Let’s talk about – Page 2 – Charles (Chuck) Kensinger

Getting caught in the draft

May 31, 2026

Fifty years later, another generation is going to be signed up for military service without being asked if they want to serve. In 1974, my number came up. At that time, there was a Selective Service registration that was required for all young men. We also had an active draft process.

This was because of the Vietnam Conflict. It was never a declared war, much like the current Iranian conflict. President Trump started this action without Congressional approval. It needs to end within a limited time or receive the funding and approval needed.

When the draft ended in 1974, registration continued until it ended about a year later. In 1980, President Carter reinstated the registration during the US action in Afghanistan. The draft has not been started again, even with all the military actions we have involved ourselves in.

Recently, this was back in the news because our government will automatically register eighteen-year-olds without them having to do anything. This is because many of our youth seem to be forgetting to do this. We have the technology to help them with this.

This does not mean that the draft will be reinstated any time soon, we hope. This is purely a development of our technology being applied to this situation. There is no evidence that the government is planning to institute a new draft. Hopefully, our all-volunteer forces will continue to provide the protection we need.

For most of us, we do not know what it means to live in a society where our young people are forced to serve in the military. I believe that if we have a requirement to restore a draft situation, a provision could be made for those such as myself.

President Kennedy began the Peace Corps in the early 1960s, and since then, other organizations have been formed to allow youth to serve here in the US or overseas. In his book “Starship Troopers,” Robert Anson Heinlein described a society where you were not considered a citizen without serving in the Armed Forces.

While RAH is one of my favorite authors, I disagree that everyone who wants to vote must serve their country in the military. Other provisions for those who have personal convictions against fighting can be made. AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, and similar groups can provide training in skills that will benefit all of us.

Those who come here as immigrants are required to prove their knowledge of our government and culture to become citizens. Having the right to vote should also require education and commitment. It will take a great deal of discussion and preparation to make any changes of this kind. We have a great country, but it could be improved with those changes on which we all agree.

Love knows no boundaries

May 29, 2026

That is an excellent statement, until I tell you where I heard it. It was an ad for one of the local sex stores. I’ve not been to this establishment, but from the commercials I’ve seen for years, they have anything you need to stimulate your sexual activity. Videos, magazines, provocative garments, and sex toys are some of the things pictured.

Basically, what they are telling us is that sex should have no boundaries. The Old Testament Law sets many limits for sex, only between a man and a woman who are married. No premarital or extramarital relationships are allowed. Some say that the Hebrew scriptures allow multiple partners through polygamy.

That is not the true story that is in the Bible. The Israelites, as well as their neighbors, used these techniques to have large families to work the land. This also happened here in this country until the U.S. law restricted the practice. Utah had to restrict polygamy before it could be granted statehood.

Many Greek words are translated as the English word “love”. One that isn’t even in the New Testament is Eros. This is sexual love, or what I refer to as lust. I’ve covered this before: lust is an emotion, and I define love as a verb.

Phileo is what we consider to be brotherly love. Hence, Philadelphia is called the City of Brotherly Love. Brotherly love is the admiration that we feel for relatives. In some cases, this emotion can also be felt by friends. Once again, it is an emotional type of love.

Family love is Storge in Greek. Again, this is defined as an affection for not only those you are related to, but can also be for friends. C.S. Lewis also included a fifth type of love in his book “The Four Loves.” This fifth is what he defined as the likes that we make into love. That is what it is when you say, “I love chocolate,” or something else that is not really a love.

The fourth love is the Greek Agape, which is the love that Jehovah has for us which is an unconditional love. Paul tells us in First Corinthians chapter thirteen what Agape is. Patient and kind are the positives, and then there are a lot of negatives. He also tells us it is not envious, boastful, conceited, selfish, or acting improperly.

He lets us know that this type of love never ends like the others can. This Agape is what we should strive for with our spouses, family, friends, and even those we consider just acquaintances. Jesus does not restrict His Agape to only those who accept Him as their Savior and Lord. This is why He accepts you if and when you are willing.

Grief is a tricky thing

May 26, 2026

I’ve been to many funerals over the years, and not even one has been for anyone who was not considered a good person. I am not sure that all “good people” qualify as born-again believers, but there is one question after a funeral that is universal.

“Would they have been touched by the heartfelt words that were shared?” Recently, I was at a service for a long-time friend who had been suffering from Alzheimer’s for years. Early on, he had asked our former pastor to officiate for him. This minister passed away last year.

