A Voice Calling From the Wilderness

 I am sure that most everyone knows the story of John the Baptist in the Bible. He was Jesus Christ cousin and that he baptized those who wanted to repent. It was before Christ was recognized as the Messiah. In fact Christ went to him to be baptized himself.

Why I am mentioning this that the world needs to hear more people who are coming out of the wilderness. I know that most of us don’t live in the wilderness however I am talking about those who may feel spiritually that they have been there. In fact I would say that most people who have become Christians or have seek after God have been wondering in the wilderness at some point. It is in the wilderness that we find a lot of answers. It is the longing to find truth and meaning in our lives. We have been in a battle and we have become weary so we go out to a place to rest. Others need to hear our stories. Everyone needs to hear that they have not been the only one being in the wilderness and those that are there right now need to hear it.

I have spent a long time going in and out of the wilderness. This was especially true when I was young and a teenager. I didn’t know the truth at the time. All I knew that I was miserable and depressed and that I wanted to get out of that place. It was a dark place for me however now I recognize the light. I know to that I can learn more whenever I go back into the wilderness. We can all learn something from it even if we don’t realize it at the time.

So shout out loud and let people know that they can be free by the power of God. Amen!

Be Bold

I started the year that we should press on toward the goal. What that means depends on each one of us since we have different purposes and destiny.

Part of pressing on I feel is that we need to be bold. I know that it doesn’t work for everyone however something we should aim for. Most of us are passionate about something for example a sport. When you are watching your favorite team while at the game at some point you will be yelling or you could be doing that the whole game. If your team isn’t doing well you may even throw something.  That may happen more often when watching on television but I am sure you got the point. So my point we should do the same thing for our purpose in life. I don’t mean that you have to yell however being bold speaking your mind when appropriate. Actually could be times where you could do it when it isn’t so appropriate.

We have seen a lot of people around the country and the world protesting. It is possible you may be one of them. I haven’t because I don’t agree with most of the protests. In fact the one this weekend over immigration surprised me. I thought most people would not want immigrants coming into the USA from the Middle East but they decided to protest over it. It is possible that most Americans still don’t want immigrants it is the minority that are speaking out. Another point if you feel that your part of the majority you should speak out. Another thing with that I wonder those who are protesting because President Trump made the order and they will protest whatever he does. In fact this week he is supposed to name his nomination for the Supreme Court. Won’t surprise me in the least if we see a lot of protestors after he names his nomination; some people could be quite busy the next four years.

So these people are being bold in their own way whether speaking loud or holding a sign. So you see being bold should be part of job description for our purpose. I am not saying it will be easy because it will not be however it is necessary. You don’t have put out signs or yell unless you want to but we do need to make a difference.

Growing up for me my teachers kept telling me to be quiet for talking too much. You see I didn’t start talking until I was five years old. I have to clarify that I didn’t speak English until I was five years old. I spoke my own language that my older brother Dick really understood. I had a problem with hearing that was cleared up when I was four years old. So you see when I started speaking English and could be understood well as understanding others I wanted to talk a lot. It was like getting your favorite gift however I was disappointed because teachers and other adults wanted me to stay quiet. So I have had to fight the urge to be bold. In high school taking speech class I was like the majority where I didn’t want to speak in from of a group and I wasn’t very good at it either. In fact some of my classmates in that class went on to be lawyers. It tells you something there doesn’t it.

Several years later I decided to try out for a play at my church. I didn’t expect to be any good at it however I thought why not try out the worst can happen is sorry you are not good at it. I found out that I was actually good at acting so I participated in several more plays at the church. When I went back to college to get an associated degree and get more skills to help in getting another job I took speech. The acting experienced allowed me do well in that class and other classes where we were required to do a presentation.

I have to say that I still need to work on being bold however it is a lot easier for me than what it was years ago. I am not saying that we have to be bold right off the bat it could take you a lot of baby steps to do so. Whatever the case be more bold today than yesterday and more tomorrow than day and etc..  I hope we all make it across the finish line of boldness.

Let It Begin With Me

I can repeat myself about what is going on in the world and what I read on the social media. There are complaints about the new President and his administration that just began. I am sure those complaints people do really think strongly about. They may even feel valid but how true? The news media can put a spin of their own of what is happening too.

One thing I do know that the country needs change to happen. We can’t have national debt continue going higher and higher. I am sure it will take time for the debt to go down however something has to happen for it to so. The key is how we lower the debt without causing problems with necessary programs. For example, health insurance needs to stay on board because we know that if anyone of us has to spend any amount of time in the hospital we can’t afford to pay unless you are among the wealthy and I know that they don’t want to pay any more than the rest of us. Most of us could not pay a cost of a high medical bill. We may be able to pay the interest of the bill but debt still will be on the books so that is one important thing that can’t be reduced. In fact likely the costs will go up. I am sure there are other areas that are similar to health insurance however the government will have to figure how to lower the debt in other areas. I am sure those areas will not be easy either however necessary. At some point there will be those who will have to bite the bullet.  

So it all goes back to us where each one has to make a decision what to sacrifice and what to up for. Most of all recognizing what our purpose is and to act. If you don’t like the new administration don’t complain work the system to be changed. In the end it comes up for being ourselves. Not only knowing who we are but going out and discover more about ourselves; who knows one person could change the world.

