ordinary people

THE BOOKS ARE NEVER FINISHED
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THE BOOKS ARE NEVER FINISHED

“ORDINARY PEOPLE”      Click on music if it doesn’t start by itself.

CONFIDENCE

So on July 15th, 2022 GOD stopped by while I had Open Heart Surgery at GOD’s own bequest. GOD didn’t want me to do this just with the help of some excellent doctors and nurses. GOD always prepares and never gives up on a project. The first thing GOD did was prepare the  project with GOD’s gift in the hands of the people that the above song is all about. Not just me, not just a few. Once GOD had put all the pieces of this project together over a period of a year and a half. GOD got so many people to help me, to watch the dogs, to drive me here and there, and a whole team of encouragement givers appeared. As I was talking with a couple of the encouragers the other night they asked me a question. “You have done all of this so well with your surgery, and your positiveness. Just how did you do it?”

I thought about the question for  a few minutes and the word came to me. “CONFIDENCE”. I was getting ready to be off to bed and I found myself remembering with a group of people from a song I had written years ago. The song at the beginning of this writing. “Ordinary People.” I talked to my encouragers. “Confidence is not just a gift. If you do not mind me sharing. Confidence is not born of one event. It is born of a lifetime of events of “Ordinary People” who have shared their “Confidence” in hundreds of events in my life. ORDINARY PEOPLE who have shared my lifetime in so many situations”. I shortly left for bed. But I was not done with this note for this lesson.

You see we often make a huge mistake when we miss the values of Unorthodox Christianity. We think that the Bible’s have all the stories. We write them down and memorize them from Bible school to Bible College to Sunday School and all kinds of Bible Studies. There are all kinds of Churches and stories about what will happen if you don’t believe this story, or that story. The truth of GOD is this:

THE BOOKS ARE NEVER FINISHED. THE “ORDINARY PEOPLE” ARE NEVER DONE. GOD has provided us with enough encourgers and personal stories of so many events over lifetimes of stories that they have become libraries that have filled the ages of writings, and stories, and songs for you to share with and lives to learn from. They surpass the few books that we ascribe to our Bibles and we miss the thousands of books that have become thousands of years of events throughout the world. GOD knows that the few books we attribute to the “Bibles” are such a small volume of the works of GOD and “ORDINARY PEOPLE” that telling people what GOD has in mind for our lives doesn’t scratch the surface of just one ORDINARY PERSON, let alone thousands, let alone billions that have become just who we are.

Just what are people looking for when they seek out GOD for their own relationship with GOD? What do the “Ordinary People” ask of GOD? More and more people have a harder time with a GOD who criticizes everything from a journey that GOD will sort out and that GOD will see lifetimes of challenges and changes. GOD will send ORDINARY PEOPLE to encourage so many encourgers over so many lifetimes to support so many. And suddenly it becomes lifetimes of forever lifetimes of “Life after Death”.

One thing I have gotten out of Unorthodox Christianity over all these years is pretty simple. ” Lifetimes of CONFIDENCE”.

THE BOOKS ARE NEVER FINISHED. THE BOOKS WILL ALWAYS EXIST. THE BOOKS WILL ALWAYS BE FOUND NO MATTER WHERE THEY MAY BE HIDING. THAT IS WHAT CREATES CONFIDENCE. AND CONFIDENCE IS WHAT CREATES FAITH. AND FAITH IS THE HALLMARK OF GOD.

“HE CHOSE ORDINARY PEOPLE TO BE FOLLOWERS OF CHRIST.”

 

SUPPLEMENTS OF LIFE
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SUPPLEMENTS OF LIFE

GOOD MORNING ALL

Doing a bit more research today getting ready for surgery next week. I am not supposed to eat herbal supplements prior to surgery. Not being a dietitian, I looked up the National Institute of Health on “supplements”. There went my entire diet. (Not really). It is interesting all of the “supplements” we all have access to. Some, though, are very helpful to know about. I think I am doing OK. Good water is safe.