I was pleasantly surprised to see a young pastor listed on the program in his place. The best part was that this preacher is the husband of one of the granddaughters. As a grandson-in-law, he has access to the library of sermons his ancestor used for these occasions. One was selected that I recognized from previous events.

One of my favorite parts in the Bible was used from John 14, where Jesus tells us that He is preparing a place for all his children. I have requested one of my former pastors to use this scripture at my service. He’s young enough, and I hope he will still be around when I die at 120.

It is said that nothing is certain except death and taxes. Another certainty is that when most of us go home, someone will grieve. I have some encouragement for you who are undergoing this process: if they were born-again believers, they are with our Lord and Savior.

Many verses in scripture assure us of this fact. I could write an entire series of columns on those verses, but I have done that before and will again when I am told to. My task today is to share what I know about this thing we call grief.

Grief is a tricky thing. Everyone goes through it, and while we can identify stages of dealing with grief, it is difficult to know what others are going through, even if you have lost someone. When my oldest brother died of a heart attack, his sons asked me if he was in Heaven.

Like many of us, he had accepted Christ at an early age, and his actions during his life were not what most church people would take as proof of this salvation. In my own case, I am sure some would deny that I made it either. These are people who think Christians must be perfect to see God when they die.

I shared with them that Kenny had made two professions of faith. One, before I was old enough to remember, and the second when we were teenagers. I saw him pray the sinner’s prayer and be baptized. The gospels say this is the one thing Jesus tells us we must do: admit our sin and ask for forgiveness.

Another problem with grief is that if we have made mistakes with friends and family and never gotten over all the problems, we may feel guilty. Remember to take it one step at a time. Grief’s a tricky thing.

One talent man

May 25, 2026

This is an idea I received from a preacher I heard recently. His sermon was on the parable that Jesus told of a ruler giving money to each of three servants before he left on a trip. This is written in Matthew 25:14-30. Read the story if you are not familiar with it.

Nathan, the speaker, talked about the reward the first two received for doubling the investment given to them. For those of you who are not familiar with the monetary value of talent, it is approximately one year’s wages. I have heard the analogy of this coin being about our spiritual gifts and abilities.

The man who received a single year’s salary was afraid of this ruler and did not wish to take a chance on failing. We were urged to not compare what God gives us with what others receive. Using what you have access to in the best way is what we should strive for.

The results of not investing the sum given to him caused dire results for the third fellow. I would like to take this story and alter the circumstances and the ultimate lesson. As a child, I recognized early on that I had few positive attributes. I was good at school subjects, and my favorite subject was English.

When the minister spoke of how many talents some are gifted with, it made me realize that I cannot sing or dance, and have no abilities for sports. Going into high school, I thought the only thing I was adept at was writing, so I chose a career in journalism.

In the 1970s, reporting changed from print to an emphasis on broadcast media. Watching Walter Cronkite and others on television made me realize that my shyness and fear of speaking in front of others needed to be overcome. My plan was to begin journalism in my junior year, and I started three years of speech and debate the year before.

My sophomore year in college, I was asked to preach at my church on youth Sunday. My single talent had multiplied into two when Christ called me into ministry later that spring. Returning to the parable, what would have changed if the one-talent man had an increase on the deposit made with him? He would have been rewarded as the other two were. Remember that they were given additional responsibilities.

I told Nathan, after church, that I was the One-Talent Man he had spoken of, except that when I was called to account for my gift, I had doubled it. Since finishing college, those abilities have continued to multiply exponentially.

My business and ministry experience has given me opportunities to learn leadership, counseling, and crisis negotiating skills, as well as given me a life of service to others, and has added to my knowledge, which has made my writing more prolific and enjoyable. Thank God, if you are a one-talent man.

Both sides

May 8, 2026

That’s what the newscaster said. They were going to give both sides of a political story. Why are there only two sides? One is true, or one is false, right? Not necessarily. Often, these reports include the truth from two sides and no others. It can be hard to sift the truth from the spins that we all like to give to what we say.

What other positions are there in politics other than Republicans and Democrats? When you go to your precinct to vote in your primary election this year, look at which parties you must choose from. You should have at least three, including an issues-only ballot. In Missouri, we must choose only one party’s candidate.

When I talk about what Jehovah says in the Bible, you may hear this as my spin on the truth. To me, it is the truth. This is just two sides of the story. There are many religions, and then there are those that do not accept any gods and believe that when life ends, everything is over.

Every opinion we have is probably opposed to someone else’s beliefs. I have friends who are Republicans, Democrats, or other political party supporters, and then there is me. I am one of those weirdoes who believe that you should vote for the person and not consider any party affiliation.

There are many other ways in which we put ourselves on different sides. There is a group that calls itself Black Lives Matter, and I agree with them. I just take their beliefs a little further. I belong to ALM, All Lives Matter. We are not in opposition to BLM or any of the organizations that stand for anyone’s rights.

We include all lives of all colors. There is another group whose initials are BLM. Their name is Blue Lives Matter, and they support the police. When I was a kid in Springfield, MO, our officers’ uniforms were brown, like many sheriffs’ offices use. That would really be confusing to have three different BLM organizations.

Having an opinion about things is necessary, but taking a side against others is not. I am a follower of Jesus. If you want to know what that means, I will tell you as much as you want to hear. Years ago, at a new job, I had a fellow employee come into my office and say, “I hear you are a Christian.” And I acknowledged that I was. Then he asked, “Are you going to try to make me one?” “Do you want me to?” No was his reply, and I simply asked him to let me know if he had questions about it. He never asked, even though he often came in to talk about a host of other things.

I hated it in school when we had to choose which team to be on in classes. I preferred speech and debate to sports, where you were assigned a side in debate and had to alternate. I often adopt this policy when discussing controversial issues. Just because I give reasons against what you say is correct does not mean I disagree. I may be voicing opposing ideas I have already heard.

Know your own mind, keep an open mind to show that you know you are not always correct, and be willing to have an open discussion without sounding like a person who is closed to any other opinion.

Queen of the house

May 5, 2026

Roger Miller wrote and recorded a song entitled “The King of the Road” in 1965. Jody Miller responded with “The Queen of the House” later that year. Miller’s King was what we called a hobo, and now is referred to as a transient or homeless. Jody’s character was a mother who cared for her husband and children and enjoyed the process.

At our house, we also have a queen who is named Essa, the cat. She has lived here for over a year and was royalty when we brought her home from the Humane Society. We called her a princess. Now she has claimed us, the house, and the dog, and acts like she owns the place and we are her servants.

When she first arrived, she was very timid, slunk around the house, and was afraid of Biscuit, the dog. She kept her belly close to the ground and was frightened at any sound. Now, she only runs when the Ring chime sounds and retreats to our bedroom, where she has her hidden holes.

Life is easy for her now since she seems to have been a stray from birth and does not like any humans other than my wife and I. We hope that she will eventually decide that our children and grandchildren are safe as well. It took months for her to accept us, and she saw us every day.

For those of you who have never had a cat, I need to tell you something that we have known for years. Dogs have owners, cats have staff, and Essa considers us her people. We feed her, play with her, and clean her litter box. When she hears us getting treats for Biscuit, she lets us know she wants hers as well.

In the mornings, it is play time and breakfast time, whether we are ready to get up or not. She always goes somewhere for her morning and afternoon naps and doesn’t care if we don’t know where she is. Bedtime is another activity time, and we must play the games that she wants.

She attacks the dog each time he comes in from outside, and sometimes, to get her away from the door to go out, he must chase her to another room. She does not care because she views it as play.

Pets are often called fur babies, and this is evident in the fact that they act like children. They want your attention even when you are busy and are jealous of everyone else in the house. Welcome to parenthood.

They make me think of Cindy and I as a couple. We are who we are, but sometimes it feels like I am a dog and she is a cat. She is the queen of the house, and I am here for her when she wants to play or just lie down and take a nap. Are you there for your spouse despite your differences?

For a Little While

April 25, 2026

When President Trump was asked if Americans could expect the price of Gasoline and other petroleum products to remain exorbitantly high, he answered, “For a little while.” As a politician, he is careful not to say anything that can be used against him later.

This phrase does not say what President Trump wants you to believe. He wants you to think that these outrageous prices will subside quickly. He is not the one who raised the prices. He is not the one who caused prices to rise across the board. That is done by those who control the pricing in our country.

You and I are responsible for consumer prices. Our economy is based on supply and demand. When we illegally attacked Iran, the Oil Companies chose to increase their prices. The excuse was the rise in crude oil futures. If you do not understand the futures market, it is what investors will pay for the product at a time to come.