My Reflection

I look in the mirror at my reflection. I don’t look the same as years before. Fortunately no one really does unless they are really lucky that is. I look older now though not as much some other’s my age. Whether I look young for my age or for that matter around my age at least I am thankful for now that I don’t look older than my age.

I know that there are those around my age consider themselves old. Although I am close to being a senior citizen I don’t consider myself old. Probably the reason foremost is that my mother is ninety-six years old so that is old even though she is good for her age. The other thing is a feel good most of the time though a few aches and pains do happen time to time.

Although my reflection shows different I don’t consider myself close to my age. I am sure most of us think that way sometimes. We think of ourselves as though we may be in our twenties, thirties, or forties. Again we look in the mirror at that reflection wondering where the time has passed. For many my age they have grandchildren while I don’t have children at all. In the back on my mind not only has gone by fast what have I accomplished. I won’t go into details about that because I know my purpose and destiny is right on schedule I feel that I have a lot more to accomplish. Truly that is the most difficult part looking at my reflection that I do have more to do in this life and we all do no matter our age.

What makes this bring trouble to my mind is hearing and reading about other’s my age dying the last several years. I guess we could say that death doesn’t have respect for any of us regardless our age. So this shows for us to look into the mirror of our reflection each morning and speak out loud this is another day to accomplish a lot. Maybe I don’t look like I did ten or twenty or more years ago however I am more mature and I can accomplish the things that I probably should have done back then. Time to splash water on my face and say let’s go for it this is a day to do much for the world. Things will be good especially if the reflection doesn’t speak back. If so than I have something else to deal with. LOL. 

Life is a change each day however it is one to look straight on in the reflection to say yes.

Enjoying Good People

I know that it is easy to focus on writing about the same things over and over again in maybe a different manner. My purpose here is to give encouragement for everyone to discover and walking in their purpose. Also I continue planning to write about places around the area I live in along with memories of growing up and other things that are positive. It is good though to get off the subjects as well.

This weekend I am at conference or you may call a workshop at my church. It is called Living Free. If it ever comes to where you live I recommend taking it. Also involved in men’s ministry at my church as well; since it is too be private I won’t get into any details however both Living Free and the men’s ministry is looking at our minds where we have to decide to change it. We so much allow things to get into our minds that clutter what we are doing and we live as victims and we can’t live in victory along with doing our purpose because we are focused on the wrong things.

So now I come to the title of this post in enjoying good people. I believe whatever our purpose is and what we can do it is important to be around and enjoy good people too. If you are a Christian you know that none of us are truly good except the change Christ has done in our lives. We are good because he is good.

So to say all that is that we need to spend time around people that are good for us. Those who will encourage us and love us no matter what we have done or may do. These people can make us feel the way we truly want to be and how God designed us from the beginning.

It is not that we can’t be around those that are not so good for us but we must remember who we are in God. It is like if we are a recovering alcoholic we can’ spend time around other alcoholics unless they are trying to become clean like we are.

There are times we can’t avoid those that are not good for us. For example, at work it is hard to avoid those who we would not spend time with outside of work. If we are in a project with them we must work the project out however important not to spend too much time with them unless it is to encourage them into changing. We must know that not everyone wants to change either. It is easy want to help change others but not easy to fulfill.

So spend as much time as possible with those around you that can be considered good people. Encourage them as they encourage you. Lift each other up in prayer as well. Times get tough and it is easy to fall away. God bless and have a wonderful weekend.

Going to the Movies

I have to say over the years that I haven’t gone to a lot of movies in the theatre. Primarily I don’t want to go by myself. I am sure most everyone would agree with me on that one. It doesn’t really matter who I go with as long as someone especially if they enjoy the movie as well.

I would say that I average less than one movie a year that I see. So I would not be much of a movie critic though most of the movies have been pretty good. I don’t always know much about the movie I go to however the movie is one that is highly recommended.

Wednesday I went with my mother to the local theatre right here in Gig Harbor. What is nice it is one of the new theatre’s around. Gig Harbor has had a theatre for a while however new seating was put in a couple years ago. It is where you can relax and you can have your legs raised up along with your head going back. You know it is a good movie if you don’t fall asleep in the middle of it.

I took my mother to see the movie because her friends said that it would be a wonderful movie and that I would like it too. She doesn’t go to a lot of movies herself. In fact growing up neither her or my father took us to movies. My brothers and I had to rely on our older sister. We had to go into nearby Tacoma because Gig Harbor didn’t have a theatre at the time. In those days most of the movies we saw were musicals like Hello Dolly and the Sound of Music.

Anyway mother and I took in the first show just after 1 pm. There wasn’t a big crowd but you don’t expect that early afternoon. The movie we saw was the Hidden Figures. What a wonderful movie indeed. It is about three black women who worked for NASA in the early sixties. I don’t want to spoil the show however it is very delightful for sure. It was based on a true story and it was funny along with being emotional at times. I laughed a lot and cried as well. Sometimes I did both at the same time. Nothing better than seeing a movie that is based on a true story and loving it at the same time. Whether you truly like these kinds of movies or not I still ask you to go see it. It is a good way to spend a little over two hours along with a friend or family.

