Crises are common, more so, every day. As a child, my parents went through crisis after crisis. War drove them from their homes and jobs. Father began in Poland, as a blacksmith, the Germans turned him into a farmer and the Canadians into a carpenter. He was self-employed and had to create his own income. I had to change at twenty-one. I was disabled from being a blacksmith, a farmer or a carpenter. I had to take an inventory of my life and see what I had left to work with. I was at my wits end and found myself strangely draw to a higher power for help. The medical people were only there temporarily. What would I do once they dismissed me into the world that had little or nothing to offer? It was I that left my parents, with their approval, to find my fortune in Canada, and I did find a far greater fortune when I stumbled into God's arms (Ps. 27:10).

Jesus prayed that the Father would protect and keep His followers or disciples in the world as witnesses (Jn. 17:15-18). How then were they to survive in a hostile world? In the Parable of the Shrewd Manager, Jesus made this comment, "The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are shrewder in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into their dwellings" (Lk. 16:8-9). In simple terms, Jesus as urging us to "Build a Nest Egg" with worldly goods and earthly friends!

Talk is necessary to go and get things done. We do this by asking, seeking and knocking (Mt. 7:7-8). We learn to commune with each other, in order to get along and get things done. We endeavor to stay in longer relationships and sooner than later, we realize that we are not getting anywhere. In a church gathering, the pastor asked the congregation what they understood by "community?" It was not surprising that there were different versions and different ways to communicate the meaning itself. In my own experience as a pastor, I was not as efficient as I ought to have been. I am 82, and I am still learning how to commune, in a way that the reason for my/me being here has some purpose or goal. I have tried to build a larger inner circle and I have yet to succeed. It is pleasing to be in long relationships, but where does such endless hanging out lead us?

I had reconstructive surgery. The regular physician noticed some bleeding and covered it with a band-aid. When the surgeon returned, he removed the band-aid and was angry with the other doctor for having covered the wound. He wanted it open so that fresh air could speed up the healing. We moved to the Northwest. When winter approached, I closed the vents to stop cold air from going under our house. When my father came to visit, he had me remove my patching to keep our home from dry rotting. Patching wounds and vents was not the answer for my surgery or our home.

A motorist watched another motorist coming towards him in the middle of the road. He hoped that the person driving toward him would pull into the right lane. Instead, the cars collided and a lady emerged apologizing for hitting the gent's car. "Lady," the man interrupted the woman, "I saw you coming far enough away and I could have turned off, only I did not have sense enough." Like the male driver, we too lack common sense to stay out of the way when difficulties come our way. Some, we create ourselves and we end up in their way. Jesus had a similar problem with His people reading danger signs. The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested Him by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven. He replied, "When evening comes, you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,' and in the morning, 'Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.' You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but no sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah" (Mt. 16:1-4).