Disciples Discussion Den

This is the "Other" category where we put anything that does not fit anywhere else. Readers are welcome to put comments about the format, readability or any general comments which are not the subject matter of other posts. I will also keep a running tab on significant changes I make to the blog. 7/31/2019 - I changed the "About" tab to only include "About this Blog" and "About the Author". I also created "Welcome" posts to introduce the major categories. Unfortunately, I don't know how to bring the Welcome posts to the top since the most recent post always comes to the top. Blogger is an easy system to get started with, but sometimes it is hard to customize. Also, I changed the color of the links to make them easier to read in low lighting. I am also experimenting with letting anyone make comments, whether or not they have a Google account. We'll see how that goes.

We've all been there. We are having a nice family get together and someone starts talking about politics. Suddenly there are raised voices, insulting comments, negative stereotypes, and finally the statement "No More Politics!" Politics divides family from family, friends from friends, and splits churches down the middle. Why has politics in America become so divisive? What should we do, as disciples of Jesus Christ, to quell the anger and promote truth and civility when discussing complex political issues? I think the issue is deeper than the specific issues and personalities of the day. Our anger is rooted in a feeling that no matter what we say, no matter what we do, no matter who we vote for, things are out of our control and getting worse. We feel helpless. We feel that we have been deceived both by the politicians and the media. Some of us feel unfairly accused of being racist, homophobic, xenophobic, unloving, or uncaring about our fellow man. Others of us fee

We all have areas of our lives where we need help from other people. But we also need help from God if we are to live victoriously in this life. Today I’m going to be talking about one of the miracles Jesus performed when He was on this earth. By studying this miracle, we can learn how God can help us in our lives today to deal with the problems of life. Sometimes there is too much month at the end of the money. Perhaps there is an unplanned pregnancy with all the emotional and financial pressures that involves. We might be caught up in addiction we just can’t break no matter how hard we try. It could be an addiction to drugs, alcohol, tobacco, gambling, pornography, sex, or even our cell phones. Whether our need is physical, emotional, financial or spiritual, Jesus wants to help us. But we also have responsibilities: First, we need to really want to be made well.  Second, we need to really believe that Jesus has the power to make us well. Third, we need to obey Jesus and

My goal in this blog is to educate and motivate voters and trust them to vote with a new perspective. I have and will continue to write letters to my representatives, Some which will be posted on this blog along with the letter I got in response. I am a registered Independent and I consider myself a right of center moderate. I will not endorse any candidate or political party, but I will offer my analysis and opinions on various issues. This blog is not the place for bashing candidates, either in my posts or the comments. There are plenty of other places one can go to do that. I will criticize policies which I do not agree with, but I will try hard not to slander the character of anyone, no matter how much I may want to. Please hold me accountable on this. There are times when I bite my tongue so hard it bleeds. Image source:  https://www.npr.org/podcasts/381443666/it-s-just-politics

This category is the main purpose of this blog. Yes, we will spend time discussing politics, the environment, technology, and all kinds of fun stuff. But the real purpose of this blog is to make new disciples of Jesus Christ and to strengthen those who are already disciples. Please read the post "What is Discipleship?" to understand further. Even though this blog is called the Disciples Discussion Den, anyone, of any religion, or no religion at all, can join in and make comments. The guidelines for civil debate laid out in the "About this Blog" post apply to everyone, including me. Image Source: https://redeeminggod.com/sermons/luke/luke_6_12-16/

Ode to a 4-H Educator: With your head, you love to ponder, On the One who matters most. On the Father and His only Son, And the blessed Holy Ghost. “May the Mind of Christ My Savior” Is the song you love to sing, And may you always savor, The sweet blessings that They bring. With your heart, you love all children, But you ‘specially love your own. And you pray your children’s children, Will all gather 'round the throne. But in this life so many, Have seemed to lost their way, Oh teach them while there still is time, So they will never stray. With your hands, you labor long and hard, To instill within their heart, That the character they choose today, Is the one which will not part. Oh save the little starfish, Give them new life one by one. And when the battle’s over, The true tally will be done. With your health, please stay among us, Like the “sweetheart” you “adore”. May you live to be a hundred, ‘T