This means to that I have to look forward to seeing the next movie whatever that may be. Hopefully I won’t wait another year to do so. Now I will say good bye and happy time enjoying the movies.

Will Take More Grace

What has been going on lately in the world with the way people are acting we who are willing need to give grace and love to others.

I posted about grace not too long ago and we need to do a lot of it. I have decided that I am going to be the better person by giving others grace and love no matter how different they are from me or how they look at things.

Like I have mentioned before as well the world is going way down and won’t get any better. As a person who knows what his purpose and destiny is my job is to act on it. Whatever I do will be is to encourage others with the best of my ability.  

I may not change others opinions about their beliefs however with grace and love they may become more gentle in the process and in some cases they may change their minds.

I see so much hate or at least apathy on social media. I truly want to say something to my friends who are doing it but what is the point. I have in the past but they obviously aren’t listening so what is the point. They already know how I feel and I certainly know how they feel to say the least. Even my friends who say that they are leaving social media because of the hate haven’t changed anything at this point.

I know that in some cases if not many these friends of mine are going through tough times so they are posting their beliefs to make life easier instead they are aggravating people so I just decided not to say anything and either hid their post or move along.

I am not here to change other people’s minds about how they think or feel just be gracious to your so-called friends and give a lot of latitude with grace. Until next time many blessing to you.  

Let’s Keep Pressing On

The last six months for sure and probably longer people have been really passionate in their beliefs no matter what sides they are on.

I said sides for being plural because there seems to be more than two sides. The side I am on is God’s side. Being a Christian that is the only side I can be on.  Of course we have to love as being Christians so it is important to respect others though won’t agree with their stands.

I said in earlier posts that it is important that we must press on and it is true more than ever.

If you are a Christian you know the world is going to get darker however God’s light is going to brighter too.

What can we do? The answer is to press on and don’t stop. We can make a difference in our spot in the world one day at a time. Although there will be those who oppose this tells how much more to press on. I encourage you to meet up with fellow Christians if you are one as often as you can. It doesn’t matter whether they go to your church or not because we are all brothers and sisters in the Lord.

The world of darkness is uniting together so must we. If we do not there could become a time that we may scatter and what will we do then.

It doesn’t matter the size of the group you meet with we all know that Christ is with us. We are mighty warriors. It will be important to pray together so the enemy will be pushed back. We all know who the enemy truly is. Another word for it is we must put on spiritual warfare.

So the best to us all where we can make a difference though the times are getting more difficult; peace of the Lord be with you.

Marching On

These days on social media there is so much happening in regards to politics no matter which side you on. Personally I am tired of it and some of the people I know feel the same way. So I don’t want to write here about my political views.

I feel that purpose and destiny is what we should focus on. In most cases that is one on one interaction. Of course there is time where safe protesting is in order even the ones that I may not agree with. The protesting I don’t like is the ones that happen like on May Day where the protesters violently destroy property and not out protesting a cause.

The woman’s march on Saturday that took place many parts of the world was safe in most instances. I understand that they feel that their rights might be lost which I don’t agree under Trump however they do have right to let everyone know how the feel. I know a lot Christians including myself were afraid that they would lose their religious rights if Hillary Clinton was elected President. Let you know that is my only statement concerning politics. This is probably the main reason that Trump is now President. Like many said better of two evils.

Though the women may have concerns about losing their rights and I know that they went out to protest because of Trump going into office I am sure that this will not be the last time. The truth is that I am not sure that anyone except those close to Trump really know what he will do over the next few months or years whether positive or negative. This is really why we need to know our purpose. I know mine is to encourage and give hope to those who need it.

These days what used to be good seem to be bad to so many while what was bad is now good. We need to let people know that there is hope in this world even when it doesn’t seem to be here. There could be a point where we may have to stand up for our rights that are being lost in our faces. I certainly know that I am not for being politically correct however I do know that we have to decide when the marching should begin.

The one thing that the President race showed me is that there is a lot of work ahead and that we must do what we can. I feel it is OK if we march to a different drum than the rest of the world. So keep up the good work that you are doing. In the end it is love that will help make the changes. God Bless you all!

Love to Travel

I am sure most people love to travel. The main reason that they may not is the time and expense which I understand well because I am in the same place. Those who don’t like to travel probably because they don’t like to fly on planes.

We have a large world out there so we need to see as much of it as we can. Help keep the cost down would be to know people who are living in the areas that you want to travel to. There are several websites out on the internet where you can find people to stay with where you don’t have to pay high hotel bills and keep your eating expenses down to. All you have to do is some research to find those sites. In fact next time I write about travel in this fashion anyway I will have some information for you of some sites.

Another way to travel and it will not cost as much or the time involved. This would be to visit places nearby in your country. For example I am planning to visit places this year on a weekend where the drive is within two hours. I know where I live there are so many places to see within two hours. I can go to the mountains, the big city of Seattle, smaller towns and watching out on waterfronts. Every place has uniqueness to itself. So my idea would to visit a local coffee shop to see what the people are like and get into some conversation. Can ask them where good places you can visit even if you already what they are.

