Conditions of Life - DEPENDENCY ON THINGS (Part 2) Drug Solutions & Answers

If I were to name three conditions of life that put you in a hopeless state of mind, here they are: Finding yourself in a powerless condition over life; being dependent on things; and the feeling that life is unmanageable. This is my second column in a three part series dealing with “Conditions of Life”, drug addiction and those we know impacted by their choices. In this part of the series allow me to address “dependency upon things”. In dealing with drugs and the dependency upon things, so often it is really easier to address the dependency that we see others dealing with then address our own issues. One of the most important aspects of any genuine conversation or willingness to help others is best established with others when they can see our success in having been where they find themselves to be currently. Admitting that we each have a “dependency upon things” is a sure way to connect with others. My issues of dependency may not be drugs, it could be something else, but we can all identify because of the dependency no matter the subject or issue. I am totally confident that we each know someone that is dealing with drug abuse and or drug addiction. Their dependency is rather easy to identify. We can see the impact of drugs because the signs of drug abuse and addiction show themselves publicly even if those dealing with the subject have not yet admitted to themselves that they have a problem. Sure we know if you have not recognized your dependency there is a lot of work yet to do in terms of intervention. However, for those that have admitted their problem and have sought help, I believe individuals of faith, organizations of faith, church and community organizations and outreach groups can make a difference. Let us partner with those who have admitted their issue with drugs, who have sought treatment and just need a friend to walk with throughout their treatment. Let us commit to follow up with support and resources in aftercare too. As a minister of over 30 years the most often heard quote or phrase shared with me is that they (people of faith) will say “I am praying about drugs in our community” or “I have a family member on drugs and all we can do is pray for them”. Understand that I am making a general statement and every situation is different, but there are some points that we can clearly point out and speak to. For instance, sometimes Christians can easily use the word pray, prayer, praying and feel good about having said or used those words, but never move beyond the expression. I have often shared that on many things we as Christians need to stop praying and start acting. For example, we can use this exercise of faith and it is clear what Jesus would do so we need to act and cease our practice of waiting on an answer when we already have it. In each of our communities there are individuals we all know dealing with substance abuse & addiction to drugs. We see them walking up and down our roadways. We see them in the grocery store; our kids or grandchildren go to school with their kids or family members. It is sad but often times we avoid contact because we either don’t know what we should say, or what we could do to help. The answer is that there is much we can do. We can begin a conversation of friendship. We can listen to someone stories. Everyone wants to be heard and by listening things may not be as we assume from observation. Listening shows that we care. Many people fail in overcome drug addiction because in the end they ran out of resources as the victory was approaching. Many people have a “dependency on things” and our confession and then our volunteering to help a friend in need, could be the answer they were looking for and the answer for their victory. In addition you might just have made a friend for life because you were willing to help meet that need. After all, isn’t this was Jesus was all about? Our need was forgiveness and he met it even before we asked. Until then

