Charles (Chuck) Kensinger

Lost, yet found

February 26, 2026

Recently, our dog was able to get out of our fenced backyard. We were devastated and went looking for him. My wife posted pictures of him on Facebook and Lea’s Lost and Found. He was returned to us by a very kind lady who told us he came up to her, scratching on her car door.

Friends were watching in our neighborhood, and a doorbell video was sent to us, and he was found not far from that location. He had a chip, collar, and rabies tag, which helped to identify him as ours. A few thoughts have come to my mind.

Thank you to everyone who saw the posts and especially to the lady who took him to her home and brought Biscuit to me after Cindy called her and identified him. She was kind and knew he had to belong to someone who was looking for him. Thank you also to Lea Moody and KY3 for the site that was used to establish contact between us and the woman that he went to.

When we first took Biscuit in from a family whose father had gone into a nursing home, we had him run off if he got out into the unfenced front yard. We had a chip put into him by the Humane Society. Thank you to them, as well. They work hard to help families keep and reconnect with their pets.

When he returned home, he was so happy to be back. His attitude toward being out in our fenced backyard was different. He was anxious and did not want to be left alone. We could tell that he was afraid he might have lost humans who loved him, again.

For those of you who do not know Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, have you realized that you are lost and need to be found? We are smarter than dogs. Biscuit knew to go to a human hoping for help. You need to go to Jehovah and ask Him to take you back into His good graces by accepting Him as your savior and Lord.

You say you do not believe in God or Jesus. Do you believe that anyone could help you with your feelings of being lost? Why not give Him a try? A lost dog tried the first person he found. That turned out to be the one that could help. Make the attempt. Finding someone to talk to about your feelings is another thing to do. If you have a church that you know, the pastor might be a person to help you. Ask him or her to tell you about Jesus as well.

Don’t use the excuse that you have done things that God would never forgive. There is only one sin that He will not forgive. That is rejecting His Son. Have you read about the two men who were crucified with Jesus? One rejected Him, and the other asked to be remembered when He came into His Kingdom. That man was told he would be with Jesus that day.

Refusing to believe is your choice. Suffering the consequences of your choices is a common thing for us. Do not believe that Yahweh will make you live with Him throughout eternity if you do not wish to. After all, He wants you to have what you want, even if that is a life without Him.

I don’t always understand

February 25, 2026

“I trust His ways, but I do not always understand them.” It is a line by John Ritter as Reverend Matthew Fordwick in the Waltons TV series from the 1970s. This is from season 1, episode 24, where Olivia is diagnosed with polio. This series is set in the 1930s, during the Great Depression. Polio was a devastating disease at that time that had no vaccine available to protect the population.

Reverend Fordwick comes to visit Mrs. Walton in the early days of her illness and is questioned by Grandma as to the seriousness of the disease. She replies that she thought he was a man of God. His reply is one that I, as a minister, have used myself. I have also stated when asked why God allows or causes things to happen that I am in sales, not in management.

I’ve worked in sales and management for different companies. In a position where my job was to convince customers to purchase products, there were some questions I could not answer. When I was a store manager, it was my responsibility to always answer a client’s questions to the best of my ability. I did my best in both situations.

There were times when customers would not like my decisions about how to solve a problem. I had superiors whom they could refer to. On more than one occasion, I gave the names and contact information to the complainer. Not once was I overturned. This was not the case in every management position I occupied.

I do not understand why God created human beings. I know, I’ve heard the preachers say that He needed someone to love. He already created dogs and cats. They are more lovable than most people. My cat is on my lap at this moment, and the dog is next to Cindy.

Yes, sometimes the dog doesn’t do what he is told to, but the cat never follows orders. And unlike children, you cannot beat her into submission. She’s too fast. Turn around, and she is gone, and you will never find her.

I do not understand why, when He loved us so much, we must take care of the animals. Why weren’t they created to work for us and let us lie around all day and sleep? Put a bowl of Chex mix on the table with my insulated cup of iced tea, and I’ll be fine. No one is required to take me outside or clean my litter box.