My plan will be to take my camera with me so I can have pictures to show you and make you feel that you’re on the trip with me. Another idea when you go on these trips would be to take pictures that you can share with your friends on social media. Speaking of friends you could do some planning where at least once a month your family or a group of friends could go on a trip together. You can search on line to see what is happening on a weekend where you go. The possibilities are endless without going too far away. So happy traveling to you whether far or near.

Having a Good Time

 Though I have declared 2017 the year where we press on to be the best we can be for doing our purpose and destiny it is important that we have a good time doing so.

I believe often we can get stressed out because we are trying so hard to do so. It is like going to your job where you have been doing the work so long that when Monday starts you can’t wait until Friday comes so you can look forward to the weekend. I know the feeling because that happened to me.  We know it is time for a change when that happens especially if you go on vacation and return the same thing continues to happen.

God has intended us to enjoy our time on this earth though it is short no matter how long we live for. He has given each of us a certain purpose to accomplish however he wants us to enjoy and not get stressed out about it. I have mentioned before that being happy is a choice and in our purpose we must choose to be happy as well. If for some reason that you feel stressed out it is time to make some changes to become happy once again.  I know that my main purpose is to encourage others and that is why I am here mentioning to be happy. It may have to begin with a smile. If you feel that it is hard to accomplish what I am saying than I would go to a friend that you respect to help you out. We all want to be healthy and happy. Have yourself a wonderful weekend and relax.

This is a New Day

 We all know that every day is a new day. Today will not be like any other. What we experience today we will not any other day. We must forget yesterday except good memories and tomorrow will take care of itself.

Today though is inauguration day in the United States of America where Donald Trump becomes the 45^th President of United States. There has been no one like him before as President. The USA has had Presidents that were not career politicians however they were military men. Donald Trump is neither one. He became President after being a businessman. Not just a business an international one that had his picture in the paper and newspapers along with having a reality show.

No one except himself, his family and close friends really have no idea what kind of President he will be. I would say most that voted for him either didn’t want Hilary Clinton so bad or on blind faith. Whether we like it or not he is becoming the 45^th President. I didn’t vote for either him or Clinton. So I am going on my faith that everything will be alright. How our lives change over the next few months or years we will see won’t we?

There is a lot of passion on both sides those who say that he is not their president or those who are excited that he is. The important thing is that as a country we become united. Time to get rid of the doubt or hatred for the man; it doesn’t matter whether he is republican or democrat he was voted in as President. So today will begin a new chapter for the USA and we should embrace it. Not just for country however the whole world. Whatever changes he decides to input will affect everyone one way or another. There are things in this country that I don’t agree with or many of the people. I have to say that I am one that is not politically correct but I am not going to embrace hate either. I embrace love to the fullest measure. I may not agree how some people live their lives but we are all given the choice to do so. I love others because that is my choice to. Important to choose love and peace whether we live our lives the same or not. Let unity stand. God Bless America and the world.

Encourage Our Friends

 None of us really know how much time we have left in this world? It could all be taken away in a short period of time so it why important for us to encourage our friends well as other people we meet.

I believe it is important for us to look around and see how people are doing. Sometimes we have our focus on ourselves instead of others. It is understandable because we are all selfish to some degree or another. Even when we are looking to help others it can still come back to us.  What I mean by that is we want to feel fulfilled by our actions and deeds. It is OK long as we don’t get into ourselves too long.

I have had times where I wondered if anyone really cared. It has happened while I have had to deal with depression and being in a dark place in my life. Often this is when we feel selfish at the core and we really do need to help others if nothing else for our own sanity.

One of the most common questions we all have heard is how are we? Most of the time we say that we are fine when actually we are lying to others and to ourselves; I know this may sound wrong but that is really the truth. We don’t always want others to know how much we are hurting. I know this by my experience. On the positive side we can help others conquer what they are going through because we gone through similar circumstances. I would have to say that is what makes a good person to help others.  In a way it is self-therapy. Heal thyself by helping others. In a way we are being selfish however other people are getting a benefit from it.

In the end since our time could be short this can be our purpose and destiny to help those in need that are going through the same things we have.  Today they maybe our new friend and we may need their help sometime too. It is OK to be selfish long as you are motivated in the right way. The more we do things we can become less selfish. Who knows we may see a new person in us.

Living the Right Lifestyle

I have been thinking for any of us to live a life of purpose and destiny we have to consider our lifestyle. It doesn’t mean how rich or poor or how much money we have but how we live it.

Are we living a life of complications or we are so busy that we can’t focus on our purposes. So many people try to keep up with the Joneses. They want whatever their neighbors have and forget about everyone else.

When I was growing up we had a couple down at the end of the road that we lived on. Actually they lived on their property during the summer and some weekends. It was actually was quite common where I lived before I was born. In fact my dad lived that way when he was growing up. This couple was very wealthy however you would not know it the way they lived except having their homes and car. They gave a lot to the community in donations and their time. They recognized what their lives were about. I only saw them once in a while because they didn’t live in Gig Harbor on a regular basis. However when I did see them I felt them as being two of the most humble people I have ever met. I probably don’t even know half of what they did for the community and their friends. Often they did this without anyone even knowing. They knew their purpose and they lived accordingly. Neither of them are around anymore but I am sure their children are doing the same thing.