The Angel of the Bench Oh come apart and sit awhile, And rest your weary feet. The journey goes from mile to mile, It is not yet complete. But if you listen to the brook, And let it soothe your soul, Lift up your eyes and take a look, And you will be made whole. Oh come apart and tarry, And rest your weary back. The burden that you carry, Is the peace of mind you lack. Oh see the happy birds around, And see they are well fed. To you, the blessings will abound, As Jesus Christ has said. Oh come apart and set a spell, And rest upon the shore. Your private pain, your living hell, Are gone forevermore. You are the angel of the bench, That place of peace and rest. The thirsty soul you come to quench, You bring us all what’s best. Written by Tom Dunkerton June 8, 2015 In dedication of a bench on the Brandywine River. Placed in Memory of Deborah J.  Maholick  February 2, 1961 to March 3, 2015 Debbie in the middle with sisters Ann on the left and Le

Live Long and Prosper May your soulmate dwell within you, So you’ll never be alone. May you see your children’s children, Having children of their own. And if the ones you care for, Are not from your loins or womb. Still, love them, bless them, guide them, From the cradle to the tomb. The things that really matter, Are not defined by wealth. They are not defined by where you live, Or even by your health. The things that last forever, Come from deep within the soul, Gentle love, joy, peace, and kindness, Goodness, faith, and self-control. But do not neglect the temple, Which is your earthly home. Eat the foods that make you healthy, Live to give your muscles tone. Do the things that make you happy, Do them with the ones you love. Let each day be one step closer, To the endless joy above. Give to others who are needy, Who cannot get out of bed, Who do not know your wisdom, Who need to be well fed. Do not give so that you

Discussions about Discipleship, Politics, and sometimes even the Environment can be serious and controversial. It is nice to take a break and just talk about fun things we like to do. This page is where we can do that. Feel free to make fun comments and/or post fun links in the comments section.

I have a love/hate relationship with technology. Perhaps you can relate. (Now I'm about to date myself and bore most of you) ... ever since I typed out FORTRAN and COBOL programs onto punched cards to run on the IBM 1130 computer at Geneva College, and then dropped the whole stack and had to sort them ... ever since I spent many hours (cumulatively) toggling switches to write a bootstrap program (in Octal) into a DEC PDP8 so that it could read the operating system in via paper tape, then had the paper tape tear ... ever since I have spent night after night on third shift at IBM trying to find out the conditions that caused the hardware to fail ... or trying to track down bugs in software that other people wrote very badly ... or trying to track down bugs in my own code which was also written very poorly ... or waiting for Windows to update while I have something really important to do (are you with me now?) ... or trying to type a text on my wife's "smartphone" (I

  And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.  Matthew 28:18-20 (NKJV) These words are often called the "Great Commission".  They are the marching orders of the church. Jesus' disciples were sent to make more disciples who in turn are to make disciples of their own until the "all nations" are reached, continuing until the "end of the age". So what is a "Disciple of Jesus Christ"? Very simply, it is a student, who sits at  Jesus' feet, learns from him, and then obeys his commandments. Those commands are the practical outworking of the two greatest commandments, to love God and to love our neighbor. But we must learn how to do

Politics has been called the art of compromise. But the word "compromise" often has negative connotations. Compromise implies that we have to give something up. When we are compromising our integrity, our principles, our goals, and so forth, that kind of compromise may come at too high a cost. A better word than compromise might be a consensus. Reaching consensus is not about "settling for less". It is not about making deals, concessions or "selling out". Consensus carries with it a sense of unity, and harmony, if not unanimity. People who reach consensus are willing to move forward even if the solutions are not perfect. In legislation, the goal of consensus is much more important than compromise because the end result is binding laws and legislation. The end result of a bill voted on in Congress which commits great allocations of resources sometimes has "sunset" clauses, but often the money is committed indefinitely. When a budget is passe

A Reflection of Me The fog lay heavy on the road of my life, When out of the haze you appeared. You took my hand and walked by my side, And God knows the joy that we shared. But the road got rocky, I stumbled and fell. On the way, I let go of your hand. I got up and started to walk on alone With loneliness, I could not stand. The fog started lifting, you called out my name. So I turned around to see. I looked straight into your tear shrouded eyes, And saw a reflection of me. Lord how can you love me when you are so pure, And I am so selfish and blind? But still, you have chosen to show me the way To leave my self-pity behind. The road is still rocky, the fog is still there, But yet as I stumble along, By your grace, you allow me just enough light, To show me what's right and what's wrong. God, I cannot be silent, I cannot be still, When I think of the love you have shown. I must try to be like you as much as I can,

This page is where I post poems I have written and some of my favorites by other writers. Most of my poems just come to me at certain points in time. I can't seem to generate creativity on demand. These poems are deeply personal and are about my family or important events in my life. I often include a note about the circumstances that prompted each poem at the bottom of the post.