If I were God, I would . . . have really botched things up. I don’t even know what my wife wants for Christmas. How would I keep the seas from flooding the shores and tell the birds and the butterflies when to fly south? Maybe I should just accept that He knows best and let Him stay in charge. Especially in my life.

City Utilities

February 24, 2026

Yes, once again, I am speaking about local events here in Springfield, Missouri, where I live. We are the third largest city in our state and the largest of all the Springfields in the U.S. If you think I am incorrect, check the last census. I’m not like the President; you can check your facts to prove me right or wrong.

A company seeking to provide battery storage for our utility company may be denied access to property near my home. There are infrastructure and groundwater contamination problems that their proposal does not address. This company does not have a lot of experience here in our country.

C.U. still needs a cost-effective solution for expanding its services as our area grows even more. I would like to make a suggestion. Would it help to eliminate about twenty percent of your consumers from your grid? Not just drop them as customers, but change them to suppliers of energy.

Some areas allow or even encourage users to install solar and wind generators on their property. These can be businesses or homes. They can invest in the equipment to produce and store energy, and electric companies purchase the surplus that they generate. If five percent of your local users become suppliers, that might be a large part of solving this future problem.

There is a house down the street from us where a previous owner had a turbine and solar panels. Unlike some homes, his panels were raised on a frame that would allow him to point them at the sun as it traveled through the sky. I always wanted to stop and ask him about these devices and never took the time.

Both technologies have improved over the years to a point where they are more efficient than they once were. Remember, I am speaking from sixty years of experience. I am a novice in my knowledge of how it works, not in the fact that it is useful.

On a recent trip, Cindy and I saw wind turbines in a hay field, and at other times we have seen the arrays of solar panels. I have also observed businesses and homes installing these devices on their buildings and properties to supply their electrical needs. I watch commercials about storage units that can be attached to maintain independence from electrical grids in power outages.

Let me mention factories that I called on, which had waste materials that they used to power generators to supply the requirements of not just the plants, but the neighborhoods around them. I’ve been at Evangel University’s and School of the Ozarks power stations and seen how these operate.

One of my customers in the 1990s made loads of money designing and building generators for those who wanted to be prepared in case the dire predictions associated with computers at the turn of this century came true. I spoke with him shortly before he retired to a farm where his family was ready to survive no matter what happened after December 1999.

I am making these statements to spark interest by our utility suppliers in encouraging individual investments as a way of increasing their power supply. Long-term contracts and government assistance might be used to reduce the costs for everyone involved.

Do a little research and explore the feasibility of these options. I failed to mention the methane plant I saw where a sawmill had dumped sawdust and woodchips for decades. This plant had been powering electricity for one community for over a year when it was pointed out to me late in the last century.

I Believe You

February 23, 2026

I want you to listen to this song by Megan Woods. It should speak to you even if you do not believe Him at this point in your life. Music is an excellent way for Jehovah to reach us. That is why He gave it to His people.

King David wrote songs. Our Bible calls them Psalms, and there are more than just what is in that book. Most of us know at least some of the Twenty-Third Psalm. It is the one that begins, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” Remember it now? Look it up and read it.

Megan tells us at the opening of this song some things that we do not want to admit. We tell others that we are O.K. Do we really expect others to believe this lie? We can tell if someone says this that they are not fine. We are all lost at some point in our lives.

It is easier to doubt. I doubted it at one time in my life. People in my Church let me down. They fired our pastor, again. It wasn’t the first time they had disappointed me in the way they acted. These were Deacons in the Church. They should know better.

I dropped out of that body of believers. I was questioning Yahweh, I was refusing to believe them, not Him. I believe that He is fighting for me. At that time, I needed to have it proven to me, and they were not doing that for me. Later, a new pastor visited me and invited me to a class for college-age students.

I believed him even though I did not know him, because he came with one of my best friends and invited me to join that group. Because of his ministry, I changed my mind about what I was to do in my life. God showed me He wanted me to attend a different college. I believed Him.

I did not see what He had for me. I liked writing stories, and my story wasn’t finished. I followed His plot, not my own. I have doubts. Not Him, I have been unsure of myself, and if I was hearing what I thought I was being told. I’ve asked for confirmation and always received it when I was willing to listen.

