Keys to the Kingdom by Carolyn Tucker

I’ve watched many a Western and I have come to the conclusion that the cowboy is my choice of hero. Besides my Dad, John Wayne is my favorite cowboy. On the silver screen, Wayne’s character was a gutsy man of few words, but the words he spoke had unrivaled  authority. If the idiot didn’t believe him, he quickly made a believer out of him. In the real world, being a rancher ain’t for sissies — it’s a lot of hard work with branding, feeding, building and repairing fences, etc. Branding livestock, especially cattle, has been a tradition for hundreds of years. The brand is usually burned onto the hip which identifies the owner, dissuades rustlers, and is an important type of identification that’s difficult to tamper with. Before the use of fences, cattle from neighboring ranches often mingled, so it was important to know which cattle belonged to which rancher.

Believers aren’t physically branded, but we’re identified as being genuine Christ followers by our love. Jesus said, “This is how everyone will recognize that you are My disciples — when they see the love you have for each other“ (John 13:35 MSG). We are Christ’s ambassadors and we represent God and His love everywhere we go. The world is looking for love in all the wrong places. However, when unbelievers bite the bullet and  actually go to church, they’re sometimes introduced to religious rules and regulations instead of love. So if they leave the building without being introduced to Jesus or experiencing a friendly welcome, that makes the devil want to do a victory hoedown.

One way we love others is to show a kindly interest in them. If we’re serious about walking in love, the Holy Spirit will guide us in creative ways to be loving. “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives…the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! (Galatians 5:16, 22-23 NLT). These “things” enable  believers to love others, but Satan tries his best to rustle them from us. We have to stand our ground, keep the gates locked, guns loaded, and retain what’s rightfully ours.

The devil is lower than a snake’s belly and his main job is to steal, kill, and destroy us in  spirit, soul, and body (Ref. John 10:10). We must take authority over the enemy in the name of Jesus and stand firmly on the Word of God.  Believers have what it takes to love others. We just need to put it to use and start loving on people — because our testimony depends on it! That’s who we are, that’s what we do, and love is our invisible brand.

Love is what sets Christ followers apart from the rest of the world. I don’t want the chuck wagon of my heart to be cold and empty. I want a heart that’s so branding-iron hot with God’s love that I can’t keep it to myself. There’s acres of lost, hurting, and lonely people searching for love, hoping someone will get off their cutting horse and tend to them.

In my Bible, the following scriptures are under the heading of “Loving One Another:” “…God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face Him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world” (1 John 4:16-17 NLT). When we live like Jesus, we love like Jesus.

The Key: We’re branded and equipped to love, so let’s get out on the range and do it.

Debt

I am optimistic about the future of our nation, but I don’t see a way we can ascend to the next level of prosperity without significant economic pain.  The measures taken by national, state and local governments to climb out of the Great Recession of 2008 and the recent pandemic have been unprecedented in the history of our nation and no one has a playbook to return us to fiscal sanity.  Consider these three facts: In June, the national debt has climbed to $30.5 trillion, the Federal Reserve Bank, under the moniker of “quantitative easing,” has purchased $8.97 trillion in treasury securities by printing new money, and interest rates have been held below the rate of inflation for years, helping to give rise to the recent price run-up.

What does this all mean? Considering the national debt, the annual interest on $30.5 trillion debt paid in 2021 was 1.50%, totaling about $459 billion.  We know that in 2022 rates have increased substantially, with more promised rate increases to come.  If the 2022 average rate is 3.00% and the debt does not increase, the public will pay $918 billion in interest.  For context, The United States (“US”) tax revenue was $4.05 trillion in 2021, meaning interest on the national debt would consume about 22.7% of every tax dollar we pay.

At what average interest rate on US debt does debt service equal tax revenue?  The answer is 13.2%, which does not seem out of the question to a banker who started his career in 1979. On January 1, 1981, the national Prime Rate hit an all-time high of 21.5%; at that rate, interest on the debt computes to $6.6 trillion, well above annual revenues.

If all these numbers were not depressing enough, we know that Social Security and pension funds around the country are woefully underfunded; that number stands at about $6 trillion in the 50 states.  Is Bourbon County behind on infrastructure repair and investment? We all know the answer to that question, but we do not know the cumulative number nationwide of all local jurisdictions.  The number has to be staggering.

It is not enough to curse the darkness, so what can we do?  Start with your own house and business and get your money affairs in order, starting with getting out of debt.  Second, get involved in your local governments, and be a positive voice for financial responsibility.  We have to prepare our own jurisdictions for what is coming.  Third, elect politicians who are committed to fiscal discipline. Responsible debt reduction is a long-term process.  I am not saying that we should forego any investments in progress; rather, we need to look for ways to consolidate administrative costs so that more dollars can be put into debt reduction and investments that are important to our future.

