"Skyler"--Our Son Brad's Most Requested Song

Skyler, going on 8

Our Pittsburgh-based singer/songwriter son Brad wrote the following piece in 1991 about his chance meeting with an unforgettable 8-year-old at her father's art studio south of Charlottesville. The song he wrote about Skyler has remained a strong favorite among his fans over the past nearly three decades. He later reconnected with her as an adult, and the two are still in touch. 

Here's a link to a recording of the song that you can listen to while following along with the lyrics below: http://www.bradyoder.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/02-skyler.mp3

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One day I was debating between napping and a bike ride, and I don’t know how, but somehow found the strength to step outside, so I pedaled south of town about a mile until I passed a sign for Biscuit Run Sculpture, and I thought, “You just don’t ride right past a sign like that,” & so I turned onto the gravel lane, biked past the “No Trespassing” sign and kept on going till I came up to the sculptor’s big old farmhouse, where I asked to look around the yard at all the marble totem poles, and the metal dinosaurs.. There were some children playing there, and they told me that the “No Trespassing” sign was just for hunters, and did I want a puppy? and as I walked around the house into the sculptor’s work yard a young girl introduced herself, and she became my tour guide…

CHORUS: Skyler, fly…talk to total strangers like you’ve known them all your life, and Skyler, try… please try to stay that way a little while..

She said her name was Skyler, though her real first name is Megan but only doctors call her Megan, oh, and her aunt’s boyfriend Harry, too, “now Harry is a ‘younger man’,” said Skyler, and she laughed, as if she knew some people think there’s something funny about that, then she took me to the garden and she showed me all the statues there, and in the house were paintings on the walls and up and down the stairs... Sometimes she helps her parents out and makes 4 bucks an hour, half of that she gets to keep and half of it’s for college…“Sometimes,” she says, “it’s lonely, ‘cause there aren’t many neighbors” and when I finally had to go she told me, “See you later….alligator” 

CHORUS: Skyler, fly…talk to total strangers like you’ve known them all your life, and Skyler, try… please try to stay that way a little while..

This is a song I wrote for Megan Skyler Breeden, (who’s) named for a small Virginia town her father once got stone from…and on a day I almost slept through, she showed me so much beauty, that I thought I had to pay her back the only way I know how, so I hope that things are going well, I’ll bet that you know cursive now, I hope the puppies have all grown, I like the white one you named “Cow,” I know this song is getting long, and though it’s almost over, still, the chorus is my favorite part, and I think I’ll sing it one more time… 

CHORUS: Skyler, fly…talk to total strangers like you’ve known them all your life, and Skyler, try… please try to stay that way a little while..

Seven Guidelines For Detecting False Prophets

Jesus's litmus test is simple. The deeds of his
followers must correspond with the instructions
found in the "Sermon on the Mount."

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus's inaugural address about how citizens of God's heaven-governed kingdom are to live, he uses the metaphor of "wolves in sheep's clothing" to describe false teachers. 

Jesus was not likely referring here to wolves disguising themselves as sheep, but rather to their pretending to be trustworthy shepherds, who in those days typically wore clothes made of sheepskin and wool. Since their garb identified their occupation, this was one way one could take on the appearance of a trustworthy shepherd. 

So how can we tell whether a would-be "shepherd" today is faithful or fake?

Not by their appearance or by their use of pious words ("Lord, Lord"), according to Jesus, but by their actions, or their "fruit." In other words, do their deeds correspond to the teaching and the example of their Master? 

If we Christians really believe Jesus to be God's Messiah (Anointed One), we should be expected to latch on to, and strive to live by, his every word. Who better to trust for the truth about just how God's will is to be done on earth as it is in heaven?

Jesus sums up his initial instructions for heaven-governed living with "Whoever hears these sayings of mine  and who does them will be like the person who builds his house on solid rock." In other words, faithful obedience is the enduring proof of one's faith. 

