Notes To My Inmates

I think I am the only Correctional Officer who does this. If not, like to meet other officers who do, and that have a passion for re-entry.

Everyday when I come into the dorm at 0600, at my first opportunity I leave an inspirational thought for my inmate residents. I jot it down on a piece of scratch paper and tape one copy to one side of the dorm, and another copy to the other side. I also write one more copy of it in my journal. The thoughts come from where ever - literally. Sometimes they are a quote I heard the day before, or they may come from my devotional time that weigh heavy on my heart and mind. I've been doing this ever since I started and I plan on continuing. Even though I am a by-the-book policy and procedure guy, there is no policy on this and inspirational thoughts I'm sure would be approved. The embedded images are some of the notes I get back from my inmates.

Why do I do it? As of June 5, 2016, 63% (92 of 145) of my dormitory residents will be released from their prison sentence by the year 2020. Will they be ready?  Is there anything we can do, indeed something I can do to help them in their successful re-entry back into society to help them be employed, responsible, caring and law-abiding sons, fathers and husbands. That is why I do what I do.

My guideline for notes to inmates is that it must be applicable to all. If it is religious in nature, which my notes sometime are, they must be acceptable to all faiths. The faiths represented in my dorm right now include several Christian denominations, Jewish, Islam, Wicca and Buddhism (that I know of). 

This is what my last note said:

Faith and Family

Faith and family are two things we should hold dear and value the most. What can you do today to strengthen these? A letter? A prayer? A thought? A phone call?  Think about it.

Follows is another note back from one of my inmates...

A Note to My Pastor

Dear Pastor,

If I were to title your sermon today it would be Opening Up The Kingdom.

When I was a child, I experienced so much rejection in my family church.  If someone smoked, drank, payed less than a full tithe or were immoral they were shunned, disfellowshiped and even excommunicated.  Fast forward now 30 years with prison populations probably doubled since then, gays out of the closet, pornography a challenge for 70% of Christian men, divorce the norm and and daily discussions on transgenders common.  What we see is our civilization being drawn toward two polar opposites - accept everything and everyone or close the doors to only the visibly righteous.

Your message today helped to mold my core values.  I shall accept every person as God's child worthy of acceptance, love and forgiveness. Period.  We the people, are God's people, that is our right and blessing given to us by the blood of Christ.

I will open my arms and my heart to love my brother and sister as Christ would.  That is my prayer.  I will treat the prison inmate with the same love and respect as my fellow officer or next door neighbor. That is my vow.

Build Your kingdom here

Let the darkness fear

Show Your mighty hand

Heal our streets and land

Set Your church on fire

Win this nation back

Change the atmosphere

Build Your kingdom here

We pray.

By Rend Collective - YouTube

Bless you in your continued work.

-- 

gus

An Easter Message of Hope

On one hand I cannot believe I wrote a Passover message prior to Easter.  What was I thinking?

Just let me say this...I know that my Redeemer lives. What comfort this sweet sentence gives! He lives, he lives, who once was dead. He lives, my ever-living Head.He lives to bless me with his love. He lives to plead for me above. He lives my hungry soul to feed. He lives to bless in time of need. Source

This Lenten season, Ash Wednesday through today has been a season of continual reflection.  One holy day merged into another, and now the Jewish holiday of Passover begins soon..  The Bible story can not only be wonderfully broken down into individual messages of inspiration and wisdom, but it also must be look at as a whole; the same with one’s spiritual life.

Long before I was positively influenced by Christ’s disciples in my high school (thank you), I was taught by my family and the religion of our past generations, the LDS Church.

Forty years later I recall some of the teachings and hymns of my childhood and fondly sing them under my breath, so as not to be seemingly judged by some of my main stream Christian contemporaries. As I think of Easter, this song comes to mind which is a traditional LDS hymn. I only included the first verse and the chorus because that is what rings in my heart and causes me to sing aloud.