"Conditions of Life" - POWERLESS (Part 1) Drug Solutions & Answers

If I were to name three conditions of life that put you in a hopeless state of mind here they are: Finding yourself in a powerless condition over life; being dependent on things; and the feeling that life is unmanageable; I am beginning with this column a new three part series of articles on the subject of “Conditions of Life”. If you know someone who has a problem with addiction, dependency, or that their life is out of control, this is not only for them but for you. Let us look at this first condition of being powerless over life. There are many folks who feel that there is absolutely nothing they can do to impact their life. They feel ‘pinned down’, and ‘trapped’ by the circumstances they are living in now, thus that feeling of being totally powerless over life. The first people that I think feel this type of emotion and condition would be individuals using drugs illegally. Those addicted to drugs because of substance abuse find themselves in this powerless state of mind because they have surrendered control of their lives to their substances of choice. For law and order members of society we can take a strong firm stand and say that those who are using drugs did so because they wanted to. We can keep our firm stand resolutely by saying it was there choice to use drugs, especially if you never provided them with drugs, never facilitated for their empowerment with drugs by giving them money, giving them rides to their dealers or to the location where they purchased drugs. Sometimes we who have never used drugs can become very arrogant regarding this issue. That power comes because we’ve never used and we like to think how stupid for someone to become addicted to drugs. It is in my opinion this is the wrong position to take but I understand parts of the battle and I too have had some of these very same thoughts and feelings I’ve just written about. The fact to the matter is that those addicted to illegal drugs would agree that it is stupid to be on drugs. No argument there. They would agree that for them to be in the position of drug addiction is unreal and their condition is one they never dreamed they would ever find themselves in. They can agreed with these thoughts easily. They understand them much better than those who have never used drugs or found themselves in this position. No one dreams about being powerless. Many begin using drugs because they want to first just have some fun, not understanding the consequences, or accepting the position that what they have seen happen to others will not happen to them. If you can understand that line of thinking you can see clearly they believe they have all the power in the world, because somehow they are stronger, wiser, and just plain better than someone else they know using drugs. And what has happened to those they know will not happen to them. YES, for many reading this column we know that is a lie. We know they are not some super human with stronger power than others. You and I for whatever reason know and understand our skill set, our abilities, weaknesses, and struggles. We know what to stay away from but for many of our family members, friends, neighbors and people we see in passing in our communities did not learn this truth early in life. Thus they now find themselves totally powerless in life all because of drugs. This is the most frustrating aspect of helping people for me. My frustration is not that someone is addicted to drugs, but that rather Christians who should be so ever mindful that they too could easily be in this same condition choose only to say “I will pray for you” and never move beyond that stance to be involved and helping someone regain power over their powerless state of mind. Luke 8:43-48 tells of a woman who believed differently. There is a faith that heals but it involves action. In this column series we will have an opportunity to see the role Christians and concerned individuals can play in helping others discover power in their lives for the first time, and for some it will be to re-discover the power they surrendered. I believe there is an answer to the epidemic experiences of illegal drug abuse. There is an answer to regaining our communities and helping those who are addicted to drugs. We can win in this issue but we must be involved. The answer begins with you and your faith. Jesus said it was her faith that made the difference. We cannot keep this secret answer to drug addiction to ourselves. Until then

August Birthdays, anniversaries, leaves falling and season changes

Now that August has arrived and back to school is in full swing what more could one ask for? Ok, let me add football season! Thinking about August I think about my brother’s birthday, my grandfather’s birthday, my parents wedding anniversary, my aunt Alice, then my friend list takes hold. Birthdays in August include Richie Morris, Gary Minton, Nick Ruggieri, Jeff Musgrave, Haland Hatter, Shawn Kelly and I don’t want to forget myself but mine too. August is a crazy month filled with plenty of cake and ice cream for me. I am pretty sure after this newspaper column I will have a few more friends ask why they didn’t make this column. Fact is they are on the list, but at this very moment I am not able to recall their name or special day. I am also pretty confident that if they are a real friend that they will be willing to forgive me and will credit my loss of memory to my quickly approaching old age status. August is a great month for me not because of all the celebrations, but rather because it is a personal signal of the approaching fall. The Fall Season is my favorite time of the year. I love watching the leaves turn and even fall from the trees. I have even been known to sit and watch for a particular leave to fall. That can take some real sitting but if the wind is blowing or if there is a rain in the air you may very well get to witness that personal changing of the season up front and close. In the Book of Ecclesiastes scripture talks all about seasons, changes, and how all this fits into time. Of all the things I am confident about, I am firmly convinced that we all would love to understand time, the seasons and changes fully. I am also firmly convinced that this is a worthy goal but it may require us to be patient, demonstrate great restraint, and practice listening to master. If we choose not to practice listening, and we choose to talk, it is very likely that we could miss His voice all together is we don’t listen some. Learning to listen and learning to observe is not the easiest of skill sets to learn. At first mention one would think listening seems so simply. Listening seems so easy, we cannot help but ask why it is so difficult. When you think about observing this skill set we might be better able to understand why it is difficult. Most of us after watching someone struggle with a task for a little bit of time or prone to step in and compete the task thinking by demonstrating we are setting the right example. This line of thinking is not exactly correct. Yes, I believe and others will agree that demonstrating things has a great value. Showing others how something works and explaining why something works has tremendous merit and I applaud that effort. However, stepping in to complete something just because someone is struggling is not always the best answer. Learning from the example of others makes another wise and will certainly limit the number of headaches you will experience but a good struggle teaches value that is worth measuring. Let us consider the value is not stepping in to finish a task or complete a project for others. First, there is a lesson worth learning that teaches things are sometimes not completed quickly. Most folks want to start and finish something with very little down time between the start and end. One of the tough lessons of life is that this is not always the case. Value in learning how to multitask could be a lesson worth learning from such as is learning to appreciate those that know and understand the steps required to complete a project. The Bible has much to say about considering the cost prior to advancing or pressing forward. Not sure what is happening in August for you. Could be you are celebrating a birthday or an anniversary. If that is the case then happy times is my wish to you. If you are waiting and watching for the changes of the season then happy enjoyment on that front is my wish to you. If you are not sure what August means to you, then I suggest a daily reading out of the Book of Proverbs. There is more than enough wisdom to help make any month the best month. Until then

