Death by a thousand cuts

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

Darryl decided to prune his tree. Now to be honest and transparent, Darryl doesn't have a lot of experience pruning trees. He came into my office and said, "Roger you have to see what I did this past weekend!

I said, "Ok" (If you remember, that is chaplain speak for, 'God, I hope this doesn't take long, and give me patience. Like a I said, I am a great chaplain). 

Darryl started to flip through the pictures, telling a story and weaving a tale with each picture. Somehow, I was transported back to the 70's when our family had the good luck of knowing people that went on vacations, although we never did, and they would invite us over for a rousing 3-hours of carousel slide projector pictures of Ethel with a Mai-Tai, and a bikini that probably looked great 20-years ago. And Bob, in those Bermuda shorts that look a lot better on the guy in the magazine. 

As a teen I had more fun getting kicked by a horse than those vacation picture nights. It probably says a lot about why I am the way I am.

But here I was putting my best chaplain face on, while Darryl told me about his pruning prowess. 

Darryl said, "Here is that ugly tree sporting branches in every direction. Uggg...I just couldn't take it. I had to make it pretty."

So I made a few cuts.......But it still wasn't right.

After a few more it really began to take shape. but not quite there yet!

Finally, I got it to just the way I wanted it. I might have pruned a little much, but I think it looks ok. 

As I listened to Darryl, weave his tale. I couldn't help but think of Brennan Manning and Henry Nouwen. I couldn't help but think of the Ragamuffin Gospel and the Genesee Diary. 

To use Manning's wit and wisdom is to see the tree full of life just after a person comes to Christ. They are happy, full of life, looking forward to this new relationship, they are a new creation, it is a beautiful thing.

Time goes by...

The church has started the pruning process in their lives. At first it doesn't hurt much and the person still feels full of life and excited to live this new life.

More time goes by...

The church has pruned a bit more. Now the person doesn't smile as much anymore. They come to church because they are supposed to, not because they want to. It is beginning to hurt being in church. They notice a judgment of those in the pews. They work even harder to be accepted and to "be the right kind of Christian."

More time passes...

Now, if they have managed to stay in church (which by now is an iffy thing) they are dead inside, all their spirituality has been pruned away. They are little more than a stump of their former selves. they sing Joy to the world, with no joy in their voice. 

Death by a thousand cuts.

They have become dead Christians.

If you think I am being hard on the church, you are right, I am. I have watched too many pastors flame out and crash, leaving the ministry altogether feeling as if they are nothing more than a stump of a once beautiful tree. Beaten down and out by over needy parishioners, and pushed by those above them in the denomination until they are dead inside.

I have even sent more than one pastor on a monastery style spiritual retreat, just to re-center themselves.

Christ came to save us, not kill us. So why do we put so much energy into killing our brothers and sisters in Christ and wounding our healers? 

And, if you are a fellow ragamuffin but still has reservations abut the whole thing, take heart, find a group of people that are grace filled, low on judgement ( I would say judgement free but I can't honestly say any human is judgment free), and big on love. I found one in the church that meets at our "Y". We love Jesus, and we love each other. 

God has asked me to look at myself and find where I might have culpability and need to ask for forgiveness.  

Are you brave enough to look yourself in the mirror and see where you might have hurt a blossoming Christian, just because they didn't do everything right? Or have you not forgiven the church because a person that isn't good at pruning has judged and hurt you? 

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

Long time caller first time listener

 Good Morning,

I pray the day finds you well. 

It was 9am Sunday morning. I had family, and relatives coming to the house and Laurie and I were busy preparing for them. I was washing windows, getting things in order...all the things one does before people arrive to their house and then go through the process of destroying it all over again. 

I was busy doing the things Laurie told me to do, I am good that way. Laurie tells me I would be better if I just did them without her prodding. My response is always the same, "If I say I am going to do it I will. You don't need to nag me every 6-months!" 

Anyway, I was busy doing the things Laurie told me to do when my phone rang. I answered the phone and Rusty Bent was on the line. rusty is a faithful Bread follower; in Ragamuffin fashion he said, "Hey I am a long time caller first time listener."  

I said, What's up Rusty?"