Do you want to understand what you are being told? He wants you to listen to what Jesus said when He was here on this planet. I know people tell you that is a myth. Check it out for yourself. I have researched what is said about this man. He did live. He was murdered. He did nothing to deserve death. You know this happens.

He was God, He could have stopped it. He did not because the plan was for His life to be given for you and me. I got that when I was a kid, did you? Have you forgotten when you believed it? Trust Him again like I did when I was in college. He wants to be your savior and your guide.

We use the term, Lord. That just means that you are willing to follow what He tells you. Remember that Psalm, the one that is numbered twenty-three. He is your shepherd, just watch what he does and follow Him. It is that easy. Try it, you’ll like it.

Perfection

February 22, 2026

You have probably noticed it when you’ve read my columns. I am not perfect. I have more bad news for you. You aren’t either. Ready for the extremely awful revelation? We will never be perfect if we are on Earth. If we have a personal relationship with Jesus, He will make us perfect in His presence.

Do you get it? No one is what they can be. When we listen to Holy Spirit, we will do better than we are at this moment. That is not the best we can be. There is always room for improvement. The best way to grow is to realize this.

You ain’t there yet. Yes, I slipped into my native Ozarkian. Jesus spoke Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic. Since He is God, He could have used any known and unknown languages while he was here. He knew what people were thinking. Read the gospels. Was He ever surprised at situations?

The Sadducees asked about a woman who was married seven times, and they wanted to know who her husband would be at the resurrection. Jesus did not stutter when His answer was, “You do not understand.” (Luke 20:27-40) I often do not know what someone is saying.

God always knows what you are saying and what you really mean. My spelling and grammar check tries to correct some of the phrases I use. It is artificial intelligence. It was made by people. It does not know what Jehovah wants me to say to you at this moment.

AI cannot be programmed to speak for Yahweh. It does not have a soul or spirit. or body. AI isn’t even real. You do understand what the word artificial means, don’t you? It is another word for fake. Got it? You do not want to be a fraud. Be a real human being. Be willing to be wrong and admit it.

Life is not a mistake. While we live, we make mistakes. There is a difference. I can use artificial sweeteners, flavorings, or intelligence. They may help with certain things, or they will backfire and cause me even more trouble. You make the choice; you face the consequences.

Even the President of the United States makes mistakes and must deal with the consequences of his decisions. Did you notice that I did not use a capital “H” on that pronoun? I only use that for God. And he ain’t Him. Neither are you nor I.

Perfection can be obtained, but only when we are taken home to the presence of our Lord and Savior. If you know Jesus as many of us do, then you are trying to get better every day. If not, join us, and we will be perfect together someday with Him.

The writing process

February 21, 2026

Once again, I am up early. It is Sunday morning. The radio clock will come on in a few minutes. Cindy will start to arouse sometime after that and begin to get ready for church. When I got up, Essa, the cat, was all over me in bed. My brain was full of thoughts, and I was having trouble getting back to sleep.

So, I got up. This is my writing process. I know that many professional writers use different techniques from mine. Let’s establish this first. I am not now, and never have made my living from my writing. I write because I have a brain, and my way of exercising it is to express the things that enter my head in a printed form.

Someday this column may appear in some part of a book, if I choose to add it to one. That’s also part of my process. I will get up in a minute and let Biscuit, our dog, go outside to do his business. I am not one of those writers who can go into my office, lock the door, and spend hours at the keyboard.

I have a life like most of you. Does it bother you when you read a book on writing and the author tells you that you must spend a set amount of time alone without distractions? It does me. I’ve never been able to do that. I’ve always had a family. Cindy, the girls, and the animals come first. Then I can write when I have a few minutes.

Currently, I have about seven of these columns in a queue to be published on Doiloigroup.org on a certain date. I’ve developed this technique over the years I have published these columns. There are over a hundred columns and at least seven or more books in various files on this computer.

Let me revise those numbers. These files may be well into the hundreds. They are not all on this laptop. Some are on paper, a separate hard drive, or in notebooks I used before I had a computer. When I have time, I review these ideas wherever I have them. That is also part of my process.

Yes, it is an eclectic or odd way of doing this thing we call writing. I’ve been a writer for over sixty years. I learned to put letters together to form words, and then sentences, paragraphs, and articles. These have sometimes been put into books. You can read these books as I put them together in my premium materials. That will cost you money to see. Why? Because I want to know how serious you are about reading and learning from me.

As I asked God what He wanted me to do, He explained that my ministry in the business world is now over. He wants that service to be translated back into my career as an author. My books will not be published by traditional companies. So He had me start Douloigroup.org.

Other authors do not want you to see how hard it is for them to create. I want you to realize that it is not easy for any of us to do this thing we call writing. I told you I would be interrupted and must come back. I was wrong because, at this point, I have been composing these words for almost thirty minutes.

This is unusual for me. I wrote this column to encourage those of you with busy lives who have delayed calling yourselves writers because you have not yet been published. Not all of us need to have books printed. I decided years ago to just write and publish when I could, and now, I do. Try it, you’ll like it.

The Formula for Happiness

February 20, 2026

Happiness is elusive. We may be ecstatically happy one moment, and then something happens to destroy that wonderful emotion. That is why happiness is a lifelong goal for us. Finding that joy in a person, home, car, job, or lifestyle causes us to feel that peace is not possible.

An episode of “Father Knows Best” originally aired on April 5, 1959, and deals with this idea. It was titled “Formula for Happiness.” Jim Anderson, played by Robert Young, has a dream where he is going on global television in response to a request by the President of the United States to share a formula for happiness that is sealed in an envelope.

The focus throughout the next day is on this formula and the man who is trying to acquire it to keep it for only those that he and his company believe deserve it. Anderson wants to give the secret to everyone. Of course, this is the correct position because the father does know best. The question is “Where did this dream originate?”

As the story progresses, we discover that Kathy, Anderson’s youngest daughter, wrote an essay on this topic. She wanted her dad to have his secretary type it for her. Another ongoing focus of the episode is that while he knows best, father may not always do the best thing. Recurring times occur when he tells her that he is busy with something else. As you watch, look for the lessons this situation comedy teaches.

The secret to happiness is contained in Kathy’s essay. The essence of it is, “Everyone would be happier if they treated others the way they want to be treated.” Anderson words it this way after reading the paper, “Do unto others as you would have them do to you.” Yes, that is the golden rule taught by Jesus.

When Jesus said the greatest commandment was to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and strength, and the second-best was to love our neighbor as ourselves, He was restating this differently. The focus of the Bible is love. For Jehovah and human beings, if we focused on someone other than ourselves, happiness would no longer be elusive. It would be easy to obtain.

In our world of 2026, happiness is no easier to find than it was in 1959. It is still fleeting. You find it for one minute, and then whatever created it no longer has the same effect on you it did minutes before. Some of us have happy marriages or relationships, for a time. Then something happens.

There is still no formula for happiness. If you want to be happy, accept what God and life is giving you. Change it for the better where you can and be happy that there are possibilities. Ask for and accept help. That can be a difficult lesson to learn. Look for a hand up, not a handout.

He wasn’t willing to back down

February 19, 2026

Have you seen the newly released video of the altercation between Alex Pretti and Federal officers? No, I am not talking about the ones where he was murdered in a street. I am speaking of one where he spits on a vehicle and kicks out a taillight. All we see in this incident is him being taken down.

If that had been me, I would not have chosen to continue to confront these madmen. I try not to be confrontational. That does not look good for a minister or an emergency room nurse. He chose to act on what he thought was correct. Some call him stupid. I think the difference between stupidity and courage is a fine line.

I would like to discuss this. Some examples of courage are standing against bullies, helping out a person facing danger, even if it puts you in danger, or standing against racism or prejudice. This is what Mr. Pretti did.

The agents were doing more than just their jobs. Have you noticed the President and other officials stepping back from what they have been trying to justify? How many will lose their jobs because of this death? He did not want to die, but he was not willing to back away from injustice.

The President says that he is doing what he said he would do by removing illegal immigrants from our country. The problem is the methods they are using. Did you know that Texas has significantly more law violators from other countries than Minnesota? Why did the Immigration officials not start there?

