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The Write Angle: Impressions on Paper
January 2025
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Happy New Year—hard to believe that 2025 is already here! Thank you to those who’ve been praying for healing following my hip surgery three months ago. Know that I’m doing very well at this point.
I wrote this newsletter from the mountain RV, or was it Obee who wrote this one???
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It was not at all difficult to decide what to include in this newsletter, but I do so with the conflicting emotions of sadness and joy. You see, one of the most important people in my life went to be with the Lord at very end of 2024. His name was Orwyn Sampson, and I’ve chosen to include the Dedication from my recently-published book, Spiritual Musings from the Headlines of a Newspaper: A Biblical Compass for Christians Navigating a Culture of Lies,
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to share with you exactly what this man meant to me. During his last week in an earthly body, his daughter Carolyn texted me with many updates, but none so earth-shaking and heart-wrenching as these two:
Christmas Day
They placed dad in comfort care last night (so all oxygen, meds, treatments have stopped). They are giving him pain meds to keep him comfortable.
Two Days Later
Dad ran shouting into the arms of Jesus passing from death to life at 2 am Dec 27.
With that, here’s the Dedication:
Dedication
I proudly dedicate this book to a man who has positively influenced me since I was in high-school—Air Force Brigadier General (retired) Orwyn Sampson, or simply O, as he is affectionately called. A letter I wrote him in 2022 will best serve to lay the background for this choice:
February 6, 2022
Dear O,
Two weeks ago, our men’s Bible study teacher challenged us to share about one individual in our lives who had a significant impact on us—a mentor to be precise. Here’s how he worded his request:
“None of us has enjoyed success without input from many individuals during our formative years (parents, relatives, teachers, teammates, co-workers, military buddies, or close friends). So, think of one specific mentor who provided you with compassionate thought, time, purpose, experience, or example to light your path and make a dynamic impact on your spirit.”
Dear friend, YOU were the one who came to mind, and the one I spoke about: from how you, an Air Force officer, called to invite me, a high school student, to visit the Academy; to arranging a commercial helicopter flight from my home to the airport (and duplicating that at the end of the trip) to make it easier on my parents; to your hosting me at your home that weekend, while I got to visit cadets and experience Academy life; to your taking me under your wing—as a student in your human anatomy class and as a member of the Academy gymnastics team. Your mentorship didn’t stop there—it impacted my life later when I found myself a member of the faculty, and it continues even to this very day.
But by far the most indelible memory of your mentoring me was during the period I was investigating the Christian faith. My coming from a Jewish background may have made your job more difficult, I think, but you faithfully answered all my questions with great discernment and patience, demonstrating a wonderful example of what it means to be a Christ-follower. I will never forget your telling me once that, even without the promise of Heaven, you’d want to live as a Christian. Wow, that simple comment moved me then, and it still does today.
Thank you, O, for all you’ve done for me over the years—you’re an amazing mentor!
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Spiritual Musings from the Headlines of a Newspaper: A Biblical Compass for Christians Navigating a Culture of Lies is written specifically for those who’ve developed critical thinking skills in viewing the world around them. When I think about all this great man has taught me over the years, most important to me was just that—how to think critically, a skill so necessary, yet sorely lacking in our culture today!
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Honestly, I have no explanation for this photo with O at my commissioning ceremony. But one thing I know for sure—his hand of grace, freely given to me over the years, clearly shows up in it! | |
I’m still processing this incredible loss down here, but tremendous gain up there. | |
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This is the year for seeking Christian magazines and other suitable forums to submit my articles/devotions to. Please let me know if you’ve got suggestions for a good fit.
I’ve got two more Spiritual Musings books in the works:
1. Spiritual Musings from the Margins of a Bible
I’ve had the very same inexpensive Bible since just after becoming a Christian in 1980, always planning to upgrade to a better one, but never doing so. I recall clearly the very first note I wrote in my Bible -- it was something a woman in our first church had shared with the congregation. Her name was Alice Banzhaf, and she said:
“Sometimes the Lord calms the storm; more often He lets the storm rage and calms His child. Now, relax in the Lord!”
Of course, I’ve heard this same sentiment (packaged slightly differently) a number of times since then, but her saying it at that particular time had a profound impact on me. And every time I look at it in my Bible, it stirs me. It has served me well during times of stress, anxiety, and tragedy. I am so grateful for Alice Banzhof.