It seems incongruous that a banker would advocate debt-free businesses and personal financial statements, but banks do better when their clients do better.  Talk to your banker or accountant to help you devise and execute a plan for lower debt and economic prosperity in the future.  Our county depends upon it.

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word, I put my hope.                                                                                                                            Psalm 130:5

My husband loves to drive through car lots, and when he does, I want to curl up on the floorboard, especially if I see salesmen strolling among the parked vehicles, excited to see a potential buyer.  They wave Dave down and ask if he wants something in particular. Dave explains that he is “just looking.”  Then the small talk begins.  Before I know it, Hubby is sitting in a truck we clearly cannot afford, and the salesperson is grinning.  Our conversation never wavers when we leave the dealership and start home.

“Dave, honey, you get their hopes up, and I feel sorry for them because we aren’t going to buy another car.”

“I give them someone to talk to, so they’re not bored.”

“They talk to you because they think you’re going to make them a commission.”

“Patty, what if they offer me a steal?”

“And when has that ever happened?”

Last week, we were in Henderson, Nevada, when Dave turned onto the freeway exit named “Auto Road.”  Car lot after car lot, we looked at every vehicle on display.  It makes no sense.

When we were first married, Dave worked as a car salesman in baseball’s off-season.  I made more money waitressing than he did selling used vehicles.  He knew what it was like to get his hopes up, only to have them dashed.  Hubby claims that salespeople are used to it.  They don’t take it personally.

I don’t buy that any more than I’m going to buy a new car.  There’s no fun in hoping for something, convincing ourselves there is a possibility we will get it, but then don’t.  A date.  A job.  A good doctor’s report.  A diet that works.  A souffle that doesn’t sink. A decent golf score. A yard without mushrooms. (Trust me, I know.)

But in reality, isn’t life all about hope?  Martin Luther preached, “Everything that is done in the world is done by hope.” We place confidence in our future improving, yes, but the key is not that we hope, it is where we place our hope.  I don’t hope for 30 pounds to disappear overnight (okay, maybe I do, just a little) or for a Linkedin offer to join the rodeo (although, that too would be really cool).

Instead, I choose to put my hope in One who cannot fail. The only One who will not fail.  My favorite scripture was written by the prophet Jeremiah: For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. That doesn’t mean that I know what that future will entail…which is probably a really, really good thing. It just means that whatever that future is, I trust that God is in the driver’s seat.

And I’m not cowering on the floorboard next to Him.

Keys to the Kingdom By Carolyn Tucker

Dionne Warwick received her first Grammy Award in 1968 for her mega-hit, “Do You Know the Way to San Jose.”

As a child growing up in East Orange, New Jersey, she began singing in church. As a teenager, Dionne and her sister started their own gospel group, The Gospelaires. Later known as the artist who “bridged the gap,” Warwick’s soulful blend of gospel, pop, and R&B cut across race, culture, and musical boundaries.

Burt Bacharach and Hal David co-wrote the song and pitched it to Dionne, who didn‘t want to sing it, because she thought it was a silly song. But the two gentlemen talked her into recording it and she later giggled all the way to the bank. Warwick earned the nickname, “Princess of Pop,” and “Do You Know the Way to San Jose” became one of her most-successful international hits. After 54 years, this clever song title, catchy tune, and upbeat tempo still plays in my internal jukebox.

Whether it’s about a career choice, who to marry, which church to attend, or which route to travel on vacation, people all over the globe are wanting to know which direction to go. There’s four choices: up, down, or one side or the other. God will always lead believers up (forward). “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it’” (Isaiah 30:21 NIV). God’s powerful  direction for His children is always active, opening new ways forward.

In the Old Testament, the Israelites relied on a priest, judge, or prophet to give them directions. When Saul and his friend were searching for the lost donkeys and couldn‘t find them anywhere, the friend said, “…Behold, there is a man of God [Samuel] in this city, and he is a man who is held in honor; all that he says comes true. So now let us go there. Perhaps he can tell us the way we should go” (1 Samuel 9:6 ESV).