I know to those that are poor are not able to give like ought to or feel up to however I am sure there are those who have little monetarily give much in other ways to. The importance of this all our lifestyle should reflect what our purposes should be.  We don’t have to do things like other people we just have to be ourselves. This is the best we are. Others will benefit by our purposes because of how we live our lives out. Something for all of us to think harder about and help the world be a better place to be.

Stretch or Not?

Last week when I was out walking I decided to stretch first at the beginning and then again in the middle of the walk. Sounded like a good idea at the time however I was stiff like a board by the time I ended my walk. I tried it twice during the week with the same results.

On Monday I decided to not stretch at all to see if things would stay the same or be different. I am not one that is an expert on stretching. I have heard how important it is to stretch before walking or running but in my youth through my thirties I didn’t do so because I felt fine without doing so. Hard to know whether it was a bad idea not to stretch because how I feel now.

I haven’t given up on stretching so I will try doing it before I walk but not a second time during the walk. It has been successful before doing both so I may go back to doing it twice later on.

I mentioned about being soar at the end of my walk last week to someone. They told me it was likely because it is so cold out. Now thinking more about it she was probably right. When the temperatures get higher I will try stretching twice again. I know it had been successful before and should again but not in cold weather. I don’t know if anyone else has had the same experience as I did last week but something to work on.

This shows me that it is important to learn something new every day especially when it comes to our bodies. One thing for sure we are not getting any younger that is for sure. Good health to everyone.

It is Love

We say the word Love sometimes in the wrong way

Probably because we want more of you

We search for you however we don’t always find you or if we do we don’t recognize you

Also we search you in the wrong place and accept something less than you

God ask us to love our neighbor and our enemies.  It is a tall order. Can’t we just like them? Even that is a tall order sometimes.

Love and hate are both strong emotions. Fortunately we go after Love more than hate. We sometimes say hate when we really mean dislike. If we truly hate I am sure we are on the way to mental illness.

Our purpose in live is to love. Not only for our own being but for others; we have love around us always but we don’t recognize you or want a lot more of you.

There are times we want to give up on you love. We are disappointed because we only see your substitute. Are you hiding or yelling right in front of us and we don’t hear.

Yes love you are so valuable to us. Be out there so we can find you when our eyes and heart open.

We thank you for who you are even when we leave you. Don’t be far away please.

Reading the Comics

I know that everyone has their favorite thing to do when they get up in the morning. You may first pray or meditate, go exercising and then eat breakfast.

One of my favorite things to do is read the comics with breakfast. I usually start off seeing the front page looking at the headlines however I usually move on from there. Most of the time I don’t read the story at all; I figure the headlines is good enough. Once in a while I do read the story behind the headlines but not often. I than go to the comic section. I believe it is the best part of the paper. It lets my day get off on solid ground. I don’t read all the comics I just have my favorites like Peanuts, Garfield and Dennis the Menace to name three. I actually read more than them but they are the three regulars and best. It depends to have much time I have in the morning as well.

After I read the comics I go to the sports section. It can be good if my favorite team has won or not so good if they have lost. Usually I scan the sports section like I do the front page however I read a few stories there unlike the other. I know enough of the sport teams that I don’t need to read someone else’s opinion or analysis of the game is. I may see who was injured or the team may have picked up during the previous day. Also I look at the standings.

Although I am a big sports fan there still is nothing compared to the comic section. When I was a kid I tried to get the paper as fast as I could because if dad got it I would have to wait for some time. He really loved the comics and the sports section was next to it. He often gave me most of the sports section though the last couple pages were tagged to the comics. Usually he was still reading and laughing at the comics when I finished the sports section so than I had to wait. At that point I would scan the rest of the paper to see if anything else was interesting to read which in my mind wasn’t very often. Remember I was just a kid. So I had to do other things to keep myself occupied until dad was done with the comics. I didn’t have to compete with my brothers because they usually were still in bed. Though they liked the comics it wasn’t like dad and I. Oh those were the good old days too. By the way I already have read the comics and the sports section so now I can move on and have a beautiful day.

Speak Loud and Clear

                                               Just kidding!

When it comes to communication it is important to be loud and clear. Actually I am using loud as an emphasis; more important to be clear.

Another thing that is important when you are talking to another is being a good listener. For someone who has been a talker most of my life I have learned how we should listen to. I believe most arguments happen because one or the other or both are not listening well at the time. My recommendation if you get into an argument is to stop for a minute or two to figure out what the argument is really about and whether you or they have listen before speaking. I am not saying that I am good at this. In fact I have to say that I have never done this before however I get in few arguments as well. The arguments I have been in the other person did not understand what I was saying in most cases. I am sure there have been arguments where I did not listen well or at all too. This would help not end up saying something that you will regret. You don’t want to lose a relationship over an argument and a misunderstanding. Also I am sure most relationships lost are over good intentions most of the time on one side anyway.

I find when it comes to writing to do so in the simplest way for others to read. I have read others where I stop reading because not only because their writing was long but using words that I would never use if I were speaking to another. I know that some people like talking or writing in a fashion that will impress the other however I don’t do so because I want to get a message across more important than being impressive. Of course this may depend on the subject you are writing about as well. Also this goes for the audience as well. For example if you are talking or writing about science the words being used will be different than what is in normal conversation.

