle. 

A great teaching pastor will do the same thing for his congregation. 

Matlock is not comfortable on the edge, he is comfortable standing square in the middle with plenty of buffer between him and those that are heretics, sinners, and the like. The sad part is Matlock can't see himself in the midst. The truly sad part is he is an unwitting ragamuffin generator. I am sure he is a good person with a good heart and it is ok that he is uncomfortable being on the edge, but others are not so uncomfortable. 

Why do I say all this? 

I say this so we remember that we all have jobs to do in the kingdom, but no one job is more important than another. And, if you are going to make a truth statement, cite your source and don't use sources that are close to you, it shows laziness and inability to research. If you are making theological truth statements use extra biblical material to support the bible. We all know the bible can be used to heal and to hurt. Just look at the Calvin/Armenian debate. 

We have lots of uplifting and inspirational signs in our "Y" One that I really like is, "Promote what you love, don't bash what you hate."

Matlock has every right to his opinion. And, if someone solicited his opinion he has every right to express it. But, he posted a video so the world could see. It became an unsolicited opinion of a person and an organization. This is not constructive criticism, it is just criticism and kind of mean.  

I say all this so I can remind myself not to be a Matlock. 

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

 

The sisterhood of the traveling bibles

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well. 

I have been gone for a few days camping with Laurie. 

I came into the "Y" this morning and opened my office door. Low and behold on the crying chair was a box of bibles!

Maybe I should back up a bit.

We remodeled our YMCA back in 2013 - 2014. When we remodeled our "Y" the staff made sure I had my own office. Ask anyone who has worked for a YMCA and they will tell you, space is a premium. Most staff are double and tripled up in one office because of space issues. I was given an individual office for two reasons:

1. Because of the people that come to talk with me and share things that are private. 
2. I tend to be gassy

I truly appreciated that the staff made a special space for me. 

My office is 8x8 with windows and an electrical panel that I am not allowed to put anything in front of. Inside my office, space is a premium. 

In the summer of 2014 we hired a new Senior Director of Healthy Living. She oversaw both the Healthy Living department and the Membership department. One of the areas that membership oversaw was the community room. 

The community room is a space where members congregate to socialize, have groups, and hold classes. There were a lot of books and stuff in the community room. 

The new Senior Director of Healthy Living decided one day that all those books should live in my office. I came in one day to boxes of books stacked in my office. Other staff saw what had happened and thought, "Well, I guess Roger's office is the place to put things."

As you could have probably guessed I was not a happy camper when this started to happen, so I acted quickly.

In the spring of 2022 I cleaned out my office.

I asked Daryl our Executive Director what he thought I should do with the stuff. Daryl, who by the way is still mad at Flo for calling him "bigfoot," said, "Put it back in the community room where it all started from."

So, I got with Sabastian and Esmeralda; we put all the books and stuff into the drawers under the counters in the community room. One of the things we put in there was a box full of Bibles. 

A few weeks goes by and I come into work to find that box full of Bibles back in my office and in the crying chair. 

Now we are all caught up!

I came into the "Y" this morning and opened my office door. Low and behold on the crying chair was a box of bibles!

I turned around and said, "Who put these bibles in my office?"

I received the preverbal, "Not me, not me." from the staff. 

I took the box of Bibles out of my office and Bluebell asked what I was going to do with them? 

I replied, "Get rid of them." 

Bluebell responded, "I will take them."

I wrote an email to the leadership team asking them to please use the recycle bin outside and not the one in my office to get rid of their stuff. 

Satisfied that I had properly scolded everyone without having to actually talk to anyone, very chaplainy of me. I left for a few minutes and when I came back Esmeralda was standing over the box that Bluebell had placed on the floor in the welcome center and looking right at me said, "What is this?"

I looked her straight in the eye and said, "Not me, not me."

We found out that Stitch was cleaning out the "Manager on Duty" office and came across the box of Bibles and not knowing what to do put them. He put them in my office. 

But just how did they get in the M.O.D. office? The mystery continues, they traveled?

We had a good laugh and Esmeralda suggested that I write a bread about The sisterhood of the traveling Bibles. I thought that was a wonderful idea and went back into my office, now I could sit down since I had room for a chair. 

Wait a minute you say. You just told me that the box of Bibles was in the crying chair in your office.

That's right, but I'm not going to sit in it. It makes me cry!

I began to write the tale when low and behold Esmeralda clamors into my office yelling, "Brad's cart, Brad's cart, had anyone seen Brad's cart?!"

I think I owe you an explanation. 

Brad is one of our volunteers. he has volunteered for us for quite a while now. Brad has some ailments and is physically challenged, so I bought him a cart a few years ago so he could transport things he was working on, in fact here is a picture of Brad's cart.

How do we know you are telling us the truth Roger? 

1. I never lie, all my stories are completely true with no exaggerations.
2. His name is on it.

We looked all over for Brad's cart and finally found it in the Teen Center. I guess we will have to write a bread about that someday!

Esmeralda was now happy, she knew where Brad's cart was. And, I was happy that I could go back to writing this bread.

The sisterhood of the traveling pants. 

A story of four sisters that promise to stay connected as they travel in different directions. 

The sisterhood of the traveling Bibles. 

A story of a box of bibles that went for a travel but stayed connected and came back. 

While things may find themselves in an "out of sight out of mind" place in our lives. I began to ponder, "How have I done the same thing with God?" How often has He been "out of sight out of mind" in my life? 

Those bibles and Brad's cart have caused me to ponder two things:

1. How have I been guilty of, "out of sight out mind with God?
2. How can I be more intentional about my walk with Christ. Keeping Him not only in my mind, but at the forefront of it?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger