Category: faith

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CONVERSATIONS: WORRY

Hey man, we need to talk. No, it’s not anything you have done. I know you by now and I trust that you are too old to get yourself in trouble. I didn’t say wise, I said you’re too old, brother.

You friggin worry too much. You fret about food, shelter, safety, security and money. Now, hear me bro. How old are you? Almost 79, right? Have you ever been without food? Have you ever needed to sleep in the woods? Havre you ever felt threatened or insecure in your environment? Have you ever been absolutely busted, not a penny in your pocket or your bank account? Get honest. I’m right here with you and I know the truth. Been with you for 79 years and I will not abandon you now.

So, what do you worry about? What breaks your peace of mind and serenity? Oh, I see. It’s other people and their behavior. It’s what they say to you, what they say about you, what they think of you. Well, here’s how it is. You don’t control a damn thing about other people. If they want to be assholes, that’s their problem. I will handle that in my own way.

It’s the past. You worry about the things you have done or left undone. It’s the times when you didn’t walk with me and you lived the life of a prodigal. Nothing about your past is a secret, brother. I know it all and I still love you with a passion that is beyond your understanding. Grow up and accept my love and forgiveness.

I can see you squirming with another “yeah, but”. Yeah, but what? What else do you worry about?

OK, so you’re worried about the darkness in this world, about the inhumanity of the world’s political systems, about the elected leaders who abuse their power. Yeah, I agree. The world is a mess. Too many people being murdered, too much greed, too little compassion for the hungry, the homeless, the poor and oppressed. I get it man, I hate it too. Unfortunately, that’s who y’all are. Maybe that’s why you need me.

You needed me 45 years ago to step in and take over your drunken life. You begged and pleaded and finally surrendered to a better way. You came back from your personal darkness, your walk through hell. And together we made a life for you. It wasn’t always easy. There was a lot of pain and heartache, but we did it, didn’t we , brother?

And what did we pray everyday?

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I should and the wisdom to know the difference.”

We did it, man. We conquered those demons and found a better way to live. A life of clean and serene. I could not have done it without your surrender and you could not have done it without my love and power.

Together, my brother. We did it together. So quit the worrying. I’m the One in control. Trust me. Haven’t let you down in 79 years.

And Gabby says, “Amen.”

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yesterday

Gabby is lounging lazily awaiting the first of numerous football games scheduled for today. It’s Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving Day. Probably too much to eat yesterday and a natural proclivity to take the benefits of retirement to heart attribute to Gabby’s casual approach.

We ate well. Roast turkey with mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, stewed sweet potatoes, and choice of 3 pies including apple, pumpkin and mince. Gabby, a product of the Pennsylvania Dutch culture chose the mince pie. But unlike Grandma’s mince meat pies of years ago, this version had no beef nor was it served drenched with a shot of whiskey. We thanked our Lord for the bounty and ate heartily.

How was your meal? Was your dinner table loaded with the wealth we have become accustomed to? Or did your family scale back due to the difficult times we are enduring as a nation? Many folks did not have the resources to celebrate the abundance. Especially those folks who necessarily rely on SNAP, the fed’s government nutritional assistance program, scrambled to provide food for their tables as the Potus and his minions denied funding for SNAP.

Several of Gabby’s and Larry’s friends from years past have been unhoused men who had hit on hard times. They survived in challenging conditions. They were grateful for their Lord’s provision and lived many days by a simple faith driven by determination and brotherly love for one another.

Howard had a part-time job as a dishwasher at a local mom and pop restaurant. He regularly came home with an overflowing bag of food that the restaurant manager had planned to throw in the garbage.

“Nothing wrong with it,” he proclaimed. “It’s good food.”

Indeed, it was good food that Howard saved from the dumpster. We all ate well since the restaurant’s specialty was Italian fare.

Another friend proudly boasted of his dumpster-diving skills. He observed numerous businesses and knew when each disposed of its out-of-date sandwiches and snacks. His favorite was the Wawa store on the corner. They had the best Cuban sandwiches even when they were a day over expiration date.

So, Gabby and Larry can only ponder as they remember those good days with loving friends. Did the Potus, his family and members of Congress who defunded SNAP fine dine yesterday on dumpster specials? If not, they ought to try it for Christmas. I’m too old and creaky to climb into dumpsters for food but I am blessed with friends who can and for that I am sincerely grateful during this season of love and gratitude.

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scapegoats

What is on Gabby’s mind today are the scapegoats POTUS 47 is creating to the delight of numb-minded Americans and the MAGA crowd. Immigrants, transgenders, blacks and browns, the unhoused population, woke folks, and most recently the Democrats have become his targets.

Certainly, Charlie Kirk did not deserve to die by an assassin’s bullet. His was just another dedicated voice for the far-right rhetoric pumped by the POTUS and his supporters. But on cue, the POTUS played his favorite trump card, viciously blaming everyone and everything for the shooting other than a man and his gun.

If y’all need a scapegoat, take a look at gun violence which has become a sad commentary on American society in 2025. However, it seems that disenfranchised people are an easier target for the POTUS and his minions. All of history’s infamous despots hit upon this realization quickly in their reigns of terror.

Of course, Gabby is not comparing POTUS 47 to any of history’s bad boys. Trump doesn’t have the intelligence to stand shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Nero or Hitler or Stalin or Putin or Kim Jong Un. He is nothing more than a seasoned PR man who hit upon a winning formula with his TV series and gained favor as the lap dog of the world’s truly notorious bad boys.

By now, some of you are asking, “Gabby, and your point is?”

Martin Niemöller, a prominent German pastor in the 1920’s and 1930’s, said, “First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me.”

After Hitler’s reign of terror was eliminated, Niemöller toured allied-occupied Germany sharing his self-defined ‘confession’ to urge fellow Germans to accept personal responsibility for their complicity in the Nazi regime’s horror.

Gabby must ask of himself and all Americans, “Are we complicit in the crimes of a rogue government led by a modern-day demigod?” Am I fearful of speaking up and standing shoulder to shoulder with the disenfranchised, the poor, the meek, the homeless, the persecuted, the people of color?”

If so, what is my problem? Lack of courage, lack of compassion, a distorted view of faith?

If any of the above are true, perhaps I should align my life according to the grace and blessing bestowed upon me as an American, to always ask WWJD, to honor the freedom which sober living affords. This is my personal responsibility as an American and as a man of faith. To remain quiet dishonors the many patriots and martyrs who have given their lives trusting all of us with America’s legacy.

……and Gabby says, “AMEN, brother.”

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the challenge

Gabby tries so hard to stay open-minded about politics and social issues and religion. But there are times when Jesus himself says:

“Aw heck, Gabby, go ahead, take the plunge. Do it for me. Remember what I did for you way back when? I gave you a brain with which to think and a conscience with which to guide and then I died for you. Take up my cross, use my gifts and grace, take the chance that you might offend someone. They’ll get over it. But I will be mightily pleased.”