Today’s word reminded me of a dear friend from years ago who had been diagnosed with liver cancer and was told he had just a few weeks to live. We were walking one morning (As we did every morning since he was told) when he mentioned “You know Dennis, I’ve never seen the leaves greener, the roses are redder, the smells are more sweet and intense, it is simply a beautiful day. Do not miss any of them in your everyday life “.

Life is a beautiful place to hang out. I have been so blessed by that profound commentary from my friend at a cherished time in his life. My entire life was changed since that day. We rush and rush and work and work. The magnificent world we have been given is often ignored or passed by for the sake of other things. With next week ahead, the reminder to see the beautiful in the everyday is a blessing. May all of you see the beauty in nature that surrounds us in some way every day. The list of all the supplements of life is the gift for us all. They affect each of us in some way. More than just food supplements there are streams of water, sunrises and sunsets. I have been blessed to be in the mountains with the giant sunsets and lakes and fountains. Looking over the ocean, a morning fog (even in Iowa). GOD created all the supplements of life, for each and every one of us. In billions of different ways and billions of unique smiles.

As I watch the news I am reminded of what JESUS forwarded to us from GOD. The most important supplement we have been given the opportunity to share:

LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

Have a blessed and a beautiful day and know that OUR CARES AND PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU EVERY DAY.

ME, Mack and Jake

GOD’S IMAGE
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GOD’S IMAGE

GOOD SATURDAY AFTERNOON ALL

I have had an interesting day. So different from the weatherman over the last many days. Cold and wind chill and wind chill and cold creates its own image of how the day proceeds. When I woke up at 6 AM to take the dogs out there was no wind and the sun was waking up right along with us. Make no mistake, I did not dream it.

We all smiled and the day changed to the TV after a long morning walk to the park. The computer expanded the TV to catch up on some reading and writing. The lunch treat became a couple chocolates, coffee and cinnamon rolls and a monster cookie. More habit than good idea. (You have to remember that GOD goes shopping with me once in a while). The computer led me to more reading and it is now 1:40 PM as I have tuned in to the WORD. IMAGINATION.

Most of you know I write this blog and a music blog and have for years. I would love to be able to sit back and take the credit for my imagination. The guardian angels (Mack and Jake) take me for walks. Go left, go right. Let’s go this way or that way. The clock tells me what time to go out, before the rain or after the snow stops falling. GOD helps me write the music via the people that GOD has entered into my life. Some to say hi and have a nice day. “Nice to touch spring”. Years of others to share parts of their lives with a part of mine. The blog and the music is merely the result of my interest in what GOD has shared with me over many, many years of choices and decisions and opportunities. Where credit is due, credit should be recognized for those who GOD has shared with me and my journeys.

Today there is a smile on my face that overlooked laundry, groceries, cleaning and assigned the day for what it is. A day off and moving forward. Have a wonderful day and know that OUR CARES AND PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU.

ME, and Mack and Jake

EACH DAY
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EACH DAY

Each Day

Unorthodox Christianity can cover a lot of ground. When I first started Unorthodox Christianity I followed a typical Church driven idea to tell people what you need to know to follow the scriptures and analyze them and maybe even debate now and then. The more I moved forward with it the more questions I asked myself. What I have written below is a more common writing of today vs then.

The more people I talked with, the more people fell into the category of disenfranchised. The more I heard about their first visit, or return visit, to a church environment was followed by comments similar to “I did not feel welcome”. “I did not feel that I belonged there”. “It felt that I wasn’t ‘their’ type”.

Analyzing scripture left something out for them to grasp and get familiar with. I wondered just what was missing.

The most common desire among most seemed to be a relationship. Not necessarily with the people in that church setting, but the building of a relationship with GOD, and JESUS. A relationship that they could grasp. One day a week for a couple of hours simply was not creating the environment of a relationship that some people would truly find trust in a short term setting.