I'm told that the best way to learn to detect anything fake, as in counterfeit money, is to become thoroughly acquainted with every detail of the real thing, as in real money. So here are seven of the Sermon on the Mount marks of faithfulness we should expect to see in authentic prophets, according to Matthew 5-7:

1) They demonstrate the God-blessed qualities described in the beatitudes--humility, contriteness, integrity, peace-making, and justice-seeking, even if it means being ostracized and persecuted. (5:1-12)

2) They work at reconciliation in relationships rather than harboring anger or causing division, and avoid verbal or physical violence toward others. (5:21-26)

3) They are faithful to their marriage vows and treat members of the other sex with dignity and respect. (5:27-32)

4) They consistently speak the truth and avoid manipulation and deception. (5:38-42)

5) They show unconditional and impartial love toward everyone, friend and enemy alike. (5:43-48)

6) They share generously with others and avoid accumulating material wealth for themselves. (6:19-34)

7) They do not condemn others, but are careful to discern whether their deeds correspond with "these sayings of mine." (7:1-23)

This $10.5 million mega home is one of two mansions owned by a popular television preacher headquartered in Houston. Unfortunately, there are all too many faith-based television celebrities who maintain lifestyles that are clearly the opposite of that of the Christ, who denounced consumer wealth and who "had no place to lay his head."

An Open Forum In Today's DNR: "In Spite Of Our Differences, We Should All Be Pro-Life"

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 66 percent of legal abortions occur within the first eight weeks of pregnancy, and slightly under 1.2 percent after 21 weeks.

The following appeared in today's issue of the Daily News-Record, an op ed piece I submitted Monday:

In this election season the economy, COVID, climate change, racial injustice and abortion continue to be divisive issues.

The economy, having done well for most since its steady recovery from the 2008 recession, now appears to be on life support. Which candidate or party can offer the most help?

The pandemic also remans a volatile issue, sparking debate over how it should have been handled, and why the US has experienced more deaths from it than any other nation, more than all of our fatalities from all of our wars since WW II.

Extreme weather events, which climatologists are now convinced are caused by human activity, have also created a storm of controversy. Who is responsible and what if anything can we humans do about unprecedented wildfires in the western US and in the Amazon basin, and about massive hurricanes causing flooding and unimaginable destruction? And we still argue over whether our planet would have been better off had a more environmentally minded president been elected in 2000 rather than one who led us into two unfunded and protracted wars.

Also creating new levels of division and mistrust are the disproportionate number of African-Americans suffering injustice and even death at the hands of police and criminal justice systems meant to protect them—along with inflammatory accusations of massive looting and lawlessness by protestors. Who can best help us arrive at truth and experience much needed reconciliation?

Then there’s abortion, another issue that has remained extremely divisive. But might it offer us the greatest hope of our being able to work together? Thankfully, the number of abortions in the US has been in steady decline since the spike in reported cases following Roe v Wade (reported is the key word here). This reduction has happened under both Republican and Democratic administrations, and in Red and Blue jurisdictions alike, suggesting that factors like the availability of better education and healthcare may matter far more than who occupies the White House, the Congress or the Supreme Court.

So what if progressives, conservatives, evangelicals and all people of goodwill could work together to help make abortions rare, and collaborate in helping provide better healthcare for all mothers and all children? 

While we may not all agree on when ensoulment happens or personhood begins, could we at least agree that a precious form of human life is present at conception and continues through the time we all draw our first breath and until we breathe our last? And could we support pro-life values that would help us combat such anti-life foes as war, disease, racism, poverty, climate change, homelessness and gun violence?

Catholic Sister Joan Chittister reminds us that simply being anti-abortion isn’t enough. “Your morality is deeply lacking if all you want is a child born but not a child fed, not a child educated, not a child housed… That’s not pro-life. That's pro-birth. We need a much broader conversation on what the morality of pro-life is.”

Guest Post: Bowman's Workmanship A Sight To Behold

Dan's latest project is this working model of a water-
powered grist mill. (photo courtesy of Jim Bishop)

This piece was written by my friend Jim Bishop, and is to be published as one of his weekly "Bishop's Mantle" columns in an upcoming issue of the Daily News-Record:

Daniel L. (Dan) Bowman, 79, of Harrisonburg may be blind, but is very much in touch with the world around him.

Having completely lost his sight at age 12, Bowman has not let that physical disability hamper an aggressive pursuit of personal and career endeavors over the years – vocational rehabilitation counselor, piano tuning technician for 36 years, accomplished pianist and organist and skilled wood craftsman, and above all, devoted husband to wife Ferne and three adult daughters and their families.

Longtime friend Harvey Yoder terms him “an engaging conversationalist and extraordinary human being.” 

Dan’s commitment to using his God-given talents to helping others extends to contributing the works of his hands to the annual Virginia Mennonite Relief Sale. This year’s event will be held Oct. 1-3 at the Rockingham County Fairgrounds, with many activities taking on a different form due to COVID-19.