Just this week, an illegal immigrant from South America murdered a man here in Springfield, MO. He is being held in the Greene County jail for an ICE pick-up. Maybe one of those officers from Minnesota who likes to kill people can come get him and see if he makes it across the state line.

We are in the seventh Congressional District of Missouri. Highly Republican and Trumpite in sentiment. If ICE gets him and takes him out of the country and loses him, no one will ever have to worry about him again. We Ozarkians know what to do with murderers.

Some other facts have recently come up. CBS released statistics from a Homeland Security report that reports that less than fourteen percent of the detainees that ICE has seized have been held for being criminals.

We all need to follow Pretti’s lead and not back down from a fight. President Trump says that he wants to remove illegal aliens and send them packing. How about helping the Republican Greene County Sheriff get rid of those in his lock-up?

If they’ve been arrested legally, had their preliminary hearing, and are awaiting extradition back to where they belong, I am sure Sheriff Arnott will have no problem handing them over. Maybe the Homeland Security Director would like to have Trump come with her for a photo opportunity to show they are doing something other than murdering Americans

Veggie Pizza

February 18, 2026

You may have seen this recipe before. We borrowed it from a Pillsbury flyer years ago. It is a family favorite.

Ingredients:

2 ea. rolls crescent roll dough

8 oz. sour cream

2-3 Tbs. horse radish sauce or horse radish

Green onions chopped

Tomatoes chopped

Broccoli florets chopped

Other vegetables that your family likes, such as mushrooms, celery, or cauliflower.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Roll the crescents out on a baking sheet and flatten to form a solid sheet. Puncture with a fork to prevent bubbling. Bake in the oven at 350 F for 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool completely.

Mix the sour cream and the horseradish or sauce until well distributed. Spread over the cooled crust. Layer the vegetables over the sauce and cut them to serve. Refrigerate before and after serving.

I know some of you have trouble feeding vegetables to your family. Our daughter, who claimed she did not like onions, ate this as a child and serves it to her kids. Most kids will eat some vegetables if prepared in a fun, appetizing dish. Pick the ones they will eat. You might need to make each pizza half with different ingredients for certain family members.

Take Responsibility

February 17, 2026

Are certain people exempt from the penalties of our legal system? Many people violate our laws every day. In Springfield, police officers run red lights, fail to follow traffic laws, and endanger innocent civilians for no valid reason. As Christians, forgiveness should be our creed. As law-abiding citizens, we sometimes grow fed up with those who believe they are above the law.

Another politician has been accused of driving under the influence. Apparently, he is not going to fight the charge that he was intoxicated. His defense is a 100-year-old law that protects legislators during a session. He did not apologize for betraying his constituents’ trust. He did not admit that he was intoxicated when he was stopped.

Forgiving those who are trying to straighten their lives out might be a good practice for individuals. It is not for the government. Law enforcement should do that, enforce the laws. Whether someone is a politician, a celebrity, a friend of the police, or the police themselves, they should face the full force of the law.

Until no one is given special rights, there will be no equal rights for anyone. When equal rights are mentioned, it is usually in response to racial situations. Our officials need to grow up and realize that the privileges they believe they deserve undermine their authority. The voters need to take responsibility away from these lawbreakers. They should force them from their jobs and require them to work for a living.

Some legislators seem to believe that when they are elected, they become superior to the electorate. The only way to stop this is to remove everyone who shows this type of arrogant attitude. Voters often believe that their legislators should be forgiven, while those from other areas should be removed from their offices. No wonder our country is in the condition it is in.

You all know that our current President still says that he won the election in 2020. He claims it has been proven to be true. The only one who believes this is himself. He cannot admit that he lost. His claim of this injustice brought him back to the eye of the voters, who believe the other lies he tells. Today, he had to take a step back from his Gestapo tactics against illegal aliens.

He needs to admit that he is wrong. Congress has allowed him to continue to try to thwart our laws and even the US Constitution. November will be the election to depose this hypocrisy and turn our government around. We don’t want what MAGA wants. We want America to be Good Again.

Walk With a Servant