New Testament believers have the Holy Spirit living inside us to tell us the way we should go. We’re never left to our own devices in decision making, but often we neglect to ask for direction. And sometimes when we receive it, we shrug off the Holy Spirit’s  promptings or ignore His  leadings — which is when we fall off the log. The Christian’s life is like walking on a log that’s laying across a creek. If we get distracted and lose our balance we’ll fall off. There’s also a chance of being knocked off by a tree branch we didn’t see, but the solution is still the same. Get back up on the log and go at it again. We’ll eventually get to the other side even though we’re wet and bruised up a bit.

Recently, I was watching someone sketch a property map and I was having trouble visualizing it. I asked an important question, “Which way is north?” With the answer, I was able to get my bearings and make sense of the map. The Holy Spirit is the believer’s internal compass who keeps us heading due north toward God. There’ll be a few bumpy detours, but keep following the map (Bible), listening to the GPS (Holy Spirit) and we’ll find our way up for every day. Jesus said, “My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27 NLT). Jesus clearly states that He knows us, He speaks to us, and then it’s our responsibility to listen to Him and follow (obey) Him. Jesus also said, “Anyone who belongs to God listens gladly to the words of God“ (John 8:47 NLT).

The Key: Following the Holy Spirit’s direction will never take you the wrong way.

I have reported in earlier columns that Bourbon County and the other 16 counties that make up SEK are all shrinking; every one of us lost population between the 2010 and the 2020 census.  The final count for Bourbon County was an 813 person drop from 15,173 to 14,360, a 5.4% decrease.  Another way to think about it is that we lose about 81 people a year.

Who are these people?  Are we losing the rich or the poor, the young or the old, the employed or the unemployed?  These are important questions to answer, because those of us who want to stay are faced with an ever increasing tax burden, especially if those leaving are wage earners, property owners and those with a higher income.  Let’s take a look at what the numbers say:

The good news is that we are holding our own on percentage of young people, and the number of impoverished residents of our county declined significantly in the last 10 years; let’s hope they earned their way past the poverty line rather than moving away.  The trend that hurts is the drop in the number of working age adults, which is almost exactly the net number that moved away.  Yes, some of those people stayed here and account for much of the increase in the over 64 population (present company included), but either way, it means less wages earners paying taxes in Bourbon County.

How do these trends compare with the four counties around us?  I reported last week that we are the county with the lowest percentage of working age adults and the highest in average income.  Looking at 2019 poverty statistics, four of the five counties experienced declining poverty; Crawford was the exception with a slight increase.  Linn County has the lowest poverty rate by a wide margin at 12.0%; we are a distant second.  All five of the counties considered have a higher poverty rate than the State of Kansas as a whole.

Who cares about this?  Governments and businesses need this data for planning.  Site selectors from corporations considering another location find this information invaluable.  These are numbers that heavily influence decision-makers and have a large say in our future prosperity.

In the short run, schools need to plan for declining enrollment.  Governments need to consider that there are fewer taxpayers in their jurisdiction when they consider levies and spending.  Strategies need to be considered on a comprehensive basis as to how to reverse these trends.  Most importantly, those strategies need to be formulated and executed across jurisdictional lines.  Now is not the time for emotional parochialism.

We have many positives we can leverage.  We need to play economic development offense and administrative cost defense.  Let’s decide to put aside our petty differences and work together on solutions.

“You’re in our seats,” she said, not kindly.

She thought that Dave and I were sneaking into the nicer section at a minor league baseball game in Iowa, taking the more expensive seats that were rightfully hers.

She was right.

But it wasn’t completely our fault.  Our son coaches for the team, so he left us two passes for our tickets.  We were there last year and knew that family seats were behind home plate.  As we headed that direction, Dave looked at our tickets. The word “Bleacher” was stamped on the side.  Surely there was a mistake.  The bleachers are not regular seats.  They are cheap, crowded, aluminum platforms in the outfield.

We nabbed two empty seats in the handicapped section just before the rightful occupants asked us to move.  I texted Andy’s wife.  The same had happened to her, she said, and we were to “find the usher with the long hair” behind home plate; he would get us seats.  He advised that we sit a couple of seats away from the scouts in that section.  However, this night was “fireworks’ night, so it’s a sold-out crowd, so you might have to keep moving around.”

So not good!

Andy texted from the dugout that someone from upper management was in the scouts’ section and was excited to see Dave who had coached him years ago.  Soon they were engrossed in conversation.  I found an empty seat and prayed that I would not be publicly embarrassed by being told to move again.

Silly me.  No sooner did a family boot Dave from his seat than he joined me, and we had the same fate… not once, not twice, but three times.

For a little background, I get sick to my stomach when I inconvenience someone.  If an item doesn’t ring up at the checkout stand and people behind me are waiting.  If I’m two minutes late.  If I don’t press on the gas the second the light changes to green.  So, the thought of people having to deal with me taking their seats puts me in orbit.