The Day Dawn Is Breaking

The day dawn is breaking, the world is awaking,
The clouds of night's darkness are fleeing away.
The worldwide commotion, from ocean to ocean,
Now heralds the time of the beautiful day.

Beautiful day of peace and rest,
Bright be thy dawn from east to west.
Hail to thine earliest welcome ray,
Beautiful, bright, millennial day.

Now a message of hope written by a friend suffering from depression, that end in a message of hope reflected in Easter...

On My Finite Depression

Is it possible to be happy again, normal?
I get by daily by following my routine,
But sometimes it can get very dark.
Knowing deep inside I'm blessed, sometimes joyful.

Family, friends, a loving wife. A life blessed.
But shadows are comfortable and darkness my friend,
Hours pass, accomplishing nothing.
When I was younger, unstoppable this didn't need to be addressed.

I see a light ahead, just out of reach.
One week, month, year of this yet to go.
I'll hang in there, because of faith.
Faith in a a power greater, that will let this wall be breached.
I can because He is risen!

-author's name withheld.

Matzah 2016

I really have an appreciation for Jewish people. I'll never understand what they've been through, or the discrimination they've faced or face today. However, I have a deep respect for their traditions, therefore the following recipe, an adaptation from recipe Matzah.

Matzah - the bread made by the Jews during the Passover...I know Wiki is not the best source for information. I am only including this link as a reference for general knowledge...

In preparation for the Passover this year, April 22-30, this is how I made my Matzah, and it is a superior recipe to previous years...

Move an oven rack near the top of oven and preheat oven to 475 degrees F.

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose, unbleached kosher flour
about 1/3 cup water (more/less if needed)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon all-purpose flour for dusting on the counter and the roller

Yields: about 4 – 5 inch diameter pieces of unleavened bread. In a religious ceremony, this amount would serve approximately 100 people.

Add in all ingredients to mixer bowl.

Move an oven rack near the top of oven and preheat oven to 475 degrees F.

Preheat a heavy baking sheet or baking stone in the oven. Dust a clean work surface and a rolling pin with 1 teaspoon flour, or as needed. Place 1 cup of flour into a mixing bowl; set a timer for about 16 minutes (18 minutes maximum). Start the timer; pour the water, about 1 tablespoon at a time, into the flour. Stir the water and flour together with a fork until the dough forms a rough ball, remove the dough to the prepared work surface, knead rapidly and firmly until smooth, about 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Divide the dough into four equal pieces. Swiftly roll each piece into a ball. Roll each piece of dough out into a 5-inch pancake and it will be about ¼ inch thick, dusting the top and rolling pin with flour as needed. Gradually roll the pancakes out to a size of about 5 inches  Roll from the center out. The bread rounds should be thin about 1/4 inch thick. Using a fork, quickly pierce each bread about 20 times, all over, to prevent rising. The holes should go completely through the bread. Flip the bread over, and pierce each piece another 20 times or so.

Place the rounds onto the baking sheet. Place the baking sheet onto the rack near the top of the oven, and bake for 5 minutes; turn the breads over and bake an additional 4 minutes, until the Matzah are lightly browned and crisp.

Recipe Modification! - April 2, 2016 - Today I didn't want to mess with a rolling pin and flouring the cabinet today so I mixed it in a bowl and made it flat like a thick tortilla, then popped it in the oven.  Bake @ 475 for 8 minutes, flip then 8 more minutes.  A longer baking time.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Lightly anoint each Matzah with olive oil, using a brush, and sprinkle generously with salt.

Footnotes:

• Making Matzah breads kosher for Passover requires using special Kosher flour that has been guarded from contact with liquids. I used Gold Medal, Kosher, unbleached all-purpose flour.
• The cook is allowed no longer than 18 minutes from the point they combine the flour and water to when they remove the Matzah from the oven in order for it to be considered fit for Passover.

Tithing When You Have No Money - A Prison Inmate's Perspective

I've always felt prison inmates should have an opportunity to pay a tithe like other Christians. In some state correctional departments it's legal and offered to the incarcerated.  In Christianity it is a religious right (and rite) and sacrament whom some people hold sacred and a privilege.