Completely without the gift of sight, Dan has fashioned and donated woodworking pieces to the relief sale auction over an 11-year period, where they’ve invariably drawn high bids.  A wooden marble roller that he donated his first year brought $3,700. 

He has made and donated five marble rollers, a set of wooden tops, a cherry study desk, a bedside stand made of ash wood, a Victorian style wash stand, a utility/clothing rack and as assortment of wooden footstools, and with all of his fingers still intact.

In all, his work has raised over $13,035 for the relief sale. 

Currently in progress, a working model of a water-powered grist mill, scaled at one inch to the foot.

From its inception in 1967 to the present, all sale funds raised go to Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), a worldwide ministry of Anabaptist churches that share God’s love and compassion for all “in the name of Christ.” MCC works with people at home and around the world to ease oppression, poverty and conflict and leads natural disaster relief efforts, community development and peace work in more than 50 countries. 

“Mennonite Central Committee has long been my favorite charity,” Dan said. “I have a brother and several friends who have served with MCC; I thrill at their stories.

“MCC is a solid, hands-on expression of the Kingdom of Jesus in the world,” he continued. “The relief sale is a tangible expression, a ‘festival,’ if you will, of our Anabaptist-Mennonite heritage.”

With the relief sale just two weeks away, preparations have shifted into high gear, seeking to work around the obstacles brought on by the continuing coronavirus.

A “Sharing Our Surplus” (SOS) refugee relief walk took place Aug. 23 in Harrisonburg spearheaded by Harvey Yoder and his committee.  Some 100 people walked a 2.3-mile self-guided route through downtown Harrisonburg, while others walked at other times and distances or gave on-line, raising a total of $15,000 for MCC.

The annual “My Coins Count” project has been under way for weeks. Area congregations and businesses are finding different ways to collect coins and currency in large plastic jugs (normally done during Sunday worship services). The funds raised will be divided between MCC and local causes through Virginia Mennonite Missions. Last year’s drive raised $24,804

The main sale event, the annual auction of handmade quilts, wall hangings, knotted comforters and afghans, artwork and wooden handcrafted items will take place online only starting at 10 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 3. Once an item is bid on, others will have one minute to continue bidding until the bidding is final.  

Registration for a bid number, which begins Sept. 20, is required and can be done by going on line to https://vareliefsale.com/

This tasteful note – several popular food items will be available on a pickup basis, including barbecued chicken, Mississippi catfish dinners and homemade potato chips. Baked goods will be on sale at the fairgrounds at specified times. 

This well-orchestrated event simply can’t happen without the efforts of a battery of volunteers.  Many are already hard at work behind the scenes, but according to relief sale chair Dave Rush, more help is needed, especially with preparing, packaging and delivering the take-out meals on Friday night and Saturday . . . and, of course, with cleanup.

“Even though the thousands of people who usually come from all over to attend this event aren't able to get together this year, I still believe they will give generously to aid others around the world,” Dave said.

So, you live out of town or are otherwise unable to participate in this gala affair? No problem – donations are gladly accepted on line at vareliefsale.com or by mailing a check to Virginia Mennonite Relief Sale, 601 Parkwood Drive, Harrisonburg VA 22802. 

MCC, as it celebrates its 100th anniversary, will appreciate your lavish response to this worthy cause – and so will Dan Bowman.

Here's a link to an unforgettable You Tube documentary on on Bowman: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T8_UnWTq0I and here is one to an earlier post I did on the occasion of its release:   https://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2017/01/dan-bowman-lights-up-new-documentary.html

Create A Group to Raise $$$ For Refugee Relief!

With the Virginia Mennonite Relief Sale having an online auction only this year, and with fewer food and other items available for sale onsite for the October 2-3 event, we will need to significantly increase our monetary contributions in order to match or exceed previous totals. Check here for more information on the Sale this year. https://vareliefsale.com/

With your help, we can make this the greatest fundraiser for Mennonite Central Committee ever!

A DC "Prayer March" We Could Totally Support

There will be lots of American flags and patriotic
speeches at these upcoming D.C. gatherings.

September 26 has been set aside as a special day for concerned believers to gather to pray for the nation and to call Americans everywhere to repentance.