Crowds are always sympathetic to the rightful seat occupants who have to kick out some freeloaders—us!—who are too cheap to pay for the better seats.

I wanted to scream, “My son is a hitting coach for this team, and there’s been a mistake,” but I knew that Dave would head for the parking lot if I did. So, we slinked out of the seats with some feeble apology.

By now, the aluminum seats were crammed, so we tried the indoor restaurant. That took a special ticket.  Maybe we could get a hotdog and stand by the dumpster and watch the game.

Bad idea.  The food line was 50-60 fans long. We headed to the parking lot.

Andy met us after the game.  “Dad,” he started, “because of your years in baseball, don’t you have a card that gives you VIP status at any ballpark in the country?”  Dave’s answer stunned me.  “I left it at home.” SAY WHAT?

All this time, we could have had the best seats in the house—perhaps even a suite—and Dave forgot to bring his benefit’s card?  Dave had earned that perk but didn’t use it.  The spiritual application should not go unnoticed.

In John 10:10b, Jesus promises something extraordinary: I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. Life to the full offers every awesome thing imaginable: joy, forgiveness, restoration, peace, healing–whatever we need.

If we are Christians, we are card-carrying members of God’s elite club. No one can kick us out.  So, why don’t we understand what has been offered us? Why don’t we claim what is rightfully ours?

God has offered us a suite.  Think about that the next time you are tempted to settle for the bleachers.

Keys to the Kingdom By Carolyn Tucker

My sweet and tender-hearted big brother slipped away from all those who loved him on June 17, 2022.

Always thinking and planning ahead, Randy made sure he and his sweetheart Corda made it to their 55^th wedding anniversary the day before.

When I was two years old, I couldn’t talk plain, so when I wanted a drink, I would go to my brother  and say, “Nanny dink.” There was a ten-year difference in our ages and I remember asking my Dad in later years, “Why in the world did you and Mom have us so far apart?” Without missing a beat, his pithy answer was, “We didn’t want you two to fight.” Well, their scheme worked! We never had a fight, misunderstanding, or disagreement in all my 64 years.

However, he did have a mischievous streak because he once convinced me to taste dirt. I did it because I was little and stupid…and he knew it!

During our youngest years growing up together in California, he was an excellent entertainer. We had twin beds and he would make a bridge with his body between the beds and I would crawl across on his back from one bed to the other. Then when he was 15 years of age, we moved back to our folks’ roots (Stockton, Missouri) so Randy wouldn’t marry some California girl and get stuck out there. I thought that was really wise on my folks’ part and it worked out great for all of us. I got to go on some of Randy and Corda’s dates and that was really fun and made me feel special. Just seven-years old, I had no idea I wasn‘t supposed to sit in the middle of the lovebirds. But I got by with it because I was Randy’s little sister.

Through the years, I watched my brother devote his life to becoming a man that God could use to accomplish His will. Randy was a man after God’s own heart. He listened to the gentle whispers of God’s voice and then he simply obeyed. Many years ago, he had a super-nice bicycle that he enjoyed very much, but he gave it away to someone who needed it. “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?” (1 John 3:17 NIV).

I watched my brother obey the vision and direction God gave him in 1993. Jailhouse Rock Ministries ships Bibles and Christian literature to jails and prisons across the entire State of Missouri. He had a heart for helping those who could not help themselves. “Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself.“ (Hebrews 13:3 NLT). I now pray, “Heavenly Father, let the man (whom You have chosen) hear and obey Your voice. I believe he is waiting in the wings right now, ready to stand in the gap for JHR.“

Just five days before Randy met Jesus face to face, he selflessly stood at the pulpit in Pittsburg, Missouri and delivered one of his most-anointed messages ever. I suspect he knew it was the last time, so God’s Spirit came down and helped him preach a home run. “For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes — the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in His sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith“ (Romans 1:16,17 NLT).

My brother loved hard, prayed hard, and was passionate about sharing the uncompromised Word of God. He loved the Lord with all his heart, soul, mind, and strength. He stood with his feet on the Rock, defended the faith, and showed mercy to those who were going down for the last time. He ran hard and finished his race as a good and faithful servant of Jesus Christ.

The Key: Even though he was small in stature, Randy Hayward was a giant of a man.

