Have We Forgotten?

A thought-provoking edition of Keil's Comments:  The Blog today.

I was thinking about the church shooting that occurred in Charleston, SC this past week.  Without giving too much attention to the screwball who committed the murders and unless he accepted the families' forgiveness, forever sealed his fate in Hell,..I was thinking about the location of this shooting.  Yes, it is an African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church.  Yes, that particular congregation is predominately black.  But a pic that I posted the other day caught my attention. It features a quote by Sam Emory, who turns out (thanks to a Google search) pastors a church in Merced, CA.

There's no such thing for me as a black church.  There's no such thing for me as a white church.  The Church don't have no color.  The only color the Church is is Red because of the Blood of Jesus Christ

Have we forgotten the song that we were taught growing up in church (I added the bold italics emphasis)...

Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world

Red and Yellow, Black and White...they are precious in His sight

 Since when have we as a nation forgotten that particular song? Whatever your "shade of Melanin" is, if you are a part of the Church (emphasis on the capital C) that means you are my Brother or Sister. Doctrinal differences aside, we have one major goal in mind...to keep the Main Thing the main thing, that is to bring people to Christ.  This shooting could have happened anywhere.  It could have happened in an Assemblies of God church.  It could have happened in the Lutheran church.  It could have happened in San Jose. God forbid, it could have happened here in Clinton, OK.

And I'm not about to debate whether we should have tighter gun control laws...that's not important right now. What is important is we have brothers and sisters in South Carolina that are hurting because 9 of their friends/family members went to meet Jesus...some of them probably before they expected. What we need to do as part of the Body is to minister to those who are hurting...maybe not physically go to Charleston but through prayer and standing up to the enemy (remember, "our fight is not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness in this world, and spiritual wickedness in high places" -- Ephesians 6:12) and say "NO MORE"!!!

 

 

The Rest of the Story (an homage to Paul Harvey)

Before I get started on this blog post, I want to let you know that I have started...
Keil's Comments: The Podcast

...so if I have some things to comment on about stories during the week among other things I can download them on there.  I even devote a segment to expounding my thoughts on what I write. I usually try to record on Friday or Saturday to be up by Monday and it is Family Friendly too so you don't have to worry about me dropping any F bombs or anything.

Now that the blatant shilling's out of the way, on to today's post.  Yes, I paid an homage to Paul Harvey with today's title because of something that I was reading on my YouVersion app.

I am doing this reading plan on YouVersion where you read through the Bible in a year (from the New Living Translation) and one of today's selections was from Acts.  Now, having studied Acts before and hearing our pastor's sermon series on Acts the first few weeks he started at First Christian Church, I thought "ok, this would be easy to skim over".  As it often happens when you study Scripture, something that you might not have seen before kinda gives you an "Aha!" moment.

You all have heard Acts 1:8 quoted thousands of times "But you will receive power after the Holy Spirit comes upon you.  And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the Earth."  But did you wonder if that was because He was answering a question or He would do something that would later be a staple of a certain 70's TV detective "oh...and one more thing".  Not until I read verses 6 and 7 did I really get "the rest of the story".

All throughout Scripture the Disciples were for lack of a better term bugging Jesus on when He was going to set up his earthly kingdom when time and time again he was referring to a Heavenly Kingdom. In Acts 1:6, they posed the question to Him one last time "Lord, has the time come to free Israel and restore our kingdom?"  Basically they were asking "Are we there yet, Jesus?" I know that John recorded that "Jesus wept", but do you think He may have done a few facepalms too?

Anyway, He told them in verse 7 "The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know."  Translation: "That's a 'need-to-know' and you don't need to know. But once you get filled with the Holy Spirit, then you must go tell everyone everywhere (the Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria thing) what all you have seen the last three-plus years so they can tell others and keep the Message going". And then as you know He then ascended to Heaven and is seated at God's Right Hand and it took a couple of angels to tell the Disciples "um, guys...what are you looking at the sky for?  He'll come back the same way He went up.  You've got your 'marching orders', now Go!!!" (RJK Paraphrase)

Anyway, just thought I would share that.   That is it for now.  Like I said you will probably hear me expound on this during the podcast.