Most every day I wake up with a relationship. It may be with family, or my dogs and wagging tails that welcome me every day. Not just 2 hours a week. Just about everyday I cross paths with the neighbors. I say hello to, wave at, smile with, talk about the weather. A constant feeding of relationship that builds familiarity. It also builds conversation and a measure of trust.

I feel welcome. I feel like I belong. I feel comfortable. And when life happens, I find the neighbors who help shovel some snow, or help with a problem, or asks me to sit down and they ask how things are going.

When I was very young I did Sunday School and such. I went because my family took me. We finished church and went off to lunch. I forgot all about GOD or JESUS and I remember how good the lunch was. I had the stories about GOD and JESUS in the BIBLE that came with the SUNDAY SCHOOL. I started thinking about GOD. I started to read the books at home. I stared at the night sky and thought about the huge creations before me. I was curious who GOD was. I decided to just ask GOD about why all people weren’t good. And the relationship started. I was never afraid of GOD. A friend asked me what I thought about JESUS. I mentioned that my dad, a sales manger, once said that the secret to sales success is getting right to the man (or female) in charge. I felt that I could just as easily talk to the man at the top. It started small and finally we had built a relationship. We covered a lot of ground over all these years. If you wish  to build a relationship with GOD, go for it. I could keep going on and on about the years we have already built. But it started with my questions and it developed before me. How did it work? It wasn’t magic. You will discover that GOD has ways to communicate with you that you may never understand how, but you will understand by taking it to GOD. You will discover it. GOD will find many ways to talk with you. Many times you will be surprised by it. As far as I am concerned that is the purpose of the relationship with GOD. It is not a weekly event. it happens EACH DAY.

The message below is something I do every day to the people who are most important to me. Sometimes it becomes part of the blog. This idea of relationship can not be built with rules, it is built with trust that comes from familiarity. GOD will establish the relationship with you. You my get mad at GOD. You may thank GOD for something that gets pointed out to you.

This blog today is called EACH DAY. Enjoy it.

GOOD MORNING ALL

Just trying to relax and enjoy a day off. One would think that the older you get and the less “Work” you have to do, the easier life becomes. So far the easier part has yet to appear very often. When I was a young man the idea of a vacation was the goal of life. Today life is the goal of life. Fortunately each day is an achievement. Thank you all for your help, prayers, and encouragement. You have made it all worthwhile. OUR CARES AND PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU.

Have a wonderful day.

ME, Mack and Jake

We hear a lot about when we get to Heaven and how our relationship with GOD is going to be something special. You are in Heaven each day right now. Heaven is not a new beginning. Birth was the new beginning. The relationship with GOD started years before your birthday. GOD appreciates you and encourages you. Not years from now but EACH DAY. As my Aunt Vera(my daughters namesake) said over and over again for years and years, “Isn’t that Wonderful”.

Enjoy EACH DAY. It starts that way, every day.

GOD BLESS.

OUR CARES AND PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU.

MEMORIES — 1-19-22
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MEMORIES — 1-19-22

GOOD MORNING ALL
Today I keep my joy, joy, joy joy deep in my heart, deep in my heart today.
The world is surrounded by joyful music.
Whether it is freezing cold​ or summer heat, a smile comes to mind when the thought process comes to remind me of special days, events, people, friends and the dogs. When it is 9 degrees I remember knocking on doors and shouting Happy Halloween in Minnesota. When it is 90 degrees I remember jumping in a swimming pool in Billings Montana. Joy can not hide inside and life can not frown when memories are remembered. Remembering life isn’t buried in sadness, it is people I laughed with, people who made me smile. It is music that brings them back to life.
Life is a journey of challenges, and of gifts and do you remember when. I have had more smiles than frowns. I have had more opportunities than not. Enjoy the memories. When I sit down to write these little tidbits I think Thank You. Have a wonderful time despite the weather, grief, loss, or tears. Life is an adventure. Life is filled with memories. It is a time of throwing stones across a pond, and a time of gathering them up. (Eccesiasties- 3 vs 5).  OUR CARES AND PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU ALWAYS.
ME, Mack and Jake
WHAT DO YOU SAY?
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WHAT DO YOU SAY?