This category is where we will discuss various issues concerning the environment. I recognize that there is controversy over the politics and science of "Climate Change". As with anything controversial we need to discuss and debate with mutual respect and opinions based in fact. We may not agree if Climate Change is "real" or "caused by humans". But we should be able to agree on the need to protect our planet and look at the pros and cons of different ways to achieve that goal. I do not consider myself to be an expert on environmental issues, just a concerned global citizen. I have been concerned about the environment all my life. I grew up in Africa as the son of missionaries. I have seen first hand the devastating effect of drought and the lack of clean drinking water on both animal and human populations. I have watched in dismay how the once plentiful and diverse animal populations in Kenya and Tanzania are now dwindling both in range and populatio

My given name is James Thomas Dunkerton, but I use my middle name, "Tom". I was born in Nairobi, Kenya as the son of missionaries. In 1974, I graduated from Rift Valley Academy in Kenya and moved to the United States for college. I went to Geneva College in Beaver Falls, PA where I got a BS in Physics and Computer Science. I graduated in 1978 right in the middle of the “Carter Recession”. Many of my classmates were having trouble finding jobs, but I was very fortunate to be hired by IBM in Endicott, NY. I worked at IBM until 1986 when I first felt the call to go into the ministry. I then left IBM and went to Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary where I got my Masters in Theology. I served as a pastor in two rural churches for almost twenty years, while working part-time as a computer programmer, a substitute teacher, and in the mental health field. I am currently semi-retired and working part-time as a substitute teacher in Erie, PA. I met my life long soul mate, Ann Kolterm

The Planet with a Heart. I am not wise or learned, of things about the sky. They say you’re not a planet, and I can’t imagine why. The fact that you’re a perfect sphere, is plain for all to see. Three billion miles away from here, through a camera called LORRI. The fact you orbit ‘round the sun, was never in dispute. But you fail to clear yourself a path, and so the ill repute. Because you’re nice to neighbors and share your space with friends. The experts say you’re just a dwarf, and then debating ends. Not the god of the underworld, but the loving pup instead. The joy of children everywhere, who have Walt Disney read. Forty-seven point seven-eight times the speed of sound. Yet it’s been almost a decade since the rocket left the ground. We only get a moment’s glance, as New Horizons speeds on by. But for twenty, thirty years from now, we’ll still be looking at the sky. You share your space with Charon, more a sister than a moon. With Stix

Cousins All Are We With Eve as our mother, Cousins all are we. Mother, father, sister, brother, In our shared humanity. One blood, one race, one people, From pole to pole the same. Let the bells ring from the steeple, That we all bear Adam’s name. With Adam as our father, Sinners all are we. So when I judge my brother, Judgment falls right back on me. The billions dead in battle. Are the blood of brothers slain. From the eating of the apple, And good Abel killed by Cain. With Jesus as our Savior, Forgiven all are we. But we don’t deserve his favor, Even though it is for free. We must take His love inside us. We must claim it as our own. Let no one then deride us. As we bow before His throne. With God as our Maker, Living dust are we. Salt and pepper in the shaker, Of this global family. Our loving Father knows each grain. He’s watching from above Are we the cause of brother’s pain? Or are we giving love? Wit

Too often internet-based discussions are filled with rancor, misinformation, and rarely result in people changing their minds. It is especially distressing when ideas and opinions hurt relationships in the same family or church or among close friends. Often we are guilty of repeating information which is either not true or only half true. I think we all say things online that we later regret, only to find out that our words will live forever somewhere in Cyberspace. This most often occurs in political discussions, but can often occur when discussing a variety of topics, even Theology. My goal is to present well researched, balanced, information and opinions which I desire to be discussed in a civil, respectful manner. Not everything will be controversial. Some will simply be educational and fun. When we do disagree with one another, I ask that we do so respectfully. The internet is full of places where people can express themselves freely without moderation. I do not want to limi