Until next time, whether on here or on the podcast...Later!!!

That's All I Can Stands, I Can't Stands No More...

With apologies for the grammar, I had to quote Popeye with the title because of something that really gets to me.

A lot of you that know me know that I am a very kind and compassionate person. Sometimes that compassion has a limit.  Case in point -- when I see people post something to the effect of "nobody loves me everybody hates me I'm gonna go eat worms", I have to hit the "I don't want to see this" feature because if I say something to them it might not be what they want to hear.  We went through this with my Grandma Tucker in her later years -- with my mom bearing the brunt of it.

Nobody wants to be around someone who constantly breaks out in the old Hee Haw song "Gloom, Despair and Agony on me" (find it on YouTube, kids...you can thank me for the earworm later) Yes, some of it might be due to the chemical "soup" in your brain going out of whack -- I'm not going to discount that. But when it gets to the point where it's a constant thing, that's when your friends and family whether they are there with you in person or around the world on this little thing called the "information superhighway" have to put their foot down and call timeout.

Do I want you to get help?  If it's needed, yes!!! By all means, get help!!! Whether it's through a psychiatrist, a Pastor, whatever...GET HELP!!! If you do go to someone in the church, can I ask this of you -- if they just chalk it up to something that is going on spiritually and leave it at that, RUN...and I'm being nice when I say that!!! If they haven't "been there", if they haven't struggled with it themselves, then you sure as frack don't need them to tell you what you should do. I'm being absolutely serious when I say that!!! In some circles (read: similar to the church my brother, sister and I grew up in), that is all they will do is chalk it up to Ephesians 6:10-18 and II Corinthians 10:4,5 (two main passages that deal with spiritual warfare) and not even try to go any other route.

I'm sure at some point, Winnie the Pooh and Tigger and everybody else in the Hundred Acre Wood have wanted to tell Eeyore, "Look dude, we love you and everything but you got to do something about that gloomy attitude".  That should bring a smile to somebody!!!

Seriously...if you are feeling like you're walking on your bottom lip, get help!!! Just when it gets to the point of where you are singing "Gloom, Despair and Agony on me" every chance you get...it rubs some people the wrong way. Now that I've referenced the song twice, I have to post it...

I love you guys...and thank you for your understanding.

For the Class of 2015...

Last year at this time, I wrote a blog post about what I would say if'n I were given the chance to speak to a graduating class (which admittedly would probably be as much of a chance as winning the Powerball).  Instead of trying to remind myself what I wrote or linking you to that particular post, I thought I would save a little time and copy/paste that on this post...

So anyway, without any further delay...here is my address.

To the graduating class of 2015:

Well, kids...you did it!!! Beginning as far back as probably Head Start or Pre-K, fourteen to fifteen years of determination, sacrifice, and hard work have gotten you to where you sit today...with your closest friends in your caps and gowns, waiting for that moment when you walk across this stage, grab your folder, the prompt to change your tassel and be called officially a graduate.  Congratulations!!!

As you close one chapter of your life and start writing the next chapter, whether it be continuing your education at the university of your choice, or serving our country in the armed forces or immediately going into the work force, let me pass along some thoughts to remember.

First and foremost, remember who the Ultimate Boss is.  Proverbs 3:5,6 says "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him (one translation says "in everything you do Put God First...") and He will direct your paths." Make God your top priority and everything else will fall into place.

Secondly...listen to people you can trust.  People like your parents, your grandparents, your Pastor, the elders in the church.  Psalm 1:1,2 (HCSB) "How happy is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path of sinners, or join a group of mockers.  Instead, his delight is in the Lord's instruction, and he meditates on it day and night."