In prison all inmates have the opportunity to attend chapel meetings of their religious choice.  They can receive kosher meals if required and afternoon prayer time if that is their tradition.  So what about giving back financially, tithing?  Here is what one of my inmates wrote.  He is serving 4 plus years for fraud related crimes.

I solicited this story from him in an effort to challenge him to stay academically motivated and to express his thoughts on paper for therapeutic and historical purposes. He gave me permission to publish it, using his own words.*

Tithe

10%

In Malachi 3:10 we are told by God to bring our tithes into the store house. He also tells us to test Him with tithing. Poppa God tells us that if we do so He will open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing that there will not be enough room to receive it. In verse 11 Poppa God goes on to say that He will rebuke the devourer for our sake and that the devourer (the devil) shall not destroy the fruits of our ground and neither shall our vines fail to bear fruit for us in the field. Also in verse 12 He tells us that we shall be called blessed by all nations and that we shall be a delightsome land.

Before we go any further let me make mention of what a tithe is. A tithe is 10% of one’s income. Also known as 10% of one’s increase. It’s giving to God 10% of what we make off the top. When we tithe we allow God to manifest Malachi 3:7-12 in our lives.

One day when I was spending time with the Lord He revealed to me a great revelation about tithing. He shared this revelation with me because I told Him that I did not have any money to tithe with. He told me to tithe 10% of my time. I was like huh? Do what?

The Holy Spirit reminded me that there are 24 hours in one day and 60 minutes in one hour. He helped me understand that 24 hours x’s 60 minutes = 1,440 minutes. He helped me see that 10% of 1,440 minutes = 144 minutes. He also broke down to me the fact that 144 minutes is also considered 2 hours and 24 minutes. Then there was the climax!

I realized that 2 hours and 24 minutes is 10% of one day. God was telling me to tithe 10% of my day to Him. I was amazed at this. Some people may say this is petty. To me it is profound.

I say this because Poppa God says to test Him with tithing. But what kind of blessing could be so BIG, so abundant to the point that there will not be enough room to receive it. I mean after all, I’m tithing time not finances so what’s to expect? What kind of blessing could I possibly be blessed with by tithing 10% of my time? This is what He shared with me.

He let me know that he would bless my spirit, soul and body. The Holy Spirit reminded me of how my soul is divided into three distinct elements. He reminded me of how my soul is also known as my mind, my emotions and my will. He even reminded me of how I can refer to my soul as my thoughts, feelings and actions. My actions are an outward manifestation of what I may think or speak.

The Holy Spirit let me know that if I tithe 10% of my time to God each day, that I would receive a blessing that consists of spiritual healing. He informed me that my soul would be healed. Even my body. He revealed to me that all the barriers, all the obstacles and all the walls in my life that are keeping me from responding with compassion out of love towards others, especially those who are bitter towards me would be torn down, destroyed and removed completely. He let me know that He would help me be more like Jesus.

The revelation I received also included restoration for my family. It was laid on my heart to know and understand that Poppa God would rebuke the devourer for our sakes. It was made clear to me that the devourer (the devil) would not destroy the fruits of our ground. God was talking to me and telling me that He would protect us. He let me know that we would not fail to produce fruit and that all nations would call us blessed and that we should be a delightsome land.

This revelation of blessing came to me because I inquired of The Lord about tithing. I brought to His attention that I was not able to tithe financially, so He told me to tithe 10% of my time. If you are like me, and are not able to tithe financially, consider tithing 10% of your time to God. You can do this by studying His Word, fasting and praying, and by service to others. Test Him in this area of your life and you will see that He will open the windows of heaven and pour out blessings upon you.

Malachi 3:7-12
Test Him!

By: An inmate
February 4, 2016

* Disclaimer - this article was not vetted by, approved or endorsed by the Florida Department of Corrections.  The inmate's name who wrote this is held confidential.  There is not, nor will there be any financial gain or benefit from it's publication on this site by myself or the inmate.  This is strictly for educational, religious and spiritual purposes.