For those of us that use conversation in our purpose and destiny we may feel that we want to influence others to change their lives. Actually I try not doing so in everyday life. I figure living my life the way I do will speak higher volumes than what I am saying so most of the time I don’t even think that way. The way I live will change others’ lives. Being an example is the best way to go. I often watch other people when I am out in public. So if I do any changing it has to do with observing others and what they have to say. Again that has to do with being a good listener. I hope that you have learned something here and that your communication skills become better. For all of us it takes time. God bless and have a great day.

Portland Oregon Snow Storm

On Tuesday and Wednesday of this week just before and after midnight Portland Oregon got hit with a little over eleven inches and the outlining areas got up to fifteen inches.

The sad part here in the Seattle area we did not get any snow at all. We had the right temperatures but no precipitation. It would have been nice to have gotten some snow but I don’t think eleven inches would have met my style. I would prefer about two to five inches of snow that stays around for several days.

It is amazing that Portland got all that snow and we didn’t get any of all. The temperatures this winter has been below normal but we have only received traces of snow a couple times probably not adding up to even an inch except some outlining areas. Places like Bellingham that is north of Seattle near the Canadian border has had some snow and west around the Hood Canal has had some to. They are close to the Olympic Mountains so that is understandable.

This storm hitting Portland happens about every twenty years and the same goes for us when we get a lot as well. The last few years we have gotten very little snow and the temperature usually has stayed in the forties. This year we have had temperatures in the thirties primarily however has dipped into the low twenties.

I like having about three inches of snow that sticks around for several days so I can enjoy it on the trees. It used to happen more frequently when I was growing up. In fact I would have to say it happened more often then. I haven’t seen a lot of snow as an adult.

A snow storm like hitting Portland this week would be nice because it would send those from California back. Just kidding let you know. Sort of kidding that is. Also I would like to throw some snow balls and make a snowman too. It would be nice to show you some pictures of snow here to.

A lot of people are not accustomed to driving in snow around here so a lot of accidents would happen just like in Portland that stopped traffic for a while. One of the TV anchors in Portland I grew up with here in Gig Harbor so nice to see her report the snow storm on the internet. We don’t get any of the channels from Portland on the television since we get Seattle stations for local television.

We have had snow as late as March that I recall so there is still hope. This weekend the temperatures will rise into the forties so we will get rain. At least on the positive side the mountains will get snow. It is possible that I may have to the mountains for snow. I wish not to drive two hours though. Oh well and have yourself a wonderful weekend.

Growing Up With Cats

               
                                              Not one of our cats but looked like one

I have mentioned before that I don’t always remember childhood memories very well like some people. Usually it happens during conversation.

I do remember growing up with cats. We had several sets of cats over the years. We always had at least two cats and up to three cats.

My mother told some friends of hers last week had three cats so each would be able to set on her three sons. I think that is about right.

When I was in high school we had two white and black cats that were brother and sister so they were named Cesar and Cleopatra. Makes sense doesn’t it. We had a brown cat that was Russian and was name Mushca. Mother said that means little mouse which made sense for her.

I have to tell you a funny story about Mushca. One year my parents decided to let her have babies. The only female cat we allowed to have kittens. She was the less likely one to be a good mother what we found out anyway.

When she decided to have her babies she did so on my bed. The first few were when I was sleeping. The funny part was when I woke up she was having another on my bed right in front of my face. Talk about a shock. At that point she moved all the kittens into my closet for the rest of the night.

The next day she had all of them on my bed and would not let me in. How could I let a cat have so much power over me? After a week I decided that was enough and I moved her along with the kittens out of my room. She made her way to one of the couches in the living room. That was funny because there was a hole in the back of the couch and she would put the kittens in and they would fall out the other end. She was very perplexed why she continually had to put the kittens back there. Since I did feel responsible in a way I moved her somewhere else to help her. We ended up giving away most of the kittens and keeping only one. Stories like that are easier to remember for sure.

After Mushca, Cesar and Cleopatra finally died which was sad for sure mother and dad just had one cat living with them. At that point I was living on my own and so were my brothers. My younger brother Jack though has kept up the tradition of having cats. They have two cats right now and have had them for many years. Also they have a dog. We never had a dog at least not since I was four years old anyway.

So this is my cat story for now. We had cats before those three as well. So I am sure I will remember stories about them too. Maybe Jack will remind me.

Living in Grace

In the Christian Church a lot is being said these days about grace. Actually it has been around since Christ. He is the reason we have grace.

There are preachers and teachers who just talk about grace. It is important that people know about God’s favor with grace however there is balance in any teaching. Other words you have to teach everything about Christ and the word not just grace. When you do it actually shows how great grace is.

We all have made mistakes and sin. Yes the word sin is in there. Some people don’t  use that word because they don’t want to sound condemning however the truth is we have all sinned and we must realize that is the reason that Jesus Christ came. Yes he came because of his love for us. This is why grace is so important however he died on the cross for our sin. Yes it is a bad word but that is what we all have done. We must accept that we have sinned but he paid for it. We ask him to forgive and move on in our new life.

This is where grace comes in. He gives us grace for our sin. It does not mean we continue to sin but grace and forgiveness is what he did for us. Yes there will be times where we will sin or what I may call screw up but all we ask for him to forgive us again and we receive his grace.