Faith Hope and Love - How about using these three to make a difference!

If there is one subject matter I am compelled to write about it would be faith. And not just faith like in a song or a love between two people. Rather faith like in a life style and a relationship with Jesus Christ. I have many times over wondered how people who do not believe in Jesus Christ survive the challenges of medical issues, death, and any different number of crisis events one can experience throughout life. As a Christian the three aspects of my relationship with Jesus Christ are faith, hope and love. These characteristics are the foundation for a Christian life. For me removing one of them from the other two leaves a void that is difficult to fill. Faith occurs when we place our trust in something greater than ourselves. It is when we open our lives to be directed by the instructions of the Holy Spirit. Trusting without seeing or even fully understanding can be a very challenging point in any life, this includes that of those who acknowledge that Jesus is their personal Lord and Savior. Just because we say we have faith doesn’t make it any less difficult to demonstrate our faith. Putting action to our faith is a challenge. Many times people will volunteer to pray, we offer applause to share in a public way our support and our encouragement, but there is a call to action that is more than applause or a kind word. Faith that is demonstrated in action put faith on the move for others to see. Hope is the scripture is describes as a belief and confidence we have in others. There is nothing that will create a broken heart faster than a loss of hope. When we are disappointed by the action of others, or dismayed by a statement of disrespect, this creates a loss of hope. Negative stuff gathers quickly like a snow ball being rolled up…grass and all. Hope is believing. Hope is seeing through the rough, the bad and the ugly. Hope keeps looking, hope keeps seeking to find that which is important and lost. Sometimes when we deal with hope we must understand that we are going to quickly brush by some of the things we find along life’s highway. We must take note of what we see, but we must remain focused to discover the cradle of hope and where it rest waiting for her next believer. Only through believing can we discover hope. Only through confidence in Hope’s return do we find peace to press forward and only through Hope can we resolutely determine that nothing can stop us from succeeding. Love is that third characteristic of these three and it is the most profound. Love is what keeps both faith and hope going. Love is what keeps faith and hope alive. It is love that keeps faith and hope getting up after stumbling and falling, time and time again. Love is an amazing resource. Love is what Jesus demonstrated on the cross by paying our debt because of sin. Love is what Jesus demonstrated when in the garden tomb He arose from the dead demonstrating not only life but most important power over death, hell and the grave. Love is more than a song or an emotion. Love is an action sealed in sacrifice and commitment. Today I challenge Christians to put these three words, faith, hope and love, into the work of their hands, feet, ears, eyes and mouth. When I look out into the world I see many people who appear to just be existing. They have been crushed by one thing or another and without any fight at all appears to have given up quickly and surrendered totally. Christians we have the answer and solution that some in our families are seeking for. We have friends, neighbors, co-workers that we see all the time that have lost not only the smile on their face but the dance for life in their heart. We can help, share Jesus Christ now. Until then

Jimmy Rose from Dorton Branch "Coal Keeps the Lights On"