Simon Says, Listen To The Holy Spirit

It seems for the past several weeks, my thoughts have been focused around the Holy Spirit.  I'm not a theologian, so bear with me.

See image credit below.

The Holy Spirit has other names (I listed some at the end) but in any case, in my world the Comforter is the third, less spoken of Member or Being of what some religions refer to as the God-Head, deity or divine nature of God. Some people see God as the Trinity, some do not.  I'm not going to discuss that part here.

I found this verse that I've been contemplating for weeks - Isaiah 30:21 -  Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, This is the way; walk in it.

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to teach the Children’s Moment at church, and we played the old game Simon Says.  Remember that?  “Touch your nose!” or sometimes the leader would say, “Simon says, touch your nose.”  The point of the game, is having the players to respond to an action queue only when the leader says, “Simon says something.  With the children I likened that game to following the Holy Spirit in our daily lives.  Sometimes we’re called to action by a divine voice.  What if we heard a voice that said, “The Holy Spirit says, reach out to your neighbor!” or “Forgive that family member for doing you wrong.” or "Donate more money." or "Say good morning to that stranger."  Would you follow those calls to action?

Sometimes we're called to action by our own voice too, which doesn't always lead us in a positive direction.  When that happens the Voice of Truth can lead us, steer our path and get us back in the groove of a happy, positive, purposeful and meaningful life - if we listen and follow that call.

When we pray, we should thank God for our blessings (show gratitude), and ask our Father In Heaven for guidance of the Holy Spirit in all aspects of our lives.  We can ask for help with specific circumstances and/or in our general walk across this planet.  There have been times in my life where I needed divine guidance in making big decisions.  Most of the time however, I wish to be lead by the Spirit when I don't have time to say a prayer, like when I was a young father making what seemed like hundreds of decisions weekly about my kids; and now my situation at the prison, working with hundreds of inmates where safety and life counseling are what I am concerned with daily.  In both situations I want to be lead by the Spirit of the Most High when I make those decisions, because if I do it my way, there's a good chance I'll just mess things up!

I think I'll call the Holy Spirit, The Great Fixer from Heaven Who Helps Me When I Blow It! - No, that's too long. I think you know what I mean.

-gus

Image credit: Used with permission, this image is of Radiant Divine Light, by Angelica Sotiriou-Rausch, acrylic on canvas, 6'x6', 2009. www.angelicasotiriou.com, Making art is like touching the hem of God's garment. - Angelica Sotiriou-Rausch.  Thank you Angelica for letting me use this image.  I searched high and low for an image that represented the Holy Spirit to me, and this is the one.

A list of some of the other names of the Holy Ghost found in the Bible. For more, just Google it, or check the Reference Section in your own scriptures...