Higher oil prices are not the current prices of the actual cost. That will come in a few months. Our gas prices are rising now because the oil executives are greedy. To make the prices go down, we must reduce our demand. Stop traveling. Stop buying products that use this commodity. Remember the price reductions after the Covid crisis.

There are non-petroleum options for many things that often call for crude oil. The economy was already tanking since President Trump and our Congress tried throwing money at the COVID-19 pandemic. All that did was convince some that they could get money without working. Those of you who run legitimate businesses were hurt most.

Greed, money, and infamy are what motivate most of the so-called political leadership. They only need you to vote for them. The rest of their two-, four-, or six-year terms, they try to be sure that you will not remember the stupid things they said or did.

Back to what President Trump really meant. Let’s break it down. This means that he is not willing to predict a definite time. A little while is also so vague that no one can take him to court for it after he leaves office. Most of us are like he was during his first campaign and term. He lied and never thought it would be used against him.

Today, he is starting to realize that we, the people, are not as stupid as he thought. Even those who believed his lies and ignored the confusion he attempted to perpetrate in America have started to rise from their sleep. He will call them woke because that is the same thing, only he uses it as an insult.

This year, all the legislatures of both the US and each state will be elected. To stop the so-called war in Iran and the Trumpites’ quest to dominate the world as Hitler did in World War II, we need to throw out both the Republicrats and Demicans. If you can, in your state, select representatives who are non-partisan. That is the only way to stop this madness.

Memories on mission

April 22, 2026

What brings back memories? The parents of a lady in our church on Sunday started me remembering. This couple from Texas was visiting their daughter’s family for the birthday of a grandchild. Texas to Springfield, Missouri, does not seem like a great distance, but for working people, it can be. Memories of a mission trip to Houston, Texas, came back.

I was serving as interim youth minister when a new pastor and his family came to our church. This was in the early spring, and the youth leadership had not made any plans for a mission trip that summer. As we discussed possible locations for ministry, we were presented with a plan to go to Houston.

They had taken other groups in previous years and made contacts for us. As we made the preparations, I began having dreams about being at a church and seeing a young girl crossing the street. I saw a car coming down the street, and I ran out and grabbed her and threw her to the side of the road.

My youngest daughter was one of the youths on the trip. And I saw her crouching by me and crying each night just as I awoke. This continued for about two weeks before we left. When we arrived at the church where we would work that week, I recognized it as the building from the dream.

All week, I was watching the street anytime we were outside, and I scanned the kids to try to find that girl. I did not see her, and nothing happened. My first night back home, I awoke from another dream in which I saw the church again and a voice that said, “You watched to prevent someone else’s death, what about your own?”

I am sure you are wondering what this could mean. I knew immediately where this was coming from. I had been having blood in my stool for these three weeks from time to time. I had not told anyone about this, not even my wife. That morning, I told my wife I needed to make an appointment with my doctor to talk about the bleeding.

He recommended that I have a colonoscopy to be sure there were no problems. A few nights after the procedure, I received a call from the doctor. He had told us they had removed two polyps, and he told me that one was clear and the other had a few cancer cells in the head. After hanging up the phone, I started crying when I told this to my wife.

I have been cancer-free for about thirty years now. I have not shared this dream and my message from God with anyone in all that time. I know what most of you who have not had this type of experience will be thinking. I made this up. That’s why I’ve never told anyone. That is the exact reason I withheld that information.

There may be someone out there who is experiencing warning signs of disease that you are ignoring. Let me remind you of the story about the man who was a flood victim. He had a warning before the flood hit and ignored it. He said God will take care of him.

A boat came by later to pick him up, and he said that God would save him. As he was on the roof of the house, a helicopter came to his rescue, and once again, he declared God would save him. In Heaven, he asked God why He did not save him. The reply was, “I warned you, sent a boat and a helicopter. What more did you want?” Keep that in mind if you are ignoring warnings.

Do not build your brand

April 21, 2026

As a writer, I am often encouraged to do things that will make me more popular and profitable. As a born-again believer, I am not in this for fame or money. My brand is not to be built by me. I should strive to glorify my Savior, Jesus.

In Acts 4:23-31, Peter and John have just been released by the Sanhedrin, who were the ones who took their teacher to Pontius Pilate and forced him to crucify Christ. It had to be done for all of humanity to be redeemed from our sin. That does not mean that these Jews are forgiven for their hate.

You and I do things often for our own benefit or because we want things to go our way. This never makes it correct. God knows that we will do what we will do. That is part of who He is. Omniscient is the word that we use to describe that He knows everything.