One of the key planners, Messianic believer Jonathan Cahn, is calling for a ten-day period of fasting and penitence from the day of the Jewish Feast of Trumpets, September 18, to the Day of Atonement, September 28, and culminating in mass meetings at the National Mall Friday evening and Saturday September 25-26.

Franklin Graham will address the crowd gathered for the 2020 Prayer March occurring during the 12-2 pm time period on Saturday.

Judging by the content of their respective websites, one clear message will be that voting for Republicans this November may be our last and best hope for saving the nation from God's certain judgment.

I share everyone's deep concerns for the repentance and healing of the nation, but rather than an appeal to patriotism and a call to return to a greatness of the past, what if we had an event that would call us to celebrate and demonstrate the greatness of God's future reign? After all, this international, eternal and heaven-governed kingdom, announced by Jesus, is already present wherever people pledge their allegiance to Jesus as Lord. 

So here is what I wish could be affirmed at a national gathering like this:

We are here to pray not only for our own governmental leaders, but for "all in positions of authority" around the globe, so that all believers and people of goodwill everywhere can "live peaceable lives in all godliness and holiness." *

While we acknowledge the references to "divine providence" and to the "Laws of Nature and of Nature's God" in our nation's founding documents, we continue to pledge our ultimate allegiance to Jesus as the Way, the Truth and the Life, and as the bedrock foundation of our faith, not to Caesar or to any secular state. And while we note the lack of any reference to Jesus in the nation's founding documents, we will continue to appeal to the nation to welcome and respect people of all races, languages and creeds in the spirit of Jesus, the ultimate redeemer and judge of all. And we will base our appeal not only on passages from the Hebrew Bible, but on New Testament texts and on  teachings of Jesus such as those found in his Sermon on the Mount.

We appreciate the precious liberties and protections afforded by our nation, but also recognize the sins of our founders and ancestors in causing the deaths of millions of native Americans through cruel conquest and through the spread of deadly diseases, sometimes deliberately. We also repent of centuries of racism and of the evils of chattel slavery, segregation, lynchings and other grave injustices experienced by African Americans and other minority groups.

This is the image used on the Return website (though
abortions at this stage are clearly banned).

Because most of us gathered here today believe human life begins at conception, we will continue to oppose abortion as a means of birth control, though we admit that in our zeal we have sometimes given the impression that abortions are promoted only by God-hating liberals--and that the majority of abortions occur in late stages of pregnancy (already prohibited by Supreme Court  ruling except for rare medical emergencies). And while some of us here may oppose even the use of an IUD or a morning after pill (say in the case of rape or incest), we want to be humble about making such a choice the moral equivalent of the cold blooded murder of an already breathing newborn. But our earnest appeal to everyone everywhere is that we show a consistent reverence for God's gift of life at every stage of human development..

Meanwhile, we will support public policies that provide good prenatal care and adequate healthcare for all mothers, and will insist that men take full and equal responsibility for being hands-on fathers for their children.  We will also acknowledge that it is immoral for pro-life Christians and all citizens to support a bloated US military budget that is already ten times higher than that of the next ten most heavily armed nations combined, and that maintains the nuclear capability of cruelly annihilating all human beings on earth (including all of the unborn ones) many times over.

And finally, we confess that we have neglected God's very first mandate, to cultivate and care for the earth paradise God created for us. We have been guilty of greedily exploiting the earth's resources for our short term gain, thus contributing to the devastating warming of the planet, the pollution of its air, land and oceans, and the resulting severe weather events that are causing unimaginable destruction and loss.

Above all, we recognize that we are all under God's judgment, and we will be judged not merely by our words, by how earnestly we say "Lord, Lord," but by our deeds, whether we have acted justly, demonstrated mercy and compassion, and have walked humbly with our God. Likewise by whether we have fed the hungry, offered hospitality to immigrants and refugees, provided shelter and warmth for the homeless and provided compassionate healthcare for all who need it.

In that spirit of humilty, we pray God will truly bless all people, and may God bless a repentant America.

* I Timothy 2:1

2000: Tipping Point For An Overheating Planet?

This National Geographic photo accompanies an article that highlights the unprecedented melting of ice sheets in the Arctic region. This is in Norway's far north Svalbardthe archipelago.