Lastly, while you are striving to succeed in whatever you do from this point forward, it is OK to have some fun every now and again.  I'm reminded of a classic movie quote -- "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy."  Maintain a work/fun balance...just don't let one overrun the other too much.

Again, congratulations on making it to this point in your journey.  Keep your eyes on what's ahead, don't look back and most importantly...Put God First!

Mother's Day Thoughts...

Hello and Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there. Even though it should be celebrated every day, it's a day to appreciate what all our moms have done for us.

Something though really gets me and especially on days like today...I don't get those people who harbor hate and resentment toward their moms. Sure she probably stumbled a few times along the way trying to make sure you had what you needed (food, clothing, shelter, etc.), but to go later and bad mouth her saying what a lousy job she did and call her every 4 letter name in the book really makes me shake my head.

It is no secret that I hold my mother in the highest regard.  Yes we had our shortcomings when I was little with her working and doing her best when it was just us two living in North Tulsa -- I've often said that the area where we lived was in the landing pattern of Tulsa International Airport.  But she did her best to make it work.  Even when we moved to Clinton, she did her best to make sure I had everything I needed.  And even then when she married Dad and then along came Stephenie and Jeremy, I hardly ever heard her complain.

So yeah, when I hear people complain and cuss their mother and everything, I just thank God all the more for mine because I want to keep mine around for a while and show her just how much she means to me and to my siblings and her grandchildren.

Happy Mother's Day Mom!!! I love you!!!!

What Part of (blank) Do You Not Understand?

Hello everyone from the Keil's Comments Studios!!! Nice to actually type out a blog post on a computer instead of my phone.  (It was kind of necessary there for a while but hope I won't need to unless I do need to -- make sense?)

Anyway, now that's out of the way...

I was hearing Mom say that she was reading some comments stemming from last night's season finale of "The Big Bang Theory" and how some people are confusing "Season Finale" with "Series Finale".  It makes you want to grab some people by their shoulders and ask them WHAT PART OF SEASON FINALE DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND?

Just so you know...

Season Finale = the show has finished airing new episodes for now but will be back in September with a whole new batch of episodes.

Series Finale = either by their own doing or the networks', that show will not be back on the schedule for next season (unless someone at Hulu or Netflix decides to pick them up or something...it has been done before.  See "Community")

I know some people live vicariously through their favorite characters.  I'm a big fan of the NCIS franchise -- Regular, Los Angeles and New Orleans or as I call it "Cajun Style".  Trust me, there are people still bent on having Cote de Pablo back on the show and get rid of Emily Wickersham (Cue "Let It Go")

That's the way TV works folks. If your show is good in the ratings book and with the critics, it sticks around for a while. If it's not, it gets cancelled.  And when a show that has been on as long as NCIS or Law and Order or CSI has, the writers/EP's try to find ways to keep the show relevant otherwise you might get replaced by a reboot of "Coach" or something. (Yes there is one in the works for next season on NBC)

We've been encouraged by some reviewers that have shows online to not read the comments because people tend to be "keyboard bullies" and channel their rage that way.  Then you have those who you probably think that they should never be within 500 feet of a computer because of some of their comments being way off base ("It's a conspiracy. C-O-N-Spiracy!!!")

That's all I have for now.  Until next time...

Phoning it in II:

It's been a few weeks since I have done a blog post on the phone...mainly because I have been without a computer. (In case you didn't see the last post, my laptop died two weeks ago and I have a new one on layaway at our local Kmart -- which as it stands I should be able to get it on May 1).

Of course, besides doing the normal things a phone like mine does, including take and receive calls...I have been using it for all the social media things that I do and whatnot, which tends to leave me putting it on the charger more than having it off.

Anyway, I am in for an interesting experience this weekend as I will be walking a 5K for Relay for Life in Burns Flat, OK with my dad. As of now, I don't know what the course looks like so basically I will be walking around Burns Flat not knowing any landmarks other than the Vo-Tech and the airpark. Hopefully I don't get lost...

That's about it for now. Until next time...