You see Christ loves us so much that he is willing to forgive at any time however we have to be sincere about it. Does not mean we won’t go out and do the same thing again. The importance is for us to ask for prayer for those areas that we continue to screw up or sin.

Let others know about Jesus love and the grace he wants to give us however let them know the full package. Enjoy the grace that God has given you. Remember it is a free gift but he paid a high price for it. Like the well-known song his grace is amazing. God Bless You!

Travel Puget Sound

                                  
                                        Looking out on Puget Sound from the Space Needle

Most of Western Washington the water is on the Puget Sound. Seattle is the major city that is on Puget Sound.

Where I live in Gig Harbor is an inlet to Puget Sound. So when you go out on a boat from the Harbor you are than on the Puget Sound. It goes for many miles starting from Olympia in the south up north to Whidbey Island.

When you are north of Whidbey Island than you are in the Strait of Juan de Fuca where the San Juan Islands are located; you than can reach Vancouver Island where Victoria is. If you head west on your boat from the Strait of Juan de Fuca than you enter into the Pacific Ocean.

When I was young our family including some cousins we took a trip by sailboat up north to Victoria and then east to the San Juan Islands. It was one of the most exciting trips I was ever on with the wind blowing hard in the Islands and the boat leaning over.

My parents were members of the Gig Harbor Yacht Club. One year my dad was commodore of the club. I never thought he would be because it doesn’t seem to be his kind of thing but he did enjoy the time. The best part of being commodore is meeting ones from other clubs. So I learned the names of many of them in the area. I would say that most members of the yacht clubs have motor boats but some like my dad only had sailboats.

My dad was introduced to sailing when he was a teenager. His brother Bill and he found a sailboat that was left on dry land. I can’t remember where exactly he told me where they found it but it was not far from Gig Harbor. Since that day outside of his family boating became his love. He spent many hours sailing boats including being in races. He and his brother built several boats over the years. In fact his last boat he built on a property I had at the time. He was only able to sail the boat a few times before he died. His brother though designed several boats and was in the boat business for several years however was not very successful. In fact it cost my dad some money in helping his brother out. I would say he should have stayed in the designing of boats but some people just have to go further though they don’t have the talent to do so.

Though the trip to Victoria and the San Juan Islands was the highlight of our sailing adventures we did go on quite shorter sailing trips. Primarily up to Seattle and over to Bremerton where the Naval Ship Yard is located; sometimes the wind seem to die and it took a lot of time to get over to Bremerton. Being a young guy sometimes the time seems to go forever especially when you are hungry. Dad would not feed us until we arrived. I am not good on an empty stomach I got tell you.

Besides Seattle, Bremerton and the San Juan Islands there are a lot of other places to visit on the sound. In fact you could spend almost every weekend for a lot of time exploring so many places. Though I have been to some there are many others to go. I am sure there are other natives like myself that have not gone all the places on the Puget Sound. If not by water most of the places can be driven by car.

The great part of being out on the open part of the Puget Sound like between Seattle and Bremerton smelling the sweet air and seeing the land on the distance.  Most of the cities in Western Washington have beautiful waterfront to visit and walk around. Come some time and enjoy yourself.

2017 The Year OF Change

On Sunday the church I was attending merged with another church. Something we don’t hear about very often for sure. Each church had attendance of around two hundred however neither was going much at all. The church I was attending met at night in the building that the other church owned. Without going into great detail our pastor asked the other churches pastor if we could come together as one. The weakness of one of the churches was the strength of the other and vice versa so the beginning of the new church happened. The new church name is the same as the church we merged with so my church name is no longer in existence. Something to get used to however we are all excited to what God has planned as one group in the years ahead.

This makes me believe that change is happening around the world in 2017. You have to figure in the USA it will start soon with Donald Trump becoming the new President. Whether you agree with it or not this is what’s happening. He will bring new change hopefully for the good. We will find out won’t we? One thing for sure we have never had a president like Trump.

Change is always difficult for many. It takes a little while to get used to change whether we agree with it or not. I hope that change will occur in other countries as well. I know that many will agree with me but I don’t want to have people upset in those countries that I wish change would happen. I am sure some would welcome the change while others prefer to stay with the status quo even though the change would benefit them.

I believe that many of us have been born for this period of time to help usher new change. These are the people who truly believe in purpose and destiny in their lives. We must speak up for truth. The world is going in the wrong direction. What people are saying bad is good and good is bad. I am not here to offend others but not everyone’s thinking is right. Many people are accepting things that at one time were wrong. If you believe different than I do I am not going to speak judgment against you because I don’t want be judged either for what I believe. We must have grace and love for those who think different than we do however to ignore truth is not right either. If you really love people it is important to speak truth into their lives to change them not condemn.

This is all I will say about that however change is coming whether good or bad. Important to embrace the good; until next time God Bless You!

Overcoming Fear

On Saturday when I went to the coffee shop that I buy a drink at I ran into a group of guys from another church. They were meeting for several minutes in the conference room so signaled me to come in to spend time with them. This happened after I had talked to my brother on the phone like I do most Saturdays.