The news this SUNDAY MORNING reminded me of the day, May15,1968 a tornado rampaged my birth town of Oelwein Iowa.  My cousin and my Grandmother were about their day and the sirens went off and my Grandmother grabbed my cousin Tim and pulled him down into the basement of the family home and they found a safe shelter in the basement. The porch on the southside of the home was gone. Blown away and  not found again.  My Oelwein friends lived next door and a tree limb had blown right through their living room wall. The elm trees along their street had blown over. A corner of the high school had been damaged. Damage was everywhere. I sat in my home a couple of hundred miles away in Kansas City and made arrangements to get on the bus and head for Oelwein. Four had died, and the damage was extreme. I was 16 years old then. A friend of mine from Minneapolis met me there.

So many came to help. I fixed fences, the chimney on Grandma’s home. Cleaning and sweeping and very fortunate that the damage was minimal to Grandma and my friends there and my cousins from across the back-street were all OK. Today I think of years of writing Unorthodox Christianity and think of the so many who have died, so much loss of homes, workplaces, shelters, and so much more that happened in Kentucky and nearby. How fortunate I am for living in Des Moines Iowa and not being a victim of one of the 20+ tornadoes. I watched my morning Church show like I always do and thought “What DO You Say?” “What do you say, religiously?”

GOD is all over Sunday television. Prayer and the sermons about Jesus and the stories of His birth for us to share that has become Christmas, and gifts and get togethers and families together now changed forever for those affected by 20+ tornadoes. Thousands affected  both there and relatives and friends who heard from the relatives of friends that they grew up with and hearing of the devastation of their home towns and all the people who lost their lives. The TV sermons are talking about the birth of Jesus and the gifts of GOD. “What DO you say?” How do I, sharing Unorthodox Christianity, answer the questions of WHY?  There will be lots of “Why’s” in the lives of so many.

GOD BEGINS IMMEDIATELY. So many who survived. So many first responders. So many who started immediately checking on their neighbors, their neighbor hoods, and their relatives. So much power of prayer to fill the voids as the phone calls are made, the homes and lives to be rebuilt. The stories of miracles after miracles that saved so many from a tragedy  brought on by the physics of nature. GOD IS AT WORK IMMEDIATELY. The world is a world of constant change. GOD NEVER STAYS AWAY. GOD DOES NOT STOP HELPING. GOD knows the physics of the world. GOD knows the natural risks of LIFE. The instant power of the prayers of millions go to work to console, to help, to care.

“WHAT DO YOU SAY?”  “OUR PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU.”  “OUR CARES AND PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU ALWAYS.”  We can not be everywhere, we can not offer as much help as we would like, but OUR CARES AND OUR PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU ALWAYS because GOD HAS BEEN AT WORK IMMEDIATELY. The power of your prayers feeds miracle after miracle because GOD NEVER STOPS CARING FOR ALL GOD’S CHILDREN, YOUNG OR OLD.

GOD BLESS YOU EVERYDAY.

AMEN

SHARE THE MOMENT
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SHARE THE MOMENT

A beautiful sunny day in Iowa. Cool enough to be fall and bright enough to be warm.
The opportunities of any day happen when you least expect them. Take advantage of all the gifts that come your way, not just for today, but every day.
When you can not see people as the gifts and treasures that they are, you are missing most of life’s blessings. Too often, I believe, that GOD borrows one of us to touch bases with someone we least expect. It may be that child that smiles and waves at us. It may be someone who can use our help without asking for it. It may be a thank you. My dogs may say hello ask for a small treat. There is no reason to believe that GOD never stops by to see how things are going. Too many think that GOD prefers to be untouchable. This is not the picture of Jesus on the Cross. We have a tendency to believe that Heaven is one place and Earth is another. The desire for GOD is ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN.

