The B. S. M. G. Report

Jonathots Daily Blog

(4301)

Fudge the Judge held a grudge

And to this day, does not budge

BAD

Foregone conclusion.

Are our decisions the testimony of experience or the fears that terrify us, keeping us from trying anything new?

All I know is that it’s very bad.

There is a foregone conclusion which screams, “We are so divided.”

It is the explanation given for everything, from our preference on football teams to why some boy goes into a high school to shoot and kill his friends.

It justified a war between the states which was anything but civil and took the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.

I guess the premise is, if we can convince ourselves “we’re so divided,” we can run to our camps and start hurling rocks in all directions. Why not introduce a new thought?

“We are confused.”

Yes, because of the divisions which have cropped up, we’ve lost all sense of balance.

So when we try to stand up, we fall over.

When we look at our world, the scene is too blurry to determine an intelligent path.

We are confused by those who have forced upon us the foregone conclusion that we are divided and there’s nothing we can do about it.

SAD

“It can’t get better.”

Another foregone conclusion—an assertion that things have reached the point of no return.

It is the position held by both liberals and conservatives. Conservatives are convinced that the souls of all the aborted babies will rise up and scream our damnation, while liberals contend that the Earth itself will swallow and drown us.

Of course, there is a thought out there:

“It won’t get better until we change it.”

The good news is, we don’t have to do major revision to see lasting results.

MAD

“We are all just so different.”

This is such a popular foregone conclusion that it almost sounds like an afterthought spoken in a roomful of strangers.

In the pursuit of making everybody feel special, we insisted on personal uniqueness for each human being, therefore removing any brother and sisterhood.

It makes one curious if we could return to the chemical, scientific, spiritual and psychological reality that we are all human beings, sharing in common.

GLAD

“At least we have our families.”

We’ve begun to believe that as long as a man, woman or child speaks the glory of his or her domesticated unit, that these individuals are blessed with wisdom.

Of course, the truth is, with all the divorces, deaths and disillusionments, most people don’t actually end up with their original family with its common chromosomes.

So we have to keep changing the definition of family to suit our need. I wonder if it would ever occur to us to return to a more generous position: “We are all family.”

In some way, shape or form, because we have been conceived from the same species, we are cousins. Could be twelfth removed, but we are related.

I, for one, feel very bad about the fact that we’re under the curse of foregone conclusions.

But I think I’m about ready to take a chance on some new ideas.

 

 

 

1 Thing You Can Do Before Christmas Morning

Make Two Calls

1. Call your local food bank

Personally thank the workers for the hard work and determination they display during the Christmas season—and really, all year long—to make sure that the people of your community who are in need can feel a little safer and a little more secure. (Consider giving a donation.)

2. Call an “old grudge” and see what happens.

Maybe it’s been thirty years. Who knows? It might not be your fault, but somewhere along the line, you’ve been cast in the role of unfair or unloving. You don’t have to come with an apology, but you certainly shouldn’t come with an attitude.

Just give the Spirit of Christmas a chance.

1 Thing You Can Do This Week to Shock Your Critics

 

Stop Being Critical

A goodly portion of the problems that come our way are initiated because a massive hunk of dangling hypocrisy hangs off us, which remains without any sign of removal.

Three simple ways to stop being critical

1. Surprise those around you by confessing something you did wrong.

If this is a shock to your system, start small: “Yes, I ate the last piece of pie.”

2. Surprise your critics by forgiving something which has become a grudge, which you are now going to release.

And finally:

3. Surprise humanity by actually trying something that you once attacked.

It doesn’t mean you have to like it—it doesn’t mean you support it. It means you’re willing to cease being critical of it, removing your previous blanket disapproval.

If you will stop being critical, your critics will not necessarily feel the need to even the score back in your direction.

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

 

1 Thing You Can Do This Week to Be More Patriotic

 

Be A Peacemaker

It’s the best way to wrap yourself in the flag.

Because you can:

1. Really support the troops by letting them serve without dying.

2. Free up money to build roads and bridges here in America, instead of rebuilding them in countries we have bombed.

3. Send foreign aid to Kentucky, Mississippi and Idaho.

4. Sleep soundly, knowing you have the victory of negotiation instead of the gnawing aggravation of aggression.

5. Find ways to be more creative each and every time to avoid a conflict.

6. Walk in the bliss of discovering what you can affect and what needs the input of others.

And if you’re wondering if any of this will make a difference, start being a peacemaker by contacting your latest “grudge” and making peace with him or her. If thousands of folks who might read this would actually do that in a single day, there might be a shift in the cosmos which could “trickle up” to Washington, D.C., Moscow, Jerusalem and Beijing.

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

 

Ask Jonathots … November 17th, 2016

 Jonathots Daily Blog

(3128)

When turning the other cheek, how do you ensure you won’t be slapped twice?

A door has two functions.

If open, it provides access to another possibility.

If closed, it creates curiosity, but also can pass along the impression that what is beyond the barrier is forbidden.

The reason most people fight is because the doors are closed. It’s the main reason that “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” fails to achieve any purpose–because slamming the door in the face of another human being does not mean they won’t try to burst through or close doors in your face.

Retaliation is a never-ending process–unless somebody opens a door.

I have relationships with people who are fruitful, even though they’ve been speckled with egregious conflict and offense. They work because doors are left open.

And I have broken connections with other folks that were halted because the door was slammed on communication, leaving behind a climate of mistrust–a grudge.

When you turn the other cheek, you refuse to slam the door on the possibility of creating peace.

Will someone take advantage of your willingness and slug you again? Perhaps. But if you push back they will certainly follow up their violence with additional attacks.

For after all, there are no guarantees when it comes to interaction with human beings, yet I can promise you that if you slam doors, strike out, or try to get even, you will certainly be in danger of escalating the aggression.

It is in that moment of turning the other cheek, refusing to participate, and allowing for cooler heads to prevail, that you thrust a mirror into the face of your enemy and let him or her see themselves as the villain.

Does it always work? Does anything?

Certainly there are some folks who will continue to beat on you once you stop fighting, but it is not the norm. Usually when you refuse to seek revenge, you will stall the vitriol of others and give them pause to contemplate.

In that moment, more than likely you will avoid the second slapping–and just possibly open the door to conversation. 

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

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Quietly … September 9, 2013

Jonathots Daily Blog

(2001)

Taking four one-dollar bills and placing them on the night stand in my motel as I leave the room, to benefit the hard-working maid, and doing it quietly.

Changing the toilet paper roll quietly, even though it has a few more sheets on it, and could be passed off to the next bathroom pilgrim.

Quietly waving my hand to allow another human being to go ahead of me in traffic–because after all, arriving three seconds later is not that big a deal.

Sending a note to a friend who’s going through a hard time, even though that friend has not been particularly friendly of late–because he needs it more than I need to maintain my minimal grudge … quietly.

Quietly taking a moment of prayer, knowing that the only person who will know is in heaven … unless He makes it known by graciously (and quietly) answering my request.

Picking up my underwear and socks quietly instead of waiting for someone else to do the job, even though it might not make any difference, is something you can place in your being, to let you know that you’re alive, breathing and thinking instead of just going through the motions.

Quietly reaching your two thousandth  jonathots essay without blowing a trumpet, dancing around or even portraying that this day was any different from any other day. After all, they’re just twenty-four hour periods that the Lord has made.

“Quietly” is precious because it is an acknowledgment that the work itself brings joy, without having to clamor, plead, beg or cajole for attention.

“Quietly” is when we’re at peace with ourselves instead of waiting for something else to make us peaceful.

“Quietly”  is spiritually having tea and toast … with God.

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