I have seen them in the coffee shop before and attended their meeting as well. There are half dozen men who meet around my same age and I have actually attended a previous church with three of the guys. Anyway they were sharing their lives about how things were going. The theme that came from all of them had to do with fear and how each one could overcome it.

I found it quite interesting because I have dealt with fear in my life as well. In fact I would have to say that most of us deal with fear at one time or another.  Fear could be in any form or situation. Often people have fear in sharing their lives with others especially in a group setting. Another fear can be sharing their faith with people on the streets or in a coffee shop wondering what reaction they may get.

One of the men Dan who I have known for many years was sharing when I went into the conference room. He talked about how for most of his life he did everything in the background. He was not a person who liked to be out in the forefront. This week he and his pastor spent time on a street corner holding signs that read they would pray for anyone who needed healing of any sorts.  They had to wait for several minutes however people did finally stop and ask for prayer. Dan said that he was released of fear by praying for those people. So not only people got prayer Dan received answer to prayer himself.

The reason I bring this all up is if we are meant to live a life of purpose and destiny we must get over fear ourselves. I am sure everyone has fear to some degree when it comes to talking with others. I have mentioned that I have talked to people in grocery stores that I don’t even know but it is not always easy. In fact it took me some time to do so. Like Dan to overcome this kind of fear is to go out and do something. This is true for someone like Dan who has spent most of their lives in the background. I am not saying it will be easy because it will not be but we must start somewhere.

So if you deal with fear find a way to overcome it. We all need to live a life where we feel free. We are people that have value in this world. It will take some time but we will be better people in the long run. God bless you!

Happy Birthday Sis

Today January 7 is my sister Barbara’s birthday. I won’t mention how she is however it one of those birthday’s that is a milestone so I hoping that she is going to have a great day.

She lives in Quebec, Canada a few miles outside of Ottawa, Ontario the capital of Canada. She has lived there about thirty years after living in the Vancouver, British Columbia for several years. She works as a paralegal and this may be her last year working before retiring. She has two grown sons Ken who lives in Montreal and Connor who is Ottawa. She lost her husband Bob about six and half years ago.

Barb met Bob while she was a graduate student at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington. They were married a couple months before I graduated from high school. They lived in Tacoma well as Gig Harbor for a few years before moving to Vancouver. They moved to eastern Canada when Ken and Connor were a few years old. Ken and Connor went to school in Quebec. Barb, Ken and Connor all can speak French well as English.

Bob grew up in Canada with a brother and sister. His father Ken was in the Canadian Air Force so they travelled all over Canada and then Ken along with his wife Betty settled in Lakewood which is south of Tacoma when he retired after being stationed at McChord Air Force Base.

Our mother grew up in Canada before coming to United States after World War 2. She spent a couple years in Paris France. Barb was born in Seattle while my brothers and I were born in Tacoma. Barb spent some time with our grandparents in Edmonton, Alberta as a small child so she knew Canada very well so when meeting Bob they decided to move up to Canada it was a very easy for her.

Barb is eight and half years older than me so she went off to college when I was around nine years old. She went to University of Oregon in Eugene and majored in political science. I don’t have a lot of memories of being real young so I don’t remember Barb’s teenage years much at all. I have known her more as an adult so it is different than most sibling relationships. I do have some flashes where she took my two brothers and me to the movies. Our parents really weren’t into going to movies. I am not sure how a teenage girl felt about dragging her much younger brothers to the movie but she did.

I do remember our family going to visit Barb while she was a college student at Oregon. Our dad really being into sailing he would race the Thistle boat he had on the lake near Eugene.

Another time I remember well was after she graduated from Oregon and before going to University of Puget Sound she was working at a record store in Portland, Oregon. She brought home a record of the Beatles album “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”. Being a young teenager at the time I asked her how I could become a member of the club. Now looking back that was somewhat funny.

I remember to her and Bob’s wedding along with the births of Ken and Connor. They are both born in January as well. They were both born in Vancouver, British Columbia. Actually Connor birthday is tomorrow so happy birthday to him as well and Ken is on the eighteenth. My brother Dick and I spent a few occasions up in Vancouver on separate occasions. Dick ended up living in New York after he graduated from college so he would visit
Barb and the family on holidays. I visited them there to a couple Christmases. Another story at another time; so I toast Barb for her birthday and we here in Gig Harbor are  thinking of you.

Choose It

You may wonder what I am talking about by the title. Usually I go directly with the title though this one is a bit different.

I believe that we must choose the direction we go at all times. This goes with enjoying life in my last blog.

I am not a counselor however I think it is important for us to decide what we can do in life. We can ask God for direction however he sometimes shows the way but allows us to make the decision ourselves. This is part of giving us free will. The only problem though we can get stuck by making the wrong decision. This is really where wisdom comes in.

I have mentioned before that we have the choice to be happy and this is where everything comes into our lives. We have to decide to be happy even when the circumstances don’t really seem to warrant happiness.

There are other things we can choose in our lives to. For example where we live and our job along with friends; the last is not always easy because sometimes we feel that choosing friends that are not really good for us. Those friends we go for because we feel that we don’t deserve any better friends which is not true at all. Important to find friends that will encourage and edify us. Those that will make us feel the way we ought to.

So whatever you have to decide on think things over first. I am sure everything will turn out right. God bless you!