Breath of The Almighty - Job 33:4
Comforter - John 14:16, 26; 15:26
Comforter / Counselor / Advocate - Isaiah 11:2; John 14:16; 15:26; 16:7
Convicter of Sin - John 16:7-11
Deposit / Seal / Earnest - 2 Corinthians 1:22; 5:5; Ephesians 1:13-14
Eternal Spirit - Hebrews 9:14
Free Spirit - Psalms 51:12
God - Acts 5:3-4
Good Spirit - Nehemiah 9:20; Psalms 143:10
Guide - John 16:13
Helper - - John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7
Holy Spirit - Psalm 51:11; Luke 11:13; Ephesians 1:13; 4:30
Indweller of Believers - Romans 8:9-11; Ephesians 2:21-22; 1 Corinthians 6:19
Intercessor - Romans 8:26
Lord, The - 1 Thessalonians 3:5
Power of The Highest - Luke 1:35
Revealer / Spirit of Truth - John 14:17; 16:13; 1 Corinthians 2:12-16
Seven Spirits of God - Revelation 1:4
Spirit of Adoption - Romans 8:15
Spirit of Burning - Isaiah 4:4
Spirit of Christ - Romans 8:9; 1 Peter 1:11
Spirit of Counsel - Isaiah 11:2
Spirit of Glory - 1 Peter 4:14
Spirit of God - Genesis 1:2 ; 1 Corinthians 2:11 ; Job 33:4
Spirit of God / The Lord / Christ - Matthew 3:16; 2 Corinthians 3:17; 1 Peter 1:11
Spirit of Grace - Zechariah 12:10 ; Hebrews 10:29
Spirit of Holiness - Romans 1:4
Spirit of Judgment - Isaiah 4:4 ; 28:6
Spirit of Knowledge - Isaiah 11:2
Spirit of Life - Romans 8:2; Revelation 11:11
Spirit of Might - Isaiah 11:2
Spirit of Prophecy - Revelation 19:10
Spirit of Revelation - Ephesians 1:17
Spirit of The Father - Matthew 10:20
Spirit of The Fear Of The Lord - Isaiah 11:2
Spirit of The Lord - Isaiah 11:2; Acts 5:9
Spirit of The Lord God - Isaiah 61:1
Spirit of The Son - Galatians 4:6
Spirit of Truth - John 14:17; 15:26
Spirit of Understanding - Isaiah 11:2
Spirit of Wisdom - Isaiah 11:2; Ephesians 1:17
Spirit, The - Matthew 4:1 ; John 3:6 ; 1 Timothy 4:1
Teacher - John 14:26; 1 Corinthians 2:13
Witness - Romans 8:16; Hebrews 2:4; 10:15

Unleavened Passover Bread

2 cups White Flour, unbleached all purpose
2 Tbs Olive Oil
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup Water
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Mix well all ingredients in a medium size bowl by hand or with an electric mixer until a stiff dough forms. Remove the dough to a lightly floured countertop, kneading until a smooth consistentcy.   Bake for 8 minutes, flip the bread over on the pan, bake for about 8 more minutes.

My Call To Serve

A common thread that has run through my life is the profound love of God and ability to work with people, and organizations that serve our community.

I was raised by loving Christian parents in the suburbs of Fort Worth, Texas.

When I was a young man I had no idea what a calling was, not to mention what mine was to be. At the age of 16, I gave my life to Christ, and approached my pastor with the desire to go into the ministry. I felt love and unity from fellow Christians and the blessings of service.

Because of family religious pressure, my passion to become a minister soon became discouragement.

Years later that I realized that no matter what my situation or profession was, I could still be a minister of Christ and family pressures would not impede me.

I can now see I was being called, even from an early age to serve God. It wasn't until I started working with at-risk children, challenged youth and prison inmates that I felt strongly about using my profession to serve God and share His love with others.

I realize my Heavenly Father has woven a tapestry with my life, giving me opportunities to use these gifts for His kingdom, among my brothers and sisters.

Letter of Request for the Ministry

United Methodist Church
FL Atlantic Central Conference
9015 Americana Road, Suite 4
Vero Beach, Florida 32966-6668

Dear Reverend (Name withheld)

Over the last several months I have been working with my Pastor, Reverend C. in the ministry inquiry process, reading, completing assignments and discussing with him the books, The Christian As Minister, and Understanding God’s Call – A Ministry Inquiry Process.  I have also done extensive reading, writing, serving and reflecting on my own, including responding to the Spirit in my online journal MrGus.net, a public website to share my reflections.

A common thread that has run through my life is the profound love of God and ability to work with people, and organizations that serve our community.  When I was a young man I had no idea what a calling was, not to mention what mine was to be.  At the age of 16, I gave my life to Christ, and approached my pastor with the desire to go into the ministry.  I felt love and unity from fellow Christians and the blessings of service. I was raised in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and because of religious pressure, my passion to become a minister soon became discouragement.  It wasn’t until years later that I realized that no matter what my situation or profession was I could still be a minister of Jesus Christ and family pressures would not impede me.  I can now see I was being called, even from an early age to serve God.  It wasn't until I started working with at-risk children, challenged youth and prison inmates that I felt strongly about using my profession to serve God and share Jesus Christ with others.  I realize God has woven a tapestry with my life, giving me opportunities to use these gifts for His kingdom, among my brothers and sisters.