The personal income of Bourbon County residents is of keen importance to all of us.  It determines the relative success of most of our businesses around town and sets limits on prices of real estate and the taxes that can be collected.  The Kansas Statistical Abstract of 2020 accumulates personal income by county and by category.  Here are some interesting observations from the data:

• At the 2020 census, 14,360 people lived in Bourbon County, a 5.36% drop from the last census. Of that number, approximately 8,200 of us are in the working age category of 19 to 64 years old.
• Total personal income for Bourbon County in 2019 was approximately $521.4 million. That breaks down to $63.6 thousand per working age adult and $36.3 thousand for every man, woman and child.
• Transfer payments (welfare, SNAP, grants and other government funding) totaled $149.4 million in 2019.
• Social Security payments were right at $48 million in 2019, which equals about $19.2 thousand per person who is 65 and over. Of course, some recipients receive benefits before age 65, some delay enrollment.
• Wages and supplemental payments, such as bonuses, commissions, etc., totaled $323.8 million which is about $39.6 thousand per working age adult.

How do we compare to other counties in Kansas?  Here is a sampling from 2019; all dollar numbers in thousands:

(1) All income earned, excluding government payments.

Two major points about Bourbon County: 1) Our earned personal income compared to working age adults is the best in the five county area. 2) Our percentage of working age adults compare to total population is last in the five county area at 57.1%. We have a higher than usual population under age 18 and older than 64.  The highest percentage of working population in the five county area is Crawford at 63.7%.  This is statistical proof that compensation is better in Bourbon County, which is why upwards of 2,800 workers commute to our county from other jurisdictions.  When it comes to employment, we are the county of choice in the area.

Bourbon County has a lot to offer, and some problems to tackle.  We at Bourbon County REDI are working to enhance and promote our strengths and to create coalitions to solve problems.  We believe in the future of our county.

In a recent Instagram post, I wrote this: “Heroes do not wear capes.” We all know that. Recently, I watched a newscast which aired our Speaker of the House making a guest appearance on “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars” and told the drag queens they “inspired” her. “My honor to be here to say to all of you, how proud we all are of you. Thank you for the joy and beauty you bring to the world,” she said.  “Your freedom of expression of yourselves in drag is what America is all about.”   The drag queens beamed.  I groaned.

As a college assignment, my granddaughter recently was asked to write an essay about the person who most inspired her.  She wrote about a woman she met on a missionary trip who taught her the importance of loving others…not in a fake, self-serving way but in the same way Jesus loved.  One person inspired by freedom of expression, another by loving Jesus.

Who inspires you?

The movie “Maverick” is a blockbuster hit.  Tom Cruise returns to lead a group of Top Gun specialists in a heroic, edge-of-your-seat-type spectacular.  Who of us can watch that without feeling an enormous sense of pride in the U.S. military, not only for their phenomenal piloting skills but also for the design and capabilities of the planes they fly?

The Fourth of July will be celebrated this weekend.  Many of us will have family get togethers, roast hot dogs and shoot fireworks. For that day, we might even play patriotic songs on our iPhones, and when we hear Lee Greenwood’s “I’m Proud to be an American,” we will sing along.  Yet, we who never served in the military cannot begin to understand just what heroes our soldiers are.

Adam and Jenn, my son and daughter-in-law, regularly host PTSD veterans at their ranch.  These heroes come to heal, to team with others who have suffered as they have, and to share their experiences with like-minded veterans.  Once recovered (as much as humanly possible), some return to mentor the newbies who come for the first time.  Statistics are alarming for those who are not helped.  According to U.S.O. reports,     “In 2021, research found that 30,177 active duty personnel and veterans who served in the military after 9/11 have died by suicide – compared to the 7,057 service members killed in combat in those same 20 years.”

This week, Adam and a team of heroes are in Ukraine.  Yesterday, our family received a rare text from him, describing his mission.  A friend in Moldova had called him, asking if his team could bring aid to a church in Ukraine accessible by only two bridges.  One had been blown up two months ago, but the second, hit by a missile a few days previous, was still passable.  The church where they delivered the goods had a pastor who had acted on faith and built a large church, praying that people would come.

Adam wrote, “His first service in the new church was Feb. 20.  Russia invaded on the 24^th.  His church now has 1500-2000 who attend daily, evening services…we (E3 Foundation) had bought seven tons of food for his church.  Shortly after buying it, I got a random text from a friend in the states who wanted to make a donation to E3 for just shy of the amount we just spent.”  He ended with this: “God continues to open doors and we continue to see His light overpower the darkness here!”

Let’s remember that the reason we (including drag queens) have the “freedom of expression” to celebrate the 4^th of July has nothing to do with us.  It is because of the eternal Hero making that possible by blessing those who fight for that right.

We should all remember that this Independence Day!