There are a lot of places on EARTH to visit. There are a lot of nice and caring people to meet. GOD can borrow anyone GOD wishes for as long as GOD requires. If you can feel the wind, you can feel GOD on the visit. Do not think GOD could care less. GOD cares for all of us. GOOD, Bad, or indifferent. I have often said that GOD watches out for the ignorant and uninformed. Why? Because I am often the ignorant and the uninformed. GOD is an active and caring energy. GOD could hide in Heaven, except for it being HEAVEN ON EARTH.

Share the moment. You may never recognize that the moment you share is designed to make HEAVEN on EARTH what it is that GOD has created. A work in progress that you are a part of.

OUR CARES AND PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU ALL.

ME, Mack and Jake

What You Have Done For ME
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What You Have Done For ME

GOOD SATURDAY MORNING ALL

FINTER is upon us. Those magic days between fall and winter where one coat is ok but two is too bulky. The high is grasping at the upper 40ties with a bit lighter wind. For those east of us it may seem like the beginning of Winter for a while, global cooling is upon us.

Peace is such a relevant word for us as we watch the news each day and wonder what has happened to us as a people. I remember back in the 80’s when the debate was more good news or more bad news for TV. Rather than the bad news getting the most time, I would prefer the good news most of the time. There are more good and caring people in the world than gets touched upon. There are so many events happening for people to share food, time, clothing, resources and much more that the ordinary people have put together.

Jesus put it this way: “These things that you have done for the least of these my children, you have done for me”. “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

We do much of that without thinking about the many things Jesus brought to the table. I have learned so much in my life. Not for what I have perhaps learned, but for what have I been taught by those who have reached out to help me. The things we often take for granted, have been the greatest of all gifts.

When you are sharing the good news this weekend, know that OUR CARES AND PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU.

ME, Mack and Jake

THE MIRROR THAT THE WORLD SEES
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THE MIRROR THAT THE WORLD SEES

THE MIRROR THAT THAT THE WORLD SEES

(John 13:35.)…

“And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. . … Jesus said, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another”

This verse has been heard many times in the lives of so many Christian church members that it qualifies as a memory piece. More often then not it is a personal assessment that focuses on Jesus. That the point is a study of Jesus and the disciples is in the box. I see a bit more.

The more I watch the news the more it tells me about the world. The sheer numbers of people in the world are hard to grasp. The power of the number and the people that it represents is much more than just a reflection of a statement in the Bible, that sheer number in the world reflects us all. It is a mirror of who we are and how we behave.

We are people in the midst of circumstance. We reflect our circumstances. Far too many suffer from day to day to have food to eat and a safe place to sleep. Whether in the the richest of nations or the poorest.

We often look at the world and pick and choose which of us are GOD’S chosen. The truth is that the world is GOD’S chosen. From ants to Elephants to whales GOD made this for the all. The same sun rises and sets for all of them as well as all mankind.

In Matthew 25 : 35-40

“For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you made me welcome; naked and you clothed me, sick and you visited me; in prison and you came to see me.”

Then the virtuous will say to him in reply, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you; or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and make you welcome; naked and clothe you; sick or in prison go to see you?”

Jesus replied “I tell you solemnly, in so far as you did this to one of the least of these brethren of mine, you did it to me.”

The world reflects US. The world has become a mirror of who we are and how we have come to behave as a creation of GOD. When I watch the news I wonder what GOD sees. Do you appreciate the gift GOD has given to all of us that creation is, or do we look to find the ways to use that gift to benefit us personally at the expense of that gift to others.

Is the creation played back to us on the evening news a mirror of our pride, does it reflect GOD’S gift to us in the mirror of our behavior? With all of our gifts given to us do we show compassion for the least of these GOD’S children? Is it as important to share our gifts with others or is the mirror that the world sees of greed and more proud of personal wealth than our equality? We talk politically of boo bad socialism as an evil while we legislate bigger dollars for a very few very wealthy at the expense of the others.

One can only pray that someday there are full plates of food and safe places to live, and dreams in every heart to share the gifts of this world so that the mirror of the world is one we can all be proud of and enjoy.