Rusty asked, "Are you at the YMCA?"

I said, "No."

He said, "Why not?"

Putting aside the fact that it was 9am on a Sunday morning, and the perception that I do live at the YMCA. the fact is, I do go home once in a while (Usually to do the things Laurie tells me to do). 

I said, "I have family in town and more coming in on a plane. Laurie has me do chores."

Rusty said, "Sounds like you should be at the YMCA."

I responded, "What is it that you need? And don't ask for Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor's autograph again." 

Rusty said, "I have a bunch of bottled water and some energy bars that I want to donate to the "Y," is anyone there to take them?

I said,  "Yes there is. I will let them know you are coming"

I called Esmeralda. She said, " Great I will meet him out front."

Rusty got to the "Y" and Esmeralda met him at the front door. rusty (Not knowing who was helping him) said, "Do you read the Daily Bread for Ragamuffins?" 

Esmeralda replied, "Yes, yes I do." 

Rusty went on to say how he loved the "I should have gone to the bathroom before we left" Bread. And asked if she had read it? 

Esmeralda replied, "Well, I am Esmeralda, so yes, I read the bread." 

Rusty was star struck.  

He called me after he delivered the water and energy bars and said, "Esmeralda is a gem!" 

I said, "I know!"

There is an old YMCA saying that goes, "If you have seen one 'Y' you have seen one 'Y'." Meaning that every "Y" is a reflection of the community that the have been placed in. 

Our "Y" has been busy teaching the community that it has been placed in to truly love it's neighbor. When you see our "Y" you see a "Y" that is busy loving on its neighbor, and the community is actually reflecting that love back on the "Y". It is a pretty cool place to be.

When I ponder our "Y" and our place in our community, I cannot help but also ponder about me and my place in our community. What am I reflecting? I ask that question a lot.

Do you ask that question?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger

"Don't lose Jesus in the bathwater."

Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

First of all I have to get something off my chest. Our Cinco de Mayo bread was a hot mess. Not the message, nor the content, I had written the bread when Esmeralda suggested that I translate it into Spanish for the holiday. I thought that was a wonderful idea, so I did. Then I promptly deleted the original bread that was in English. Once I deleted the English version I realized that the message would be lost if the reader could not translate the message into English (I know I have a translate button in my blogsite, I never trust those things). So I went to Google translate, and well you have seen the rest. I hope the message came through the "Hotness".

There, done with that nonsense.

My good friend Frederick (Frederick the great as he is commonly known, unless you went to college with him and know him as "Siete cajas de cerveza Coors" for reason unbeknown to me), sent me a message after reading the "May the 4th be with you" conversation we had together. 

If we all remember correctly, the message was on Grace, and where do you get your "force (4th) from, your strength, identity if you will. Is it you doing good things, or Christ in you? After reading all that he came away with: 

Patience is a virtue

Virtue is Grace

Grace is a little girl who wouldn't wash her face 

It is good to know that I am making such a positive impact on my readers. I can only imagine the conversations  Frederick (Frederick the great as he is commonly known, unless you went to college with him and know him as "Siete cajas de cerveza Coors" for reason unbeknown to me) will have after he reads this!!!

Still ruminating on my mess up with the Cinco de Mayo blog.

I woke up this morning, turned on the news (Probably not the best way to start one's day) and the news lady (Is that correct, or do I say person, persons, multi-dimensional being/beings? I can never tell anymore, and what ever I say ends up wrong, if not today, 30-years from now). And she (I am going with she. She looked like a she) said that now today is May the Sith Day. It is no longer Cinco de Mayo, but "May the Sith be with you day." Why couldn't we just keep Cinco de Mayo and have May 6th be May the Sith be with you? May 6th and Sith seems more closely related than May 5th and Sith unless one has a lisp. 

Once again, adventures in missing the point.

Speaking of missing the point, it seems that between my "Cinco de Mayo" blog and  Frederick (Frederick the great as he is commonly known, unless you went to college with him and know him as "Siete cajas de cerveza" Coors for reason unbeknown to me) response to the "May the 4th be with you" blog we have missing the point pretty well covered, just say-in.

Why is it that we spend so much time and energy taking something that is meant for one thing and attempt to change it into something completely different? Why can't we just see that one thing for what it is and celebrate that, or work with-in it's framework. Frankly, if that "something" isn't something we agree with, well than go to the work of making our own "something" and not spend time trying to change someone else's something so we feel better. 

That is exactly what George Williams (The founder of the YMCA) did back in 1844. He saw something he did not like, but instead of insisting that "they" change there stuff, he started to provide a new "something" and that is how the YMCA started. And that new something was working with young men to see the world they lived in differently along with how they interacted with-in it. Where did George get this radical idea? Well he got it from modeling what Jesus did. 

Cinco de Mayo was a good object lesson. 

I have been thinking about this, how can I work with a mentality of positivity instead of a mentality of negativity and see things for what they are, not try to change them but be comfortable with-in them and work on being even more inclusive and loving. To complain less about the way things are, and create new ways for all humans (the YMCA has grown from just young men to all people) to see the world and interact with-in it. Once again not a radical new idea, no, just a radical old idea. An idea that Jesus modeled some 2,000 years ago. You have heard the term, "Don't lose the baby in the bathwater,"  I like to say, "Don't lose Jesus in the bathwater." Simply meaning that we should be careful not to lose Christ in the murkiness of the dirty water that pervades our life and society. To Christ with-in the mudpuddles of life and continue to be His hands and feet.

God has been nudging me again. He is a pesky God after all, never giving up on me nor forgetting me. It is as if He loves me or something.

How has God been nudging you ?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,Roger 

Es el 5 de mayo

Buenos Dias,

Rezo para que el día te encuentre bien.

Cinco de Mayo (pronunciado sinjkq de majo) en México, es español para el "cinco de mayo". Es una celebración anual que se lleva a cabo el 5 de mayo y que conmemora el aniversario de la victoria de México sobre el Imperio Francés. Curiosamente, es más popular en los Estados Unidos que en México por tres razones;

1. La gente piensa que es el día de la independencia de México, pero no lo es. Tal vez estudiar un poco más en la escuela ayudaría con este concepto erróneo.

2. Es una celebración de la Cultura México-Americana.

3. La gente no celebra nada en absoluto, solo lo usa como excusa para beber.

Cuando pienso/reflexiono sobre estos dos puntos, creo que veo el problema con nuestro proceso de pensamiento, o más acertadamente, la falta de pensamiento.

 

En primer lugar, la gente no sabe realmente lo que está celebrando, en segundo lugar, tienen que ver con la cultura mexicano-estadounidense, pero no se molestan con la persona mexicano-estadounidense, y por último, pero no menos importante, a la gente ni siquiera le importa, ellos Sólo quiero una excusa para beber.

 

Cuando pienso en esto, reflexiona si lo harás. Creo que esto es solo un microcosmos de personas que afirman que el cristianismo es una cosmovisión.

1. La gente piensa que ser cristiano es tener todo "todo junto" sin problemas. Tal vez estudiar un poco más y prestar atención a las palabras de Cristo ayudaría con este concepto erróneo.

2. Es una celebración de la vida sobre la muerte, cultura eterna si se quiere.

3. La gente en realidad no está celebrando nada, solo quiere un seguro contra incendios.

Si tuviéramos que celebrar verdaderamente el 

Cinco de Mayo:

1. Celebra de verdad el motivo de la ocasión

2. No solo celebrar la cultura porque nos gusta la comida

y la bebida, sino celebrar a la gente y su cultura 

y cómo puede mejorar la nuestra y nuestra experiencia.

3. Tal vez obtenga ayuda con su forma de beber si 

la única razón por la que están celebrando 

es tener una excusa para beber.

Si realmente tomáramos en serio nuestra cosmovisión, 

haríamos lo siguiente:

1. Preocúpate menos por aparentar que lo tenemos 

todo bajo control y preocúpate más por cómo podemos 

amar a nuestro prójimo. Alguien dijo una vez, 

"Amarás al Señor tu Dios con todo tu corazón, 

y con toda tu alma, y ​​con toda tu mente, y con 

todas tus fuerzas. El segundo es este, 'Amarás a 

tu prójimo como a ti mismo.' no hay otro mandamiento 

mayor que estos.

2. Mientras que la vida eterna es un beneficio de llamar 

a Cristo tu Señor y salvador; no es por eso que entras 

en una relación con Él. Entras en una relación con 

Él porque Él es el camino, la verdad y la vida. 

Tu vida entera cambiará cuando lo aceptes como tu 

señor y salvador, no solo después de la muerte.

3. Darse cuenta de que si hubiésemos venido a 

Cristo por miedo, sin creer verdaderamente en Él pero 

sin querer "arder en el infierno", por así decirlo. 

Vinimos a Cristo por la razón equivocada.

Si tuviéramos que celebrar el Cinco de Mayo por todas 

las razones correctas, la gracia abundaría y la inclusión, 

no la exclusión, sería la palabra del día.

Si tuviéramos que celebrar el cristianismo por todas 

las razones correctas, la gracia abundaría y la inclusión, 

no la exclusión, sería la palabra del día.

Algo para reflexionar.

Bendiciones,

Roger

And here is the Bread for all of us that cannot read spanish

Good morning,
I pray that the day finds you well.
 Cinco de Mayo (pronounced sinjkq de majo)
 in Mexico, is Spanish for "fifth of May." 
It is an annual celebration that takes place 
on May 5, and commemorates the anniversary of 
Mexico's victory over the French Empire. 
Interestingly, it is more popular in the 
United States than in Mexico for three reasons;
 1.    People think it's Mexico's independence day, but it's not. 
Perhaps studying a little more in school would help with this
 misconception.
2.    It is a celebration of the Mexican-American Culture.
3. People don't celebrate anything at all, 
they just use it as an excuse to drink. 
When I think/ponder on these two points, I think I see 
the problem with our thought process, or more accurately, 
the lack of thought.
 First of all, people don't really know 
what they're celebrating, second, 
they celebrate the Mexican-American culture,
but they don't bother with the 
Mexican-American person, 
and last but not least, the people don't 
even care, they just want an excuse to drink.
 When I think of this, ponder if you will. I
think this is just a microcosm of 
some people that Christianity as a worldview.
1.    People think that being a Christian is having 
everything "all together" without problems. 
Perhaps studying a little more and paying attention 
to the words of Christ would help with this 
misconception.
 2.    It is a celebration of life over death, eternal culture 
if you will.
3.    People aren't really celebrating anything, 
they just want fire insurance.
 If we were to truly celebrate the Fifth
 of May:
 1. Really celebrate the reason for the 
occasion.
2. We don't just celebrate culture because we like food
and drink, but to celebrate the people and their culture
and how it can improve our culture, and our experience.
3. You may want to get help with your drinking if
the only reason they're celebrating is to have an excuse 
to drink.
 If we really took our worldview seriously,
we would do the following:
 1. Worry less about looking like we 
have it all together, everything under 
control and worry more about how we can love
 our neighbor. someone once said,
"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
and with all your soul, and with all your mind, 
and with all your strength. The second is this, 
'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' 
There is no other commandment greater than these.”
 2. While eternal life is a benefit of 
calling Christ your Lord and savior; 
that's not why you come in
into a relationship with Him. You enter into a relationship 
with Him because He is the way, the truth and the life. 
Your whole life will change when you accept Him as 
you lord and savior, not only life after death. 
3.    Realize that if we had come to Christ out of fear, without
 truly believing in Him but not wanting to"burn in hell",
 so to speak. We came to Christ for the 
wrong reason. 
If we were to celebrate Cinco de Mayo for all
the right reasons, grace would abound and inclusion,
not exclusion, would be the word of the day. 
If we were to celebrate Christianity for all
the right reasons, grace would abound and inclusion,
not exclusion, would be the word of the day. 
Something to ponder. 
Blessings,
Roger

May the 4th be with you

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

Well it is May 4th again. It is like it comes around every year. Uggg....

Every year I have to put up with Padme saying, "May the 4th be with you" every time I pass her in the hall and it seems as if on May 4th I pass her all the time (I think she just wanders the Hall all day saying, "May the 4th be with you" to everyone she sees). I have noticed that there aren't as many members in our "Y" on May 4th, it is as if it is a national holiday or something. I am leaning toward the "or something" part, since on every other holiday that we are open people swarm us, but on this one they stay away. Personally, and this is only my hypothesis, I think it because Padme roams the halls saying "May the 4th be with you to everyone she meets. Uggg...I can't say Uggg...to many times for this one, just say-in.

May the 4th is the day before May 5th, or more commonly known as Cinco de mayo, which is a pretty important holiday around here, especially for corona beer and margarita sales.  Enough about that though, what I really want to talk with you about is culture.

The word culture gets thrown around a lot by people, mostly V.P's and C level folk in organizations; which is fine, but I (as a fellow ragamuffin) seldom hear the word "Grace" when discussing culture. I think that is because we don't understand it. Oh, don't get me wrong, us church folk can define it easily enough, but actually living a grace filled life, well not so much. 

Brennan Manning said it best when he said:  

Our culture as made the word grace impossible to understand.  We resonate to slogans such as:

“There’s no free lunch.”

“You get what you deserve.”

“You want money?  Work for it.”

“You want love?  Earn it.” 

“You want mercy?  Show you deserve it.”

“Do unto others before they do unto you.”

“Watch out for welfare lines, the shiftless street people, free hot dogs at school, affluent students with federal loans—it’s a con game.”

“By all means, give unto others what they deserve but not one penny more.”[1]

 A friend told me she overheard a pastor say to a child, “God loves good little boys.”  As I listen to sermons with their pointed emphasis on personal effort – no pain, no gain – I get the impression that a do-it-yourself spirituality is the American fashion.[2]

 …our spirituality often starts with self, not God.[3]

 Though lip service is paid to the gospel of grace, many Christians live as if only personal discipline and self-denial will mold the perfect me.  The emphasis is on what I do rather than on what God is doing.[4] 

This do it yourself mentality, and reliance on self not God, is a real problem in our "culture" today. 

As Manning points out. When things are successful it is because of  me. When things go badly we blame God. All the while people look at us and say, "Get your act together!" not even thinking that God might be able to use them to help someone else and be the blessing of "Grace" in their life. 

So when Padme runs through the halls yelling, "May the 4th be with you." I have to ask myself, "What 4th am I relying on?"

The 4th of God

or

The 4th of myself?

This is what am pondering today.

Do you ever ponder this stuff too?

Something to ponder.

Oh here comes Padme again, I better hide.

Blessings,

Roger

---

[1]Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel, (Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah Publishers, 2005), 16.

[2]Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel, (Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah Publishers, 2005), 16-17.

[3]Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel, (Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah Publishers, 2005), 17.

[4]Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel, (Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah Publishers, 2005), 17. 

Laurie and I went to dinner with Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor and Wendy Friday night

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

Laurie and I went to dinner with Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor and Wendy Friday night (As always Wendy is not her real name, but a story goes much better with a name attached. 

When Laurie and I got to the restaurant Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor and Wendy were already there, in fact they were already seated at the table. Well, Wendy was seated at the table. Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor was busy signing autographs for people. I think both the management and the people would have been more appreciative if the customers had actually asked for his autograph. But, Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor was busy mingling with his fans, signing the fancy cloth napkins, men's ties, and the back of ladies hands. Wendy was just sitting quietly at the table drinking wine, and asking for a refill. the waiters where busy though, mostly attempting to get Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor to sit back down at our table. Wendy and the restaurant were glad we showed up and Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor sat down with us. 

Wendy is a wonderful lady; quiet, reserved, usually doesn't drink. Tonight was a special occasion (I think mostly because of all the autograph non-seekers receiving autographs, but then again that is how Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor roles.  

We had a wonderful time and the conversation was invigorating, at least for Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor and I. We spent most of the time talking about the "Y." Laurie and Wendy spent most of the time trying to get us to talk about something else. They ended up having their own conversation; mainly around the topic of leaving Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor and me home and having a girls day! We did spend an exorbitant amount of time discussing what name to use before coming up with Wendy. 

We ended the evening with lots of laughs and figuring out what we will do next. 

That has nothing to do with today's bread, just wanted to keep you updated on my social life. 

Saturday morning I was back at the "Y" to help set up for Healthy Kids Day. Healthy Kids Day is a YMCA that is meant to show off, flaunt, unveil all the things of the YMCA to kids and families that do not know about the YMCA. It is a great event, a fun event, an event that takes a lot of work to get ready for and to put on, but well worth it, and this year is the 30th anniversary of Healthy Kids day. 

We always get a ton of families. We also get a ton of, "We didn't know." or "the "Y" is awesome." We get excited when a new family becomes a member. Not because we have a "new member," but because we have a new member of the family. another life we get to save. Another life we get to positively impact, another life we get to change in a positive way.

You have heard me say, "Big stuff, little stuff" before, and how most of the "stuff" we perceive as big stuff is actually "little stuff" that we decided to make "big." Well, at least for me, Healthy Kids Day is big stuff.

We work hard at our YMCA, and sometimes it can get us down when we get tired and see all the hurt and pain in the world, but see true impact always give energy, and hope for the future. 

I am glad that I am part of a place that makes my soul sing.

What kind of a place are you part of?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger 

People vote with their wallets

 Good morning,

I pray the day finds you well.

A friend of mine, she name is Bellona (once again not her real name) came up to me yesterday and said, "Do you know Elon Musk?"

I said, "Not personally, he has never come to my house, or invited me to dinner."

Bellona said, "Funny you should bring up dinner. (I didn't laugh, so I am not sure what was so funny about it) You know he wants to go to Mars, right."

I said, "Yes." (Doing my best to put on my 'look how interested I am face, while all the while pondering why I had to let me belt out a notch this morning, Hmmm...could it have been those three hamburgers I had last night? No, it couldn't have been that, could it?)

Bellona continued, "So to go to Mars, he said he is going to build a space port on the moon to launch from!"

I replied, "A-ha" (Maybe it was the milkshake?)

She continued without taking a breath, "Not only is he gong to build a space port but an entire community on the moon." (I know it was that yogurt I had for desert. I will cut that out the yogurt next time. I am sure to lose weight then)! 

I replied, "Wow."

Bellona went on to describe this community and all its services. She said, "It will even have a restaurant!!"

(Bellona is very excitable as you can obviously tell from all the exclamation points!!!!)

I said, "Say it isn't so." (Maybe if I lift weights in my mind, my biceps will get bigger)

She finished with, "Yes! the food will be out of this world, the only problem is there is no atmosphere!)

I said, "did you just tell a joke?"

Bellona said, "Yep"

I replied, "That was the longest joke ever." (I hate it when people take a long time to get to the point, don't you?)

But her joke got me to thinking, and when I think I tend to go right into pondering. 

Elon Musk just spent $43Billion to buy Twitter, so he could tweet and twitterpate. I have no idea how much he spent so he can vacation on Mars someday. 

I met with a donor the other day discussing all the things we do here at the YMCA that positively impact lives, or as our CEO likes to say, "Save lives." Trevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvor is not wrong either. We do, and have saved lives. 

As we talked the topic of money came up. The donor asked, "How much does it cost to do that?" I told the donor what it cost and the donor said, "Is that all? How can you do all that for that amount of money?" 

I replied, "We are very frugal, actually I think I said cheap. 

As I thought about Elon Musk spending $43,000,000,000 to buy twitter so he could tweet and twitterpate. I also thought about hungry kids, people dying of cancer, the mental health crisis, homelessness in America today, and how $43,000,000,000 could help in these areas, and these where just ones that came to me at the time. 

I could go on complaining about spending $43,000,000,000 just to tweet and twitterpate, but I won't. Who am I to say how, or even judge, how someone spends their money. Would I like someone else to judge Laurie and me about how, and what we contribute to our fellow human in the name of Christ? I don't think we would. 

If Elon Musk wants to put his money into making sure he can tweet and twitterpate what he wants to tweet and twitterpate, ok let him. 

There is an old adage in the church world, it goes like this, "People vote with their wallets." Simply, people put money where their hearts are. 

As I pondered this, I will continue to put my money, time, energy...into the things that are important to me; God's people and His creation; all of them, whether they believe He exists or not. 

Do you ever wonder why you put your money, time, energy into the things you do?

Something to ponder.

Blessings,

Roger