At this time I would like to officially commit myself to the service of God, by serving His children formally as a Pastor and Chaplain.  I respectfully request you consider my application for candidacy for ministry within the United Methodist Church.

Respectfully,
G.A. Koerner

On My Honor

When I was 11 years old the only thing I knew of or cared about God was the word itself.  I knew He was important, “God” was a big deal, but had no inkling of more.  I was 11!  In Boy Scouts we sang a song that would later have a profound effect on my life.  I can still sing it to this day – verbatim.

Back Row: Karl and Gus Koerner
Front Row: Charles Buck and David Sturdivant
about 1975

My life priorities in 1970 were 1) being acceptably popular, staying unnoticed at age 11 is a good thing.  2) girls – especially Lisa  from a distance, 3) football, and 4) Boy Scouts.  I loved Scouts.  We did cool things, and I had a Dad that participated with me (a little too much in my opinion).  To his credit I think he tried to keep a distance and tried to let me have a parent-less experience.  We camped, went on canoe trips, hiked in the woods, caught snakes, started fires and shot guns.  What more could a kid want?

In Scouting at the time, they weren't ashamed to say the word God.  After all, it’s still part of our nation isn't it? - In God We Trust and all.  It was the 1970’s and things were different then.  Mentioning God was acceptable in public.

At the weekend campfires which I either participated in or lead we always sang this song at closing, which I would now call a hymn.  It’s called On my Honor, and here it is…

On My Honor
by Harry Bartelt 
On my honor, I'll do my best, to do my duty to God.
On my honor, I'll do my best, to serve my country as I may.
On my honor, I'll do my best, to do my good turn each day,
To keep my body strengthened and keep my mind awakened.
To follow paths of righteousness.
On my honor, I'll do my best.

When I now think of the song I can see plainly it contains the principles of Commitment, Discipleship, Patriotism, Service to Humanity, Personal Physical and Mental Health responsibility.  I’m sure a person could also attach other attributes, but I won’t here.  These are enough.  To this day, even though I may not live this song to its fullest, I certainly know and own the values of the song and do my best to uphold them.  I hope it is continuing in the Boy Scout program.

Train children in the right way, and when old, they will not stray. Proverbs 22:6

The photo above is when we went as a troop to Charles L. Sommers Wilderness Canoe Base for three weeks.  I'm not quite 11 years old there, but we were still singing the Scout Hymn, "On My Honor".  I'd like to give a special tribute to David Sturdivant who was my best friend and passed away a few years ago.

I hope you'll share this with a friend.

-gus

Uniting People

A Christian is one who continues to communicate across all boundaries, a sign of hope for a convergence back to a kind of unity. Thomas Merton, from The Springs of Contemplation, pg. 31.

This is the quote I read last night that put several things into perspective for me.  First it immediately and definitively answered my question of whether or not I should send the letter I wrote the other day in my Are we hoarding grace? article.  My thought was "Just leave well enough alone." and not to send the letter. Now I will.  Second, it answers my questions about why I so badly want to bring together different groups to get to know each other and collaborate on events and projects.

I've always been this way.  For the past ten or twelve years it has been my professional calling card and knack to bring groups together who seemingly have not much in common to find and collaborate on projects where both groups benefit.  I'm good at it, and I've always considered it a gift.  On the other hand, it can also cause conflict.  Like the time I wanted to invite less-Christian (in some eyes) religions like Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons to mainstream Christian functions.  That did not go over well, and it is more frustrating than angering, because we're all God's children, brothers and sisters - so why don't we try and love each other like we say we do??

