JOY IS OUR BIRTHRIGHT:  A PERSONAL CONFESSION

I confess . . . Too often I let my chronic anxiety get the best of me. I find it hard when I find my circumstances bringing me down. And I find it hard to find joy as I follow current events, not just in our country but also abroad. So, as often happens, what I encountered in my quiet time today was something I needed. Here goes . . . 

"If there is anything that ought to characterize the life of a Christian, it is joy! . . . Don't deny yourself that which is your birthright as a child of God. Don't be satisfied with a joyless life. There ought to be in every Christian a deep, settled fulness of the joy of Christ that no circumstances of life can dispel. This comes as you allow the Holy Spirit to express Himself in your life. One of the fruits of the Spirit is joy (Gal. 5:22). This is is unlike any happiness that is produced by the world. It fills you & permeates everything you do.

"Jesus did not pray that you would merely be happy or even that you would escape grief. He prayed that you would have the same joy that the Father had given Him:  a divine joy, a joy that comes from a deep & unwavering relationship with the Father. It is a joy that is grounded so firmly in a relationship with God that no change in circumstances could ever shake it. This is the kind of joy that Christ is praying will be in you." Henry & Richard Blakaby, "Experiencing God Day-By-Day"

2024 RESOLUTIONS REVIEW'

> Lose weight. A. I've lost 10 lbs so far this year. CAVEAT:  I'm not sure a colonoscopy prep is an acceptable weight-loss plan.

> Limit myself to no more than 2 cups of coffee per day. D. I guess there are worse vices to indulge in.

> Visit at least 1 National park or Monument this year. A. We toured the Castillo de San Marcos NM in St. Augustine last FEB. I think I can better this grade, because we have plans to tour Craters of the Moon NM in Idaho on the way home from our nieces wedding in Montana.

> Limit myself to reading 1 conservative news source per day. B-. I always check out Fox News Online, which some would consider a partisan news source. [For the record, I don't think it is.] Ditto the Drudge Report; also Townhall, which I confess is pretty partisan. And the Daily Wire, also somewhat slanted, I guess. [Maybe a B- is too high, but it's my resolutions review, not yours.

> Avoid picking fights on Facebook. B+. I did post a comment in response to a post where someone wondered why people who accept the science of solar eclipses won't accept the science of climate change. Seriously? Apples to oranges. He responded to my comment, & then I shut it down, so I'm pretty proud of myself.

> Walk at least 4X per week. C-. Following the radio ablation procedure on my neck last week, I really slacked off. The surgeon told me I would most likely feel worse before I felt better, & he was right. However, this last week I started experiencing les discomfort, so I'm hopeful I can get back on track.

> Finish writing & publishing a devotion book. C-. More on that below.

G.P.A. C+

MY BETTER HALF

Kudos to Lois! I am so proud of her! She is a certified Stephen Ministry trainer, & she has been training 5 people in our congregation to be Stephen ministers. [If you're not familiar with this program, you should Google "Stephen Ministry."] She already put in hours of study to qualify as a trainer. Now she is putting in hours of training with this group. Not only does this involve lots of review & lesson-planning, it includes 4 to 5 hours of training every week. Her group deserves kudos, too. This is no small commitment.

OUR GRANDDAUGHTER

Our oldest granddaughter Brianna will be walking at Northeast Community College's commencement this next FRI. She took classes last year & stayed with us. Because she picked up some college credits in h.s. & took overloads & summer classes at NECC, she technically graduated at the end of the summer, but she decided to walk along with some of the good friends she made. She enrolled at Concordia Seward, my alma mater, last fall, & will actually be ready to student-teach & graduate at the end of the 24-25 school year. And she just turned 21! Can you tell I'm a little proud of her?

SPEAKING OF GRANDDAUGHTERS

Our granddaughter Hadley, Brianna's baby sister & 8th grader at Lincoln Lutheran Middle School, was in the cast of their spring musical. Not to brag, but she really distinguished herself. And she's running track, specifically hurdling. Can you tell I'm a little proud of her, too? Lois is going to her track meet in Fremont tomorrow. Wish I could go, but my neck issues make it difficult to sit in the bleachers all day. 

Speaking of granddaughters, our 3-yr granddaughter Claire is in the advanced studies program at Children's Country Day in Eagan, MN, where her mother is co-owner & co-director.

WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

We finished watching the Mission Impossible series. I'd rate it a solid B+. We stopped watching Scorpion, because Lois & I found ourselves endlessly debating which was more believable:  M.I., Scorpion, or Hallmark movies. We keep up with our Paramount+[CBS] procedurals, but we were bitterly disappointed to learn that NCIS Hawaii is being cancelled. Mu choice would have been The Equalizer, which we stopped watching already last year because it was becoming hopelessly woke. We started watching The Lincoln Lawyer, which came highly recommended by some of our siblings. It's pretty compelling, although sometimes profane.

