Category: Words

Where?

January 16, 2026

We all ask this question at some time. The five questions that we seek to answer in journalism are who, what, when, and where. Why is seldom added in a straight news story. I often ask that question. I am sure that you will also do this. The question today is where?

Where are you going? Where have you been? For my younger readers, you are more interested in the future. We older folks often focus on the past. We should all look both ways before we take a step. Like your parents taught you when crossing a street.

In my teens, I decided to become a writer. Journalism was my first thought. That is what I trained for in high school. In my first two years, I decided to attend a college that had no journalism program, so I listed my major as creative writing. That was the closest they had. That is what I did today.

For me, the answer to where I have been would require many more words than I wish to share here. I desire to encourage you to contemplate not only the places that you have been, but where they have led you and will lead you again. Our path should be plotted by our Lord.

This is what I have attempted to do. My location at this time in a physical sense is not as important as where I am in my spiritual journey. God has taken me through my educational and business careers to my new avocation as an author. This column is a small portion of that.

My ministry continues in the books I am writing. Scripts for plays and shows that I have conceived over the decades are in process. I wish to continue teaching others what Christ has shown me for more than fifty years. This is where I am traveling to.

Your path is different from mine in many ways. I hope that your eternal home is the same as mine. That is in the presence of Jehovah God. This location is usually referred to as Heaven. Some believe this is our default when our bodies die. Part of my ministry is to tell you that this is a lie told by our adversary.

A decision must be made on where you will spend eternity. I’m sorry that I must tell you that the belief I have in the Bible and what it says about Jesus, who is God, compels me to be honest that I do not think you will escape hell unless He is your Lord and Savior.

I advise you not to gamble with your destiny. The choice to accept the gift that you have been given by the life, death, and resurrection of my Lord, Jesus, is life through Him. I hope that is where you will eventually achieve with all His other followers.

©Copyright 2026 by Charles Kensinger

Responsible

January 8, 2026

Here we are with another word for 2026. I’ve decided that I need to be responsible for sharing these words with you. If you need a definition, let me explain it this way. If you caused something to happen, you are the one responsible.

I know that you have heard of the principle of cause and effect. It is a physics principle, but it is also social in nature. You need to be willing to admit when something is your fault. If you don’t want to do this, you will probably become a politician.

I’ve been a responsible person all my life. Anytime my parents noticed a problem and asked my brothers and I who had done something bad, they always said that I was the one responsible. This was often not the truth. Older siblings can do that to you.

If they had broken a window or dumped the trash can or spilled something on the floor, I was the perfect scapegoat. They always had a ready excuse. Charles did it. I was two and four years younger than they were, and until I was about six, I often took the blame.

Then I found my voice. This is the problem of not wanting to be responsible for your own actions. Others have voices. In our world of technology, there is often a way to determine where a problem came from.

One of my coworkers liked to use my computer when I was out to lunch. One day, I returned to the office and was presented with an order that a customer said was incorrect. My boss instructed me to correct the problem, and I did. I knew I had not entered that order, even though the sheet she had in her hand noted the time, date, and terminal it had come from.

I kept that sheet in my desk drawer. The next day, when he and I were the only ones in the office, I laid it in front of him. I mentioned that the next time he made an error, I wanted him to admit it.  He said it had come from my computer. I reminded him of when I went to lunch every day and walked away.

That never happened again because I logged out of my terminal when I walked away from it. His mistakes could not be denied when the only machine he could use was his own. He lasted about two more months.

Own up to your own problems. They will come back to bite you in the derriere at some point. You don’t know what that is? It is your butt. If you do not want it to be chewed, take responsibility for your own actions. Stop throwing others under the bus.

It is said that we should learn from our mistakes. I’ve learned a lot that way because I had to. I’ve been the one who has also learned from others’ wrongdoing. I don’t smoke because one of my brothers vomited the first time he took a drag. I don’t drink because friends in high school were expelled for being drunk in class.

Life is a learning experience. Use every lesson that is given to you to make you a better person. Take responsibility for your actions and words, and do not pass the buck to some unsuspecting victim. As the sign on President Truman’s desk said, “The buck stops here.” Take his advice, and life will be kinder to you in the long run.

©Copyright 2026 by Charles Kensinger

Words

January 1, 2026

A local radio personality asked people to call in with a word for the year. He felt like this was better than asking about resolutions. I agree. My problem is that I can’t choose one word for the entire year.

Peace, joy, love, kindness, and self-control immediately come to mind. They are things to pray for and strive for. Concentrating on these for just one year will not achieve lasting results. We must focus on them every day, week, and year.

I have a long list of words for different occasions that I will share this year as I think of them. Watch for my new category, words. I will post columns there to give us all additional information about things that will be beneficial to us and our world.

Let’s start with kindness. It is a simple word. A dictionary definition is the quality or state of being kind. Of a sympathetic or helpful nature is the meaning of kind. At least that is the one that relates to kindness. Do you see the problem?

We should all treat each other with kindness, but we disagree on exactly what that means. Let’s try a different approach. Think of a time when someone was not kind to you. That’s easy. You just thought of at least one or two incidents where someone was not kind to you.

Turnabout is fair play. Looking at those actions, consider times when you act like that to others. Do not tell me that you never do that. I know I have times when I am not kind. We are talking about improving ourselves over the next year. First, let’s try not to be unkind.

We can all consider each other as our equals and treat them as such. That is being kind. We are not all kind when we drive. Think about how you act toward other drivers. Some run red lights or stop signs. I have witnessed this. Many of us do not enjoy the roundabouts that we have now. Most have yield signs on all four streets.

Some of you say that you cannot yield to others because they will not yield to you. It does not hurt anyone if I fail to yield. Until I hit another car. That is not being kind. It is also not kind to jump out of your vehicle and scream and yell at another person that you hit. You know you were at fault, but to scare them, you try to make them believe they are responsible.

That will be our next word. I have noticed how many of us seem not to know what it means to take responsibility for our own actions. We will discuss that next time. Until then, I would like each of us to eliminate as much of our unkindness as we can and find ways to be kinder as often as possible. Let’s make our lives better, one word at a time

©Copyright 2026 by Charles Kensinger