After that, I began to write more notes in the margins, including any I felt would be important to look back on later—impactful quotes from the pulpit, comments from others in Bible study and Sunday School classes, and even thoughts the Lord popped into my head during my morning devotions. Some of these were really good—at least I thought so. And before long, my (now worn) Bible was replete with them, far too many for me to consider a new Bible. Instead, I had the old one rebound, adding a map section and extra blank pages for notes.
At times I’ll sit in my study simply reviewing some of my margin notes. They have not diminished in their significance over time; rather, they seem timeless. If they are still meaningful to me, perhaps they’d be meaningful to others as well.
2. Spiritual Musings from the Punchline of a Joke
Everyone loves a good joke, wouldn’t you agree? It’s fun to laugh, especially when we’re around other people. There are so many categories of jokes that it’s easy to lose track—dad jokes, blonde jokes, trick jokes, puns, shaggy dog stories, religious jokes, engineer jokes, lawyer jokes, to name just a few.
I’ve collected some of my favorites over many years. Many have come from my optometry patients and friends, young and old alike. I’ve also picked up good ones on the internet and even in church. My only rule regarding sharing them is that they must be appropriate for a seven-year-old.
There are some jokes that are just too good not to share, and I’ve shared certain ones many times over. I’ve intentionally not given credit for any of them, as many have come from different sources with differing spins each time they’re told.
As good as I believe this book might be with just the jokes, I cannot help but think it could be far more meaningful, especially when we can pull spiritual lessons out of them. It’s amazing how much we can learn from good jokes, after we’ve finished laughing, of course.
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Requests
1. If you’ve got a favorite joke you’d like to share with me for inclusion in my Punchline of a Joke book, feel free to email it to me—I can always use more material! Let me know what spiritual message you might draw from it.
2. Please continue praying for wisdom regarding the right publication(s) for the articles I’m writing, and for God to open doors.
3. My heartfelt thanks to those of you who’ve purchased Spiritual Musings from the Headlines of a Newspaper—I haven’t even received my shipment yet! You would bless me by leaving an honest review at amazon.com. Reviews are so important to the success of an author. Thank you in advance.
4. Continue to pray for me, that I might hear clearly from God about what I am (and should be) writing.
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Last year we spent lots of time in this space dissecting the English language, observing how very difficult it is, with seemingly endless exceptions and nuances. It’s strange that I love it so much. For now, however, I plan to switch gears and include some of the jokes to be included in my work in progress, Spiritual Musings from the Punchline of a Joke. I hope to pique your interest with them—the one for January is my favorite cowboy joke:
A cowboy from a dude ranch in Montana was visiting relatives in Dallas, Texas. He decided to go to a mega church there one Sunday, wearing his typical cowboy attire—jeans, cowboy shirt and hat, and boots. Everyone there was dressed nicely, the men in suits and ties, and the women in dresses. No one greeted him, so he walked up to the front row and sat down, waiting for the service to begin. People already seated by him got up and moved, making him very confused.
As church let out, he was greeted by the senior pastor who apologized for the cool greeting, but explained that the cowboy was not dressed properly for his church. The pastor asked the visitor, “Do you pray regularly?
“Yes, I do, Pastor—every day!
“Well, would you please do me a favor, and ask God this week about what the proper attire for this church is?”
“I certainly will, Pastor”
The visiting cowboy returned the next week, wearing the very same clothes he wore the previous. The routine was exactly the same—no greeting, people moving away from him, etc. The pastor again met him as he left the building, asking if he remembered to ask God what the proper attire for this church was.
“I sure did, Pastor.”
“So, did He answer you?”
“Yes, He did, Pastor.”
“Well, what did He say?
“It’s odd—He said He didn’t know because He’d never been to this church before.”
The spiritual lesson here, of course, which I plan to amplify upon in the book, is we should be careful not to judge, as we are admonished by the Apostle James:
My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there,” or, “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? James 2:1-4
As I wrap up this update, know that I continue to pray, and thank God, for you. Thanks especially to those of you who write me heartfelt words of encouragement—know that I’m truly touched.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
Philippians 4:6-9
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