I'm not going to get discouraged over this!  On the contrary, I feel more resolve to unite Catholics, Protestants, Mormons and Muslims than ever.  Until we do, let's all just keep praying for unity and realizing that our Father loves us all the same and wants us to come together for His glory.  Now I'm going to contact that nice Mennonite lady I saw last weekend on Home Joys.  Gina has some wonderful stories and home tips there.

In All Things Give Praise, Doxology

When I was a sixteen year old young man standing in a non-Mormon church for the first time (which happened to be Presbyterian), I marveled at the beauty and simplicity of this song commonly known as The Doxology or The Common Doxology, written in 1674 by Thomas Ken. A doxology in general terms is a short hymn of praise to God used in various Christian worship services.  It goes...

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heav'nly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
Amen.

Most protestant churches sing this song, but we never did in the LDS church growing up, and they still don't to my knowledge.  This little hymn has all the things I like.  It talks about the flow of blessings in our life, which I've always, always felt.  It refers to us as creatures and could also imply that the creatures of the forest and streams also give praise, and lastly gives the praise specifically to the God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost.  No matter how one pictures, interpretes or imagines the triune Godhead to be, this line of the song is general enough to encompass most religions.

One final note on this is that Thomas Ken was the brother-in-law to Izaak Walton, author of The Compleat Angler, published in 1653 which is a celebration of the art and spirit of fishing in prose and verse. Can't wait to find this book!

My Spiritual Journey - Compass Alignments, Part 8

A compass is a navigational instrument that measures directions in a frame of reference that is stationary relative to the surface of the earth - but you knew that! Just as an explorer needs to check their bearing now and again, so do we. Things in life (other than God) that have kept me pointed in the right direction, with the greatest positive influence include the shared love of my family, music, service to others, children, interaction with people who have a bright, positive outlook on life, the outdoors and well behaved dogs. Conversely things that have caused my metaphorical compass to point me south include over indulgences of any kind, hints of immorality, thoughts of power, illusions of pride, inflated egos, and people who claim to be absolutely right about abstract concepts and matters of faith.

Our Father in Heaven is still shaping each of us, whether we accept it or not. The sooner we realize this; our life will become easier or at least more tolerable. For example, my temper will always flare if someone tells me their Jesus is better than someone else’s Jesus or when someone shows disrespect. In these shaping moments God has just put me in, I need to realign and realize that if I continue to be angry and judge, I will end up becoming like the older brother in the Prodigal Son story (Luke 15:28). I will, and experience has shown I have, meander away from the Lord and things will only become worse. This has been one of my most repeating life lessons.

Other significant alignments have come to me while in quiet time with God. I have frequently found peace in any building or place of worship and sometimes have created my own at a picnic table. When I take a drive in the car or walk down the road with my thoughts directly in prayer; that can help me beyond measure. I am finding more peace and wisdom in the Scriptures than ever before. At important times I have even heard God speak to me while I was praying. These times have been seldom, but none the less significant and real.

My Spiritual Journey - My Declaration of Faith, Part 6

I wish to declare my faith in terms that others may relate with. With my LDS family members, I will use the Articles of Faith as published by the Mormon church as a reference point. I also use the Apostles Creed as a basis for my own. Neither of these statements below are verbatim to the originals. I used them only as a guide.

My Articles of Faith

• I believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost. I believe that the first principles of the Gospel are found in Luke 10:27, where He answered: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself."
• I believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved. Obedience to the commandments is our way of showing gratitude to our Father for the sacrifice of His Son, and in doing so we shall be blessed beyond measure.
• I claim the privilege of worshiping God according to the dictates of my own conscience, and allow all people the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.
• I believe that men will be punished for their own sins, but those sins may be forgiven through the process of repentance and washed away by baptism and the blood of Christ.
• I believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, and other miracles God may use to further His kingdom.
• I believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; I also believe the word of God may be found in other sources, but must be compared with the teachings of the Bible.
• I believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.
• It is my belief and prayer to be honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, I pray I may seek after these things.
• I believe that we have a great obligation to serve, give and teach others about Christ and His principles, especially young people and those who may not be able to normally have access to His teachings.
• I believe the key to happiness is gratitude for the blessings we’ve been given, great and small.