WHAT I'M WATCHING

I've been watching back episodes of Monk on Netflix. We may have watched it off & on when it first aired, but I don't remember many episodes, & I am really enjoying it. [A-] I've been watching sports docuseries, also on Netflix. I just started watching a limited series about college basketball scandals. [B] And I occasionally watch episodes of FBI True, also on Netflix. [B+]

WHAT I'M READING

It's taking me forever to plough through "Modern Times:  The World from the Twenties to the Eighties," by Paul Johnson. Slow going, but I've learned a lot. Sadly, I can't compete with my daughter Sarah, who is a voracious reader. Yesterday I started reading "A Walk in the Woods," an account by Bill Bryson about his attempt to hike the Appalachian Trail. He's a favorite author, & I read this book years ago. [Maybe I'd get "Modern Times" finished faster if I limited myself to one book at a time.] I decided to reread it after watching the theatrical movie over Christmas with Lois' sister Anita & our brother-in-law Jerry.

DEVOTIONAL BOOK PROGRESS

I'm doing my 4th editing of "Buzzwords," which I actually finished writing over a year ago. I decided to go through it one more time after attending a presentation by 2 authors at the Norfolk Public Library. I'm proud to say that I know 1 of them, who is also a member of our church. After listening to them talk about how important it is to adhere to a style manual, I figured I better go back one more time. For example, I decided I better switch from "&" to "and." And I'm still finding errors! I'm not sure it pays to attempt this if you are suffering from OCD. 

WEATHER REPORT

We've received some much-need rain over the past 2 weeks, including t-storms & torrential downpours. And we've been in 2 tornado warnings, NOT watches. The second time it happened, we spent an hour in the basement, something we rarely do, but after the sirens went off & we got weather alerts on our devices, we decided that discretion was the better part of valor. A tornado did heavy damage to an athletic facility southeast of Norfolk, well away from us. A tornado hit the ground & did some damage northeast of Lincoln, where our daughter Sarah & her family live. A train suffered damage & some businesses were demolished west of Lincoln, in a location we are very familiar with. [We lived in Lincoln from 1980-1993.]

If you follow the news, you've seen pictures & videos of the tornado damage that struck towns northwest of Omaha, Minden, IA, & in OK. Omaha's Eppley Airfield suffered some damage--none to the terminal. When you see images of the destruction in NE & IA, you can only wonder that there was only 1 fatality & mostly minor injuries. Sadly, 4 persons died in OK.

Orphan Grain Train, the organization that I work for, is working to provide relief services & supplies to these locations. If you are interested in supporting our efforts, check out our web page:  ogt.org. Over 98% of your donations to OGT go to direct relief efforts, & not to administrative costs.

HAVE YOU NOTICED?

My political content has diminished, which you may have noticed, & I hope you're not disappointed. Frankly, my posts weren't making me feel much better, they didn't seem to be changing anyone's minds, & I felt that I was mostly preaching to the choir. It is what it is. [Frankly, I hate that cliche'.] And it's my blog.

TRENDING NEWS & COMMENTARY

"The ruins that could prove the Bible was true," Drudge Report. Frankly, I don't need no ruins to convince me that the Bible is true. 

"Iran offers scholarships to students expelled from US, European universities over anti-Israel protests." Fox News Online. Hang on a second . . . Didn't we give Iran billions of dollars in unfrozen assets? I sure hope they're not using THIS money. And I hope these students can use these funds to pay off their student loans, so they can take more classes from pro-Hamas professors.

"National pickle shortage tied to extreme weather in Mexico." FNO. I hope our president regrets putting clamps on our domestic pickle industries.

TRENDING NEWS FROM THE BABYLON BEE * 

* Your trusted source of fake news

"Church softball team lovingly prays for Jesus to heal blind ump."

"Congressional Democrats demand $40 billion for UCLA border security."

"King Solomon dies of old age waiting for 700 wives to decide on restaurant."

"New study finds most effective treatment for depression watching scrawny Libs get absolutely manhandled by police."

"Essential life skill your kid will learn at an Ivy League university:  How to pitch a Coleman pup tent purchased from Walmart by George Soros."

"Reasonable demand from students occupying campus buildings:  That campus be designated a gun-free, banana-free, Jew-free zone."

"Highly effective way to remove protesters from your campus:  Run around screaming 'I'm unvaccinated!' & coughing everywhere."

MORE GROANERS *

* From "Uncle John's Awesome 35th Anniversary Bathroom Reader

"Poor Phillip just lost his lip in an accident. Now we just call him Phil."

"I always wanted to be archaeologist. Now my career is in ruins."

"I failed math so many times I can't even count."