Here’s where the roving eye of Bob Sitze lands on interesting or important events, trends, discoveries, opinions or research that are part of contemporary life. Sometimes missed in spiritually oriented utterances, the stuff of life consists of all the places where God’s hand stirs, supports or motivates. These blogs may also include links for further information or action.
This past Memorial Day an old memory of my father came back into focus. It had to do with his World War II military service. I think this collection of thoughts came about as I imagined the feelings of families whose loved ones have died while in uniform. Thinking about their losses recalled my father’s circumstances as a draftee right at the end of that war. Ed Sitze was already married and theMORE...
For a couple of weeks, salvage has been following me around like a kitten looking for a home. Sometimes unobtrusive and at other times almost in my face, this word has gradually wormed its way into my conscious thoughts. Some of them follow here. Salvage is derived from salvare, the Latinate root for salvation. The 17th century noun form first designated the payment offered for saving aMORE...
Keep talking “Like father, like son.” If that’s true, I have inherited my father’s enjoyment of shared conversations with friends and colleagues. (My mother’s descriptive noun for him was Schnatterpeter—a Low German phrase meaning something like “one who likes to talk with others about relatively ordinary matters, a chatterbox.”) To the consternation of those around me, when I schnatter, I don’tMORE...
If you know me at all, you know that I’m playful. Not always a good thing—I’ll grant you that—but at least my playfulness keeps me in touch with my inner child! Given the spirit of these times—perhaps now etched into my own—some of my normally good-humored self doesn’t seem available. Maybe it’s even leached out of me? I understand how this might have happened. Playing around—an essential part ofMORE...
One section of First Corinthians seems especially fitting for these times. In Chapter 10, Paul muses about idolatry—and the temptations to yield to its influences. His examples come from the times when the Children of Israel set up idols—e.g., the golden calf fashioned for worship when Moses didn’t come back from Mt. Sinai. According to Paul, these idolatries were punished in various ways. HisMORE...
Today I want to talk to you face-to-face. The situation in which I now find myself—in which you might also find yourself—has pulled me away from any well-intentioned writer’s façade. This feels like a propitious moment for me to take off my mask, so that you can see what’s going on inside of me during these times. I don’t’ think I’m handling this situation like the spiritually centeredMORE...
My wife and I are mask-wearers. When we cover our faces in public, people may wonder, “Who’s behind those masks?” *The Lone Ranger, one of my all-time radio favorites, got that same reaction; people wanted to know who he was under that disguise. This pandemic may set up the same question about us. At first glance, our face coverings identify us in two ways: On the one hand—as senior citizens—weMORE...
One task I face almost every day: To hold onto or regain my emotional moorings. To be wise. These are stressful times, and stress can work against wisdom, so the work of wisdom-ing is sometimes tough for me. A few years back—when I was gathering source material for my Stewardshift book—I came across a considerable amount of research about wisdom. *One author named delayed gratification as aMORE...
(I had some more thoughts about the new words coming from *new writers. So I called myself a Guest Writer today because that makes me feel like one of them. And yes, I’m still impressed by their gifts!) I offer these further comments on the recent FullofYears blog, “Words abound.” I think I left out some other important observations about the blossoming of helpful thoughts that’s happeningMORE...
For a few months now—especially since we all agreed to remain sequestered in our homes—something is happening to words. I’m not sure, but there seem to be more good words out there. In here, too. A good thing—renewed evidence that there’s still power in words. I’m noticing that there are a lot more people taking the time—and expending considerable effort—to cobble together, sculpt, throw on theMORE...
BOB SITZE has filled the many years of his lifework in diverse settings around the United States. His calling has included careers as a teacher/principal, church musician, writer/author, denominational executive staff member and meat worker. Bob lives in Wheaton, IL.