May 20, 2020
Devotional Podcasts



Interview Podcast
Joyce Zachow


Joyce Zachow...from her photo collection that does NOT include her driver's license photo or church directory photo


Daily Update

The mission committee met last night (on Zoom) and made plans to make a video about different people in town who are working with the poor.  I'm looking forward to celebrating and affirming those who have been in the trenches during these weeks to help those who are struggling the most with material needs.


Life Goes On

You have six things to cram into your schedule tomorrow, May 21:
  • Rapture Party Day...granted, this is a little irreverent...but irreverence seems to be the appropriate response to so-called Bible teachers who are unBiblical.  In  2011, Harold Camping, a preacher, announced that the rapture would occur on May 11, 2011.  It apparently didn't.  But many people were taught an image of God that was utterly lacking in love.  And many others generalized ALL Christians as having crazy ideas.  May 21 seems like a good time to celebrate...that the world is still here (maybe play Louie Armstrong's "It's a Wonderful World) and also celebrate the love of God...which is overlooked by those caught up in Rapture theories...a word, by the way, that never appears in scripture.  The theory of the rapture comes from a scissors and paste job...taking several scripture verses out of context and concocting a theory out of them.  
  • On the lighter side...tomorrow is also "Need a Patch for That Day."  It's a good day to look around the house and fix a few things:  that hole in your britches, the rip in the window screen, the hole in your boat.  Since I'm in the process of packing up everything I own, most things that need a patch are simply going in the recycle bin.
  • Tomorrow is "Waitstaff Day," which means you might want to plan a trip to Missouri, where the waitstaff is back to work.  Let's hope they will safely be able to get back to work in our area soon too.
  • May 21 is "Global Accessibility Awareness Day," not a laughing matter, but an important one.  I'm getting more and more appreciative of accessibility awareness the older I get: the less my eyes work, the more my arthritis works overtime.
  • And tomorrow is both "Memo Day" and "Notebook Day," a couple celebrations that seem related.  The word "memo" comes from "memorandum," which comes from a Latin word meaning "to be remembered." I often jot things down that need to be remembered, but then cannot remember where I put the written reminders.  The "memo" has gotten a new lease on life in our modern world with the use of electronic calendars and reminders on our smart phones.  It also enjoyed a surge in popularity with the invention of "Post-it" notes. The Post-it Note was conceived in 1974 by Arthur Frye, who needed a fast way to get to the next hymn in his hymnal while singing in the church choir.  As for Notebook Day, I have notes all over my study.  Unfortunately, most notes get put on the back of envelopes or scraps of paper sitting around...and occasionally I think it would be better if I would just keep a notebook and put everything in there. Maybe tomorrow I'll make that resolution to depend on scrap paper less and notebooks more.