The question is often asked, “If there is a God and He loves us. Why do all these bad things happen to good people?” President Bill Clinton said that it depends on your definition of ‘is’. What does that mean? The I Am is the name of the Hebrew God. Some say Jehovah and others Yahweh. Either way, it means “I am that I am” or is He?

Is He God or not? Did He create the world or not? Is Jesus His son or not? Why does He not come down here and show Himself so that we have no doubts that He is who He said He was? He did that.

A man named Jesus was born around two thousand years ago. Like all humans, He lived a life, did His chosen profession, and died. He was nothing special. The gospels and other New Testament books were created by some demented men who just wanted to give churches a way to take money from the ignorant and unsuspecting masses.

Do you believe that? I don’t. I do not have enough faith to believe that this universe was an accident. To me, it takes more belief than I can conjure up to believe that nothing existed, then it exploded, and our planet’s existence was a fluke. The order we see around us, the laws of physics that we have ascertained, are all coincidental, and this can be proven by these same scientific principles, which were violated by the beginning of all that we experience.

I wonder who the ones are that are really confused. If matter and energy cannot be destroyed, where did they come from in the first place? My book, “Cosmic Flatulence,” is my attempt to explain the Big Bang Theory and how science can be understood.

No cloud of gas appeared from nothingness. The I Am has always existed. Jehovah was not created by man; that is what makes Him the creator. He has always been here, and if you believe that a cloud of gas came from nothing and exploded to form our universe, I guess Yahweh let a fart.

I am here to tell His story, to proclaim the day of the Lord so that you will understand. I am not here to build myself or my brand. I’m just telling you the truth and letting you decide for yourself whether Jesus is The Way, The Truth, and The Life, as He said He was.

Do not try to persuade others to agree with you, buy your line, and support your brand. Follow The Way, believe The Truth, and enjoy The Life which is as eternal as He is. I do not know how to explain it any better than He did. If God never existed until we made Him up, how did all of this get here?

The Hole in my Vision

April 12, 2026

If at f”irst you don’t succeed, try, try, again.” is sage wisdom I have not always followed. It is usually easier to just give up. I have spent a number of attemps to log on to my computer tonight. God woke me up and won’t let me go back to sleep without writing my thoughts down. This is not an unusual experience for me

yesterdayI had the second of two cataract surgeries. When I AWAKE, MY intention was to write until my mind was clear and return to bed. I was told today before the surgery that I have a whole in the back of my left eye. We won’t know until it heals from the first surgerynifmitmcan benrepaired.

There is a distinct gap in mynvision, because my right eye has a patch on it that will be removed later today. Then I will be able to see better. It will be awhile before I can use my friends, the glasses, asmImhave for over fifty years. . I will add more to this later, but for now, I must go on to what awoke me.

That was many years ago. To show my problems, I have left those paragraphs as I typed them. You do not know how hard it is for me to publish this without editing. I want you to know where I was when I began this journey.

The hole in my vision is not imagined. It is literal. Let me step away from that analogy and step into a metaphor. We all have holes in our vision. There are things that we do not see, cannot see, and refuse to see. We will deal with these three topics in order.

I have no control over the things I can’t see. My blindness is caused by outside forces. It is like the hole in my eye. It happened gradually and not even my doctor saw it until the cataract was removed. Because it is not my fault, it does not mean I should not endeavor to correct it or work around this handicap. Paul of Tarsus refers to a thorn in his side that he had to work around. He asked God to remove it and heal him on three occasions with no results. His decision was to accept it as a gift and move on.

What is blocking your vision that you did not cause? Have people failed to advise you of needs? You can’t serve when the situation is unknown to you. Have you tried to solve a known situation with no success? This might be due to the person refusing aid or someone else blocking your assistance. If you have prayed and asked for wisdom in how to overcome these obstacles, it may not be you that is called to be of service.

This has happened to me, and I have not always used the wisdom Jehovah will give to me. Sometimes I refuse to ask for His guidance. Other times my ego is in the way. In some cases, I become angry with those who don’t want my assistance, and I fail to forgive. I must realize that I might not be as correct as I believe I am.

A comment to someone else with the abilities, skills, and time to serve may get the job done by another without me. In another situation, my resources may be needed, but not through me personally. If I don’t care who receives the glory, why do I have to be more than in the background?

Charles (Chuck) Kensinger

Walk With a Servant

Category: Let’s talk about