"God spoke: Let us make human beings in our image, 

make them reflecting our nature

So they can be responsible for the fish in the sea,

the birds in the air, the cattle,

And, yes, Earth itself."  (Genesis 1:26, the Message)

In the year 2000 voters in one of the most influential nations on earth faced a critical choice. In an extremely close presidential race, the loser was a relatively moderate candidate who was a dedicated environmentalist. While he was justly criticized as hypocritical for living in an expansive Tennessee mansion, he would likely have influenced the nation and the world toward more earth-friendly policies. 

His opponent was an equally decent and honorable candidate, but less committed to pushing for change when it came to environmental issues, and whose administration later mired the nation in two protracted wars. One of these appears to have been at least in part to help ensure the US would have a reliable and cheap supply of Middle East oil.

Multiple pros and cons factored into the decision, of course, and as always voters had no perfect options. But would the world have been better off with a stronger US advocacy for the wellbeing of the planet?

All political considerations aside, very likely. 

According to a recent report of an extensive study of Greenland's glaciers in USA Today, that island's ice sheets alone are dumping over 300 million tons of melting ice into the ocean every year, a seven-fold increase over the past two decades. The study concludes that even if global warming were to end now the ice sheet will keep on disintegrating, resulting in a sea level rise of over 3 feet by 2100, submerging whole islands and rendering many coastal communities uninhabitable.

And in an article in the Independent, Siberia has experienced record-breaking temperatures that are thawing vast portions of its permafrost. This is causing animals and plants frozen for thousands of years to decompose and send megatons of additional carbon dioxide and other gases into the atmosphere, further accelerating climate change. Huge potholes are forming, buildings are collapsing and many of Siberia's inhabitants have become climate refugees.

Meanwhile, warmer ocean and atmospheric temperatures are contributing to ever more frequent and more destructive hurricanes, tornados and other extreme weather events, along with increased famines, droughts and wildfires that are causing untold suffering and loss.

This is not about politics. I can't imagine God really caring much about the political divides in our 5% of the world's population. Nor does the planet have any political preferences.

But God surely cares deeply about the care of the earth. And so must we.

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Did a handful of Mennonites in Florida contribute to the 2000 tipping point?  https://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2016/09/how-handful-of-florida-mennonites.html?fbclid=IwAR0y-amU6h6jmnh6GpXu_Ay4WX2OMvpEofRQYEq-VH570w7xadRTMatfhUs

Brad's Latest Song Highlights The Upside Of The Current COVID-19 Pandemic

Our son Brad, a Pittsburgh-based singer and songwriter, just submitted the following in an annual song writing competition in which he has had numerous winning entries. 

This year's songs were to highlight positive aspects of living in a time of COVID, hence his title, "Pandemic Upside."

I’ve got more time to work on French, pandemic upside,

my hands are clean, ’cause I just washed them again, pandemic upside,

and it’s UNPRECEDENTED, such crazy times,

but I HOPE we’re gonna be alright…

my yoga class is now on Zoom, pandemic upside,

don’t even have to leave my room, I’ve got namaste online,

yeah, it’s UNPRECEDENTED, folks are losing their minds,

still I HOPE it’s gonna be alright…

would it be too much to ask?

could you please just wear a MASK?

we could sit out in the yard, 6 feet APART, and chat..

I’m lucky, I can work from HOME, pandemic job site,

take off my shoes and no one knows, my feet feel just fine,

it’s so UNPRECEDENTED, I lose track of time,

but I HOPE it’s gonna be alright…

would it be too much to ask?

could you please put on your MASK?

try to sneeze into your sleeve,

then we’ll all wash our hands again..

In trying times, I’m glad for friends, pandemic allies ,

vous me faites vraiment du bien, that’s French for “thanks, guys”,

it’s UNPRECEDENTED, but it’s good to be alive,

and I HOPE we’re gonna be,

yes, I think it’s gonna be,

together we can be alright…

pandemic upsides…

(photo by Wes Mason)

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Here were the requirements for entries in the 2020 Just This Guy Contest (and Brad's parentheses):

1. A lifestyle pivot during the Covid-19 threat.  (frequent hand washing!)

2. A difficulty of the Covid-19 threat.  (“folks are losing their minds”)

3. A positive aspect of the Covid-19 threat.  (“pandemic upsides”)

4. The song cannot be negative. No doom, gloom, no sadness and no madness. There is enough of that in the world right now.

5. The words HOME, HOPE, UNPRECEDENTED, MASK and APART (highlighted above).

Listen to the song at http://www.bradyoder.com/songs/pandemic-upsides/