My Creed of Faith

I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord: who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; the third day he rose from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from when he shall come to judge all people. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holiness of the church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.

My Spiritual Journey - My Missionary Years, Part 5

At the age of 19, March 1979-1981, I went on a two year mission for the Latter-Day Saint church. My dad encouraged me too, but I think it was more for the adventure and life experience. My siblings were very supportive of course, but my Christian friends back home gave me the cold shoulder, expressing feelings that Mormons were a cult, and I should stay away from them. The only people who did not were the Perkins family. I knew them from Ridglea Presbyterian Church, and the daughter Marianne and I were friends from Young Life. They told me they loved me, no matter what. To this day, I am grateful for that. I never asked my mom why she wanted me to go, but I think it was a source of pride for her, in "that's what nice, young Mormon men do". Did they pressure me to go? Not directly. The overall encouragement of the LDS church for all young men is to serve a mission when they're nineteen; so in that sense I did feel pressured. On the other hand, I wanted to go, or I wouldn't have. When I applied to go, my choices were to go to Germany, Sweden or anywhere in Europe. I was called to Denmark. When I left, I reported to the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah, which is like a boot camp for missionaries. There we were taught and coached in the core beliefs of the LDS church, how to interact with the public, and intense training in the language and culture of our final destination. From Day One we spoke Danish for all but a few minutes of each day the entire two months. My primary instructor was Sister Sonja DeSpain, a middle age Danish-American. The language came fairly easy; the memorization of the lessons did not. I was having fun, and learned a lot, but the "fire in the belly" of converting people to the Mormon church never came to me the entire two years. I did at this point however have a strong testimony of Jesus Christ and His Atonement.

When we arrived in Denmark, it was just as they told us, and I had a great first companion (partner) who was a veteran missionary trainer, Elder Raule I think was his name. Missionaries call each other Elder or Sister. He trained me well to work hard, read my scriptures daily, pray all the time and be kind to everyone we met. I enjoyed the work and flourished. I was able to travel and work in about ten different Danish cities including Copenhagen for a year, as well as Vejle, Fredercia and others I cannot remember. After my first companion of six months, I then became a trainer, which was very early for the typical missionary. Most of the time missionaries had a year or so under their belt before they trained others. I include this not to boast, but to point out that from an early age, God blessed me with the gift of being able to teach others, that I would continue to do in my career. I went on to train six missionaries, brand new from the states. Later on I served as a District and Zone Leader. I fit in very well to the mission mostly because I was friendly and loved speaking with people, the language went very well, and the culture fit me to a tee. I guess my Nordic ancestry came out in me. My daily goal was to meet people, become their friend and tell them about the blessings we receive from knowing Jesus Christ. That's what I did. Yes, I always told them about the revelations Joseph Smith received, and always (as instructed) told them not to take my word for it, but pray about it for confirmation. My logic as a nineteen year old figured if God wanted them to be Mormon, He’d tell them so and it wasn’t my job to convince them.

Question: Is it remotely possible, that God wants thousands of different religions? There’s something to think about.

Later I am going to include exactly what I believe in my Declaration of Faith, but let me say this now: I believe that God, through his Holy Spirit can reveal Himself to all people - period. Did he to Joseph Smith? I feel he did, but at some point in what LDS people call the Restoration, something went amiss. I need to say this to my friends and loved ones who think they know Mormons and the LDS faith - I was taught from an early age about the sacrifice Jesus Christ made for all of us on the cross. He was and is the cornerstone of my family faith, so in most aspects I consider the LDS people to be as "Christian" as the main stream population by how I was raised. On the other hand they are very different in their fundamental beliefs, some of which I cannot hold as my own. It is my opinion that when any religion or person goes much deeper than the saving grace of Christ, and the two most important calls of Christianity, i.e. loving God and neighbor, that they tend to easily get wrapped around dogma that will quickly conflict with another and bring discord.