Foster families share support with elders at Oregon housing community

At a special housing development in Oregon, families who adopt foster children live side by side with seniors who volunteer their time in exchange for affordable rent. The NewsHour’s Cat Wise reports how members of the intergenerational community find support and connection together. “We’re flourishing and evolving in this environment, and we’re growing big time. If you go to live in an apartment complex with a bunch of older people, for instance, people kind of wither away, and it’s really not right. Connections across the generations is critical, absolutely critical for aging well.” Demand for housing at Bridge Meadows remains … Continue reading Foster families share support with elders at Oregon housing community

Remembering The Good Old Days….

As we all get older we sometimes yearn for the good old days. Those were the times when things were slower and life was less complicated.  Or were they??? Here is a quote from a book entitled “Mistakes Were Made (But Not By Me)” that tells us a little about our memories Memories are not buried somewhere in the brain, as if they were bones at an archeological site; nor can we uproot them, as if they were radishes; nor, when they are dug up, are they perfectly preserved. We do not remember everything that happens to us; we select … Continue reading Remembering The Good Old Days….

Christians Denying Christ!!!

How have we gotten the message of Jesus so damned wrong? One way I believe we might’ve taken a wrong turn or two in following the Way of Jesus is by not heeding his own teachings and example. In the article, Mohler quotes passages from the Hebrew Scriptures (Genesis 9) and even dabbles a bit into the writings of Paul (Romans 13). But he curiously ignores the red letters of the gospels which could shed a little light on what a Christian (i.e., a follower of Jesus Christ) should or should not support. SOURCE:  Missing the Point: Al Mohler & … Continue reading Christians Denying Christ!!!

National Mustard Museum…

With this post I am starting a new Saturday thing called “In Search of America”. I actually intended to make this a separate blog but just got too lazy to keep that up. So I will be doing it here on a weekly basis. It will primarily be about places I have visited and my search to understand what made this country what is it today. Let me know how you like it. A mustard museum? Who would have guessed?  We recently spend a long weekend touring Madison Wisconsin and came across this oddity. It was fun to tour the … Continue reading National Mustard Museum…

Yin and yang -The Basics

As I promised in an earlier post I want to start a discussion about the concept of Yin and Yang.  I don’t want to bore you totally to death so I thought I would cover this topic only on Fridays for as long as it stays interesting. Yin/yang and Taoism started in the fourth century BC China. The symbol for this concept is shown to the right. Here is a little about it from Wikipedia. In Chinese philosophy, the concept of yin-yang (simplified Chinese: 阴阳; traditional Chinese: 陰陽; pinyin: yīnyáng), which is often called “yin and yang”, is used to … Continue reading Yin and yang -The Basics

Pride, Best Taken In Small Doses….

Most of you have probably heard of the “Seven Deadly Sins”. Lust Gluttony Greed Sloth Wrath Envy Pride Here is a little about their origins from Wikipedia: The seven deadly sins, also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins, is a classification of vices (part of Christian ethics) that has been used since early Christian times to educate and instruct Christians concerning fallen humanity’s tendency to sin. In the currently recognized version, the sins are usually given as wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony. Each are a form of Idolatry-of-Self wherein the subjective reigns over the objective. … Continue reading Pride, Best Taken In Small Doses….

Indiana – The Sore Thumb Of The Midwest…

While I am in a political bent here at RJ’s Corner I thought I would tackle one final issue about my home State before I put this putrid topic back on the shelf! I am a Hoosier and in some regards proud of that fact. But when it comes to our politics I am embarrassed to proclaim my birthplace.  I am even more embarrassed when it comes to the politics involved with the health and wellness of many of my fellow Hoosiers. As shown by the image below Indiana of the last couple of decades at least is a very … Continue reading Indiana – The Sore Thumb Of The Midwest…

Obama Teaches Us All A Lesson About Cliven Bundy

President Barack Obama taught everyone a little lesson about racist Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy during the 2014 White House Correspondents’ Dinner. Obama was touting the success of Olympic snowboarder Jamie Anderson, who was in attendance at the dinner, saying he hadn’t “seen someone pull a 180 that fast until Rand Paul disinvited that Nevada rancher from this dinner.” “As a general rule, things don’t end well if the sentence starts with, ‘Let me tell you something about the Negro,’” Obama said. “You don’t really need to know the rest of it, just a tip for you.” SOURCE:  Obama Teaches Us … Continue reading Obama Teaches Us All A Lesson About Cliven Bundy

Embracing the ‘Feminine Side’ of God…

The masculine side of God is something to be admired. But it is the feminine side that draws love out of me. It is this feminine side of God I find in Jesus that makes me want to sing duets with Him. When I think about the feminine in Him, I want to throw out my arms and be loved…. Society has brought me up to suppress the so-called feminine dimensions of my humanness. But when Jesus makes me whole, both sides of who I am meant to be will be fully realized. Then, and only then, will I be … Continue reading Embracing the ‘Feminine Side’ of God…

Do Active Christians Have a Place In Your Church?

This is a sincere question for church leaders out there. When you get a truly on-fire Christian who wants to get busy working in their community, using their gifts, and making a difference, what do you do with them? So many people assume it is the “backsliding,” “the lukewarm,” or the “disengaged” who leave church or “church hop” but I have often found the opposite. I have seen many passionate and convicted Christians who find they just have no place their church. What About Those of Us Tired of Spectating Church service is largely a spectator activity. What about those … Continue reading Do Active Christians Have a Place In Your Church?

Let Them Do Their Own Fighting…

If we can just let other people alone and let them do their own fighting. When you get into trouble 5,000 miles away from home, you’ve got to have been looking for it.” – Will Rogers, 9 February 1932 Thanks Will for reminding us what common sense, which seems to be a rare commodity these days, sounds like…. My Republican friends like to say that they are dismantling the country’s safety net in order to rescue those trapped in it. That is the reason many give for cutting so many programs to the poor.   Well I say we need to … Continue reading Let Them Do Their Own Fighting…

Me Too…

“I’m worried a lot about power in the financial services industry and I’m worried about the fact that basically, starting in the ’80s, you know, the cops were taken off the beat in financial services. These guys were allowed to just paint a bull’s-eye on the backside of American families,” Warren said. “They loaded up on risk. They crushed the economy. They got bailed out. What bothers me now, they still strut around Washington, they block regulations that they don’t want, they roll over agencies whenever they can.”  SOURCE: Elizabeth Warren Sidesteps Clinton Question, Says Wall Fat Cats ‘Strut Around … Continue reading Me Too…

Inequality…

Inequality is the result of political forces as much as of economic ones. In a modern economy government sets and enforces the rules of the game—what is fair competition, and what actions are deemed anticompetitive and illegal, who gets what in the event of bankruptcy, when a debtor can’t pay all that he owes, what are fraudulent practices and forbidden. Government also gives away resources (both openly and less transparently) and, through taxes and social expenditures, modifies the distribution of income that emerges from the market, shaped as it is by technology and politics. The Price of Inequality: How Today’s … Continue reading Inequality…