Jesus said, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another”

Will the day come that People will seek out Heaven on Earth and not have to talk in terms of how great Heaven will be when we die? I believe that the goal for the spirit has never been to leave Earth. The goal should be to be able to share the gifts that were created for us over and over again, with a smile on your face and every neighbor is your friend. It will forever start with:

THE MIRROR THAT WE SEE.

THE MOST IMPORTANT
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THE MOST IMPORTANT

THE MOST IMPORTANT

Who is the most important?

Years ago I was attending a seminar on how to be a successful person. The were a number of speakers that told their personal stories of success. They were successful sales people, entrepreneurs, manufacturers of items, sports people and such. There were successful, “How to be a Successful Speaker” people. It lasted a full day and at the end we listeners were presented with a lobby full of cd’s to purchase, books to purchase, T shirts to purchase, mugs and all kinds of paraphernalia to purchase to learn about how to be successful. They told their stories about how they built their businesses up from the ground up. They told their stories about how hard their success ventures were accomplished and how much they did and how high up the ladder they climbed to be a wealthy, successful and truly important person that they had become. I was somewhat impressed, so to speak. In the midst of the speakers was one speaker who was a military pilot who was shot down on the wrong side of the enemy and worked his way back to safety. He very much impressed me by one thing he, and only he, of all the speakers said. “GOD encouraged me every step of the way”.

All the others attributed their success to some form of me. I did this. I accomplished this. I worked so hard, I was the secret of my success.

I have thought about that many times over the years. And every time I think of it I am reminded of an incident that happened to me years before that seminar.

I was doing my job as a vendor salesman for a large product company in a Western Minnesota store. I was having one of those “Another day” days. I was doing my job setting up one of our displays and resetting our shelf space when a customer, an older gentleman, came up to me and asked what I was doing. I mentioned, “Me, oh I’m just a salesperson doing my job. No one important, just a salesman.”

He shook his head and responded in all sincerity: “Just a salesperson? You are THE MOST IMPORTANT person in your company. Without you doing what your doing the company would not need anyone to do anything and your company would go out of business. The delivery people, the secretaries, managers, the bosses and the owners would not have jobs. No sir, you are not just a salesperson, you are THE MOST IMPORTANT person in your company”. I was completely caught off guard. For the lack of what to say at his response I said “Thank you. I appreciate it”. I smiled and turned back to my job. In the time it will take you to read this section I felt I should thank him some more and looked back where he was standing. No where. I walked to the check stands. No where. I walked through the store and looked out into the parking lot. No where. He literally had just disappeared off the face of my earth. In that simple moment he changed me and my approach to life was changed forever.

I realized in that moment just how important we all were as individuals. The secretaries who did order processing. The people who worked the assembly lines and took a break once in awhile. The packaging people and the designers. The people in the distribution centers and the people who cleaned the offices. The people who designed our advertising and designed the displays that I would put up. All of them deserved that one unknown individual to give them a hard worker award and say to them “You are THE MOST IMPORTANT person in your company”. I would have to call it my GOD defining moment. I do not believe in a loving GOD because I have faith that GOD may be a real thing. I know GOD because I KNOW GOD.

Do not shortcut yourself and your importance to your company, your family, your friends, your neighbors even your enemies. Even if it appears that you are not THE MOST IMPORTANT person you change peoples lives everyday. People you know, and those you do not. That is a show of love, concern, and pride in what you believe.

Try it. Test it. I had opportunity making cold calls when at another company in another town a few years later and designed and had printed a HARD WORKER AWARD which I would fill in the name of the secretaries I would call on and give them to each of them when I left that first time encounter. So many smiles I can not tell you, and so simple. Try it. None of us are successful by ourselves. We are successful because of all of those who have touched us in the crossing of our paths. They have made someones day, every day.

Jesus said this to his disciples; “By doing this, for them, you have done it for me, and they will know that you are disciples of mine”. Doubt me? Look it up under Jesus on the internet.

YOU ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT