Jonathots … November 13th, 2018

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Jonathots Daily Blog

(3855)

We are sensual.

Though many proponents insist on portraying us cerebral or spiritual, when it comes time for follow-through, we are infrequently sensible and rarely angelic.

We strive for it. Sometimes we overwork our brains to the point of worry, or we contort our spirits in all forms of prayer and worship until we become obnoxious–even to ourselves.

WE ARE SENSUAL

There are five of them:

• seeing
• hearing
• smelling
• tasting

All of these four senses are located in our own heads–and that is candidly where we live most of the time. We focus on what we’ve seen, heard, the aromas we enjoy and the tastes that tickle our palates.

The only thing that even hints that we are not merely part of the animal kingdom is the fifth sense–touch.

We experience this when we leave our own thoughts, extend our arms and decide to use our hands.

It’s when the cerebral and spiritual are invited into our sensual control center to contribute something more expansive–inclusive.

THE POWER OF TOUCH

Therefore, if we don’t know how to use our hands–if our touch is either absent or brutal–then the four senses that dwell within the cranium will make us self-centered and certainly encourage isolation.

We were supposed to learn all of this when we were kids. Mom, Dad, relatives, older siblings, Grandpa, Grandma, aunts, uncles and even schoolteachers were there to instruct us on how to “handle” other human beings.

But what if we didn’t learn? What if the instruction was vague? What if we were encouraged by others–or by our own inclinations–to trust our other four senses, and leave touch to chance, or lust?

Is there any hope for the human race if we live our entire lives inside our minds, and fail to learn the power of touch?

What am I supposed to do with my hands?

When should I be “hands on?”

How about “hands off?”

What is the correct time to join hands?

Should we fold our hands in prayer?

Should we give a “hand up” to others?

These are all great questions.

Over the next multiple weeks, I would like to invite you to the Handbook on Hands–an opportunity to study our sensual selves, and find the cerebral and spiritual reasons to use our touch elegantly.

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The producers of jonathots would humbly request a yearly subscription donation for this inspirational opportunity

 

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Faith Without Woks Is Not Stir Fry… July 20, 2013

Jonathots Daily Blog

(1949)

They were trying to help.

Keith and Ruth Ann thought it would be good to offer assistance to Dollie and I since we were only twenty years old, just getting started with life in general.

So they bought us a wok. It was the craze of the time.

It was a huge, stainless steel or aluminum bowl that you were supposed to cook vegetables and meat in to concoct a meal.

It came with instructions. Of course, I ignored those because I was already fully intelligent enough at age twenty to comprehend all things, both practical and cerebral.

So the first meal we attempted in the wok burned.

When I explained this to Keith and Ruth Ann, they asked if I had “treated the pan”–per the directions. I had not. It seems that you needed to smear oil on the inside over and over again, until the surface “accepted” this ointment and prepared itself for you to actually cook.

Honestly, I was not pleased to own a neurotic pan. But I smeared my oil and then cooked my second meal. It was horrible.

Why? Not because it burned, but because it was flavorless. When I shared with Keith and Ruth Ann, they laughed. (That’s what experts do when they want to make novices feel like idiots.)

They shared that an adequate amount of seasoning needs to go into the meals, since vegetables and the like don’t provide much taste on their own.

So we tried again–a third meal–adding various seasonings to complement the ingredients. It tasted better, but was not fully cooked.

I once again consulted with my experts on the Chinese cuisine. They were fully sympathetic, and presented that it was necessary to stir the food constantly while it was cooking, so as to get even distribution of the heat, to make the meal of one common texture.

So on my fourth go around, I finally cooked a meal in my wok that was edible.

The reason I share this story with you is that tomorrow I am heading off to share at Faith Lutheran Church in Dodge Center, Minnesota.

It is nothing but a stainless steel wok. But since I had that experience with Keith and Ruth Ann’s gift, I know what to do:

1. First, I will bring the oil of gladness. Nothing in the human experience that proposes human fellowship is of any value if it doesn’t bring joy.
2. Then I will pour in the right ingredients–healthy things that when mixed together, look like they’re fun to receive in your being.
3. How about adding seasoning? Salty ideas and music peppered with emotion.
4. And finally, praise God–stir it up! If you plan on leaving people the way you found them, you have no business being a spiritual chef.

So that’s my plan.

Faith Lutheran without woks is not stir fry. That I can tell you for sure.

So even though I was not particularly grateful for my gift from Keith and Ruth Ann, and ended up only using it a fifth time after my success on the fourth attempt, I learned that it’s not about simply having a pan … it’s knowing how to apply the heat.

The producers of jonathots would humbly request a yearly subscription donation of $10 for this wonderful, inspirational opportunity

Please contact Jonathan’s agent, Jackie Barnett, at (615) 481-1474, for information about personal appearances or scheduling an event