“Have this mind among yourselves, which you have in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equity with God, a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant.” (Philippians 2:5,6)

I remember back in May of 2005, immediately after we purchased our church building in New Columbia, that it would be neat to have a Latino festival and invite the community to savor our culture, diversity, tradition, music, crafts and of course food. My reach was limited to the space of our parking lot and surrounding area in New Columbia. Back then we were way too busy raising a church, remodeling a building, creating ministry opportunities, so the energy was not there to take that endeavor alone. The idea never fell between the cracks; it basically was a matter of time, space, finances... well, a host of issues and events.

It has come to my attention that the fate of the historic Mifflinburg borough building will be decided this month, and if it goes the way of a recent straw vote in committee, it will be for demolition. The building, for any who are unaware, has structural problems that must be addressed due to the removal of a weight-bearing wall sometime in the past to create a larger meeting room on the first floor.

Thursday evening, I had the privilege of seeing the Milton Area High School’s drama club’s presentation of “Carousel.” These students gave an excellent example of their talent in music, dancing and drama.

While in California last week, I had the occasion to read “A Thousand Splendid Suns,” by Khalei Hosseini. The author was born in Kabul, Afghanistan, and after several moves his family settled in San Jose, Calif.; the airport I flew into when visiting my son near Monterey.

When I was a high school student I pumped gasoline for my Aunt Kate and Uncle Charlie, who had a gas station/garage at Mausdale.
Gasoline was 22.9 cents per gallon, unless there was a price war going on, and you could get a quart of Pennzoil, Quaker State or other good quality motor oil for around 30 cents. Some gas stations bought oil in bulk and sold it for as low as 15 cents per quart. Their profit on a gallon of gasoline was about a nickel.

Last week was a success as we wrapped up KATUSA Friendship Week. As a brief reminder, a KATUSA is a Korean Augmentee to the United States Army. Koreans are mandated to serve two years in the military, and those with excellent English skills can apply to be in the program. These KATUSAs work side-by-side with American soldiers, functioning in the same roles as Americans. Each year there are athletic competitions, skits and programs during a week which allows even more interaction between U.S. and Korean soldiers.

“But I say to you, ‘Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.’” (Matthew 5:44)
I feel that any sincere prayer is acceptable to God. But sometimes we ask God to do things without us doing anything. Instead, we can ask God for guidance and the power to change the way we live. We can seek to align ourselves with God and his will. And when we pray to find and follow God’s will, that prayer is most sincere if we actually follow the guidance God gives.

State Republican leaders hoping to rebuild the party following mass defections in this month’s presidential primary have their work cut out for them with voters like Linda Lemmon.

When I coached speech and debate, we had my students write speeches for the Voice of Democracy competition. One year, the theme was “Youth, America’s Promise.”
One of our competitors, a known procrastinator, wrote her speech in homeroom and, incredibly, won the national title. I believe she won the competition because of her clever, thought-provoking introduction.

I’m coming at you from several angles this week, so stay on your toes. I guess my thoughts are a bit scattered this week, what with the PA primary, the gaseous price of gas, and visiting my first grandson.

It seems to me that failing to take responsibility for your own actions has taken on epidemic proportions.
Kids seem to come by it naturally, as though it’s in their genes. For example, “Who spilled soda all over the floor?” The answer, of course, is something like, “I don’t know,” or “they made the bottle too big for me to hold.” Rarely will the answer be simply, “It was an accident.”

Well, Operation Nanny worked out OK and my mom returned safely to Pennsylvania this past week. I think she enjoyed her trip, as she got to see a very different culture with a very different background. She also got to see her fifth grandchild for the first time.

“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:31,32)

It would be an understatement to say that progress toward a statewide indoor smoking ban has moved along at a slow burn.
A dispute between the House and Senate over how strict to make the measure left the debate hanging when state budget negotiations concluded in July. The Senate favored a longer list of establishments where smoking would still be allowed.