Jimmy Rose. I am pretty sure you will recognize his name or at least be asking yourself why that name rings a bell? Jimmy is singing on America’s Got Talent and he introduced the world to his song, “Coal Keeps the Lights On”. He has been quoted by United States Congressman in the House Chamber for his song as they pick up the cause of coal and its importance to people where coal is produced. He has been tweeted about and re-tweeted thousands of times over in social media. YouTube and Facebook have filled page after page of comments, thoughts, and shares because of his song. As I have been traveling speaking at conferences and events this year many individuals have asked me do you know Jimmy Rose? When I say yes, my friends all laugh and say of course he does, who doesn’t Tim know, (wanting to suggest, laugh and make fun of me for knowing lots of folks) but the friendship I share with Jimmy is much different than a name dropping moment. In 1998 the congregation of the Bethlehem Baptist Church of Dorton Branch, located less than a mile outside the City limits of Pineville in Bell County, Kentucky, extended a call for me to serve as their pastor, a call I accepted. Dorton Branch for those who are not familiar with is location might very well never find it if they went looking. Sure if you used GPS you might, but then again, maybe not. The mountains of Southeastern Kentucky have some unique ways of keeping the modern up-to-date world out. I remember well the first time I met Jimmy along with other youth who lived in and called Dorton Branch home. Serving a community, meeting needs and being real is something I am pleased to say I have been successful at in ministry. I met Jimmy the very first week I was “in the branch”. I had walked out of the church parsonage down the road to go meet and introduce myself to the youth. I had already met many of the adults on their turf, in the church building. Now it was time to meet the youth on their turf. I headed walking down the road to the fields down by the railroad tracks and the train trussel. (Note: Dorton Branch is a small community with one road in and out) I remember as if it was yesterday what I was hearing as they notice someone coming into their territory. Not sure who it was at first, but then I heard their comments. Truth is, Jimmy’s little brother Chris I heard first. He said, “Oh boys that’s the preacher”…as if that was a bad thing or at least unlike the preachers they had known before. Then I heard a voice in time I would learn was Johnny Harris. His remarks were much more direct but in line with Chris’ comments. Johnny said loud enough for me to hear clearly, “what in the world is he coming here for”. Implying I was probably the last person in the world they wanted to talk to, hang out with, or have to meet. A position from their point of view I could understand fully, but that wasn’t going to stop me from walking into their turf and introducing myself. There I met the whole crew. Jimmy & Chris Rose Johnny Harris, Adam Patterson Jeremy Maynard, Aaron Canterbury, Asa Mills, Dustin Redmond, and others that are slipping my mind, but I am extremely confident that they are all smiling right now remember those times and the ministry we built for them and the community. Jimmy was then as he is today. Quite, but don’t mistaken that for a lack of thoughts or opinions. He is just more reserved and the humble side you see is exactly who he was then as a teen and who he is today as a man. “Coal keeps the lights on” is the perfect song and if you haven’t discovered from the lyrics they represent real life as it is and the importance of coal then you missed the meaning altogether. Dorton Branch where Jimmy grew up is full of lots of history. The road goes down to a 4-wheel trail today at the end of the holler. Back in the day it was a horse, cow and walking path. Folks would walk from Knox County over the mountain from Stinking Creek right through Dorton Branch to trade goods, catch the train, and to visit. Today folks travel the Cumberland Gap Parkway to get to and from. Bethlehem Baptist Church was once a one room school house for the community. Today half of the church building is what remains of the old grade school. The building was acquired by the church from the Bell County Board of Education after the school consolidated. Pineville and Bell County have honored Jimmy in many ways. First by their support and encouragement. Elected officials have also bestowed honors upon Jimmy for his success and because of his positive representation of the people of Bell County and the people of Coal across the United States. The Pineville Mayor made him an Honorary Mayor, the Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky Commissioned him a Kentucky Colonel and the Bell County Judge Executive appointed him an Ambassador of Bell County. Jimmy joins a group of Ambassador’s from Bell County. United States Ambassador George Staples, his wife Jo Ann live in Fourmile and their daughter Catherine is a graduate of Pineville High School. Ambassador Staples has served honorably and had a great career in the Foreign Service for 26 years, including his service as the Director General. Dale Ann Bradley is a musical pioneer unique to the mountains of Southeastern Kentucky. She graduated from Bell County High School and has never forgotten where she is from in her travels across the world. A five time International Bluegrass Music Association Female Vocalist of the Year! She is known the world over as the “Daughter of Bluegrass Music”. Jimmy Rose follows some pretty big footsteps for the Ambassadors of Bell County but he is up to the challenge and has already succeeded in calling the nation’s attention to something that matters, coal. Let your heart dream, let your mind roam, it doesn’t matter where you are from, you can impact the world. Jimmy know that Dorton Branch is very proud of you. Home will always be across the railroad tracks, but remember as you travel that you are an encouragement to all that you are aware of, and them hundreds of thousands that may never have a chance to say thanks. My personal prayer for you is that “you will always see sunshine through the rain and a rainbow behind every cloud”. Until then